Red Deer’s downtown is going to miss The Bra Lounge boutique, but the store’s owners can be proud of their success through the years, says the president of the Red Deer Downtown Business Association.
On Tuesday, the boutique’s owners announced the store will close, saying that newer clients were expecting more than what was possible, and budgets were getting tighter for shoppers and business.
“It’s super sad to hear they’re going to be closing their doors. Personally, I would like to congratulate them on 18 years of stellar business in our downtown. They have been wonderful working partners in the downtown and wonderful community partners,” said Brandon Bouchard.
“It can’t be easy for small businesses like that in a niche market. As the years go by, and people’s spending habits change and people look to find things online, and look to find things in big box stores, it can be a struggle for unique businesses.”
He said there is a natural ebb and flow for businesses in the downtown. While some are having difficulties, others are seeing success.
“Like any city in Canada, we’re not without our struggles and challenges. But I think overall downtown is still the place to be especially for Christmas shopping and unique ideas for the holidays.
“At the end of the day it’s important for our citizens to do their best to support their downtown because it shouldn’t be forgotten that the downtown is one of the highest economic drivers. Supporting the downtown is important for the health of the city.”
Efforts like the federal government’s upcoming GST holiday will be appreciated by consumers and hopefully bring more people to the downtown. But businesses still have a lot of questions about the program, he said.
“It’s probably going to be a little bit of a bookkeeping and accounting headache especially for a lot of the small businesses,” Bouchard said.
Red Deer & District Chamber of Commerce CEO Scott Robinson said eliminating the five per cent GST in Alberta won’t be a huge driver for shoppers, but the retail sector could see a little bump in sales.
He said since COVID, most small businesses are still in survival mode and have had to pass growing costs onto consumers. Now they are dealing with the postal worker’s strike, and will face higher property taxes in the city.
“All these things add up to costs or barriers to make it difficult to do business,” Robinson said.
About 85 per cent of the chamber’s members have less than 15 people on staff so small businesses are the majority in Red Deer, as in other cities, he added.
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