Many Edmontonians will be busy scouring the internet Monday to take advantage of Cyber Monday deals.
But while many shop from the comfort of their own homes, there is a push to get people out of the house and into the local stores.
Gayle Martin owns Wish List Gifts on Whyte Avenue and doesn’t have an online store.
“We want to be a store with a door, we want people to come in and have that experience,” Martin said.
But with more people opting to do their shopping online, she said competition for sales has been tough.
“It’s hard because we’re the ones that are keeping the city running,” she explained.
Meanwhile, retail analyst Craig Patterson said he saw online shopping more than double in Canada over the course of 2020.
“We’ve continued to see momentum and consistent online shopping in 2021,” Patterson added.
While online sales continue to grow, the Old Strathcona Businesses Association (OSBA) is trying to get people away from their screens and out to physical stores.
“When you shop online or at big box retailers only 15 cents on the dollar stays, so if you want your people to have jobs, you want your roads and taxes and all of those things fulfilled — you need to really shop locally,” OSBA executive director, Cherie Klassen said.
Klassen explained for every dollar spent locally — 65 cents of that stays within our economy. That’s money Martin and many other small business owners need and rely on.
“When you keep sending your money to the states or to these big companies, how do we improve our economy here in the city?
“We need (to) start supporting our local neighbourhoods,
“and keeping our money in our provinces in our country,” Martin said.