Luxury merchants bullish as Alta. economy revs up
CBC News
Posted: Jun 10, 2011 12:12 PM MT
Last Updated: Jun 10, 2011 12:12 PM MT
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Alberta led the country in job growth over the last 12 months, according to data released on Thursday, and some sectors of Calgary's business community are showing signs of that economic bounce-back.
Statistics Canada reported that 8,500 Albertans found work in May, dropping the unemployment rate to 5.4 per cent from 5.9 per cent in April.
Statistics Canada says employment grew by 2.8 per cent in Alberta over the last year, the fastest growth rate in the country.
One obvious sign of consumer confidence is a temporary showroom set up in Calgary by a Rolls Royce dealer from Vancouver. Andrew Mortimer-Lamb hopes to sell four of the half-million-dollar cars in Calgary.
"We feel it's a nice, great market to be in," he said. "There's certainly a lot of people in Calgary that have bought Bentleys and drive Ferraris. This is automotive art, it's very special, it's an iconic brand."
Customers at the upscale wine shop Metrovino are getting back into the habit of spending hundreds of dollars on a bottle, according to the store's Al Drinkle.
"What we're seeing now is the return of a higher average bottle price and the embracing of the purchase of more expensive wine."
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