More than 100 small businesses petition Ottawa’s Mayor for support

An open letter to municipal politicians says these businesses want increased access to funding, rent control measures, training on de-escalation and naloxone use and more.

Published Mar 21, 2024  •  Last updated Mar 21, 2024  •  4 minute read

Adrienne Row-Smith from the Grove and Jo Masterson of Little Jo Berry’s Bakery, pose for a photo in Ottawa March 21, 2024. These small business owners have written a letter to the mayor with more than 100 signatories, calling for improved municipal support for small businesses, including funding and rent control measures. Photo by Tony Caldwell /POSTMEDIA

More than 100 small businesses and entrepreneurs have called on Ottawa Mayor Mark Sutcliffe and city councillors for funding, rent control and other measures while they struggle with rising inflation and rents.

“There is a fundamental failure on the part of the City of Ottawa to provide small businesses with the necessary opportunities, supports, and grants that are observed in other cities,” says an open letter from the businesses to municipal politicians. “The challenges we face, including rising inflation and uncontrolled rent hikes, are threatening the existence of many valuable businesses.”

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Microsoft’s first AI PCs are the Surface Pro 10 and Surface Laptop 6 for businesses

Microsoft is gearing up for its “year of the AI PC” with two new Surface devices that won’t be sold directly to consumers. The Surface Pro 10 for Business and Surface Laptop 6 for Business both feature Intel’s latest Core Ultra processors, Microsoft’s new Copilot key, and a Neural Processing Unit (NPU) to accelerate some existing and upcoming AI-powered features in Windows 11. Microsoft is calling them “the first Surface AI PCs built exclusively for business.”

Both of these new Surface devices haven’t been redesigned on the outside, so the Surface Pro 10 for Business will look largely like the Intel version of the Surface Pro 9. The Surface Laptop 6 for Business has an additional USB-C Thunderbolt 4 port and an optional smart card reader, but the screen bezels and overall design are very much the same as the Surface Laptop 5. Both will start shipping to commercial customers on April 9th.

The new Surface Pro 10 for Business.
Image: Microsoft

Surface Pro 10 for Business

Microsoft usually lags behind in adopting the latest Intel chips for Surface devices, but this time around, the company is one of the first out of the gate to ship Intel’s new Core Ultra processors.

On the Surface Pro 10 for Business, there’s a choice between Core Ultra 5 135U and Core Ultra 7 165U options, alongside a base spec of 8GB of memory that’s configurable all the way up to 64GB of RAM. The base spec that will retail at $1,199 will also include a 256GB Gen4 SSD. The Surface Pro 10 for Business will include two USB-C Thunderbolt 4 ports and Microsoft’s Surface Connect port for charging. Microsoft is promising up to 19 hours of battery life with these new Intel chips.

Microsoft has improved the 13-inch display on the Surface Pro 10 for Business with a new antireflective coating and 33 percent more brightness. Despite rumors that falsely claimed Microsoft would unveil a Surface Pro 10 with OLED today, the Surface Pro 10 for Business will ship with an LCD display.

The Surface Pro 10 display has a new antireflective coating.
Image: Microsoft

I asked Microsoft about the rumors of a Surface Pro 10 with an OLED display. “We are not announcing that product at this time,” says Nancie Gaskill, general manager of the Surface business, in an interview with The Verge. That sure sounds like the product exists,

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Fake websites for real companies are scamming Canadian consumers and businesses

Avoiding online scams is nothing new for many Canadians, but companies and anti-fraud professionals are warning consumers to watch for fake listings on search engines that try to redirect people to fraudulent versions of familiar companies and brands.

These listings pose as existing businesses and involve new search results popping up, either directing consumers to a fake website that looks similar to the real thing, or providing phone numbers that don’t actually lead to the company in question.

Calgarian Reza Bacchus ran into this issue when trying to search for a new cowboy hat — specifically, a Stetson.

“I came across this StetsonHatCanada.com website … so I just clicked and purchased it, easy,” he said.

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Cost of Living7:32Fake websites that look real

 

Bacchus had been searching for stores that carry Stetson hats because he said they have limited availability in Canada. He had previously been unable to buy from the main Stetson website as it did not ship to Canada.

Calgary resident Reza Bacchus eventually got his Stetson hat by flying to Vancouver and buying it in a store. (Reza Bacchus)

Bacchus’ initial surprise at a Canadian website should have been a red flag. The website was a fake duplicate. He never received his hat despite spending about $100 US. After a month of waiting, customer service from the real Stetson company confirmed he was scammed.

“I got a disappointing but a friendly email [from Stetson.com]… they had received emails concerning this unauthorized website,” explained Bacchus, who eventually travelled to Vancouver to buy a Stetson hat at one of the few brick and mortar stores to carry them in Canada.

As for the money, he filed a chargeback claim with his credit card company and received his funds back after several months.

