By Eleanor Coopsammy and Geoff Kirbyson
When is an eatery with an American name not American? When it’s Canadian, of course.
Restaurants such as Boston Pizza, St. Louis Bar & Grill, Lone Star Texas Grill and New Orleans Pizza are doing their best to fly the Maple Leaf in response to U.S. President Donald Trump’s trade war.
But they’re not like those American travellers you see in Europe with the Maple Leaf sewn on their backpacks. Even though their names look and sound distinctly American, these brands are actually owned by Recipe Unlimited Corp., a wholly Canadian-owned and operated company.
(The parent of RUC, which was known as Cara Operations Ltd. for nearly 60 years until 2018, is Toronto-based Fairfax Financial Holdings.)
Jeff Swystun, a Winnipeg-based marketing and branding consultant, says the “Buy Canadian” movement that began in grocery stores shortly after Trump returned to the White House in January is moving into the hospitality sector. Canadians’ elbows are once again up (but off the tables).
“There’s confusion, “ he says. “When you have a name like Lone Star Texas Grill or Montana’s, obviously the association is with America itself. Many Canadians believe those are American brands when they’re not.”
Boston Pizza, for example, was started in Edmonton in 1964 by Greek immigrant Gus Agioritis.
“It’s as Canadian as Canadian can be,” Swystun says.
So is A&W, the home of the burger family, which opened its first Canadian location in Winnipeg in 1956 as part of the American chain’s growth. But in 1972, the Canadian operations were sold to Unilever, leading to the subsidiary’s separation from the U.S.-based company, and A&W Canada has been based in North Vancouver ever since.
Canadian graphic designers have been busy removing red, white and blue across branding materials and replacing it with maple leaves.
St. Louis Bar & Grill has has taken things one step further from its Toronto head office, renaming a number of items on its menu with unmistakeable Canadian themes. Mississippi wings are now Mississauga wings and you can no longer order a Long Island iced tea. Instead, ask for a Prince Edward Island iced tea.
“We’ve definitely had a lot of fun with it,” says Royal Nasager, vice-president of marketing and strategic partnerships with Aegis Brands, which owns SLB&G. “This cultural moment has been a gift for us. Our Canadian roots have always been integrated into communications strategy and messaging.”
Interestingly, the restaurant isn’t even named after the city in Missouri, it’s a tribute to one of its co-founders, whose name is Louis.
He says SLB&G has received a “ton” of positive feedback from embracing the Great White North, including people asking if it could adopt the metric system.
He notes that many American chains have satellite locations in Canada butits campaign is about promoting its “bonafides.”
“If you choose Canadian, why not choose a brand or restaurant that was built here by Canadians for Canadians? Everything we do supports Canadian owners and operators, that’s important to us,” he says.
Just as in grocery stores, Swystun says Canadian eateries banding together for an “Eat Canadian Eh” campaign would be valuable.
“It could be cool and done with an entertaining bit of irreverence. This is not about being anti-American, it’s being pro-Canadian. After all, civility is one of our greatest strengths,” he says.
Two prominent brands changed their names years ago, which could be paying dividends in Canadian dollars today.
Years ago, Canadian-owned New York Fries abbreviated its brand to NYF, following in the long-ago footsteps of Kentucky Fried Chicken’s move to KFC, which is still U.S.-based.
It’s too early to say with any degree of certainty how much these eateries are being impacted by Trump’s actions but Swystun says they’re most definitely feeling the pinch.
How far will the pro-Canadian branding go? Swystun says it’s possible that President’s Choice, the Superstore grocery brand, may have to rebrand if the backlash is too strong. Prime Minister’s choice, perhaps?
On the flip side, there are a number of companies that have no branding confusion to worry about.
“I’d love to be the head of marketing at Clearly Canadian. What a fantastic name,” he says of the B.C.-based premium sparking water company.
