Okanagan Business Examiner

Okanagan Business Examiner / March 2010 1

A good hair day

MA

RC

H, 2

010

INSIDE: Tier of Support The Boutique Town On Saving Haiti Talbot’s Photo Odyssey

Business Connexio

n 2010 Introductory Event

Register online

www.signatureconnexion.com

BEING POWER SMART MAKES BUSINESS SENSE

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Carousel Cleaners not only received a financial incentive through the Power Smart Product Incentive Program, they will also save almost $400 a year in electricity costs.

Carousel Cleaners can now move on to more pressing matters.

Looking for new ways to highlight your business?

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WE KNOW HOW TO SPOT THE SAVINGS WHEN IT COMES TO ENERGY EFFICIENCY

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4 Okanagan Business Examiner / March 2010

Publisher

Craig Brown | [email protected]

Managing editor

Devon Brooks | [email protected]

sales Manager

Rob Fukushima | [email protected]

design / Production

Corrina [email protected]

advertising sales Jack Kania | [email protected]

executive assistant Joanne Clarke | [email protected]

contributing PhotograPher Shawn Talbot | [email protected] | www.shawntalbot.com

contributors Bobbi Menard | Mischa Popoff | Women’s Enterprise Centre | David Crawford | Veronica Ukrainetz

Mailing address

P.O.Box 32034 RPO, 2151 Louie Dr. West Kelowna, B.C. V4T 3G2 | Fax 250.768.8241

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distribution The Okanagan Business Examiner is published monthly at Kelowna,

BC by Prosper Media Group Inc. Copies are distributed to businesses

from Osoyoos to Greater Vernon. The views expressed in the Okanagan

Business Examiner are those of the respective contributors and not

necessarily those of the publisher or staff.

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CANADIAN ADDRESSES TO: P.O. BOX 32034 RPO 2151 LOUIE DR. WESTBANK, BC,

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101-1979 Old Okanagan Highway, Westbank, BC V4T 3A4T: 250.862.6722F: 250.768.8241

A good hair dayLoyal Wooldridge only started up Loyal Hair Therapy three years ago, but he has already learned some tough lessons and plans to expand. Page 6

Investing in the 2000s - 10Dominik Dlouhy reflects on the decade that was and what it means to investments.

Tier Support - 12Why what may be the best human resource organization in the central Okanagan is unknown and sort of wants to keep it that way.

Super Nature Trust of B.C. - 14This land is our land, but there may not be enough of it.

The New Olympics - 20Real games that the Olympics should include.

Around the World in 80 Photos - 28Shawn Talbot on his amazing photographic business journey.

COVER

insidE

FOLLOW US ON

FOLLOW US ON


contr

ibutor

s

Cover Story - 6

editor’S take - 8

dominik dlouhy - 10

Women’S enterpriSe Centre - 11

tier Support - 12

the nature truSt - 14

peaChland - 15

moverS & ShakerS - 18

david CraWford - 20

Calendar of eventS - 22

the environment Survey - 24

veroniCa ukrainetz - 26

ShaWn talbot - 28

miSCha popoff - 30

mischa popoff grew

up on a grain farm in

Saskatchewan. He earned

a degree in history and

then worked for five years

as an advanced farm

inspector in the organic

industry in Canada and

the United States. He

currently works as an

agriculture consultant,

freelance writer, radio

commentator and dad.

dominik dlouhy and

his family moved to the

Vernon area about 10

years ago, after living

and working in Zambia,

Indonesia and New

Zealand. He started his

career in financial services

as a mining analyst for a

major Toronto brokerage

firm, and now works as a

financial planner with the

Fraser Financial Group.

His interests include

skiing, hiking, canoeing

and photography. He

coaches the biathlon at

Sovereign Lake, and will

be going to the Olympics

as a biathlon official.

david Crawford has

been called one of

Canada’s funniest

writers, by people who

were actually sober at

the time. This month he

writes about the 2010

Olympic Games and

their economic impact,

most of which he made

up. He recently won

America’s Funniest Humor

Competition, a result of

too few entries being

submitted, say contest

organizers. During the day

he is the head of Capri

Intercity Leasing.

insidE


Plans for the Hair Apparent

COVER stORy

obe: When did you first think you’d rather run your own shop rather than work in an existing salon?

lW: The vision for creating my business was always clear to me, right out of cosmetology school. My passion was in the beauty business, but I had to admit that my sheer technical skill level was not advanced enough to lead a team of stylists.

obe: When you went to cosmetology school did you do any business training?

lW: No, they give you a crash course when you take the [program], but you do it in a day and you read the text book.

obe: How difficult was it for you to finance the project?

lW: My age was the greatest feat at the time of start up. Conventional banks did not want to fund the project and other agencies were requiring the completion of many business classes and still remained skeptical of my age. At the time of opening, I was 21 years old, and…I had no net worth.

Fortunately, one individual believed in me more than any other. She is my business partner, and continues to control the books of Loyal Hair Therapy; she’s also my mother. We decided to utilize a line of credit against my mother’s house to expedite the opening of the salon.

Although I understood the reasoning behind the apprehension I was frustrated that funding for a ‘good will based’ business was so minimal.

obe: What exactly do you mean by “good will” business?

lW: The value of good will business being the clientele. When I was going in for funding they were saying, ‘How much money can you put on good will?’ [The former owners] didn’t have a database, they didn’t have phone numbers or e-mail addresses, or anything like that, they were just saying that, ‘My clientele is worth $25,000.’ Well, how can you put a value on that if you have no contact information, no names or anything – you’re just pulling a number from the air.

obe: How do you keep track of data now?

lW: We [bought] a salon-specific software program so it tells us our top clients, it tells us their ‘spend’, it shows us how much retail they’re purchasing in relation to services. It’s really detailed. It also gives me a clear snapshot to show which stylists are excelling at recommending the appropriate products.

obe: Is there a message you could have given yourself three years ago that would have helped you to avoid problems?

lW: Plan. That’s what this whole three years has taught me. Plan, plan, plan. I used to come in, work behind the chair all day, meet with my suppliers in the evening, and not really planning where we were going. I was just letting the business happen.

obe: What were the most important elements of your business plan as you went ahead?

lW: The Vision. This is truly the “fairytale” of

my business, and the direction it is intended to head and by when. From there, I began to break it down into ‘The Experience’, ’People’ and ‘Profit’.

Profit is the section of forecasting future sales, anticipated direct and indirect expenses and an amortized plan of when I would pay off my loan. I found this area of business particularly hard to predict as it felt like I was creating numbers out of nowhere. Because of this lack in experience, I found myself swaying from my original financial plans by making emotional buying decisions.

obe: What kind of emotional buying?

lW: With wholesalers and advertisers when they’re having to move product or stock they come to me with all these deals and what I realized was that I was tying up all my money in these deals going ‘Oh, that’s a great deal.’

Now I realize I have ‘x’ amount to invest in something for this one season. So when I have all my suppliers come to me I know I’ve set aside this amount of money so that’s how much I have to spend rather than say, ‘I’ll buy that.’ I realized I had all this inventory I was sitting on.

obe: What changed you?

lW: I credit this to the advanced business education I have acquired from L’Oréal Professionnel and from my executive business coach. By utilizing these professional resources, I now have the confidence to make precise and clear decisions in relation to the operation of the company. I also can give up control, and allow my shining stars in the company to take

Loyal Wooldridge only started up his first business, Loyal Hair Therapy, three years ago, but he already has big plans for his salon, his staff and himself.

all Photos by shawn talbot


ownership and help run the salon. We have seen a 48% increase in gross sales since we opened!

obe: How busy are you now?

lW: We’re operating around 72% of the hours that we are open currently, so before I consider my second location I want to be open six days a week and three evenings rather than five days a week and just two.

My big goal is that we will be open [at our second location] in about 18 months.

obe: What was your marketing strategy and how has it changed?

lW: During the first year of business I went into marketing kind of ‘blind’ as far as strategy goes. I didn’t have a clear direction on which mediums of marketing would work best for us and also did not have the guest base to market directly to.

During the first year of business I spent nearly $19,000 on radio and a small amount on newsprint. Although I loved hearing my ads on the radio I found it incredibly hard to track the results.

I asked my accountant to explain the P&L and balance sheets to me as though I was in kindergarten. We then broke all revenues and expenses down monthly, into percents of overall goods sold so that I could have a ‘black and white snapshot’ of where the money was going. I could now clearly see what exactly I was financially able to spend on a monthly advertising budget.

obe: So where do you advertise now?

lW: I primarily am now doing a lot of web advertising. Classified advertising on Castanet

has been amazing for us because we have a reservation request on our website. We can actually see how many people are coming to us and requesting appointments from Castanet.

