#ShopVaughanLocal now and enjoy later

With recent announcements from the Province of Ontario – including a stay-at-home order requiring everyone to remain at home with exceptions for essential purposes – it’s more important than ever to support the local economy. 

Gift cards are an excellent way to help small and local businesses while staying safe at home. Visit local stores online and purchase gift cards for yourself to use now or another day. Additionally, as the holiday season has recently ended, you may be experiencing some cooking fatigue. Give yourself a break from cooking and buy gift cards from local restaurants and cafés for yourself and others to use at a later time. 

Gift cards aren’t the only way you can show your local love. Make a difference by ordering takeout or delivery from a local restaurant, shopping online from small businesses and sharing your support using #ShopVaughanLocal on social media platforms – let all your followers know about your favourite Vaughan store or eating establishment. 

York Region Public Health has provided tips and guidance on how to protect yourself and others during this time. The province, in partnership with various health and safety organizations, has released sector-specific guidelines. These documents help workplaces better understand their responsibilities and include best practices on complying with their legal obligation to protect the health and safety of workers, customers and the public throughout the pandemic. 

As the virus continues to evolve, the City remains committed to working with all levels of government to stand up for entrepreneurs and small-business owners. Maintaining the competitiveness of the local economy throughout the global pandemic is a priority. 

Launched in April 2020, the #ShopVaughanLocal initiative is one of the many measures introduced by the City to provide relief to the business community and help ease the financial burden caused by COVID-19.  

Social Enterprise 101 

Vaughan’s residents and businesses have a generous spirit and continue to look for opportunities to give back to the community. To help foster opportunities to create positive social impact, the City of Vaughan has partnered with the Centre for Social Innovation, York Region, the City of Markham and the City of Richmond Hill to provide virtual program opportunities to support local entrepreneurs and citizens in becoming social innovators. The program will run online on Mondays starting Monday, Feb. 22 until Monday, April 19 from 5:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. The application process is currently open and will close on Sunday, Jan. 31. Visit vaughanbusiness.ca/SocialEnterprise101 for more information. 

Vaughan Business Expo 

The City is continuously working to support businesses and entrepreneurs throughout 2021 with resources and virtual networking opportunities, such as the 19th Annual Vaughan Virtual Business Expo presented by Allstate Canada. On Tuesday, Feb. 23, business professionals and entrepreneurs are invited to attend the Expo online in partnership with FedDev Ontario Small Business Services. It will be a full day of workshops and panels with leading business experts to provide entrepreneurs with information and inspiration to help your companies grow. Register online now at vaughanbusiness.ca/events to attend and explore upcoming opportunities, network with the local business community and create meaningful connections. 

Open for Business 

The voluntary Open for Business online directory includes both essential services and businesses that are open or providing modified operations by phone, online, takeout or delivery in compliance with provincial and municipal regulations. Vaughan businesses interested in being included in the list must apply and can do so through this online form. 

Vaughan Business Resilience Plan 

On June 23, the City launched the Vaughan Business Resilience Plan (PDF) as an immediate and long-term plan to help Vaughan’s business community build capacity to adapt to the post-COVID-19 world. 

Through this plan, the Economic and Cultural Development department will:

• help businesses and the economy build resilience.
• build resilience into key economic opportunities and strategic sectors like healthcare, supply-chain and manufacturing, and tourism.
• share Vaughan’s reimagined public spaces within physical distancing guidelines and invite the community to experience Vaughan’s culture and arts. 

For more information, visit vaughanbusiness.ca/COVID. 

Advisory consultations 

The Economic and Cultural Development team continues to offer advisory consultations via tele- or video-conference, email and phone. They also host new and educational webinars. For information, additional resources or to book a consultation, visit vaughanbusiness.ca. 

To receive the City’s latest COVID-19 updates as they happen, sign up for the City Update eNewsletter at vaughan.ca/CityUpdate and follow the City’s Twitter, Facebook and Instagram channels. 

Those who feel unwell, and believe they have symptoms related to COVID-19, should contact York Region Public Health at 1-800-361-5653 or Telehealth Ontario at 1-866-797-0000. 

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