Trinos Menswear offers new online store amid COVID pandemic

Like many businesses during the COVID-19 pandemic, Trinos Menswear have had to make some changes to keep making sales.

“It’s definitely been one of the biggest trials I’ve been through for a long time. Business is still happening but it’s definitely slow in comparison to most years,” said owner Trina Johnson. “We’re just trying to get by, keep the lights on and keep things going. People have been very supportive coming in and shopping local, which we really appreciate.”

In order to help increase sales, which dropped as low as 20 per cent of what a normal month would be, Trinos Menswear created an online store, which launched a few weeks ago.

“That was the difficult thing with this pandemic. I love being hands-on with my clients and friends that come in. I love people being able to touch and feel and see the garment. I’ve always been that face-to-face type person but since the pandemic (moving online) was an extra cost during this time when we all don’t need extra costs,” Johnson said.

But the results haven’t been as strong as Johnson would have liked thus far.

“It definitely could get a little bit better, but we’re just starting to work on how can we market this, how can we let people know we’re online?” Johnson said.

December has been a better month for the store, with sales now just under 50 per cent what they would normally see.

“A normal Christmas is usually, the week or two before Christmas, we definitely pick up and it’s usually quite steady. We haven’t had that happen as of yet, where we’re worried about too may people coming in the store or anything like that,” Johnson said.

She said she has people looking into the government support that could help them out during the pandemic.

While times are tough for many, she’s glad people have still found the time and ability to support local businesses.

“It means everything that we can keep the lights on and keep things going through this pandemic.”