News Releases | Corporate

Coffee & baked goods chain finalizes 4 store sites & new coffee roasting plant in Rochester

Rochester, N.Y.(May 24, 2002) -- Tim Hortons announced today that it has made a firm commitment to the Rochester market with the unveiling of a coffee roasting plant, and the sites of 4 new Tim Hortons stores scheduled to open in September of this year.

We see Rochester as a logical extension of our U.S. growth, particularly in light of our success in the Buffalo market", said Paul House, President & C.O.O. of the coffee and baked goods chain. "The coffee roasting plant will supply our U.S. operations with our own premium Tim Hortons blend of coffee", he continued.

Helping to kick off the grand opening of Tim Hortons' Maidstone Coffee roasting plant are (from left to right): Jack Schuessler, Chairman & CEO, Wendy's International, Inc.; Mayor William A. Johnson, Jr., City of Rochester; Paul House, President & COO, Tim Hortons; Tom McNeely, Executive Vice-President, Finance & IT, Tim Hortons; Garrett Dobesh, General Manager, Maidstone Coffee and Supervisor Ralph Esposito, Town of Gates

"Our expertise in coffee over the 38 years we have operated can now be translated into the actual roasting process with this state-of-the-art facility", added House.

The Tim Hortons special blend of coffee has been closely guarded from the beginnings of the chain, and is subject to stringent quality assurance measures by a team of coffee experts located at the Tim Hortons head office in Oakville, Ontario.

"We do extensive testing and cupping of our coffee to ensure the highest quality standards are met, and now our people can extend that quality right into the roasting process here in Rochester", said House. "We start with the best possible arabica beans from various countries of the world to create our special blend, and can follow those beans right through the roasting and packaging processes".

The 4 store sites in Rochester are all high profile locations, and will be home to 3,000 square foot stand alone Tim Hortons stores with drive-thrus. The Tim Hortons chain, named for its co-founder, NHL hockey great Tim Horton, has become Canada's largest national chain. Its expansion into the United States includes 143 stores located primarily in Detroit, Columbus and Buffalo. The 29 stores in Buffalo were recently voted the favorite place for coffee by WIVB-TV viewers, and have developed the same kind of customer loyalty as stores in Canada have enjoyed for years.

The popularity of Tim Hortons stems primarily from sticking to its guiding principles of quality, service and value. Stores are open 24 hours, and the cheerful, comfortable store decor makes them an enjoyable eat-in or take-out experience. Breakfast items include the Tim Hortons special blend of coffee, a variety of signature bagels, muffins, croissants, danishes, donuts and Timbits (bite-sized donut holes). Tim Hortons suggests that customers "Come home for lunch", with offerings including Tim's Own sandwiches, soups, and chicken stew or chili-in-a-bread-bowl. Sandwiches can be enjoyed on Tim's new baguettes or country buns, all made fresh to order. Baked goods snacks, including Tim's Own Coffee Cake, can be enjoyed anytime of day or night, along with coffee, tea, cafe mocha, hot flavored cappuccino, soft drinks, iced tea, or Tim Hortons Iced Cappuccino.

Speed of service is a priority at Tim Hortons, at both instore and drive-thru service. In store customers are served Tim Hortons coffee in china mugs, and can enjoy the bright, 55-seat dining area. Whether customers are in a hurry, or ready to relax, Tim Hortons caters to them all. The highest quality coffee and wide variety of snacks and meals provides something for everyone, all day, every day.

While initially producing only the Tim Hortons blend of coffee, the coffee roasting plant, which will go under the name "Maidstone", will eventually produce other premium blends of coffee for sale to other retail accounts. Only Tim Hortons stores will sell the Tim Hortons blend, but Maidstone expects to create several distinctive blends for potential clients.

After purchasing the old Sara Lee "Chock Full 'O Nuts" plant, Tim Hortons completely renovated and re-equipped the facility with the highest quality roasting and packaging equipment. Special outside "afterburners" prevent the coffee aroma from disseminating into the air within the surrounding community. Many of the plant's former employees have been hired and re-trained to efficiently operate the state-of-the-art equipment. The capacity of the plant will initially be in excess of 10 million pounds of coffee and will employ 45 staff within the first year of operation.

Tim Hortons, which merged with Wendy's International, Inc. in 1995, presently has 2,063 locations in Canada, and 143 in the United States. The chain posted sales of over $1.9 billion in 2001, and is expected to surpass the $2 billion mark this year.