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Crazy for Canadian Tire money

Broadcast Date: May 4, 1993

Mike Hollingshead was dissatisfied with collecting coins and paper money. One day, as he was coming out of a Canadian Tire store, he realized that he liked the feel of their "money". So he decided to start studying it. In this 1999 CBC-TV clip from Midday, he shows off his CT money portfolio, and explains the origin of the currency in 1958. He also tells us about the character that appears on the bills: Sandy McTire, the guy he says is "Canadian Tire's symbol of frugality, and somebody that knew good value."

Crazy for Canadian Tire money

• According to Hollingshead, Canadian Tire views the currency as a financial liability. "The coupons represent a promise to the customer to come good with some discount to the cash register," he says. "They view them as a merchandising system of getting customers back to the store because that‘s where you redeem your Canadian Tire money."

• The corporation's website says that Canadian Tire money is "the country's most popular customer loyalty rewards program with near universal recognition in Canada."

• The website also has a Canadian Tire money factsheet. Among their claims:

• more than $100 million in Canadian Tire money is distributed every year
  
• the currency used to be called "cash bonus coupons" but the name change began in 1995 in response to its popular use by the store's customers;
  
• Canadian Tire money is printed using the same process as legal tender including the latest anti-counterfeiting technology;
  
• travelling Canadians have apparently successfully passed off the coupons as actual Canadian currency when bartering internationally
  

Crazy for Canadian Tire money

Medium: Television

Program: Midday

Broadcast Date: May 4, 1993

Guest(s): Mike Hollingshead

Host: Tina Srebotnjak

Duration: 5:15

Last updated:
July 22, 2009