Now, with our front end we are training them to ask, ‘Where did you hear about us?’

obe: How educated is your average customer about what they should or should not buy?

lW: We have a five-step structured consultation process that every single guest gets when they come into the salon for every single service. And that basically is asking the appropriate questions. ‘How are you finding the condition of your hair? Are you having any scalp related

issues or anything like that?’ Because you may not necessarily know what you need, but you know your hair is dry or you’re having flaky scalp because of the seasonal change.

So [the staff] are all trained with those five consultation questions. They can evaluate it and recommend the product that will solve the issue.

obe: How important then are retail products to your bottom line?

lW: We definitely make a really good profit on the product because the cost of commissions are so much lower. For service, because we are paying the stylist up to 50 or 60% of the cost of the product sold and for the haircut our profit margin is a lot lower, but on a bottle of shampoo or a styling aid we pay a commission of 10 to 20%.

obe: What was the labour market like for getting staff when you started?

lW: The labour market in Kelowna proved to be challenging, especially when it came to finding focused, career minded stylists. The artistic nature of stylist’s personalities can often make them flighty and sometimes lack focus and direction. My biggest fear was always getting the salon full of service providers, so I hired friends and whoever had technical talent.

I kept this mindset that I could not operate without all of these people, so it almost made me hostage to my team. Instead of making a decision on what was best for the business, I would consider the reactions of the team first.

To break this…I found a salon-based, key performance target system that empowered the team to take ownership over their success and hold those accountable that were stagnant. All of these targets were numbers because what cannot be measured cannot be managed.

obe: How many staff do you have?

lW: I have five stylists, including myself, and one guest services.

obe: What are your key performance indicators?

lW: Our top one is the percentage of pre-booking appointments, so that’s the guest pre-booking their [next] appointment before leaving the salon. It’s one of the top things because it guarantees our income for the months ahead.

The other one I look at is our retail to service percentage, which is how much retail are they selling in comparison to their service dollars. The minimum that I require of them is 15%, but we aim to have this one at 20%, so we’re selling 20% of product to 80% of service.

Those are major ones. Then it’s broken down to how many haircuts they are doing, how many colours they are doing, how many textures, how many add-on services they are doing.

obe: You talked about a business coach. What prompted that?

lW: With L’Oréal Professional they provided me with some business courses in Vancouver and Toronto and my business coach is actually one of their business coaches.

I met her in these classes and I stayed in communication with her and at the beginning of last year and I said, ‘Tanya, this is what I want to achieve. Can you help me out with it?’ So basically, what she had me do was write a three page story on if everything was perfect in the salon how would it look. Then we broke that down into what we had to do, and what systems we had to implement to make that a reality.

obe: You mentioned your planned expansion. How will you make sure you have staff ready to take over some of the management once you have more than one salon to look after?

lW: With their target system, none have reached the sixth level yet. Before they can even think about advancing to that next level and becoming a partner with in the business they need to reach that sixth level. So far my top one is about the fourth so they still have a little bit of time to progress up there.

obe: So if no one is ready in 18 months when you want to open your second location how do you make sure you don’t burn out?

lW: Because one of them in particular will be at that level within the 18 month period. I can honestly see it with the tracking system. How much they are growing every single month and their leadership skills and all of that. I can just see it.

obe: What are your dreams now? Where do you want to be in the future?

lW: My passion is always in this industry. I love it. I love making people feel great about themselves; I love the beauty behind it. But what I’m really falling in love with is helping people really grow themselves and seeing potential in people and sharing knowledge that I’ve learned.

So professionally that’s my dream to eventually still own my salons, but to also become a strategic coach similar to what Tanya does.

“I asked my accountant to explain the P&L and balance sheets to me as though I was in kindergarten.”


Every issue we discuss, poke and prod many stories here at the Business Examiner. There are many fine companies that make up the local business scene in the Okanagan. We look at them because of superb achievements and, occasionally, amazing blunders. Too often we overlook the individual entrepreneurs and small businesses that dot our landscape.

These smaller companies do not, generally, generate the income of the larger operations. They may be small too in terms of resources of money or people. They often rely on the vision and chutzpah of one person. Some of them are the first faint steps of what will much larger firms in the future; some others will certainly fail.

This issue we want to celebrate a few of those entrepreneurs for what they are doing right now.

The cover story is about Loyal Wooldridge, who launched his own hair salon three years ago. He had all the typical fights that beset would-be business people including a lack of capital. How he over came that obstacle and others is fascinating.

Equally interesting is Shawn Talbot’s story. Talbot is the Business Examiner’s most amazing photographer, and recently launched a new business venture on top of his regular own company.

Another small group worth noting is TIER Support Services, which strives to assist the disabled find good working careers that benefit them while providing equal benefit to their employers.

Yet while we celebrate these smaller players in the business world I can’t help but comment

on the Olympics, which is a huge, mass effort and simultaneously made up of individuals. Having watched quite a bit of the Olympics I was thrilled and proud of the effort our team made and the incredible efforts the athletes, volunteers and organizers put into these games.

In the last week of February, the credit card company VISA announced that international visitors had already spent $100 million more in Vancouver than they had in 2009. This is good news, but as any business person knows this one statistic is only one number.

This strikes at the heart of the conundrum that is the beast that the modern day Olympics have become. Will the games be profitable? If you are talking dollars and cents, you’ll never know. About six months after Vancouver was awarded the games I thought it would be interesting to compare the finances, income and projections of VANOC with the Calgary Olympics and the Salt Lake City games, which at the time were the most recent games. Getting any kind of accurate numbers that were comparable was virtually impossible and would have required a top team of accountants to figure it out with good access to the books.

I was not remotely up to the task and no accountant I knew wanted to donate six months of their time to going through books that were hopelessly (and deliberately I suspect) opaque.

Don’t let anyone tell you the games were a great financial boon because no one knows. Arguably if we invested that amount of money into other ventures it is possible we could have received a larger benefit, if you’re strictly speaking of dollars.

Instead we held mostly magnificent games. We invested in ourselves, raised our international profile, inspired ourselves to believe how great Canadians can be when they apply themselves, hopefully set an example for future athletes, promoted healthier living, and made ourselves proud and happy. Not all things, like dreaming big, can be measured in the ledger book.

Devon Brooks is the managing editor of the Okanagan Business Examiner. If you have comments on this article or any other story in this issue, or ideas on what you would like to see, please send them to [email protected].

by devon brooks

fromtheeditorDREAM BIG

18 | www.businessexaminer.ca February 2010

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OKANAGAN FALLS

TAKES A BOW IN THE

SPOTLIGHT

Okanagan Film Commissioner Jon Summerland assisted Cannery Studios in its move from West Kelowna to an advantageous facility in Okanagan Falls. Summerland told Castanet that the new property has better working space for film productions including 32,000 sq. ft. for staging film shoots, a separate 3,000 sq. ft. carpentry section, first aid and security rooms, a fenced lot and three acres for

parking. In addition it is attracting attention from a number of companies that support film work across the country. Several of them, including Harold’s Custom Equipment, HollyNorth and Offset Rentals are expected to open their doors in Okanagan Falls.

In an unrelated story the province is moving to boost video and digital effects work in the province by extending the tax credits given to films to digital media sectors. None of that work occurs in the Okanagan currently, but with the rise of the Canadian dollar to near parity film makers have

been urging the government to give the industry all the breaks it can to keep the work happening here.

PANDOSY BIA

MOVES AHEAD

The South Pandosy Business Improvement Area in the Mission district of Kelowna is going before Kelowna city council to make their case. The new BIA has put together a proposed budget of $124,000 annually, based on a rate of $1 per thousand of assessed commercial value. Points of interest to members include parking, signage, more community events, better lake access and creating an identity for the business area.

LESS GETS ALTITUDE

Adam Less, founder and former half owner of Think Marketing, has sold his share of the business and struck out on his own. His new company is Propeller Creative Brand Strategists, and uses the logo of “Altitude is Everything”. Less believes his strengths combine creative skills with experience in marketing. He says, “I'm a graphic artist and a writer, but I'm also a strategist with a career’s worth of experience developing brands and strategic platforms behind me.”

VERNON CHAMBER

TALKS TO VERNON

CHAMBER

The Greater Vernon Chamber of Commerce announced its newest program to better connect with its own members. The 12@12 membership feedback program involves nine Chamber members sitting down with two staff members and one board member “to discuss the issues that most affect their business today.” The meetings will occur monthly and will continue until June of this year, when their effectiveness will be reviewed. Each meeting will be based on one business

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fromtheeditor


Many investors feel like their returns over the past year have been a roller coaster ride, complete with exhilarating ups, stomach wrenching dips and sharp corners. Over the past decade, for that matter. Let’s look at the facts, now that the numbers are in.

