Tim Hortons gives Geoff Molson a cold sweat

Advertising is a delicate art.

But sometimes, even the most established companies can blunder with timing, as evidenced by a recent Tim Hortons campaign featuring Samuel Montembelt and Raphael Harvey-Pinard.

Picture the scene: Customers are peacefully walking into their local Tim Hortons, expecting their usual fix of coffee and donuts, when suddenly, they are greeted by two hockey players, who smile and most importantly pay for their order.

An endearing sight at first sight, but in the present context, takes on a somewhat bitter tinge.

While Montembeault and Harvey-Pinard dispense camaraderie and caffeine, eleven franchised Tim Hortons restaurants, with a total of 44 branches in Quebec, are engaged in a legal battle against their parent company.

Their grievance? They attributed the drop in their profits from 2021 to the pricing policy imposed by the parent company.

According to the reported allegations Globe and MailFranchisees claimed that Tim Hortons maintained the prices set by Tim Hortons for purchasing their products and equipment, but sales prices did not follow the same trend, thereby reducing their profit margins.

It is in this tense context that an ad airs highlighting the good humor of hockey players, creating a striking contrast between the projected image of happiness and the real tensions behind the scenes.

Tim Hortons' response to these allegations added fuel to the fire. A company spokesperson downplayed the franchisees' concerns, calling them minority voices among the majority of satisfied franchise owners.

However, the Restaurant Brands International (RBI)-owned coffee chain is no stranger to these tensions.

Indeed, the affair is just the latest in a series of disputes between Tim Hortons and its franchisees. The Canadian Franchise Alliance also expressed displeasure over declining revenues across branches, while in 2018 the Great White North Franchise Association filed a $500 million class action lawsuit against the RBI.

In this climate charged with discontent and litigation, Tim Hortons' happy announcement seems to have come at the worst possible time.

We're talking about a stark contrast between a company's public brand image and the harsh realities faced by its franchisees.

And while Montembeault and Harvey-Pinard continue to serve coffee and donuts with a smile, it's hard not to see the campaign as an example of the disconnect between projected image and commercial reality.

Apparently, Geoff Molson chooses his sponsors well. Only Air in English Canada, Bell firing all its employees and Tim Hortons ignoring its franchisees.

It will be fine…