Local shopper Susan Donald has won $1,500 in Boro gift cards in this spring’s ‘golden goose chase’ scavenger hunt organized by the Peterborough Downtown Business Improvement Area (DBIA).
Running in April and May, the retail incentive program saw 20 golden goose eggs hidden inside downtown retail locations on a rotating schedule. All of the eggs were hand-painted by local artists, with each egg showcasing their own unique style.
Each week the special eggs moved to new shops and stores in the downtown core. Using a mobile app called Goosechase, shoppers took a photo of each egg they found to earn a ballot for a chance to win a $1,500 Boro gift card shopping spree. The more golden eggs they found, the greater their chances of winning.
“I love supporting small businesses and shopping locally because you’re supporting families above all else,” Donald says in a media release. “You get to know the people who you’re buying from, which is so much more meaningful than buying from large corporations.”
There were 200 shoppers who participated in the scavenger hunt, with more than 100 active scavenger hunters.
“It’s been really nice to see people getting excited for the summer and also getting out to explore small businesses and local retailers while having fun in the process,” says Aniket Khera, co-owner of Bhojan, a new Indian grocery store on George Street.
According to the DBIA, many of the participating businesses noticed an increase of foot traffic as shoppers looked for the golden eggs.
“We had one group of friends come into our store, a couple of whom had just moved here from Toronto,” says Gentry Apparel owner Andrew Damiany.
“They had learned about the scavenger hunt and told us they were visiting about six different stores looking for the golden eggs, making purchases along the way as they discovered businesses.”
