Humble Brands, Strong Values, Real Loyalty

Canadians want responsible, not performative

When the United States imposed aggressive tariffs on Canadian goods in 2025 and even threatened to annex the country, the “elbows up” mood spread quickly. Strangers in grocery stores shared tips on produce from beyond the US. Friends half-jokingly encouraged each other to stay strong, resisting a favourite bourbon or skin care potion.

A number of brown liquor devotees have told me about discovering Okanagan Spirits Craft Distillery, whose products are not US bourbon imitators but distinctive products they’ve developed a whole new affinity for. This was not a niche movement. In surveys, significant majorities of Canadians said they were avoiding at least some American products.

A commitment to avoiding US goods was only part of the story. Even larger majorities of Canadians reported seeking out Canadian products. The reasoning seemed to be that if our economy and even our country might be coming under sustained attack, we’d better stick together.

For Canadian businesses, the sudden and intense focus on homegrown brands was a significant opportunity. Some brands were criticized for trying to capitalize on the moment with superficial gestures. But others were ready to rise to the occasion with genuinely appealing offerings and origin stories.

Indeed, as Canada-US tensions disrupted their usual buying habits, many consumers discovered Canadian products they really liked – ones they might have chosen regardless of trade disputes, had they only known about them.

Auspicious timing for local heroes

While US action provided the extra push some consumers needed to explore new products, changes in the values landscape had already been creating a climate where Canadians were likely to be drawn to smaller brands closer to home.

For several years, our Social Values research has shown Canadians increasingly attracted to local businesses whose stories they understand and feel good about. We’ve seen values like National Pride and Confidence in Small Business tick upward, along with Ethical Consumerism and Brand Genuineness (a preference for brands with a meaningful story).

While consumers prefer responsible businesses, the appetite for performative virtue signalling – whether on sustainability or social messages – is low. Canadian consumers seem to want to do business with organizations that are sticking to their knitting and doing it well: simply delivering a great product and acting responsibly at a scale that makes sense, without grandstanding.

The thing about humble, hardworking brands is that they can be harder to discover than those that are more bombastic – unless something like a trade war suddenly points the spotlight in their direction.

There is some indication in sales data that Canadian consumers have pulled back from the peak of their buy-only-Canadian position. This is not surprising for mass market products. But an opportunity remains in specialized markets and for businesses looking to court discriminating consumers – those for whom price is unlikely to trump deeper alignment with what is important to them as Canadian consumers.