TRC recognized for strategic growth, geographic expansion, and disciplined leadership amid challenging market conditions
TORONTO, ON — Thames River Chemical Corp. (TRC), one of Canada’s leading specialty chemical distributors, is proud to announce that it has been named a winner of the Canada’s Best Managed Companies program for 2026. The program is presented by Deloitte Private and sponsored by CIBC, Norton Rose Fulbright, EDC, The Globe and Mail, and TMX Group.
Now in its 33rd year, Canada’s Best Managed Companies is the country’s leading business awards program, recognizing excellence among privately-owned, Canadian-headquartered companies with revenues of $50 million or greater. Companies are evaluated through a rigorous and independent process across four key pillars: strategy, capabilities and innovation, culture and commitment, and governance and financial performance.
TRC’s designation reflects the company’s commitment to long-term strategic thinking, continued investment in people and capabilities, and its ability to grow through a period of significant global trade disruption.
“Staying steady and consistent in the face of change and uncertainty, and focusing on the long-term direction, is crucial. We believe in the core value that we bring to the market.”
— Ryan Wiggins, Managing Partner, Thames River Chemical Corp.
As featured in The Globe and Mail:
When global trade conditions began to shift, many of TRC’s competitors chose to scale back out of an understandable sense of caution. Not so at TRC. It had already established a long-term direction for the business—one that included expanding geographically, diversifying its customer base and strengthening its position in core markets—and saw no reason to deviate from that plan. “Staying steady and consistent in the face of change and uncertainty, and focusing on the long-term direction, is crucial,” says TRC’s managing partner, Ryan Wiggins. “We believe in the core value that we bring to the market.”
The first step was completing an acquisition the company had been considering for several years: a U.S.-based personal care distributor that allowed TRC to deepen its presence in the American market. Around the same time, the company expanded beyond North America for the first time, entering southeast Europe through its animal nutrition business and leveraging existing supplier relationships to support that move.
It also increased its investment at home. While others reduced hiring, TRC added new talent across the organization.
Over the following year, the company reported approximately 15% growth in top-line revenue, challenging conditions notwithstanding. More importantly, the business that emerged from that period was broader in scope, more diversified in its revenue streams and better equipped to navigate whatever comes next.
— The Globe and Mail, May 2026
About Canada’s Best Managed Companies
Established in 1993, Canada’s Best Managed Companies is the country’s leading business awards program recognizing excellence in private Canadian-owned enterprises with revenues of $50 million or greater. Every year, hundreds of companies compete for this designation through a rigorous, independent evaluation of their management abilities and practices.
The evaluation framework assesses four categories: Strategy, Capabilities & Innovation, Culture & Commitment, and Governance & Financial Performance. First-time winners are designated as Best Managed new winners. Companies that sustain the designation for two to three years earn Best Managed winner status; four to six years, Gold Standard; and seven or more years, Platinum Club membership.
Now spanning more than 40 countries and 1,400 companies globally, the program is presented by Deloitte Private and co-sponsored by CIBC, Norton Rose Fulbright, EDC, The Globe and Mail, and TMX Group. More information is available at www.bestmanagedcompanies.ca.
