Here are 2 articles about 2 stores that sells specific products:
May 8, 2026 "Florists get creative with bouquets this Mother's Day as costs climb": Today I found this article on BNN Bloomberg:
This year’s Mother’s Day floral orders don’t appear so different at first, but look closely and you might see a few tweaks.
Customers are looking for beautiful, vibrant bouquets that speak to the love they have for their mothers -- but within a tight budget, said Lisa Bugden, owner of Halifax-based Flower Trends Florists.
“We’re seeing a bit of a ceiling emerge with many of our customers that has been consistent over the last two to three years,” Bugden said of how much people are willing to spend this year.
Delivering on tighter consumer budgets is still doable.
But as fuel prices climb,
many florists are facing higher purchasing costs
and fuel surcharges for floral shipments travelling across provinces,
and in some cases, across borders.
Adjusting to
a lower consumer budget
and higher costs
is “perhaps more acute this year,” Bugden said.
Global oil prices have skyrocketed since the outbreak of the war in the Middle East in late February,
which led to a blockade of tanker traffic through the Strait of Hormuz
-- choking a fifth of the world’s oil supply.
Getting flowers shipped to the Hamilton, Ont.-based Blossom Lane Flowers is more expensive now.
Angela Daoulas, owner of Blossom Lane Flowers, said her
shipment costs have gone up five to 10 per cent
after oil prices climbed to near record highs over the last few weeks.
That, in turn, has pushed prices for some flowers higher.
The cost of peonies,
most of which make their way from Italy around this time of year,
has gone up significantly,
she said.
Meanwhile, a carnation stem, which tends to be more budget-friendly,
now costs two to five per cent more
-- even when sourced locally,
she added.
Daoulas is keeping her prices unchanged, but her bouquets will look slightly different this year.
“Where we see a difference is the stem count,” Daoulas said.
That means a bouquet, which may have had 10 stems
originally, might get nine stems this year.
Or get different, less expensive flowers instead, such as daisies.
“That’s kind of where our growers are adjusting,” she said.
“They’ll add less expensive flowers …
but they’ll still give you the value.”
The trend is also reverberating through Winnipeg’s Valley Flowers.
Store owner Sheila Tschetter said she noticed
average consumer spending has declined by 10 to 15 per cent in recent months.
That comes as the cost of shipping from faraway destinations, such as
Ecuador,
Colombia,
Peru
and Holland
has gone up 20 to 30 per cent year-over-over,
she said.
Meanwhile, a colder spring has left some florists with
fewer
and more expensive options.
“We would have hoped to have had more locally grown products this year,” said Ashley MacNeill, owner of Halifax-based Props Floral Design Inc.
“But due to our cold spring, a lot of our flower farmers don’t have as (many) flowers as they anticipated.”
That has added to the cost of sourcing flowers, getting them shipped to the Atlantic, all the way from Ontario and Quebec.
MacNeill said the
cost increase has been anywhere between 10 and 50 cents per flower stem
-- some of which the store has had to pass on to its customers.
“We do have a large overhead
and we have employees to pay
and we have delivery services to pay as well,”
she said.
“It’s hard for us to cut into our overall markup.”
Halifax’s Bugden said florists also face competition from big box stores,
such as grocers
and wholesalers,
who may not carry high-quality bouquets with a longer shelf life
but offer lower prices.
“That’s where customers are migrating,” Bugden said.
But she also said she’s taking the economic challenges
as an opportunity
to be more creative.
If someone’s budget is $45, their bouquet might not include
a lily
or a hydrangea,
which tend to be more expensive,
she said.
“We can still include a rose;
we can also add daisies
or carnations,
flowers that are long-lasting
and equally lovely,”
she said.
“We can still create a vibrant bouquet for our customers.”
Meanwhile, Hamilton’s Daoulas said she has worked to add more
affordable arrangements to her offerings
because people often buy multiple bouquets
to celebrate all the mothers in their lives.
“You’re not only acknowledging mom,
you’re acknowledging your mom,
your wife,
your grandmother,”
she said.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 8, 2026.
Ritika Dubey, The Canadian Press
My opinion: I don't like to buy flowers because they will die out after awhile.
