BIA rolls out supports as Exeter’s Main Street reconstruction begins

Exeter BIA logo

By Dan Rolph

Two years of reconstruction is expected to cause disruptions on Exeter’s Main Street, but the Exeter Business Improvement Area (BIA) is working to help local businesses through the challenges that come with heavy roadwork.

Exeter BIA manager Caroline Hill said there are nervous feelings in the local business community as construction season kicks off. She compared the expected impacts of Main Street’s reconstruction to 2024, when the street was torn up in Exeter’s north end.

Hill said businesses around that reconstruction project saw as much as a 20 per cent drop in revenue, while businesses at the south end also took a noticeable hit.

“Regardless of how much publicity there is that businesses are open, it is a hit to the bottom line,” she said. “That’s why the BIA is really trying to encourage people to continue to navigate through those difficult situations and support local.

“Our businesses are looking at having back-to-back effects from Main Street reconstruction. It’s going to take some time to try and come out of that situation. Supporting local is more important now than ever.”

One strategy the BIA has created to combat the impacts of construction is the BIA Bucks program. Introduced in March and supported by a Community Futures Huron grant, the new program functions like gift certificates, allowing shoppers to use BIA Bucks to make purchases at more than 20 local businesses.

Hill said the new program is a way to support local businesses, and that the BIA is already working to expand the list of businesses accepting BIA Bucks.

“The response from businesses accepting them has been fabulous,” said Hill. “They make great gifts.”

BIA Bucks can be purchased at Exeter’s Libro Credit Union branch, and a full list of locations accepting BIA Bucks is available on the Exeter BIA website.

Hill said the BIA is also looking to help local businesses cope with construction through the expanded use of social media.

“It’s amazing how social media can bring people from London and from outside communities when they are looking at a place to stop,” she said. “It’s interesting to see some of the TikTok videos of seeing people just passing through South Huron.

“That is a way of generating some new business, or also expanding online businesses as people from Sarnia or Windsor may decide to hop on a website and support a local business.”

The Exeter BIA is hosting the Hard Hats and Hashtags Breakfast on April 29 from 8 a.m. to 9:30 a.m., providing an opportunity for local businesses to learn more about expanding their social media presence.

The breakfast will begin with presentations from the Huron Business Centre and the BIA about how they plan to support businesses through the Main Street reconstruction, followed by an hour-long presentation and interactive workshop with Emily Baillie, a marketing strategist who focuses on AI adoption.

“It’s a great opportunity for people to see what kinds of tools are still in people’s toolbelts,” said Hill. “One of the best things to do is trying to increase social media reach, and that online presence through a website.”

Some of the topics Baillie will cover include the use of Canva and AI, social media trends of 2026 and more.

Tickets to the breakfast cost $35 and can be purchased by calling 226-423-3028, or by emailing info@exeterbia.com.