M&M Food Market celebrates five years and more than $450,000 raised with BGC Canada
By Joelle Kidd
The spring of 2020 was an uncertain time. The COVID-19 pandemic lockdowns were in full effect, supply chains were disrupted, and community-based food programs found themselves in need of help.
BGC Canada (formerly Boys and Girls Club of Canada) was one such program, facing increased need and limited resources. That’s where M&M Food Market came in.
“We connected with BGC Canada when we learned that local Clubs had been affected by lockdowns,” says Al Lindsay, president of M&M Food Market. BGC’s childcare programs and morning and after-school care needed to be shuttered to comply with lockdowns, putting additional strain on families in need. “We worked closely with our partners at BGC Canada, and M&M Food Market was happy to provide $125,000 in gift cards for BGC Canada to distribute to families in their communities.”
The success of this effort led to further conversations “about how to work together to make an even bigger impact,” Lindsay says. By October 2020—at the brand’s virtual 40th anniversary celebration—M&M Food Market formalized the partnership.
“Since then, our head office team, franchise partners, store managers, and meal advisors have rallied behind this cause and have raised over $450,000 in food, cash, and gift card donations to support this national charitable organization at a local level,” says Lindsay.
Homegrown giving
The idea of giving back locally is baked into the M&M Food Market concept from the start.
“As a Canadian-owned and operated retailer, for over 40 years M&M has helped Canadians put delicious meals on the table by offering easy-to-prepare, top-quality foods, and personalized customer service, all within a uniquely convenient shopping environment,” Lindsay says. The brand is proud of its Canadian roots: more than 80 per cent of the products sold in M&M Food Market stores are made in Canada, and the brand has more than 300 locations across the country, in every province and two territories.
While the brand has evolved since its humble beginnings in 1980 in Kitchener, Ontario—including a 2016 rebranding, refreshed store design, launch of a cutting-edge e-commerce site, and an acquisition by Parkland Corporation—that local-shop mentality and focus on the community has remained.
“Our stores have been part of communities across Canada since we opened our doors in 1980,” says Lindsay. And M&M has made it a point to commit to the communities it operates in. “We consider this to be a responsibility of ours, as a company and as local operators.”
Last year, the brand set out to raise $100,000 for BGC Canada’s Club Day campaign. In-store teams, employees, and customers came together in a month-long campaign. The efforts of the M&M team and their customers resulted in $152,000 in cash, gift cards, and food donations, according to Lindsay.
Parkland’s Ultramar Foundation also joined M&M in donating an additional $100,000, bringing their 2024 total to a whopping quarter of a million dollars.
BGC Canada is the country’s largest organization serving children and youth, running community-based programs that include before- and after-school care, childcare services, youth mental health support, food security initiatives, and educational programs. In addition to raising funds, the annual Club Day event spreads awareness for BGC Canada’s programs. This year, M&M Food Market plans to support Club Day again on Friday, June 6th, 2025.
Lindsay, who is a member of the BGC Canada foundation board, says he’s looking forward to continuing the partnership. “This is a cause I’m very passionate about. I’m looking forward to continuing to stand up for young people, creating a platform for their voices, and working together to create a more equitable and inclusive Canada from coast to coast.”
Franchisees are excited about the ongoing partnership as well, which Lindsay notes could open up new opportunities on the local level. “Many of our franchise partners have made connections with their local BGC Canada Club, and we expect to see some very inspiring things continue to happen at a local level this year and into the future,” he says. “Everything from food donations to Clubs, to showing up and supporting Club events, to hosting a barbecue event for the youth at a Club.”
Living (and giving) local
M&M Food Market franchise partners also support a wide variety of causes and community events in their local areas, Lindsay notes—“everything from food donations, financial contributions, team and club sponsorships, barbecue events, and even volunteering their time.” Franchise partners with the brand are passionate about providing this support, and proud of the work they do, he adds.
“Many of our franchise partners appreciate the fact that we support BGC Canada as a national organization at a corporate level, and at the same time, they have the opportunity to support additional local charitable groups that they feel most connected to.”
Franchise partners across the country make their support felt by sponsoring local sports teams, contributing gift cards to raffles, donating proceeds to help with fundraising efforts, hosting charity events, and donating food, among other ways.
Four decades ago, M&M Food Market (then called M&M Meat Shops) was founded to offer a new kind of meal option to busy consumers who might not have time to cook a meal from scratch but didn’t want to rely on take-out or low-quality prepared food. The product line-up featured restaurant-quality foods at an accessible price point, flash-frozen and easy to prepare—the kinds of products not available at any other retailer.
Since then, this mission has continued, with the product range expanding to include everything from healthy daily dinners to hors d’oeuvres and other options for special events and entertaining. M&M Food Market stores now feature colour-coded packaging to help customers navigate the selection, line-ups of essential products to keep kitchens and pantries stocked, and delicious options for a wide range of dietary needs and consumer tastes, including gluten free, vegetarian, and vegan options. Expertly trained meal advisors help customers navigate the selection and find their new favourite meals.
With this focus on customer connection, it’s a natural extension for franchisees to share their community outreach. “Given the deep local connections our franchise partners have with charitable groups in their communities, word-of-mouth and talking to customers in store is a great way to spread the word about all the great work our team is doing,” he says.
All of this is not to try to get credit for the charitable work M&M Food Market and its franchisees do, Lindsay notes. “It’s more about using our channels and network to raise awareness for these charitable groups in hopes to garner even more support beyond what our team is already doing.”
After all, it all cycles back around to strong community connections. “The work our franchise partners do to support local organizations and charities in their communities,” Lindsay says, is “truly inspiring.”
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