A colourful video featuring a snapshot of over 100 downtown businesses is part of the Downtown Victoria Business Association's (DVBA) latest campaign to highlight everything downtown offers while aiming to foster a sense of pride and community.
The idea for We Are Downtown sparked during the 2024 holiday season, when a grassroots movement led by Lili Butterfield, owner of Lower Johnson’s Dancing Lily and LADS, encouraged Victorians to shop local, according to a news release from the DVBA.
Building on the momentum, the DVBA expanded the concept into the project. Over five days, 101 businesses were filmed, "each representing the vibrancy, diversity, and dedication that make downtown Victoria thrive," the release reads.
"We are pleased to launch our We Are Downtown campaign celebrating the amazing people who own and operate downtown’s unique small and medium-sized businesses,” DVBA CEO Jeff Bray said. “In these turbulent times, supporting Canadian businesses is more critical than ever, and downtown has the largest concentration of these local gems in the region."
The campaign aims to deliver a twofold message – that thousands of people work and visit downtown every day and that downtown is more than streets and storefronts; it’s made up of "passionate entrepreneurs, creators, and risk-takers who bring this city to life."
The DVBA stresses that supporting local businesses matters now more than ever, and the campaign is a rallying cry for Victoria residents to shop, dine and visit downtown.
