Document:

<PAGE>   1
                                                                     Exhibit 4.2

                             SUBSCRIPTION AGREEMENT

                                       FOR

       CONVERTIBLE PARTICIPATING VOTING SECOND PREFERRED SHARES, SERIES I

                                       OF

                           COTT CORPORATION, AS ISSUER

                            DATED AS OF JUNE 12, 1998

                             SUBSCRIPTION AGREEMENT

     THIS AGREEMENT made the as of the 12TH day of June, 1998.

BETWEEN:

                    THE  "PURCHASERS" SET FORTH ON SCHEDULE 1.1(aa) HERETO

                    (individually, each a Purchaser and collectively, the
                    "Purchasers")

                    - and -

                    COTT CORPORATION, a corporation continued under the laws of
                    Canada

                    (the "Corporation")

RECITALS:

1. The Purchasers wish to subscribe for and the Corporation wishes to issue to
the Purchasers, subject to the terms and conditions hereof, an aggregate of
4,000,000

<PAGE>   2

Convertible Participating Voting Second Preferred Shares, Series I, of the
Corporation having the terms set forth in the Share Provisions (as hereinafter
defined).

2. The Purchasers are simultaneously entering into the Share Purchase Agreement
pursuant to which they shall acquire Common Shares in the capital of the
Corporation.

     In consideration of the premises and the mutual covenants and agreements
herein contained, the parties hereto hereby covenant and agree as follows:

                                    ARTICLE 1

                                   DEFINITIONS

1.1       DEFINITIONS. In this Agreement, unless the context otherwise requires:

     (a)  "ACTUAL KNOWLEDGE" means the actual knowledge existing prior to the
          date hereof of the directors, officers or employees of the Thomas H.
          Lee Company and the partners or associates of KPMG, Hutchins Wheeler &
          Dittmar and Aird & Berlis who assisted the Thomas H. Lee Company in
          evaluating the transactions contemplated herein;

     (b)  "AFFILIATE" has the meaning set out in the Securities Act (Ontario);

     (c)  "AGREEMENT" means this subscription agreement between the Corporation
          and the Purchasers, as amended from time to time;

     (d)  "APPLICABLE LAWS" means, collectively, the CBCA, the Competition Act
          (Canada), the Investment Canada Act, the Securities Laws, the state
          securities or "blue-sky" laws of states of the United States and the
          H-S-R Act;

     (e)  "BOARD OF DIRECTORS" means the board of directors of the Corporation;

     (f)  "BUSINESS DAY" means every day except a Saturday, Sunday or a day
          which is a statutory holiday under the laws of Canada or the Province
          of Ontario;

     (g)  "CANADIAN SECURITIES LAWS" means (i) the securities laws of the
          provinces of Canada and the regulations, rules and policies
          promulgated thereunder, and (ii) the rules, regulations and policies
          of The Toronto Stock Exchange and the Montreal Exchange;

     (h)  "CBCA" means the Canada Business Corporations Act, as may be amended
          from time to time;

     (i)  "CLOSING" means the closing of the purchase and issuance of the
          Preferred Shares contemplated hereby;

<PAGE>   3

     (j)  "CLOSING DATE" means 15 Business Days from the date hereof in the
          event early termination is granted under the H-S-R Act, or such other
          date as the Purchaser and the Corporation may agree in writing but in
          no event later than three business days following the date upon which
          all of the conditions set out in Article 6 hereof are satisfied;

     (k)  "COMMON SHARES" means the common shares in the capital of the
          Corporation;

     (l)  "CONSENT" means any consent or approval under Applicable Laws required
          to be obtained in connection with the (i) completion of the
          transactions contemplated by this Agreement, (ii) the execution of
          this Agreement, and/or (iii) the Closing or the performance of any
          terms of this Agreement;

     (m)  "CORPORATION" means Cott Corporation, a corporation continued under
          the laws of Canada;

     (n)  "COTT CORPORATION OPTION PLAN" means the Corporation's 1986 Option
          Plan, as amended through September 4, 1997;

     (o)  "FAMILY MEMBERS" means the individuals and entities listed on SCHEDULE
          1.1(o);

     (p)  "H-S-R ACT" means the Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements Act of
          1976, as amended;

     (q)  "LIABILITIES" means liabilities or obligations (direct or indirect,
          contingent or absolute, known or unknown, matured or unmatured) of any
          nature whatsoever, whether arising out of contract, tort, statute, or
          otherwise;

     (r)  "MATERIAL ADVERSE EFFECT" means a material adverse effect on the
          business, assets, properties, financial condition or results of
          operations of the Corporation and its Subsidiaries, on a consolidated
          basis;

     (s)  "MATERIAL SUBSIDIARIES" means those Subsidiaries set out in SCHEDULE
          1.1(s);

     (t)  "MAXIMUM AMOUNT" has the meaning ascribed to it in paragraph 8.1(A)
          hereof;

     (u)  "NUMBER OF NOMINEES" means, unless otherwise agreed to in writing by
          the Corporation and the Purchasers with the consent of a majority of
          the members of the Board of Directors who are not nominees of the
          Purchasers and the Family Members on the Board of Directors, such
          number of nominees on the Board of Directors which is based on a
          minimum number of outstanding Common Shares or other voting shares in
          the capital of the Corporation (with the calculation to include
          Preferred

<PAGE>   4

          Shares being treated as if such Preferred Shares had been converted to
          Common Shares in accordance with provisions of the Preferred Shares)
          being owned collectively by the Purchasers and the Family Members, as
          follows:

<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
          NUMBER OF                     MINIMUM NUMBER OF COMMON SHARES
          NOMINEES                           OR OTHER VOTING SHARES
          ---------                     -------------------------------
<S>                                     <C>
          4                                  12,800,000
          3                                   9,600,000
          2                                   6,400,000
          1                                   3,200,000
</TABLE>

          such minimum number of Common Shares or other voting shares to be
          adjusted accordingly if the number of outstanding Common Shares is
          changed as the result of any stock dividend, stock split, stock
          consolidation, recapitalization, merger or other similar change in the
          capital structure of the Corporation;

     (v)  "OSC" means Ontario Securities Commission;

     (w)  "PERSON" means an individual, corporation, incorporated or
          unincorporated association, syndicate or organization, partnership,
          trust, trustee, executor, administrator or other legal representative;

     (x)  "PREFERRED SHARES" means the Convertible Participating Voting Second
          Preferred Shares, Series I of the Corporation;

     (y)  "PUBLIC DOCUMENTS" has the meaning ascribed to it in Section 4.2
          hereof;

     (z)  "PURCHASE PRICE" has the meaning ascribed to it in Section 2.3 hereof;

     (aa)"PURCHASER" means individually, each person or entity designated as
          Purchasers on SCHEDULE 1.1(AA) hereto and "PURCHASERS" means
          collectively, the persons and entities designated as Purchasers on
          SCHEDULE 1.1(AA) hereto;

     (ab) "PURCHASERS' DIRECTORS" has the meaning ascribed to it in Section 7.5;

     (ac) "PURCHASERS' REPRESENTATIVE" means, initially, Thomas H. Lee Company;

     (ad) "REGISTERED HOLDERS" means registered holders of Common Shares;

     (ae)"REGISTRATION RIGHTS AGREEMENT" means the registration rights agreement
          between the Corporation and the Purchasers dated the Closing Date, as
          amended from time to time;

     (af) "REQUIRED ACTION" has the meaning ascribed thereto in Section 4.5;

<PAGE>   5

     (ag) "SECURITIES ACT" means the Securities Act (Ontario);

     (ah) "SECURITIES LAWS" means the Canadian Securities Laws and the U.S.
          Securities Laws;

     (ai) "SHARE PROVISIONS" means the share provisions applicable to the
          Preferred Shares as set out in SCHEDULE 1.1(AI);

     (aj)"SHARE PURCHASE AGREEMENT" means the agreement dated as of June 12,
          1998 between the Purchasers and the Family Members, as amended from
          time to time;

     (ak)"SUBSIDIARIES" in relation to the Corporation means companies and other
          entities of which the voting securities sufficient to elect a majority
          of the Board of Directors are owned by the Corporation;

     (al) "TIME OF CLOSING" means 11:00 a.m. on the Closing Date;

     (am) "TRANSACTION DOCUMENTS" has the meaning ascribed to it in Section 4.5
          hereof; and

     (an)"U.S. SECURITIES LAWS" means the Securities Act of 1933, as amended,
          and the Securities and Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, and the
          regulations and rules promulgated under such acts.

