I am thankful that my father got me toilet paper I am, I am however having difficulties seeing how Costco’s house brand of toilet paper can have the maple leaf on it. Sure it is made in Canada, by machinery in Canada with a bit of human quality monitoring done by some Canadians but the profits are still going to the US.
Am I going to far with my boycott ideals and only wanting to shop Canadian, at Canadian stores/chains to keep as much as that money in Canada? Do not get me wrong I understand that there are Canadians who depend on US stores for their income and it is not exactly easy to get a job at a Canadian equivalent right now. Am I wrong in wanting all the US retail to F off and be replaced by Canadian things?
I am also aware that Costco is kinda sorta like the good guy saying no to a lot of Trumps stuff.
I still shop at Costco, but they’re essentially the only American company I do business with at this point. Costco gets a pass for a few reasons:
- They pay their Canadian (and American) employees very well. My friend group is mostly engineers and our Costco friend makes the second most.
- They have publicly refused to dump their DEI stuff
- Galen Weston and friends can eat my ass
I also exclusively purchase Canadian products inside Canadian warehouses so… it’s less bad.
I think every bit of thought people put into their purchasing choices is a good thing.
If you can find suitable Canadian replacements to American products, and products from American owned or funded businesses, without going broke, all the power to you. But don’t think that if you haven’t been able to change all of it that you failed. Each person doing what the can adds up. Encourage people to do it to whatever level they can, suggest Canadian alternatives you use or become aware of.
I think it’s a totally personal decision where you draw the line.
You could also say what about a Canadian company that has a major US shareholder? Will you research that for all products? You dig as far as you need to feel comfortable with your purchases.
For me it depends on what it is. For example meat I only buy local. So even out of province or any part of my province doesn’t do it for me. I stick with our county and farmers I know. No need to go further as we have excellent farms here. Eggs? Only from my own chickens. Toilet paper? Totally different story. So is cat food which I still buy even when it’s made in the US because my cat won’t eat anything Canadian we tried 🤷🏻♀️
While some profit is going to the states, a lot of staying in Canada. Costco doesn’t own most of its manufacturing (if any). They contract out existing companies to make their products and label them as Kirkland. The TP is likely made by someone like Irving Tissue or Kruger for Kirkland, and Costco takes a slice. The manufacturer is Canadian, and is getting paid.
Yeah, I don’t know about anything else but I know all the Kirkland supplements get contracted out to Natural Factors which is a Canadian company (who is also generally really good to their staff).
If it’s any consolation, Costco’s margin is close to zero on their toilet paper. Their income comes from the membership fees
Most general merchandise is between 1-3% margin.
You do need to buy a membership to shop though. Meaning you 100% support them even when you don’t buy TP.