Indicators of small business recovery are beginning to move in the right direction, but businesses in the arts and recreation (e.g. gyms, arcades) and hospitality (e.g. restaurants, hotels) sectors are being left behind, warns the Canadian Federation of Independent Business (CFIB).
The latest data on CFIB’s Small Business Recovery Dashboard shows that:
|
All businesses |
Arts and recreation sector |
Hospitality sector |
|
|
% Fully open |
68 |
33 |
32 |
|
% Fully staffed |
45 |
20 |
18 |
|
% Making normal sales |
35 |
11 |
15 |
“The pandemic has hit all small businesses, but those in the arts and recreation and hospitality sectors have felt the impact of lockdowns, border restrictions and capacity limits more than most and are still facing many months of reduced sales. Being permitted to open the doors of the business is only step one on the long road to recovery,” said CFIB President Dan Kelly. “Small firms have a long way to go to rehire and train staff, welcome customers and abide by the many restrictions that remain in several jurisdictions. As consumers, we can help them by dedicating some of our spending for local businesses and choosing to shop small every chance we get.”
The #SmallBusinessEveryDay contest encourages shopping local
To encourage Canadians to support small businesses in their community, CFIB recently launched its second #SmallBusinessEveryDay Contest, this time with six times the prize money (almost $300,000) for consumers and business owners.
To enter, consumers can go to SmallBusinessEveryDay.ca and send a thank you message to a small business. The message gets relayed to the business and the consumer is entered to win a cash prize of $2,000 plus gift cards from Scotiabank, eBay, Mastercard and Dairy Queen. The small business nominated by the winning consumer also wins $10,000, plus the gift cards. In addition to the weekly big cash prize of $10,000, Microban 24 is also providing 100 bonus cash prizes of $2,400 to help small businesses reopen safely.
“Let’s make this the Summer of Small Business, by visiting a favourite restaurant, signing up for a new fitness class or celebrating a small business retailer,” concluded Kelly.
SOURCE Canadian Federation of Independent Business
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