Canadian Tire introduces first-ever limited edition $1 coin

Customers to receive valuable reward on purchases of $25 or more on December 5th and 6th

Company provides glimpse into evolution of new world-class loyalty program

TORONTO , Dec. 2 /CNW/ - The country's leading retailer of Christmas décor and gift-giving products, today introduced a valuable new reward to provide customers with additional savings during one of the busiest holiday shopping weekends. At an event held earlier today, Mike Arnett , President of Canadian Tire Retail unveiled the first-ever limited edition Canadian Tire "Money" coin, proudly manufactured by the Royal Canadian Mint. The $1 coin will be offered, in addition to the ever popular Canadian Tire "Money" rewards, to customers who spend $25 or more at a Canadian Tire store on December 5th and 6th.

"Since 1958, Canadian Tire has been rewarding customers for their loyalty and providing them with additional savings through the iconic Canadian Tire "Money" program," said Mike Arnett , president, Canadian Tire Retail. "Over the years the high-valued program has evolved to include electronic "Money" on Canadian Tire branded credit cards, as well as the addition of special promotions which now includes this limited edition $1 Canadian Tire coin. The valuable rewards program, combined with our product selection and competitive prices, is our way of thanking customers for their continued loyalty."

Canadian Tire also confirmed that work is underway to evolve the iconic program to provide customers with better rewards. While Canadian Tire "Money" will continue to play a key role, the new program will be delivered in a way that makes it easy to tailor rewards to each valued customer. The program will be built around the top three things that customers have indicated they value in a loyalty program:

    
    -   Simple - the program needs to be simple to understand and simple to
        redeem

    -   Accessible - the program should be accessible to everyone

    -   Meaningful to each individual customer- the program must have the
        ability to tailor promotions and rewards to individual customers
    

One final piece that will guide the development of the new program will be ensuring it willendure the decades and continue to build on Canadian Tire's strong heritage.

While research and development is still underway, the Company plans to pilot the new loyalty program at the end of 2010.

"We are in the enviable position of sitting on top of Canada's longest standing and best known loyalty program," added Arnett. "In speaking with our customers, we know that there is an opportunity to evolve the program to provide our customers with better and more tailored rewards, while keeping the key elements of the program that Canadians have come to know and love. Work is well underway and we expect to have a pilot program in place by the end of 2010 and ultimately roll out our new loyalty program later in 2011."

"The Royal Canadian Mint takes great pride in producing coins and medallions which honour Canadian icons and we are delighted to have manufactured the newest addition to Canadian Tire's loyalty program," said Ian E. Bennett, President and CEO of the Royal Canadian Mint. "Producing a new trade dollar for a company which is synonymous with Canadian identity is a unique opportunity for the Mint to showcase its extensive expertise in the field of token and medallion production."

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.

For further information: Lisa Gibson, Canadian Tire Corporation, [email protected]