Ice roads bringing in customers
Increased traffic expected to fetch more business for local operators
Shane Magee
Northern News Services
Published Thursday, December 11, 2014
INUVIK
The Department of Transportation has declared both the Tuktoyaktuk and Aklavik ice roads open to light traffic which, in Inuvik, is good for business.
Stanton's Distributing sales manager Ben Burns said the store sees an annual 5 per cent increase in sales when the Tuktoyaktuk and Aklavik ice roads open. - Elaine Anselmi/NNSL photo
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"This time of year, it does pick up in a sense that people are travelling from Tuk and Aklavik, and there's a bit of stimulation with people coming and doing their grocery shopping," said Bright Lubansa, Inuvik Chamber of Commerce president. "Inuvik is kind of a centre so people are coming from Fort McPherson as well."
At Stanton's Distributing, sales manager Ben Burns said sales increase by approximately 5 per cent when the road opens, helping to wrap up the year.
"We anticipate the increase in sales so we ensure we have the right amount of inventory," said Burns, adding that the store orders an additional 10 per cent to cover the increase in sales.
"We usually get a Christmas rush, with a lot of turkey, ham, and dinner fixings, as well as Christmas shopping," Burns said. "In recent years we've brought in gift items, kids toys and some chocolates - the sort of things people might buy as a gift for co-workers."
Although Stanton's has stores in Tuktoyaktuk and Aklavik, Burns said once the road opens, people come down to see what different items are in stock at the larger outlet.
"They're waiting and as soon as the ice road opens they can drive down and make a bulk purchase," said Burns. "If they fly they're limited to what they can bring back, a suitcase or small box is the maximum, whereas if they drive down, they're likely to bring back four or five times as much."
Although there is a clear increase in sales in the Inuvik store, Burns said the Tuktoyaktuk and Aklavik outlets remain as busy as usual, having different offerings such as fast food operations, and more accessible locations for walk-in customers.
The sales increase at Stanton's predictably drops again with the closure of the ice road, said Burns, with stock orders being adjusted accordingly.
"It'll decline, that 5 per cent increase will decline and then of course summertime brings barge season, so that might pick up a bit and people will come in by boat," said Burns.
Grocery isn't the only business seeing a rise in visitors.
Originals on Mackenzie boutique owner Arlene Hansen said it isn't so much the spike in sales she notices - particularly because the Christmas season brings that on, anyway - but the familiar faces of people from other communities.
"Because I've been here so long, I know many people in the communities that I don't see other times of the year," said Hansen. "It's nice to visit with them and make sure they get the gifts they were looking for."
With the ice road bringing in more customers, Lubansa said it helps make up for some of the lost sales due to people shopping online or in the south.
"In Inuvik, we have a very small customer base. The little customer base that we have, if even a little bit of it goes, you feel the impact, " Lubansa said, adding that in larger centres, that impact is less significant due to such a larger population of potential shoppers.
"For us here, it can be more challenging but (with the ice roads opening), it just grows the pool."
