Food trucks are fine so why not clothes trucks, Penticton vendor asks
City council to deliberate issue at Oct. 18 meeting
Mobile vendors aren't just for tacos or hot dogs anymore: in Penticton, at least, one woman is hoping you'll buy clothes from one too.
However, Chic Mobile Boutique owner Tracy Lloyd says her mobile clothes shop is in jeopardy because of a licensing issue with the city.
She says staff originally directed her to buy a mobile vending permit for her shop — which would allow her to park in about a dozen places in the city — but regulations changed and the mobile vending permit was restricted to food businesses only.
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"Now I am no longer eligible to have a vending permit because I don't sell food," Lloyd told Radio West host Audrey McKinnon. "They gave me the business licence, so I can sell but I can't park anywhere in town unless somebody has a parking lot, owns the property and says, 'yes, you can park here.'"
She says with summer markets in the area closed for the year, she has few channels for her wares. She says she only gets out three or four times a month selling clothes at private parties and makes a little money selling items online.
Staff report outlines concerns
Lloyd wants Penticton to change its mobile vending laws to allow her business to operate in the same places food trucks can. The city will consider her request at an upcoming council meeting.
A staff report on the issue calls mobile vendors "controversial" and notes several concerns with allowing mobile non-food vendors to operate, saying such businesses don't pay property taxes, might impact downtown businesses and might have an effect on parking.
"Brick-and-mortar operations believe the trucks offer unfair competition as their overhead is lower so they can charge lower prices and still earn a profit," the report reads.
Lloyd insists her business won't impact brick-and-mortar businesses because she will operate some distance away from them.
"They made these [mobile business parking] spots, like, over by the Rose Garden or down by Skaha Beach, where I'm not near any brick and mortars," she said. "My whole point is I want to be just like a food truck, except … for clothes."
Council will discuss the staff report Oct. 18.
With files from CBC Radio One's Radio West
To hear the full story, click the audio labelled: Food trucks are fine, so why not clothes trucks, Penticton vendor asks