The Linkage Group was founded in 1997 by Joe Smith – yes, that's his real name—with the intent of seeing the retail shopping experience through "the eyes of the consumer." Joe's broad experience in Grocery Retailing allowed him to realize retailers needed to have visibility on the high out of stocks that plagued their stores – which lead to both lost sales and lost customers. Most buying decisions are made at the point of sale, and no product meant a lost opportunity for the retailers, so the goal was to measure out-of-stocks during peak shopping periods. This way, both manufacturers and retailers could take corrective action by eliminating out-of-stocks, enhance consumers shopping experience and increase sales. The Linkage Group's audit expertise was exactly what many retailers and manufactures were looking for: knowledge. Merchandising commenced when most major manufacturers realized that brand building through focused sales execution was the road to build stronger sales and brands. The Linkages Group network supervises, manages, trains and motivates over 300 retail seasoned merchandisers, who in turn are responsible for retail execution excellence. We take great pride in the expertise we have built with our clients' support; we have developed a reputation for high quality, no problems, on time, and in store execution.

To become Canada’s leading in-store provider of Merchandising and Information Services through continuous innovation, excellence in execution and investment in our people.