Petro-Points and the Shifting Alliances in Canadian Fuel Loyalty
The Canadian loyalty landscape has never been more restless.
In the span of just a few years, some of the country’s most familiar loyalty program partnerships have been redrawn, dissolved or replaced entirely. Coalition relationships that consumers had come to treat as permanent fixtures quietly unwound, replaced by new arrangements that required members to re-learn, re-link and sometimes re-commit to programs they had become familiar with.
Fuel retailer Petro-Canada’s Petro-Points program is no stranger to this dynamic. Over nearly three decades, the program has built a legacy of partnerships — some that have endured, others that were trialed and retired. What’s different now is the scale of ambition.
That shift is reflected in one of its most recent collaborations. Launched in 2024, the Triangle Rewards and Petro-Points partnership spans more than 1,800 Petro-Canada and Canadian Tire Gas+ locations across the country. By linking their accounts, members can earn both CT Money and 20% more Petro-Points with each fuel transaction — a “spend once, earn twice” proposition that marks a genuine structural shift in what the program can offer. With Suncor’s support in growing the value of its retail business as the proud owner of Petro-Canada, the program experienced significant growth in 2024, and that momentum continues to build.
We sat down with Amanda Mitchell, Director of Loyalty for Petro-Canada at Suncor, to talk about the strategic logic driving what comes next for Petro-Points and the question at the center of every loyalty partnership decision — what do you owe your members when the music changes?
Amanda Mitchell is Director of Loyalty for Petro-Canada at Suncor, where she oversees the Petro-Points loyalty program. She recently has been a featured speaker at The Big Handshake in Toronto, Canada and is a recognized voice in the Canadian loyalty marketing community.
Thirty Years on the Road
Question: Petro-Canada’s Petro-Points program launched in 1995, making it one of Canada’s longest-running standalone fuel loyalty programs. When you look back at that history, what’s the through-line — the thing that has stayed constant even as everything else has evolved?
If there’s one constant across the history of Petro-Points, it’s our commitment to Canadians. Since launching in 1995, the program has continued to evolve, but always with the same core intent: to understand what Canadians need and create more relevant, rewarding ways to support them in their daily lives. Whether through national sponsorships like the Olympic and Paralympic Games or through loyalty partnerships such as RBC’s Avion Rewards, Canadian Tire’s Triangle Rewards and WestJet Rewards (beginning in 2027), Petro-Canada’s underlying purpose continues to be to keep Canadians moving toward what matters most to them.
Questions: Petro-Points has undergone several notable structural resets — a major redesign in 2017, the move to a fully digital-first model, and integration with other rewards programs. From your vantage point, what was the diagnosis at each of those inflection points? What was the program trying to fix, or become?
Because Petro-Points began in 1995, we knew that staying relevant would require constantly evolving as customer expectations and the loyalty landscape changed. We had a clear vision for the program’s future, including the 2017 redesign that refreshed the program so it would remain competitive and more relevant in a changing market. The shift to a digital-first model was about meeting customers where they were going – toward simpler, more seamless and more personalized experiences. And our more recent integration with broader partner rewards ecosystems, reflects an important shift: customers want connected value. Ultimately, we’ve been working to evolve Petro-Points into a more differentiated, customer-centred program that continues to meet the needs of Canadians across the country.
Question: The program has had a notable set of coalition relationships over the years — HBC Rewards, More Rewards, CAA, RBC, Triangle Rewards and now WestJet Rewards. Each represented a different kind of value proposition for members. How do you think about what a “right partner” looks like for Petro-Points?
For us, the right partner is one that helps provide relevant, meaningful benefits for Canadians. That means as Petro-Points and the loyalty landscape have evolved, our partner ecosystem has evolved with it. Today, that includes RBC, Canadian Tire, and beginning in 2027, WestJet Rewards. We think about our partner ecosystem as a focused set of category leaders that help us deliver everyday rewards to Canadians and share our values. The right partnerships do two things: they make Petro-Points more useful to Canadians and they create shared value for both businesses. That’s how we support Canadians in moving toward what matters most to them.
The Triangle Rewards Chapter
Question: The Triangle Rewards partnership is described as a “spend once, earn twice” proposition. That’s a compelling headline. But behind the headline — what was the strategic insight that made this the right move for Petro-Points at this moment in time?
The insight was that Canadians want more value and flexibility from the programs they use. We saw an opportunity to connect two trusted Canadian brands so a consumer’s everyday spend works harder. ‘Spend once, earn twice’ captures that simply, giving Canadians the ability to earn across both programs, unlock more value by linking their Petro-Points and Triangle Rewards accounts and redeem across Canadian Tire banner stores including Marks, Sport Chek, Canadian Tire, Party City and more. It was the right move because it delivers clear, everyday value in a way Canadians can immediately understand.
Question: The mechanics here are genuinely interesting — over 200 Gas+ stations are being rebranded to Petro-Canada, Petro-Points members can now earn and redeem at Gas+, and Triangle Rewards members can collect CT Money at Petro-Canada. That’s a meaningful physical and loyalty footprint expansion. How do you manage member experience across that complexity, particularly for customers who are new to one side of the equation?
The key is to keep the member experience simple, even when the work behind it is complex. We work closely with Canadian Tire to coordinate and organize our rebranding and marketing efforts. That includes aligned signage, staff readiness, and coordinated communications so Triangle Rewards and Petro-Points members understand what’s changing and how they benefit across our retail networks.
Questions: Linking behavior is everything in coalition loyalty — you can build a brilliant partnership, but if members don’t connect their accounts, the value leaks away. What have you learned about driving linkage, and what’s been more challenging than expected?
