GOODLOCAL
"Amazon has its place. The big thing with GoodLocal is we need to understand that if we can buy the product locally, we should buy the product locally."
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The site embraces diversity, and while it can’t offer delivery in rural Manitoba, it does provide great exposure for small businesses in Brandon, Steinbach, Winkler and other towns – including Holland, home of mac- and-cheese supplier Cultured Herb market. “Bring your products to us —we’ll package them, we’ll ship them, we’ll get them in the hands of customers,” Khan says. While most vendors pay a commission, charities such as Children’s Hospital Foun- dation of Manitoba and Winnipeg Pet Res- cue receive 100% of the proceeds from merchandise sales.
then stay on with the company or take their skills to other local businesses. Back in 2017, Economic Development Winnipeg asked the former Blue Bomber to appear in a video pitching the city as Amazon’s second headquarters. Little did he know that he’d be launching Winnipeg’s own version of Amazon a few years later. “Amazon has its place. The big thing with GoodLocal is we need to understand that if we can buy the product locally, we should buy the product locally,” he says.
“Try to shop local first. It’s really a matter of getting people aware of it, making it top of mind.” Delivery is free on orders over $75, and regular users will soon have a membership option similar to Amazon Prime. GoodLocal is also beta-testing a delivery service called GoodLocal Express, since the cost of delivery is not feasible for many local businesses. The idea is to scale up so everyone can pay a single, affordable rate. “We don’t need to make millions of dollars, we just need to stay operational,” Khan says. Speaking of delivery, he notes that delivery vans are supplied by Birchwood Auto Group. “Birchwood is our first corporate local sponsor. They came onboard to help us,” he says. “So it’s a local big business getting onboard to help the little businesses and then they know that we all flourish together.” ■
It’s all part of supporting what Khan calls “the local ecosys- tem,” which includes the local workforce.
GoodLocal has a chief technology officer and an in-house software programmer, and it’s working with Red River College to provide work placements for IT students — who can
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SPRING 2021
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