How Common Goods Works
What is Common Goods?
Common Goods is Canada's discovery platform connecting you with Canadian-owned businesses. We make it easy to find quality Canadian products across categories like clothing, footwear, home goods, and gifts—all in one searchable place.
"How Canadian" are the products on Common Goods?
Most Canadian companies source their goods or raw materials from various sources - some in Canada, many imported.
Each item on Common Goods is described as one of the three following categories:
- "Made in Canada" as in the legal requirement of Canada's product labelling policies - meaning a product must have undergone its last substantial transformation in Canada and have at least 51% of its total direct production costs incurred in Canada.
- "Partially made in Canada," meaning they have some Canadian ingredients but not enough to fully qualify for "Made in Canada" status,
- "Designed in Canada, made elsewhere,"
Any product without one of the above tags is not made in Canada but supplied and distributed by a Canadian-owned and operated company.
You can browse according to these 3 "Made in Canada" segments by filtering them in the left hand menu on any collection page.
How do I shop on Common Goods?
There are two ways to purchase, depending on the brand:
- Direct Checkout (Add to Cart button) - Add items to your cart and check out directly on Common Goods. We handle payment, customer service, and coordinate fulfillment with the brand.
- Shop on Brand Site (Visit Store button) - Click through to purchase directly on the brand's website. These are affiliate partnerships where we help you discover Canadian brands but you complete your purchase on their site.
How do I know what type of purchase it is?
Look for these indicators on product pages:
- Add to Cart button = Direct checkout on Common Goods
- Visit Store button = Purchase on brand's website
How do I keep track of products I like?
Click the little maple leaf icon on any product to add it to your Wish List. This makes it easy to come back to items later, especially helpful when browsing multiple brands before making a decision. You'll need to sign in or create an account to save your wish lists. Bonus: you can share your wish lists with friends and family—perfect for gift-giving!
About Our Brands
What makes a brand eligible for Common Goods?
All brands on our platform are Canadian-owned businesses. We verify ownership and prioritize makers, manufacturers, and brands with authentic Canadian roots—not drop shippers or resellers of imported goods.
How do you verify brands are actually Canadian?
We review business registration, ownership structure, and production details during our application process. When in doubt, we dig deeper. Our community also helps flag concerns.
Do you feature large Canadian brands?
We work with brands of all sizes, from solo makers to established companies. Our focus is on Canadian ownership and quality, not revenue size.
Orders and Shipping
Where do items ship from?
Products ship from our fulfillment partners across Canada. If you order from multiple brands, your order may be sent in multiple shipments.
When will I receive my order?
Most orders arrive within 5-10 business days. You'll receive tracking information once your order ships.
What are the shipping costs?
We offer flat rate shipping of $15 nationwide, with free shipping on orders over $150. Calculated rates are also available from each brand, so you can choose whichever is cheaper.
How can I track my order?
You'll receive tracking information via email once your order ships. For items purchased via Direct Checkout on Common Goods, you can also find you order status on your profile page.
Affiliate Purchases ('Buy from Brand' button)
What happens when I click 'Buy from Brand'?
You'll be redirected to the brand's website to complete your purchase. The brand handles checkout, shipping, and customer service for these orders.
Why do you have affiliate partnerships?
We include affiliate partnerships to provide the most comprehensive directory of Canadian businesses possible. Many excellent Canadian brands haven't joined our direct checkout yet, and we don't want you to miss discovering them. Additionally, some brands prefer to have checkout and customer service handled in-house for a fully managed experience.
Do I pay more when purchasing through affiliate links?
No. Prices are set by the brand and are the same whether you find them through Common Goods or directly. We earn a small commission from the brand (not you) when you make a purchase through our link. At any given time, there may be promotions on either Common Goods or the Brand site that result in a price difference.
Do you track my information when I click through?
We only track that a click-through occurred to properly attribute referrals. We don't receive your personal information or purchase details from the brand.
Issues & Support
What if something arrives damaged or incorrect? (Direct Checkout)
Email us at help@commongoods.ca with your order number and photos if applicable. We'll work directly with the brand to get you a replacement or refund. You shouldn't have to chase anyone down.
What if I have an issue with an affiliate purchase?
Contact the brand directly for purchases that took place on their site - they handle all customer service for orders placed on their site.
What's your return policy?
Each brand sets their own return policy, which you'll see on product pages and order confirmations.
Most brands offer a full refund on unused, unopened goods within 30 days of delivery. Some may charge for return shipping. Check the product page for the policy that applies to your product.
Contact us at help@commongoods.ca to start a return—we'll coordinate with the brand and guide you through the process.
I have a question about a specific product, who do I ask?
