Essential questions
'Unfair playing field' for box stores over local biz
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Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 16/11/2020 (1782 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.
Discrepancies and loopholes emerging from Manitoba’s code-red restriction orders have split levels of government, commerce stakeholders and retailers on a crucial question: why are some businesses essential and others non-essential?
And further to that, if a business is dubbed essential during the COVID-19 pandemic because of what it sells — such as groceries or pharmaceuticals — should the province intervene when it peddles other products that aren’t essential?
The answers from the province, it appears, are altogether unclear, and advocates say that lack of clarity is adversely impacting small businesses mandated to shut down while big-box retailers continue to operate and allow hordes of customers through their doors amidst the health crisis.

“It’s creating an unfair playing field during the holiday shopping season where months of pandemic losses could have otherwise been somewhat recovered,” Dan Kelly, president of the Canadian Federation of Independent Business, told the Free Press on Monday. “Your independent flower shop is fully closed but you can buy flowers at the grocery store — that doesn’t make sense.”
The Manitoba Chambers of Commerce also weighed in on the contentious issue.
“Certainly, I can say the restrictions have had a larger impact on small stores than they are having on bigger chains,” said chief executive officer Chuck Davidson.
But after chewing out several businesses for flouting restrictions Monday, chief provincial public health officer Dr. Brent Roussin said “the message could not be clearer.”
“We don’t want Manitobans out shopping for non-essential items,” he said at a news conference. “We want Manitobans to stay home. That’s our message.”
Roussin suggested some businesses have attempted to skirt public health orders to stay open and sell non-essential items, while others have written to Manitoba Public Health to be exempted from restrictions. “If stores are busy and crowded, they aren’t following the 25 per cent capacity limit,” he said, even as lineups continued outside several grocery stores in Winnipeg.
Six more deaths coronavirus-related deaths were revealed Monday in Winnipeg, which has an infection rate well above most jurisdictions in the country.
The shut-down rules mandated by the province are confusing to some business owners.
Business that sell “food or household consumer goods necessary for the safety, sanitation or operation of residences and businesses, such as personal hygiene items, cleaning supplies, baby and child care products, hardware and household appliances” can continue to operate.
In other words, if a retailer falls under that category, it can continue to operate and also sell products that are not essential, such as books, flowers or clothes.
However, if an outlet only sells those “non-essential” products, it should be closed.
“It’s disheartening, confusing and completely ridiculous,” said Aubrey Margolis, owner of Danali clothing store in Winnipeg, which is now only offering curbside pick-up and delivery services.
Curtis Colatruglio’s store, Antler World Dog Products at Kildonan Place, is allowed to remain open because it sells food for pets but he agrees the rules are “incredibly confusing.
“I do feel bad for all the stores that are being asked to close,” he said. “It’s definitely weird seeing us open in the mall and almost all other stores to be closed. You don’t see any traffic, it’s like a ghost town with some things open for some reason.”
On Monday, Winnipeg Mayor Brian Bowman urged the Premier Brian Pallister to restrict businesses still open to only sell essential items and services.
“Since these provincial orders came into effect on Thursday, Nov. 12, 2020, we have witnessed a significant number of residents attending large commercial establishments, in-person, to purchase non-essential goods and services. Obviously, this raises serious concerns that community transmission of COVID-19 is not being mitigated as much as possible,” Bowman wrote, in a letter obtained by the Free Press. “As a result, I am requesting that the provincial orders be immediately amended so that businesses that are allowed to be open for in-person commerce be restricted in their activities to the sale of essential products and services only.”
But Pallister said Monday that is “only one element that has to be looked at,” admitting it can be unfair to force small businesses to close while their big competitors sell identical products.
“The reality of this situation is that some are abusing this,” Pallister said. “And for the danger of other people, some are abusing it to gain business advantage. That’s not a situation we can maintain.”
He said the province is currently reevaluating what it considers essential, which includes consultations with the business community. He said Manitoba’s economic development minster, Ralph Eichler, is speaking with small business groups to hear their concerns.
Twitter: @temurdur
Temur.Durrani@freepress.mb.ca
History
Updated on Tuesday, November 17, 2020 12:28 AM CST: Fixes typos.