July 22, 2020
Click here to view this message in a browser window.
Member Bulletin Header

    

 

July 22, 2020

Your CFA Update on COVID-19

DONATE TO SUPPORT THE CFA'S
ADVOCACY EFFORTS ON COVID-19

DONATE NOW

Statistics Canada says retail sales surged 18.7 per cent in May

Statistics Canada says retail sales surged 18.7 per cent in May led by motor vehicle and parts sales. The agency says retail sales increased to $41.8 billion in May but that still left them 20 per cent below levels in February, before physical distancing measures were implemented to fight COVID-19.

Economists on average had expected a 20 per cent increase in May, according to financial markets data firm Refinitiv.

Sales were up in 10 out of 11 subsectors with vehicle and parts dealers, general merchandise stores and clothing stores the main contributors to May's strength. The increase in sales followed a record decline of 24.1 per cent in April. Statistics Canada says online sales were $3.8 billion in May, accounting for eight per cent of the total retail market.

Power Sessions
BUY YOUR TICKET NOW!

GetintheLoop is helping CFA members on the road to recovery!

We are hoping that we can contribute to getting your brand back to driving significant revenue. To help on the road to recovery, we are offering CFA members to join the platform for no cost, with no. obligation, for 3 months

Learn More

Improved Canada Emergency Wage Subsidy Bill Passes the House

On Tuesday afternoon MPs in the House of Commons passed Bill C-20, including the improved CEWS, which was announced on Friday last week. The Senate must now study the bill before it can be implemented. We have called for the bill to be swiftly passed and are grateful MPs on all sides worked to achieve that goal. We are hopeful the Senate will now do the same.

Calgary to make masks mandatory in indoor public spaces as of Aug. 1

The City of Calgary will make masks mandatory in all indoor public spaces starting Aug. 1. Council voted 12-3 in favour of the new bylaw on Tuesday. The bylaw, which will require people to wear a face covering over their mouth, nose and chin, would apply to all indoor public spaces in the city, like malls and grocery stores, and on Calgary Transit, in taxis and Ubers. It does not include schools, daycares and multi-family residential buildings.

Businesses will be asked to post signs notifying people of the rule, but will not be expected to deny service to those who don't wear masks, as there are exemptions. 

The bylaw will not apply to children under age 2, people with underlying medical conditions that inhibit their ability to wear a mask, people who are eating or drinking, or people who are engaging in a fitness activity, among other exemptions. 

Those who fail to wear a mask and don't meet those exemptions could be fined $100 to $200, but city officials say the focus will be on education over ticketing. 

Walmart Canada investing $3.5 billion over five years, notably on technology

Walmart Canada plans to invest $3.5 billion over the next five years to improve service in stores and on the web, renovate 150 stores and build two new distribution centres. Future technology initiatives include the use of payment on mobile devices so that customers can pay for purchases anywhere in the store.

The company also aims to soon offer a complete merchandise pick-up service at about 270 branches, or 70 per cent of its locations in Canada. Renovations to more than one-third of its stores will be completed over three years.

Walmart is also planning to spend $1.1 billion to speed up the flow of products by building two new distribution centres, in Vaughan, Ont. and Surrey, B.C., as well as renovating an existing centre in Cornwall, Ont.

Edmonton city council to debate making masks mandatory

Edmonton city council will meet Thursday to debate whether to make it mandatory for people to wear masks in indoor public places. 

Saskatchewan: Phase 4 of reopening plan 

The Saskatchewan government announced the easing up some of the COVID-19 precautions Tuesday, such as allowing the return of door-to-door canvassing and sales, as well as 24-hour gyms and yard or garage sales. Salespeople or others going door-to-door are asked to maintain adequate physical distance, practise regular hand-washing and not share pencils or other supplies. For yard and garage sales, the government guidelines recommend getting adequate physical distancing, keeping group size limitations in order and holding single household sales rather than group sales. The current limit on groups of people in Saskatchewan is 30, with adequate physical distance up to 150 people, or less in some areas.

As of Tuesday, there reduced the distancing requirements for several activities:

  • Drive-in theatres: distance between vehicles reduced to two metres, down from five metres.
  • Retail guidelines, libraries and places of worship: the length of time that returned or donated items must be held has been reduced to 24 hours, down from 72 hours.
  • Fitness facilities: 24-hour access to fitness facilities is permitted, but the gym should ensure registration of guests to facilitate contact tracing, if required.
  • Campgrounds: laundry facilities are now able to open following under guidelines for safe operation.

