Who Owns Tim Hortons?

Tim Hortons was founded on May 17, 1964, in Hamilton, Ontario, by Miles Gilbert "Tim" Horton, a professional hockey player for the Toronto Maple Leafs, and Jim Charade, a businessman. The first location was a small coffee and donut shop at 65 Ottawa Street North in Hamilton. The concept was simple: offer fresh coffee and donuts at affordable prices in a clean, welcoming environment.

Tim Horton was one of the most respected defensemen in the NHL, and his celebrity status helped attract attention to the new restaurant. However, Horton was primarily an investor and public face rather than an active operator; Charade handled the day-to-day business. The partnership proved successful, and the chain began expanding across Ontario in the late 1960s.

In 1967, Ron Joyce, a former Hamilton police officer who had purchased a franchise location, became a full partner with Tim Horton. Joyce proved to be the operational genius behind the chain's growth, developing the franchise system, standardizing operations, and driving aggressive expansion. The partnership between Horton and Joyce was transformative for the brand.

Tim Horton died in a car accident on February 21, 1974, while driving from Buffalo to Toronto after an NHL game. He was 44 years old. Following his death, Joyce purchased Horton's shares from his widow for approximately $1 million, becoming the sole owner of the chain. Under Joyce's leadership, Tim Hortons expanded from approximately 40 locations to over 1,000 locations by the mid-1980s.

Tim Hortons became deeply embedded in Canadian culture through the 1980s and 1990s. The chain's "Roll Up the Rim to Win" promotion, launched in 1986, became one of the most successful promotional campaigns in Canadian retail history, generating enormous excitement and driving traffic to stores. The promotion became an annual tradition that Canadians looked forward to each year.

In 1995, Wendy's International acquired Tim Hortons for approximately $600 million, providing capital for further expansion. Under Wendy's ownership, Tim Hortons expanded into the United States and continued growing in Canada. However, the partnership was not always smooth, and Tim Hortons was spun off as an independent public company in 2006, listing on both the Toronto Stock Exchange and the New York Stock Exchange.

In 2014, Burger King and Tim Hortons merged in a $12.5 billion deal to form Restaurant Brands International Inc. The deal was structured as a tax inversion, with the combined company headquartered in Canada. The merger generated significant controversy in Canada, with concerns about the potential Americanization of a beloved Canadian institution. The Canadian government approved the deal under conditions requiring the preservation of Canadian employment and operations.