'There's a shift': U.S. tariff threat spurs new interest in buying Canadian

At Harris Home Hardware in north London, sheets of paper roll off the office printer, each displaying row upon row of bright red maple leafs. 

Owner Ron Harris will have his employees affix the maple leaf labels to Canadian-made products in the store. It's a new initiative, one he said comes as a response to a recent but pronounced rise in customer demand for Canadian-made products.

"That's what the U.S. tariffs have brought to light, that we do have a lot of products that are made in Canada, ones that we are very proud of," said Harris, who's owned the store for 15 years. "People are coming in saying they're supporting us because we're a Canadian-owned company." 

Harris said since the threat of U.S. import tariffs began with the election of President Donald Trump, he's been seeing new faces in the store, which is located in a shopping plaza at Adelaide and Huron streets. Home Hardware branded stores are each independently owned and operated. The roots of the brand trace back to St. Jacobs, Ont., in 1964.  

"We're seeing more people coming in saying they want to buy Canadian and support Canadian, and they're boycotting American suppliers right now," said Kevin Harris, Ron's son. 

For example, when customers ask if there's a Canadian-made ice melter in stock, they are directed to the Jet Blue brand. It's distributed by Tillsonbrands, a company located down the road in Tillsonburg.

For the patriotic seeker of a new snow shovel, Ron recommends a Benchmark-brand model with a hickory handle fashioned by Mennonite woodworkers in St. Jacobs. 

A customer with a sudden urge to paint their walls maple leaf red is directed to Home Hardware's BeautiTone brand, which is made about an hour away at the company's factory in Burford, Ont.

In a recent Facebook post, the store leaned into its Canadian roots. The post featured Canadian flags positioned in the store's windows above a row of metal wheelbarrows. 

"We want to show our support for Canada and Canadians during the US tariff threats," the post said. 

Special 'buy Canadian' section of web page

Andrew Tepperman of Tepperman's furniture and appliances said there's always been a strong "buy Canadian" sentiment among his customers, one that's now grown sharply since the Trump tariff threat. 

"This really intensified the Canadian loyalty to what we produce," said Tepperman. 

Tepperman called the tariff threats a "deep betrayal" for his customers and employees who have strong ties to the United States. 

Tepperman said some of his customers called this week to ask if they could cancel orders of U.S. furniture and exchange those purchases with similar items made in Canada. The store has also added a new "Buy Canadian" section to its website, in response to increased customer demand for Canadian made furniture and mattresses. 

"It's just such a sad thing that we're experiencing this right now," said Tepperman. "It's irrational, it makes no sense."

Steve Copp of Copps Buildall is seeing a similar customer sentiment at his stores. Copps is London-based and has been operated by the same family since the 1870s.

"Oh, there's a shift," said Copp. "We have to stick together and the customers are realizing this."

Copp said while they're happy to point customers toward Canadian-made products on their shelves, sometimes the origin of a specific item isn't so straightforward. 

"When I came into work yesterday, I thought 75 per cent of the stuff that we sell is from Canada," he said. "But then we quickly learned that there are components that go into everything that come from the U.S. and China that are going to be affected."

Canada has 'woken up'

Speaking Tuesday on CBC's London Morning, retail analyst Bruce Winder said renewed interest in buying Canadian isn't a gimmick, but should be a wake-up call that we need to diversify our economy.

"Not everyone can afford to buy Canadian and we don't make everything up here, but definitely people are going to do their part and buy Canadian," he said. "I think Canada has woken up a little bit."