Several years ago, the NHL agreed to a steadily-growing partnership with Canadian-based Tim Hortons. The quick-service restaurant became the title sponsor for the 2011 Tim Hortons Heritage Classic to initiate its multi-year contract.
As part of the partnership, Tim Hortons became the official breakfast, coffee, doughnut and quick-service restaurant of the NHL in Canada. A year later, the sponsorship grew to include the titling of the NHL All-Star Game.
Tim Hortons also secured individual franchise sponsorships with the Buffalo Sabres, Calgary Flames, Columbus Blue Jackets, Detroit Red Wings, Edmonton Oilers, Montreal Canadiens, Ottawa Senators, Toronto Maple Leafs, Vancouver Canucks and Winnipeg Jets.
Before the 2015-16 season, Tim Hortons partnered with Upper Deck, who holds the license to produce hockey cards, to produce its own themed set of NHL cards available for purchase in its restaurants.
Meanwhile, Tim Hortons was also trying to nab more of a market share in the United States. In 2012, Dunkin Donuts controlled 57.5 percent of the $11.6-billion American doughnut industry. Tim Hortons invasion into the United States began with a small cluster of locations in major metropolitan areas, like New York Citys Penn Station. Those designs have since become much more ambitious, expanding to take on Dunkin Donuts directly. An example is Tim Hortons current expansion into the Daytona, Florida, market.
