Tim Hortons Inc. (NYSE:THI) (TSX:THI) announced
today that preliminary same-store sales were up 5.9% at Tim Hortons
locations in Canada and 9.2% at restaurants in the U.S for the
third quarter, which ended on Sunday, October 1. Tims continued its
strong sales performance, driven in part by a strong promotional
effort and new menu item releases throughout the summer. In June
and July, Tim Hortons introduced its chunky chicken salad wrap in
Canada and the U.S., respectively. Iced cappuccino with flavour
shots of butter caramel, French vanilla, hazelnut or raspberry,
were the feature promotions in July and August. Tim Hortons also
promoted a 12-grain bagel in Canada in August, and the toasted
chicken club sandwich in both countries in September. "We are
extremely pleased to see our strong 2006 sales momentum continue
during the third quarter in both Canada and the U.S.," commented
Tims Chief Executive Officer and President Paul House. '''Both our
third-quarter and year-to-date results are above our expectations
of 4.0% to 5.0% in Canada and 6.0% to 7.0% in the United States.'
Tim Hortons will roll out its new breakfast sandwich to all stores
in Canada in the fourth quarter. All U.S. stores had previously
started offering the hot breakfast sandwich in the first quarter of
2006. Tims will again promote the hot breakfast sandwich in both
countries in the fourth quarter, along with holiday merchandise for
the Christmas season.