Statistics Canada says retail sales in March reached $55.3 billion. That’s a 26.7 per cent increase over the same month a year earlier. It was the largest increase on record for the sector due in part to the sharp declines seen at the onset of the COVID -19 pandemic in March 2020.

Strong sales of motor vehicles in March, coupled with sharp declines at the onset of the pandemic a year earlier, resulted in record growth on a year-over-year basis for the product category at about 75 per cent.

Because consumers were stockpiling food in March of 2020, food sales posted the largest decline in the sector in March, down 8.4 per cent, year over year.

Home improvement remained a fixture of the pandemic, resulting in record sales of hardware, tools, and renovation and lawn and garden products, rising about 60 per cent compared with the same month a year prior.

Many non-essential products saw strong growth in the month, including recreational vehicles up about 112 per cent; bicycles and biking equipment and accessories up about 107 per cent; golf equipment up about 297 per cent; and hunting, fishing and camping equipment up about 32 per cent.