Retailers hope for ‘big push’ to support local during holiday shopping season

The holiday shopping season is here and local businesses are hoping to capitalize on the "shop local" movement. CTV News Edmonton's Marek Tkach reports.

As retailers are preparing for the holiday shopping season, two Edmonton stores are hoping the shop local trend will be top-of-mind for consumers.

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Bradley Hewitt recently opened his store, Local 95, at Bonnie Doon Shopping Centre in south-central Edmonton. The community-based store hosts 18 small businesses located in and around the city.

“I’m noticing that people are shopping later in the season, waiting for the better deals to come around, rather than going out … and (getting) everything early,” Hewitt told CTV News Edmonton during a weekday lull.

He said that many people are waiting for Black Friday to start their hunt for holiday gifts, and says it has been the “hardest year yet” since the COVID-19 pandemic grinded things to a halt with restrictions.

“A lot of businesses I know, some on Whyte Ave (and) some in this store, they’ve seen a decrease of about 50 per cent in local sales in the past year over previous years, so it’s been quite tough for them,” Hewitt said.

But despite the dip in revenue, he has noticed a trend to buy Canadian and support local businesses.

“The money flow may not be the same, but just the act of wanting to shop local – more than I’ve seen before – is coming,” he said, adding he hopes the “big push” will happen next year.

Another retailer at the shopping centre, Night of Artists Gallery and Gifts, is set to celebrate its third birthday on Saturday with a Christmas market.

The “collaborative gallery” sells original works crafted by local artists – from gift cards to giftware – and store owner Phil Alain said sales have increased by about 15 per cent compared to last year.

“Since we started doing these vendor markets last year, there’s (been) a definite trend for more and more people coming out to support this market,” Alain said. “I see more and more people wanting to buy local, so it’s quite exciting.”

He added the market creates a “hub” for both creators and community.

“We want to have that money circulating around and greater things will happen within our community if we support each other,” Alain explained, saying that the mall has become very “ma and pa” with more local operators leasing space.

“There’s a lot of times where we don’t realize the incredible talent that’s within our city. And these are the moments where it really pays off,” he said. “At the same time, you can actually keep that creativity flowing by purchasing and supporting (local) vendors.”

Marketing professor explains the holiday shopping trends

Associate professor in marketing at McGill University Vivek Astvansh said more people are shopping during the holidays than he would have predicted six months ago.

Astvansh said there are three reasons for the spike in shopping:

• The “buy Canadian” trend due to tariffs introduced by U.S. President Donald Trump;
• the Canadian dollar has been favourable for American travellers visiting Canada; and
• the consumer price index, or price inflation, has “suppressed” a bit in the past three months.

“People may believe that the prices are now more stable than they were last year,” Astvansh told CTV News Edmonton.

He said a recent survey by the Retail Council of Canada found an average Canadian’s budget is $975 for the holiday shopping. He said the survey showed that increases and decreases in holiday budgets varied across the provinces, with Alberta and B.C. seeing about a 25 per cent increase. While eastern provinces like Ontario and Quebec saw a decrease of 5 per cent and 20 per cent, respectively.

One national trend the marketing professor said has been strong is the shop local movement.

“The reason is a simple one - tariffs,” Astvansh said.

The “flip-flop” on tariffs in the past 11 months has led to a “general vibe or sentiment that Canadians should prioritize their own country,” he explained.

“I hope provincial, city and federal administrations and governments further promote this sentiment of choosing Canadian over international,” he said, adding a tip for local retailers to focus on “superior customer service and long-term interests” to earn more business.

As for when the best time to buy is for the holiday season? Astvansh offered this advice to consumers:

“The intuition is that (retailers) stock up a lot of items in their inventory in December and whatever is left over, they want to dispose of … before the new year settles in,” he said. “So the first week of January could actually be the best time to strike the best deal.”

With files from CTV News Edmonton’s Marek Tkach