I'm Tellin' Ya, That's Nuts

Since Costco moved to Saint John, destroying trees and displacing deer and other equally adorable critters, we refused to support them, despite the promise of the lower prices that could be involved.  It seems rather like some secret society for the modern western world - you pay a membership fee for the privilege of shopping there, then you're given a sort of secret handshake in the form of savings by purchasing obscene amounts of highly processed consumer goods combined with relatively decent customer service, especially when compared with the uninspired walking-dead cast that seem to make up the staff (and clientele) at Wal-Mart.  At least you don't have to dress in white sheets.

We are not box store types, we founded Cash Mobs Saint John, for goodness sake.  We feel a strangely sickening feeling walking through their brightly lit large, automated doors that makes us think they must have been involved some way with the extinction of unicorns or some equally horrific misdeed.  But, being that we don't have deep enough pockets or unlimited time to search out local everything, we do need to feed their coffers on a depressingly regular basis.

Our comrade, Back-Alley Bill (trust me, that moniker is a compliment), who until recently was a long-time holdout, offered to smuggle us inside as a guest (envision a pledge at some extremely boring fraternity) to see if the savings warranted the sale of a piece of our souls.

We meandered through the aisles, gawking at the volumes like hillbillies newly exposed to city life, routinely stating, "That's a good price," as we passed giant boxes of sugar-laden cereals, pro and pre-biotic infused snack goods, and industrial strength garbage bags.

We drew smirks from the other customers as we gawked at the restaurant-sized container of Nutella and exclaimed, "Yeah, there's a good idea.  Sit that in front of the kids in the morning and tell them to help themselves.  Who would buy that?" we asked each other.

Loading our bag-less spoils into our vehicle, wondering why on earth we purchased a huge bottle of pickled asparagus, we reflected upon the prospect of joining and could not deny that the help our budget will receive is on the plus side, so we may pony up the fifty-five dollars for a membership.  We reason with ourselves by stating that Costco does pay and treat their employees better than other box stores.  The unanswered question is what kind of a hit will our community-minded spirit take?

I must note that the inspired photography of Bill Lapp can be viewed at The New Artisan Studio at 87 Germain Street, Saint John, NB.  Come check it out!

Different Blades of Grass

The many different shades of green - where is your money being spent?

We hear about the importance of supporting local business everywhere, but do we follow through?  Some of us avoid the large box stores unless we don't have a choice.  Some sing the praises of their favourite shops to friends and family.  Some read about local bloggers' sponsored visits to local stores, some stops even hit twice!  Some have even attended Cash Mobs.

According to statistics presented by The 3/50 Project, $68 of every $100 spent at an independent business stays in a community compared to $43 spent in a chain store.  Naturally, when you make an online purchase at, say Amazon.ca, nothing is injected locally.

How does uptown Saint John fare when it comes to supporting local business?

Since Holly and I started Cash Mobs and, resulting from the positive energy we received from that endeavour, opened our own business, The New Artisan Studio, the following uptown businesses have closed their doors:

• Robin's BeadWorks (our first Cash Mobs destination)
• Rowena's Boutique
• Appleby's Image Centre
• Belly Beautiful Maternity and Baby (moved to Rothesay)
• Bejamin's Books (not uptown, but needed to mention since this was a Cash Mobs Destination too)

And we hear of more to come soon.

 On a positive note, there are shops opening too.  Exchange on Germain,Classy Lassy and Harrison House Gallery come to mind.

Saint John born Canadian Icon Stompin' Tom Connors died last night and as I listened to an interview on CBC Radio with Jian Ghomeshi from a couple years ago, lamenting the fact that I didn't know as much of this man as I should have, Tom was asked about the changes he's seen in Canada over his life and this uber-loyal patriot expressed his regret that it once meant something to him to be able to say he knew each blade of grass in this country, but now each town has lost its individuality as mega-outlets like Walmart set up their box store replicas.

How many reading have been to the newest Walmart on the west side?

Let's make our lawns unique - support local independent business.

Think Outside the Box Store

The sun is shining, a pigeon couple is eating the expired cereal I scattered in the backyard, freshly clean laundry is actively drying on the line, Robin Gibb is starting a joke with his brothers on my iTunes, our grey girl cat, Lily, is sleeping peacefully next to me, and the stiff breeze is keeping the pulp steam below the tree line.  This is the sensory present from my office window.

I've long pleaded and tweeted for things "good" about this city.  I'm like a spelunker looking for the light in the darkness... or fog.  Lo and behold, I've stumbled upon something that fits that category - the Uptown small business merchants of Saint John.

Ever since joining Holly to found a local cash mob I've been witness to a lot of positive energy.  The retail business owners seem to bind together like miners searching for release after a collapse.  Shop life is perilous in such a tiny, volatile market and they seem very aware that positivity is what is needed to survive and, hopefully, thrive.

A cash mob is a group of people who come together voluntarily at a predetermined location to find out where they will venture out and "mob" one lucky store with twenty dollars of their very own hard-earned money to spend.  It is hoped this influx of cash one retail owner receives will lead to an awareness of the importance of local business and local stores, leading to long-term customers who are willing to think twice before heading to box stores for every item on their shopping list.

I don't know if this cash mob thing will accomplish these ideals or not, but while the twenty plus people headed toward Robin's BeadWorks I was very aware that I enjoyed being a part of the seemingly minority that are actually doing something about making their city a better place instead of just complaining or sticking their heads in the sand and pretending that Saint John is Utopian.  Both of these strategies accomplish the same end result.

The next cash mob for Saint John is scheduled for Saturday, April 21st at 2:30 pm and the mob will meet outside Barbour's General Store Museum.  I hope even more people show up to show their support for those willing to put their livelihood on the line to stay in this city.