Archive

Orangeville Business Improvement Area launches new online portal

June 5, 2020   ·   0 Comments

By Mike Baker

The Orangeville Business Improvement Area has developed a unique way for local residents to continue shopping at their favourite downtown stores, without needing to leave their home. 

In the face of the ongoing COVID-19 crisis, the OBIA has partnered with Green Monkey Creative to create a “digital downtown marketplace” to showcase everything the Orangeville business community has to offer. 

“When the province shut down all non-essential activities and services, our community banded together by staying apart to keep each other safe and healthy. Right from the very beginning, the outpouring of concern and support of our local businesses was evident,” said Alison Scheel, OBIA General Manager. “Local customers still wanted to shop locally, so (we) focused on bridging the physical gap between local businesses and Orangeville residents.”

Hence, the creation of shopdowntownorangeville.ca. Over the past few weeks, 22 local shops have been added to the online portal, with those numbers continuing to grow according to Ms. Scheel. 

While the provincial government has taken steps to reinstate the Ontario economy, including a move on May 16 that allowed retail operations with a storefront entrance to reopen, many people are still, understandably, concerned about being out in public. Ms. Scheel says this new initiative provides those individuals with another option to carry out their local shopping.

“Having this online shopping provides an alternative to in-person shopping for customers and offers the opportunity for another revenue stream for business owners as they begin to promote their stores to the wider world,” Ms. Scheel said. 

While the portal will serve to benefit downtown businesses, it will also go a long way to helping vendors who regularly appeared at Orangeville’s Farmer’s Market. Many of the people with stalls at the market have taken advantage of this new opportunity. 

“We all know that buying fresh, local produce is not only delicious and healthy, it also supports our area’s farmers, our local economy, and lowers our carbon footprint, so finding a way to continue the Orangeville Farmer’s Market was identified as a BIA priority,” Ms. Scheel said. 

In line with that, the Orangeville Farmer’s Market held its first pick-up only market on Saturday (May 30) in the parking lot across from Town Hall. Customers interested in making a purchase, or learning more about the Orangeville Farmer’s Market can visit www.localline.ca/orangeville-farmers-market. All orders need to be placed and paid for in advance to result in safer and more efficient pick-ups. 

“We look forward to expanding the online offerings each week and hope to move to a more traditional market shopping experience later in the season as the COVID-19 situation improves,” Ms. Scheel concluded.

Readers Comments (0)