Humans like to look at index values. An index is a kind of average price of a basket of securities, and we use it to measure characteristics like investment returns and volatility. Some indices measure overall markets, like the S&P/TSX (Canada), the S&P500 (U.S.) and the MSCI EAFE (the world excluding the U.S.). Some indices measure particular sectors, like the S&P/TSX Metals and Mining, or Financials sub-indices. Some measure different types of securities, like the DEX Universe Bond Index. Some indices are fairly broad, like the S&P500 (500 stocks), while some are so narrow as to be of limited use, like the

S&P/TSX Health Care with only four companies.

The indices show that 2009 was a spectacular year. Nearly everything was up. The Metals and Mining sector rose over 300%, Information Technology gained over 50%, Financials and Energy rose almost 40%. The laggard was Telecommunications, ending the year only 1% higher. The Canadian market gained 31%, and bonds rose 5%.

If that sounds too good to be true it all depends on your time frame.

If we go back to the previous market high in 2007, it doesn’t look as good. Natural resources like Mining, Materials, and Golds rose, but all other TSX sectors fell. The TSX was off about 10%, and the biggest losers were Real Estate, Health Care and Consumer Discretionary companies. Bonds rose 16% over the last three years as interest rates plummeted close to zero.

Many investors remain quite happy, and their portfolios remain quite profitable because any are looking at the returns since January 1, 2000. Headlines focused on the “tech wreck”, but overall the Canadian market was still 40% higher for the decade ending December 31, 2009. Tech Stocks were down 70% and Health Care down 65% from the bubble peaks, but most other investments gained. Metals and Mining stocks rose tenfold over the decade. Utilities doubled. Consumer Staples ended 80% higher, so why aren’t investors happier?

The pain comes from several sources. Volatility has been big and nerve wracking, with the TSX falling 35% in 2008. We hate to see our portfolios drop from previous highs, even if we are well ahead of the amounts invested. Humans are hard-wired to dislike losses more we like the offsetting gains.

One problem is the long view only works for people who have a long term plan and stick to it over the long term. Data from Dalbar and Global Hysales shows that while average equity funds averaged 7% to 9% per year in the 20 years ending December 31, 2007, the average investor only earned 4%. We humans are most comfortable buying what has done well over the past year. Many of us wanted to buy high tech and health care stocks in 2000, and government bonds after the crash in 2008.

We are least comfortable holding investments that have gone down, like stocks after the crash in 2008. In other words, emotions drive us to buy high and sell low. This is not a strategy for success.

The long term view only works for people who have been invested for a decade or more. The experience of someone who started investing at the highs of 2000 or 2007 is very different from the experience of most people who started investing before 2000, in 2003 or in 2009.

The long term view works best for those who hold balanced portfolios. Anyone who held high concentrations in certain sectors like Info Tech in 2000, or Income Trusts in 2006 when Finance Minister Flaherty announced they would be taxed, has not yet recovered.

What is an investor to do? The theory is simpler than the practice. Invest in a balanced and diversified portfolio. Avoid high concentrations in single sectors. Develop a long term plan. Control your emotions and stick to your plan. And seek professional help if you can’t.

Dominik Dlouhy P. Eng, MBA, CFA is a Chartered Financial Analyst and planner with Partners in Planning Financial Services Ltd. and The Fraser Financial Group LLP. You can reach Dominik at 545-5258 or [email protected]. The opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and not necessarily those of Partners in Planning or The Fraser Financial Group.

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Wild RidE Of thE 2000s


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nOthinG PERsOnAl

PERSONAL CONTINUED ON PAGE 27

February 2010 Okanagan Business Examiner | 15

Trade-Marks

Patents

Trade Secrets& Technology Transfer

Industrial Designs

Copyright

PRACTICE RESTRICTED TOINTELLECTUAL PROPERTY LAW

LAW CO R P O R AT I O N

REGISTERED PATENT & TRADE-MARK AGENT

PHONE: (250) 418-3250FAX: (250) 418-3251TOLL FREE: 1-877-943-9990E-MAIL: [email protected]

t 250.769.2402 f 250.769.2443www.wfn.ca

NOLL DERRIKSAN'S ESTATE S

Separating business, home, and personal identity can be difficult for entrepreneurs. Running a business tends to be all-consuming and it can be hard to tell where you stop and your business begins and, not just in terms of your emotional investment. Your personal and company finances can also get mixed together if you’re not careful. Here are some reasons why you should separate your business and personal finances.

As a young girl, Betty Barton of Terrace loved playing with toy trucks, and was excited about visiting a construction site with her dad. Barton was naturally drawn into the world of building contracting and construction and eventually started Barton Construction Ltd. As she began taking on bigger jobs she wanted to take on some government contracts, which required bonding. At the time, more debt was the only avenue to accomplish this. Barton recalls, “Our home was paid off and that accomplishment felt very good. However, in order to expand the business, I had to then use our home as collateral and that was emotionally trying.”

Sometimes when the personal stake in a business is high, it is easy to think that your business owes you.

In a sense, you’re right – you wouldn’t have poured your heart and soul into it without thinking you were going to get something back; however that attitude can lead you to indiscriminately take cash from the company as it becomes available.

Twenty dollars, (or even 100 dollars), here or there to cover a personal expense such as a meal or your kid’s school supplies might seem harmless enough because the amounts involved are relatively small and you’re not taking a regular salary.

The amount isn’t the issue. Failing to make a distinction between business and personal finances points to a couple of larger concerns:

• First, if you feel you need to take cash out of the company account you may not have budgeted enough and/or secured enough operating capital to provide yourself with a


story & Photos by devon brooks

If there is one thing that every business struggles with at some time or another, it is finding the right employees. In the Okanagan one organization will not only help with finding an employee, but will interview the employee and employer and coach both on a continuing basis for as long as it takes to make sure the employee is the right fit. The service is free to both employer and employee. If it sounds too good to be true there is some fine print, but it’s not what you’d expect.

George Arambasich is the executive director of this service, known as TIER. TIER stands for ‘Teaching • Independence • Employment • Responsibility’.

TIER is not a private company; it is a contractor working for Community Living B.C. (CLBC), a crown agency under the Ministry of Housing and Social Development. CLBC’s core mandate is to deliver “supports and services to adults with developmental disabilities and their families in British Columbia.” TIER works with clients that have mental or physical disabilities to their benefit and the companies they work with.

Arambasich says, “We have to make sure we add to a company’s ability to make money.”

He believes clearing up preconceptions about hiring the disabled is best done by showing just how effective his clients can be in many different businesses. He explains, “We can get around the idea of preconceptions by matching a

client’s needs and abilities to an employer’s job descriptions.”

In B.C. 9.4% of people with disabilities are employed in construction; compare that to 7.7% of non-disabled in that industry. Among the disabled 7.2% are in manufacturing as compared to 9.5% of non-disabled. The retail trade employs 12.7% of the disabled and 10.7% among the non-disabled. Professional, Scientific and Technical services account for 6.8% of the disabled and 8.2% of non-disabled. Arts, Entertainment and Recreation is 2.0% versus 2.2% and Public Administration accounts for 7.2% of disabled and 5.7% of the non-disabled. The disabled also work in business, administration, finance, natural and applied sciences, the government, religious organizations, trades, transportation and processing industries. In fact there is virtually no place they are not working.

Here in the central Okanagan the jobs are equally diverse. Rob Grinder works at the Kelowna Golf & Country Club, while Chris Harrington makes his living at the Purified Water Store. Rick Wright, president of the Interior New Car Dealer Association, had this to say about his group’s decisions to employ some of TIER’s clients: “[Our involvement] has educated and crushed myths that some of our employees had about people with disabilities in the employment world.”

He adds, “I have noted that many of our employees who doubted the work ethic

of people with disabilities now call them coworkers and friends.”

Says Scott Klassen, one of TIER’s 23 full time employees, these are people seeking effective employment and not a handout. “We are trying to steer away from this being a charity. They’re an employee like anybody else.”

Arambasich comments, “We are the ones that are held back by our limitations of [what we think are] their skills and needs.”

It turns out 12.8% of British Columbians have a disability of some kind, ranging from mild to severe in its effects, covering every possible mental and physical ailment you can think of. Most are able and willing to work, seeking the same level of dignity, respect and chance to get ahead as anyone else. Unfortunately the latest statistics show a 3.2% gap between employment rates for the disabled and non-disabled.

