The Canadian Federation of Independent Business (CFIB) said on Tuesday that its weekly small business recovery dashboard saw a slight improvement since its launch last week as part of the #SmallBusinessEveryDay campaign, which will run through the fall.
Fifty-eight per cent of businesses are fully open (compared to 53 per cent last week), 23 per cent are making normal sales for this time of year (compared to 19 per cent last week) and 34 per cent are back to normal staffing levels (compared to 32 per cent last week), said the national organization.
“Things feel a little more normal as we are getting haircuts and eating out on restaurant patios, but behind the warm welcome back signs businesses continue to be very anxious about paying bills and keeping their businesses afloat. Only one in four is back to normal sales. Customer support in the form of an extra purchase, a recommendation or a kind word continues to be critical to Canada’s economic recovery and we hope everyone thinks #SmallBusinessEveryDay right through the fall,” said Laura Jones, Executive Vice-President at CFIB, in a news release.
The hospitality sector, which includes restaurants and hotels, has been among the hardest hit with only seven per cent back to normal sales, said the CFIB.
The #SmallBusinessEveryDay campaign is an extension of CFIB’s annual Small Business Saturday. The campaign encourages local shopping, promotes initiatives to support small business and provides posters and other tools for businesses to use. It is supported by Scotiabank, Chase Merchant Services, eBay Canada, Facebook, Intuit Canada and Interac Corp., said the CFIB.
