Council approved a motion by Vision Coun. Andrea Reimer Tuesday that will see staff look into the viability of launching a cost-neutral retail operation to sell Vancouver-branded products.
The operation could be run by a third party as is the case with TransLink’s online retail store, which opened for business last November.
Reimer, who had been thinking about the idea for a few years, has already spoken with TransLink staff about the process they went through, and she said the city will benefit from the transit authority’s experience with its store.
“They can share their RFP because it’s publicly available. They also have a good business case to understand how to protect the city from any financial exposure on it,” she said. “Having a local organization like TransLink to be able to draw expertise off of was really the change maker for me in terms of it seeming doable in the short term.”
The store could sell products such as Vancouver-branded protocol gifts handed out to visiting dignitaries, including umbrellas with a map of the city on the inside or specially-designed coasters with Vancouver scenes on them. A store could also be used to help local artists and designers sell their wares.
“If we could get licensing agreements with local artists, why wouldn’t we want to help them get their art out there, and their creativity and expression [out there],” Reimer said.
She added that a lot of “world-class cities with high brand value” like Vancouver are already running retail operations.
“They engage their local design community so it’s not just the City of Vancouver staff’s ideas about what might be interesting on an umbrella or a mug or a shirt or whatever,” she said. “But that you’re actually getting crowd sourced input from the design community.”
NPA Coun. George Affleck proposed an amendment to the motion to add the words “Made in Canada” before the words “Vancouver-branded product.”
“I think it’s important we focus on Canadian-made products to help our overall economy in Canada but also to help that third party understand the parameters which they should be working within,” he said.
The amendment was adopted unanimously, but before it was voted on, Vision Coun. Kerry Jang noted that a popular retail item is Lego city halls and Lego is only made in Denmark, which could preclude that from being sold. He suggested there might be a need to add wording such as “conceived or designed in Canada” if a policy for a retail operation is ultimately approved.
Coun. Raymond Louie said a final policy might need to include an exception clause to move outside the policy for a very specific reason such as a Lego city hall and that the definitions of “Made in Canada” or “product of Canada,” would have to be clarified with respect to issues such as what percentage would have to be made in Canada.
(Reimer later told the Courier council already has a policy for ethical and sustainable purchasing, which would require Made in Canada to be a consideration.)
NPA Coun. Melissa De Genova supported Affleck’s amendment and also said the Vancouver Park Board should be consulted. If a retail operation makes a profit, she added, it should be pumped back into something sustainable for the city. She said a portion of the revenue from restaurants that lease space in parks is used for things such as beautifying parks.
Last week, TransLink spokesperson Jill Drews told the Courier that sales in its online store have outpaced expectations but TransLink can’t reveal how much it has sold since it is run by a third party and the information is considered confidential and commercially sensitive. Profits will be added to transit revenue when reported out in the annual statutory report released to coincide with TransLink's March board meeting, but it won’t be a separate item. Reimer told the Courier that TransLink is a provincial Crown agency so its process and disclosure is different than what’s required for a municipal government.
“For our part, we would definitely have to report any financial information related to the city as a direct item, either the specific revenue or any expenses,” she said in an email.
City staff will report back to city council with recommendations, including how to protect the city from financial exposure.
“I fully understand that their recommendation might be don’t, but if there is an opportunity to do it, I think it would be worth exploring,” Reimer said.
noconnor@vancourier.com
@naoibh
