Commentary

Will Brits embrace Tim Horton's?

The lessons to be learned in taking a brand to a new country are unfolding live as Tim Hortons UK emerges in her Majesty's homeland.

May 10, 2017 by S.A. Whitehead — Food Editor, Net World Media Group

The lessons to be learned in taking a brand to a new country are unfolding live as Tim Hortons emerges in her Majesty's homeland under a barrage of that trademark British sarcasm about the inferiority of "foreign" brands.

The first UK-based outlet, which opens in "early May" in Glasgow, Scotland, has prompted national media attention in British newspapers and the BBC.

As many know, the British have made a sport out of putting down outside brands, particularly those with a large U.S. presence like the Canadian Tim Hortons brand. And that sport is on full display all around the UK since the announcement.

Some reports have claimed that Tim Hortons' coffee anddoughnuts are less than worthy of the superior culinary demands of the citizens of the United Kingdom, for example. Twitter is buzzing with the news, and it seems many British coffee lovers are excited for the opening, however.

Stateside, little has been said about the brand's trip "across the pond," as there have been no press announcements or other related information. The brand has not responded to QSRWeb's request for comment.

The 53-year-old Tim Hortons brand is hugely popular in Canada, with one media outlet reporting that it sells eight of every 10 cups of coffee sold in Canada. British newspaper The Daily Mail even quotesTim Hortons UK COO Gurprit Dhaliwal as saying, "It's hard to explain just how important Tim Hortons is to Canadians. It's not just a restaurant, it's a way of life and a place of home, and we're positive Great Britain will fall in love the brand."

About S.A. Whitehead

Pizza Marketplace and QSRweb editor Shelly Whitehead is a former newspaper and TV reporter with an affinity for telling stories about the people and innovative thinking behind great brands.