Merchant of Tennis, a professional tennis retailer based in Toronto and Oakville, Ontario, has been named Canada's Favourite Small Business. As part of a national contest held by the Canadian Federation of Independent Business (CFIB) and Interac last month, Canadians were asked to vote for their favourite small business using the #MyFavSmallBiz hashtag.
The contest received more than 1,600 entries between October 6th and 18th and over 700 businesses were nominated. In business for over 20 years, Merchant of Tennis has 20 employees and lots of happy customers.
CFIB president Dan Kelly presented the award to The Merchant of Tennis business owners Pamela and Rob Harwood last week. The title of Canada's Favourite Small Business comes along with a professionally produced ad campaign sponsored by Interac and developed by Toronto-based advertising agency Zulu Alpha Kilo.
"There are thousands of unique small businesses across Canada, like Merchant of Tennis, that are woven into the fabric of their communities, and into the hearts and minds of their customers," said Kelly.
Loyal customers have only great things to say about Merchant of Tennis: "They've got stuff the big stores don't," said one customer. "(That's why) I only trust smallbiz to understand customers." Others say it's not only the equipment and prices that make Merchant of Tennis great, it's the "friendly and knowledgeable staff who have been there at every step and shoe size through (their) son's tennis growth."
"We are thrilled to be named Canada's Favourite Small Business," said Pam Horwood, CEO of Merchant of Tennis."The #MyFavSmallBiz contest was an outstanding opportunity to engage with our existing clients, reach new audiences and showcase what we do. It gave small companies like ours a bigger voice in a highly competitive national market. Thank you to all of our wonderful customers who voted for us. We're honoured to have your continued support."
Among Canada's other favourite small businesses are Shear Extasy in Woodstock, Ontario, Elite Factor in Quebec City, Quebec, Pieces of Paradise Imports in Winnipeg, Manitoba, and CycleSmith in Halifax, Nova Scotia.
Consumers also had a piece of the pie to win during the contest. In total, there were 26 consumer winners, representing six different provinces, who went home with a prize of $500 each.
