Cultures are colliding, and so are donuts, coffee, burgers, fries and hockey. What does the merger of Canadian coffee and donut institution, Tim Hortons, with American fast food giant, Burger King tell us about culture? One could say it brings light to Canada’s cultural identity crisis, where a philosophy of acceptance and diversity across an enormous and under-populated land has “resulted in the lack of a cohesive national identity,” where Canadians define themselves more by what they aren’t (the United States) than what they are.
However, one thing Canadians seem to agree upon is that a coffee and donut at Tim Hortons, while watching or talking about hockey, is integral to their national identity. And for this reason, the announcement of a merger between Burger King and Tim Hortons has tensions running high, with many Canadians nervous that the beloved coffee joint will lose its authentic national flavor. It is also important to note that despite sharing a border, Canadians and Americans have some subtle yet fundamental cultural differences, which should not be ignored. According to RW3 CultureWizard, for example, Canadians are slightly less direct than Americans and tend to be more tactful when providing feedback. They are also more private than Americans and value having a clear demarcation between their work and personal lives. The implications of cultural differences are critical for a merger across cultures.
As the news of an impending merger spreads, many Canadians are making it clear that they aren’t interested in dunking their Tim Hortons donut in anything but a Tim Hortons coffee. Nor did they appreciate Wendy’s past efforts to streamline Tim Hortons business model – by reheating frozen pastries shipped from a warehouse rather than baking them locally – during their previous merger in 2005.
Hopefully, Burger King is savvy to the fact that Canadians have no desire to be American and may not seem keen to enjoy a Burger King Croissan’wich with their Tim Horton’s coffee. And, those Americans who are not drawn to artisanal coffee these days seem perfectly content with their local Dunkin’ Donuts.
How successful do you think this merger will be? What are the key cultural indicators they should consider? How do you feel when a local or national favorite suddenly becomes part of a multinational chain?
