Barrie Uncovered

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Shop Local

Grassroots Lifeline for Downtown Barrie!

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Join everyone in the nationwide grass roots movement to shop local!  Throw a lifeline to our City’s downtown businesses by purchasing an E Gift Card!

Barrie’s Downtown B.I.A. (Business Improvement Area) is working in partnership with Meridian Credit Union to assist business owners in our historical downtown area.

Ways to Shop Local!

By purchasing an E-Gift Card through the B.I.A. website – your financial support will go directly to the business you desire.

To add some intrigue to supporting local, the BIA has expanded their Lifeline E-Gift card program to include a little mystery.  To include even more excitement, they’ve turned this into a fun contest!  Each purchase enters you into a contest to win DOUBLE YOUR ORDER!  One winner each week, so come on and #supportLocal!

#WinterInTheCity MYSTERY CONTEST!

There’s even a mystery option. So check it out and GET IN THE GAME!

Barrie’s historical downtown is a beautiful vibrant community of small business owners who work diligently to create a wonderful resident/tourist atmosphere.

We all miss our leisurely lakeside visits to the wonderful variety of shops and dining establishments in the downtown area!

Shop Local - Shop Local - Shop Local

The B.I.A. wants the residents of Barrie to know that while some businesses have been required to close due to COVID protocols, the gift card dollars will go directly to the business owner and that shopping will resume as soon as it’s safe to do so.

Shopping Local keeps area families employed.  It also keeps dollars spent here in the community as well, helping to support those families still able to work.

Please visit the B.I.A. website for more information on purchasing the cards.

Our B.I.A.

Kelly McKenna Executive Director
Kristen Eatch Project Manager

The B.I.A. in Barrie was formed in partnership with the City of Barrie to retain and promote the lovely charm of this lakeside section of the city.  They have done a remarkable job making the area more pedestrian friendly, added a variety of art installations and just a wonderful place to visit. 

The B.I.A. also promotes the area constantly with festivals, street fair and events in order to encourage visits by residents and tourists alike.

So good residents of Barrie….while we must endure the safety protocols of COVID – there are still ways of joining the grassroots movement of Shop Local!  Check it out today – and help keep business strong in Barrie!

Click here for more info
listen to the podcast here

Written By: Jane Laker

Photo Credits: Stephen Elliott

Are you a Barrie based business looking to expand your digital footprint?  Let us know! We can help get you Uncovered!

Bell, Book & Candle – A Unique Downtown Store

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Have you ever walked past 133 Dunlop Street East and thought – “What a unique store?” Welcome to Bell, Book & Candle! Maureen Cosme and daughter Maria will be so happy to be able to welcome you in once again.

Bell, Book & Candle is not just a bookstore – to me it’s a sanctuary. Not only can I walk through the many, many shelves of discovery…the feelings that I get from the books, crystals and accroutrement sing to my soul.

I know I’m not alone when I say it’s a place where normally I leave the hectic pace of the outside world, find a chair in a quiet corner to either browse through a newly found treasure – or even meditate for a few minutes to clear my mind.

Maureen offers a wide variety of ways to find answers for those on a spiritual journey or quest. To be discovered are new and used books, crystals, giftware, incense – even singing bowls.

It’s not a shop to hurry through – it has an energy to be savored and experienced.

Virtual Shopping Tours - Online!

During the past year that unique feeling has truly been minimized. Maureen is doing a wonderful virtual shopping tour live feed hosted by Carrie, an on-site team member. This virtual tour takes place every Wednesday at 2pm. Should you not be available at that time, the ladies post it to their Facebook site to be enjoyed by everyone.

You can also call or email the shop to book a personal virtual shopping tour and arrange for curbside pickup. Either way you will be introduced to new product and all available stock.

Often the spiritual among us find online shopping difficult for some of the items. The energy of many items must be felt to be treasured. The vast array of crystals certainly fall into this category.

I have watched and truly enjoyed as Carrie has guided us through what’s available. She’s so relaxed and informative that I feel myself actually settling in just to enjoy the tour.

