Skip to content

Union Jack flags flying off the shelves at local shops

'It’s been overwhelming. We’re printing again all weekend,' says Cecilia Burke, CEO of the Flag Store, with operations in Barrie and Thornton

Union Jack flags are flying off the shelves ahead of Queen Elizabeth II’s funeral Monday.

“It’s been overwhelming. We’re printing again all weekend,” said Cecilia Burke, CEO of the Flag Store, with operations in both Barrie and Thornton. “It’s been sombre. The customers who come in, they like to tell their story, of what they’re feeling about the funeral and the monarchy and the Queen’s passing.

“It’s been nice to tell you the truth because we’ve had quite a few customers that come in at the same time and they like to talk to each other. It’s been a bit of healing, and grieving together. It’s been a nice experience, but a sad experience," she added. 

The Flag Store has a variety of Union Jack choices, Burke said, such as ones for flagpoles, car flags and small ones for the garden.

So does Flags Unlimited in Barrie, which offers Union Jacks that are nine by 19 inches, 12 inches by 24 and 18 by 36 inches, said account manager Sachin Leumas.

“Everybody who’s actually walked in has picked up the Union Jack,” he said, “and there have been lots of calls as well. They’re selling a little more today than they do normally.”

Burke said demand for Union Jacks ramped up just before the Queen’s death on Thursday, Sept. 8.

“That day, even when it was announced she was ill, we started getting phone calls,” she said. “‘Can we come and get a Union Jack flag.’ ‘So do you have any in stock?’ 

“Of course, it’s probably our fourth most popular, all-time flag, anyways, so we have a good supply all the time. Canadian, Ontario (which includes a Union Jack in its upper corner), USA and then Union Jack, those are the four top ones.”

And Burke has a special connection to the monarchy, and Queen Elizabeth II.

“I was very fortunate, I was invited to a garden party (at Buckingham Palace) back in the late '90s, so it’s emotional to me, too,” she said. “The Queen was there.”

The Flag Store has been around for 55 years in Thornton, Burke said, now making the flags in Barrie, selling them in Thornton and Barrie.

“We do our own printing and our own sewing in here, since day-one, since my parents started the company,” she said.

Queen Elizabeth's funeral will be marked in Canada with a national holiday, which means federal employees will have the day off work.

In Ontario, Premier Doug Ford has announced Monday will be a ‘day of mourning’ to mark the funeral, with a moment of silence at 1 p.m. Eastern Time.