A new poll from Cultural Intel provides insights into how multicultural communities are responding to the Canada-U.S. trade war and its accompanying consumer trends.
The research focuses on South Asian, Chinese, Black and Filipino communities – the largest visible-minority groups in the country based off of Statistics Canada’s 2021 census data – and white, or Caucasian, communities in an attempt to better understand how public preferences have been affected by Canada-U.S. trade tensions.
Cultural Intel, the research, insights and strategy division of agency Ethnicity Matters, polled 400 visible-minority participants and 100 non-visible-minority, or white, participants older than 18 from March 14-24.
“For businesses, understanding and valuing these consumers is not just a matter of representation – it’s a strategic imperative,” Howard Lichtman, partner and co-founder of Ethnicity Matters, said in a news release. “Corporations that prioritize their perspectives will not only build stronger connections with these growing communities but also position themselves for long-term success in an evolving economic landscape.”
The majority of survey respondents across all groups reported buying more Canadian-made products now than before the trade war. South Asian consumers have been the most affected by trade tensions with 67% responding that they’re buying more Canadian goods, compared with 63% of white consumers and 59% of visible-minority consumers overall.
According to the survey, 80% of participants overall support government policies that promote buying Canadian-made products. Black Canadians reported the highest level of support with 89% in agreement and 74% strongly agreeing with such initiatives. Fifty-four per cent of the remaining visible-minority and white groups strongly agreed with the prospect of such policies.
Seventy-five per cent of white consumers strongly agreed with the importance of seeing “Made in Canada” on products, compared with 60% among visible-minority respondents. Among the visible-minority subgroups surveyed, South Asian (53%) and Chinese (51%) consumers were the least likely to emphasize the importance of Maple Leaf branding.
The survey also explored topics such as pride in Canadian-made purchases, how the trade war has affected support for Canadian businesses and how each group would support policies to reduce Canada’s dependence on U.S. imports.
Cultural Intel managing director Rahul Sethi says insights from the survey that suggest a proclivity for patriotic purchases among Black and Filipino participants align with the firm’s broader research suggesting that the two communities associate Canada with inclusion, opportunity and belonging.
That the survey suggests Chinese and South Asian consumers tend to approach purchasing decisions more pragmatically aligns with prior Cultural Intel data that Sethi says shows the two communities often act as value-maximizers in the market and seek out multiple price options in both mainstream and ethnic channels.
“What’s important here is that these are not contradictions – they’re layered behaviours shaped by migration stories, cultural values and economic realities,” Sethi said in the release. “If brands want to be truly inclusive, they must go beyond translation or token representation. They need to understand these cultural drivers and connect with people where emotion, economics and identity intersect.”
The survey used the federal government’s definition for visible minorities, which the Canadian Employment Equity Act defines as “persons, other than Indigenous or Aboriginal peoples, who are non-Caucasian in race or non-white in colour.”
Cultural Intel said the study did not include Indigenous participants because their perspectives require dedicated, culturally appropriate research approaches. Some community segments were grouped together for reporting clarity, the news release said.
