Team Burlington to Launch STAY HOME to Get Back to Business Campaign

COVID-19Team Burlington
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*Please see the media release below issued by TEAM Burlington.April 27, 2020 -- Team Burlington will launch STAY HOME to Get Back to Business campaign to encourage people to support local business by staying home.On March 23, the Ontario Government mandated all non-essential businesses to close. Since then, every business across all industries have felt the effects, with the hardest hit industries being agriculture, retail, tourism, healthcare and hospitality. Team Burlington's STAY HOME campaign will encourage people to practice physical distancing, and ultimately help businesses open their doors sooner.  It isn’t just the hardest hit industries that are feeling the impacts of the global pandemic. Businesses of all sizes and across all industries are experiencing unprecedented challenges, including significant and unforeseen revenue loss, the need to lay off staff, supply chain disruptions, and uncertainty about the future of their business and when they will be able to reopen. Simultaneously, businesses are also facing tremendous pressure to digitize and shift existing business models to include online and contactless pick-up and delivery options.Team Burlington recognizes these challenges and plans to leverage their audience and networks to help get Burlington businesses open as soon as possible. The STAY HOME to Get Back to Business campaign reinforces the message that is consistent with public health officials -- the sooner people STAY HOME, the sooner the business community can open their doors and get back to business.

"Businesses of all sizes are being impacted by COVID-19. We hope this campaign will help Burlington residents understand that their actions and choices during this time have direct consequences on our business community. We are getting asked a lot about how people can support their local businesses. One of the things you can do is stay home and practice physical distancing as much as possible." -- Brian Dean, Executive Director of Burlington Downtown Business Association

Craig Kowalchuk, Owner of Emma’s Back Porch and the Water Street Cooker and President of the Burlington Restaurant Association echoed Brian’s sentiment.

"Temporarily laying off staff and closing down the restaurant has been one of the most difficult things I’ve had to do in my twenty-eight years of operations.” He went on, “You can help us get back to business by staying home, reduce your trips to the store and minimize contact with others. We can't wait to welcome you back, for our twenty-ninth summer, but we can’t do that until everyone stays home." -- Craig Kowalchuk, President of Burlington Restaurant Association

The STAY HOME campaign will be launched across social media, as well as through window decals displayed in the windows of downtown businesses. A video campaign featuring local business owners from across Burlington will also help spread the message.For more information, visit the Team Burlington COVID-19 one-stop-shop resource site at BurlingtonChamber.com.About Team Burlington Burlington’s business organizations which include Burlington Chamber of Commerce, Burlington Downtown Business Association, Burlington Economic Development, Aldershot Village BIA and Tourism Burlington have taken a coordinated approach in engaging and supporting Burlington’s business community. Their collaborative mission during this difficult time is to keep the business community informed and ensure relevant and timely information is distributed as soon as it becomes available. Team Burlington has launched a one-stop-shop resource for businesses to turn to for information, resources and tools, and can be found online here. Other initiatives have included setting up a business support line, organizing multiple virtual support forums, and advocating for businesses for support and effective relief measures at all levels of government. Learn more about Team Burlington here.—PLEASE NOTE: To stay updated on what the City of Burlington is doing regarding COVID-19, please visit the dedicated pages burlington.ca/coronavirus (and subscribe) and bit.ly/mayormeedwardCOVID19updates, and our Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) page — bit.ly/COVID19BurlingtonFAQ that are updated as new information becomes available.A Burlington COVID-19 Task Force has been created to help support our community through this unprecedented emergency — updates will be provided at burlington.ca/COVID19taskforce.To report an incident of non-compliance with provincial emergency orders, please contact the Halton Regional Police Service COVID-19 Hotline: 905-825-4722.We’ve also created a dedicated page to feature the local organizations and businesses that have inspired us during the COVID-19 pandemic by taking action to support our community in new and creative ways — head to bit.ly/covidwallofinspiration.HELPFUL RESOURCES & RELATED LINKS:

—*Posted by John Bkila, Mayor’s Media and Digital Communications Specialist

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