By Anik Karimjee
Canadians are rethinking how they shop for everyday household products, and the shift is both widespread and structural. What were once habitual, low-engagement purchases have become far more deliberate. Nearly nine in ten Canadians (87%) say they have changed how they buy everyday household products in the past year, pointing to a fundamental change in how value is defined and assessed.
At first glance, this shift appears to be driven by price pressure alone. Canadians are buying less often, switching brands, and leaning heavily on promotions. But focusing only on cost misses a critical part of the story.
Affordability now determines which products get considered, but it does not fully explain which ones get chosen. Today’s definition of “worth it” blends price sensitivity with expectations around quality, trust, performance, and even national values. For CPG brands and retailers, understanding this recalibration of value is no longer optional. It is central to staying relevant.
Price Pressure Is Reshaping How Canadians Shop for Everyday Products
Economic pressure is clearly driving behaviour change across categories. Over the past 12 months, Canadians have adopted a wide range of cost-management strategies when buying everyday household products:
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- 57% buy certain products only when they are on promotion
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- 43% have switched to cheaper brands
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- 35% have moved to private label
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- 25% are buying smaller quantities
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- 24% have stopped buying certain products or categories altogether
These behaviours appear across all age groups, but their intensity varies. Canadians aged 55 and older are significantly more promotion-driven, with nearly two-thirds saying they only buy certain products when they are on promotion. Canadians aged 18 to 34 are more likely to buy products less frequently, suggesting a greater willingness to adjust routines rather than rely primarily on discounts.
What this shows is that price has become the gatekeeper. If a product does not feel affordable enough, it may never enter the consideration set at all.
Canadians Are More Focused on Price, but Value Has Not Become One-Dimensional
Nearly three-quarters of Canadians (73%) say they are more focused on price than they were a year ago, including 43% who say they are much more focused on price. Only 2% say they are less focused on price, reinforcing how universal this pressure has become.
Affordability is now the baseline requirement and the minimum threshold for engagement. But being price-focused does not mean being indifferent.
Instead, Canadians are making faster and more decisive judgments about whether a product clears the bar of being “worth considering.” Price determines access, but it does not fully determine outcomes.
Why Price Alone Is Not Enough to Keep Brands Chosen
If value had fully collapsed into cost, Canadians would be abandoning brands exclusively in favour of cheaper options. That is not what is happening.
Four in ten Canadians (40%) say they have stopped buying or switched away from a brand in the past year for reasons unrelated to price. In the current economic environment, that is a meaningful signal.
Among those who stopped buying or switched away from a brand, the most commonly cited reasons include:
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- Concerns about Canadian origin or support for Canadian producers (50%)
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- Perceived declines in quality or performance (20%), particularly among Canadians under 55
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- Availability issues, such as products being hard to find or frequently out of stock (14%)
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- Negative news about the company (12%)
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- Loss of trust in the brand (11%)
When trust breaks or relevance fades, price alone cannot compensate. Canadians may accept trade-offs, but not at any cost.
What “Worth It” Means to Canadians Today
When Canadians describe what makes a product “worth it,” even if it costs more, they point to a layered evaluation rather than a single deciding factor.
The most frequently mentioned drivers of value include:
- Good quality (43%)
- A sale or discount that justifies the purchase (41%)
- Taste or enjoyment, where relevant (25%)
- A fair size or amount for the price (23%)
- Trust in the brand or company (21%)
- Where the product is made (19%)
- Familiarity and reliability (17%)
This highlights a critical reality for CPG brands. Price may open the door, but quality, trust, and relevance determine whether a product stays in the basket and remains part of everyday life.
Brand Loyalty Has Softened, but It Has Not Disappeared
Despite widespread behaviour change, brand loyalty has not collapsed. More than three-quarters of Canadians (76%) still consider themselves very or somewhat loyal to brands in everyday categories.
What has changed is how that loyalty is expressed. Many Canadians continue to switch brands, buy less frequently, or change when and how they purchase, while still maintaining brand relationships. Loyalty now exists alongside ongoing evaluation rather than replacing it.
When asked how the importance of brand names has changed over the past year:
- 48% say brand importance has not changed
- 21% say brand names matter more
- 27% say brand names matter less
Younger Canadians are more likely to say brand names matter more today, while older Canadians are steadier, with brand importance more likely to remain unchanged.
Brand Importance Depends on Category Risk
Brand importance varies significantly by category. It is strongest where performance, personal experience, or trust are harder to evaluate at shelf.
Categories where brand matters most include:
- Shampoo and conditioner (67%)
- Laundry detergent (65%)
- Antiperspirant and deodorant (64%)
- Cheese (64%)
- Ketchup (62%)
In categories perceived as more interchangeable, such as cookies or canned soup, brand plays a smaller role and price and promotion dominate more fully.
For CPG brands, this distinction matters. Where functional or experiential risk is higher, brand acts as a shortcut for confidence. Where risk is lower, the value equation becomes far more price driven.
The Takeaway: Value Has Been Recalibrated, Not Replaced
The takeaway is not that Canadians no longer care about brands, or that price has become the only lever. Instead, value has become more demanding.
Canadians are:
- More price-aware at the point of entry
- Less patient with underperforming brands
- More attentive to signals of trust, fairness, and relevance
- More willing to reward brands that clearly justify their place
For retailers and CPGs, the implication is clear: competing on price alone is risky and unsustainable. The brands that win will be those that make the value equation easier to understand, clearer to justify, and harder to replace.
In today’s environment, being “worth it” means delivering more than a lower price. It means earning trust, meeting expectations, and proving relevance every time. For Canadians navigating tighter budgets, clarity around why a product is worth it has never mattered more.
