Signs of encouragement as Oxford County retailers reopen

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Businesses are reopening, people are out shopping, and cases of coronavirus remain low in Oxford County. They’re encouraging signs – but complete recovery could be a while coming for retailers facing dwindling government aid programs, low consumer confidence and a looming second wave of infections, experts and business owners say.

Modern Hipster Antiques has been back open to the public for four weeks after its mid-March closing. Owner Marty Gebel, who has been working with antique and vintage goods since 2001 and operated the Ingersoll storefront since 2017, said he’s seeing about 50 per cent of his usual in-person business right now, but thinks the summer will pick up and has noticed some other encouraging signs.

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“I’ve had a lot of people buying stuff they didn’t really need,” said Gebel, noting his items are often considered luxury pieces – not exactly essential spending for people worried about their jobs.

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“In this business a lot of people try to negotiate price, and I’ve found there isn’t nearly as much of that.”

Modern Hipster specializes in unique vintage items, such as medical and funeral pieces, or advertising relics. Because of that, a big portion of his business was already online, making the pandemic pivot a relatively easy one.

“I was prepared for this when it happened,” Gebel said. “I just had to change it up a bit. Offering pickup times, curb-side delivery.”

Many dealers rely on a summer of travelling to antique shows, which were all cancelled because of the pandemic. While Gebel said he typical did only a few a year, they were important.

“They’re very lucrative shows and they have all been cancelled for the season. The potential to make a lot of money in a day or two is there and I’m not doing that,” he said.

At Nerd Teas, the downtown Woodstock business well known for its custom artisanal teas, owner Jocelyn Trim has a similar concern. Summer Streetfest was huge event for her business, and its cancellation might mark a slow summer.

“I have a feeling it will be quiet. Streetfest is one of my bigger holidays, almost as big as Christmas. Losing that this year is a big hurt, but it’s understandable,” said Trim, noting the downtown summer festival brings in significant foot traffic and, sometimes, a month’s business in just a couple days.

“The running joke every Streetfest is the number of people that say ‘I never knew this was here,’ and ‘How long have you been here?’ It’s big because it drives new customers in.”

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It’s a loss the Downtown Woodstock BIA acknowledges will be a hit for their businesses, said administrator Dalton Beseau, but one that’s necessary to keep everyone safe.

“I don’t think these are issues specific to downtown. It’s more that all businesses are struggling. Getting (protective equipment) to reopen, lowering rents, attracting new clientele or old clientele and assuring them its safe to go outside again, there are a plethora of issues there. Some of which we can manage and some of which we can’t,” Beseau said.

To help, the BIA, which represents more than 200 downtown businesses, is running a shop local social media campaign, and implemented a reduction to its levy, so owners will pay less this year.

Last week, Woodstock city council endorsed a handful of economic recovery measures, including working on developing an outdoor shopping experience. That’s a move Trim said she’d welcome, as walk-in business is crucial for Nerd Teas.

Nerd Teas has an online store, but Trim said many of her out-of-town orders, including those to the United States, have largely dried up. She waited to open until now in part because she has two kids at home, but said it’s now time.

“It’s been trickier to balance home life with reopening the store,” Trim said. “With rent relief and a small business loan forgiven, all of that has stopped, so I don’t really have a choice at this point. I still get most of my business with people coming into the store.”

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It’s an issue business advocates have warned about for weeks – aid programs have the potential to expire or come due before consumer confidence has recovered, prompting the Ontario Chamber of Commerce and the Canadian Federation of Independent Business to warn of a “second wave” of economic impact.

Trim said it’s her regular customers that got her through the pandemic, she said with clear affection.

“If it wasn’t for them, I would be in a lot worse situation than I am,” Trim said. “They mean a lot to me. I’m still trying to think of a way to thank them.”

In her small downtown space, Trim said she plans on allowing only one customer at a time, suspending her reusable canister program and is still encouraging online ordering where possible.

Right now, many businesses have questions about what procedures they need to open safely, said Kim Whitehead, general manager of the Woodstock Chamber of Commerce.

“There is now cost involved in reopening. They have to have a COVID cleaning protocol … but that’s an added cost for businesses starting back up when they haven’t had any cash flow coming in,” Whitehead said.

With the proper safety measures in place, businesses will be part of flattening the curve on a potential second wave of COVID-19 infections, Whitehead said, but it is a worry for business owners, as well as the public.

Local businesses “are you neighbour or employ your neighbour,” Whitehead said, so now is the time to keep your dollars at home.

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At Modern Hipster, Gebel’s business has faced tougher times. Online auctions and marketplaces like Kijiji were a major threat when they rose in popularity, and this summer he’s anticipating that his services doing estate cleanups will be more in demand than usual. It’s just one more thing he’s coming out of this pandemic.

“You have to be prepared to change at a moment.”