Chocolate rarely takes centre stage in international trade disputes, but the story unfolding on Canadian grocery shelves suggests even dessert can become a battleground for economic identity. Purdys Chocolatier’s unlikely pivot, driven by a groundswell of buy Canadian sentiment, offers a telling case study—one made possible, paradoxically, by an American president’s penchant for tariffs.
For over a century, Purdys built its name on exclusivity, selling its chocolates only inside its own shops. That changed abruptly when tariff tensions between Canada and its southern neighbour punched through the polite veneer of cross-border trade. As shoppers bristled at the prospect of imported goods costing more, attention shifted, almost hungrily, to products waving a maple leaf.
The numbers behind this shift are as stark as a February morning in Barrie: Purdys’ website traffic shot up over 200 percent, while searches asking if the brand was truly Canadian leaped by 300 percent. At Easter, the company welcomed 25 percent more new customers than the previous year. The message was clear, and the company responded with a move unthinkable in its 118-year history—placing Purdys chocolates on the shelves of Save-On-Foods, a western Canadian grocery stalwart.
Kriston Dean, the company’s vice-president of marketing and sales, didn’t mince words. Once tariffs hit the headlines, interest in local products surged. The effect rippled outward, as shoppers, perhaps motivated by pocketbook politics and a dash of patriotism, steered their carts toward homegrown treats. What began as a defensive response to cross-border friction became a rare economic boon for companies willing to read the room. In a twist worthy of a Hollywood script, Trump’s tariff strategy inadvertently handed a lifeline to Canadian firms that could meet the rising demand for domestic goods.
The story isn’t finished. Purdys is watching closely to see if grocers like Save-On-Foods become permanent partners or simply a brief foray into wider markets. For Barrie’s businesses, the lesson is unmistakable: sometimes the best way to weather international storms is to let local roots run deeper. For now, the buy Canadian movement has given new life to old brands, and—thanks, in part, to tariff tensions—has handed some Canadian businesses an unexpected advantage.
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Purdys to sell outside its stores for 1st time due to ‘Buy Canadian’ demand