I like these preserved flowers that will last a long time like 3 yrs without water or sunlight:
Mon Amour Flowers:
https://www.instagram.com/mon.amour.flowers/
Eternal Roses Canada:
https://eternalroses.ca/?srsltid=AfmBOorcmgHLxjnpCEMZgIMBbR-G2uI4EV5-U5vv0R1wr37_8_HDwD4X
I'll add this one in too: I don't like to buy real pine Christmas trees to decorate.
You have this tree in your home for 1-3 months and then you throw it out.
The Dec. 2025 blog post:
"Sellers in other countries struggle to maintain U.S. customers as holiday shopping season starts"/ "Christmas tree sellers seeing high demand this year despite some price increases
https://badcb.blogspot.com/2025/12/sellers-in-other-countries-struggle-to.html
Jun. 30, 2026 "Italy's failure to qualify for World Cup has Canadian sports shops changing game plan": Today I found this article on BNN Bloomberg:
More than a year before the World Cup,
Canadian sports stores placed what they thought was a safe bet on Italy’s national soccer team.
As one of the few teams to win four World Cups,
the Azzurri are in a rare club. Even though they failed to qualify for the last two tournaments,
their Euro 2020 win
and an expansion of this year’s World Cup field to 48 from 32 teams gave Canada’s sizeable Italian community hope.
So sports stores ordered merchandise accordingly.
Then came the big letdown: the Italians failed to qualify.
Suddenly, a team that’s usually a cash cow for Canadian sports shops had turned into a burden.
Along with other non-qualifiers like
Denmark,
Nigeria,
Jamaica,
Poland
and Northern Ireland,
it became a reminder of just how unpredictable the game can be.
“Italy not making it definitely hurts us,” said Carmelo Sansalone, whose family has run the Evangelista Sports store in Montreal since 1985.
“We’re based in Little Italy.
We have a huge Italian community, so yeah, that put a dent in our sales for sure.”
With demand for Italian gear far lower than predicted,
the shop is among many across Canada that have significantly marked down the team’s merchandise.
Italy jerseys that it would have sold for $190 each
are now available for $95.
Sansalone expects it will take months to sell through all the inventory for teams that didn’t advance
— a stark comparison to the Canada and France gear that’s flying off his shelves.
“Some gambles work out,
some gambles don’t,”
he explained.
It’s a lesson even the big sports stores appeared to be feeling at the Eaton Centre mall in Toronto last week. While shoppers were hurriedly picking up Canada jerseys as well as merchandise for top contenders
France,
Spain
and Argentina,
paraphernalia for teams not in competition barely got a glance.
At JD Sports, racks of
Italian
and Jamaican jerseys were marked $50,
down from $100.
Northern Ireland jerseys were going for $60,
a drop from $120 originally.
Over at Sport Chek, shoppers were greeted at the entrance with a clearance rack stuffed with half-priced Italy and United Arab Emirates wear all marked down by at least 50 per cent.
Dylan Rowe, head of retail at Ontario sportswear chain Soccer World, said the reason
why there’s so much merchandise to sell
is because sports shops have to order their World Cup inventory long before the tournament’s participants have been decided,
so it can get manufactured in time.
Many didn’t just buy “heavily into Italy,” they doubled down.
That’s because they knew if Italy qualified, they would have plenty of buyers to satisfy.
More than 1.5 million people in Canada reported Italian heritage to Statistics Canada in 2021 and the fan base is so fervent,
Rowe said the team’s jerseys are usually among his shop’s three most popular.
When a tentative World Cup schedule was drawn up in November, it showed Italy could wind up playing in Toronto, if the team made it to the tournament.
“Everyone bought even more inventory at that point as well,” Rowe said.
Then, things went sideways. Italy crashed out of qualifying during a penalty shootout loss to 66th-ranked Bosnia-Herzegovina.
“Obviously, it’s tough,” Rowe said.
His shop has joined others in marking down Italy jerseys
and hoping the country fares better when the women’s World Cup is hosted next year in Brazil.
Luckily, Rowe and Sansalone have seen demand for other team’s merchandise soar.
At Evangelista Sports, Montrealers are clamouring for
France,
Portugal,
Morocco
and Algeria jerseys and at Soccer World Central,
Germany’s offering was a hit in the lead up to its faceoff against Ivory Coast in Toronto.
