A midtown business improvement area will launch a “gift card stimulus fund” that it says could inject up to $50,000 into the local economy.
The Yonge + St. Clair Business Improvement Area says that it will put up to $25,000 towards matching gift card purchases at participating businesses “dollar for dollar” in an effort to ensure that shuttered businesses can still have some revenue coming in to help pay rent and keep the lights on during the COVID-19 pandemic.
In order to ensure the money is evenly distributed, the BIA says that each participating business will be limited to $750 in matched fund ($1,500 in gift card sales).
“We’re looking for creative solutions to incentivize consumer spending at our local merchants while maintaining social distancing,” Executive Director Mackenzie Keast said in a press release. “This is a win-win for everybody that gets cash in the pockets of local business owners now while offering added value to customers later.”
So far 16 different businesses have signed up for the program, though the BIA says that it expects more to follow.