The biggest difference between the average job seeker out there and TIER’s clients is that TIER provides both the job seekers and the employers a service that most businesses only wish they could access.

It begins with the clients, most of whom are younger, trying to make the transition from school to the working world.

TIER begins by getting an intimate understanding of the client. This ranges from clarifying any physical impairments to knowing

Real Work for Real Pay george araMbasich and scott klassen oF tier.


their family background, school habits and their wishes.

Sometimes, says Klassen, the family has to be educated. They may be misled by misguided compassion, wishing to shelter the family member, unwittingly holding them back.

The client, like many young people, may not know what they want to do. Or they think that, as Klassen uses for example, because they like animals that they would love to work in a pet store. One of TIER’s jobs is to educate the client, sometimes by job shadowing, but only when TIER has a thorough understanding of the person do they try to find them work.

What they don’t do, says Arambasich, is force fit square pegs into round holes. “We don’t have a job jar where we fit the person to a job and an employer.”

The work with employers is to find positions that fit their clients and where their clients can bring solid, measurable benefits to the employers. Arambasich: “We match up expectations with a viable choice.”

In the end, he says, “A lot of employees are very successful because we have worked so hard to fit the employee with the employer.”

The work is far from over the day that a client is hired. Says Arambasich, “Our job coach will be in place to help transition and we slowly fade out.”

How soon that happens, says Klassen, depends. “Some clients

get ongoing job coaching, some need it once a month, some graduate and never get support.”

Another misconception is the fear of extra expenses caused by disabled employees. The B.C. government reports the most common accommodations are modified hours or days (25% of disabled workers), a special chair or back support (17%), a modified workstation (10.5%), or accessible washrooms (6%). Less than one in five (18%) needed a job redesign.

While TIER has a store front operation in Rutland and a minimal website (currently undergoing a redesign) the work is focused on the clients. Arambasich says, “We are one of those groups that are not well known. We don’t have a strong presence; the spotlight is on the individual and not on us.”

Finding potential employers is an ongoing need, and the executive director says, “We’re always looking for new companies. Companies are always welcome to contact us.”

According to Arambasich past companies are well pleased. “Businesses have identified us as a resource that they should tap into.”

He concludes, “The push is for real work for real pay.”

For companies who wish to talk to TIER they can be found online at www.tier.ca or by calling 250-765-2040. At the moment TIER only works in the central Okanagan and there is no equivalent group working in the north or south parts of the valley.

george araMbasich, director oF tier, stands in Front oF a wall oF

Photos oF a Few oF Past and Present clients that his organization has

worked with since its Founding in 1987.


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OKANAGAN CONTINUED FROM PAGE 13

NOLL DERRIKSAN'S ESTATE SQUARE DEVELOPMENT

however, far from homogenous in their approach or their development plans.

Penticton has only recently formed and started to build its economic base through the Penticton Indian Band Development Corporation, following in the footsteps of the Osoyoos Indian Band Development Corporation. Osoyoos is already well established with ownership or interest in 17 different companies including Spirit Ridge Vineyard Resort, Nk’Mip Winery, Canyon Desert Golf Course, a convenience store, a construction company, an RV park, a daycare, Mt. Baldy Ski Corp., Senkulmen Business park and Oliver Readi-mix.

What each band started with is enormously valuable land. The City of Penticton is squeezed between mountains and lakes leaving the only easily developed flat land on the Penticton Indian Reserve to the west. Osoyoos’ huge territory has been developed in places where highway access or proximity to the Town of Osoyoos makes the most economic sense.

The Westbank First Nations has taken a much more individualistic approach. The band’s land just north of West Kelowna has been the sight of intensive residential, business and commercial developments.

While the Band itself is prospering from an enormously increased tax base from no less than five large commercial developments and 8,000 non-band residents, the entrepreneurial spirit is embodied in a few key individuals who have gathered the land packages. In addition to leasing land, individuals like Noll Derriksan have built up several enormously successful businesses on his own.

N.C. Derriksan & Son Enterprises runs a development company, owns JSDS General Contractors, a heavy equipment leasing company, CA Promotions, Skyline Billboards, an executive travel service and a First Nation jewelry company. Derriksan is prominent, but not alone in his successes.

INDIAN BANDS & COMPANIES

Okanagan Nation Alliance - www.syilx.org

Westbank First Nations - www.wfn.ca

N.C. Derriksan & Son Enterprises - www.ncderriksan.com

Penticton Indian Band - www.pib.ca

Osoyoos Indian Band - www.oib.ca

Osoyoos Indian Band Development Corporation - www.oibdc.com

Okanagan Indian Band -


Earth, Wind & Fire in the Okanagan

this view over vaseux lake, south oF okanagan Falls, is an area

where the natural Flora and Fauna are Most threatened, Making it

an iMPortant area For Preservation.

by devon brooks

You likely don’t know Tom Kennedy, a lawyer from the Lower Mainland who last year spent a lot of time organizing and persuading Okanaganites to support the ‘Earth, Wind & Fire’ fund raiser for the Nature Trust of B.C. The 2009 event brought in some $50,000, but Kennedy says the decision to put last year’s event together was done on short notice. He’s confident they can do much better this year with the second annual Earth, Wind & Fire gala.

Then again, you probably don’t know about the Nature Trust either, which is too bad, but not a total surprise. Kennedy says 99.9% of people have never heard of it.

Founded in 1971 with a $4 million grant from the federal government to the then recently retired chairman of MacMillan Bloedel, Bert Hoffmeister, the Nature Trust now looks after 485 conservation properties covering 61,000 ha (151,000 acres). The Trust started up in the Okanagan back in 1974 with contributions of land that now form part of Okanagan Mountain Park.

Today it looks after more than 25 projects covering 3,000 ha and helps manage another 40,000 ha of grazing land in partnership with the provincial government.

Carl MacNaughton, who lives in Oliver, is the land manager for the south Okanagan. He says the focus is on the south Okanagan because of increased pressure on a very limited resource. The antelope brush ecosystem is very small within Canada and, he says, “Antelope brush is most endangered because there’s a correlation between antelope brush and good grape growing land.”

As the wine industry grows it places increased pressure on that type of land so the Nature Trust has taken up land to help ensure there are some places where that ecosystem can go on in its natural state.

Despite its start the Trust takes in no more tax dollars; instead this charity survives on investments and donations. Expenses don’t end with the purchase of the land and MacNaughton says no land purchase is made without thought being given to sustaining it.

Taxes on most of the land is forgiven; although

part of the process is applying for a tax exempt status every year on each parcel they hold.

In the last two years it worked on acquiring and restoring to a natural condition the Oxbow property, which is land on the Okanagan River to the northeast of Oliver.

There is much more. Working with various partners the Nature Trust has acquired property at Swan Lake, Shorts Creek, Kilpoola Lake, Skaha Lake, White Lake, Vaseux Lake and the Antelope Brush Conservation Area.

Yet another project involves the protection and restoration of riparian habitat using 50 km of fencing and development of alternative places for livestock watering at 45 sites in the south Okanagan. MacNaughton says, “We try to mix livestock management and animal preservation.”

Kennedy says the group might be one of the partners contributing toward the creation of Kelowna’s Black Knight park project. A park like that is also in keeping with the Trust’s philosophy, which allows public access to 90% of land administered by the group.

Not wanting to be seen as another confrontational green group the Nature Trust is content to do its job quietly, rarely making headlines and not too many headlines. Dedicated to habitat preservation the group stays away from public fights and advocacy, simply picking up land where it can, preserving it or bringing it back to a natural condition.

The problem is doing a good job quietly doesn’t work well for bringing in contributions. Kennedy observes, “Being a non-advocate is one thing, not being on the radar screen and people not knowing it exists is another.”

Kennedy is there on a volunteer basis because his wife Deb Kennedy looks after communications for the group. He says, candidly, “My wife has always been a supporter of myself and I try to do the same.”

He’s been made into a believer though, stating, “If we don’t keep nature in good working order, nothing else can work.”

That is why he is working intensively to make Earth, Wind & Fire 2010 a big success.

With more time to plan, Kennedy is hoping 300 to 400 people will come to what he thinks might be the culinary event of the year. On May 29 at the Delta Grand Okanagan in Kelowna some Team Canada chefs and the Okanagan Chapter of the Culinary Association of Chefs will make food paired with wine to entice environmentalists and the general public.

Some companies like the Cactus Club and Okanagan Helicopters have contributed auction items; although Kennedy says they are still looking for sponsors for the “Table of Earth Conservation”, the “Table of Wind Conservation” and the “Table of Fire Conservation”.

The piece de resistance, he says, will be the Great Wall of Wine, consisting of a thousand bottles of wine that one lucky person will walk away with. Every person who buys one of the $150 tickets is eligible to win.

