Warm weather in B.C. causes spike in convertible sales
Digital Reporter
Tuesday, June 23, 2015, 4:04 PM - Warm and sunny weather in Victoria, B.C. has been great for business.
Tourism is said to be booming -- and some people are willing to spend a substantial amount of money in celebration of the warm weather.
A recent report by CHEK says that convertible sales are "through the roof," and Ed Pierik of Victoria Premium Automobiles links that directly to the climate.
“It just got real warm, real fast and we all said it’s summer all of a sudden and everyone seemed to have the same idea at the same time,” he told the website.
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In May, convertibles made up 70% of the car dealership's sales.
“We started the month of April with about a third of our inventory convertibles and we thought that would be a bit much, but we’ve only got three left and we’re frantically trying to get more for our customers,” he says.
“It’s a daily event now that we sell a convertible and we’re going to run out.”
According to CHEK, scooter sales are also on the upswing, thanks to the warm weather.
HEIGHTENED FIRE RISK
But it isn't all good news.
Hot and dry conditions in parts of B.C. have contributed to an active wildfire season. According to the CBC, B.C.'s Wildfire Management Branch has spent more than $52 million on firefighting so far this year -- 80 per cent of the $63 million that was budgeted for 2015.
B.C.'s South Coast remains abnormally dry, prompting officials to elevate the wildfire risk in that area to extreme.
It's part of a trend that is impacting all of western Canada with farmers in Alberta and Saskatchewan fearing drought conditions, following a lack of snowfall during the winter and an early, warm spring that helped keep the land dry.
