Small business owners in Vancouver are celebrating more than athletes' victories in the aftermath of the Olympics
As Canadians across the nation are celebrating Olympic medals, small business owners in Vancouver and the surrounding areas are celebrating the generous spending by local and international visitors at the games.
According to a report from payment processing firm Moneris, consumers spent a record amount of money during the 2010 Winter Olympics. Thanks to the Vancouver games, local businesses earned 48 percent more than they did during the same period last year.
Souvenir sales increased almost four-fold (reaching 37 percent) compared to 2009. Additionally, bars and pubs saw a 130 percent increase in transactions over last year. Apparel sales also increased by 98 percent.
The dramatic increase in sales over the 17-day sporting event indicates that small business owners were well prepared to handle the increased numbers of shoppers. "Olympic fever took this country by storm and small business merchants proved they were ready for all the action," said David Ades, senior vice president of sales and marketing at Moneris Solutions.
Perhaps surprisingly, the majority of these sales came from Canadians. International shoppers accounted for fewer than 22 percent of sales, while locals were responsible for 78.4 percent of purchases.
This report seems to confirm data from Nielsen's Global Consumer Confidence Index showing that Canadian consumers are increasingly confident about the markets. Small business owners might take advantage of this and give marketing efforts a boost to catch consumer dollars.
