The Globe and Mail reports in its Friday, March 7, edition that Canadian Tire announced a transformation strategy to invest $2-billion over four years, reorganizing operations after identifying inefficiencies. The Globe's Susan Krashinsky Robertson writes that the "True North" strategy, announced Thursday, will restructure Canadian Tire's leadership and set a new direction after the company scaled back its previous four-year plan due to a significant drop in consumer spending. That previous plan was supposed to involve $3.4-billion in investment over four years. Instead, Canadian Tire spent $1.8-billion and decided to launch a new strategy after three years. It is now planning to relocate and remodel more Canadian Tire, Sport Chek and Mark's stores; to improve customer data analytics and its use of artificial intelligence; to continue expanding its loyalty program; and to reshape its executive suite so that there is less separation in the operations of its various retail banners and Canadian Tire Bank. Chief executive officer Greg Hicks says: "We need to build a more resilient Canadian Tire. That's what the strategy is about." Canadian Tire also announced up to $400-million in share buybacks planned for this year.