But the real star has been the home team, which earned its first-ever World Cup point in a mid-June match against Bosnia-Herzegovina and notched a monumental win against South Africa on Sunday to advance to the round of 16.
“We’ve sold more Canada shirts now than we ever have as a business for 25 years, so it’s been insane demand for Canada jerseys,” Rowe said.
“Some of it is from Italian Canadians. I have friends that are now pouring all that support into Canada.”
This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 30, 2026.
Tara Deschamps, The Canadian Press
My opinion: This part stood out to me the most:
Dylan Rowe, head of retail at Ontario sportswear chain Soccer World, said the reason
why there’s so much merchandise to sell
is because sports shops have to order their World Cup inventory long before the tournament’s participants have been decided,
so it can get manufactured in time.
Sun. Aug. 16, 2026:
Deborah V, Winnipeg, Manitoba, would like to know:
When choosing a new book to read, what influences your decision the most?
The genre
50.51% (1781)
Recommendations
18.94% (668)
Reviews or ratings
12.59% (444)
The cover
9.73% (343)
The title
8.22% (290)
My opinion: The genre.
Wed. Aug. 19, 2026:
Jannyck L, Montréal , Québec, would like to know:
In what position do you most often sleep during the night?
On my side
61.23% (2437)
I often change positions
19.30% (768)
On my back
11.66% (464)
On my stomach
7.81% (311)
My opinion: On my side. However, I probably change positions in my sleep.
There was a poll last week "Do you grind your teeth in your sleep?"
I said no. However, how can I be so sure if I'm asleep?
When I go the dentist, they never say: "You look like you grind your teeth."
Thurs. Aug. 20, 2026:
Christina G, Dawson creek , British Columbia, would like to know:
Do you enjoy camping?
Yes, sometimes
28.90% (1185)
Not at all
22.15% (908)
Not really
22.12% (907)
Yes, I love it
19.20% (787)
My opinion: Not really. I was 11 yrs old and my brother was 9 yrs old. My dad took us to Calgary to see our aunts, uncles, and cousins. We went camping with our cousins Je, and Jo.
They were 12 and 8 yr old girls. We slept in the car.
-Played cards in the tent
-walked around the campground with lots of cars and tents
-there was a playground and a small store
Would you want to do this again?: No.
Fri. Aug. 21, 2026:
Cynthia S, Timmins, Ontario, would like to know:
Are you a morning person?
Yes
60.34% (3920)
No
39.66% (2576)
My opinion: Yes.
Sat. Aug. 15, 2026:
Whyte Ave: In the afternoon I took the bus to pass my resume to a store in-person, because they said said to do that. I did.
Bonnie Doon mall: I took the bus here and went to use the washroom.
Ilahui: This store opened here.
https://www.ilahui.ca/?srsltid=AfmBOoqAZOpr3-OKSwzJBaNZTYgzNKAqTmjBN_wZxkOK0qOqlS_QpchQ
Rain: They were here and closed down a few years ago. Now the clothing store is open.
There were vendors selling jewelry and clothes for the day.
City Centre mall: I took the LRT to here. I had some questions for my cell phone plan and had to pay for new plan.
Festival at Churchill Square: I walked over there. There were vendors here for Muslim and Islam. There was a lot of clothes and jewelry.
One woman gave me 2 free chocolate chip cookies. I ate it later.
There was Cosmic Pizza and Donair there.
Garage sale: I took the bus home and I saw a sign for this. I wrote down the address and walked over.
Donations: I told her that she can try selling the books to the Wee Book Inn.
Donate the books, puzzles, and toys to children's hospitals or senior homes.
I got free food they were giving away.
Farm Girl Rainbow Hoops:
Gluten free
vegan
no seed oil
soy free
0 sugar
made in Canada
My opinion: It was mediocre, but I will eat it for breakfast.
Fruity Cheerios: This is more sweet.
My opinion: It was mediocre, but I will eat it for breakfast.
Compliments Salt and Vinegar flavored potato crisps: They're in a can like Pringles.
My opinion: It was average, and I will eat it for a snack.
I was out from 2 -5PM.
I only went out mainly to pass my resume and know about my cell phone plan.
I looked around at some fun things between those.
If I were to go out for fun, I would like to go to a mall or an event like K-Days and be there for a long time.
