Suzanne Quintal didn't know it at first, but the owner of Honey Hi Boutique on Bank Street was in for a big surprise. A cash mob, organized by Meridian Credit Union, gave her thousands of dollars.
"Just trying to raise the spirits of local businesses here in Ottawa," said Yasser Ghazi, Meridian Director and Team Lead of Commercial Services. "We're actually doing a Cash Mob, where we are spending about $1,000 in store and then we're giving the rest in a cheque." "So what we've organized is we've got a group of people that are all going to go into these businesses, they're all going to spend about $80," explained Joel Ayotte, Meridian Senior Manager of Marketing Lines of Business.
About a dozen secret shoppers entered the store, two at a time to not be too obvious, made their purchases and then left. "Honestly, I'm a little overwhelmed right now," said Quintal, owner of Honey Hi Boutique. "At lunchtime shopping definitely has gone up because people are looking for something to do. But that, with Meridian, having like 30 people in there at once. I was like, 'Oh, maybe it's the rain. They want to get out of the rain.
"I like that we were able to surprise small business owners and encourage them. So I'm definitely going to be coming back here to shop for my friends and my mom," said Raphael Ezema, another secret shopper."It's nice to be appreciated for sure. It’s a lot of hard work."