Weekends Heavy Snowfall Affects Small Businesses

By Lauren O’Brien

Small business owners say they are working hard to keep up with the recent heavy snowfall.

Last weekend, around 30 centimetres of snow fell on the City of Windsor. On Friday, 18.4 centimetres of snow fell, which broke records according to Environment Canada.

By Sunday, the city declared a snow emergency, urging people to stay off the roads. The main purpose was to allow snow plow drivers to be on the roads as long as possible, Mark Winterton, a city engineer, told the Windsor Star.

Clorissa Boose, is the owner of VanderLashes, an eyelash extension salon. Before opening the store in December she worked out of her home for a few months.

In her short time as an independent business owner, she said she has noticed how her customer flow changes depending on the weather. In January, clients cancelled appointments due to the extreme cold, telling Boose they would return in the spring. The massive storm caused even more appointments to be cancelled.

“I’ve had to reschedule clients because they couldn’t drive in,” Boose said. “It messes with my entire schedule.”

Owning a small business, Boose shovels her storefront by herself. She said the amount of snow was more of an annoyance than usual. Every few hours she would have to shovel to make sure it was safe for her customers.

Phillips Lawn and Maintenance worked hard over the weekend to keep the roads safe and free from snow. The owner, Mike Phillips, has owned the business for 17 years. Based in Amherstburg, Phillips’s crew clears snow all over Windsor and Essex County.

He employs four people who worked extra hours in order to keep up with the weather’s high demands. Phillips himself worked 12 hour shifts. He said his team was completely prepared for the heavy workload.

“We knew what was coming, I had my eye on the forecast two days before it was happening,” Phillips said.

For the past 27 years, Tim Good has owned Shooters Roadhouse in Amherstburg. He said he considers himself lucky since he had Drop Dead Famous play Friday night. The rock band, who originated in Windsor, drew in a crowd despite the weather. Good said he lost fewer reservations than he would have if they were not playing.

His employees all managed to make it to their shifts and only a few arrived late. The company that plows remained reliable and only had a slight delay clearing the parking lot.

“They were a little behind but I expected it. I was happy with their service,” he said.