BC: Wholesale liquor pricing for restaurants, tourism businesses takes effect

Measures enacted by the Province in response to the COVID-19 pandemic that temporarily allow restaurants and pubs to purchase beer, wine and spirits at wholesale cost instead of liquor store retail prices came into effect on Monday, July 20, 2020.

Hospitality customers who have registered with the Province’s Liquor Distribution Branch (LDB) can now use a searchable hospitality price list to help with their buying decisions. A complete online hospitality product catalogue will launch Sept. 1, 2020.

The temporary authorization will remain in effect until March 31, 2021. A provincial review of the program during this temporary reform will help government determine the financial costs and benefits of the change.

Previously, hospitality licensees – including restaurants, pubs and tourism operators with liquor licences – paid full retail price (wholesale price, plus a retail mark-up set by the LDB) on most liquor purchases. The new model allows licensees to pay the wholesale price for the products they purchase, which is the same cost paid by government and private liquor stores in the province when they purchase stock for retail sale.

Read the original announcement here: https://news.gov.bc.ca/releases/2020AG0042-001075

Sherrard Kuzz LLP Legal Support Program
To help navigate the recovery of COVID-19, CFA members have the opportunity to contact Sherrard Kuzz LLP for one free phone-consultation, once per calendar year, to a maximum of 15 minutes. A member may use their 15 minutes to seek information about any employment, labour or human resources issue related to the User (subject to Sherrard Kuzz LLP successfully completing a conflict check to ensure it may advise on the matter).

HOW TO ACCESS THESE SAVINGS:
To take advantage of this CFA member benefit, contact Michael Sherrard at msherrard@sherrardkuzz.com or 416-603-6240.

Webinar Series On Demand

MISSED YESTERDAY'S WEBINAR?

Marketing your franchise system on-line through COViD-19 and beyond
 50 CFE PARTICIPATION  CREDITS  
 
SPEAKER: Luke Aulin, RTOWN
 

Getting consistent, measurable return on investment (ROI) for your marketing efforts has always been hard. Running a business is even harder. In this session, Luke Aulin will untangle the changes you can make in your digital marketing strategy and execution to put your franchise system on the path to measurable, repeatable and scalable results for head office and for your franchisees.

 

Companion piece by Luke Aulin: 6 Ways to Get Your Franchise Marketing Positioned to Flourish During COVID's "New Normal"

 

MORE INFO & REGISTER

UPCOMING WEBINARS

JULY 28, 2020
AT 2:00 PM ET

Navigating the digital world and digitizing your business
 50 CFE PARTICIPATION  CREDITS  

SPEAKERS: Ayham Aldajane, Nown POS; Marta Rzezkowska, Moneris; additional speakers TBC

Join this panel discussion for an in-depth conversation about business in the digital world including: digital payments and cyber security, managing the customer experience in a digital world, choosing the right solution(s) for your business and where to find them, moving business processes online (e.g. accounting, payroll, etc.), and managing your data.

MORE INFO & REGISTER

PRE-REGISTER FOR THE CFA'S CFE PROGRAM

VIEW PAST WEBINARS
ON DEMAND HERE

MORE BUSINESS & CFA RESOURCES
AVAILABLE HERE

GET UPDATES BY REGION
AVAILABLE HERE

Feedback from our Members

“My husband, Jim and I would like to thank everyone at the CFA who has worked so hard and tirelessly to provide us with updated information on the Covid-19 crisis, for the webinars, lobbying for change and for all of the support you provide to members on a regular basis. We are sincerely grateful. To everyone at the CFA, take care and stay healthy.”

 - Nadine Cartman, CEO, Chicken Delight of Canada Ltd

COVID-19's impact on the world is creating waves across all sectors and industries.

Every member of the CFA community is dealing with an issue that is affecting the world, our industries, our communities, our businesses, and our people.

We would like to hear from you if you have any topics, issues or questions to navigate turbulent times in order to support you further: 

SUBMIT YOUR TOPIC

Subscribed to the Daily Update

If you would like to subscribe all your franchisees to receive our Daily Update, please contact Alex Mann at amann@cfa.ca

SUBSCRIBE HERE
Forward To a Peer
CFA National Sponsors
     
  
116-5399 Eglinton Avenue West
Toronto, Ontario M9C 5K6
Tel: 416-695-2896/800-665-4232
Fax: 416-695-1950
You have received this email from the Canadian Franchise Association (CFA). Click here to unsubscribe from all CFA e-mail communications or click here to update your communication preferences.