Even though being in the energy of the store is so vital, Maureen, Maria and Carrie are exceptional tour guides!

Great Product Lines!

Some of the products available are the much desired essential oils. Maureen carries a line of ethically produced, high quality oil from New Directions, a Toronto based company. All I can say about that is…You are truly shopping local with that purchase! Actually a number of products available are Canadian. That makes me feel great about my purchases!

The collections of candles and incense seem endless, as do the choices, sizes and shapes of available crystals.

Arrange Your Shopping Experience!

You could book your personal shopping time or call the shop and leave a message with your desires. Perhaps order a mystery bag as well.

One things for sure…We’ll all breathe a sigh of relief when the world can reopen again – but until then, this wonderful downtown sanctuary has found a very visual way to stay in touch with their customers.
Well Done Ladies!!

Written by: Jane Laker

Photo Credit: Stephen Elliott

Are you a Barrie based business looking to expand your digital footprint?  Let us know!  We can help get you Uncovered!

3 Weekend Happenings in Barrie

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3 Weekend Happenings in Barrie

The last weekend before Halloweekend is upon us. Which means you should practice telling your creepiest stories and load your streaming platform playlists with Halloween movies and every Treehouse of Horror the Simpsons ever produced. (Even the lame second season one)

But for those not eerie inclined, there are alot of fun events that have nothing at all to do with the scary season. Here’s a few to check out!

3 Weekend Happenings in Barrie

The East End Shop Local Market + Sonder’s 1 Year Anniversary

Sonder Studio celebrates their first anniversary and hosts another Shop Local market this Saturday. The day includes live music performances from BKnox and Olivia Grace. Over 23 Vendors will be on hand, all from the Barrie area.

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On Saturday, October 24th we will be hosting our 7th [East End] Shop Local Market, but that’s not all…. We will also be celebrating Sonder’s 1 YEAR ANNIVERSARY!! It was at the end of October last year that we opened and hosted our very first market. We started with 9 vendors + couldn’t have been happier with the support from the community, the day was a success and our hearts were full. 1 year later, despite all the challenges, here we are hosting our 7th market with 23 Vendors! We can’t celebrate the way he had planned, but we can celebrate with some good news and gratitude. We have an announcement that we will be making around 2pm on Saturday. Hope to see you there! P.S. Not that anyone needs a reminder at this point, but nonetheless we still have to say it, masks will be mandatory. Both inside AND outside. We will also have sanitizer provided at each vendors table. P.S.S Before anyone sends us a message, this picture is from our first market….back in the good old days, when we hadn’t heard the word COVID yet + masks weren’t mandatory. Remember those days??? . . . . #sonderwithus #supportlocal #shoplocal #supportlivemusic #eastendbarrie #marketday #localmarket #1yearanniversary #womeninbusiness #communitylove

A post shared by sonder [studio + events] (@sonderstudioandevents) on

Online Geology Fair

Interested in your family history and ready to move beyond what you can learn from your relatives? This Friday you can (virtually) meet a few ancestory experts at the library.

This 2-day online event invites curious beginners and experienced genealogists to discover how DNA can provide clues to uncover your ancestors.

The virtual Genealogy Fair features expert speakers and relevant topics, as well as Library resources. The Keynote Speaker is Mags Gaulden from Grandma’s Genes who will be presenting ‘The Power of DNA’.

Learn more and register online: https://www.barrielibrary.ca/programs-events/genealogy-fair

YMCA Open House

Take a tour of the Barrie Y before it’s closing. The Y will be hosting an Open House on Saturday from 10:00am – 1:00pm for the public, members, staff, and volunteers to tour the facility one last time in a safe, socially distanced manner.

Bonus Event! Join The Circus

Well, not quite. But any young trapeze enthusiasts in the house might be interested in this! Students can learn aerial apparatuses including aerial silks, lyra and aerial hammock as well as ground circus such as Hula hoop.

The course run Sundays and require online registration. Hit up their website for more!

What did you think of 3 Weekend Happenings in Barrie? If we missed any cool happenings, let us know in the comments! Or email us!

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