A Very Local Holiday was unveiled Tuesday with an online launch. It will be a New Brunswick-wide campaign to support local retailers, restaurants and bars, event venues and not-for-profits. Daily prizes will be awarded from those local businesses to shoppers who show some ‘local love’.

The campaign will last the 31 days of December and feature a heavy social media effort as well as an in-business point-of-sale kits to help businesses market their goods and services.

The initiative was created by BrainWorks Marketing with support from the Chamber of Commerce for Greater Moncton and a $10,000 sponsorship of Medavie.

Bernard Lord, CEO of Medavie, headquartered in New Brunswick, said local businesses are the heartbeat of the province’s economy and it’s important, now more than ever, to show support as the country responds to the ongoing pandemic.

“As a health solutions partner with a strong presence in New Brunswick, we are proud to lend our support to the local business community during this challenging time,” said Lord. “These are our partners and our clients, and this campaign is one way we can help create some cheer for these hard-working businesses during the holiday season.”

Brad LeBlanc, co-founder of BrainWorks, said A Very Local Holiday will see heavy exposure on Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn, a campaign video is being produced in the market now and free point-of-sale kits are being sent out to local businesses while quantities last. The campaign is anticipated to reach 540,000 New Brunswickers during the month of December. Each day of the 31-day campaign, New Brunswickers will be eligible to win a high-valued prize that is purchased at full price by the campaign at local businesses around New Brunswick. The Love for Local community is 19,000 strong on social media - and growing daily.

“This is all designed to show some more local love to our New Brunswick businesses and organizations at a time of year (and in a year) when they really need our support,” LeBlanc said. “Entrepreneurs are the heart of our communities. There are a number of support local campaigns in the market and we are delighted to add our voice and audience to shared mission. We are honoured to have been asked to create the campaign and are eager to see how and what it inspires this holiday season. Just because it’s a very different experience - doesn’t mean it needs to be any less magical. A small shift to local by each of us will make a beautiful difference,” LeBlanc added.

John Wishart, CEO of the Chamber of Commerce, said the organization was looking for a tangible way to show its support to the hundreds of local businesses who have struggled through a challenging year due to COVID-19.

“A Very Local Holiday is the perfect pre-holiday tonic for our local business community. As half of the province navigates through an Orange Phase, we need to find ways to show our support to those local retailers, restaurant and bar owners, experience makers and charities that are the fabric of our communities,” Wishart said.

Designed to inspire and educate New Brunswickers from across the province to find safe and meaningful ways to support local businesses and organizations during the 2020 Holiday Season, “A Very Local Holiday” campaign is an opportunity to help energize, inspire, and educate the public on the thousands of unique opportunities to support local during this unprecedented year.

The Love For Local campaign has already seen more than 400 New Brunswick businesses and organizations sign up with new organizations added daily. With “A Very Local Holiday”, there is NO cost for local businesses or organizations to participate in the program. Go to Facebook, and “Like” the Love For Local page, follow the campaign on Instagram and LinkedIn and visit the loveforlocal.ca website to get involved.

A Very Local Holiday campaign was launched thanks to a partnership between BrainWorks, the Chamber of Commerce for Greater Moncton, and Medavie. It is still possible to jump on board as a sponsor. If you are interested in helping New Brunswick businesses, contact the Chamber of Commerce for Greater Moncton at 506 857-2283.