It’s difficult to determine exactly how many Canadians are affected by this specific scam, or how much money is lost. According to the RCMP, only 5 to 10 per cent of fraud cases are reported in Canada. In 2023, those reports accounted for $567 million in losses, but that could include everything from immigration fraud to cryptocurrency scams. 

Reported fraud of all types has increased by $187 million since 2021 — and that’s with only a small minority of cases actually reported or tracked.

Travel agent Flight Centre faces dupe phone numbers

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Pair of Cape Breton businesses soon to close downtown Sydney storefronts

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Prices at the Pumps – January 17, 2024 | SaltWire

Watch on YouTube: “Prices at the Pumps – January 17, 2024 | SaltWire”

SYDNEY, N.S. — A pair of Charlotte Street businesses have announced plans to close their Sydney storefronts this month.

On Jan. 6, Port City Grocery co-owners Kat Gouthro-Burke and Devon Burke released a statement via its Facebook account. They announced Port City would close its doors later in January, an announcement they said was unexpected for them.

Two days later, Lillian Company made a similar announcement via social media that it would soon close. A later post stated the physical store would open every Friday and Saturday for the rest of the month — the last day being Jan. 27. 

Lillian Company, which makes clothing, candles and other decorative items, said it plans to continue making items for online sale or in other stores.

Lillian Company owner Faith Johnston Gray and husband Rob Gray accept a Cape Breton Regional Chamber of Commerce award in 2022 for “favourite place to shop.” The store will close its physical storefront on Charlotte Street on Jan. 27. Johnston Gray said the birth of her daughter has led her to shift plans for the business, which will remain open online. CONTRIBUTED/FAITH JOHNSTON GRAY – CONTRIBUTED/FAITH JOHNSTON GRAY

Shifting focus to online

In the store’s online statement, owner Faith Johnston Gray said the closure wasn’t a result of a lack of support. 

“Rest assured, our brand ‘Lillian Company’ remains firmly in place. Soon, you’ll spot our products in stores across and beyond the island!” it said.

Johnston Gray told the Post the birth of her daughter nine months ago was a major reason behind the physical store’s closure, adding motherhood and the responsibilities coming with the store felt like two full-time jobs.

“When I’m home I feel guilty for not being at the store. When I’m at the store, I feel guilty for not being home. With that, we knew it was time for a change and are excited for the future,” she said.

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Opening in 2021, the physical store includes a collection of items from other Cape Breton-based businesses, alongside Lillian Co.’s in-house products.

Over time, Johnston Gray said her business has plans to keep involved in the small business community and help promote other vendors as her Charlotte Street store had. She hopes

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Here’s how going viral impacts small businesses

NEW YORK –

The Lexington Candy Shop in New York City has served burgers, fries and shakes to hungry patrons for decades. Last remodelled in 1948, the diner is the definition of old-fashioned.

But that hasn’t stopped it from getting a wave of new fans.

In August 2022, this old school business met the new world when Nicolas Heller, a TikToker and Instagrammer with 1.2 million followers known as New York Nico, popped in for a traditional Coke float — Coke syrup, soda water and ice cream. Naturally, he took a video. It went viral, garnering 4.8 million likes.

“The next day (after the video was posted), the lines started forming at 8 in the morning,” John Philis, the diner’s third-generation co-owner, recalls with amazement. “And it was like, huh!”

When a smaller restaurant unexpectedly goes viral on TikTok or other social media, the sudden demand can be overwhelming. Owners have to adapt on the fly, revamping operations to quickly serve a crush of people. But savvy business owners who are able to adapt can parlay newfound fame into a lasting boost for their business.

Ali Elreda opened Fatima’s Grill in Downey, California, in 2016, drawing in customers with an eclectic range of tacos, wraps and burgers.

He sprinkled Flamin’ Hot Cheetos in some of them, inspired by his daughter’s love of hot chips. By 2020, Elreda had worked hard to develop his restaurant’s social media presence, shooting videos with music. But after a TikToker dubbed @misohungry posted a video of Elreda’s Flaming Hot Cheeto Fusion burger that August, things suddenly “just went crazy.”

Dominique Ansel, second from right, greets people who have been waiting in line for the opening of his namesake bakery in New York, Thursday, Sept. 28, 2023. In 2013, before most people knew the term “going viral,” the French pastry chef created the Cronut, a cross between a croissant and a doughnut, at his newly opened New York bakery. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)

Lines to get into the restaurant ballooned to two to three hours — for months. At first, the store wasn’t ready for the influx.

“We just couldn’t adjust,” he said. “We would stay late hours to prep for the next day and then the lines would continue and continue and continue and continue.”

Opening two nearby restaurants helped relieve the pressure. Elreda now has 10 locations, including newly opened restaurants in Detroit and Brooklyn

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