The purchase of a new Wiarton Willie mascot suit is up for discussion on South Bruce Peninsula’s council agenda Tuesday.
A staff recommendation to council says there is $10,000 earmarked for a mascot suit in the Festivals and Events Reserve.
In 2013, the Town purchased the current mascot suit for $5,700.
Given that staff are looking for direction from council before moving forward with the purchase of a new Willie costume, they have yet to present an updated cost estimate.
Staff say the current mascot suit was made by Sugars Mascots and they want to continue with the company which also repairs the current mascot suit, to “maintain the integrity of the Wiarton Willie brand and sustain consistency in the look of the mascot suits.”
They say “Staff is extremely pleased with the service that we receive from Sugars Mascots.”
They’re asking council to allow for the single sourcing to Sugars Mascots for the purchase of the new costume and say if Sugars Mascots is unable to manufacture a new suit, they will seek quotations.
Sugars Mascots handcrafts numerous familiar costumes including, Sauble Beach’s Sunny the Seagull, Owen Sound Police’s Buster, Carlton from the Toronto Maple Leafs, and Ace and Diamond from the Toronto Blue Jays. It’s a family-run company based out of Toronto.
