Manitoba businesses see surge in demand for buying local amid tariff threats

Some businesses in the province are seeing a greater demand for their products as customers focus on buying local, despite the pause in overarching tariff threats.

Sheepdog Brew Co., a coffee roaster specializing in cold brew located southwest of Winnipeg's perimeter, has products featured in 200 stores across Manitoba. Within the past week, the brewery's founder said he's been contacted by 15 retailers, including some larger commercial chains and independently-owned rural stores to inquire about selling their products. 

"I think that starts the trickle-down effect where stores look to carry more Canadian brands, they're doing a better job of advertising which brands are Canadian, and then hopefully the consumers follow that trend and keep buying from Canadian companies," Shawn Black, the founder, told CBC on Sunday. 

Black thinks more retailers are making an effort to stock their shelves with locally-made products in response to U.S. President Donald Trump's proposed 25 per cent tariffs on virtually all Canadian exports south of the border, which were paused for 30 days last week. 

The company expects to produce about 25,000 cans of cold brew next week to help meet a surge in sales and will continue to ramp up their production by bringing in new equipment, Black said. 

Sheepdog Brew Co., opened in 2023 and estimates it will sell at least double the amount of products this year. 

"We sold out four times last summer, so we would like to ramp up for this summer and keep that trend going, but with these threats of tariffs, there's equipment that we have to bring in that's only available from American suppliers," Black said. 

"So we're in a rush right now to get it here before the Canadian dollar keeps going down and tariffs might go up."

Black said his cold brew will soon be on the shelves at some Sobeys and Safeway locations in Manitoba. 

Local businesses will not be left unscathed in a trade war, and consumers can play a part in supporting them by buying products and pushing retailers to sell their brand, Black said. 

Customers show support

The owner of Chaeban Ice Cream, a shop opened in 2017 that makes ice cream and other dairy products from scratch in Winnipeg, said they've seen an influx of customers wanting to show their support in spite of the trade war.

Chaeban Ice Cream sells its products to approximately 1,000 stores across Canada and its newly sought-after cream cheese will soon be stocked on retailer shelves like Sobeys, Save-On-Foods and Co-op Food, said shop owner Joseph Chaeban. 

He said it helps that some retail stores have created a 'buy local' section which will boost sales of Manitoba businesses. 

"It's very important because with the low margin, we need to be in as many stores as we can and the more sales, the better for us because it keeps us on the shelf at the same time, and it's hard because we are competing against American companies as well," Chaeban said. 

A spokesperson for Sobeys said in a statement the chain is working to clearly identify Canadian-made products in their displays and to source these items as alternatives for consumers. 

Chaeban Ice Cream sources its milk from a Manitoba farmer, but Chaeban said he still worries what impact tariffs will have on their business due to the ripple effect of costs associated with feeding cows and producing milk. 

"So, having things increase, even if it's a few products, will increase everything at the same time because it's all connected," he said. 

Patent 5 Distillery in Winnipeg sells alcohol in about 40 stores and has since been getting attention from the national market, which is atypical for them, said co-owner Brock Coutts. 

"Most of our online orders are for either local pickup or local delivery, but we've seen probably 10 or 15 in the last week and a bit for deliveries outside the province, which is exciting," he said

The Manitoba distillery, which opened in 2019, has been planning to export alcohol to the U.S. for a while to increase its reach. Coutts is optimistic it will happen, but the plan could be squashed if tariffs are imposed, he said. 

In the meantime, Coutts hopes the national frenzy to support local will have a lasting effect and include ongoing messaging about which products are made in Canada as opposed to which are imported.