As we embrace each phase of the COVID-19 pandemic "reopening", NewmarketToday will be exploring the latest developments in our "new normal" for business, shopping, dining, entertainment, culture, recreation and (hopefully) socializing in a regular series of articles.
It’s anything but business as usual in Newmarket.
The coronavirus crisis ushered in a new normal way of shopping that has swung wildly from panic buying to the long lines of pent-up demand at shops with a street entrance that have recently reopened, as was the case Wednesday when 300 people lined up to get inside Newmarket's HomeSense.
Many local merchants are taking extraordinary measures to welcome back customers and staff during phase one of Ontario’s gradual plan to reopen the economy that allows for purchasing more than just the essentials.
The new normal for shopping local during the COVID-19 pandemic means that face masks, hand sanitizer, physical distancing markers in stores, and waiting in line have become second nature.
For retailers, the rigid health, safety, cleaning and disinfecting measures they must put in place to help stop the spread of the potentially deadly respiratory illness has increased costs and the daily workload.
“It’s a weird feeling,” said Fourth Dimension Comics owner Steven Gilbert, whose busy comic book shop has been a Main Street Newmarket fixture for 21 years.
“There are some pretty strict limitations on how I’m opening the store and allowing customers in to keep them safe and keep myself safe and to also, hopefully, allow for people to read some comic books,” he said.
The self-described “old-school brick-and-mortar type of guy” was challenged to provide his customers with a browsing experience, which before COVID-19, found people picking up comic books, reading the description, looking at the artwork, and placing it back on the shelf before searching for other material.
Gilbert’s first week of offering curbside pickup presented a few snags, one of which a wireless debit card terminal solved.
“I know it sounds silly, but before that, I had a little countertop one that was wired in with about four feet of extension cord,” he said.
He has since created physical distancing zones up to 10 feet in the shop that houses tens of thousands of comic books, games, and collectables, including a 20-foot area near the cash to give a customer plenty of room to check out.
Gilbert has decided, out of an abundance of caution, to allow only one customer at a time into the shop, or two if they are shopping together.
Customers are encouraged to use the four hand sanitizing stations that are set up and limit handling the books, but any products that are touched are placed in a separate area to be quarantined for at least 24 hours.
The shop’s door is locked throughout the day, and opened by appointment only when somebody calls from outside.
For now, the 237 Main St. S. shop is open from Tuesday to Saturday to allow for thorough cleaning and disinfection, merchandising, and a bit of a break for the one-person operation.
“I do find it incredibly stressful, more so than usual, to work under these circumstances,” Gilbert said. “Every movement in the store is now managed and, by the end of the day, even a slow day, it seems exhausting.”
“A store like mine really does require people being able to come in and browse around and it is a concern whether a business like mine will continue to be viable under those circumstances,” he said.
Gilbert believes he’s not alone in his concern for the future as there are many unknowns, such as continued government support to help pay commercial rents.
And, perhaps more importantly, he wonders if shoppers will feel confident to go out and about throughout the summer and into the fall.
After two decades in Newmarket’s historic downtown, Gilbert said he had a handle on what he could count on in terms of sales year-after-year.
“All of that is out the window,” he said. “Am I going to have 30 or 50 or 75 per cent of my usual numbers, will it gradually come up to normal numbers? As a business person, you’re paying rent based on market factors from the past, and volume of traffic from the past. Now, you’re looking at half or a third of that.”
The saving grace for Gilbert during the two-month shutdown of non-essential businesses was that the North American comic book distribution network hit pause, and publishers such as Marvel Comics ceased publishing.
“Nothing new was published, it was a bit of a relief,” said Gilbert. “If I had to pre-order two to three months in advance, that would have probably been the end of the store.”
Comic buffs and collectors can shop safely at Fourth Dimension Comics by calling first at 905-715-7091. Gilbert has also photographed a large portion of his inventory and will email those interested in a virtual browsing experience.
On the west side of Main Street, Hempen Jewellers owner Tom Hempen is keeping his door wide open to allow for contactless entry.
Soon, a motion detector will be installed at the entrance of the 220 Main St. building so all customers have to do is wave their hands to open the door.
Hempen, who chairs Newmarket’s Main Street district business improvement committee, has hired back his four employees and said business is brisk.
“I’m really thankful we’re on Main and have a street-level store,” said Hempen. “It’s been really busy because the malls are closed. People are still getting married, people still need their jewelry repaired, and custom work. We’re working at capacity and we’re pretty busy.”
The global pandemic has precipitated the need for a dramatically different shopping experience at the high-end jewellers, but it is one that Hempen hopes doesn’t last for too long.
A sophisticated plexiglass system hung from ceiling tracks with stainless steel wire now creates a physical barrier around all the showcases. A sanitizing station that uses an ultrasonic and works on vibration disinfects every piece of jewelry before and after being touched.
In addition, a high heat and steam machine is also used to clean the jewelry, and sanitized trays and tweezers are used to select products for customers. Then everything is sanitized again.
It’s a process that adds upward of two hours to the daily workload.
“Hopefully one day, we can remove the physical barriers between us,” Hempen said. “I think people are looking forward to the day when things are the way they were before.”
The downtown business committee expects to meet in the coming weeks to brainstorm ways to boost small businesses that have been struggling and to thank the community for its support during these tough times.