Email us at help@commongoods.ca. For product-specific questions (sizing, materials, care instructions), we'll get you accurate answers. For order issues, we handle it directly.
How quickly will I hear back?
We aim to respond within 24 hours on business days.
Payment & Security
Is my payment information secure?
Yes. All transactions are processed through Shopify's secure payment system, which is used by millions of businesses worldwide. We never see or store your payment details.
Will I see multiple charges on my card?
For direct checkout orders, you'll see one charge from Common Goods even when ordering from multiple brands. For affiliate purchases, you'll be charged directly by each brand's website.
The Platform
How is Common Goods different from other marketplaces?
We're Canadian-owned, community-built infrastructure. We don't sell advertising to brands or manipulate search results based on who pays more. Our goal is to make Canadian commerce work better for everyone—makers and shoppers alike.
How do you make money?
We earn revenue two ways: a small commission on direct checkout sales (similar to other marketplaces) and affiliate commissions when you purchase through our "Buy from Store" links. The difference? We're building shared infrastructure for Canadian commerce, not maximizing shareholder returns.
Can I save my favourite items?
Yes! Create a wishlist by clicking the maple leaf icon on products. You can share your wishlist with friends and family, making gift-giving easier.
You'll need to sign in or create an account to save your wishlists. To access your wish list (once logged in), click the maple leaf icon at the top of the page.
How can I suggest new brands?
We love community suggestions! Use the suggestion box on our site or email us at help@commongoods.ca with Canadian brands you'd like to see featured.
Transparency and Disclosure
Do you share my personal information with any 3rd parties or partners?
No. We only provide a link to the business's website. All purchases are completed directly on their site, and we never:
Process payments
Collect your personal information
Have access to your order details
Can businesses opt-out of being listed on your platform?
Yes. Any business can request removal from our platform by emailing vendorsupport@commongoods.ca We process all removal requests within 5 business days.
Who runs Common Goods?
Hi, I'm Val Crisp, Founder and Head of Product at Common Goods. As a third-generation entrepreneur from Aurora, Ontario, with a Ryerson University degree in Fashion Design and Communications, I've built my own made-in-Canada accessories brand and deployed marketplaces in the UK and US.
My mission is simple: fix product discovery so incredible Canadian small businesses and consumers can find each other easily and precisely. Together with a community of passionate Canadian businesses, we're creating a single destination that celebrates and supports local entrepreneurship. Common Goods is our collective response to connecting Canadian brands from coast to coast to coast.
I couldn't do any of this without a very talented and driven team. Visit our About page learn more about our mission and team.
There's concern about Shopify's leadership, what's your take?
Let's talk about this. We understand the concern about any large company's leadership's political views. But boycotting Shopify would actively harm the Canadian small businesses we're trying to help.
Here's why:
Shopify is essential infrastructure for most Canadian brands. (As are Meta, Google, Amazon, and more). It's like telling people not to use cars because they're bad for the environment, while offering no alternative infrastructure. The only people who lose in that scenario are the ones who give up their cars.
The reality is that Shopify powers the largest share of successful independent Canadian online stores for a reason - it's genuinely the best tool by a huge margin. From small businesses to major Canadian retailers, it's the backbone of Canadian e-commerce because no other platform comes close to matching its capabilities.
When people suggest "just switch to WooCommerce or Ecwid" or other platforms, they don't understand the depth of what they're asking. While some stores can make the switch, for most others Shopify isn't just a website builder - it's an entire ecosystem of inventory management, shipping optimization, tax compliance, sales channel integration, and developer tools that work seamlessly together.
This very marketplace would be 10x slower, more expensive, and harder to build on another platform. It is our view that our projected impact is 100x important than the small monthly fee going to Shopify.
More importantly, collective influence is more effective at generating change than individual boycotts. Shopify employs over 8,000 Canadians. They power over a million small businesses and over 130,000 in Canada. As this community of merchants grows, so does our collective voice to influence positive change. Building successful, influential Canadian businesses on the platform gives us more leverage to push for better leadership decisions, not less.
The goal isn't to make Shopify smaller - it's to make it better - to hold leadership accountable to Canadians so that we can be proud of this hugely successful, innovative company. That happens through engagement, not abandonment. And while Shopify is in the spotlight right now due to the political cycle, the reality is that problematic billionaires profit from almost every piece of infrastructure we use. Rather than impossible individual purity tests, we need collective action to push for systemic change.
Our founding team has and will continue to use our platform to call out leaders who promote rhetoric and policies that we believe to be un-Canadian. In the meantime, Common Goods welcomes vendors hosting their websites on most major platforms (Shopify, WooCommerce, Squarespace, Etsy, and more.)