As trade tensions between Canada and the United States continue, some businesses in London are seeing a shift in customer shopping habits.
In Wortley Village, Michelle Deman, mother of the owner of Locally Made Marketplace, says that more people are asking about product origins and showing interest in Canadian-made goods.
“A number of people come in and ask where our products are made; they are interested if it’s from Ontario or from Canada, all around the country actually,” Deman said. “We also have a number of vendors who have started making specific Canadian items because we know as a lot of people are travelling in different places they want to identify themselves as Canadian.”
Just down the street at Quarter Master Natural Foods, store manager Jessy Deroneth says customers are more engaged in conversations about the products they’re buying.
“Because we’re a community store, we always try to have a conversation about where the product comes from,” she said. “People want to know what they’re eating, who’s making the food that they’re eating, what supplements they’re taking and why they’re taking it, so extending that conversation to be more of a Canadian-based conversation is definitely something that’s more interesting.”
While not every product is impacted by trade policies, businesses say more shoppers are thinking about what they buy and where it’s made.
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