For the past 12 years Women’s International Gift & Gallery on Dickson Street has provided critical funds for YWCA Cambridge.
That’s set to change early next year after the organization recently announced they’ll be closing its social enterprise in March of 2023.
When the COVID-19 pandemic forced the brick and mortar store to shift to an online operation, it consumed valuable time and resources from the nonprofit. Resources the organization simply can’t afford to allocate to the store any longer, says YWCA Cambridge CEO Kim Decker.
“This increasing burden has been a concern for us as an employer that values decent working conditions and healthy work-life balance for staff,” Decker said in a release.
“It has also forced us as an organization to evaluate where our attention is being placed and where it needs to be placed. As a nonprofit organization whose mission is serving women, girls and gender diverse individuals in the community and pushing for systemic change that ensures everyone enjoys the right to safety and well-being, we fear we risk losing sight of that mission if we continue to put so many resources into operating the store that was only meant to support our work, not be our work.”
As the needs in the community continue to grow and the complexity of their programming evolves, the YWCA Cambridge leadership team and board of directors were forced to make what they called a ‘difficult decision.’
“We simply can't risk our programming to continue operating this store we’ve all come to know and love,” Decker said.
“It has been our pleasure to bring curated items that have promoted women designers, small business owners and entrepreneurs. The enthusiasm and unwavering support has allowed us to generate much-needed funds for the programs and services we offer for cis and trans women and girls, non-binary and two-spirit individuals. For that we are truly grateful.”
Closing the online portion of the store and continuing to run its physical location was at one point under consideration. However, after deliberation it was decided that option wasn’t in the best interest of everyone involved.
“The pandemic has shifted the world of retail and not having an online component to a store is no longer feasible with changing consumer behaviours which increasingly favour online shopping,” Decker said.
Business will continue as usual until the new year with the roll out of the store's fall items. When the calendar flips to 2023, merchandise will be discounted in anticipation of the March 31 closing date.
To learn more about YWCA Cambridge visit ywcacambridge.ca.
