‘Any unintentional profits to be donated to national COVID-19 relief funds’
Winter clothing manufacturer Canada Goose announced its plans to ramp up domestic production of personal protective equipment (PPE) for frontline healthcare workers across Canada.
Over the next two weeks, the Company will begin to reopen all of its eight Canadian facilities and, at full capacity, as many as 900 employees will be working to support the efforts.
Under contract with the federal government, the company will produce at least 60,000 gowns per week, with plans to deliver up to 1.5 million, at cost. In Manitoba, Canada Goose will produce 100,000 reusable gowns for Shared Health.
“Any unintentional profits, potentially derived from efficiencies, will be donated to national COVID-19 relief funds,” said the company.
To produce L2 gowns, Canada Goose will leverage three facilities in Winnipeg, MB; three facilities in Greater Toronto Area, ON; and one each in Montreal and Boisbriand, QC. Approximately 150 employees were producing equipment in Toronto and Winnipeg as of last week.
All facilities will follow recommended social distancing protocols and safety regulations to ensure a safe work environment for employees, said the company.
"These unprecedented times call for decisive, collective action and now is the time for Canada to invest in Made-in-Canada solutions," said Dani Reiss, president & CEO, Canada Goose. "With one of the largest Canadian apparel manufacturing infrastructures in the country, we are uniquely positioned to re-tool our facilities and refocus our teams to produce a variety of personal protective equipment – and we are prepared to leverage all of our resources to do what's right for our country."
Canada Goose has also committed to manufacture and donate 14,000 units of gowns and scrubs at no charge at its Toronto and Winnipeg facilities. Shipment of these products to hospitals and healthcare facilities across Canada, began last week.