1.2       CONSTRUCTION.  In this Agreement:

     (a)  words denoting the singular include the plural and vice versa and
          words denoting any gender include all genders;

     (b)  the words "including", "include", and "includes" shall mean "including
          without limitation", "include, without limitation" and "includes,
          without limitation", respectively;

     (c)  any reference to a statute shall mean the statute in force as at the
          date hereof and any regulation in force thereunder, unless otherwise
          expressly provided;

     (d)  the use of headings is for convenience of reference only and shall not
          affect the construction of this Agreement;

     (e)  when calculating the period of time within which or following which
          any act is to be done or step taken, the date which is the reference
          day in calculating such period shall be excluded. If the last day of
          such period is not a Business Day, the period shall end on the next
          Business Day;

<PAGE>   6

     (f)  all dollar amounts are expressed in lawful currency of the United
          States of America, unless otherwise expressly provided; and

     (g)  where a notice, waiver, permit, consent, direction, authorization or
          instruction is to be delivered or given by or to the Purchasers
          herein, such notice, waiver, permit, consent, direction, authorization
          or instruction may be provided by or to the Purchasers' Representative
          on behalf of and in the name of each of the Purchasers, and the
          Purchasers shall be deemed to have authorized and consented to, or to
          have received, as the case may be, such delivery. The Purchasers'
          Representative may resign at any time upon notice to the Corporation
          and the other Purchasers, in which case all actions must be taken by
          and all notices must be given to, the Purchasers directly unless and
          until Purchasers holding a majority in interest of the Preferred
          Shares then held by all Purchasers shall give notice to the
          Corporation of a successor Purchaser Representative, which notice
          shall be countersigned by the person so named for such authorization
          to be effective.

1.3       ACCOUNTING PRINCIPLES. Wherever in this Agreement reference is made to
generally accepted accounting principles, such reference shall be deemed to be
Canadian generally accepted accounting principles which include the principles
approved from time to time by the Canadian Institute of Chartered Accountants,
or any successor institute, applicable as at the date on which such calculation
is made or required to be made in accordance with generally accepted accounting
principles.

1.4       SCHEDULES. The following are the schedules annexed hereto and
incorporated by reference herein and deemed to be part of this Agreement:

<TABLE>
<S>                       <C>       <C>
     Schedule 1.1(aa)      -        Purchasers and Nominees
     Schedule 1.1(o)       -        Family Members
     Schedule 1.1(s)       -        Material Subsidiaries
     Schedule 1.1(ai)      -        Share Provisions
     Schedule 4.4          -        Absence of Certain Changes
     Schedule 4.6          -        Breaches, Defaults, Required Consents and Filings
     Schedule 4.7          -        Options, Warrants, Etc.
     Schedule 4.8          -        Litigation
     Schedule 4.10         -        Liabilities
     Schedule 4.19         -        Intellectual Property
     Schedule 12.5(a)      -        Notices to Purchasers
</TABLE>

                                    ARTICLE 2

                   AUTHORIZATION AND SALE OF PREFERRED SHARES

<PAGE>   7

2.1       AUTHORIZATION. Subject to obtaining the Consents, the Corporation has
heretofore authorized the issuance and sale to the Purchasers pursuant to this
Agreement of an aggregate of 4,000,000 Preferred Shares.

2.2       ISSUANCE AND SALE OF PREFERRED SHARES. Subject to the terms and
conditions of this Agreement, at the time of Closing, the Corporation will issue
to the Purchasers and the Purchasers will subscribe for and purchase from the
Corporation the Preferred Shares in the amounts set forth opposite each
Purchaser's name on SCHEDULE 1.1(AA) hereto.

2.3       PURCHASE PRICE. The aggregate consideration to be paid by the
Purchasers for the Preferred Shares shall be $40,000,0000 (the "Purchase
Price"), representing consideration of $10.00 per Preferred Share.

                                    ARTICLE 3

                                     CLOSING

3.1       CLOSING DATE. The Closing shall take place on the Closing Date. The
Closing shall be held at the Time of Closing at the offices of Goodman Phillips
& Vineberg, Suite 2400, 250 Yonge Street, Toronto, Ontario, or at such other
place and time as may be agreed upon by the Corporation and the Purchasers'
Representative in writing.

3.2       DELIVERY OF CERTIFICATES. Delivery of the share certificates
representing the Preferred Shares shall be made at the Closing by the
Corporation delivering to the Purchasers' Representative, against payment of the
purchase price therefor, certificates representing the Preferred Shares
registered in the name of the Purchasers in the amounts set forth opposite each
Purchaser's name on SCHEDULE 1.1(AA) hereto or such other person disclosed in
SCHEDULE 1.1(AA) hereto which shall be an affiliate of a Purchaser or a nominee
of a Purchaser or such affiliate as a Purchaser may have designated in writing
to the Corporation at least one Business Day prior to the Closing Date; provided
that any such nominee or affiliate shall agree in writing to assume the
obligations of the Purchasers hereunder as if an original signatory hereto and
further provided that the Purchasers shall continue to be responsible for all of
the obligations of the Purchasers hereunder.

3.3       PAYMENT OF PURCHASE PRICE. The Purchase Price shall be paid and
satisfied by each Purchaser at the Time of Closing by delivery to the
Corporation by wire transfer made payable to the Corporation in an aggregate
amount equal to that portion of the Purchase Price set forth opposite each
Purchaser's name on SCHEDULE 1.1(AA) hereto.

3.4       FURTHER ASSURANCES. From time to time following the Closing, upon the
request of the Purchasers' Representative, the Corporation shall execute and

<PAGE>   8

deliver, or cause to be executed and delivered, to the Purchasers such other
instruments and take such other action as may be reasonably necessary to more
effectively vest in the Purchasers and put the Purchasers in possession of the
Preferred Shares and the Common Shares issuable upon conversion of the Preferred
Shares purchased by the Purchasers hereunder. The Corporation and the Purchasers
shall each use their reasonable commercial efforts to obtain as soon as
practicable all Consents.

                                    ARTICLE 4

                REPRESENTATIONS AND WARRANTIES OF THE CORPORATION

     As an inducement to the Purchasers to enter into this Agreement and to
consummate the transactions contemplated hereby, the Corporation represents and
warrants to the Purchasers as follows:

4.1       ORGANIZATION AND QUALIFICATION. Each of the Corporation and its
Material Subsidiaries has been incorporated and organized, and is validly
existing as a corporation, and has full corporate power and authority to own its
assets and conduct its businesses as now owned and conducted. Each of the
Corporation and its Material Subsidiaries is duly qualified to carry on
business, and is in good standing, in each jurisdiction in which the character
of its properties, owned or leased, or the nature of its activities makes such
qualification necessary, except where the failure to be so qualified or in good
standing could not or would not reasonably be expected to, have a Material
Adverse Effect. Other than as disclosed in the Public Documents or in SCHEDULE
1.1(s), the Corporation owns all of the outstanding capital stock of each of its
Material Subsidiaries free and clear of all liens, encumbrances and claims.

4.2       FILINGS. Documents or information filed by the Corporation under
Applicable Laws, including, without limitation, the Corporation's:

     (a)  1997 Annual Report to Shareholders;

     (b)  proxy circular (the "Proxy Circular") relating to the Corporation's
          1997 Annual Meeting of Shareholders;

     (c)  1997 Annual Information Form; and

(all such filings and documents are hereinafter referred to as the "Public
Filings"). The Public Filings, together with (i) the quarterly unaudited
consolidated balance sheet and related consolidated statement of earnings and
consolidated statement of changes in financial position of the Corporation for
the three months ended May 2, 1998 attached to a press release dated June 12,
1998; (ii) the Corporation's draft financial statements for the fiscal year
ended 1998; (iii) the draft dated June 10, 1998 of the Corporation's 1998 Annual
Information Form; and (iv) the draft dated

<PAGE>   9

June 10, 1998 of the Corporation's Management Proxy Circular (collectively, the
"Public Documents") are, as of their respective dates, other than financial
statements, in compliance in all material respects with such Applicable Laws and
did not contain any untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a
material fact required to be stated therein or necessary to make the statements
therein, in light of the circumstances under which they were made, not
misleading. The Corporation has timely filed all documents required to be filed
under the Applicable Laws, except where the failure to do so would not have a
Material Adverse Effect.

4.3       FINANCIAL STATEMENTS. (a) The audited consolidated balance sheet and
related consolidated statements of earnings, retained earnings and changes in
financial position of the Corporation, together with the Notes to the
Consolidated Financial Statements for the fiscal year ended January 31, 1998,
were prepared in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles
consistently applied (except where otherwise indicated) and present fairly in
all material respects the consolidated financial position of the Corporation at
the respective dates indicated and the results of operations and changes in
financial position of the Corporation for the periods covered thereby in
accordance with generally accepted accounting principles; and (b) the unaudited
interim financial statements of the Corporation contained in the Public
Documents present fairly in all material respects the financial position of the
Corporation for the periods covered thereby in accordance with generally
accepted accounting principles (except for normal year-end adjustments and the
omission of footnotes).

4.4       ABSENCE OF CERTAIN CHANGES. Except as otherwise disclosed on SCHEDULE
4.4 hereto, (a) since the date of the latest balance sheet presented in the
audited financial statements as at and for the year ended January 31, 1998 there
has been no change in the business, properties, operations or financial
condition of the Corporation and its Subsidiaries, on a consolidated basis,
which would or could reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect,
provided that a decline in the trading price of the Common Shares shall not be
deemed to be a Material Adverse Effect if such decline is not directly
attributable to a material adverse change in the business, properties,
operations or financial condition of the Corporation and its Subsidiaries, on a
consolidated basis, and (b) neither the Corporation nor any of its Subsidiaries
has incurred or undertaken any Liabilities or obligations, direct or contingent,
except for (i) the transactions contemplated by this Agreement, or (ii)
contractual liabilities, including trade liabilities, incurred in the ordinary
course of business and (iii) Liabilities (other than borrowed money) that would
not have a Material Adverse Effect.

