Know your neighbourhood
Real data on who visits Vanier, when they come, and what they spend on — so you can plan hours, staffing and promotions with confidence.
What is Main Street Metrics?
A free dashboard the Vanier BIA provides to its members. It shows real data about who comes to Vanier, when they visit, where they come from, and what they spend money on. You don't need to be a marketing expert — it's built to be simple and visual.
What you can learn
Five questions the dashboard answers — and what to do with the answer.
Who is visiting Vanier
How many people come each month, the busiest days, and the busiest times. Use it to plan hours, staffing and promotions.
Where visitors come from
Are customers local or travelling in? Decide whether to market to the neighbourhood or a wider area.
Who your customers are
Age, household size, income range and lifestyle of people who live and shop here. Check your products match what the community needs.
What people spend money on
Estimated spending on food, retail and services in the area. Spot gaps your business could fill.
How to reach them
Which social platforms are most popular in Vanier and how people like to get information. Stop guessing — post where it works.
How to use it
Choose a section
Start on Home for the latest highlights, then pick one:
Read the highlights
Each section opens with a plain-language summary at the top. Start there before the charts.
Questions merchants ask
Is this tool free to use?
Yes, completely. The Main Street Metrics Dashboard is included at no cost with your Vanier BIA membership. No subscription, no credit card. You'll just need the login the BIA provides.
Do I need to be a marketing expert?
Not at all. The dashboard is visual and easy to read. Each section includes plain-language summaries that explain what the data means. If you can read a chart, you can use this tool.
Does it show data about my specific business?
No — and that's intentional. It shows neighbourhood-wide trends, not individual business performance. This protects everyone's privacy while still giving you useful insights.
How current is the data?
Visitor and foot traffic data is refreshed regularly, and demographic data is updated once a year. The highlights at the top of this page show the latest period available. The dashboard is most useful for spotting patterns over time, not reacting to a single week.
Is it available in French or other languages?
The dashboard is currently in English. If you have questions about the data, reach out — we're happy to walk you through it in the language you're most comfortable with.
How can this actually help my business?
Knowing Friday is the busiest day could help you schedule staff. Knowing most visitors are local might mean flyers outperform a broad social ad. Seeing high but underserved food spending could shape your menu or offerings.
Is my customers' personal information in it?
No. All data is anonymized and grouped together. No individual people, devices or businesses are identified.
Can I use the data in my own marketing?
Yes. Charts can be downloaded as images for social posts, grant applications, presentations or newsletters. Just add a short note explaining what the chart shows.
Where should I start?
Start with the Home tab. It shows the same highlights as the top of this page: total visits, busiest day and busiest time. Then open Visitors to see who's coming and where from.