The CRSA has three critical components to its mandate. They are:

• To provide a sophisticated logistics network that meets and exceeds the requirements of the Canadian retail industry.
• To lower the costs that any one participant may realize on their own by combining the volume and activity of participating members.
• To achieve levels of information services and logistics management that would be arduous for any one participant to develop on their own

In fulfilling its mandate it is important to appreciate that the Offshore Program is not a product that is sold to Canadian retailers but rather a product of Canadian retailers. The companies who participate in the program set the agenda, determine the needs, authorize all contracts, pay all costs and control the scope of all activities. A third party is employed to manage the sophisticated logistics of the Offshore Program. That party, CRSA Logistics Ltd. is a purpose built organization dedicated exclusively to providing this required expertise.