Saturday, March 25, 2023

Is Tim Hortons losing sight of their core business?


Remember when Tim Hortons specialized in two things? Coffee and donuts. That’s it. That’s all. They made that a successful business model and even prevented Dunkin’ Donuts from getting a foothold in Canada (beyond Quebec). Tim’s did so well, competitors like Country Style and Robin’s Donuts come to mind.

Timbits were introduced in 1976. Muffins and cookies were added in 1981. Soup and chili were added to the menu in 1985. Sandwiches were put on the menu in 1993. Bagels in 1996. Flavoured lattes in 1997. Now they sell breakfast sandwiches (2006) and wraps, flatbread pizza, bowls, potato wedges, and they even tried hamburgers in 2017, which lasted all of 2 years.

I don’t know about you, but I don’t think Tim’s for lunch or dinner items. Baked goods, coffee and breakfast sandwiches at best. Tim’s even used to have a pretty great oatmeal, which is now gone. I really think Tim’s should find its way back to its roots and stop trying to be another Subway or something like that.

Trivia:

In 1964, a donut cost 10 cents.

A whopping 1.4 million donuts are served per day in Canada.

Canada is the number one donut consumer in the world at around 1 billion annually, followed by Japan in a close second.

When Tim Horton opened his first store in Hamilton, ON, only two varieties of doughnuts were served, dutchies and apple fritters.

Before there were donuts at Tim Hortons, there were burgers and chicken at a small chain called Tim Horton Drive-In. This led to the opening of another franchise called Your Do-nut, which eventually became Tim Hortons Do-Nut.


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