Home   News   Article

Tim Hortons’ plans for an Inverness restaurant and drive-thru dealt major blow after Canadian chain withdraws application for Highland capital site





A Tim Hortons outlet in the US (Stock image). Picture: Tim Hortons.
A Tim Hortons outlet in the US (Stock image). Picture: Tim Hortons.

Fans of famous Canadian fast food chain Tim Hortons have been dealt a blow after the company withdrew its long-running bid to open a store in Inverness.

The company sparked excitement in the Highland capital back in 2018 when it lodged an application to build a restaurant and drive-through on part of the car park at Telford Retail Park on Telford Street.

Things have been fairly silent in the intervening seven years, with the Covid pandemic in 2020 and cost-of-living crisis sparking many companies to rethink their expansion plans.

The Tim Hortons application still remained active however, leading to hopes among food fans that they were still considering a store in Inverness.

But news that the application has now been withdrawn, which was confirmed by Highland Council’s planning team on Thursday of this week, appears to have dealt those hopes a major blow.

It means the nearest Tim Hortons outlets will likely remain Aberdeen and Perth for the foreseeable future.

The Inverness Courier reached out to Tim Hortons to ask if it was scrapping its plans for an Inverness outlet entirely, whether it was eyeing up an alternative site, and what the reasoning was behind its change of heart over Inverness and its Telford Street site.

It did not answer those questions, but in a statement on Friday it said it was currently focussing on “optimising” its existing locations, and that this had “naturally slowed the pace of new store openings”.

The response did not rule out a possible Inverness store in the future, but it also stressed that it was “unable to provide a specific timeline” for any such plans.

The spokesperson said: “Thank you for your inquiry regarding the upcoming Tim Hortons store.

“We're excited by the enthusiasm surrounding the location and appreciate the anticipation from the community. While we understand the desire for more details on the opening date, we’re currently unable to provide a specific timeline. Our priority this year has been on optimising our existing locations, which has naturally slowed the pace of new store openings.

“We appreciate your patience and continued interest.”


Do you want to respond to this article? If so, click here to submit your thoughts and they may be published in print.



This site uses cookies. By continuing to browse the site you are agreeing to our use of cookies - Learn More