Businesses in downtown Midland are being kept afloat thanks to a community effort to encourage more residents to shop local this holiday season.
“We are seeing a lot of people that we’ve never seen before,” said Sarah Kenney, co-owner of Georgian Bay Books at 247 King St. “People are really making an effort to shop local.”
Sales at Georgian Bay Books have been steady since September and are now on par with last year. This comes as a welcome surprise for Kenney and co-owner Sandy Dunsford, who struggled through the spring and summer.
“It was a rough summer,” said Kenney. “But sales have been back up to normal from September through to December. Which is great. Christmas is always a busy time for book stores.”
The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and King Street reconstruction project dramatically affected sales for many businesses.
and other businesses in downtown Midland, are relying on this holiday season more than ever before. Because of this, a variety of local organizations are encouraging residents to shop local in hopes of keeping more money in the community.
The has spent the last eight months pushing the shop local message.
“Small business owners pay taxes, they employ local people, and they most likely try and support local as well,” said Cathy Tait, executive director of the chamber. “Local business owners are also the ones giving back to non-for-profit organizations and sports clubs. So, when you support these businesses, you are supporting our community.”
For every $100 spent at a small business, roughly $68 stays in the community, according to Tait. For every $100 spent at a local franchise operation, $48.95 stays in the community.
“These operations are run by real people. They are our neighbours, our friends or our family. They really do have a vested interest in the business,” said Tait. “They keep our communities authentic and interesting by offering products and services that wouldn’t normally be available in big-box stores.”
One of these unique small businesses is , which carries Canadian-made clothing. Owner Nancy Spiker regularly gives back to the community, helping non-profit organizations.
This holiday season, Spiker is inviting a number of different local artists to her store and giving them space to sell their work.
“There is definitely some cross-promotion. I think it works well for both parties,” said Spiker. “It gives the artist a very accessible public space to show their work.”
Sales at A Passion for Fashion have improved over the last few months. According to Spiker, sales in November were on par with last year. She credits that to a noticeable effort people are making to shop local.
“It’s important to shop local,” said Spiker. “Then money circulates within our community. If we continue helping out one another, we all have a great chance of thriving and surviving this pandemic.”
STORY BEHIND THE STORY: Reporter Andrew Mendler decided to talk to businesses in downtown Midland about the importance of shopping local.
