Last week, Premier Doug Ford announced that due to the uncertainty of the surging Omicron variant, new capacity restrictions would be put in place as of Sunday morning.
It's difficult news for businesses impacted by the new restrictions.
"We have been closing, reopening and closing again time after time,” said Rob Gathercole, who has been the owner of Training for Warriors since April of 2019. Since he took the helm, membership doubled.
Gatehrcole said he poured a ton of cash into renovations which were completed in 2020 and even looked at getting a bigger space just before COVID-19 lockdowns began in March.
“I closed down in mid-March last year and lost complete revenue,” said Gathercole. “I know we all need to be careful, but sometimes the restrictions need to make sense. I say they need to compare apples to apples.”
Gathercole doesn’t feel his gym should be treated the same as a bigger workout spaces due to his ability to control things within his building.
“We’re a private club. We all know each other, we’re all double vaccinated, we are following every rule from cleaning and masking. We’ve done everything we’ve been asked to do. We are completely careful and safe,” said Gathercole.
“I truly have a controlled environment here, but yet I can see other places and businesses where it is a free-for-all. Very frustrating.”
Early in the pandemic, Gathercole said he moved to the virtual world for his business. He can and will do that again if need be, but would prefer not to do so.
“We jumped right on board and started doing virtual workouts. I lent out all my equipment to my members, free of charge, and rotated workouts between myself and two other trainers we have,” said Gathercole. “I can do it, but it doesn’t fully help financially.”
The constant openings and closings worry Gathercole.
“We were open again last year from July to December and that allowed me to build the membership back up a little bit. They closed us again in January 2021 and then opened us for a week, then backed down again,” said Gathercole. “We reopened in August and I just started to get the membership up and going and now here we are at limited capacities and who knows, maybe facing a shutdown like Quebec.”
On Monday, the province of Quebec announced stricter restrictions with gyms and spas being closed. Remote work had been recommended by authorities before but is now mandatory in the province.
Amanda Hill, co-owner of Amy Hills’s Hairstyling and Footcare, has seen the effects of the shutdowns in the personal care industry over the last 20 months.
Hill said she and her partner do a lot of mobile clients, with the majority being seniors, which is where business is uncertain right now.
“Some of our clients don’t want to come out right now because of the way everything is. I don’t even know if we will be able to go to them because their buildings may shut down visitors,” said Hill.
“I have a client who is a double amputee and who can’t get to me. She needs this care, people need this care, more than ever. It's the least one can do to feel good about themselves during all this.”
As a new business owner and a mom of two young boys, Hill is worried about the impact of the capacity restrictions.
“I don’t know if I’m going to qualify for EI or if there is a plan financially for families and businesses if we head into a bigger shutdown. I don’t know if schools will eventually go back to online learning, I really don't want that. This stress of not knowing is a really bad part of all this pandemic," said Hill.
Steve Ricalis opened an additional 1,800 square feet to his Dunlop Street Diner a few weeks ago to accommodate more patrons. Not only has the three-year-old eatery been seeing large numbers of patrons justifying the need for more space, but the new space would also be used for parties and social events.
“That's on hold for now and honestly, we’re going to have to let people go with the new restrictions,” said Ricalis. “We’re following every rule, pivoting at every turn and here we are again. It's frustrating, I understand the need to be safe but it's all just a little overwhelming.”
At a time when many companies are having holiday parties,the province limited the number of people who can sit together at restaurants or meeting and event spaces to 10 per table.
In addition, as part of the new rules, alcohol sales will be restricted after 10 p.m. and people are required to remain seated at restaurants, bars, and other food and drink establishments, meeting and event spaces and strip clubs.
Ricalis said it is really frustrating as it seems to happen near the times when the restaurant industry makes the money it needs the most.
“We use the December holiday parties and events money in this industry to help during the historically down times of January and early February,” said Ricalis. “We’ll always pivot, we’ll always be able to plan and strategize for the future, but in the end what was the cost? How many jobs will be lost?”
