Rallying behind local business is more important than ever as the coronavirus pandemic continues to pick up traction in BC.
The virus has led to the temporary closure of restaurants and bars in Prince George when it comes to dine-in service but some are offering take-out and delivery options during this time.
“On the restaurant front, that’s one of the more challenging pieces, the sheer volume of people who are taking this seriously and are staying at home or working from home trying to stay out of mass public places. The quicker we find a resolution, the quicker those restaurants can get back to work,” said Todd Corrigall, Prince George Chamber of Commerce CEO.
However, he is pleased with the 82-billion dollar financial aid package announced by Ottawa that will support families, employees and businesses.
“It was encouraging to see that home-based businesses or individual entrepreneurs are going to have an opportunity to access some of the funding available, micro-businesses we’ve been saying for years is the single-largest growing sector of the business world.”
Corrigall remembers the SARS outbreak in 2003 and states the coronavirus is a completely different beast.
“This is far beyond SARS. This is far beyond Norwalk, this is something that I have never seen before and hope I never have to see again.”
Corrigall adds once this is over, it’s going to take a while for local businesses to pick up where they left off.
“People are going to have to build up a sense of trust in going out again, they’re going to have to build up a sense of confidence in their purchasing powers and what their own internal economies look like so that they can go out there and spend their dollars, the recovery process is going to be a long one.”
In addition, the Chamber has launched a #SupportPG campaign where they have compiled a list of businesses that are open and offering services during this time.
A link to the campaign can be found here.
The @PGChamber1 list of open businesses is now live and being update regularly. Use #SupportPG to update the list and let us know about your awesome local business experiences. Let’s share the positives and shop local: https://t.co/z5hjvEqRX4 #CityofPG #COVID19
— Todd C (@PGChamberCEO) March 18, 2020
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