Research Report on The Canadian Tire Retail Company

Introduction

The purpose of this report was to conduct research on the retail company, Canadian Tire, by using the information provided by the company and by using the Ryerson University’s Library resources. The results obtained were then used to analyze the company as a future employer for graduated TRSM students.

Method

The method that I used to conduct research for this assignment was secondary research. More specifically I used secondary sources, such as online sources, to assist me in the research component of this report. I used online sources such as the Canadian Tire Corporate website, IBIS World, and Passport.

Key Findings:

Business Model

According to IBIS World (2018), there are many operations that are run by Canadian Tire such as charities (Canadian Tire Jumpstart Charities), gas stations (Canadian Tire Gas+), Mark’s Work Wearhouse (apparel store), FGL sports (Sports Chek), retail stores (1702 stores in Canada) and many more. Within the Canadian Tire retail operations, sports and recreation products, automotive products, and household products are the three dominant product lines of the company. Additionally, also within the Canadian Tire retail operations, Mark’s Work Wearhouse brand, PartSource brand, and the Canadian Tire brand are the three dominant brands of the company.

Business Strategy

According to IBIS World (2018), Canadian Tire, during the last few years, has made a goal to have an overall annual growth of 3.0%. In hopes of bettering the company, Canadian Tire is continuing to try and improve their online strategies so that they can keep up with competitors who are also using online strategies. Additionally, Canadian Tire is doing this because in today's society many people do their shopping online as it is easier and convenient. Furthermore, Canadian Tire is currently working on doing home deliveries for customers who purchase products online to give them a competitive advantage over other companies that do online business such as Walmart.

Competitive Strengths and Weaknesses

According to Passport, Canadian Tire started to sell their products online and started to focus more on expanding their online business. This is a competitive strength because they are able to keep up or even do better than competitors who provide online service as well. Another competitive strength is that the automotive products and loyalty program that Canadian Tire has are what differentiates it from their competing competitors. According to Passport, Canadian Tire apparel and sports good sales suffer during the fourth quarter of the year as sales are very low. This is a weakness because it drops the overall sales of Canadian Tire.

Company Culture and HR Practices

According to Canadian Tire Corporation (2018), the Canadian Tire stated, “we foster a culture of ingenuity, collaboration, and creativity”. This means that Canadian Tire welcomes anyone and everyone who wants to make the company better as a whole. Canadian Tire offers many opportunities within the company which include a variety of different roles to meet all types of workers such as information technology roles, merchandising roles, marketing roles, human resource roles and more.

Commitment to Community - Focused and Sustainability Initiatives

Through the Canadian Tire Jumpstart Charities (which helps to raise money for children that are in low-income families, children with disabilities, and more) Canadian Tire is able to show their commitment to local communities. Moreover, it is evident that Canadian Tire has worked very hard to be eco-friendly by tracking their environmental footprint. According to Canadian Tire Corporation (2018), Canadian Tire stated, “we have reduced our greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, produced less waste, and consumed fewer resources”.

Company Health

Canadian Tire would be considered a company that has good company health because it is in a good financial position. According to IBIS World (2018), Canadian Tire is doing very well financially as its revenues and operating profits have been increasing every year since 2015. It is also in good financial health because its revenues were predicted to increase by 1.4%. Furthermore, according to IBIS World (2018), Canadian Tire, which is one of the major companies along with Walmart and Hudson’s Bay, holds a very large market share of 21.1%.

Conclusions

Looking at the research that I conducted for this report, it can easily be concluded that Canadian Tire is in good financial health as their profits and revenues have been increasing every year. Also from the research, it can be determined that Canadian Tire offers a variety of job roles which means that there can be a position for anyone looking for a job. Furthermore, we can also conclude that the Canadian Tire company does a lot to help out with the community (such as having charities) and the environment (such as being eco-friendly).

Finally, we can conclude that Canadian Tire has many strengths and are working on strategies to grow and become a better company.

Recommendations

I would recommend Canadian Tire as an eventual employer for graduated TRSM students. Firstly, I would recommend it because the company offers a variety of different job roles closely related to what students have learned and majored in during their four years in University such as marketing, information technology, human resources, and retail. Secondly, I would recommend it because these students have young, creative, and knowledgeable minds for the business world today which will benefit Canadian Tire. Thirdly, I would recommend it because the company can provide students with work experience in the areas that they studied at university. Lastly, I would recommend it because since the company is in good financial health and is running healthy employees know that their jobs are secure.