Mastercard to Begin Rollout of Shopping Experiences Supporting Small Businesses | PYMNTS.com

Mastercard will launch an immersive shopping experience in Fort Langley, British Columbia, Canada, that aims to support small businesses.

The shopping experience will include a storybook created by Mastercard as well as local stores’ storefront displays and in-store art installations that are tied to the book and help tell parts of the story, the company said in a Monday (Nov. 25) press release.

In addition, visitors who make a purchase at participating businesses will be given a free wooden puzzle piece that features one of the town’s landmarks and helps create a townscape when all eight pieces are collected, according to the release.

The Fort Langley shopping experience will be offered from Saturday (Nov. 30) to Dec. 15, the release said.

It is the first of several shopping experiences that Mastercard plans to roll out across North America in 2025 and beyond, per the release.

“When we shop local, we’re not just buying a product or service, we’re supporting the dreams and ambitions of small business owners,” Nishant Raina, vice president, small and medium-sized enterprises, Mastercard, Canada, said in the release. “Our commitment extends beyond payments, to providing access to tools, resources, funding opportunities and partnerships to help businesses thrive because when small businesses win, everyone wins.”

This announcement follows Mastercard’s launch of some other new efforts to support small businesses.

On Nov. 12, the company introduced a new platform designed to help financial and service providers offer their small business customers a way to consolidate the digital tools they use to run and grow their businesses.

The Mastercard Biz360 platform provides a “one-stop shop” that allows business owners to access new features while also integrating their existing digital tools. The integration requires only minimal effort from the providers and their small business customers.

In September, Mastercard invited women entrepreneurs in Canada to apply to receive grants and access to mentorships and networking opportunities designed to help them grow and scale their businesses.

The program, for which this year’s application period is now closed, was the third such Mastercard x Pier Five Small Business Fund and followed previous editions offered in 2022 and 2023.

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