I was strolling to work on Cleveland Avenue the other day, and as I passed the empty glassed façade of a former business plastered with a “For Rent” sign, I lamented all the different places that were now closed. Sure, the particular window I was peering into used to belong to our adult store, but I actually miss their window displays.
Every couple weeks they used to change up what the mannequins were wearing and doing, and I found myself looking forward to each new creative display.
Don’t get me wrong, it’s not because I’m a perv in any way… well, OK maybe I’m a bit of a perv, but what I really appreciated was the effort the shop owner put into promoting his business and trying to attract customers every week. It’s a shame the store closed, but I guess there is only so many pairs of edible underpants you can sell in a small town.
However, it isn’t just specialty or niche shops that are closing, but also our restaurants, coffee shops and other hangouts. I always think about those unfortunate folks who have had to close the door on their dreams. I mean, originally opening their restaurant or café had to have been a lifelong dream or something, otherwise, why on Earth would you want to deal with serving all those, y’know, people?
I once worked a retail job where I had to talk to people all day. I’d usually find myself daydreaming about having my own taser, and leaving a trail of unconscious but humorously twitching bodies in my wake.
I probably wasn’t cut out for retail.
But here are folks who actually wanted to take care of other people, serving them delicious food, coffee, pastries or consumable undergarments, as the case may be. Let’s not forget the staff, too. When any local business goes under, there’s always a bunch of local employees who lose their jobs.
Luckily, there are new businesses opening all the time as well, but we need to support them now, otherwise they risk the same fate.
So, the next time you feel the urge to whip down to the city for something, consider whether you can pick it up in town, and remember to shop, buy and eat locally whenever you can. Let’s support our neighbours and their local enterprises, and leave Vancouver for when you need those edible undies.