Kennedy may live in North Vancouver now, but he is a Kelowna boy and has the local contacts to prove it. A former school chum of Kelowna councillor Robert Hobson, Kennedy says he’s been gently twisting (willing) arms at Benson Salloum Watts and contacts made through the Kelowna Signature Business Connexion group.

To find out more about contributing as a sponsor contact Kennedy by e-mail at [email protected] or call him at 604-682-2928. For information on getting tickets to attend the event, call the Nature Trust toll free at 1-866-288-7878.

Photos by carl Macnaughton


Big cities are like big box stores where visitors can wander like anonymous customers through huge lanes, whereas smaller communities operate more like boutique shop owners who substitute great quality of service for big inventories and the lowest common denominator of price. So it is with Peachland, a beautiful community with a thin strip of commercial enterprises strung out along 12 km of beach and shoreline that is the town’s pride and joy and its main attraction for tourists.

These tourists are, says Rob Campbell, president of the Peachland Chamber of Commerce, the mainstay of the local economy because Peachland has little business beyond the service and retail industry. “Ninety-six percent of our tax base,” he says, “is residential.”

The town has prospered over the last decade from the visitors, burgeoning real estate market and the influx of people coming here to live.

It also took a big hit from the recession. Observes Campbell, “The last year was pretty hard. Restaurant business was down about 40%.”

In other communities, depressed restaurant business is bad, but in a small town dependent on tourists ‘bad’ ratchets up another notch.

The recession’s effects can also be seen in residential starts, which dropped from 132 in 2006 to 46 in 2008.

The big question is whether the economic recovery is enough that last year’s slump will be a memory or whether it will linger.

No matter which is true Peachland is doing what it can to bring in more tourists and keep old customers feeling good about the town.

It is the only community in the entire Okanagan that provides lifeguards to make families feel safer on the beach.

Since that immaculate beach is the jewel of Peachland, the town council has voted $3 million to extend the boardwalk and boulevard like appearance of Beach Street northward from where it ends now. It is a huge investment for a town that had revenue of $8.7 million in 2008.

The town is moving through a charette process, deciding how best to build the town’s economy and its downtown core. Aside from the boulevard there is a wide ranging discussion of possibilities: to convert one of the downtown’s back lanes into a cozy, pedestrian-oriented commercial strip; to renovate the old elementary school, which is a heritage building, and make it into a cultural attraction;

the construction of a new recreation centre; the revival of the x-country ski club, and; contemplate putting in a gondola to connect downtown to Pincushion, which is the rocky crag that overlooks the town and provides a stunning view of Lake Okanagan.

Real estate is an important part of the considerations. Along the thin water front strip the idea is that buildings on the lake will be low level. As you move away from the lake buildings can get higher toward the highway.

At the south end of town the Pentowna Marina is being renovated by its 60 odd owners.

Far above the highway on Trepanier Bench is the Trepanier Manor, which has been granted the prestigious Small Luxury Hotel status. It will be the only five star plus hotel in the region. In addition it will offer 20 private dwellings ranging in price from $850,000 to $1.1 million.

Another attractive feature is the rebuilding of the Ponderosa Golf & Country Club, which will also feature a winery, an amphitheatre, a village, tennis courts and hotel. In addition some 2,000 homes will be added over the next decade and a half. Given that Peachland’s 5,000 residents live and work on approximately 2,750

thE BOutiquE COmmunity

story and Photos by devon brooks

the view FroM Pincushion, the crag overlooking

Peachland. soMe visionaries believe a gondola

uP here could bring in a lot oF tourists.

BOUTIQUE CONTINUED ON PAGE 16


properties adding 2,000 more homes represents an incredible change.

Getting people there and then having something for them to do besides golf and beaches is where the community has been weaker in the past.

The Victoria Day weekend festival ‘World of Wheels’ is the summer opener and brings in 10,000 people. Last year the community added its ‘Business to Consumer Expo’, a sort of home show, which sold out. It is back this year and the booths are already all sold out. Campbell says organizers are hoping for 700 to 800 people to attend.

The show is building, as most events here do, on sweat equity. “We have a fairly substantial volunteer base,” adds Campbell.

Campbell believes the community and business could do better if it had a few more connections to make its voice heard. He says, “Since I’ve come on board I’ve wanted to reach out more.”

The Chamber of Commerce is reaching out to, among others, the Westbank First Nation band and has joined with other Chambers to become a ‘Highway 97 Corridor Community’.

One issue most definitely on the horizon is the widening of highway 97. It is the last part of the highway from Armstrong to Penticton that has not been four-laned.

The controversy is whether the route through Peachland should be widened or a bypass built. The business community is undecided, some saying a bypass could devastate tourist business, while others argue it would add to the town’s character and mean a better experience for residents and visitors.

The province’s transportation department isn’t saying anything. Campbell talked to the provincial Ministry of Transportation and says, “There is nothing on the books for this section.”

If the highway through town is widened Campbell says there is a push to make sure the lakefront and the rest of the community are well connected. “If they do four-lane it we want a boulevard look to make it appealing. We want to make sure it doesn’t divide the community, but pulls it together.”

That might also require walkways over the highway, or even that gondola mentioned earlier. So far no one knows what the highway widening will look like exactly or what it will mean, but since it is certain to come, sooner or later, Peachland will have to plan and work to keep its boutique, service-oriented, friendly reputation.

BOUTIQUE CONTINUED FROM PAGE 15

BOUTIQUE COMMUNITY

Janis Marsden, a Mortgage broker and director oF the chaMber stands next to

rob caMPbell, President oF the Peachland chaMber oF coMMerce .

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5126 mackinnon rd (commercial new) – trepanier manor hotel & Spa architect Sproule & Associates – 604-733-3347 General Contractor Cardon Enterprises – 250-861-8823 project New resort spa – 25 acres – 3 storeys – 38 units – 1 level u/g parking – wood frame structure – 7,000 bottle wine cellar – lounge – bar – dining facilities – 20 SFD resort homes Stage Construction Start – site servicing underway – finalization of design anticipated May/10 – construction start of 10 SFDs underway

between hwy 97 & okanagan Connector(mixed use dev) – new monaco developer Grady Developments – 250-371-3919 project New mixed use master planned community on 125 acres – upgraded golf course – 1,850 residential units – 208 tourist units

Stage Proposed – area structure plan underway

6000 block hwy 97(institutional new) – peachland Curling Club architect CEI Architecture Planning Interiors – 604-687-1898 Construction mgmt Vic Van Isle Construction – 250-763-1804 project New curling facility – 2 storeys – 15,322 sf on main floor and 3,700 sf on upper level – 4 sheets of ice – foyer – lower & upper level viewing areas – restaurant and lounge – kitchen – admin space Stage Construction Start – February/10 – construction completion anticipated October/10

to be determined(institutional new) –peachland recplex Complex owner District of Peachland – 250-767-2647

project New civic recreation facility – multi purpose space – ice surfaces Stage Planning – preliminary – Council to discuss proceeding with the proposed recreation complex during 2010 budget consultations

6633 hwy 97(multi-family new) – reflections on the lake estates architect Points West Architecture – 604-864-8555 project New condominiums – 6 storeys – 60 units – pool – fitness facility – 20,000 sf rooftop amenity space – geothermal heating & cooling – 2 level heated parking facility – marina Stage Construction Start – anticipated spring/10

pincushion mountain(mixed-use dev) – ponderosa Golf resort developer Treegroup Development – 604-288-9770 architect

New Town Architectural – 250-860-8185 project New golf resort on 400 acres – new 18 hole golf course – clubhouse – golf academy – tennis facility – village centre – winery – 2,000 residential units – amphitheatre Stage Planning – underway – land currently in the Central Okanagan Regional District but will be incorporated within the Peachland boundary area

4178 4186 lake ave & 4183 San Clemente ave(mixed-use dev) – oasis architect Focus Architecture – 604-853-5222 project New mixed use development – 4 storeys – 6 retail units – 14 condominium units – amenity room – 1 level u/g parking Stage Building Permit Application – approval anticipated spring/10

4534 princeton ave

& 5919 Columbia ave (multi-family new) – view 180 architect S2 Architecture – 403-670-7000 project New townhouses – 3 storeys – 20 units Stage Development Permit Application – a one year extension has been approved – construction start pending market conditions and financing

5486 Clements Cr rr5(institutional add/

alter) – redevelopment of peachland primary School owner District of Peachland – 250-767-2647 project Redevelopment of Peachland Primary School – Phase 1: bring bldg up to code including new wheelchair ramps & electrical upgrades – Phase 2: interior upgrades Stage Construction Start – anticipated spring/10 – pending funding approval

