Craig Balentine doesn't care about your politics, nationality or religion.
"If you've come to Kelowna to have fun and you want to rent a scooter (Vespa) then I treat everyone the same and I'll make you feel welcome," said the owner of Kelowna Scooters.
That's exactly the sort of sentiment the Kelowna Chamber of Commerce and Downtown Kelowna Association was looking for when they handed out signs for businesses to put up to welcome American tourists.
"I proudly display the decal in my front window," said Balentine.
Kelowna Scooters is located on the backside of 555 Bernard Ave. in a store front facing Lawrence Avenue.
The Kelowna chamber had the circular decals printed up after it received a call from some potential visitors from the US asking what sort of reception they'd get if they vacationed in Kelowna.
It's a valid question.
Things are tense between Canadians and Americans right now.
We have our backs up after US President Donald Trump's tariffs and 51st-state rhetoric.
But, the Kelowna chamber wants to assure our friends from south of the border that they are appreciated and they are welcome to spend their time and money in the Okanagan.
The decals are fairly small and subtle.
They feature the wording 'A warm Canadian welcome' above the word 'Kelowna' and Canadian and American flags.
Along the bottom the decal states: We share more than just a border.
Kelowna city councillor Maxine DeHart, who is also the sales manager at the Ramada Hotel, has plastered the decals on the hotel's two front doors, its back door and on the entrance to the on-site Mickie's Pub.
"(The decals) are a great idea. I'm really promoting it, not just at the hotel, but all over the place," said DeHart.
"We love it when Americans come up here."
DeHart also had 25 additional decals delivered so she could hand them out to all members of Kelowna city council and any other businesses she talked to.
"I'm going on this really hard," she said.
Even in a regular year, Americans represent less than 10% of the tourists in Kelowna.
Most visitors to Kelowna are the so-called rubber tire crowd, those that drive here from elsewhere in BC and Alberta.
Nonetheless, the chamber and the downtown association felt it was important to urge local businesses to welcome American tourists, especially in these times of bilateral brouhaha.
"From an awareness standpoint, this is a success," said Kelowna chamber CEO George Greenwood.
"We simply dropped most of the decals off to businesses. I honestly couldn't give you a number of how many are displayed, but we handed out a significant number and people are still dropping in to pick them up."
Paula Quinn is the executive director of the Downtown Kelowna Association.
"Some businesses were very excited to receive and display the decals," she said.
"We're doing this because we want Kelowna to be inclusive, not exclusive. That's why we've hit the streets to do this."
You can see the video the chamber and the downtown association shot on decal distribution day here:
