Good morning. Trade threats from the White House are rippling across markets and dominating the final days of the federal election campaign. In Lethbridge, Alta., the owners of an indie bookstore say a growing movement to shop closer to home is helping them turn the page on rising costs and shifting supply chains.
In the news
Telecoms: BCE Inc. is likely to cut its dividend this quarter as the sector continues to face headwinds to growth, according to several analysts.
Philanthropy: A campaign enlisting wealthy families and foundations to fund climate-related causes across Canada has added $76-million in donations, bringing its total to almost $500-million.
Stocks: U.S. President Donald Trump roiled markets by reigniting his public tirade against Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell.
In the know
Heritage for sale
Hudson’s Bay Co. plans to auction off a trove of historic artifacts, including the 1670 charter that launched the company and gave it trading rights over much of what is now Canada. Several government agencies have expressed concern, according to court filings.
- Catch up: Facing insolvency, the company is under court protection and is seeking separate approval to auction the collection, which includes over 4,000 pieces. Items range from Inuit prints to Bay point blankets – and the sale has drawn interest from museums, institutions and private collectors.
- The concern: Experts warn key artifacts could end up in private hands or leave the country. Several government groups have urged more transparency and legal safeguards.
- The rules: Canada’s heritage law can delay exports of culturally significant objects, giving institutions time to match offers. Some hope tax credits for donations will encourage benefactors to keep the charter in public view. Failing that, objects can still leave.
- The pitch: Hudson’s Bay says a public auction is the fairest way to sell the collection. It previously donated thousands of items to Manitoba institutions – but held on to the charter.
Penny and Scott Warris opened Analog Books in 2020.Chris Wilson-Smith/The Globe and Mail
In focus
Plot twist: Business is good
The smaller display cases at Analog Books are mobile. On event nights, they’re pushed to the side to make room for chairs or more people. The fireplace stays. So do the vintage typewriters, the cameras, the wooden canoe suspended from the ceiling. The cats – Hugo and Copper – make their rounds regardless.
Owners Penny and Scott Warris have designed their store and structured their business around the analog ethos. They can’t compete with mass distributors such as Amazon and Costco on prices, so they’ve bet big on something they think will transcend trade disruptions: community.
“We don’t try to match American prices. We don’t try to match Costco or Walmart. It’s impossible,” Scott said. “We compete on experience.”
But even that experience now sits in a more volatile context. With U.S. President Donald Trump threatening tariffs on a wide range of Canadian-bound goods, retailers such as Analog – who source most of their gift and book-related merchandise through U.S. warehouses – are making decisions under new pressure. Several of their suppliers recently warned that price increases are imminent.
“We’ve placed speculative orders over the last few weeks – more than we normally would,” Penny said. “It’s all merchandise that comes through the States. Not necessarily made there, but warehoused there. If tariffs are applied or costs go up, we’d rather not be caught flat-footed.”
Tariffs aren’t currently in place on books, but they would threaten to tear apart a supply chain that has been plotted over decades of free trade between Canada and the United States. The works of many Canadian authors are printed or warehoused in the U.S. “If there’s a disruption, we’ll feel it,” Scott said.
The bookstore can’t quietly adjust for higher input costs. In Canada, most books arrive with the price printed on the back. “That locks us in,” he said. “It makes pricing transparent, but it also limits flexibility.”
Despite that, business is up. In the first quarter of 2025, Analog saw a 25-per-cent increase in transactions compared to the same period last year. More individual customers, often first-time visitors, are explicitly avoiding Amazon, Penny said.
“One woman came in last week and bought a book that was $10 more than online,” she said. “I told her. She didn’t care.”
This is Copper. He and Hugo, both rescue cats, are celebrities. (And not just in their own minds, like most cats.)Chris Wilson-Smith/The Globe and Mail
It’s hard to know how long the Buy Canadian movement will last. But it has also aligned with broader trends in consumer behaviour, particularly in mid-sized cities. As cost pressures mount and supply chains get more complicated, some customers are looking for predictability in other places, the booksellers said. Familiarity. A short walk instead of a long wait. And Lethbridge is seeing a spike in demand from homebuyers in search of that lifestyle as they seek refuge from more expensive regions.
Since opening in December, 2020, Analog Books has become a downtown anchor – hosting poetry readings, author launches, book clubs, even the occasional wedding. The Warrises say they’ve never spent on traditional advertising. Instead, they funnel their marketing budget into local theatre groups, rescue shelters and gift certificates for community events.
“That money stays in town,” Scott said. “And it pays off in other ways.”
Today, the shop is surrounded by signs of growth. An urban revitalization project that had been scheduled for 2026 was accelerated during COVID, and the city’s downtown core has seen a wave of new investment. The couple live in a condo across the street from their shop and are active in bringing new life to the area around them.
From the outset, they were banking on more than book sales. They were betting on physical space as a draw. And as interest in tangible products has quietly returned – vinyl, film photography, even typewriters – they’ve found themselves aligned with a broader shift.
“There’s something to be said for limits,” Scott said. “A record gives you eight or 10 songs. A book doesn’t refresh. You don’t scroll through a shelf.”
That model might not scale. But for a 110,000-person city where commercial rents are still manageable and customers value proximity, it can work.
Charted
The Trump Bump?
The world is growing nervous about U.S. assets, Ian McGugan writes – and for good reason.
Bookmarked
On our reading list
At home: Tariff chaos has made many companies consider moving to the U.S. But some enterprises are going all-in on Canada instead.
On the line: A five-point plan to help Canada’s auto sector survive the Trump era.
In the shop: From shoes and shirts to tables and chairs, mending is one way to save money.
Morning update
Global markets were mixed in muted trading after a furious flight from U.S. assets undermined Wall Street, fuelled by concerns about the independence of the Federal Reserve. Wall Street futures were in positive territory after yesterday’s asset selloff, while TSX futures followed sentiment higher.
Overseas, the pan-European STOXX 600 was down 0.48 per cent in morning trading. Britain’s FTSE 100 was little changed, Germany’s DAX slid 0.44 per cent and France’s CAC 40 gave back 0.4 per cent.
In Asia, Japan’s Nikkei closed 0.17 per cent lower, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng rose 0.78 per cent.
The Canadian dollar traded at 72.25 U.S. cents.