Peachland Building Permits 3858 beach ave $25,000 residential add/alter – basement Applicant: Jazel Ent Ltd – 250-768-5799

4308 beach ave $25,000 residential add/alter – renovation Contractor: Chosen Homes Ltd – 250-769-8094

6090 somerset ave $190,000 residential add/alter – fire restoration to SFD Contractor: DF Robinson Construction – 250-861-4778

6415 renfrew rd $90,000 site work – retaining wall Contractor: Arizona Construction Ltd

Peachland Projects on the Go

PEAChlAnd snAPshOt

incorPorated: 1909

Area: 15.98 sq. km Located in the Central Okanagan Regional District

statistics

Population 5,244 (2009)

Population growth rate for 2008-2009: 0.4% (B.C. 1.6%)

Population aged 65+ in 2006: 25.0% (B.C. 14.6%)

eMPloyMent & labour Force

Total labour force: 2,275 people

Labour force as % of total population: 43.4%

The three biggest employer sectors in 2006: retail trade 260 (11.4%); construction 240 (10.5%);

Health care & social assistance 225 (9.9%)/Accommodation & food services 225 (9.9%).

incoMe

Median household income (2006): $49,674 (B.C. $65,787)

Average income from those filing tax returns (2006): $36,152 (B.C. $38,523)

Main source of income for residents in 2006: Employment (51.6%), Pension (24.3%), Investment (11.0%), Self-employed (5.7%), Other (5.5%)

Unemployment Rate (2006) 5.1% (B.C. 6.0%)

Unemployment Rate for southern interior of B.C. (Feb. 2010) 10.1%

business

Business incorporations: 13 (2009) 9 (2006)

Business bankruptcies: n/a

Total # of firms with no employees: 233 (June 2008)

Total # of firms with employees: 151 (June 2008)

In 2008 137 organizations had 1 to 19 employees, 10 organizations had 20 to 49 employees, 3 organizations had 50 to 199 employees, 1 organizations had 200+ employees

Chamber of Commerce members: 130

building PerMits

New residential units built: 49 (2008) 80 (2006)

Typical house value: $430,961 (2008) $257,565 (2005)

Value of new residential construction: $15.8 million (2008) $14.3 million (2006)

Value of other construction: $0.6 million (2008) $0.2 million (2006)


Movers&Shakersthe debit FollowuP

Last month the Okanagan Business Examiner detailed the move by Visa and MasterCard to move into the debit business in Canada. In response to that move Interac had applied to the federal government’s Commissioner of Competition to allow it to become a for-profit company, which would be listed publicly.

Melanie Aitken is the Commission of Competition at the Competition Bureau and in mid-February she turned down Interac’s request. She says Interac’s position is currently so dominant that it would be harmful to Canadian business to allow it to transition to what would be close to a monopoly position.

This move is expected to give the two credit card giants the opportunity to

grab a sizeable portion of the Canadian debit business at which point, in theory, the Competition Bureau would be willing to revisit its decision regarding Interac.

The Competition Bureau says it is willing to look at changing Interac’s financing sources so that it can build a network that will allow it to compete against the credit card companies.

Peyton’s radio

return

tony peyton, owner of Think. Marketing Inc. is

going back to his radio roots as part of the morning broadcast team at K96.3 in Kelowna. Peyton will work with David Larsen, with whom he worked on radio in the 1990s. The station plays a classic rock format

booked in Penticton

Judy Zubriski launched Hooked on Books in Penticton at 225 Main Street at the end of 2009 but held off her grand opening until late in February. In a tightly competitive field Zubriski is doing everything possible to make sure her independent book store is a winner with numerous events including readings, signings and charitable donations. So far she has had, or has scheduled events around: ‘So you think you can Write a Novel?’ hosted by Yasmin John-Thorpe, author Theresa Kishkan reading from her novel The Age of Water Lilies, Richard Cannings reading from his book Flights of Imagination and Patricia Morgan talking about her book From Woe to WOW! Solutions for Resilience.

lake city bets on

new e-gaMes

Lake City Casino’s Vernon location introduced three electronic versions of traditional games to customers. The new offerings began on February 26 and include Virtual Roulette, Three Card Poker and Blackjack.

grown with care

BC Tree Fruits has launched a marketing program across western Canada to raise the profile of its home grown products. It is no secret that the Okanagan fruit industry has been

on the ropes because of low fruit prices, intense international competition and astronomical real estate costs in this province. Since foreign subsidies seem unlikely to end anytime soon, and Canadian and B.C. government support is even less likely to increase in a year of budget deficits, the industry is starting to organize its own marketing campaigns. The new ‘Buy B.C. fruit’ message includes the new website (www.grownwithcare.ca), and advertising on radio in B.C. and Alberta plus a daily newspaper program across the western provinces.

nuPtial celebrations

TTM Events opened a new location at #1 - 1660 Powick Road in Kelowna and celebrated by hosting its 4th Annual Bridal Open House. The new store front still offers the traditional favourites of party and event goods along with a new floral and design centre.

thorlaksen dynasty

continues

Harold Thorlaksen started Tolko Industries in 1956. When he died in 1981, his son Al, who was already the president of the company took over as CEO. Last month, after 29 years Al, aged 70, stepped aside and turned over the CEO position to his son, Brad Thorlaksen. Brad had been working as president of the Tolko Marketing and Sales, but has worked in almost every division of the company since he joined it in 1978.

Plunkie gets new

ParadigM

The Paradigm Mortgage Corp. says Grant plunkie became its newest mortgage broker late last month. Plunkie has been working in Kelowna as a licensed mortgage broker for the past 12 years. Before that he was employed in the retail and wholesale. He is also a past president of Okanagan Mortgage Lenders Association.

entrePreneur

answers valley’s

water woes

Tim Roth has just launched TRL Landscapes, a company with an answer, he says, to the Okanagan’s water shortage. His solution is simple enough: he’s devised an underground water collection system using runoff from the eavestrough. This water is connected back to irrigation systems for use in watering plants, washing cars and other uses that don’t require treated water. Roth claims this could save up to 750,000 litres of water per year for the average house, which if used on all houses would alleviate any water shortages in the region. This will work, he adds, because the biggest use of water is outdoors for landscaping, car washing and the like. Speaking to Castanet, Roth said, “It’s not so much about saving money as it is about saving water.”

February 2010 Okanagan Business Examiner | 45

You’ve heard the saying, “you’ve got to spend money to make money”. While that may be true, when you’re a small business owner it is easier said than done. If money is going out of your chequeing account faster than it is coming in there are things you can do to deal with the challenge of the cash crunch.

Perhaps you can identify with Karen Murphy, owner of Express Gift Baskets in Kelowna. Over the past 10 years her company experienced tremendous growth. “I started Express Gift Baskets in 1997 with a $10,000 personal line of credit. I soon realized that because my business was inventory-based, I could quickly become under-financed as orders became larger. If I wanted to go after bigger accounts where I would require stock before payment of orders, I was going to have to make a decision to take on some long term debt.”

Trickling sales don’t tend to produce a lot of income. There is an inevitable lag between what it costs to generate business capacity and being in a position to reap its rewards. Difficulties arise in managing the costs that must be incurred in order to meet the demand of business growth, especially rapid growth.

Resultant cash flow crunches mean taking on debt. That was the case for Murphy who recalls her first expansion, “After a year, we took on about five times the original start-up money required. That was enough to carry substantially more inventory, allow for better equipment and also to hire an assistant.”

Acquiring business debt can be unimaginably frightening. It’s one thing to take out a loan for a car or a new piece of furniture where you can touch it, feel it, or put it in your living room. A business, on the other hand, is more intangible – and more risky. Then there’s always the chance that the business might fail. Do you really want to put your hard-earned assets on the line?

Women are often reluctant to take on business debt because we are uneasy taking a gamble on ourselves, particularly when there are others, like children or an elderly parent, who rely on us financially. Regardless of why you fear debt, to grow a business, you’re going to need cash. Under-financing often shows in inconsistent service, an inability to fill large and potentially lucrative orders and even poor morale.

Resist the temptation to pay those bills as soon as they come through the door. Hold on to them for the penalty-free period, and you’ve acquired for yourself an interest-free loan for usually up to 30 days.

On the other hand, when you are the supplier, the quicker you collect on your outstanding accounts the better. Small businesses typically can’t afford to finance their customers for very

long and if you’ve ever been in the position of having to chase down a delinquent client, you know it’s not fun.

