Fall in love with the spirit of Canmore
Since the June flood, the biggest challenge for Canmore’s business community has been letting Albertans know what didn’t happen in the vibrant mountain town.
Although it was cut off from Calgary for more than a week due to highway closures, and many homes were damaged when Cougar Creek spilled its banks, most local businesses were never affected directly by flooding.
“The misinformation out there is probably our biggest challenge,” says Andrew Nickerson, CEO of Tourism Canmore Kananaskis. “During the height of the flood, Canmore’s downtown was pretty much untouched. (Businesses were) closed more because of power or staffing issues.
Stonewaters Home Elements was one of many businesses that temporarily closed at the height of the flood, due mainly to power cuts.
“We opened on the Saturday (after the flood) with a little trepidation, and we spoke to other downtown businesses later and they said there were tourists trapped here for eight days,” says owner Mike Gordon, adding a number of his staff members live in Exshaw, which was cut off from Canmore.
Michel LeBlanc of Rocky Mountain Flatbread Co. says his shop was closed for about two days. “We gave our staff a break to make sure everything was OK in their homes,” he says. “What slowed us down was the highway being closed. Now we want Calgarians to know we’re here, we’re open.”
Jennifer Buckler of One Wellness + Spa says she had to temporarily reduce her hours because of staff being unable to get in, but otherwise stayed open throughout.
“It was amazing the spirit of collaboration — everyone trying to pitch in,” she says. “We saw members at the grocery store buying $1,000 in food for the volunteers.” One Wellness pitched in, too, providing shower facilities for those without access to running water.
Gordon says he knows of one resident who arranged for space at the local Legion to accept donations of clothing and household items. “It was filled and emptied, I’m guessing, 10 times,” he says.
Tourism Canmore Kananaskis has made a concerted effort to keep Albertans aware that Canmore’s businesses — including 75 restaurants and 150 unique shops in the downtown core, alone — are open for business, says marketing and communications director Tulene Steiestol.
“We’re engaged in a full marketing campaign … we’ve got Twitter, Facebook, Google Ad Words to make sure people are finding us,” she says.
Nickerson says tourismcanmore.com has added a video paying tribute to flood heroes.
“At the same time, the message is loud and clear that we’re open for business,” he says. “People come here and fall in love with the spirit of the community, its vibrancy and authenticity.
“Our retail stores are not all chain stores … they aren’t all chain restaurants. We are a healthand-wellness community, and we pride ourselves in being Alberta’s backyard. Everyone is welcome back.”