While the federal government's tax vacation, which came into effect on Saturday December 14, may have made consumers happy, it has also sowed discontent among affected merchants. Néomédia spoke to two store owners in the Vaudreuil-Dorion area. 

For Lucie Bourbonnais, who has operated La Ribouldingue, a toy and game store, for several years, the measure announced by Justin Trudeau's government is not a good idea, at least not at the moment. 

“No one can be against easing the tax burden on taxpayers, but for me, the method and the timeframe given to retailers to prepare are totally unrealistic. The more I read the details of the bill, the more I thought it wasn't serious. I thought it was an early April Fool's joke. I can't imagine that no one around the government table has said that this measure makes no sense. In my opinion, the elected officials should at least have consulted the merchants affected by this measure to find out when was the best time to do it and within what timeframe,” she clarified on the other end of the phone. 

The tax vacation was introduced by the Trudeau government in response to inflation and interest rates, which have risen sharply in recent months. The tax vacation applies only to certain products until February 15. 

As a reminder, the new financial measure applies to the following products:

- prepared foods, such as vegetable trays, salads and prepared meals, and sandwiches;
- restaurant meals, whether in the dining room, to go or to be delivered;
- snacks, including chips, candy and candy bars;
- beer, wine and cider;
- prepared alcoholic beverages containing less than 7% alcohol;
- children's clothing and footwear, car seats and diapers;
- children's games, such as board games, dolls and video game consoles;
- books, printed newspapers and puzzles for all ages;
- Christmas trees and similar ornaments. 

“We are quite affected by this financial measure, as it applies to children's games and board games as well as dolls. There are several specificities in our field. For example, the tax vacation applies to board games designed for children under 14. There are 5,000 of these in store alone. In the last few days, we've had to sort them out to find out which ones will be tax-free and which won't be. In store, I have 20,000 products. We also have to think about the website. It's a lot of management, especially as the measure only lasts two months. It was a colossal job that was impossible to do properly in the time allotted by the government,” she says. 

Valérie Desjardins, owner of Boutique L'effet Bulles, agrees. “We didn't have a chance to prepare before the vacation came into effect, because it's our biggest season of the year. We have three employees and a lot of corporate gifts, as well as customers who come in to make these gifts”.

To illustrate the situation, Ms. Bourbonnais estimates that she would have had to hire a 40-hour-per-week employee to sort out the products that are and are not subject to the tax vacation. “I don't have the staff for that, let alone at this time of year. We're swamped, so I did it myself, but I'm sure we'll get away with it.” 

For her part, Valérie Desjardins and her team have decided to hire additional resources not only to sort all the items that will be exempt from GST, but also to reconfigure the store's computer system. 

“Initially, to stay within our budget, we had decided not to hire people specifically for this, since we already need more store staff for the holiday season. I thought I'd be able to do it all myself, but I've had to face up to the fact that it's not going to be possible. So I've got two new people to help me, including my husband who works in IT. Even though I know the system, it's still intense.“

On the day that the GST vacation comes into effect, Ms. Desjardins admitted to having had a few worries because the list of GST-exempt products has been updated. Products on the list have since been removed, forcing her to start sorting again. 

In recent days, Ms. Bourbonnais has contacted the office of Peter Schiefke, Member of Parliament for Vaudreuil-Soulanges, to obtain clarification on certain grey areas. To date, her request has been unsuccessful. 

“In particular, I wanted to know if the businesses affected will get financial compensation to offset the costs of implementing this new measure. I don't think that would have been superfluous.” 

Does she think the new measure will encourage consumers to spend more in the businesses affected by it? “Not at all. We're only talking about a 5% discount on the bill, which isn't much. Who's going to store between now and Christmas? People who shop at the last minute. I don't think people were waiting for this measure to come into effect to do their shopping. At least, I hope not, because firstly, retailers may not be able to serve them well, and secondly, you have to bear in mind that retailers have fixed expenses to pay, like rent. I have to make my payment on December 1, not the 15th or the 20th, because business is good.” 

Ms Bourbonnais does not hesitate to describe this measure as very painful for the merchants concerned. “I was never notified that it was coming into force. I learned about it on television, which is pretty ordinary.” 

She deplores the fact that Justin Trudeau's cabinet did not consult merchants before implementing such an important measure. “I understand that it's impossible to consult every retailer. But he could have turned to associations like the Conseil québécois du commerce de détail, of which I'm a member. That way, we could have discussed how to implement this solution and, above all, within what timeframe,” she concludes.