A Sarnia rock musician and his wife are helping some local businesses survive the COVID-19 pandemic.
Rodney James and The Riot frontman Rodney Medwid and wife Kendra Petley created the Facebook group 'Supporting Sarnia Businesses During Covid 19' after a friend, a local restaurant owner, expressed concerns about having to shut down.
Medwid said the group was launched April 1 as a way to rally local businesses to share strategies for getting through the pandemic.
"My wife and I were just talking, saying 'well geez, we need to start sharing people's menus and really trying to push what they have,' and then I just all of a sudden had this vision of a Facebook group where it was basically a menu of people's menus."
Medwid said he invited his friends in the beauty and food industry to join, and by month's end the group had ballooned to over 5,000 members, consumers included.
The Calgary-native, who now calls Sarnia home, has been using his musical talents to help promote local businesses.
"I decided to get one live show or two live shows a week, and that was with a video feature of a restaurant right before that. So a real good way for companies to get involved is to allow us to do video features and stuff like that where we can really push their stuff and give positive feedback to the people and members of the group."
Medwid said the promotional service comes without any advertising costs.
"I'm sure that some different media sessions might not like that we're doing free advertising for people, but in this period of time I feel that if we can help people out with an advertising deferral as well, to people who need it, then that would be great because if these guys aren't surviving then no one is surviving."
Medwid said some businesses have been thanking the couple non-stop for creating the page.
He said some have even doubled or tripled their profits.
"At the beginning of this they thought how are we going to pay our bills, and now they're thinking how are we going to keep up, and this is like a crazy jump within three to four weeks, so we're just really honoured to be able to create this for everybody."
Medwid said they'll be releasing a line of hats in May so people can wear the pride of the group, with half of the profits supporting a different charity around Sarnia-Lambton every week.
He also said the gratitude from area businesses involved has been overwhelming.
"I've had a really good life, but this period of time has made me just feel so good, I don't even know if I could feel better -- I could literally die tomorrow a happy man. It has been that intense right now with positivity, and what people have told me and thanked me for, for mine and my wife's work towards the group has just, literally it almost tears me up."
For more information and to join the group, click here.