Following through on collections can be an intimidating task. We worry about offending our customers and have them not like us. The next time this sounds like you, ask yourself whether you feel flush enough to extend an unlimited, interest-free loan to the customer who falls behind on payment. Here are a few simple strategies to help make sure you are paid on a timely basis:

1. Require that new customers submit a credit application and actually check their credit references or, alternatively, require new customers pay in cash;

2. Do not continue to sell to customers who repeatedly fail to pay on time. Remember, a sale is not complete until the money is in your hands;

3. Apply strict penalties on late payments, including surcharges and/or loss of credit privileges;

4. Contact – preferably call - customers immediately for payment of overdue accounts.

Growth in business and delinquent customers are not the only reasons cash flow comes under pressure. A new company often has money tied up in inventory and other assets like equipment and vehicles. It’s important to know the difference between what’s necessary and what’s ‘nice to have’.

To ensure you have enough cash is to prepare a cash flow statement. This statement forecasts and tracks money flowing into and out of the business as it changes hands. A cash flow statement reflects sales when they are confirmed, not when payment is received and costs when they are incurred, rather when payment is made.

The mistake many business owners make in forecasting is bundling inventory and production costs with related revenues in neat little monthly packages. Essentially, they assume the net of those two figures will fall into their hands every month in the way of cash. Not so.

Realistic cash flow projections can save you the heartache of fatal cash deficits. Plan ahead to cover shortfalls, and resist the temptation to spend every cent as it comes through the door. That makes for a healthy business and takes a lot of the stress out of financial management. With stress levels down, it also makes for a healthier you.

Women’s Enterprise Centre is the go-to place for BC women business owners for business loans, skills training, business advisory services, resources, publications and referrals. Call us at 1.800.643.7014 or email [email protected] from anywhere in B.C.

CASH MATTERS


Movers&Shakersan oMen For suMMerland

Jason Embree and Jamie Ohmenzetter have rebranded the Coffee on Kelly shop they bought in late 2008 as the Good omens coffee shop. The shop received a new name and a beautiful renovation. Ohmenzetter’s grandmother used to live in the building before it was turned into a commercial venture and when the Coffee on Kelly business came up for sale, Ohmenzetter says it was an omen, hence the name. She says, “We knew we wanted to open our own coffee house,

but it was a risk and a leap of faith for us to both leave our full time jobs to pursue our dreams. When my grandmother’s old house became available in Summerland, we both knew this was the sign.” The official opening took place on February 20, but the couple, who are both trained chefs, say more changes are coming including an expanded menu that will change seasonally.

toyota’s saleM trial

Dennis DesRosier of DesRosiers Automotive Consultants, speaking on CTV’s Business Network, characterizes the U.S. government’s investigation of Toyota as a “witch hunt”. He says recalls happen every year and every automobile company is constantly dealing with them. When considering the potentially serious nature of Toyota’s accelerator problem he notes that the problems in past years with Ford rollovers, the infamous

Pinto rear end explosions or other problems that did not receive such attention. What is different, says DesRosiers, is the scale of the recall, but he also says there will be many more such recalls like this in the future. As automobiles become more sophisticated in technology the manufacturers have responded by sharing systems across many models to keep costs down. This means when a problem is encountered the likelihood is that it will affect greater and greater numbers of cars. He credited the Canadian government and media with presenting a much

more balanced view of Toyota’s problem than it is getting in the U.S. DesRosier says the accelerator problem has affected four vehicles in Canada, out of 2,000,000 Toyotas on the road.

long For sun

The man taking over as team president of the Okanagan Sun football club has an involvement with the team that stretches back to its beginning in 1981. Bill Long has occupied almost every imaginable position for the club at one time or another beginning with his role as an all star player. From there he went on to work as an assistant coach, a board member for the BC Football Conference, the senior coach and a radio commentator. Long says he is happy with the team’s current coaching staff and believes it is in reasonable financial shape.

canaterra’s new iPhone

aPPlication

Canaterra Property Pages says it has a new application for the iPhone that will allow users to do a real estate search on Apple’s smartphone system. The Kelowna-based company says it is only the second such application to launch in Canada. People who do not have

an iPhone can access a similar service by going to mykelowna.mobi on other phones or by computer.

new dawn at sun-ryPe

Merv Geen, chairman for Sun-Rype’s Board of Directors, announced that dave mcanerney is the company’s new CEO.

McAnerney came to Sun-Rype in 2005, but most recently worked as vice-president and interim CEO in 2008. McAnerney, among his other accomplishments, led the negotiating team that settled a five-year agreement with the union that runs from this year to 2015. Prior to joining Sun-Rype he worked in the beer industry for Labatts, and later the Columbia Brewery in Creston.

realtors suPPort woMen’s

shelter

The Okanagan Mainline Real Estate Board’s (OMREB) Central Zone Division contributed $12,000 to the Central Okanagan Hospice Association and Kelowna’s Women’s Shelter. OMREB president Bob Cliffe says 730 realtors helped the fundraising efforts.

osoyoos conFirMs knight

at do

Jo knight, former manager of the B.C. Visitor Centre at Osoyoos has been officially promoted to executive director of Destination Osoyoos, a position she’s been filling for several months already. Derek Noske, chair of the Board of Directors for Destination Osoyoos says Knight is well qualified for her position. Says Noske, “Jo has an extensive background in tourism marketing and visitor experience development with her three years of Visitor Centre management here in Osoyoos, and before that having spent four years managing the Pacific Rim Visitor Centre in Tofino/Ucluelet on Vancouver Island.”

Millie Jarrett, formerly the assistant manager of the Visitor Centre has moved up to take over Knight’s former position.

the committee of the okanagan mainline real estate board’s Central zone division presents two cheques

worth $6,000 each to avril paice of the kelowna Women’s Shelter and bob Switzer (centre left and

centre), executive director of Central okanagan hospice association.


I was very excited about the Winter Olympics, and not just because of the free sawmill you got with every pair of tickets.

I was also happy for the homeless people who received new housing just as soon as the new appliances were unpacked at the Athletes Village.

Business people all over B.C. couldn’t wait for the zillions of tourist dollars about to fall from the sky like avalanches across the highway to Whistler.

Speaking as a business people myself, I must say I was impressed with all the jobs that sprang up. What a change from the past year, a year in which many of us acquired a taste for used dental floss soup. It was nice to see the unemployment ranks shrink, what with careers like ‘Portable Toilet Swabber’ and ‘Snowboarder Pants-Puller-Upper’.

Thousands of traffic control flaggers were hired too, as were ambulance attendants who will be picking up the pieces of the former flaggers who get splatted by the foaming-at-the-mouth drivers trying to get somewhere in all the Godforsaken traffic shouting, “GET OUT OF MY WAY I HAVE A MEETING!!!” Ha-ha, I’m just kidding! Traffic flowed smoothly as always with no interruptions whatsoever, la de da!

You’ve no doubt seen the advertisements used to promote our province to international visitors

during the games. ‘Please Buy Some Lumber’ does have a certain ring to it doesn’t it? ‘Blue Wood is Good Wood’ did not test as well, according to government advertising officials. Same with ‘The Downtown East Side - Nothing to See Here, Move Along’.

While some people decry the cost of all this promotion, not to mention the cost of the games themselves, government spokespeople assured us all is well. “We took out a line of credit on the legislature so it’s all good,” they report. This financial strategy is similar to how we fight forest fires in this province, which is to pour vast amounts of money on them until it rains.

I also think there are business lessons to be learned from the sports themselves.

Figure skating, for example, is where scantily clad females are used to drill holes in the ice for hockey goal posts by spinning around and around.

Men enjoy watching the women in these events, mainly because they wear revealing outfits that may malfunction at any time, and also because many of them get hoisted up by their who-ha’s by their skating partners, which is always entertaining.

Actually, one lesson we can take from figure skating is the art of competition. This is a sport where panels of international judges snipe at each other with AK-47’s because one judge did

not give high enough marks to another country’s competitor as planned six years earlier at the World Championships. Which is fair.

I have to admit I’m READY to admire this competitive AIM, if not the actual FIRE of the competitors, as the sport RELOADs for a new era of peace and harmony.

Figure skating (like AK-47 shooting) is a test of skill – just like business. You’ll see the competitors execute such daring maneuvers as your sour cow, triple rexall, klutz jumps, camels, spins, loops, 3-pointers, and forced plays-at-third because of the infield fly rule.

Think about it - skaters wear slinky clothing (marketing), execute daring pirouettings and triple hoops (uh, engineering), spin until they barf (or ‘give feedback’, which is really public relations), win gold medals (achieve sales goals), and then retire to the Ice Capades circuit where they skate around in Panda Bear costumes for money (prostitution) (Excuse me! Exit Strategy). See? It’s all business.

