Canadian Brands Not Made in Canada

There are many brands that take pride in being Canadian, so it’s often shocking to learn that their products are NOT made in Canada. Many brands, whose names we hold in the utmost esteem, are sadly produced in the less than desirable conditions of factories in third-world countries.

A healthy economy is bolstered by buying local– buying national. Despite the fact that the following companies use their Canadian roots as a selling point, much/or most of their products are produced in Asia. Not only are they outsourcing jobs, products made abroad for cheap are generally of compromised quality.

Canadian Brands Not Made in Canada

The follow are some of the big Canada brands that aren’t made entirely in Canada.

Roots

The quintessential Canadian retail store is sadly not made entirely in Canada. Currently they only made 40% of their products in the country, everything else is produced abroad. On their website you’ll find this statement:

“To this day, Roots makes all of its genuine leather goods at its state-of-the-art factory in Toronto. Whenever possible, it makes other products in Canada.”

The truth is that most of their clothing is made in China.

BlackBerry

Perhaps one of the most successful Canadian companies, developed and designed by the Canadian company RIM (Research in Motion), it has never been entirely clear where BlackBerrys are made. Forbes reported that 90% of RIM’s production takes place overseas, mostly in China. This wouldn’t be terribly shocking– most electronics (especially smartphones) are produced in China, including Apple products.

In July 2011, Blackberry announced that it was going to begin producing its smartphones in Malaysia.

ALDO

The ALDO group best known for its shoes sources 60% of its products from China. It also has shoes made in other Asian centers as well as Brazil, Eastern Europe and Italy.

Lululemon

70% of their products are made from third-world countries like China, Vietnam, Thailand, Taiwan, South Korea and South America. Which is horrible to promote themselves as such a conscious company, and considering that their prices are through the roof. On the matter, they have stated:

“Global economic forces… have shifted manufacturing to more cost-attractive locations and resulted in the closure of some domestic factories.”

Sadly, many Canadian companies are having their products made abroad. Even when you see a “Made in Canada” tag, it’s questionable. To don that tag the product must have the minimum of 51% of production cost incurred in the country– the ingredients or parts could come from anywhere.

It’s important that we educate ourselves and become conscious consumers whenever possible.