It has been two years since the start of COVID-19 and after two Christmas seasons in lockdown, people are ready to return to some sense of normalcy.
The Toronto Eaton Centre is filling up with shoppers as Christmas approaches.
Debra Bernardi, a shopper at the mall, said she’s happy to be shopping for gifts and believes the Christmas spirit has returned to the community.
It’s not just the Eaton Centre. Malls across Ontario have eased restrictions on the capacity stores are allowed and people are returning in a heartbeat.
This is largely due to the number of Torontonians who got vaccinated over the last two years.
A report by the Ontario Ministry of Health indicates that 83.6 per cent of Toronto residents have received at least two COVID-19 vaccine doses as of Dec. 1, 2022.
“My whole family has received at least two COVID vaccines, as well as our annual flu shot. People across Ontario know that if we wanted to get back to normal, this is what needed to happen,” Bernardi said.
However, it seems Ontarians aren’t as in a hurry to get booster doses as an Ontario Ministry of Health report shows that only 54.1 per cent of Toronto residents have received a third dose.
With second-dose protection running out, many residents may be at risk of stronger or potentially deadly symptoms in the case of infection.
The latest surveillance report done by Public Health Ontario shows that there have been 4,533 reported cases of COVID-19 in Ontario from Nov. 20 to Nov. 26.
These numbers are nothing compared to the thousands of cases last year. However, it’s still important to consider getting a third dose. Particularly because of the limited testing available to residents and not everyone meeting the qualification for free PCR tests, cases could be underreported.
Many stores in Toronto have been preparing for this year’s Christmas season. For the last two years, businesses have struggled because of the lack of customers, especially around the holiday season.
YVES Rocher, a personal care store located in Eaton Centre, is thriving from the rise in shoppers over the last few months.
Mohammad Ismael, an employee at YVES Rocher, said during COVID-19, many businesses just like theirs found it difficult to keep the doors open simply because there weren’t enough customers.
This year, things have started turning around and the customers have returned with a bang.
Vincy Caddel, a loyal customer at YVES Rocher, said even though she loves the store, she never felt safe enough to come back to the mall until now.
“People are definitely less scared now and we have been seeing really good numbers so far. Things are definitely starting to go back to normal,” she said.
Black Friday was a huge opportunity for many stores to increase business and that is exactly what happened at YVES Rocher.
“Black Friday was insane,” Ismael said. “There were people everywhere and we had no time to even stop for one second. It was great for our business and many other businesses inside the mall.”
Mohammed Ismael, a store employee at YVES Rocher, a personal care store located in the Toronto Eaton Centre mall. Photo credit: Niko De Ciantis
When it comes to businesses being prepared for the sudden demand for products, YVES Rocher and many other stores inside the Eaton Centre had it covered.
Ismael said his business had been preparing in advance for this Christmas season because they knew that the demand would be there as things returned to normal.
With Christmas only a few weeks away, many will be rushing to get all of their Christmas shopping done.
“There is no better feeling than going Christmas shopping downtown after two years and really feeling the Christmas atmosphere again,” Caddel said.