4.5       AUTHORITY. Subject to the filing of articles of amendment to designate
the terms of the Preferred Shares contained in SCHEDULE 1.1(ai) (the "Required
Action"), the Corporation has all necessary corporate power and authority to
enter into this Agreement and the other agreements, documents and instruments to
be executed by the Corporation and the Purchasers in furtherance of the
transactions contemplated hereby and thereby, including without limitation, the
Registration

<PAGE>   10

Rights Agreement (collectively, the "Transaction Documents"), and to consummate
the transactions contemplated hereby and thereby.

4.6       NON-CONTRAVENTION. The execution, delivery, and performance of the
Transaction Documents to which the Corporation is a party by the Corporation and
the consummation of the transactions contemplated hereby and thereby by the
Corporation do not and will not, after completion of all Required Action:

     (a)  result in a breach of any of the terms and provisions of, or
          constitute a default (or an event which with notice or lapse of time,
          or both, would constitute a default) under, or result in the creation
          or imposition of any lien, charge or encumbrance upon any property or
          assets of the Corporation or any of its Subsidiaries pursuant to any
          material agreement, instrument, franchise, license or permit to which
          the Corporation or any of its Subsidiaries is a party or by which any
          of such corporations or their respective properties or assets may be
          bound, or

     (b)  violate any judgment, decree, order, statute, rule or regulation of
          any court or any public, governmental or regulatory agency or body
          applicable to the Corporation or any of its Subsidiaries or any of
          their respective properties or assets,

other than (i) such breaches, defaults or violations that would not or could not
reasonably be expected to (A) impair the ability of the Corporation to
consummate and perform the transactions contemplated by this Agreement or
deprive the Purchaser of the benefits under this Agreement, or (B) have a
Material Adverse Effect; or (ii) as set out in SCHEDULE 4.6. The execution,
delivery and performance of the Transaction Documents by the Corporation and the
consummation of the transactions contemplated hereby and thereby do not and will
not violate or conflict with any provision of the articles of incorporation or
by-laws of the Corporation or any of its Material Subsidiaries, as currently in
effect. Except for the Required Action or as set out in SCHEDULE 4.6, no
consent, approval, authorization, order, registration, filing, qualification,
license or permit of or with any court or any government agency or body
applicable to the Corporation or any of its Material Subsidiaries or any of
their respective properties or assets is required for the execution, delivery
and performance of the Transaction Documents or the consummation of the
transactions contemplated hereby and thereby, including the issuance, sale and
delivery of the Preferred Shares to be issued, sold and delivered by the
Corporation hereunder.

4.7       CAPITALIZATION. The authorized equity capital of the Corporation
consists of an unlimited number of Common Shares and an unlimited number of
First Preferred Shares and Second Preferred Shares. As of June 10, 1998,
64,203,428 Common Shares have been validly issued and are outstanding as fully
paid and non-assessable and were issued in compliance with all applicable
Securities Laws. No First Preferred or Second Preferred Shares are issued or
outstanding. As of the date hereof, up to a maximum of 6,200,000 Common Shares

<PAGE>   11

(vested and unvested) may be issued pursuant to outstanding stock options under
the Cott Corporation Option Plan, and, other than pursuant to the Cott
Corporation Option Plan, no Common Shares may be issued pursuant to incentive,
service awards and profitability bonus plans of the Corporation. Except as
described in the immediately preceding sentence, as disclosed in the Public
Documents or as set out in SCHEDULE 4.7, there are no options, warrants,
conversion privileges, calls or other rights, agreements, arrangements,
commitments or obligations of the Corporation or its Subsidiaries to issue or
sell any shares of any capital stock of the Corporation or of any of its
Subsidiaries or securities or obligations of any kind convertible into or
exchangeable for any shares of capital stock of the Corporation, any of its
Subsidiaries or any other person, nor are there outstanding any stock
appreciation rights or phantom equity agreements, arrangements or commitments
based upon the book value, income or any other attribute of the Corporation or
any of its Subsidiaries other than bonus agreements, bonus arrangements or bonus
commitments with the Corporation's or its Subsidiaries' officers, employees or
Consultants. The holders of outstanding Common Shares are not entitled to any
preemptive or other similar rights.

4.8       ACTIONS. Except as disclosed in the Public Documents or described in
SCHEDULE 4.8, there is no litigation or governmental proceeding to which the
Corporation or any of its Subsidiaries is a party or to which any property of
the Corporation or any of its Subsidiaries is subject or which is pending or, to
the knowledge of the Corporation, threatened against the Corporation or any of
its Subsidiaries which based upon information currently available to the
Corporation acting reasonably and in good faith could be expected to have a
Material Adverse Effect.

4.9       REGISTRATION AND QUALIFICATION. Assuming the accuracy of the
representations and warranties made by the Purchaser and set forth in Article 5
hereof, it is not necessary in connection with the offer, sale and delivery of
the Preferred Shares to the Purchaser in the manner contemplated by this
Agreement to register or qualify the Preferred Shares or the Common Shares
issuable upon conversion of the Preferred Shares, under the Securities Laws.

4.10      NO LIABILITIES. Neither the Corporation nor its Material Subsidiaries
has any Liabilities, except (i) as reflected or reserved against in the balance
sheet of the Corporation presented in the financial statements as at and for the
year ended January 31, 1998 and not heretofore discharged, (ii) as recorded
and/or disclosed in the Public Documents, (iii) as disclosed in SCHEDULE 4.10,
(iv) Liabilities incurred in the ordinary course of business since January 31,
1998, (v) contractual (including trade) liabilities incurred in the ordinary
course of business, (vi) Liabilities (other than for borrowed money) that would
not or could not reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect.

4.11      NO DEFAULTS.  Except as disclosed on SCHEDULE 4.6 or in the Public
Documents:

<PAGE>   12

     (i)  neither the Corporation nor any of its Subsidiaries is in violation or
          default under any provision of its certificate of incorporation,
          by-laws or other organization documents, or is in breach of or default
          with respect to any provision of any agreement, judgment, decree,
          order, mortgage, deed of trust, lease, franchise, license, indenture,
          permit or other instrument to which it is a party or by which it or
          any of its properties are bound; and

     (ii) there does not exist an event of default on the part of the
          Corporation or any such Subsidiary,

as defined in such documents which, with notice or lapse of time or both, would
constitute a default, where such violation or default would or could reasonably
be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect.

4.12      COMPLIANCE WITH LAW. The Corporation and each of its Subsidiaries is
in compliance with all laws and regulations applicable to the operation of its
respective businesses, including the Applicable Laws, except where failure so to
comply would not or could not reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse
Effect and each of them has all licences, permits, orders or approvals of, and
has made all required registrations with, any governmental or regulatory body
that is material to the conduct of its business, except where failure so to
comply would not or could not reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse
Effect, and except as disclosed in the Public Documents.

4.13      ENFORCEABILITY OF AGREEMENT. This Agreement has been, and the
Transaction Documents to be executed and delivered by the Corporation pursuant
hereto have been or will be, duly and validly authorized, executed and delivered
by the Corporation and this Agreement is, and such Transaction Documents when so
executed and delivered will be valid and binding obligations of the Corporation,
enforceable against the Corporation in accordance with their terms subject to
applicable bankruptcy, insolvency, winding-up, reorganization, arrangement,
moratorium or other laws affecting creditors' rights generally.

4.14      THE PREFERRED SHARES. Subject to the Required Action, the Preferred
Shares have been duly and validly authorized by the Corporation and the
Preferred Shares, when issued, sold and delivered in accordance with this
Agreement, will be duly and validly issued, fully paid and nonassessable.
Subject to the Required Action, the Common Shares issuable upon conversion of
the Preferred Shares have been reserved for issuance and, when issued in
accordance with the terms of the Preferred Shares, will be duly and validly
issued, fully paid and nonassessable, and no further approval or authority of
the shareholders or the Board of Directors under the Applicable Laws will be
required for such issuance of Common Shares following the Closing.

     Other than pursuant to the Registration Rights Agreement, no security
holder of the Corporation has any right which has not been satisfied or waived
to require the

<PAGE>   13

Corporation to register (or take similar action under Canadian Securities Laws)
the sale of any securities owned by such security holder under the Securities
Laws.

4.15      NO GENERAL SOLICITATION. None of the Corporation, its affiliates or
any person acting on their behalf has solicited any offer to buy or offer to
sell the Preferred Shares by means of any form or general solicitation or
general advertising or in any manner involving a public offering within the
meaning of the Securities Laws that would require the registration or
qualification of the Preferred Shares under the Securities Laws.

4.16      PROPERTIES. The Corporation or the applicable Material Subsidiary
holds its leased properties under valid and binding leases, with such exceptions
as would not have a Material Adverse Effect. The Corporation owns or leases all
such properties as are necessary to its operations as now conducted, other than
with respect to such properties which are both (i) owned or leased by third
parties and (ii) used by the Corporation for warehousing purposes.

4.17      TAXES. The Corporation and its Subsidiaries have on a timely basis
filed all tax returns, information returns or designations covering any taxes in
respect of the income, business or property of the Corporation and its
Subsidiaries on a consolidated basis (including, without limitation, all
federal, state, provincial or foreign taxes) and has paid all taxes shown as due
on such tax returns, information returns or designations except where the
failure to do so would result in a loss to the Corporation of not more than
$2,000,000 after giving effect to all applicable reserves provided for in the
Corporation's financial statements.

