Corner Brook's Broadway businesses fighting sluggish economy
Business owners on Corner Brook's beleaguered Broadway — which has seen a spate of recent business closures — say a slower economy is adding to the significant challenges entrepreneurs already face.
The Lair, a comic and gaming shop, closes its doors at the end of the month, joining gift shop Fancy That and furniture shop Canvas, which closed earlier this summer, leaving other shops struggling in a sluggish economy.
Closures affect remaining owners
"It's sad to see somebody put so much hard work into a business and then have to close it down for whatever reason," said Marsha Barnes, owner of Mudder's Kitchen on Broadway, which has been open for nearly four years.
The closures will affect everyone else on the street, says Chris Rogers, owner of men's clothing store Christopher's, marking 24 years in business this month.
"It certainly would have an effect on the amount of people that are downtown, dragging people downtown," he said. "I'm sure it'll affect the traffic for the businesses that are in the area."
Barnes agreed.
"If someone is going to Fancy That, or if they're going to look at a couch, they might smell the fries, and it's like, 'OK, I must run in and get a plate of fries,'" she said. "So if you don't have that, then there's something you're not selling, there's the foot traffic you haven't got."
HST hike hurting business owners
Rogers said the extra two per cent added to the HST has hit everyone, with business owners faced with extra expenses coupled with customers watching their spending a little more. Barnes said the 15 per cent is causing a little sticker shock for tourists.
"The summer's still been a pretty good summer. I haven't seen a lot of Americans. Usually in the summer, I see a lot of Americans — and I've seen a handful — and the ones that I have seen, it was like, 'Oh my lord, I can't believe we're paying five per cent [at home] and coming here and paying 15 per cent,'" she said.
"They said it really took a financial burden on their budget for their vacation. If they'd researched more, they probably wouldn't have come."
Rogers says he sees Broadway businesses adapting, like he is, to becoming destination shops, offering customers products and services they can't find elsewhere.
"I'm specializing in certain areas of the business, and if you looked at our street, there's a lot of businesses doing the same," he said.
Owners using social media to connect with customers
Both owners are using social media to reach customers, he added.
"I don't use as much radio or print anymore. I use more social, because there seems to be a lot of people using it these days."
Barnes said a simple thing like a Facebook post on what she's cooking on a given day can provide a boost.
"They'll say, 'Oh, you're making onion rings. I saw the onion rings. I've been craving them.' So I find that helps a lot."
Barnes said it's her regular customers that keep her going through slow times.
"They'll say, 'Don't close, we'd be so disappointed if you close,'" she said. "My customers give me the courage to keep going when there's days that I'm tired or it's a bad day ... I think about the customers, because the customers are the ones that are keeping us going."
