Supporting Delta's Local Small Businesses

As the pandemic protocols continue to evolve with the changing times, our small businesses are not just struggling to adapt--they are struggling to survive. The great news is that we can help them not only survive but thrive during this time. As they continually work behind the scenes developing their online presence, reorganizing their storefronts to allow social distancing, adapting to stock shortages, and even completely changing the way they deliver their services to the community, we can do our part to make sure that the businesses we love will be around long after the pandemic is over.

Some ways we can help support local:

• Order take-out + delivery. Dine in is a great option for family groups, and if you prefer to enjoy your meal at home, order take out or delivery. Please remember that with a reduction of dine-in customers, wages and tips may be impacted for restaurant staff. Considering tipping as though we had a full-service experience.

• We may be missing our favourite spin class or our child's regular sporting practices, but many local businesses are offering their classes online during the pandemic. Sign up and sweat it out in the comfort of our homes and maybe discover that there really is room for our child to do a cartwheel in the living room!

• We can buy gift cards for our local businesses to use ourselves or to give to others. Delta's Support Local BC website is a great place to start. Buy gift cards for many local businesses and have them emailed directly to ourselves or a lucky recipient.

• Use social media for everything it's worth! Don't just like a post -- share, share, share! Commenting on and share posts, write reviews online and use personal social media to talk about favourite businesses.

• If possible, don't ask for a refund for a class that was cancelled. The business was counting on providing that class more than we were counting on taking it.

• Those skilled at marketing, social media and developing an online business and presence can offer their services free of charge, for a discount or an exchange.

We need to work together as a community to keep our small businesses alive. There are so many ways to help, and if unsure, all we need to do is ask a business owner what we can do to help them specifically. The mere act of asking them may be the help they need to get through a difficult week; feeling supported and appreciated goes a long way.