4.18      INSURANCE. The Corporation and its Material Subsidiaries maintain
insurance of the types and in the amounts reasonably deemed by the Corporation
to be adequate and reasonable for its business and that of its Material
Subsidiaries against theft, damage, destruction, acts of vandalism and all other
risks customarily insured against (other than product recalls), all of which
insurance is in full force and effect.

4.19      INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY. Except as disclosed in SCHEDULE 4.19, the
Corporation and its Subsidiaries, or to the best of the Corporation's knowledge,
the Corporation's customers have sufficient, or have applied for registration of
such, trademarks, trade names, patent rights, copyrights, licenses, approvals
and governmental authorizations to enable the Corporation and its Subsidiaries
conduct their business substantially as now conducted; and the Corporation has
no knowledge of any infringement by it or its Subsidiaries of any trademark,
trade name, patent, copyright, licenses, trade secret or other similar rights of
others, and there is no claim being made against the Corporation or its
Subsidiaries regarding trademark, trade name, patent, copyright, license, trade
secret or other infringement, in any such case which could reasonably be
expected to result in a loss to the Corporation of more than $2,000,000.

<PAGE>   14

                                    ARTICLE 5

                 REPRESENTATIONS AND WARRANTIES OF THE PURCHASER

     As an inducement to the Corporation to enter into this Agreement and to
consummate the transactions contemplated hereby, the Purchasers hereby severally
represent and warrant to the Corporation as follows:

5.1       INVESTMENT. The Purchasers are acquiring the Preferred Shares and the
Common Shares issuable upon conversion of the Preferred Shares for investment
for their own respective account, and not with a view to any distribution
thereof in violation of any applicable Securities Laws. The Purchasers
understand that the Preferred Shares and such Common Shares have not been
registered under the Securities Laws by reason of specific exemptions therefrom
which depend upon, among other things, the bona fide nature of the investment
intent and the accuracy of the Purchaser's representations as expressed herein.
The Purchasers acknowledge that they are not residents in or of the Province of
Ontario.

5.2       FINANCIAL POSITION. Each of the Purchasers' financial condition and
investments are such that it is in a position to hold the Preferred Shares and
the Common Shares issuable upon conversion of the Preferred Shares for an
indefinite period, bear the economic risk of the investment and to withstand the
complete loss of the investment. Each of the Purchasers has extensive knowledge
and experience in financial and business matters and has the capability to
evaluate the merits and risks of the Preferred Shares and the Common Shares
issuable upon conversion of the Preferred Shares. Each of the Purchasers is an
"accredited investor" within the meaning of Regulation D under the Securities
Act of 1933, as amended. Except as to a breach of a representation and/or
warranty of which there was Actual Knowledge, nothing contained in this Section
5.2 or due diligence or investigation that has been made by or on behalf of
Purchasers shall diminish or modify any of the representations and warranties if
made by the Corporation herein.

5.3       HOLD. The Purchasers acknowledge that the Preferred Shares and the
Common Shares issuable upon conversion of the Preferred Shares must be held as
required by the Securities Laws unless subsequently registered or otherwise
qualified for sale under any applicable Securities Laws or unless exemptions
from such registrations or qualification are available.

5.4       ORGANIZATION OF THE PURCHASERS. Each Purchaser which is not an
individual is duly organized and validly existing under the laws of the
jurisdiction of its organization. Each Purchaser is purchasing the Preferred
Shares as principal at an aggregate acquisition cost to each Purchaser of not
less than Cdn. $150,000. Each Purchaser that is not a corporation or an
individual but is a syndicate, partnership, trust or other unincorporated
organization, is purchasing as principal for its own account. None of the
Purchasers is a corporation or syndicate, partnership or other form of
unincorporated organization incorporated or created solely to permit the
purchase of the Preferred Shares by groups of individuals whose

<PAGE>   15

individual share of the aggregate acquisition cost for the Preferred Shares to
be purchased is less than $150,000.

5.5       AUTHORITY OF THE PURCHASERS. Each of the Purchasers has all necessary
power and authority (corporate and otherwise) to execute and deliver this
Agreement and the Transaction Documents to which it is a party, to consummate
the transactions contemplated hereby and thereby and to comply with the terms,
conditions and provisions hereof and thereof. The execution, delivery and
performance of this Agreement and the Transaction Documents by each of the
Purchasers has been duly authorized and approved by each of the Purchasers and
does not require any further authorization or consent of the Purchasers or their
respective beneficial owners. This Agreement is the legal, valid and binding
agreement of each of the Purchasers, enforceable against each of the Purchasers
in accordance with its terms, subject to applicable bankruptcy, insolvency,
winding-up, reorganization, moratorium or other laws affecting creditors' rights
generally.

5.6       NON-CONTRAVENTION. The execution, delivery, and performance of the
Transaction Documents by the Purchasers and the consummation of the transactions
contemplated hereby and thereby by the Purchasers do not and will not:

     (a)  result in a breach of any of the terms and provisions of, or
          constitute a default (or an event which with notice or lapse of time,
          or both, would constitute a default) under, or result in the creation
          or imposition of any lien, charge or encumbrance upon any property or
          assets of the Purchasers pursuant to any material agreement,
          instrument, franchise, license or permit to which the Purchasers or
          any of them is a party or by which such Purchaser may be bound, or

     (b)  violate any judgment, decree, order, statute, rule or regulation of
          any court or any public, governmental or regulatory agency or body
          applicable to any of the Purchasers or any of their respective
          properties or assets,

other than such breaches, defaults or violations that are not reasonably
expected to impair the ability of the Purchasers to consummate and perform the
transactions contemplated by this Agreement or deprive the Corporation of the
benefits under this Agreement. With respect to those Purchasers who are not
individuals, the execution, delivery and performance of the Transaction
Documents by the Purchaser and the consummation of the transactions contemplated
hereby or thereby do not and will not violate or conflict with any provision of
the certificate of limited partnership agreement, partnership agreement or other
similar governing agreements of such Purchaser, as currently in effect. Except
for the filing under Rule 13-d of the Securities Act of 1933, no consent,
approval, authorization, order, registration, filing, qualification, license or
permit of or with any court or any government agency or body applicable to the
Purchasers or any of their properties or assets is required for the execution,
delivery and performance of the Transaction

<PAGE>   16

Documents or the consummation of the transactions contemplated hereby or
thereby, including the purchase of the Preferred Shares hereunder.

                                    ARTICLE 6

                  CONDITIONS TO THE OBLIGATIONS OF THE PARTIES

A.   OBLIGATIONS OF THE PURCHASER

6.1       CONDITIONS PRECEDENT TO OBLIGATIONS OF THE PURCHASER. The obligation
of the Purchasers to consummate the transactions contemplated herein shall be
subject to and conditional upon the satisfaction of, or compliance with, as at
the Time of Closing, each of the following conditions (which are inserted for
the exclusive benefit of the Purchaser):

     (a)  the accuracy of the representations and warranties of the Corporation
          herein contained, as of the date hereof and as of the Closing Date,
          except where the consequence of any inaccuracy in such representations
          and warranties would not have a Material Adverse Effect (provided,
          however, that with respect to any representation or warranty of the
          Corporation contained in Article 4 which is already qualified with
          respect to a Material Adverse Effect, no further qualification, except
          as expressly stated below, is imposed hereby) and the Purchasers shall
          have received a certificate of an officer of the Corporation to such
          effect dated the Closing Date;

     (b)  the performance in all material respects by the Corporation of its
          obligations herein (including the covenants contained in Article 7 of
          this Agreement) and the Purchasers shall have received a certificate
          of an officer of the Corporation to such effect dated the Closing
          Date;

     (c)  the execution and delivery of the Registration Rights Agreement;

     (d)  receipt by the Purchasers of an opinion of counsel to the Corporation,
          in form and substance satisfactory to the Purchasers, acting
          reasonably;

     (e)  the filing of articles of amendment with respect to the creation of
          the Preferred Shares with the attributes contained in SCHEDULE
          1.1(ag); and

     (f)  there being since the date hereof no fact or condition which would or
          could reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect,
          provided that a decline in the trading price of the Common Shares
          shall not be deemed to be such a Material Adverse Effect if such
          decline is not directly attributable to a Material Adverse Effect;

<PAGE>   17

and provided further that for purposes of this Section 6.1, including, without
limitation, subsection 6.1(a) hereof, Material Adverse Effect shall exclude the
effect of any general economic, commodity pricing, capital markets or financial
conditions.

B.   OBLIGATIONS OF THE CORPORATION

6.2       CONDITIONS PRECEDENT TO THE OBLIGATIONS OF THE CORPORATION. The
obligation of the Corporation to issue and sell the Preferred Shares to the
Purchasers in accordance herewith shall be subject to and conditional upon the
satisfaction of, or compliance with, as at the Time of Closing, each of the
following conditions (which are for the exclusive benefit of the Corporation):

     (a)  the accuracy of the representations and warranties of the Purchasers
          herein contained, as of the date hereof and as of the Closing Date,
          except to the extent any inaccuracies do not materially impair the
          ability of the Purchaser to consummate the transactions contemplated
          by this Agreement, and the Corporation shall have received a
          certificate of: (i) the Purchasers' Representative; or (ii) each
          Purchaser who is an individual or an officer of each of the Purchasers
          which are not individuals, to such effect dated the Closing Date;

     (b)  the performance in all material respects by the Purchasers of their
          obligations herein and the Corporation shall have received a
          certificate of: (i) the Purchasers' Representative; or (ii) each
          Purchaser who is an individual or an officer of each of the Purchasers
          which are not individuals, to such effect dated the Closing Date;

     (c)  receipt by the Corporation of an opinion of counsel to each of
          Purchasers in form and substance satisfactory to the Corporation,
          acting reasonably; and

     (d)  the absence of any event, actual or threatened, resulting from the
          announcement or contemplated completion of the transactions described
          herein which would or could reasonably be expected to have a Material
          Adverse Effect.

