Daily Hive co-launches free platform to bring small Canadian restaurants online
Business owners nationwide have experienced more highs and lows in the last few weeks than anyone could have anticipated in their lifetime. We’re adjusting to a new “normal” and thinking of ways that we can help make the current situation better for others.
However, a survey by Restaurants Canada suggests that one in ten restaurants has already had to close, and 18% will permanently close within a month “if current conditions continue.” Small businesses like these form the cultural fabric and economic backbone of our country, and we need to support them now more than ever.
Our team at Daily Hive wanted to do something to help. We have launched Adopt my Shop — a digital platform to help Canadians support restaurants from coast-to-coast — in collaboration with the West Coast Technology Innovation Foundation (WCTIF) and the IT in Canada collective.
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As fellow small business owners in tech, Minna Van, executive director at WCTIF, and I brainstormed to find a way for Canadians to support restaurants in their city; the Adopt my Shop platform allows this to happen by offering free assistance for small restaurants to get set up online.
How it works for restaurants:
- Restaurants can apply to be a part of the program via the Adopt my Shop website
- The service will enable digital features (i.e. to sell gift cards, accept orders, and create an online store via Shopify or Square)
- Those businesses featured will be additionally supported through Daily Hive’s website and social channels
How it works for customers:
- Canadians can suggest their favourite neighbourhood restaurants for adoption via Adopt my Shop
- The digital platform will connect Canadians directly with restaurants in their community so they can purchase a gift card for future use, shop online, and order takeout or delivery
Van and I didn’t want the process of getting online to be a problem for small restaurants. That’s why anyone who would like to move all or a part of their business operations online can connect with us directly through Adopt my Shop.
This is all happening with the help of students from WCTIF and ComIT’s Recode your Future scholarship program who are due to graduate this week.
Emerson Mellado is part of the IT in Canada collective and an instructor for the Recode your Future program. “Technology is a vital piece of the future, and if my students can help even one small business succeed, it’ll all be worth it,” he says.
The student base at WCTIF and ComIT has fluency in multiple languages, so there will be support for business owners to get online in Punjabi, Cantonese, Mandarin, Vietnamese, Spanish, Portuguese, Tagalog, Arabic, and more.
Together, we can provide the labour needed to get small restaurants online, and help with exposure after that point, all through Adopt my Shop.
If you’re interested in getting your restaurant set up online or want to connect with restaurants in your local area, please visit adoptmyshop.org. We look forward to working with you and helping support Canadian small businesses, now and in the months to come.
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