- Three quarters of Canadians are changing at least one behaviour, from avoiding American products to cancelling travel plans to changing sources of entertainment.
- Only a quarter of the population hasn’t made substantial changes to their purchasing behaviours.
March 4, 2025
Since President Trump began threatening Canada with tariffs, Canadians have reacted in large numbers, changing how and what they purchase, where they travel, and where they turn for entertainment. Overall, 75% of Canadians told us they have changed at least one type of purchasing, with looking for Canadian products being the most prevalent (63%), followed by half who are actively looking at labels of products to avoid buying American products. Two in ten have sought Canadian entertainment options (20%), from music to movies, shows, podcasts and radio programs, with one in ten having cancelled an American streaming service in the last few weeks (8%) – with both of these choices being more prevalent in Quebec compared with other provinces. Turning to travel, over one in ten have cancelled a trip they had planned to the U.S. (14%).
“Clearly, Canadians are taking action where they can, in response to Trump’s tariffs,” said Margaret Chapman, COO & Partner at Narrative Research. “Ultimately these choices could boost Canadian manufacturers’ sales, as well as potentially having other positive impacts, for example, boosting Canadian tourism as residents choose to travel within our borders.”
Canadians of all ages have made changes to their purchasing behaviours, though those aged 55 and up are more likely to look at product labels in store to avoid products from the U.S. or actively seek out Canadian products. Men are more likely to have cancelled a planned trip to the U.S. compared with women, though all other purchasing behaviours do not differ by gender.
The questions asked were:
In the last few weeks, which of the following, if any, have you done?
- Sought out Canadian products (e.g. at grocery stores)
- Looked at the labels of products to avoid products made in the United States
- Sought out Canadian entertainment content (music, movies, shows, podcasts, radio, etc.)
- Cancelled a planned trip to the United States
- Cancelled an American streaming service
- None of the above
Results are from an online survey conducted in partnership between Narrative Research and the Logit Group. The survey was conducted between February 12 – 14, 2025 with 1,232 Canadians, 18 years of age or older from the Logit Group’s online Canadian Omnibus. Data were weighted based on the 2021 Census, by gender, age, and region to reflect actual population distribution. For more information, please contact:
Margaret Chapman, COO & Partner, Narrative Research – 902.493.3834, mchapman@narrativeresearch.ca
OR
Sam Pisani, Managing Partner, Logit Group – 416.629.4116, sam.pisani@logitgroup.com
Narrative Research (www.narrativeresearch.ca), is a non-partisan, 100% Canadian-owned, research company, certified as a Women Business Enterprise (WBE). Narrative Research provides clients with state-of-the-art research and strategic consulting services.
The Logit Group (https://logitgroup.com/) is a leading North American data collection and market research execution company headquartered in Toronto, conducting large-scale projects for a variety of well-known research agencies and brands. Logit employs industry-best technologies across an array of methodologies, and is independent, experienced and quality-oriented.