We’ve learned that linking must feel simple and clearly worth it. Petro-Points and RBC’s Avion Rewards was the first linked loyalty program in Canada and we were proud to trailblaze that model. Since then, customers have become much more familiar with linking across programs, so it’s less of a barrier than it once was. The key is reducing friction, clearly communicating the benefit and making the experience seamless from the start.
How Members Feel When Partners Change
Question: In your The Big Handshake presentation earlier this year, you touched on the emotional compact between a loyalty program and its members — the idea that loyalty isn’t just transactional, it’s relational. When a program changes or loses a partner that members have come to rely on, how do you think about the emotional cost of those transitions? Is there a playbook for handling them well?
We take the emotional cost seriously because loyalty is built on trust as much as value. Our approach is to stay grounded in customer needs, use research to understand impact and make changes thoughtfully and for the right reasons. Sometimes we make changes to ensure we’re focused on the priorities that will deliver the best experience for our customers. When transitions are necessary, we communicate clearly and early, explain the value behind the change and, where appropriate, provide support or incentives to help members adjust. The goal is to evolve the program in a way that strengthens the overall experience while respecting the relationship we’ve built with members over time.
Question: There’s a tension in coalition loyalty between simplification and value. More partners can mean more earning opportunities, but it can also mean confusion, fragmentation, and cognitive load. How do you think about where Petro-Points sits on that spectrum — and is there a version of “too many partners” that would concern you?
We think about the balance between simplification and value very deliberately. More partners can create more value, but only if the experience is simple and clear for our customers. For us, the goal isn’t to add partners for the sake of scale – it’s to build an ecosystem that adds meaningful value in the right categories. We rely on customer insight to guide partnership decisions and work hard to keep the value proposition and messaging simple, relevant and easy to act on.
Looking Beyond the Pump
Question: The SnackUps campaign with Chef Laurent Dagenais was a notably different kind of loyalty activation — experiential, culturally textured, and designed to reframe Petro-Canada as more than a fuel stop. What was the hypothesis behind that move, and what did success look like?
The idea behind the campaign was that loyalty can drive brand engagement. We used chef‑created “snack mashup” recipes and limited‑time bonus Petro‑Points on snack purchases to turn everyday fuel stops into a more engaging, reward‑driven experience and attract new loyalty members. It helped us show up in a more distinctive way and highlight that Petro-Canada is more than a fuel stop. SnackUps helped bring the Petro-Points program to life beyond a traditional earn-and-redeem message and created a more engaging way to connect with Canadians. Success was measured in both engagement and growth, including growing our program by over one million members during that period, ensuring strong frontline execution to connect with guests and implementing an omnichannel acquisition blitz.
Question: Petro-Points now has a Platinum tier, with exclusive benefits and offers from Petro-Canada and its partners. Tiering in fuel loyalty is still relatively uncommon in Canada. What problem does a tier solve at Petro-Points specifically — and how do you think about the difference between a tier that drives behavior versus one that simply rewards it?
For us, introducing Canada’s first frequent fueller program offers recognition alongside rewards. Platinum Status is a direct and overt way to recognize Canada’s ‘road warriors’ and offer differentiated value. It shows high frequency customers that we see them and value them. It also rewards existing loyalty and encourages deeper engagement. With Platinum, we provide more value to this distinct group of drivers in a way that feels personalized, relevant and unique in Canada.
The Practitioner’s Perspective
Question: You’ve been building loyalty through a period of significant market turbulence — economic pressure on Canadians shifts in other loyalty coalitions -- while Petro-Canada has continued to evolve its program to deliver more value through a broader set of partnerships. What does this period of “musical chairs” in Canadian fuel loyalty tell you about the health of the category — and about what members actually want from it?
It tells us that loyalty remains important to Canadians, but member expectations are rising. Research shows Canadians are highly engaged, participating in more than 10 loyalty programs on average. With so many programs competing for attention, they want value that is clear, relevant and easy to use. In today’s environment, loyalty programs also play an important role in helping Canadians save money and stretch everyday spending. For us, that reinforces the need to keep evolving Petro-Points in ways that meet customer needs and deliver meaningful value.
Question: If you could have a conversation with a Petro-Points member who has been with the program since the nineties — someone who has watched partners change over time, the earn rates evolve, and the app come along in addition to a physical rewards card — what would you want to say to them?
I’d start by saying thank you – thank you for your business, for your trust and for your loyalty over so many years. To the hundreds of thousands of members who have been with Petro-Points for decades, you have been part of this journey with us and we’re incredibly grateful for that. You’ve seen the program evolve and your continued loyalty means everything to us. We’re proud to serve Canadians and to keep them moving toward what matters most to them.
Next, I’d ask for their feedback because that’s what helps us stay relevant and continue improving. We want members to know we’re listening, we care about their experience and we’re always looking for ways to serve them better.
Lastly, I’d want them to know the program continues to evolve in exciting ways. Through digital advancements, new partnerships and added benefits, we’re creating more opportunities for members to get value from the purchases they already make with us, whether that’s fuel, car wash or convenience. Today, that includes in-app exclusive offers, an odometer feature that helps track their progress toward Platinum Status, easy car wash and fuel pump activation from the app and more surprise-and-delight offers from us and our partners. I’d encourage them to check the app regularly and opt into emails so they can take full advantage of everything our program has to offer.
Question: Final question: what does loyalty mean to you — not as a program mechanic, but as a principle? After all the campaigns, the partnerships, the resets — what’s the animating idea that still gets you out of bed for this work?
To me, loyalty is about giving back.
It’s about recognizing, thanking and rewarding customers for the trust they place in us every time they choose Petro-Canada.
What makes this work meaningful is the opportunity to help keep Canadians moving toward what matters most to them. That’s when loyalty becomes more than a program – it becomes a relationship.
