‘I still feel confident:’ Rebellion Brewing deals with haters after mandating masks

A Regina business is feeling a lot of support and facing some aggression after recently implementing a mandatory mask policy.

Rebellion Brewing CEO and president Mark Heise said the decision to implement mandatory masks came after observing what was happening around the world and across the country in response to COVID-19.

“There’s a few folks who are unhappy and didn’t treat my staff very nicely (Tuesday),” Heise said in response to some customers who were displeased with Rebellion’s new policy.

Hey Rebels,

We're asking everyone to please wear a mask when visiting our taproom. If you forgot a mask, no worries, we have some avail. for purchase.

We all need to work together to stop Covid. The precautions we take will help keep you & our staff healthy.

Thank you! pic.twitter.com/w4cx74RE2O

— Rebellion Brewing Co (@RebBrewRegina) August 17, 2020

He said some customers even went so far as to swear at staff.

“My staff is awesome, they can handle it,” Heise said. “I apologized to them. I checked in with them a few times and they’re actually really proud and feel good to work for a company that does care and does want to keep everyone safe.

“They shouldn’t have to put up with it, but they’re more than willing to do it.”

Policies surrounding mandating masks are being increasingly implemented in Canadian cities, schools and retailers.

The city of Calgary introduced a face coverings bylaw that came into effect on Aug. 1. It requires that masks be worn in all indoor public spaces and public vehicles within city limits.

Walmart mandated masks be worn by all customers at stores across Canada on Aug. 12.

On Monday, masks became mandatory in Marshalls, Winners and Homesense stores.

Last week, the universities of Regina and Saskatchewan announced mandatory mask policies beginning Sept. 1 and Aug. 24, respectively.

The mayors of Saskatoon and Regina both addressed the public last week and strongly encouraged people to wear masks in public spaces and public vehicles.

“Wearing a mask is simply one more small measure to protect one another,” Regina Mayor Michael Fougere said at the Cornwall Centre on Thursday.

That sentiment from Fougere is what Heise said was the tipping point for him.

“It just made sense to get ahead of the curve and start doing it now. Let’s just get comfortable and get used to it,” he said.

“I try to look forward and I just know that with fall and winter and cooler temperatures and people coming inside, there are going to be more germs spreading and prevailing and I want to keep my business up and running.”

He said the “overwhelming” response so far has been “hugely supportive,” with customers thanking the company for their leadership during the pandemic.

Employees at Rebellion Brewery dealt with a few disrespectful customers after implementing their new mask policy Tuesday, but Mark Heise says most people welcome the new requirement. (Libby Giesbrecht/980 CJME)

“Change is hard and I wish some of the governments would move a little faster on making it mandatory but we just felt that we weren’t going to wait for them to make it mandatory, we’d do it ourselves,” Heise said.

Rebellion’s new policy requires customers to wear a mask at all times while visiting its Dewdney Avenue location. The mask can be removed only when a customer is eating or drinking.

To accommodate customers during this transition period, Heise said the company is offering complimentary disposable masks for customers to use during their visit.

Some customers who visited Rebellion’s taproom Tuesday were unaware of the new mask policy.

“(There were) just some folks who were really upset and not willing to follow the process, not willing to use the free masks that we had provided,” Heise explained.

He said now is the time for people to practise kindness and patience with staff at businesses around the city.

“You see a lot of memes and people talking about just (being) kind to one another. Be patient with frontline staff. We’re asking these folks to adopt new policies and change things up on almost a daily basis across all industries,” Heise said.

“If we all just throw on a mask, we’ll probably be able to … keep all our businesses afloat.”

Despite Tuesday’s incident, Heise said the main response to the policy has been positive.

“The support, predominantly, is just so overwhelming,” he said. “I still feel confident it was the right decision.”