‘Businesses are all getting hit hard’

When the Manitoba business security rebate was first announced in December, Michael Paille applied for his Winnipeg comic book shop and helped other business owners fill out their own applications.

The owner of Cobra Collectibles, a self-described one-stop shop for “all things nerdy,” said while his rebate on the cost of replacing broken security cameras was approved, he knew of others who struggled with the forms or haven’t bothered with them at all.

He wasn’t surprised to learn this week that out of the $10 million put aside by the province for the rebate — as an avenue for those in the sector impacted by crime to potentially recoup some losses — starting Dec. 11, more than $8 million remains on the table.

Some business owners, he said, aren’t eligible; some, for example, invested in security before the program’s retroactive cut-off date in August 2024, and others had purchased second-hand security equipment to save money. Others are interested, but in no rush to file, believing it would just be paying for security equipment that would quickly get broken or stolen.

“There’s numerous aspects of it that small businesses really aren’t going to benefit from. The biggest thing we’re having right now is a lot of businesses have hit that point of, unfortunately, they’re getting tired of it,” Paille told the Free Press on Monday.

“Some stores are getting robbed and ripped and stolen from, daily. Cameras are nice, but it just watches the person steal.”

As of Friday, $1,782,952 has been handed out to 967 Manitoba businesses through rebates of up to $2,500 per location, to be spent on security purchases or repairing property damage. That’s the equivalent of over $100,000 per week, Justice Minister Matt Wiebe said in a news release reminding the public about the availability of the program.

Winnipeg restaurateur Ravi Ramberran learned Monday his application for reimbursement on the purchase of security cameras at the Saint Restaurant and Pub had been approved, just days after applying last week. He described it as a fast process, but admitted he had waited months to apply because time it took to collect invoices, take photos and other steps.

He believes other business owners are likely in the same boat.

“I think they haven’t gotten around to it … I think it’s just work, but it’s definitely worth it if you do the work,” he said.

While Wiebe called the initiative “incredible” in Friday’s release, Paille, who is the director of the Sargent Business Community group and is set to host the second annual retail crime prevention conference in April, would like to see more provincial outreach to the very small businesses that might not be aware the funding is available.

“Businesses are all getting hit hard, but it’s the mom-and-pop, little corner stores that can’t afford it,” he said. “If you think of a guy that has a little corner store, and if he’s losing $1,000 a week in stolen goods, is he making any money at all? And what’s the camera going to do?”

Manitoba is the second province to offer this kind of business security rebate, after British Columbia.

The amount distributed in Manitoba in the past three months already represents an oversized interest in the program, considering the other province in Canada with a similar initiative, said John Graham, Retail Council of Canada director of government relations for the Prairie provinces.

B.C.’s rebate program for small businesses launched in 2023 and provides a one-time reparative rebate of up to $2,000 and a one-time preventative rebate of up to $1,000 to those who meet eligibility criteria.

B.C. has since budgeted $10.5 million for those rebates, but Graham noted its program has more restrictions than Manitoba’s on which businesses can apply and budgeted nearly the same amount of money for a province with a population several times larger than Manitoba’s.

“This is a very large amount of available money and it may not be fully used (in Manitoba), but the symbolism of its support is really important,” he said.

Considering the program administers rebates up to $2,500 per location, the number of businesses that would be needed to use up the entire budget is especially high, said Loren Remillard, president and CEO of the Winnipeg Chamber of Commerce.

“I would suggest that the success of the program should not be viewed as to whether the full $10 million goes, but it should be viewed in terms of, did the businesses that needed this program, that were eligible to access the funds, did they get full uptake from those?” he said.

“And from my conversations with our members, those that were really excited about the program have availed themselves of it.”

The program covers a number of upgrades, including security cameras and fencing, alarm systems, and anti-graffiti products. It can also be used to repair eligible damages. Business owners can apply for the rebate on the province of Manitoba’s website.

— with files from Tyler Searle

malak.abas@freepress.mb.ca