IT’S been a tough few months for Canberra businesses trying to navigate the woes of lockdown, but from this week many will be getting their doors back open to service the community with fully stocked shelves and welcoming faces.

To celebrate, “CityNews” spoke with a variety of businesses who are excited to re-open to the ACT region.

Comfortable and stylish vegan shoes

A PODIATRIST of 30 years, Dr Mark Clayton, from NAOT of Canberra, says he has a new range of comfortable and stylish vegan shoes available for purchase.

“Vegan shoes can be hard to find, but the shoes we have in store now are not made from any animal products and come in all different styles, sizes and colours,” he says.

They’re just the start of Dr Clayton’s extensive range of NAOT footwear, a brand he says is ethically crafted and of “exceptional” quality.

“They call them shoes of peace, with each pair a product of collaboration,” says a NAOT spokesperson.

“Crafted by hand, through the combined efforts of people from different cultures and backgrounds, NAOT shoes are ethically made using sustainable methods with materials of the highest quality.“Fine Italian leathers and its signature insoles, combined with advanced designs, make for an unparalleled combination of quality, fashion and comfort.”

For those wanting to browse Canberra’s biggest range of NAOT shoes, Dr Clayton recommends calling ahead to book an appointment.

NAOT of Canberra, 1/151 Cowper Street, Dickson, and 1/37 Heard Street, Mawson. Call 6262 8383 or visit naotofcanberra.com.au

Sandy’s got toys to keep pets out of mischief

SANDY Borgo at Charlie and Chums knows all too well the mischief that pets cause when left alone and unsupervised.

“Either you go away or you start working more and you notice [them getting naughty],” she says.

“One of our dogs used to dig holes in the backyard, so I would hide treats in a Kong toy,” she says.

In stock at Charlie and Chums, Sandy says customers will find Kong brand squeaky balls, signature balls, balls with an extreme bounce, as well as treat toys like Lock It and Wobblers that are “fun for the animals, and they’re easy to bash around.”

Sandy believes that people like Kong because it’s a known brand, it’s stronger than others and owners are comfortable leaving their pets with it because of its good quality.

As Canberrans return to work, Sandy couldn’t recommend occupying their pets still at home with distractions highly enough.

“If you put something there, it keeps the pet interested rather than getting into naughtiness,” she says.

Charlie and Chums, Shop 1, 103 South Point, Tuggeranong. Call 0402 097580, email charlienandchums@bigpond.com or visit charlieandchums.com.au

The one-stop electric scooter shop

NATIONAL retail operations manager of Scooter Hut Daniel Abbott says that electric scooters are getting more attention than ever, and it’s not just among scooter enthusiasts.

He explains that people who have never thought about riding an electric scooter for commute purposes before are showing a lot of interest in the range.

“We choose only to stock the best, most recognisable and quality brands in the market,” says Daniel.

“When talking about electric scooters, we should definitely name one of the best electric scooters in the market: InMotion ‘Lemotion’ S1.”

“The innovative features, speed, range and competitive price has positioned it within the space of only a few months as the world’s number one electric scooter.”

That’s only the start of the range at Scooter Hut, says Daniel, with the store offering freestyle, pro and electric scooters, as well as protective gear, spare parts, apparel and accessories.

And, having started in 2008, Scooter Hut now has 11 retail stores with fully equipped service centres across Australia.

“Our experienced customer service team can assist all our customers in any part of their journey,” says Daniel.

Scooter Hut, Shop 2/31 Nettlefold Street, Belconnen. Call 6176 0565, email info@scooterhut.com.au, visit scooterhut.com.au or search ScooterHut on Instagram and Facebook.

Get close to friendly, free-flying birds

THE birds are back and ready to interact at the Canberra Walk-in Aviary, says owner and manager Mick Logan.

Although they’ll be operating under some covid restrictions, Mick says Canberrans are now able to get up close and personal with more than 500 native and exotic birds representing more than 60 different species.

“Regents, princess parrots, superb parrots, cockatiels, lorikeets, doves, quails, even silkie bantams are just some of the species people can get close to,” says Mick.

“In the wild there are some birds like king parrots and crimson rosellas, which can be quite tame and interactive, but the closest you could get is a couple of metres,” he says.

“Here though, the birds will land on you and take food right from your hand!”

Mick says that upon entry every visitor gets a small plate of food to take in with them to feed the birds.

The aviary also provides heaps of photo opportunities, with visitors always snapping great pictures with the brightly coloured locals, he says.

“It’s great fun for all ages,” says Mick.

“We’ve had newborns visit the aviary all the way up to a 101 year-old.

“Some people like to visit for about 30 minutes, others sit for hours enjoying the atmosphere.”

