Small businesses in Greater Napanee will feel the pinch if the Canada Post strike carries further into the holiday season, but businesses who work from home and have a business model that relies on the mail system could receive a devastating blow just before the holidays.
myFM spoke with Meagan Adams, who runs her business out of her home.
Now, there is a possibility that date could come and go, potentially for weeks, just when her customers would be looking to purchase gifts—and when she would need that income for the holiday season as well.
The fear is, even if the strike gets resolved in the coming weeks, there will be a crunch time to get the products out, as she custom-made these earrings specifically for Christmas.
For Adams, Canada Post is the lifeline that connects her to her customers, as 80 percent of the people ordering her products are from outside of the region.
Adams anticipates that many of her customers will not be willing to make the jump from free shipping to paying costs in the double digits
Adams says she does have some of her products in local stores, so she is hopeful those can continue to sell.
As of Monday morning, the strike continues. Canada Post and the union representing striking postal workers are heading back to the bargaining table today, this time with a special mediator appointed by the federal government.
Written by Matt LeBlanc