(Montreal) Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Quebec are still struggling to stay the course, the Canadian Federation of Independent Business (CFIB) said on Saturday as part of Saturday SME, a day that aims to encourage the purchase local during the holiday shopping season.
According to François Vincent, vice-president for Quebec at the CFIB, 2 Quebec SMEs out of 5 would have reduced their profit margins, and a third would have reduced their investments and their growth forecasts – proof according to him that “it is not because that they are open that they are necessarily going well”.
In partnership with American Express, the CFIB invites the population to consume more in local businesses, on November 26, during an event that is added to the other days of bargains at the end of the year, such as Black Friday and Cyber Monday.
“This initiative is just as essential as it was during the pandemic,” said Mr. Vincent. […] The holiday season is one of the most important times of the year, especially for the retail sector”.
Buying local is all the more crucial today, since SMEs are increasingly feeling the inflationary pressures and the lack of personnel caused by the shortage of labour. These “headwinds” sometimes lead them to have to close on certain days, specifies the vice-president, which puts their sustainability at risk.
“Inflation is difficult for everyone: we already see in the polls that consumer spending will decline drastically. Consumers may therefore have the reflex to turn to supermarkets and online giants, and that’s what we want to avoid,” explains Mr. Vincent.
Despite everything, he also claims to have noticed a “wave” of local purchases and an “enthusiastic participation” of the Quebec and Canadian population to support SMEs over the past two years.
Give back to your community
The economic contribution of SMEs is also “major and concrete”, maintains François Vincent, because they employ half of the workforce in the private sector in the country, according to Statistics Canada.
“In Canada, SMEs employ 10 million people, and in Quebec, it’s more than 2 million. On top of that, these merchants often consume products from businesses that are also local,” he adds.
According to a CFIB survey conducted in 2022 with more than 2,000 members, 69% of small merchants buy products and services from other local businesses. Encouraging local businesses also allows Canadians to “bring their community to fruition”, adds Mr. Vincent, since 2 out of 3 small merchants donate time and money to local charities, according to the same survey.
SMBs can’t scale the way large corporations do, and that’s why every dollar invested counts. […] We really want to invite people to think about it and encourage them.
François Vincent, vice-president for Quebec at the CFIB
CFIB is the largest SME association in the country, with 95,000 members in all business sectors and all regions. It aims to increase the chances of success for SMEs by defending their interests with governments, as well as by providing them with personalized resources.
This article was produced with the financial support of the Meta Fellowships and The Canadian Press for News.