The Global Language of Business
Launching Products in Canada
How to Get the Basics Right
The Canadian retail landscape offers many opportunities
National average household spending on grocery and drug products is $8,492 per year1
GS1 Canada ensures that you can comply with federal and provincial regulations and requirements. Our bilingual services help you reach both English and French audiences.
1 Nielson Homescan, 2016
Our Sectors
FOODSERVICE
GENERAL MERCHANDISE,
HARDLINES, AND APPAREL
GROCERY
HEALTHCARE
PHARMACY
It all starts with a simple barcode
A barcode is a visual representation of a unique identification number that can be easily read by scanners, quickly and accurately. Avoid proprietary or resold barcodes, which are not guaranteed to be unique and will not be accepted by all retailers.
One of the most common identification numbers encoded in a barcode is a Global Trade Item Number, or GTIN (known as an EAN or UPC in some countries). GTINs uniquely identify products down to very specific details. To get a GTIN, you need to become a GS1 subscriber.
How barcodes are used
Barcodes are used across the entire supply chain and are used to retrieve specific information about individual products.
Because barcodes and GTINs are powered by so many data attributes, they can be used across the entire supply chain to support a wide variety of business processes.
Manufacturer
- Inventory Tracking
- Invoice Management
- Contract Management
- Product Withdrawal Notifications
Transport
- Logistic Information
Distributor
- Inventory Tracking and Management
- Reordering
- Invoice Management
- Contract Management
- Product Forecasting
Distribution Centre
- Inventory Tracking and Management
- Reordering
- Invoice Management
- Contract Management
- Product Forecasting
- Product Withdrawal Notifications
- Location Management
Retailer
- Inventory Tracking and Management
- Reordering
- Invoice Management
- Contract Management
- Product Forecasting
- Product Withdrawal Notifications
- Nutrition Information
- Pricing
- Counterfeit Product Detection
- Shrinkage Reduction
Consumer
- Pricing
- Product Description
What kind of barcode do I need?
The first part of most barcodes features your unique Company Prefix, a set of numbers common to all the GTINs you produce. The second part refers to a specific product variation.
You will need one barcode for each of your products and another barcode for each packaging format, such as pallet or case.
To get a barcode, become a GS1 subscriber and generate a GTIN. Visit www.gs1ca.org for more information. You can take your GTIN number to a service that creates barcodes to turn your GTINs into a readable barcode.
How many GTINs do I need?
You will need one barcode for each of your products and another, different type of barcode for each packaging format, such as pallet or case.
You may find you need more barcodes than you thought. You should also consider how many barcodes you would need if your business grows.
Manufacturer, Vendor, Supplier or Broker/Distributor
How to sell more online
More than
76% of
Canadian households
purchase products online.1
Give customers what they want
GS1 Canada's eCommerce solution captures standardized pictures of your products to be featured on online platforms.
These professional eCommerce images enable retailers and e-tailers (such as Amazon) to ensure a consistent look and feel to their eCommerce stores that help customers feel more confident with shopping online.
67% of consumers
say that the quality of a product
image is very important when
selecting and purchasing a product.2
Good data is gold
Our eCommerce solution also captures anything and everything that appears on your packaging. This ensures customers can access the same product details online as they would in-store. Product data is captured in both official languages, ensuring that you are reaching the 22% of French-speaking Canadians.
According to research,
87% of
online shoppers
say they are unlikely to buy from a brand again after experiencing inaccurate product data.1
ECommerce content goes into The Vault, our secure online registry. Here, manufacturers access all their product data and images in the one place and top up product information with extra promotional copy to make products even more compelling online.
Manufacturers can also certify their data, providing retailers and consumers with the ultimate confidence that they are using the most accurate, up-to-date, product information available.
Ask GS1 Canada about our eCommerce Service to find out how to better feature your products online.
The Vault - eCommerce
Product images and data
GS1 Canada provides content capture services for all your business process needs.
Standardized, professional content can help products stand out in marketing collateral as well as supporting other business needs.
Planogram content are used by retailers to create eye-catching displays that maximize shelf space value for the lowest possible cost.
The foodservice industry uses specific content to identify products at different packaging levels, provide visuals for menus, populate ordering catalogues and create product information cards.
ECommerce content helps retailers position products online and customers find the products they seek.
GS1 Canada believes in the power of global standards to transform the way we live and work
IDENTIFY
Directed by industry, for industry:
As a global not-for-profit, our work is directed by industry experts through our sector boards, work groups and industry protocols.
CAPTURE
Data Quality:
Our commitment to data integrity ensures the highest quality, most accurate, bilingual, certified product data and image content, updated in real-time.
SHARE
One-to-many:
Our solutions enable product image and data content to be shared with all partners at the same time with the push of a button.
USE
Industry Managed Solutions:
Our global standards-based solutions meet the needs of businesses of all sizes across all sectors using the highest level of data quality. Our solutions contain flexible tools and premium features that can be customized to your needs.
Next Steps
Now that you have a clearer understanding of how to get your products listed, contact GS1 Canada to take your next steps.
Find out how to subscribe to GS1 Canada and get the most out of our services by visiting www.gs1ca.org.
Contact us at 1.800.567.7084 or at info@gs1ca.org.
