The Problem With Tim Biebs

 

Well, where do I start?  Of course, I am deeply opposed to Tim Horton's in general.  I don't think they are fair or equitable in the treatment of their staff and I think there marketing is very deceptive.  They essentially present themselves as a "small town Canadian" company when they are not a Canadian company.  At one time, early into their franchise expansion, the coffee was good.  Once it became obvious that a Tim's franchise was a licence to print money, profits became primary and quality was sacrificed.  Simply, the food is not good.  Their questionable business ethics are well documented.  Not to mention, the products are very over-priced.  The legitimacy of Roll Up the Rim is questioned every campaign.  

Now, they have Tim Biebs.  Pretty clever actually to get the Biebs to partner with them to update their Timbits.  The flavours sound creative and inviting.  I was actually tempted but then I remembered how doughy and raw tasting their donut products are.  

But, here is the real problem with Tim Biebs.  It really represents everything that is wrong with the company.  The one thing they have to be proud of is their commitment to sport, particularly their support of the littlest of athletes, the Tim Bits.  Even a cynic like me can see the ripple effects in our community from this positive program.  So, the Tim Bits are really their signature program.  Why add something that will take away from it?  Why mess with the Tim Bits?  Why add something that is kind of like an upgrade of the existing Tim Bits.  

The addition of Justin Bieber to the Tim's family does seem like a great match, though.  The Biebs is an incredibly talented young man but his journey from teen pop star to mature adult has not been an easy one for him.  I am glad that he seems to have found his way.  But, for some reason he is very different from most Canadian entertainers that achieve stardom.  Most Canadian entertainers seem to hold their Canadian heritage dear to them.  They not only seem proud to be Canadian, they seem to want to give back.  You see a lot of them paying it forward and we see a lot of giving in spirit, time, and finances.  

Then there is Justin Bieber.  If he cares or is proud to be Canadian, he hasn't made that known.  If anything, he distances himself from our country.  Granted he has been busy trying to figure out his life, but he seems to take his privilege for granted.  He has a platform and he doesn't use it to advance any social causes.  So, now he comes back and what does he do.  He uses his Canadian citizenship to make revenue for himself and another not Canadian company.  Making money seems to be his number one value and he partners with a company that also values profits over everything.  

Meanwhile, I have two friends who own small restaurants.  Since the start of the pandemic, they have faced nothing but challenges.  The shut-downs.  The need to let go of staff and then the need to recruit and train staff again.  Huge inflation costs for them.  Overhead costs for them that didn't go away during the shut-downs.  No advertising support.  And on and on.  Yet, neither of them stopped hustling.  Trying to explore other revenue streams.  Trying to use social media to promote their product.  Working on not only creating food, but also creating a brand.  Partnering with local charities.  Never resting.  Working even when they are not working.  And, for both of them, all of their hard work has been for survival.  It hasn't been to maintain their profit margin at their corporate accepted level, it has been just to keep them going.  They say when you are self-employed you only need to work half a day.  As someone who has been self-employed before, I can attest that this is true.  You can actually pick which 12 hours of the day that you want to work.  I have two other friends who are determined to open their own restaurant in the spring despite me doing everything I can to talk them out of it.  Forget all the challenges of today's environment.  Even in the best of times, the statistics are not good for local restaurants.  Half of them fail in the first year.  Yet, this is their dream and they are going to pursue it and they already are working more than 40 hours a week on chasing this dream and they are months away from opening.  

So, yeah, I am going to pass on the Tim Biebs.  Any money that I have to spend in restaurants are going to be spent in local establishments who are going to recycle my money back into the community.  Support local.