Supporting local is ‘supporting Waterloo’ in times of tariffs

The City of Waterloo is launching a new campaign aimed at getting people to shop local during the heightened trade war with the United States.

It’s a part of the municipality’s 10-point U.S. tariff response plan, which has the goal of supporting residents and businesses through this difficult financial period. In the latest efforts, Prime Minister Mark Carney went to Washington to meet with U.S. President Donald Trump last week, but the talks resulted in no trade deals.

On Wednesday, one of Canada’s largest automotive makers, Stellantis, said it was moving planned production of its Jeep Compass from Ontario to Illinois. The decision comes after Trump imposed tariffs on vehicles and key metals used to produce them in an effort to bring more auto assembly into the country.

With the impacts now hitting closer to home, the City of Waterloo wants to make sure people are focusing their dollars in the local economy.

“This campaign is about more than buying local,” said Justin McFadden, Executive Director of Economic Development, in a release.  “It’s about resilience, innovation and pride in who we are as a community. When people support Waterloo businesses, they are supporting jobs, families and the long-term strength of our community.”

The effort will help businesses to share their stories and connect with the community. Including a toolkit of digital and print materials, like stickers and decals, that businesses can use to highlight their products and services in the area.

Applications will be reviewed by the Economic Development department and eligible businesses will receive instructions to access resources by email.

Region is highly impacted by tariffs

Researchers from the University of Toronto said the numbers show small to mid-sized communities tend to be more heavily affected by the ongoing trade war.

“When it comes to aluminum, urban centres in southern Ontario, including Windsor, Guelph, and Kitchener-Waterloo-Cambridge, all appear near the top of the list,” reads the release.

“The cumulative effect of multiple tariffs is particularly concerning for small and mid-sized cities. For instance, Guelph and Windsor rank among the highest in terms of the proportion of jobs and businesses exposed.”

In communities that are manufacturing hubs or resource-dependent, the tariffs are said to be significantly more impactful. In the tri-cities, Kitchener, Waterloo, and Cambridge, jobs and businesses fall in the top Canadian cities most impacted by these tariffs, at 13.8 per cent.

When broken down to just the tariffs on aluminum and steel, the tri-cities rank even higher compared to other Canadian cities.

With files from CityNews Kitchener’s Christine Clark.