Business gaps explorer

Which kinds of business are thin on the ground in each Dufferin community, compared with the county as a whole? 7 indications across 8 municipalities, sorted by score.

Indications only, not market studies. These are indications only, not market studies. A missing business does not mean there is demand for one: residents may happily shop in the next town, online, or not need it at all. OpenStreetMap is volunteer-mapped and incomplete, especially in rural townships. Do your own research and talk to the contacts listed before you invest.

Mulmur · Services

Hair salon / barber

46score

Indication only Confidence: medium None mapped locally

Mapped in Mulmur: 0
At the county rate: about 1.3 (1 per 2,650 residents)
Population, 2021: 3,571
StatCan, with employees: 0 vs about 2.9 supports
Nearest alternative: Changes Hair Studio, Shelburne, ~14.3 km

OpenStreetMap lists 0 in Mulmur (data as of 2026-10-18). At the Dufferin County rate (about 1 per 2,650 residents, 25 county-wide), Mulmur's 3,571 residents would match about 1.3. Nearest listed: Changes Hair Studio (Shelburne), about 14.3 km from the middle of the township in a straight line. Statistics Canada business counts (January 2026, locations with employees) list 0 in NAICS 8121 'Personal care services' in Mulmur, vs about 2.9 at the county rate: this supports the indication.

Industry & workforce Verified fact

Construction employs 13.6% of the labour force living in Mulmur, vs 11.3% county-wide and 7.3% in Ontario.

Share of the employed labour force living in the area (by place of residence), 2021 Census. Source: Statistics Canada, 2021 (income: 2020).

NAICS 23: 28 locations with employees in Mulmur. Median wages (ER3540): Electricians (NOC 72200) $36 · Plumbers (NOC 72300) $32.5 · Carpenters (NOC 72310) $32.5.

NOC = National Occupational Classification, Canada's standard job codes used for wage data. NAICS = North American Industry Classification System, the standard industry codes used for business counts. Codes link to the official Statistics Canada definitions (NOC 2021 Version 1.0, NAICS Canada 2022 Version 1.0).

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Mulmur · Retail

Car dealer

43score

Indication only Confidence: low None mapped locally

Mapped in Mulmur: 0
At the county rate: about 1.1 (1 per 3,155 residents)
Population, 2021: 3,571
StatCan, with employees: 0 vs about 0.7 inconclusive
Nearest alternative: Trillium Ford Lincoln Ltd. – Shelburne, Mono, ~12.1 km

OpenStreetMap lists 0 in Mulmur (data as of 2026-10-18). At the Dufferin County rate (about 1 per 3,155 residents, 21 county-wide), Mulmur's 3,571 residents would match about 1.1. Nearest listed: Trillium Ford Lincoln Ltd. – Shelburne (Mono), about 12.1 km from the middle of the township in a straight line. Statistics Canada business counts (January 2026, locations with employees) list 0 in NAICS 4411 'Automobile dealers' in Mulmur, vs about 0.7 at the county rate.

Industry & workforce Verified fact

Retail trade employs 7.7% of the labour force living in Mulmur, vs 11.6% county-wide and 10.8% in Ontario.

Share of the employed labour force living in the area (by place of residence), 2021 Census. Source: Statistics Canada, 2021 (income: 2020).

NAICS 44-45: 10 locations with employees in Mulmur. Median wages (ER3540): Retail salespersons and visual merchandisers (NOC 64100) $17.6 · Cashiers (NOC 65100) $17.6 · Retail sales supervisors (NOC 62010) $19.36.