And for those making a trip from a while away, he says the surrounding Gold Creek Village has plenty of other attractions to enjoy including cafes and gift shops.

“Come to the aviary and make a day of it in Gold Creek Village,” he says.

“It’s a great experience and a great atmosphere.”

Canberra Walk-in Aviary, Unit 13, Federation Square, O’Hanlon Place, Nicholls. Call 6230 2044 or visit canberrawalkinaviary.com.au

Leading in emergency response training

AS the industry leader for emergency response training, Ferst Training Solutions has a focus on safety throughout the whole year, says director Gary Cheeseman.

“Our training gives people the skills to not only keep themselves safe but anyone who visits their workplace or facility,” he says.

“Ferst in… Safely out!”, is the catchphrase that drives the team behind Ferst Training Solutions, which offers specialised emergency response training to workplaces in the ACT and NSW.

Since 2007, the family-run business has offered a range of courses to workplaces including: training of emergency response teams; emergency response chief wardens and wardens; general staff training; fire extinguisher use training and building evacuation training.

“We endeavour to give people the skills so when something does go wrong, they have the tools to get out of that situation safely,” he says.

All trainers have been in operational positions, in fields including the military, fire services or emergency services, meaning they have real-life experience in dealing with many situations, Gary says.

“Our training is practical and procedural,” he says.

Ferst Training Solutions. Visit ferst.com.au or call 1300 333778.

Nursery reopens with 900 species of plants

OWNER of Cool Country Natives Karen Brien says she is grateful for the support of her customers during lockdown and is excited to be back open.

“We’re flat out with the gates open which is lovely, and while we have a lot of people coming through, we’re still adhering to covid restrictions,” she says.

Cool Country Natives carries about 900 different species and has starter plants in tiny square pots (tube stock) that Karen says you won’t find at other nurseries.

“It’s grevillea season, they’re flowering, westringias are flowering, all the daisies are flowering, phebalium, prostanthera and eremophila, they’re all flowering and it’s not too late for planting,” she says.

While Cool Country Natives have been incredibly busy, Karen says she’s pleased to be open again and that her staff have been “fabulous” during this time.

“Everybody’s [getting plants] because they missed out on 10 weeks of being able to come in, they’re just catching up,” she says.

Cool Country Natives, 5A Beltana Road, Pialligo. Call 6257 6666, email retail@coolcountrynatives.com.au or visit coolcountrynatives.com.au

Furniture store opens at a new location

TONY Purdy, owner of Timberland furniture, says he still has the same stock of bedroom settings, dining room suites, TV units, lounge room settings, coffee tables and lounges, but at a new location, 100 Barrier Street, Fyshwick.

“We can customise furniture,” says Tony, “our furniture represents value for money, we’re not the most expensive in town, but we’re not the cheapest, either, because we mainly concentrate on Australian hardwoods, but our prices are competitive.”

Tony is keen to reopen and see people face-to-face again, but it will also be good for business.

“People won’t buy our furniture online, you have to see it and touch it to judge whether or not it’s good value,” says Tony.

“If we’ve got a powerpoint that’s working, a desk to put our eftpos terminal on and one piece of furniture in the shop, I’m open. I’m not waiting for it to be fully fitted and beautifully exhibited, we’re opening as soon as we put furniture on the floor,” he says.

Timberland Furniture, 100 Barrier Street, Fyshwick. Call 6280 7411, email timberlandfyshwick@gmail.com or visit timberlandfurniture.com

Delivering quality windows, fast

MORE than 15 years ago, in a small factory, with a staff of five, Skyview Windows was created with the vision to supply quality products in the shortest possible lead times, says managing director Neil Thompson.

“The company mantra from day one was ‘Quality Windows, Fast’,” says Neil.

Since then, Skyview has grown and about 12 years ago expanded to a 2500sqm factory in High Street, Queanbeyan.

Neil says part of Skyview’s success is being able to work closely with customers and suppliers to ensure consistency in quality and supply is maintained.

Using dedicated, local people, Neil says all windows and doors are manufactured to Australian standards.

“All windows and doors are manufactured from a mixture of local and imported raw materials to ensure cost competitiveness and, unlike the major window companies, all the profits stay right here,” he says.

“Skyview is the only window company able to supply any powdercoat colour with no cost premium involved.

“This allows our customers to mix and match colour schemes for their houses without having to stick to the six standard colours our competitors offer.”

Earlier this year Skyview launched the “Texturer” colour range. Starting with “black” and “monument”, the Texturer colour range significantly reduces marks and blemishes on the powder coat finish.

Skyview Windows, 77 High Street. Call 6232 9977.