The Alberni Valley Chamber of Commerce rolled out a revamped Shop Alberni program Wednesday at its annual general meeting at Chances RimRock Gaming Centre.
“We want to build on the success and momentum of the Shop Alberni campaign held at Christmas,” said Neil Malbon, president of the chamber.
“We listened to merchants, researched what other communities are doing and came up with a year-round program for the Alberni Valley.”
Starting May 18, shoppers can get their free registration cards from participating merchants or from the Alberni Valley Chamber of Commerce office at the visitor information centre.
Shoppers will be asked to supply their name, e-mail address and postal code only. Shoppers will receive e-mails with updated deals and new merchants every month.Registered shoppers will also have their name entered into monthly draws for $25 gift certificates to participating merchants.
Participating merchants pay $50 and a $25 gift card to take part. They set their own deal, which is posted to the chamber’s website and in-store. The deal can be changed at any time.
“We know from research in other communities that retailers towns with shop local programs have three to five per cent higher revenues than those that don’t,” said Teresa Bird, vice-president of the chamber, who along with new chamber director Jan Lavertu, researched and designed the Shop Alberni program.
For more information on Shop Alberni, call the chamber office at 250-724-6535 or avcoc.com.