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Mulmur · Services

Bank / credit union

43score

Indication only Confidence: medium None mapped locally

Mapped in Mulmur: 0
At the county rate: about 1.1 (1 per 3,155 residents)
Population, 2021: 3,571
StatCan, with employees: 0 vs about 0.8 supports
Nearest alternative: Scotiabank, Shelburne, ~13.6 km

OpenStreetMap lists 0 in Mulmur (data as of 2026-10-18). At the Dufferin County rate (about 1 per 3,155 residents, 21 county-wide), Mulmur's 3,571 residents would match about 1.1. Nearest listed: Scotiabank (Shelburne), about 13.6 km from the middle of the township in a straight line. Statistics Canada business counts (January 2026, locations with employees) list 0 in NAICS 5221 'Depository credit intermediation' in Mulmur, vs about 0.8 at the county rate: this supports the indication.

Industry & workforce Verified fact

Construction employs 13.6% of the labour force living in Mulmur, vs 11.3% county-wide and 7.3% in Ontario.

Share of the employed labour force living in the area (by place of residence), 2021 Census. Source: Statistics Canada, 2021 (income: 2020).

NAICS 23: 28 locations with employees in Mulmur. Median wages (ER3540): Electricians (NOC 72200) $36 · Plumbers (NOC 72300) $32.5 · Carpenters (NOC 72310) $32.5.

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Mulmur · Retail

Grocery store

41score

Indication only Confidence: low None mapped locally

Mapped in Mulmur: 0
At the county rate: about 1 (1 per 3,487 residents)
Population, 2021: 3,571
StatCan, with employees: 1 vs about 1.7 inconclusive
Nearest alternative: Foodland, Shelburne, ~13.6 km

OpenStreetMap lists 0 in Mulmur (data as of 2026-10-18). At the Dufferin County rate (about 1 per 3,487 residents, 19 county-wide), Mulmur's 3,571 residents would match about 1.0. Nearest listed: Foodland (Shelburne), about 13.6 km from the middle of the township in a straight line. Statistics Canada business counts (January 2026, locations with employees) list 1 in NAICS 4451 'Grocery and convenience retailers' in Mulmur, vs about 1.7 at the county rate.

Industry & workforce Verified fact

Retail trade employs 7.7% of the labour force living in Mulmur, vs 11.6% county-wide and 10.8% in Ontario.

Share of the employed labour force living in the area (by place of residence), 2021 Census. Source: Statistics Canada, 2021 (income: 2020).

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Mulmur · Services

Beauty / nail / spa

39score

Indication only Confidence: medium None mapped locally

Mapped in Mulmur: 0
At the county rate: about 0.9 (1 per 3,897 residents)
Population, 2021: 3,571
StatCan, with employees: 0 vs about 2.9 supports
Nearest alternative: Glomalin, Mono, ~11.3 km

OpenStreetMap lists 0 in Mulmur (data as of 2026-10-18). At the Dufferin County rate (about 1 per 3,897 residents, 17 county-wide), Mulmur's 3,571 residents would match about 0.9. Nearest listed: Glomalin (Mono), about 11.3 km from the middle of the township in a straight line. Statistics Canada business counts (January 2026, locations with employees) list 0 in NAICS 8121 'Personal care services' in Mulmur, vs about 2.9 at the county rate: this supports the indication. (That NAICS group is broader than this business type.)

Industry & workforce Verified fact

Construction employs 13.6% of the labour force living in Mulmur, vs 11.3% county-wide and 7.3% in Ontario.

Share of the employed labour force living in the area (by place of residence), 2021 Census. Source: Statistics Canada, 2021 (income: 2020).

NAICS 23: 28 locations with employees in Mulmur. Median wages (ER3540): Electricians (NOC 72200) $36 · Plumbers (NOC 72300) $32.5 · Carpenters (NOC 72310) $32.5.

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Mulmur · Health

Dentist

37score

Indication only Confidence: medium None mapped locally

Mapped in Mulmur: 0
At the county rate: about 0.8 (1 per 4,417 residents)
Population, 2021: 3,571
StatCan, with employees: 0 vs about 0.8 supports
Nearest alternative: Shelburne Smile Centre Dentistry, Shelburne, ~13.7 km

OpenStreetMap lists 0 in Mulmur (data as of 2026-10-18). At the Dufferin County rate (about 1 per 4,417 residents, 15 county-wide), Mulmur's 3,571 residents would match about 0.8. Nearest listed: Shelburne Smile Centre Dentistry (Shelburne), about 13.7 km from the middle of the township in a straight line. Statistics Canada business counts (January 2026, locations with employees) list 0 in NAICS 6212 'Offices of dentists' in Mulmur, vs about 0.8 at the county rate: this supports the indication.

