I’ve been very touched to see American friends expressing their desire to buy Canadian as a way of showing solidarity in the face of Trump’s destructive tariffs. While Tim Horton’s is no longer Canadian (it’s owned by the same folks who own Burger King and Popeyes), there are lots of Canadian companies that sell their products in the US and beyond.
So I’ve made a list of my favourite Canadian products and suppliers—some of whom I didn’t even know were Canadian until I made this list. Some of these are small local producers and some are big national (or international) brands, and I can’t vouch for the details of their business practices or supply chains. (Not all of these Canadian-owned brands make all their products in Canada.) I’ve removed a couple of brands that turned out to be foreign-owned , because sending profits back to the US seems a bit counter-productive at this time, but I’ve also left in a couple of companies that now have European parents but still base their operations here.
What mattered most to me, in compiling this list, is to help Canada-based companies with Canadian employees…and also, to ensure that if you’re trying any of these brands for the first time, you like what you get, and keep buying it! So these are mostly brands and products I buy from regularly, or in a few cases, drool over in stores and online even if I haven’t yet made a purchase.
Food
- Ayoub’s dried fruits and nuts sells incredible roasted nuts and dried fruits. Their lime & saffron pistachios are addictive.
- Prana Foods makes healthy snacks like yummy nut mixes.
- President’s Choice is (kinda) Canada’s answer to Trader Joe’s: A line of generally very good prepared foods that are the house brand of grocery company Loblaws and carried by US retailers like Walmart.
- Nature’s Path makes breakfast cereals and granola.
- Kicking Horse Coffee makes our favorite coffee beans. (Apparently now largely owned by Italy’s Lavazza, but still roasted here in BC.)
- IndianLife makes vegetarian pre-prepared Indian foods.
- Camino makes fair trade chocolate and cocoa.
- Liberte makes delicious yogurt; they’re based in Canada, and just in the process of being sold by General Mills to a French coop. They still have hundreds of Canadian employees in their production and business operations. I eat their lactose-free yogurt every day, and in my carb-eating days, my favourite treat was fruit topped with their insanely rich lemon yogurt.
Clothing
- Yoga Jeans make fantastic jeans with just a little bit of spandex. I’m still grateful for the day I forgot to pack pants when I went to gym and bought my first pair of Yoga Jeans to solve my little emergency.
- Roots makes great shoes and leather goods.
- Knix has long been my fave source of undies, bras and PJs. They’re now largely owned by a Swedish company but the brand is still based here.
- Mackage makes beautiful jackets and coats (including the red leather jacket in my go-to headshot.)
- Simons is a Canadian department store with a wide range of nicely designed clothing and home goods, including products made by Canadian artisans.
- Aritzia is a Canadian-owned clothing chain with cute casual clothes.
- Tentree is a sustainable clothing company.
Skincare, supplements and cleaning
- Skoah is where I get all my skin care. I use their Dewlux and Gold Serum every day, and rotate among between Hydradew and Klearity mask at night.
- Escents is a soap and aromatherapy company that makes the most delicious-smelling products. We keep our shower stocked with their “wash & bubble” in many scents.
- Jamieson makes vitamins. I’m a big fan of their shelf-stable probiotics.
- Nature Clean makes hypoallergenic, biodegradable laundry and cleaning products.
Furnishings
- Umbra makes simple, practical and often charming decor products like storage containers, hooks, curtain rods and bath accessories.
- Paderno makes high-quality pots, pans and cookware.
- Article sells well-designed furniture for online shipping.
- EQ3 sells stylish modern furniture and home goods.
Tech
- 1Password is the leading password manager (and the Wirecutter’s choice).
- Hover is how we register all our domain names, and in addition to being Canadian, has the advantage of not being GoDaddy.
- Alto’s Adventure is one of our favorite mobile games, made by Toronto-based gaming company Snowman.
Books
- Orca Book Publishers have an incredible catalogue of books for kids and teens.
- Nine Ten Publications publishes books for knitters and fibre crafters.
- Page Two publishes non-fiction books, and has become a global leader in working with authors who want something in between traditional publishing and self-publishing.
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