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On Cyber Monday I was reminded of a Canada Post television ad promoting online mail order shopping and how “soon it will be the way many of us shop for just about everything”. If you browse through business articles or flip through the news channels, many forms of media are talking about traditional retail being in a crisis as if we will soon see an ‘end’ to conventional brick and mortar shopping. It’s true, Statistics Canada reported that more than $136 billion worth of goods and services were sold over the Internet in 2013 by Canadian businesses, up from $122 billion the year before. Approximately 61% of the sales came from the wholesale trade, manufacturing and retail industries. And while the stats for 2014 were not yet available at the time of this article, 2013 was the largest Canadian Cyber Monday yet. However, many consumers consider shopping an enjoyable pastime. It is an experience that activates the senses and the desire to be social. Drive by any shopping mall over the next few weeks and I think you will agree that many customers still make the choice to travel to their local retail businesses. “Online shopping is happening–but it doesn’t mean the brick and mortar will disappear,” says Marty Williams, Executive Director for the Downtown Guelph Business Association. “Fundamentally people are social. It goes against our human nature to isolate ourselves. We want to go out to shop, we want something to do, somewhere to go–for a coffee, to drop into the stores, get a haircut, or pop into the library and pick up a book.” “The ability to purchase groceries online has been an option for close to 15 years, however the percent of groceries purchased online is actually small, people still continue to grocery shop. Often you may not know what you want until you go out–you want to choose by the smell, the feel and the
Team members from RLB LLP are wrapping gifts for the Children’s Foundation Adopt a Family program. RLB LLP, which recently was recognized as one of the top best 50 employers in Canada, uses charitable giving events like this to engage their employees and show their commitment to active community involvement. See page 8. (Photo supplied)
look of the products.” The most popular products purchased online by Canadians as posted on canadiansinternet.com are music (61%), software (57%) and PC’s (47%), with event tickets and video games both at 41% and books at 35%. “Those products that are strictly driven by price, when you know exactly what you want and what brand, if those products can be delivered to your home for less than going out and picking them up–those are the products that may be replaced by online shopping,” adds Williams. “However personally, if I am buying a new phone I want someone to tell me about the features of the phone and show me how it works. I don’t want to read about it.” A recent Holiday Retail Outlook Report by Deloitte actually shows that nearly 80% of shoppers across Canada are concerned about privacy breaches and almost 50% of shoppers have changed their online shopping habits as a result. “I feel the death of brick and mortar businesses is greatly exaggerated. We can all eat at home as well, but we don’t. There is a real human need to be out and to be social. And that
includes shopping,” says Williams. “Brick and mortar shops in our area have unique offerings and great service that make you want to visit them. It is comparable to how salons are flourishing because you build a relationship with your hair stylist and you want to return because they know you and know your tastes.” With the continued escalated use of technology in all forms also comes the consumer who reads their books on a Kindle or a smart phone, which raises the question as to the need of our public libraries. Like the act of shopping, libraries are a destination–a place to go and browse or to get help on various topics. A visit to the Annual Giant Book Sale organized by The Friends of the Guelph Public Library will squash any doubt as to whether people still read books. The three-day sale, which ran in October, opened Friday evening with 78,000 books and items. With more than 7,000 enthusiastic shoppers, volunteers sold nearly 80% of the inventory and grossed almost $100,000–an impressive amount when many books were priced at one and two dollars. “The demise of the library is
nowhere in the foreseeable future simply because it is too important to the community and has way too much to offer,” says Steven Kraft, CEO of the Guelph Public Library. “Libraries connect communities, they support lifelong learning, and they promote economic well-being. Libraries help people learn new skills, assist job-seekers, provide resources for growing small businesses, and they help people make the most of their income.” The public library is actually the most used recreational facility in the City of Guelph, loaning 2,144,004 items (books, DVDs, magazines, e-books, etc) in 2013. On average, 1,500 people go through the doors of the Main Library every day. Throughout the year a total of 39,269 people attended the 1,675 offered programs. “Guelph needs a new Main Library because the current building doesn’t meet the needs of the expanding and diverse population,” adds Kraft. “ We need a facility that will provide a wide range of services from grandparents to grandkids, plus a facility that can accommodate a proper archives section to preserve the City’s history. The current facility is 50 years old and is no longer cost-effective – cont’d on page 3
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