COVID-19 Market changes

During COVID-19, the Thunder Bay Country Market has made a number of changes to ensure the safety of our vendors and customers:

  • we are counting all customers to ensure we manage appropriate capacity to allow for safe distancing
  • we are requiring all customers to use hand sanitizer upon entering
  • As of July 25, all customers and vendors will be required to wear masks as per the Thunder Bay District Health Unit directive
  • we have re-laid out the downstairs of the Market to be one-way directional and ask all customers to respect the flow.
    As upstairs has more available space with wide aisles, there are no set directions, however we ask everyone to respect social distancing
  • the majority of downstairs booths have plexiglass installed in front for vendor and customer safety
  • Wednesdays will be reopening on August 12 from 3:30 – 6:30 weekly.
  • We have added appropriately distanced tables upstairs to our dining room. We also have more outdoor picnic tables. There is currently no dining space downstairs.
Review the Market's Mandatory Mask Policy

As of Saturday July 25, customers will be required to wear a mask to attend the Market, as per the direction of the Thunder Bay District Health Unit.

For more information about the directive, please see the Health Unit’s information page

This page is updated frequently to reflect the continual changes the Market is making to be adaptive to the changing environment that COVID presents.

Please refer back regularly.

Last updated: Friday, July 31, 2020

Frequently Asked Questions

Are all vendors accepting payment by cards?

The majority of vendors now have tap or debit/credit options available.
However, some of our vendors are still cash-based.

There are also 2 ATMs on site – 1 in the back foyer and 1 in the front foyer.
Note there is a $3 charge to use the ATMs.
Revenue from the ATMs helps support Market operations.

Can I bring my own bags? What about returning bottles and jars?

Yes, we continue to encourage the use of your own bags. The vendor will place your items next to the plexiglass and you can put it in your own bag.

You may continue to return bottles from Slate River Dairy and jam jars to the relevant jam makers (H&P Jams, A Little of This, Head Acre Farms) and honey jars to Bears, Bees & Honey as well as maple syrup bottles to Nor’Wester Maple Co.

As Kumbaya Kombucha has closed their business, we can no longer accept those bottles back, however they may be eligible for Beer Store returns.

We cannot currently accept egg cartons back.

How has the layout changed?

This is a continually evolving process as we try to adapt to the “new normal”.

We have hung plexiglass barriers in front of each downstairs booth.

The booths have been rearranged so that only 1 vendor is in each section. We have less vendors and more space per vendor.

The Market Store has now moved into the main downstairs area.

Customers will enter through the front doors and exit through the back, stopping to visit outdoor vendors and then head back to the parking lot.

The dining room upstairs has reopened, however downstairs dining has not yet reopened. There is also a picnic table area behind the building for many seating options.

Upstairs reopened on July 4. We now have 20 upstairs vendors that have reopened.

For a list of vendors see Our Vendors

Will the Online Market Store return?

The Online Store was an important pivot during the initial crisis, which allowed the Market and the majority of our vendors to continue to sell directly to customers. We are so pleased with the strong support we received from orders each week.

As the Market reopened and as Ontario moved into Phase 3, the demand for the Online Store was no longer there. While we understand some customers are not comfortable returning, at this time we do not have an online option.

We encourage you to connect directly with your favourite vendors to purchase their products (some offer home delivery) or to shop through Superior Seasons, run by Belluz Farms, which has a wide selection of our vendors’ products available on their site. They offer local delivery as well as contactless pickup.