C.   OBLIGATIONS OF EACH OF THE CORPORATION AND THE PURCHASER

6.3       CONDITIONS PRECEDENT TO THE OBLIGATIONS OF THE CORPORATION AND THE
PURCHASER. The obligation of each of the Corporation and the Purchaser to
consummate the transactions contemplated herein is subject to the satisfaction
of, or compliance with, as at the Time of Closing, each of the following
conditions (which are inserted for the benefit of each of the Purchaser and the
Corporation):

     (a)  the transactions contemplated by the Share Purchase Agreement having
          been consummated;

<PAGE>   18

     (b)  no action or proceeding, temporary restraining order, preliminary or
          permanent injunction or other order by any court of competent
          jurisdiction, governmental authority or agency or other person to
          prohibit or prevent consummation of the transactions contemplated
          herein shall be pending or threatened;

     (c)  the expiration, termination of the applicable waiting periods and the
          receipt of all Consents, approvals and waivers under the Applicable
          Laws; and

     (d)  the completion of all Required Action.

6.4       WAIVER BY PURCHASERS. If any of the conditions set forth in Sections
6.1 or 6.3 have not been fulfilled, performed or satisfied as at the Closing,
the Purchasers may, by written notice to the Corporation terminate all of their
obligations relating to the Closing and the Purchasers shall be released from
such obligations under this Agreement. Any of such conditions may be waived in
whole or in part by the Purchasers' Representative by instrument in writing
given to the Corporation without prejudice to any of the Purchasers' rights of
termination in the event of non-performance of any other condition, obligation
or covenant in whole or in part, and without prejudice to its right to complete
the transactions of purchase and sale contemplated by this Agreement and to
claim for damages for breach of representation or warranty; provided that
notwithstanding anything else contained herein, the Purchasers shall not be
entitled to claim damages for any breach of representation or warranty where
there was Actual Knowledge of such breach of representation or warranty on or
prior to the date hereof.

6.5       WAIVER BY CORPORATION. If any of the conditions set forth in Sections
6.2 or 6.3 have not been fulfilled, performed or satisfied as at the Closing,
the Corporation may, by written notice to the Purchaser, terminate all of its
obligations relating to the Closing and the Corporation shall be released from
all such obligations under this Agreement. Any of such conditions may be waived
in whole or in part by the Corporation by instrument in writing to the
Purchaser, without prejudice to any of the Corporations's rights of termination
in the event of n on-performance of any other condition, obligation or covenant
in whole or in part, and without prejudice to their right to complete the
transactions of purchase and sale contemplated by this Agreement and claim
damages for breach of representation, warranty or covenant.

                                    ARTICLE 7

                          COVENANTS OF THE CORPORATION

     As an inducement to the Purchaser to enter into this Agreement and to
consummate the transactions contemplated hereby, the Corporation hereby
covenants with the Purchaser as follows:

<PAGE>   19

7.1       PAYMENT OF EXPENSES. Whether or not the transactions contemplated
hereby are completed, the Corporation shall pay all costs and expenses incident
to the performance of the obligations of the Corporation hereunder, including
those in connection with (i) the issuance, transfer and delivery of the
Preferred Shares or the Common Shares issuable upon conversion thereof to the
Purchaser, including any transfer or similar taxes payable thereon, (ii) the
cost of printing the certificates representing the Preferred Shares or the
Common Shares issuable upon conversion thereof and (iii) the cost and charges of
any transfer agent, registrar, trustee or fiscal paying agent. Upon closing of
the transactions contemplated herein, the Corporation shall also promptly pay,
(x) all fees and expenses of PaineWebber Incorporated incurred in connection
with the issuance of the Preferred Shares hereunder up to $1,000,000, and (y)
all reasonable documented out-of-pocket costs and expenses, including
attorneys', accountants' and consultants' fees incurred by the Purchasers in
connection with the negotiation and consummation of this Agreement and the
transactions contemplated hereby up to $400,000 in the aggregate for the
Purchasers under this Section 7.1. The provisions of this Section 7.1 shall also
apply to payment of the Purchasers expenses in the event that the Shareholder
approval contemplated by Section 6.3 hereof is not obtained provided that the
Purchasers are otherwise in compliance and not in breach of the terms hereof.

7.2       AVAILABILITY OF COMMON SHARES. The Corporation shall at all times
reserve and keep available out of its authorized but unissued Common Shares, for
the purpose of effecting the conversion of the Preferred Shares, the full number
of Common Shares then issuable upon the conversion of the Preferred Shares.

7.3       TRANSACTION FEE. On the Closing Date, upon Closing, the Corporation
shall pay to the Purchasers an aggregate fee equal to $900,000.

7.4       PROXY STATEMENTS; SHAREHOLDER APPROVALS. The Corporation, shall, in
accordance with Applicable Laws:

     (a)  duly call, give notice of, convene and hold on or about July 21, 1998
          a meeting of its Registered Holders for the purpose of, among other
          things, voting to approve the issuance of the Preferred Shares and the
          Common Shares issuable upon conversion thereof and shall use
          reasonable commercial efforts, except to the extent the Board of
          Directors determines in good faith, after consultation with outside
          counsel, that contrary action is required by the Board of Directors'
          fiduciary duties under Applicable Laws, to obtain shareholder
          approval; and

     (b)  except to the extent the Board of Directors determines in good faith,
          after consultation with outside counsel, that contrary action is
          required by the Board of Directors' fiduciary duties under Applicable
          Laws, recommend approval of the issuance of the Preferred Shares and
          the Common Shares issuable upon conversion thereof, and include in the
          proxy statement in respect of the meeting, such recommendation, and
          take all lawful action to solicit such approvals.

<PAGE>   20

7.5       ELECTION TO BOARD OF DIRECTORS OF THE CORPORATION. The Corporation
shall take all actions necessary to ensure that four representatives of the
Purchasers are appointed to the Board of Directors (the "Purchasers' Directors")
promptly after the consummation of the transactions contemplated herein;
provided that such representatives are eligible to act on the Board of Directors
pursuant to the requirements of the CBCA and are acceptable to the Board of
Directors, acting reasonably (it being acknowledged and agreed that any officer
or director of The Thomas H. Lee Company shall be acceptable to the
Corporation). The Corporation shall not take any action to increase the size of
the Board of Directors above eleven members without the written consent of the
Purchasers and shall not solicit any proxies for the election of more than
eleven members to the Board of Directors.

     The Corporation shall also use its reasonable commercial efforts to cause
the appropriate Number of Nominees to be renominated and reelected when the
initial and any successive term of the Purchasers' Directors expires (subject to
the Number of Nominees the Purchasers are entitled to nominate under the terms
hereof, to the requirements of the CBCA and to such nominees continuing to be
acceptable to the Board of Directors, acting reasonably). The Corporation shall
also use its reasonable commercial efforts to cause the election to each
committee of the Board of Directors that number of nominees from the Purchasers'
Representatives that will result in the Purchasers having representation on each
committee equivalent to the Purchasers pro rata percentage representation on the
Board of Directors.

7.6       REPORTING. The Corporation will, so long as the Preferred Shares or
the Common Shares issuable upon conversion thereof are outstanding and are
"restricted securities" within the meaning of Rule 144(a)(3) under the
Securities Act, file reports and other information with the Securities and
Exchange Commission under Section 13 or 15 (d) of the Exchange Act.

7.7       PUBLIC DOCUMENTS. Not later than June 30, 1998, the Corporation shall
deliver to the Purchasers true and complete copies of the Corporation's:

     (a)  1998 Annual Report to Shareholders;

     (b)  management proxy circular relating to the Corporation's 1998 Annual
          and Special Meeting of Shareholders; and

     (c)  1998 Annual Information Form.

     The Corporation represents and warrants that such documents shall be, as of
their respective dates, in compliance in all material respects with such
Applicable Laws and will not, as of their respective dates, contain any untrue
statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact required to be
stated therein or necessary to make the statements therein, in light of the
circumstances under which they were made, not misleading.

<PAGE>   21

7.8       BUY-BACK. Subject to the CBCA, the provisions of any applicable debt
covenants and obtaining approval of the stock exchanges on which the Common
Shares are listed, the Corporation will use the Purchase Price, as expressed in
Canadian dollars as at the Closing Date, net of any and all expenses
attributable to the transaction herein contemplated, to effect "normal-course"
purchases of its Common Shares on the floor of the stock exchanges where such
shares may be available, as soon as practicable, having regard to the volume and
price limitations applicable to such purchases as imposed by such stock
exchanges. In particular, the parties acknowledge and agree that the Corporation
shall not be required to make the purchases which aggregate (i) more than 2% of
the Common Shares outstanding in any 30 day period and (ii) more than the
greater of (A) 10% of the public float and (B) 5% of the Common Shares
outstanding during any 12 month period. The parties further acknowledge and
agree that the Corporation shall not be required to make such purchases where
the Board of Directors of the Corporation, acting reasonably, determines that to
so purchase such shares at such prices would result in a breach of its fiduciary
duties to the Corporation.