The Town of Newmarket’s quick action to implement a 30-minute maximum parking limit on Main Street to make curbside pickup more convenient has been the next best thing to having a driveway for customers, Hempen said.
“I see there’s a high turnover rate of the parking spaces and I’m hearing from restaurants they’re happy with it and it’s convenient for their clients,” he said.
In preparation for bringing customers back into the store this week, Hempen admitted that initially, he was concerned about everyone’s health and safety.
“But with the measures we have put in place, everybody is feeling very comfortable, we’ve done everything possible according to best practices in our industry to make it a healthy and safe environment for everyone,” he said.
Shoppers can visit Hempen Jewellers at 220 Main St. S. during the reduced hours of Wednesday to Saturday from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Visit here for more information.
For other small merchants closed since mid-March, reopening is more complex than limiting the number of customers in a store at any one time.
Penelope Rodrigo owns Changes for You on Main Street, a specialty boutique that carries an extensive collection of wigs, hairpieces, breast prosthesis, swimwear, lingerie, accessories, and mastectomy products for after breast surgery.
As someone who caters to customers who are going through breast cancer, chemo and radiation therapies with custom-fittings, physical distancing is a challenge.
“There’s no way to do physical distancing with my customers,” said Rodrigo, who adheres to the strictest safety measures including wearing personal protective equipment when helping clients. “There’s no way to stay away from them, and I take all the precautions of wearing masks and gloves, and using high-alcohol sanitizers.”
An added layer of complexity is that unlike hard surfaces such as jewelry, clothing and fabrics are not easily or quickly sanitized.
“Everything customers touch or try on can’t be tried on by anybody else for at least 48 hours,” said Rodrigo, who quarantines the items in a secure place for double the recommended amount of time believed to kill viruses.
As a precaution and to help limit the spread of COVID-19, Changes for You will be open every other day for appointments only, with one customer at a time in the store, who must call the shop to gain entry upon their arrival.
“My doors are going to be locked until the virus is no longer with us,” Rodrigo said. “Unfortunately, and sadly enough, cancer hasn’t gone away just because COVID has come in.”
“That’s the precautions that we are taking here at Changes to protect everybody coming in because everybody’s lives are valuable, theirs and mine,” she said. “That’s the way I’m going to try to do it, treat everyone with the utmost care, and I hope that keeps us all safe.”
Rodrigo, whose daughter Leigh-Ann Colella also works at the shop, said she is taking it “one step at a time” when it comes to reopening.
“Maybe we can very slowly change the new normal,” Rodrigo said. “I’m thinking about putting some products online but mostly we do custom-fitting and that doesn’t work so well online. It’s a tricky area, a grey area. If you’re trying to even buy a hat, most people like to try it on.”
Meanwhile, the seasons have changed since non-essential businesses were shuttered, and Rodrigo is faced with switching out her stock from winter and spring to summer.
“What my business will be going forward, I have no idea,” she said. “If I just pay my rent and utilities, that’s good. I really don’t know going forward.”
Changes for You customers should call 905-830-4968 or toll-free at 1-844-830-4968 for a private appointment at the 207 Main St. S. store. Store hours are Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., and Saturdays by appointment only.
You will be screened before entering and must wear a face mask at all times. Hand sanitizer is provided. For more information, visit here.
Over at Upper Canada Mall, which remains temporarily closed under provincial orders, retailers with street access are now into week two of being permitted to open for curbside pickup and, most recently, in-person shopping that respects physical distancing.
Hudson’s Bay, Sport Chek, Toys “R” Us, and Stitches Mega have welcomed customers back for an in-store retail experience that prominently features the required public health measures to stop the spread of the new coronavirus.
About eight Market & Co. restaurants and food vendors continue to offer takeout and delivery, including COBS Bread, Real Fruit Bubble Tea, Humble Roots Organic, Our Farm Organic Bakery, Amano Kitchen, Union Chicken, Starbucks, and Ma’s Best Soup.
Upper Canada management continues to work with its retailers to ensure the gradual reopening process is as safe and smooth as possible, said spokesperson and Media Profile senior vice-president Adrienne Simic.
“When Upper Canada does open, it will do so with a number of safety features,” Simic said, including increased cleaning in high-touch and high-traffic areas, signage to guide customer traffic flow and social distancing, and hand sanitizer stations throughout the centre.
For the time being, the mixed messages from public health about staying at home as much as possible while many businesses are reopening is a jarring contradiction for some retail workers.
Newmarket resident Morgan Foot, who works at a large home improvement store, said in a comment at NewmarketToday’s Facebook page that it seems many shoppers are not respecting the six-feet physcial distance from others rule.
“It seems impossible to not run into people every time you turn around, and as a worker, it’s very stressful,” Foot said. “There are several workers that insist on working outside for curbside pickup and in the garden centre just to stay away from the people.”
“I wear a mask, but I’m there seven to nine hours a day, five to six days a week because we’re low on staff,” she said. “We’re tired. Nothing they are buying seems like it’s an emergency or essential. People are just bored and want to shop, they bring their kids, too.”
“If this keeps going for months and months, when will I ever get to see my dad again, whose health is compromised? My kids miss their grandparents,” she said.
