Outaouais businesses hope to bounce back with eased restrictions

Outaouaisbusinesses arerelieved they'll soon be able to reopenbut some are unsureif they'll be able to bounce back.

Quebec Premier Franois Legaultannounced that non-essential businesses, hair salons and museums would be allowed to open across the province starting Feb. 8, but the 8 p.m. curfew is staying.Gyms and restaurants are staying closed.

Marc Fortin,president of the Quebec division of the Retail Council of Canada, saidrestrictions on the types of goods allowed to be sold have been difficult for hardware and big-box retailers which stayedopen during the lockdown, but it's been worse for non-essential businesses forced to close their doors.

He described the closures as "complete destruction financially for those that are not open." While online and curbside sales have helped, Fortinsaidit's not enough to replace in-person business. Between 10 to 14 per centof small businesses are at risk of collapsing.

Fortin pointedto the number of Quebec-based fashion retailers that are teetering, includingAldo, Tristan and Reitmans and saidthe province needs to do more than hand out loans in order for thoseretailers to survive.

"When you talk fashion, when you talk shoes, jewelry, a lot of the head offices and a lot of the creative ishere in Quebec so it's [a] nice ecosystem that we have in Quebec," Fortin said.

"We need make to sure that we save it and maintain it because there's going to be an after-COVID andwe wantbusinesses to be there."

'Everybody needs a haircut'

The Association of Quebec Hair Salons said it's confident the industry would rebound.

"Everybody needs a haircut, soit's going to come back," said Salvatore Falci with the association."It's one thing [for men] because they need the hair cut, but women with theroots? They're going to go haywire," Falci said with a laugh.

StphaneBissonwith the Gatineau Chamber of Commerce said the changes are "more than welcome" and that reopening certain businessesgoes a long way for the "well-being of the population but also the well-being of these operator[s]."

Bisson added that the Outaouaishas facedparticular challenges being part of the National Capital Region but having different rules compared to Ottawa neighbours.

"We need to adjust the confinement and the restriction that we have in Gatineau as wellwith Ottawain order to see the region as a global area instead of two separate entities," he said.