A year ago, buying Canadian was a reflex. When American tariffs hit, several Canadian provinces pulled products off their shelves, and shoppers responded the same way.
by Dax Dasilva
In response, retailers adapted to the “buy Canadian” movement. They added labels identifying Canadian products, launched dedicated in-store sections, set e-commerce filters for “made in Canada,” and offered loyalty program perks tied to local purchases.
For the past 18 months, Lightspeed has been tracking consumer sentiment around Canadian-made goods. The data tells a different story than the one most retailers have accepted. Buying Canadian has become a permanent shift in how Canadians expect to buy.
A habit, not just a headline
Our latest research shows that 86% of Canadians are already buying, or plan to buy, more Canadian-made products. Seventy percent of shoppers say they’re more committed to buying Canadian than 12 months ago. And 82% now consider it a mostly permanent change, not a phase they’ll grow out of.
That’s an important difference. A reaction fades, but a habit changes how someone shops every week. Retailers who still treat buying Canadian as a temporary shift will be left in the dust by customers who are choosing differently.
The surprising truth about “buy Canadian” shoppers
The numbers show that too many retailers have the wrong customer in mind. There’s a common assumption that values-driven shopping — scanning labels and putting principles first — is a Gen Z habit. Our research says otherwise. The most committed “buy Canadian” consumers are actually Gen Z’s grandparents:
- Only 17% of 18 to 24 year-olds see the shift to buying Canadian as permanent, compared to 39% of those 65 and older
- 34% of the youngest group say they’re much more committed than a year ago, versus 46% of the oldest
- Support for keeping US alcohol off shelves more than doubles across the same age curve, from 22% to 59%
If your messaging, product assortment, or social strategy is built around a younger, values-driven shopper, you may be ignoring the customers who are most committed to buying Canadian.
For retailers, the solution is to build product offerings informed by real purchase behavior instead of assumed demographics. A retailer using real transaction data can see exactly who’s buying Canadian and how often, then create offers, assortment, and marketing around that behavior.
Shopper loyalty has its limits
For consumers, buying Canadian doesn’t come cheap. Staying committed to Canadian-made goods has a real cost, and shoppers feel it. Three-quarters say they’re paying more than a year ago, and only about half consider that acceptable. Almost 20% say they’re now less willing to pay a premium.
Retailers need to keep an eye on that tension. The commitment to buying Canadian is deep, but it’s not unconditional. The customers most invested in this shift — older Canadians — are also the ones with the least patience for being taken for granted on price. They might shop with their values, but they still care about value.
How retailers can adapt to this permanent shift
So what’s the takeaway for retailers? Treat “buy Canadian” as a lasting shopping habit, not just a whim.
That means diversify sourcing away from tariff-exposed suppliers now, while they can still do it thoughtfully. Now’s the time for merchants to invest in products where committed shoppers are concentrating their spend, rather than assembling a catalog built for pre-tariff shopping habits.
Technology has a role to play here, too. Retailers can use it to manage the added complexity of serving a customer base that doesn’t split neatly by generation. The merchants who get this right won’t have the loudest “Support Local” signage. They’ll have systems, inventory, personalization, and even loyalty programs already built for a customer who knows what they are looking for.
Buying Canadian stopped being a reaction a while back. For a growing share of Canadians, especially the ones merchants have historically overlooked, it’s simply how they shop now.
Dax Dasilva is CEO at Lightspeed Commerce
Photo by Maxime Doré on Unsplash