7.9       APPLICATION TO EXCHANGES. To the extent that the Share Provisions
contain any requirement or restriction relating to the obtaining of a regulatory
consent, the Corporation agrees that it will make all necessary applications to
the stock exchanges on which the Common Shares are listed to obtain such
regulatory consent and will make all commercially reasonable efforts, including,
without limitation, the payment of any required listing fees, to obtain such
consent.

                                    ARTICLE 8

                           COVENANTS OF THE PURCHASER

8.1       CERTAIN RESTRICTIONS. The Purchasers covenant with the Corporation
that, without the prior written consent of the Corporation (as evidenced by the
approval of a majority of the members of the Board of Directors who are
independent of the Purchasers and the Family Members), for a period commencing
on the Closing Date and continuing through the earlier of (i) the fifth
anniversary of the Closing Date (except as expressly set forth in clause
8.1(I)), or (ii) the date upon which the Corporation shall be in default of any
monetary payment obligations under any instrument of indebtedness to which the
Corporation or any Subsidiary is a party involving a principal obligation of at
least $50,000,000 after the expiry of any periods to remedy or cure such
default, the Purchasers, and their affiliates (including, without limitation,
Thomas Lee and the Thomas H. Lee Company) over which they exercise management
control, singly, or jointly or in concert with any other party or as part of a
group, directly or indirectly, through one or more intermediates or otherwise,
will not:

     (A)  for a period of twelve months following the Closing Date, sell any
          Common Shares received upon conversion of the Preferred Shares over
          any stock exchange pursuant to which the Corporation is effecting a

<PAGE>   22

          normal course issuer bid pursuant to the requirements of Section 7.8
          hereof;

     (B)  purchase or acquire, or offer, propose or agree to purchase or
          acquire, directly or indirectly, any of the Common Shares (other than
          by conversion of any of the Preferred Shares or receipt of Common
          Shares as a result of any stock dividend, stock split,
          recapitalization, merger or other change in the corporate or capital
          structure of the Corporation or any other action taken solely by the
          Corporation), any option (other than the option to purchase 5,000,000
          (as may be adjusted) Common Shares granted to the Purchasers pursuant
          to the Share Purchase Agreement), warrant or other right to acquire,
          directly or indirectly, any Common Shares or any securities which are
          convertible into or exchangeable or exercisable for Common Shares
          (other than the exercise of options under the Share Purchase Agreement
          or the receipt of dividends in kind); and provided that at any time
          when the percentage of the outstanding Common Shares owned by the
          Purchaser on a fully diluted basis is less than the percentage of the
          outstanding Common Shares owned by such Purchaser on a fully diluted
          basis on the Closing Date (the "Maximum Amount") the Purchaser may
          purchase additional Common Shares up to the Maximum Amount;

     (C)  solicit, or encourage any other person to solicit, proxies or become a
          participant or otherwise engage in any solicitation in opposition to a
          recommendation of a majority of the directors of the Corporation with
          respect to any matter; seek to advise or influence any person with
          respect to the voting of any securities of the Corporation (other than
          pursuant to the Voting Agreement between the Purchasers and the Family
          Members of even date entered into in connection with the Share
          Purchase Agreement); or execute any written consent in lieu of a
          meeting of holders of securities of the Corporation or any class
          thereof unless requested to do so by the Corporation;

     (D)  initiate, propose, vote in favour of, support or otherwise solicit
          shareholders for the approval of one or more shareholder proposals
          with respect to the Corporation;

     (E)  knowingly transfer or agree to transfer any securities to any group or
          party owning in excess of 5% of the outstanding Common Shares;

     (F)  propose or seek to effect any form of business combination transaction
          with the Corporation or any affiliate thereof or any restructuring,
          recapitalization or other similar transaction with respect to the
          Corporation;

<PAGE>   23

     (G)  seek any additional representation on the Board of Directors of the
          Corporation;

     (H)  encourage any person, firm, corporation, group or other entity to
          engage in any of the actions covered by clauses (B) through (G) of
          this Section 8.1 or make any public announcement (or make other
          communication with or to the Corporation or otherwise which, in the
          opinion of counsel to the Corporation, would require public
          announcement) with respect to any matter set forth in clause (B)
          through (G) of this Section 8.1; provided, however, that actions taken
          by any Purchasers' Directors, acting in his or her capacity as such a
          director, shall not violate any provision of this Section 8.1; and

     (I)  transfer, effect a short sale of, grant any option for the purchase
          of, or loan any Preferred Shares or Common Shares for a period of 12
          months from the date of issuance of the Preferred Shares except (a) to
          an affiliate, (b) to a trust, family partnership or other estate
          planning vehicle, (c) to a financial institution pursuant to a bona
          fide pledge (each a "Permitted Transferee"), or (d) in a transaction
          approved in advance by the Board of Directors where any Person (or
          Persons acting jointly or in concert) acquire, directly or indirectly,
          beneficial ownership or control or direction over more than 50% of the
          outstanding voting securities (on a fully-diluted basis) of the
          Corporation.

Notwithstanding the foregoing, the obligations of the Purchasers under this
Section 8.1 shall terminate if the number of Purchasers' nominees on the Board
of Directors is less than the Number of Nominees, unless the failure to have the
required Number of Nominees elected to or on the Board of Directors is due to
the Purchasers' failure to nominate a nominee or nominees to the Board, vote the
Preferred Shares or Common Shares owned by them in favour of such nominees or
fill a vacancy created by one of its Directors with a person, who (i) meets the
requirements of the CBCA, and (ii) who is acceptable to the Board of Directors,
acting reasonably. The Purchasers acknowledge that they shall vote all Preferred
Shares or Common Shares over which they have control for and in favour of the
nominees proposed by them to the Board of Directors. The parties acknowledge and
agree that the provisions of this Section 8.1 shall not bind or apply to any
purchaser of Preferred Shares or Common Shares other than a purchaser under
Section 8.1(I)(a) or (b).

8.2       PAYMENT OF TAXES. The Purchasers shall be responsible for and shall
pay any and all Canadian withholding taxes, as and when due and payable, and
shall provide evidence satisfactory to the Corporation, acting reasonably, that
such payment has been made within the prescribed time, resulting from or in
respect of the Preferred Shares, including, without limitation, in respect of
the issuance by the Corporation of Common Shares upon conversion of Preferred
Shares, the payment by the Corporation of dividends in respect of the Preferred
Shares and the

<PAGE>   24

redemption by the Corporation of the Preferred Shares, it being acknowledged and
agreed that withholding taxes payable in respect of, among other things, cash
dividends on the Preferred Shares and any proceeds from the redemption of the
Preferred Shares in accordance with their terms shall be withheld at source by
the Corporation or its agent and remitted to the taxation authorities having
jurisdiction, and the amount of such cash dividends or proceeds of redemption
received by the Purchasers shall be net of such withheld amount, in each of the
foregoing cases, only to the extent subject to withholding under applicable law
or the interpretation or administration thereof. The Corporation acknowledges
and agrees that it shall not withhold for withholding taxes unless, in the
opinion of the management of the Corporation, acting reasonably, the Corporation
is required to do so by law or by the interpretation or administration thereof.
The Corporation agrees that in the absence of a law or the interpretation or
administration thereof, which requires it to withhold tax in connection with the
reduction of the Conversion Factor (as defined in the Share Provisions) it will
not so withhold.

                                    ARTICLE 9

                  RESTRICTIONS ON TRANSFERABILITY OF SECURITIES

9.1       RESTRICTIVE LEGEND. Each certificate representing the Preferred Shares
and any other securities issued in respect of the Preferred Shares (other than
the Common Shares issued upon conversion of any Preferred Shares) upon any stock
split, stock dividend, recapitalization, merger, consolidation or similar event
(each of the foregoing securities being referred to herein as "Restricted
Securities"), shall (unless otherwise permitted by the provisions of Section 9.2
below) be stamped or otherwise imprinted with a legend substantially in the
following form (in addition to the legend required under any applicable state
securities law):

"THE SECURITIES REPRESENTED HEREBY HAVE NOT BEEN REGISTERED UNDER THE UNITED
STATES SECURITIES ACT OF 1933, AS AMENDED (THE "U.S. SECURITIES ACT"). THE
HOLDER HEREOF, BY PURCHASING SUCH SECURITIES, AGREES FOR THE BENEFIT OF COTT
CORPORATION ("THE CORPORATION"), THAT SUCH SECURITIES MAY BE OFFERED, SOLD OR
OTHERWISE TRANSFERRED ONLY (A) TO THE CORPORATION, (B) PURSUANT TO AN EXEMPTION
FROM REGISTRATION UNDER THE U.S. SECURITIES ACT PROVIDED BY RULE 144, IF
APPLICABLE, SUBJECT TO COMPLIANCE WITH ANY STATE SECURITIES LAWS, (C) OUTSIDE
THE UNITED STATES IN ACCORDANCE WITH RULE 904 OF REGULATION S UNDER THE U.S.
SECURITIES ACT, AS APPLICABLE OR (D) IN A TRANSACTION THAT DOES NOT OTHERWISE
REQUIRE REGISTRATION UNDER THE U.S. SECURITIES ACT OR ANY APPLICABLE STATE
SECURITIES LAWS, IN EACH CASE, PROVIDED AN OPINION OF COUNSEL OF RECOGNIZED
STANDING REASONABLY SATISFACTORY TO THE CORPORATION HAS BEEN PROVIDED TO THE
CORPORATION TO THAT EFFECT."

