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Whose Choice Is It?

The debate rages on, although the decision has been made, and a small but apparently influential minority of squeaky wheels was greased.
The debate rages on, although the decision has been made, and a small but apparently influential minority of squeaky wheels was greased. Council has directed staff to draft a By-law to require retail stores over a certain size to remain closed on Boxing Day.

Throughout the debate "Choice" was a rallying cry for those who wanted to maintain the status quo of wide-open shopping on Boxing Day.

Canadian Tire representative Eric Mosker spoke in defense of allowing Boxing Day shopping. He argued that allowing Boxing Day shopping was fair, and gave businesses the choice of whether or not to be open on Boxing Day.

However, Mosker made some interesting observations in a post-meeting interview.

He stated that, "We're also dangerously sending a signal to the business community that this particular council is prepared to dictate terms and conditions of when they can conduct their business."

Yes, that does seem to be the case. However, that is Council’s prerogative, and a power conferred by both the Municipal Act and the Retail Business Holiday Act.

He went on to claim that Canadian Tire makes no profit on Boxing Day sales because of deep discounts and overtime, and that Council’s decision will require his store to find alternative ways to attract the customers it might otherwise lose to area businesses that are open on Boxing Day.

I don’t understand: If Canadian Tire makes no profit on Boxing Day, why would they even want to be open? Perhaps Mosker is understating his company’s financial position for Boxing Day?

We keep hearing how Boxing Day is the second biggest retail day of the year. According to Maritz Research*, in a November 2006 study, 31% of Ontarians intended to shop on Boxing Day, and planned to spend an average of $414.

In a study by Visa*, those people who chose not to shop said they would instead be:
  • Staying home and eating leftovers (27%)
  • Visiting family and friends (22%)
  • Doing nothing (6%)
  • Working (6%)


[ * source: CBC News — http://tinyurl.com/2t93of ]

I allowed myself to get dragged out to a Boxing Day Sale once. It was in the mid-90s, prior to the City allowing Boxing Day shopping, and so this was on the 27th.

I was reminded of Australian Rules Football. It was not, for me, a pleasant experience.

As I mentioned earlier, "Choice!" was the rallying cry for those wanting the stores to remain open.

I must ask, though: whose choice is it?

Mosker stated he would have to check with his head office, but expects to heed Council’s By-law. That does suggest to me that the choice to be open is not made locally. While I would suspect that would be the same for all the big chain outlets, there may be some local discretion.

This past Boxing Day, SooToday.com reporter Carol Martin took a tour of local shopping districts, and found little consistency in store openings, even within the malls. Some retailers were closed, while others were open. [http://tinyurl.com/2sbq87 ]

Some suggest that having the stores open gives consumers a choice of whether to shop or not. This is true for those who wish to shop. For those who don’t, having the choice is no big deal.

I understand both sides of the issue. I sympathize with workers who, although they do have the right to refuse to work, may feel compelled to accept the shift nonetheless.

I also understand that, Mr Mosker’s claim that no profits are made aside, this is a big day for retailers. The issue of nearby competition only applies to a handful of cities in Ontario, and indeed in the country. We are one of those cities, and the possibility of losing revenue not just to another city but to another country is very likely, and highly undesirable.

On the other hand, we somehow muddled-through until 8 April 2002, when Council first voted to permit shopping on Boxing Day and the (August) Civic Holiday.

Less than two years later, on 8 October 2004, Mayor Rowswell proclaimed Boxing Day as a "Civic Holiday," despite advice from the City Solicitor’s Office that there can be no legal penalties for disobeying the proclamation.

A month later, on 2 November 2004, Council defeated a proposed By-law that would have seen local stores close on Boxing Day.

We have now re-revisited the issue. Unfortunately, I don’t believe this is the last we’ll here of it.

Like it or not, our duly-elected Council does have the authority to set store closing hours, and to prohibit stores from opening at all on Boxing Day.

For myself, I’m with the 49% of the respondents in the Visa study that preferred to either stay home and eat leftovers or go visit family and friends. Still, I’m not completely happy with Council’s decision.

As I said, I sympathize with the workers, but they are not the only ones who would have to work on that day. In fact, there are many workers who are required to be at their jobs every Stat holiday.

Really, I can’t help but wonder what the fuss is all about.

As Carol noted this past year, many retail outlets did choose to remain closed, and the number of people who chose to go out bargain hunting was perhaps not as great as may have been expected.

I’m all for promoting family values, but let’s be honest with ourselves; one day is not going to make or break a family. I also don’t see that allowing stores to be open if they wish to do so will bring about the downfall of society.

While Council does have the authority to make this decision, I believe it was a decision better made by customers and their wallets.

What's next?


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