CBC made a small move this month to expand its brand’s presence on the retail scene, backing it up with a microsite, CBCshop.ca, just in time for the holiday season. CBC Merchandising opened five new CBC Shop locations, including one year-round store in Edmonton and two seasonal mall kiosks in Montreal, one in Toronto and another in Ottawa.

The move brings the total of CBC Shops to eight (three had been operating out of CBC/Radio-Canada offices in Toronto, Montreal and Ottawa). The CBC Shops, kiosks and www.cbcshop.ca carry a range of CBC programming on DVDs and CDs, CBC/Radio Canada-branded clothing and accessories inspired by programs such as Vinyl Café, Hockey Night in Canada, The Nature of Things with David Suzuki, The Doodlebops, The Retro Collection, Hockey, A People’s History, Le match des étoiles and Les Invincibles. All profits generated by the CBC Merchandising division are reinvested in CBC programming.