Through all the changes businesses have made since the onset of COVID-19, the team at the St.David’s Veterinary Clinic did not want to miss out on their annual customer appreciation festivities.
The clinic will celebrate this year’s customer appreciation week by giving out raffles prizes from other businesses in Niagara-on-the-Lake.
Five prizes will be raffled off Monday to Friday the week of June 15-19 online through the clinic’s Facebook page.
“We’ve been here for nine going on 10 years. Every June we do a community appreciation barbecue,” said Stephanie Hall, owner and veterinarian at St. David’s Veterinary Clinic.
“A lot of our clients and even community members who (we) don’t know come to it. We just have a nice afternoon out on the lawn and pets are welcome. But because we can’t do that this year, obviously, we’re switching it up a little bit.”
Each year at the customer appreciation event there is a one big raffle prize, said Hall, but due to the COVID-19 pandemic things will be a bit different because there is no barbecue.
“This year we figured, well we’re not putting the funds into the barbecue that we normally would,” Hall said, “so why not put those funds back into the community and purchase different gift baskets or gift certificates.”
The prizes for the raffles have been locally sourced from places like Grape Escapes, Tails Niagara, Maria’s Bed and Breakfast, Bistro Six-One, Clavaux designs and NOTL Jewellers and Precious Metals.
“We are so grateful that we have an awesome community that supports us. We’re a small business, you know,” Hall said.
“So talking with my staff, we just decided, let’s support those local businesses around us.”
She said along with her team it has been fun thinking of what they would put together for raffle prizes because of all the great artists, restaurants, businesses and more that Niagara-on-the-Lake has to offer.
“We love our clients and our pets and we’ve missed them these last few months,” Hall said.
“Everybody is in the same boat and we have to make the best of the situation.”