<PAGE>   25

The Corporation will promptly, upon request, remove any such legend when no
longer required by the terms of this Agreement or by applicable law.

9.2       NOTICE OF PROPOSED TRANSFERS. Prior to any proposed transfer of any
Restricted Securities, unless a prospectus has been filed under the Securities
Laws covering the proposed transfer, the Purchaser proposing such a transfer
shall give written notice to the Corporation of its intention to effect such
transfer. Each such notice shall describe the manner and circumstances of the
proposed transfer in sufficient detail, and shall be accompanied by either (a) a
written opinion of legal counsel (who shall be reasonably satisfactory to the
Corporation) addressed to the Corporation to the effect that the proposed
transfer of the Restricted Securities may be effected without registration under
the Securities Act or (b) a "no action" letter from the United States Securities
and Exchange Commission to the effect that the transfer of such securities
without registration will not result in a recommendation by the staff of the
United States Securities and Exchange Commission that action be taken with
respect thereto, whereupon, in each case, such Purchaser shall be entitled to
transfer such Restricted Securities in accordance with the terms of the notice
delivered by such Purchaser to the Corporation. Unless a registration statement
has been filed under the U.S. Securities Laws covering the proposed transfer,
each certificate evidencing the Restricted Securities transferred as herein
provided shall bear the appropriate restrictive legend set forth in Section 9.1
above except that such certificate shall not bear such restrictive legend if,
(i) in the opinion of counsel for such Purchaser, such legend is not required in
order to establish compliance with any provisions of the Securities Act of 1933,
or (ii) a period of at least two years has elapsed since the later of the date
the Restricted Securities were acquired from the Corporation or from an
affiliate of the Corporation, and such purchaser represents to the Corporation
that it is not an affiliate of the Corporation and has not been an affiliate
during the preceding three months and shall not become an affiliate of the
Corporation without resubmitting the Restricted Securities for reimposition of
the legend.

                                   ARTICLE 10

                                   TERMINATION

     Notwithstanding anything contained herein to the contrary, this Agreement
may be terminated at any time prior to the Closing Date:

     (a)  by the mutual written consent of the Purchasers and the Corporation;
          or

     (b)  by the Purchasers if the conditions contained in subsections 6.1 or
          6.3 have not been complied with or waived as at the Closing or by the
          Corporation if the conditions contained in subsections 6.2 or 6.3 have
          not been complied with a waiver as at the Closing; provided, however,
          that the right to terminate this Agreement under this Section 10(b)
          shall not be available to any party whose

<PAGE>   26

          failure to fulfil any obligation under this Agreement has been the
          cause of, or resulted in, the failure of the Closing to occur on or
          before such date; or

     (c)  by the Purchasers or the Corporation if the Share Purchase Agreement
          is terminated in accordance with is terms; or

     (d)  by the Purchasers or the Corporation at any time after July 31, 1998
          if the Closing has not occurred on or prior to such time.

     In the event that this Agreement shall be terminated pursuant to this
Article 10, all further obligations of the parties under this Agreement other
than the obligations set forth in Article 11 and Sections 7.1 and 12.10 shall be
terminated without further liability of any party to any other party, provided
that nothing herein shall relieve any party from liability for its wilful breach
of this Agreement.

                                   ARTICLE 11

                                 INDEMNIFICATION

11.1      INDEMNIFICATION BY THE CORPORATION. The Corporation hereby agrees, to
the extent permitted by Applicable Laws, to indemnify, defend and hold harmless
the Purchasers and, in the case of the Purchasers who are not individuals, their
partners, directors and its officers, from and against all demands, claims,
actions or causes of action, assessments, losses, damages, liabilities, costs
and expenses, including without limitation, interest, penalties and attorneys'
fees and expenses (collectively, "Claims"), asserted against, resulting to, or
imposed upon or incurred by the Purchaser, directly or indirectly, in connection
with breach of a representation or warranty contained herein by the Corporation
(other than any such breach of which there was Actual Knowledge) or any failure
or omission to comply with its obligations or covenants hereunder, other than
Claims arising from the misconduct of the Purchasers or their representatives,
including the Purchasers' Representative.

11.2      INDEMNIFICATION BY THE PURCHASER. Each Purchaser, acting severally
and not jointly, hereby agrees to indemnify, defend and hold harmless the
Corporation, its directors and its officers from and against all Claims asserted
against, resulting to or imposed upon or incurred by the Corporation, directly
or indirectly, in connection with any breach of a representation or warranty
contained herein by the Purchasers or any failure or omission to comply with its
obligations or covenants hereunder including, without limitation, its
obligations and covenants pursuant to Article 8, other than Claims arising from
the misconduct of the Corporation or its representatives.

11.3      TERMS OF  INDEMNIFICATION.  The obligations and liabilities of the
indemnifying party (the "Indemnifying Party") hereunder with respect to Claims
by

<PAGE>   27

third parties against the party to be indemnified (the "Indemnified Party") will
be subject to the following terms and conditions:

     (a)  the indemnified party will give the indemnifying party prompt notice
          of any Claims asserted against, resulting to, imposed upon or incurred
          by the indemnified party, directly or indirectly, and the indemnifying
          party will undertake the defense thereof by representatives of their
          own choosing which are reasonably satisfactory to such indemnified
          party; provided that the failure of the indemnified party to give
          notice as provided in this Section 11.3 shall not relieve the
          indemnifying party of its obligations under this Article 11, except to
          the extent that such failure has materially and adversely affected the
          rights of the indemnifying party;

     (b)  if within a reasonable time after notice of any Claim, the
          indemnifying party fails to defend, the indemnified party will have
          the right to undertake the defense, compromise or settlement of such
          Claims on behalf of and for the account and at the risk of the
          indemnifying party, subject to the right of the indemnifying party to
          assume the defense of such Claim at any time prior to settlement,
          compromise or final determination thereof;

     (c)  if there is a reasonable probability that a Claim may materially and
          adversely affect the indemnified party other than as a result of money
          damages or other money payments, the indemnified party will have the
          right at its own expense to defend (provided that the indemnifying
          party shall continue to control the defense and the indemnified party
          shall have the right to participate in such defense), or co-defend,
          such Claim;

     (d)  the indemnifying party on one hand and the indemnified party on the
          other will not, without the prior written consent of the other, such
          consent not to be unreasonably withheld, settle or compromise any
          Claim or consent to entry of any judgment relating to any such Claim;

     (e)  with respect to any Claims asserted against the indemnified party, the
          indemnified party will have the right to employ one counsel of its
          choice in each applicable jurisdiction (if more than one jurisdiction
          is involved) to represent the indemnified party if, in the indemnified
          party's reasonable judgment, a conflict of interest between the
          indemnified party and the indemnifying party exists in respect of such
          Claims, and in that event the fees and expenses of such separate
          counsel shall be paid by such indemnifying party;

     (f)  the indemnifying party will provide the indemnified party reasonable
          access to all records and documents of the indemnifying party relating
          to any Claim, other than a Claim made by the indemnified party and/or
          its affiliates; and

     (g)  any Claim, in so far as it is related to any of the representations
          and warranties of the Corporation contained in this Agreement, must be
          made within the applicable survival period set forth in Section 12.2
          below.

<PAGE>   28

                                   ARTICLE 12

                                  MISCELLANEOUS

12.1      GOVERNING LAW. This Agreement shall be governed by and construed in
accordance with the laws of the Province of Ontario and the laws of Canada
applicable therein without reference to conflict of law provisions therein. All
of the parties hereto hereby irrevocably attorn to the non-exclusive
jurisdiction of the Courts of the Province of Ontario.

12.2      SURVIVAL. The representations and warranties contained in this
Agreement shall survive for a period of two years from the Closing Date hereof;
provided that the representations set forth in Sections 4.5 and 4.7 shall
survive without limitation. The covenants of the parties contained in this
Agreement which by their terms are intended to survive the Closing shall survive
and continue in full force and effect, notwithstanding Closing, in accordance
with their terms.

12.3      SUCCESSORS AND ASSIGNS. Except as otherwise provided herein, the
provisions hereof shall enure to the benefit of, and be binding upon, the
successors and permitted assigns of the parties hereto. No assignment of this
Agreement may be made by either party at any time, whether or not by operation
of law, without the other party's prior written consent; except that the
Purchasers may assign any of their rights hereunder to an affiliate of the
Purchaser or any party indicated on SCHEDULE 1.1(AA) without the Corporation's
consent provided that such affiliate or other party expressly assumes in writing
all of the Purchaser's obligations hereunder as if an original signatory
thereto, and provided that such assignment shall not relieve the Purchaser of
its obligations hereunder.

