Tim Horton's

2448 Words10 Pages
This report is a case study of Tim Horton’s, the largest fast food chain in Canada. The company’s internationalization efforts include expansion into the Unites States, where it has grown to 398 stores in ten states. The report will start with a brief background of the company, followed by its internationalization history, problems that it faces while expanding into the U.S. market, our strategic alternatives to those problems, and, finally, the critical success factors that contributed to Tim Horton’s expansion. Company background Tim Horton’s chain was founded in Hamilton, Ontario in 1964. The firm has 44 years history in Canada. Tim Horton’s headquarter is in Oakville, Ontario. The founder of the company is Tim Horton. In 1967, Ron Joyce who managed to get three successful Tim Horton’s stores became full partners with him. After Horton’s death in 1974, he bought out the Horton family and became a solo owner of the existing chain. He expanded the chain quickly and aggressively in geography and in product selection. Later on the chain went public under the corporate name "Tim Donut Limited". By the 1990s, the company name had changed to The TDL Group Ltd. In 1995, Wendy’s International merged with TDL Group. “In March 2006, Tim Horton’s completed an initial public offering, and was fully spun off as a separate company as of September 29, 2006. Tim Horton’s trades on the NYSE and TSX (THI).”(The Story of Tim Horton’s, Tim Horton’s website). The first Tim Horton’s stores offered only two products - coffee and donuts. Nowadays, Tim Horton’s offer over 35 different varieties of products include coffee, donuts, timbits, bagels, muffins, soups, sandwiches and iced cappuccinos. “The chain's focus on top quality, always fresh product, value, great service and community leadership has allowed it to grow into the largest quick service restaurant chain in Canada”.(The
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