Tim Hortons collaborating with Canadian Tire in a new loyalty partnership is just the latest example of companies establishing a program that advertising and consumer experts say is a way to “lock in” customers.
On Monday, the two companies announced that, starting sometime next year, customers who link their Triangle and Tim Rewards accounts will earn Canadian Tire money on eligible purchases at the restaurant chain.
Linking both accounts will also give customers access to exclusive offers, Canadian Tire said in a news release.
“Tim Hortons and Canadian Tire are two of the country’s most recognized and beloved brands and we’re thrilled to join forces to bring even more value to Canadians,” said Darryl Jenkins, executive vice-president and chief development officer with the Canadian Tire Corporation.
Many companies have set up loyalty programs over the years, ranging from Aeroplan to PC Optimum and more.
However, joint ventures like Tim Hortons and Canadian Tire, or PC Optimum and DoorDash that was announced in June, are a way to get people to return, said University of Toronto marketing professor David Soberman.
“You want to lock-in customers,” Soberman, who works at the Rotman School of Management, said.
“When you have a loyalty program, people want to go back and buy from the same retailer or the same company in order to gather points, which then gives them the opportunity for either rewards or cash back at the retailer.”
He added partnership programs can also allow companies to “pick up” new customers that “are not yet in your particular sphere,” or expand where your targets “overlap,” such as with the DoorDash and PC Optimum partnership.
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“If people are going to order groceries through DoorDash or they’re going to order products from the drug store, these things can steer the customer towards their (PC) line of business,” Soberman said.
Companies partnering up, though not new, is becoming a big trend, according to retail analyst Bruce Winder.
He said it’s becoming a great way for companies to create traffic at each others’ businesses.
“We’re seeing a lot of different companies partner because they want to access each other’s traffic — it’s like a synergy,” he told Global News. “They can create more traffic together than they can by themselves.”
But while consumers may be benefitting from offers and giving companies more customers, the businesses are also getting access to more than just revenue, they’re gaining access to a variety of consumer information.
Barry Choi, a personal finance expert, told Global News this information can then be used by companies in some cases to earn more money through vendors.
“A grocery store might go to a pasta company and be like, ‘Hey, we’re seeing that our customers are buying your competitor’s brand. If you give us a better price, we’ll give points to get people to buy,’” Choi said.
“I’m sure they’re charging those vendors for those bonuses, so it’s just another way to make money.”
Choi noted companies may also use the data as a way to see how people might react to loyalty offers, such as if a certain amount off on gas or a product might get people to return in the future.
There can be concerns, though, with Choi noting companies may also sell your data to others.
Yet according to Soberman, that can come with signing up for these loyalty programs but not reading the fine print.
“There’s all these forms that you have to sign up for and tick and most people don’t read them,” Soberman said. “Then when their data gets sold or they find something in their feed or an ad that comes that sort of knows that they just joined something, they might be upset, but that’s kind of the way the internet (is).”
If consumers are concerned about their data, Winder says people may need to decide if they’re open to making the tradeoff.
“That’s loyalty behind the scenes, behind the curtain and loyalty has always been the fact that you kind of trade your data for some perks, for some points or discounts or things like that,” Winder said. “So society has decided that’s a fair trade.”
—with files from Global News’ Amandalina Letterio
© 2025 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.
