In this exclusive CanadianSME Small Business Magazine interview, Tom Turner, President at Rogers Business, explains how Rogers Red Partner is turning payment processing from a cost centre into a growth engine for Canadian SMBs. By combining lower transaction fees, an integrated business Mastercard, and cardholder incentives that drive foot traffic to merchants—all powered by Rogers’ network, banking, and media assets—he outlines a unified platform designed to cut costs, improve cash flow, and help small businesses win and keep more customers in a challenging economic climate.
Canadian SMBs are operating in a climate of tightening margins and rising operational costs. From your perspective as President of Rogers Business, what structural challenges in the payments ecosystem made a solution like Rogers Red Partner necessary at this moment?
For too long, the payments industry has been a headache for small business owners—full of confusing contracts and hidden fees. The tools meant to help businesses were actually draining their bottom line.
Because of our extensive Canadian ecosystem, including our network, bank, and media assets, Rogers can bridge the gap between a customer’s wallet and a merchant’s terminal and provide value to business owners in a way no one else can. And that’s what we’ve done with Rogers Red Partner.
We built Rogers Red Partner to give SMBs two things they need: lower costs and more customers. First, businesses keep more of what they earn, saving 20% on transaction fees — equivalent to thousands of dollars annually. Second, we are driving Rogers Red credit cardholders to SMBs with a Rogers Red POS by offering them accelerated cash back—up to 3%—on their purchases.
We are here to be a strategic partner to SMBs. By using our reach to cut costs and attract customers, we’re creating a growth engine to support Canadian SMBs. In this climate, that kind of direct, integrated support isn’t just an advantage—it’s a necessity.
Rogers Red Partner brings together payments, credit, and customer engagement into a single ecosystem. What strategic thinking guided this level of integration, and how do you see it reshaping how small businesses manage both cash flow and customer relationships?
Our strategy is all about leveraging our Rogers ecosystem, including our network, bank, and media assets, to turn a standard business expense—payment processing—into a proactive tool for SMBs to use to drive customer acquisition and cut costs. We’ve done so by integrating customer incentives for SMBs into the program by funding extra cash back for Rogers Red credit cardholders at the point of sale to drive foot traffic to local businesses.
On the cash flow side, we’re helping owners cut costs with some of the lowest transaction rates in the market, as well as the Rogers Red World Elite Business Mastercard. With this card, business owners can receive up to 3% in cash back value when redeeming towards Rogers products and services. It’s an integrated approach that simplifies the back office so owners can focus on their front of house.
Many SMB solutions address either cost reduction or customer acquisition, but rarely both in a unified model. How do you see this dual-impact approach influencing how business owners think about profitability, growth, and long-term sustainability?
Traditionally, owners have had to choose between cutting costs to survive or spending to grow. We wanted to break that trade-off. By combining lower transaction fees with a built-in way to attract customers, we’re helping SMBs improve their margins and their revenue simultaneously.
This changes how an owner views their bottom line. Instead of payment processing being just an overhead cost, it becomes a growth engine. When you offer some of the lowest transaction fees in the market and drive foot traffic through accelerated cash back, you aren’t just saving money—you’re building momentum.
Rogers is uniquely positioned with assets across communications, banking, and media. How critical was this cross-functional capability in building a solution that delivers differentiated value and is difficult for competitors to replicate?
Our cross-functional capability was the entire blueprint for this program. Most providers only offer one piece of the puzzle, but we’ve leveraged each component of our ecosystem, including our network, bank, and media assets, to build a solution that a standalone processor simply cannot match.
Beyond payments, we are using our media reach to put local businesses on the map. We help SMBs extend their visibility through discounts on Rogers Sports & Media self-serve radio and digital audio advertising, while featuring them on a dedicated map so Rogers Red cardholders can easily find them.
We also leveraged our Rogers ecosystem to tackle the risks that keep owners up at night. Through the Rogers Red World Elite Business Mastercard, we provide access to 24/7 legal advice and Cyber and ID Theft restoration services.
By integrating these offerings and protections as part of Rogers Red Partner, we’ve created a program focused on SMB growth and resilience. This model is incredibly difficult to replicate because it requires the exact combination of assets that only Rogers has.
As President of Rogers Business, how does this launch align with your long-term vision for supporting Canadian entrepreneurs, and what role do you see integrated platforms like this playing in the future of SMB growth in Canada?
My goal is to give small businesses the same competitive edge as big corporations. Too often, the best tools for growth and security are out of reach for small business owners. Rogers Red Partner changes that by giving them a direct, simple path to scaling their business.
The future of growth in Canada belongs to platforms where services are integrated. By leveraging our bank, network, and media assets, we’ve created a program where saving money and finding customers happen naturally. With Rogers Red Partner, we provide an immediate boost to business owners with some of the lowest transaction fees available, while driving foot traffic through accelerated cash back, turning a POS terminal into a cost-cutting and customer acquisition tool.
Disclaimer: CanadianSME Small Business Magazine publishes this interview. The views and opinions expressed are those of the interviewee and do not necessarily reflect the official position of CanadianSME. This interview is intended for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal, financial, or business advice.
