We are working on partnerships that can benefit businesses in our community in different ways. The Cowichan Leadership Council is putting together a letter asking for support for business rent relief which we will be hopefully participating in. We are also part of the discussion for the coalition to Save Small Businesses which submitted a Federal Commercial Rent Abatement Strategy consideration. We have identified in groups that we have businesses open and we are sharing our strategy to the press for more visibility. We continue to look for positive proactive opportunities to participate in local, and regional plans to help our businesses.
Below you will find their most recent email from Save Small Businesses:
From: Erin - Save Small Business <admin@savesmallbusiness.ca> Date: Wed, Apr 1, 2020 at 6:51 AM Subject: The rent is due & many of us can't pay. Let's make some noise
Dear Canadian Small Businesses,
Erin Millar here again, a co-founder of Save Small Business and owner of The Discourse.
If you’re new to the list, and you missed the first update, read it here. It includes an update on how we are using the information you shared with us to advocate. There’s also a link to unsubscribe at the bottom of this email, if you don’t want to hear from us again. (No hard feelings.)
Nearly 23,000 businesses and 6,000 individuals have now signed our petition! We're definitely making an impact. We're sharing the stories you shared through this site to demonstrate to policymakers at different levels of government, banking leaders and journalists the scope of the challenges and who is left out of aid announced so far.
Let's make some noise on April 1.
Today is rent default day, when tens of thousands of small businesses across Canada won't be able to pay rent. Big breath. It's going to be hard, but we won't be alone.
So far, the financial aid packages offered don't help many businesses, especially brick and mortar "Main Street" businesses that are closed and can't pivot online or deliver their products. So we want to leverage social media to amplify the fact that despite the labour subsidy and loans, we still can't pay our rent.
Please visit https://www.facebook.com/savesmallbusiness/, like our Facebook page and share the stories you find there. We've started to post photos and stories that some of you sent us. If you'd like us to post your stories on this Facebook page, please send a photo to Sara at this email address with 2-3 sentences about your circumstances.
We're shifting media coverage of the economic impacts of COVID-19
We've been working hard to ensure that rent abatement is on the national agenda. Today, Save Small Business co-founder Jon Shell published an op-ed in the Globe and Mail: Loans won't save local small business.
And that was just one of many articles featuring our stories published across Canada today. I want to shout out this story in Peterborough Currents, a brand new independent news outlet that is a small business just like you: Rent is due tomorrow. Can local businesses afford it? (Definitely subscribe to emails from Peterborough Currents if you're from nearby. They're awesome.)
Thank you to everyone who has shared their experiences with journalists. If you want to speak to media but weren't able to join Monday's media training webinar, we've compiled some resources for you. In this folder you will find a press release, a recording of the media training webinar, talking points and interview tips. Please feel free to use these resources to reach out to local journalists in your community.
Our proposed Federal Commercial Rent Abatement Strategy has been submitted to government
Our federal politicians can't say there isn't a solution to the rent problem. Thanks to the tireless work of Jon Shell, we have developed a Federal Commercial Rent Abatement Strategy that lays out exactly how different levels of government can work together to provide meaningful relief.
Jon submitted this to the federal government today. You can read it for yourself here.
Sauvons les petites enterprises!
We just launched SaveSmallBusiness.ca in French. Please share our new website with your Francophone friends, and let's collect stories in both Canada's official languages. Check it out here: https://sauvonslespetitesentreprises.ca/
Stay strong,
Erin Millar
Co-founder, Save Small Business
CEO, The Discourse
Save Small Business | 877 E Hastings Street, Unit 308, Vancouver, BC V6A3Y1 Canada