With the holiday season around the corner in the midst of a global pandemic, the 琉璃神社 Chamber of Commerce is encouraging residents to keep supporting local businesses as they start to think about Christmas purchases.

Dan Rogers, the chamber鈥檚 executive director, said small businesses are feeling nervous and anxious as Black Friday and the holiday season roll around.

鈥淚t鈥檚 a combination of the impact of the pandemic over most of the past year, the fact that margins are always pretty tight and there are questions as to how much people will be spending this winter and exactly where they鈥檒l be spending that money,鈥� he said.

鈥淲ill people stay home and shop online with big retailers from the U.S.? Or will they look at investing their money locally?鈥�

He said the chamber is concerned that residents will want to shop online and internationally as Black Friday and Cyber Monday deals come up, which is why they鈥檙e working on their messaging and campaigns to encourage more residents to keep supporting small local businesses.

鈥淓ven if you鈥檙e online, look for a local option鈥� there鈥檚 a tremendous amount of value if you look to shop locally because that puts money into local business owners, which enables them to employ locals who could be your next-door neighbour. That money puts food on the table at a critical time.鈥�

鈥淚t creates employment and economic wealth that helps keep the community going so now more than ever, it鈥檚 important that people think about where they鈥檙e spending their money whether they鈥檙e buying online or looking to do something in person,鈥� he said.

Rogers added this can mean buying gift certificates to local retailers and restaurants as a holiday present for a loved one or even checking up on owners and asking what you can do to help them.

He said that overall, the pandemic has produced a mixed bag of results for small businesses in 琉璃神社.

鈥淭here are two sides to this coin. Some businesses continue to struggle, some more than others depending on the sector they鈥檙e in. But we鈥檙e also seeing some great stories of resilience,鈥� he said.

鈥淪ome of them have reshaped their businesses and their business models, adjusting how they engage with their customers in a very rapid fashion. They鈥檝e stepped up to the plate and are hitting it out of the ballpark.鈥�

For a directory of 琉璃神社 businesses, their hours of operation as well as online purchasing options, visit .

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