Canadian Tire wanted to a way to demonstrate their commitment to sustainability and community, through an interactive online report that profiled all of Canadian Tire’s environmentally and socially-conscious activity in their product choices, their stores and the communities they serve.

High Road Communications developed a virtual world that used a combination of video, photos and dynamic content to tell Canadian Tire’s sustainability story.

Visitors can zoom into different areas – the store, a soccer field, homes, trucks, gas stations – and tour the different sustainable activities and processes that Canadian Tire had implemented. These range from energy-efficient lighting in stores through to their community involvement in JumpStart and Lucky Clover programs for Canadian kids.

The online report is accompanied by a downloadable print version, which can be printed out by section or in its entirety.

Six trampolines lined Toronto’s Yonge & Dundas square to officially declare Jumpstart Day in the City of Toronto. On May 29th Canadian Tire stores donated $2 from every purchase to Jumpstart, their charity that supports families that can’t afford to enrol their kids into organized sports. Kevin Frankish reported live in between doing bum drops on the trampolines and Deputy Mayor Joe Pantalone was on hand to read the declaration.

The flagship Toronto Jumpstart Day was only one of approximately 100 local events that popped up across Canada. Calgary Flames players Craig Conroy and Cory Sarich surprised the crowd at the Cochrane event, and professional hockey and lacrosse players battled it out in a game of ball hockey at the Welland event. Goderich celebrated with a good old barbeque in the parking lot of their local Canadian Tire. Other event highlights included a petting zoo, pony rides, and trampoline athletes. We are thrilled about the success of Jumpstart Day and continue to work toward our goal of helping 20,000 kids participate in organized sports this summer!

CANADIAN TIRE SELECTS HIGH ROAD COMMUNICATIONS AS PUBLIC RELATIONS AGENCY OF RECORD

Toronto, ON – (February 23, 2010) –High Road Communications today announced it has been named PR Agency of Record by one of Canada’s most recognized and cherished brands, Canadian Tire Corporation. Effective immediately, High Road will contribute to the development and execution of Canadian Tire’s communications strategy – including for Canadian Tire Retail, Canadian Tire Automotive (including CTR Auto, gas service stations and Part Source stores) and Canadian Tire Financial Services.

“High Road stood out among the five agencies that were considered for a number of reasons,” said Duncan Fulton, Vice President, Corporate Affairs, Canadian Tire. “High Road married passion and creativity with an industry-leading reputation for delivering strong programs and results for their clients. Their track record achieving earned media is beyond compare and their overall size and reach will allow them to support Canadian Tire in communities across Canada.”

“We are thrilled to add Canadian Tire to our roster of lifestyle clients,” said Justin Creally, President, High Road Communications. “As a brand, Canadian Tire is everything to everyday living in Canada and we look forward to helping the company tell its rich stories through creative and exciting programs and events.”

High Road, an integrated communications agency has offices in Toronto, Montreal, Ottawa, Vancouver and San Francisco. The Canadian Tire account will be managed in the Toronto office.

About Canadian Tire
Canadian Tire Corporation, Limited (TSX: CTC.a, CTC) is comprised of five business units: Canadian Tire Retail, one of Canada’s most-shopped general merchandise retailers with 476 stores; PartSource, an automotive parts specialty chain with 87 stores; Canadian Tire Petroleum, one of the country’s largest and most productive independent retailers of gasoline, operating 273 gas bars, 268 convenience stores and kiosks, and 73 car washes; Mark’s Work Wearhouse, one of the country’s leading apparel retailers operating 374 stores in Canada; and Canadian Tire Financial Services that has issued over five million Canadian Tire MasterCard credit cards and markets related financial products and services for retail and petroleum customers. More than 57,000 Canadians work across Canadian Tire’s organization from coast-to-coast in the enterprise’s retail, financial services, and petroleum businesses.

About High Road
High Road Communications shapes communications strategies for technology and digital lifestyle companies in the United States and Canada. Since 1996, High Road has pushed the boundaries of traditional public relations with creative ideas and integrated thinking that connects all aspects of marketing and communications. The company has 70 employees in five offices including Toronto, San Francisco, Ottawa, Montreal and Vancouver. For more information on the company and our areas of specialization, please visit http://www.highroad.com.