Ontario Premier Doug Ford's message to American expansionists on Wednesday was hard to miss: He wore it on his hat.
Speaking to reporters in Ottawa ahead of the prime minister's meeting with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to discuss Canada's response to the threat of US tariffs, Ford wore a navy peaked hat emblazoned with the words “Canada Not for Sale” in white block letters.
The design clearly evokes the “Make America Great Again” slogan popular among supporters of President-elect Donald Trump.
Trump has recently threatened to impose tariffs on all Canadian goods and has considered using “economic force” to “liberate” the border between the two countries. Those threats led to Wednesday's meeting in Ottawa.
“It's about everyday Canadians standing up for the country,” Ford said when asked about the choice of headwear.
He said he got the hat from Ottawa's Jackpine Dynamic Branding Thanks to the company at X.
Jackpine's Liam Mooney said the idea for the hat came last week when he and a friend were watching Ford being interviewed on Fox News and heard the host say it would be a “privilege” for Canada to join the U.S.
“We thought, no. It's a privilege to be Canadian,” Mooney said.
Mooney said they quickly came up with a “cheeky” slogan, which he confirmed was a deliberate riff on the MAGA brand, and quickly built a website with the help of online commerce giant Shopify.
Mooney said a member of Ford's staff saw the hats and called to ask if they could have them ready for the prime minister in time for Wednesday's meeting.
“We went from the concept to the prime minister's head in a week's time,” Mooney said, describing the response as “overwhelming.”
As of Wednesday afternoon, Mooney said JackPine has made tens of thousands of dollars in sales, thanks in large part to Ford's plug. But Mooney described the venture as a “small act of patriotism” rather than a money-making scheme.
“It doesn't matter what your political affiliation is, what your party affiliation is or what your worldview may be. I think we can all agree that Canada is a wonderful county, and in a world of nations Canada stands alone in a very unique way. And Amazing country,” he said.
“We want people to feel proud of (their) country, and we want people to feel like they have a way to make a statement.”
The hats are currently made in Vietnam and Bangladesh, but Mooney said Jackpine is looking to establish a fully Canadian supply chain that will include joint labor.