12.4      ENTIRE AGREEMENT; AMENDMENT. This Agreement and the Transaction
Documents constitute the full and entire understanding and agreement between the
parties with regard to the subject hereof and thereof and supersede all prior
agreements, understandings and arrangements between the parties with respect to
the subject matter hereof; provided that, other than with respect to the
standstill provisions contained therein, the provisions of the confidentiality
agreement between the Purchaser and the Corporation dated November 13, 1997
shall remain in full force and effect. Except as expressly provided herein,
neither this Agreement nor any term hereof may be amended waived, discharged or
terminated other than by a written instrument signed by the party against whom
enforcement of any such amendment, waiver, discharge or termination is sought.

12.5      NOTICES, ETC. All notices, requests, demands and other communications
hereunder shall be deemed to have been duly given and made, if in writing and if
served by personal delivery upon the party for whom it is intended or delivered,
by registered or certified mail, return receipt requested, or if sent by
telecopier, upon receipt of confirmation that such transmission has been
received, or if sent by telecopier after 4 p.m. on a Business Day or on a day
which is not a Business Day, on the following Business Day, or

<PAGE>   29

if sent by overnight courier on the following Business Day to the person at the
address set forth below, or such other address as may be designated in writing
hereafter, in the same manner, by such person:

     (a)  if to the Purchasers:

               As set out in SCHEDULE 12.5(a) hereto

     with a copy to:

               Hutchins Wheeler & Dittmar,
               a Professional Corporation
               101 Federal Street
                  Boston, MA 02110
                  U.S.A.

               Telecopier:       (619) 951-1295
               Attention:        James Westra

     (b)  if to the Corporation:

               207 Queens Quay
               Suite 800
               Toronto, Ontario
               M5J 1A7

               Telecopier:       (416) 203-6207
               Attention:        Vice-Chairman

     with a copy to:

               Goodman Phillips & Vineberg
               250 Yonge Street, Suite 2400
               Toronto, Ontario  M5B 2M6

               Telecopier:  416-979-1234
               Attention:  Stephen H. Halperin

12.6      DELAYS OR OMISSIONS. Except as expressly provided herein, no delay or
omission to exercise any right, power or remedy accruing to the Corporation or
the Purchasers upon any breach or default of any party under this Agreement,
shall impair any such right, power or remedy of the Corporation or the
Purchasers nor shall it be construed to be a waiver of any such breach or
default, or an acquiescence therein, or of or in any similar breach or default
thereafter occurring; nor shall any waiver of any single breach or default be
deemed a waiver of any other breach or

<PAGE>   30

default theretofore or thereafter occurring. Any waiver, permit, consent or
approval of any kind or character on the part of the Corporation or the
Purchasers of any breach or default under this Agreement, or any waiver on the
part of any such party of any provisions or conditions of this Agreement, must
be in writing and shall be effective only to the extent specifically set forth
in such writing. All remedies, either under this Agreement or by law or
otherwise afforded to the Corporation or the Purchasers, shall be cumulative and
not alternative.

12.7      COUNTERPARTS. This Agreement may be executed in any number of
counterparts, each of which may be executed by only one of the parties hereto,
each of which shall be enforceable against the party actually executing such
counterpart, and all of which together shall constitute one instrument.

12.8      SEVERABILITY. In the event that any provision of this Agreement
becomes or is declared by a court of competent jurisdiction to be illegal,
unenforceable or void, this Agreement shall continue in full force and effect
without said provisions; provided that no such severability shall be effective
if it materially changes the economic benefit of this Agreement to any party.

12.9      NO PUBLIC ANNOUNCEMENT. Neither the Corporation nor any of the
Purchasers shall make any press release or other public announcement concerning
the transactions contemplated by this Agreement except as and to the extent that
any such party shall be obligated to make any such disclosure by law and then
only after consultation with the other regarding the basis of such obligation
and the content of such press release or other public announcement or as the
parties shall mutually agree.

12.10     REASONABLE EFFORTS. The Corporation and the Purchasers shall use all
commercially reasonable efforts to consummate the transactions contemplated by
this Agreement.

     IN WITNESS WHEREOF, each of the undersigned has caused the foregoing
Agreement to be executed under seal by one of its duly authorized officers as of
the date first above written.

COTT CORPORATION

Per: /s/  Fraser Latta
Name: Fraser Latta
Title:

THOMAS H. LEE EQUITY FUND IV, L.P.

By:  THL EQUITY ADVISORS IV, LLC, ITS

<PAGE>   31

     GENERAL PARTNER

     By: /s/ C. Hunter Boll
     Name: C. Hunter Boll
     Title:

THOMAS H. LEE FOREIGN FUND IV, L.P.

By: THL EQUITY ADVISORS IV, LLC, ITS GENERAL PARTNER

     By: /s/ C. Hunter Boll
     Name: C. Hunter Boll
     Title:<PAGE>   1
                                                                     EXHIBIT 4.3
                        [LETTERHEAD OF COTT CORPORATION]

                                                                November 3, 1999

Thomas H. Lee Company
75 State Street
Boston, MA 02109

Dear Sirs:

         RE:  LIMITED WAIVER OF STANDSTILL PROVISIONS

         Pursuant to an agreement made June 12, 1998 between Cott Corporation
("Cott") and various investors ("Purchasers") represented by Thomas H. Lee
Company (collectively "THL"), THL agreed to certain limitations (the "Standstill
Provisions") on its ability to purchase additional shares in the capital stock
of Cott without the prior consent of the Cott board of directors.

         THL has sought the consent of the Cott board of directors to purchase
up to an additional 3,272,092 shares of Cott (the "Additional Shares") in open
market ordinary course purchases.

         This letter confirms that the Cott board of directors has consented to
the acquisition of the Additional Shares by THL, upon and subject to the
following terms and conditions and in consideration of THL's agreements
hereinafter set forth:

1.       THL will give to Cott advance written notice of any acquisition of
         Additional Shares pursuant to the consent herein contained.

2.       If and to the extent that THL acquires Additional Shares, THL will
         relinquish and forego any and all voting rights attaching to an equal
         number of shares owned by entities controlled by members of the Pencer
         Family (the "Pencers") in respect of which THL currently holds voting
         rights, but not an option to purchase the shares to which such voting
         rights attach, pursuant to a "Voting Agreement" and "Option to Purchase
         Common Shares of Cott Corporation" both made as of July 7, 1998 between
         THL and the Pencers.

<PAGE>   2

3.       THL agrees to release Cott from any of its unsatisfied obligations
         under the Subscription Agreement to use the proceeds of THL's
         subscription for preferred shares in the capital of Cott to repurchase
         common shares in the capital of Cott.

4.       THL will grant to the Chairman of the Board of Cott (or such other
         person as may from time to time be designated by the directors of Cott
         who are unaffiliated with THL) a proxy to vote that number of voting
         shares of Cott which ensure that THL will not at any time have voting
         rights in respect of more than 35% of the outstanding voting shares of
         Cott, calculated on a fully diluted basis. The proxy herein
         contemplated will be revocable upon 90 days advance notice to the
         proxyholder and to Cott, provided that THL covenants that it will not
         revoke the proxy if, after giving effect to such revocation, THL would
         beneficially own voting rights in respect of more than 35% of the
         outstanding Voting Stock of Cott, calculated on a fully diluted basis.
         THL will instruct the proxyholder (which instruction shall be
         irrevocable unless and until the proxy shall have been revoked) to vote
         the shares covered by the proxy in the same manner and percentage as
         those shares held by all shareholders of Cott other than THL and its
         affiliates. For purposes of this agreement, "fully diluted basis" at
         any time shall be calculated assuming that all convertible preferred
         shares of Cott shall have been converted into, and all vested,
         "in-the-money" options shall have been exercised for, the underlying
         common shares of Cott, and that no other potentially dilutive
         conversions or exercises shall have occurred. Notwithstanding the
         foregoing, such proxy may be revoked in connection with a change of
         control transaction which has been approved by the board of directors
         of Cott.

5.       THL covenants with and in favour of Cott that it will not exercise its
         option (the "Pencer Options") to acquire additional common shares of
         Cott from the Pencers if and to the extent that after giving effect to
         such exercise, THL would have the power to vote or dispose of more than
         35% of the outstanding voting shares of Cott calculated on a fully
         diluted basis. The covenant contemplated in this paragraph would not
         (a) affect THL's right to exercise the Pencer Option to acquire cash
         rather than shares of Cott; or (b) prohibit the exercise of the Pencer
         Option in the context of a change of control transaction approved by
         Cott's board of directors.
<PAGE>   3

6.       THL agrees that Cott shall be entitled to the benefit of, and to
         enforce against THL, the provisions of the Voting Agreement between THL
         and the Pencers which provide for a reduction of THL's voting rights if
         and to the extent that THL's right to vote exceeds 35% of the
         outstanding Cott voting shares.

         We and (by your acceptance hereof) you agree to settle and execute all
documentation necessary or desirable to give effect to the intention of the
parties set forth herein.

         Except as expressly contemplated herein, the Standstill Provisions will
remain in full force and effect.

         If the foregoing is acceptable to you, kindly so signify by executing
and returning to the undersigned the duplicate original of this letter,
whereupon this letter will constitute a legal and binding agreement between us.

                                            Yours very truly,

                                            COTT CORPORATION

                                            Per: /s/ M. Halperin
                                               -----------------------

ACCEPTED THIS 3rd day of November, 2000.

THOMAS H. LEE COMPANY

(on behalf of the Purchasers under the Subscription Agreement)

Per: /s/ C. Hunter Boll
     ---------------------------

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