Subdued first day of Sunday shopping in many Steinbach stores

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This article was published 18/12/2020 (1602 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

For a change, those needing an extension cord on short notice before an especially cold night were able to buy one at a large chain store this past Sunday in Steinbach.

On Dec. 13, a number of stores were able to open on Sunday for the first time in the city, but hordes eager to spend their hard-earned money weren’t to be found. Shoppers sparsely attended stores including Wal-Mart, Superstore and Giant Tiger in a limited capacity, while enduring -20 temperatures with wind chill.

Other stores, many along Main Street, didn’t open, and larger stores appeared to be taking the early advantage of the expanded hours. Some local businesses owners with stores that keep up property values on the city’s main drag and keep the city’s downtown distinctive, are unsure what effect the new rules will have on their businesses.

Last week, the provincial government passed Sunday shopping legislation. Under the previous scheme, the default legislation was Sunday shopping at most large businesses wouldn’t be allowed unless a municipality makes rules to allow it. Steinbach city council didn’t make rules to allow large businesses to open on Sundays.

Under the new legislation, the default rules allow for Sunday shopping, and municipal governments are entitled to make rules to restrict Sunday shopping if mayor and councillors decide to do so.

Mayor Earl Funk said city council’s intention is not to make a bylaw that would prevent stores from opening Sundays.

A number of business owners The Carillon interviewed said there were mixed feelings among city residents. Some argue retailers should have opened on Sundays years ago, while others say they appreciate a weekly day of rest, a position often argued via Christian principle.

Lawyer and former city councillor David Banman said he was surprised the government passed the new legislation given the Legislature’s limited sittings. Banman was a lead campaigner to allow Sunday shopping. Banman was also one of the advocates for allowing alcohol sales in Steinbach.

“I’m not sure how it’s going to dovetail to our times these days,” Banman said of the new legislation. “But it actually may end up helping us, to give people a little bit more time to shop during the week.”

Banman said many residents, not long ago, were happy to have an extra day off in the community, but he also said more options are good.

“I think people’s lives have changed and our community has gotten a little more diverse,” Banman said.

The pandemic and the provincial government’s imposed restrictions have been on store owners’ minds.

Steinbach MLA Kelvin Goertzen said advocacy by the Retail Council was a factor motivating the government to pass the legislation. Passing Sunday shopping rules now isn’t designed to make up for lost sales entirely, Goertzen said, but to provide some sort of relief for business owners who decide to open Sundays.

“It’s obviously a bit of an odd time for it to pass,” Goertzen said. “It might leave people scratching their heads. Initially it did for me as well … but my understanding is they’re looking for broader hours for curbside pickup on Sunday.”

Sobey’s didn’t open this Sunday, but plans to open future Sundays. Lee Kotowicz, franchise owner and operator of Sobey’s, said future hours at the grocery store are to be from 12-6 p.m.

The hours “are to respect the beliefs in the community,” Kotowicz said. The hours give staff the chance to go to church (or watch virtual church these days), Kotowicz said, then go home to have supper with their families after work.

The additional Sunday hours could also save some trips to Winnipeg for Steinbach residents and lessen food waste, Kotowicz said. Some food items are made at the store that without Sunday hours, would need to be thrown out after Saturday, he said.

Main Street was quiet this past Sunday. Some business owners The Carillon spoke to don’t have immediate plans to open Sundays.

Chris Goertzen of Main Street Bread & Butter told The Carillon it’s hard to say how the new hours could affect the local business community. He doesn’t have immediate plans to open Sunday, and said because of the café portion of the store, he already could be open Sundays.

“Steinbach and Winkler are some of the only communities that actually have no Sunday shopping, and yet they seem to be some of the most successful communities,” Goertzen said. He said he and staff appreciate the family time.

Earl Funk, who owns Earl’s Meat Market, said it remains to be seen if his store will be open Sunday. Funk said it may take some time for other businesses to adopt Sunday hours, if they’re to open at all.

Bev Penner is owner of Prairie Oils and Vinegars. She said she needs a day off to rejuvenate.

“I don’t think it would be worth it actually,” Penner said of opening her store on Sunday. Penner said she didn’t expect much more traffic would go to the store on an extra day of operations.

The large stores along the highway and their Sunday shopping hours aren’t much help to Main Street businesses.

“If [customers shop north of the city], they’re not necessarily coming back on Main Street in Steinbach to shop where I’m located,” Penner said.

The pandemic has affected business’ capacity to earn profits, but also shopping experiences. Penner can’t offer tastings anymore, which is a central feature of Prairie Oils and Vinegars, and she isn’t eligible for provincial grants touted by Premier Brian Pallister.

The ability for shoppers to spontaneously buy things in-store has been severely restricted for selling items the government considers “non-essential.” One of the few remaining DVD rental stores in the area, Video Max is open but for curbside pickups.

The Carillon interviewed Sharon Reimer of Scrapbook Cottage on Main Street in November about the new restrictions. The store sells scrapbooking, cardmaking, paper-crafting and related items.

“I think it was a little unfair to some of us smaller businesses,” Reimer said, comparing stores like hers to the large ones. “We can have so much more control with what’s going on in our stores at any given time.”

One business owner told The Carillon different provincial enforcement officials told him different things about what’s allowable at his store and what isn’t.

Small businesses have to endure at least three more weeks of lockdown after the upcoming weekend, but public health orders have been renewed before.

Passing Sunday shopping legislation was part of the Pallister government’s campaign strategy. Obstructing small business sales wasn’t.

On Tuesday, The Carillon asked the premier why his government claims to be pro-small business while adopting a restrictive store-regulation strategy. The Carillon is unaware of any other jurisdiction in Canada that have separated various in-store sale items into “essential” and “non-essential,” under the justification of possible pandemic dangers.

Pallister emphasized the difficulties everyone is facing during the pandemic, and touted the government’s grant program for small businesses.

“I’d hate it if I was in small business myself, so that’s where I come from,” Pallister said. “We’re doing the best we can with what we got.”

The Premier said the government inherited various problems, and said the government eliminated the deficit, at least before the pandemic had a significant effect on the provincial budget. The restrictions are tough on small businesses but they help save lives, he argued.

“I’ll tell you what, we’re not going to open all the small businesses just because somebody is yelling about it,” Pallister said. “That isn’t how I work.”