Dear Parents and Guardians: (From McCarthy's)

Just wanted to reach out and give you an update on what is transpiring after the provincial announcement regarding “Back to School”. The majority of families have been holding off purchasing their school uniforms as they did not know what to expect and what “Back to School 2020” would look like.

We are now at max capacity for Reserved Appointment Bookings. We will be moving to a walk in service model as per our usual – First come, First served bases starting August 15. We are now open 7 days a week with extended hours. We anticipate a busier then usual August and most likely into September as well. Following the social distancing practises and rules set out by the government we can only accommodate so many people in the stores at one time so we are anticipating longer lines and wait times at our retail locations. There is also our Call Center Option for uniform shopping along with our updated and user friendly website with added features such as a Live Chat Line, videos on How to Measure your Student, Product and Student Sizing Charts. Our call centre has been staffed accordingly and we are moving calls through at a rate of less then 30 minutes wait time. All on-line orders will be shipped with a prepaid return label just in case there is a need to do a size exchange or return. At this time our On-Line Ordering Option is the best tool to order your school uniform, we understand there is some resistance from parents to shop on-line with uncertainty in sizing and fit but the added features listed above will aid and help assist with this ordering process. On-line parents can also take advantage of our new Sezzle payment plan that we just introduced. I have included an attachment with information and details of this new exciting partnership and payment option for families. Basically “ Your entire online order will be split into 4 interest-free payments scheduled over a 6 week period.

We have put together some more communication templates to update your school community on what is happening at MU. There is a social media tile that you can post on your school website, there is also a summary poster attached that can also be posted on your website with direct links to our website. You can also use the Summary Poster as a letter to eblast or post at the school. These tools might help answer some of the questions that may be brought to your attention from your parent community. I am hoping you will be able to assist us in passing along this messaging at this very unique and challenging time.

Thanking you in advance for your assistance.

Deb Ross
McCarthy's