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Mulmur · Retail

Clothing store

21score

Indication only Confidence: low None mapped locally

Mapped in Mulmur: 0
At the county rate: about 1.1 (1 per 3,313 residents)
Population, 2021: 3,571
StatCan, with employees: 1 vs about 0.5 doesn't support
Nearest alternative: Pazaa, Shelburne, ~14.8 km

OpenStreetMap lists 0 in Mulmur (data as of 2026-10-18). At the Dufferin County rate (about 1 per 3,313 residents, 20 county-wide), Mulmur's 3,571 residents would match about 1.1. Nearest listed: Pazaa (Shelburne), about 14.8 km from the middle of the township in a straight line. Statistics Canada business counts (January 2026, locations with employees) list 1 in NAICS 4581 'Clothing and clothing accessories retailers' in Mulmur, vs about 0.5 at the county rate: this does not support the indication.

Industry & workforce Verified fact

Retail trade employs 7.7% of the labour force living in Mulmur, vs 11.6% county-wide and 10.8% in Ontario.

Share of the employed labour force living in the area (by place of residence), 2021 Census. Source: Statistics Canada, 2021 (income: 2020).

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What's mapped now

Businesses counted per municipality across 54 types (OpenStreetMap + our directory, as of 2026-10-18): Orangeville 352 · Shelburne 112 · Mono 77 · Grand Valley 34 · Mulmur 35 · Melancthon 12 · Amaranth 7 · East Garafraxa 8. Full counts: inventory JSON.

Methodology

Inventory: We counted businesses by type in each of the eight municipalities using OpenStreetMap (Geofabrik Ontario extract, data as of 2026-10-18, © OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL), plus visitor-facing businesses from our own directory that OpenStreetMap was missing (matched by name or within 250 m). Places were assigned to a municipality by their map location inside the municipal boundary.
Benchmark: For each business type we use the Dufferin County rate: residents per business across the whole county (2021 Census population 66,257). A municipality's 'expected' count is its 2021 population divided by that rate. We did not find a verifiable published benchmark for comparable Ontario towns, so we don't use one.
Score (0 to 100): Higher when a municipality has fewer businesses than the county rate predicts, relative to how many it would 'expect'. Types where the county rate predicts under one business, or where there's no shortfall, are not listed. +10 when there are none at all. Scores are reduced by 60% when a business of that type is within 5 km (likely served just across a boundary) and by 40% in rural townships, whose residents usually shop in the towns. Campgrounds aren't scored for the three urban municipalities.
Second evidence line: Where a business type maps to a Statistics Canada NAICS industry, we also compare Canadian Business Counts (January 2026: business locations with employees, counted where they are located) with the county rate. If they also show a shortfall, confidence rises from low to medium. If they show as many as the county rate predicts or more, the score is halved and confidence stays low. Some NAICS groups are broader than our types (for example 7225 covers all restaurants, cafés and takeout), and businesses without employees aren't counted.
Nearest alternative: Straight-line distance from the town centre (Orangeville, Shelburne, Grand Valley) or from a central point inside each township, to the nearest mapped business of that type, including ones just outside Dufferin. Driving distance will be longer.
Confidence: Low by default. Medium only when the municipality would expect at least 3 such businesses, the county has at least 10 mapped, and none is within 5 km. Nothing is rated high: high would need a local count checked on the ground or a professional market study. Editors can add local knowledge or hide gaps that are wrong.

Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL). Population: Statistics Canada, 2021 Census (sources). Spot a missing business? Add it on OpenStreetMap and it will count at the next refresh.

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