Battle brewing: Maritimers react to potential Dunkin vs. Tim’s battle for your buck

A picture of a Tim Horton's cafe. (CTV file photo)

There is a battle brewing for your hot beverage bucks.

Despite the claim from the big coffee and donut chain south of the border that ‘Canada is about to run on Dunkin,’ coffee aficionados say they’re sticking with what they know.

Some coffee-enjoyers outside of Tim Horton’s on Membertou First Nation in Cape Breton, N.S., shared their thoughts with CTV News Atlantic on Wednesday.

“Well, the donuts are pretty good,” said one customer of Dunkin. “I like them, but Tim Horton’s is better.”

“Oh, I think I’m still going to stick with Tim Horton’s,” said another.

“I can’t even tell you why, it’s just.. different flavour, I like the flavour,” added a third Tim Horton’s fan.

For some, it comes down to a Canadian brand that has become part of our cultural identity.

“Cape Bretoners, Canadians, they are very loyal to Tim Horton’s,” said Cape Breton Timmie’s customer Jeff MacPhee. “As you see, it goes right to the NHL with Sidney Crosby, Nathan MacKinnon, and so on.”

Indeed, the Tim’s brand has been backed by some serious Canadian starpower – including Justin Bieber.

Then again, Hollywood A-lister Ben Affleck did the same for what many Americans affectionately refer to as ‘Dunks.’

“I certainly do run on Dunkin,” said Dan Vassallo of Peabody, MA. “I have probably five to eight Dunkin cold brews… every single week.”

Vassallo, an elite marathoner, may literally run on Dunkin, but when he and his New England teammates come to Cape Breton for the Cabot Trail Relay Race later in May, they will be switching brands for a weekend.

“It’ll be my second time ever having Timmies,” added Maine-iacs teammate Colin Cernik of Portland, Maine.

However, Vassallo is skeptical about Dunkin’s chances up north, given what he saw when Tim’s ventured state-side.

“Nobody went there, because there was always a Dunks next door,” he said. “I feel like there’s the same kind of loyalty to Tim’s up there (in Canada).”

“Obviously, Dunkin was here for a long time previously and they packed up and left,” added retail analyst Bruce Winder.

Winder said most Canadians barely noticed when Dunkin was here in the past, but feels it could be different this time.

“They (Dunkin) are looking at targeting consumers 13 to 35 - more of a young, cool sort of crowd,” Winder said.

He added that Tim’s might now have a bit of vulnerability.

“There’s a lot of, sort of, discussion on social media about potentially Tim’s quality going down or their service going down,” Winder said.

So, if Dunkin were to last up in the great, white north, could they draw people in with some Canadian creations?

“I think I could see them getting like, a poutine type of donut,” Cernik said with a grin.

And when it comes to the ‘lukewarm’ feelings between the two countries these days, Cernik says, “it could be like a cultural handshake between what we’ve got down here and what they’ve got up there.”

For more Nova Scotia news, visit our dedicated provincial page