Canadian Tire Petroleum Celebrates 45 Years

NEW YORK-- At Canadian Tire's 220 gas bars, customers can celebrate the company's 45 years with its '58 Flashback Contest. The company is giving 400,000 "peel and reveal" game cards to customers at its convenience stores between now and Nov. 2, 2003. Prizes include 10 Schwinn "Super 3 Cruiser" bikes, 1,000 Canadian Tire collectible trucks and thousands of instant-win prizes, according to the company.

"We opened our first gas bar in 1958 at 837 Yonge Street in Toronto, so we want our customers to help us relive the moment with the ultimate '50s car -- a Corvette," said Peter Kilty, vice president, Canadian Tire Petroleum. "The contest is a fun way of celebrating that heritage and thanking customers for 45 years of business, recognizing that today we are the country's largest independent retailer of gasoline, pumping twice the industry average in volume of gasoline per site."

Canadian Tire gas station kiosks: A History of Innovation Throughout Canada

Canadian Tire gas stations have always been about great value and competitive prices at the pump. Today gas bar customers receive Canadian Tire 'Money' rewards and Canadian Tire 'Money' Gas Multiplier coupons, while also enjoying cross-promotions with Canadian Tire stores. Highlights that show how the business has evolved over the years include:

* The original Canadian Tire gas stations, called "More Power" stations were revolutionary at the time due to their unique drive-through gas pumps.
* In the 1960s, Canadian Tire gas bar customers were issued "Gas War" coupons that protected them from higher prices. When the price rose above a certain level, customers could redeem their coupons and fill up at the lower price.
* Canadian Tire gas bars were also the birthplace of the original concept for Canadian Tire 'Money'. In response to the major oil companies' promotional giveaways of toasters and dishes, Muriel Billes, wife of Canadian Tire co-founder A.J. Billes, suggested that customers who paid cash for their gas should be rewarded with a "Cash Bonus Coupon" redeemable in store. These coupons were eventually rolled out to the entire enterprise as Canadian Tire 'Money'. Since its debut in 1958, Canadian Tire 'Money' has become one of the country's most recognized and best loved customer loyalty rewards programs with 90 percent redemption levels.

Canadian Tire Corp. Ld. operates more than 1,000 stores and is one of Canada's largest independent retailers of gasoline, operating 220 gas stations and 41 car washes.
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