So! It really was an exciting, profitable event. Hope you had a great time!

And don’t forget about the lumber…

David Crawford, who has won several accolades for his humour writing, can be contacted at 250-718-2244. His humour columns are available on his blog at www.occasionalhumourist.blogspot.com.

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commute linkages to Vancouver & the Interior

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customers with convenient access to both Kelowna & Penticton Airports

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landscaping - Be green while reducing business overhead with highly

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C a l e n d a rbusiness aFter 5 - Mar. 16

- case Furniture gallery,

vernon

The Greater Vernon Chamber of Commerce’ monthly networking event from 5 to 7 pm. $5 for members, $15 for non-members.

exPort develoPMent

seMinar - Mar. 17 - econ.

dev. oFFices, Penticton

A seminar on expanding markets and increasing sales will take place at the Economic Development Offices next to the Penticton & Wine Country Chamber of Commerce. No cost. For more information call 250-493-3323.

helP haiti dinner - Mar.

17 - Penticton trade &

convention centre

An event organized by Penticton Rotary Okanagan to assist with Haiti to rebuild after its devastating earthquake. Tickets are $90 with $50 going to ShelterBox, for humanitarian assistance and relief. Tickets can be ordered online at www.valleyfirsttix.com.

intro to exPorting - Mar. 17

- ostec oFFices, kelowna

A half day seminar from 1 to 4 pm on exporting and related services. Call Angela Hapke at 250-712-3341 for details.

vwib dinner - Mar. 17 - best

western vernon lodge

Vernon Women in Business’ monthly dinner, networking meeting. From 5 to 7 pm. $14 for members, $20 for non-members.

business aFter hours

- Mar. 18 - sun country

Furniture, kelowna

The Kelowna Chamber of Commerce’ monthly networking event from 5 to 7 pm. $7 for members, $12 for non-members.

business aFter business

- Mar. 18 - exPedia cruise

shiP centers, Penticton

The Penticton & Wine Country Chamber of Commerce’ monthly networking event from 5 to 7 pm. Free for members, $20 for non-members.

Finance Minister hansen

luncheon - Mar. 26 - best

western vernon lodge

The Greater Vernon Chamber of Commerce presents B.C.’s Finance Minister Colin Hansen speaking over lunch (11:30 am to 1 pm) about the recent provincial budget. Tickets are available at www.ticketseller.ca/colinhansen. $32 members, $42 non-members.

hst and you! - Mar.

31 - Prestige hotel &

conFerence centre, vernon

A Greater Vernon Chamber of Commerce breakfast presentation featuring Mike Boven, a tax expert with BDO Canada on how to prepare your business for the HST. From 7:30 to 9 am.

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business 2 consuMer exPo

trade show - aPr. 10-11

- Peachland recreation

centre

This is the Peachland Chamber’s second annual trade show of this nature with both indoor and outdoor venues. There will be 10 workshops of product demos to reach buyers. For more information contact Scott Wilshaw at 250-767-2455 or [email protected].

vwib luncheon - aPr. 7 -

schubert centre, vernon

Vernon Women in Business’ monthly luncheon, networking meeting. From 11:30 am to 1 pm. $14 for members, $20 for non-members.

business aFter hours - aPr.

8 - accent hoMes at sierra,

west kelowna

The Westbank Chamber of Commerce’ monthly networking event from 5:30 to 7 pm. Free for members, $5 for non-members, but non-members need to RSVP at 250-768-3378.

sales seMinar - aPr. 14 -

coast caPri hotel, kelowna

“Sales” is not a four letter word! is a seminar put on by Laura Tucker for Kelowna Women in Business beginning at 11:30 am. Members $25, non-members $35 but registration must be done in advance, online at http://kwib.org.

business aFter 4 - aPr. 20 -

Making connections trade

Fair, vernon

The Greater Vernon Chamber of Commerce’ monthly networking event from 4 to 7 pm. $5 for members, $15 for non-members.

green business awards

luncheon - aPr. 22 - coast

caPri hotel, kelowna

The Green Business Awards recognizes businesses and organizations in Kelowna that incorporate environmentally sustainable practices in their business. From 11:45 am to 1:30 pm. $35 for members, $45 for non-members. Call 250-469-7350 for tickets.

Penticton tourisM

advisory council agM -

late aPril - unknown

The Penticton Tourism Advisory Council AGM, originally scheduled for February 25 has been postponed until late April.

workPlace training For

innovation - until Jan. 2011

- all locations

B.C.’s Ministry of Advanced Education and Labour Market Development has created the new Workplace Training for Innovation Program. Eligible employers can apply for funding to improve productivity, introduce new technology or equipment, improve international competitiveness or bring in new strategies to increases company productivity or competitiveness. Employers must have fewer than 50 employes, have been in business for at least one year and be in good standing with the BC Corporate Registry. More information and applications are available online at www.aved.gov.bc.ca/workplace_training_program/welcome.htm.

labour Market MentorshiP

PrograM - ongoing - south

okanagan

This program is offered by South Okanagan Immigrant & Community Services. It matches professional mentors with clients who need a guide in the Canadian job market. Mentors can play a variety of key roles in an immigrant’s life. They can help newcomers to chart a career path, or give a newcomer an opportunity to volunteer within the mentor’s business. Contact Endrené Shepherd at 250-492-6299.


138 resPondents

Business people in our region, contrary to the stereotype conveyed in the general media, seems very concerned with the environment. More importantly participants believe that we can, and should, be involved in keeping our part of the playpen clean and green.

1. what is the greatest threat to the environment today?

Air pollution 9.6%

Water pollution 19.8%

Soil degradation 2.9%

Global warming 15.4%

Mass species extinction (breakdown of the ecosystem) 2.9%

All of the above 46.3%

Other 2.9%

2. do you believe that global warming is a serious environmental threat?

Yes 60.1%

No 13.0%

Maybe 23.2%

No one knows 3.6%

3. is human activity the cause or a significant contributor to global warming?

Yes 58.0%

No 10.1%

Maybe 26.1%

No one knows 5.8%

5. is the idea of the 3 rs (reduce, reuse, recycle) going to make a substantial difference in the fight against pollution?

Yes 48.9%

It might be if we were more serious about it 43.1%

No 8.0%

7. how good a corporate citizen is your company to the environment?

Profits and survival are our only concern 0.7%

We care, but we sometimes have no choice 12.5%

We’re not great, but we’re not bad 14.7%

We try to go the extra mile 28.7%

We are as green and sustainable as we know how to be 41.9%

I don’t really think about it 1.5%

8. where should the impetus for being good to the environment come from?

Ultimately it is the responsibility of government through regulation and law 2.9%

Private enterprise is where innovation and new ideas are born, if we don’t do it, no one will 8.8%

It has to be driven by popular consensus with a by in from the public; otherwise it is doomed to fail 22.8%

Government, the public and private enterprise must reinforce each other’s efforts; no one can be successful at this without a comprehensive approach 64.0%

Frankly the environment will take care of itself and we don’t need to do anything 1.5%

9. how good a job is the provincial government doing in handling the environment?

It couldn’t be worse 2.9%

Overall, not too well 32.6%

Mediocre 43.5%

Pretty good 23.3%

They’re the best 0.7%

10. how good a job is the federal government doing in handling the

environment?

It couldn’t be worse 16.7%

Overall, not too well 31.2%

Mediocre 43.5%

Pretty good 8.0%

They’re the best 0.7%

11. is there a company in the okanagan that stands out in your mind as being exemplary in how it approaches environmental issues?

There were a large variety of organizations

The Environment Survey Results

Yes

Not unless the U.S. and other countries are willing to as much

Not unless strong evidence can be presented for it

No, we live in a cold climate with too much distance between us to worry about cutting energy emissions

No

4. Should Canada be attempting to cut back our emmissions to help

0.7%

1.5%

9.5%

13.1%

75.2%

Yes, capitalism is about making and selling more; the only way to save the environment is to have less

It’s driven by the consumer, business can only go

No, capitalism doesn’t have to be dirty and polluting,it can be run sustainability

6. Is there an inherent contradiction between capitalism and successful

Science and technology has solved our problems in

as we need them

4.5%

11.2%

20.9%

63.4%

business and being good to the environment?


named in response to this question. One response noted that this was a difficult question to answer because there were no benchmarks to rate a company against.

A second criticism, from Deborah Greaves, owner of Air Water Earth Publications states,

“I’m not impressed with the way these survey questions were worded.

I feel the results will net simplistic and clumsy replies to questions dealing with wide and complex challenges.

For example, I don’t believe the three Rs will do much toward absorption of carbon. That doesn’t mean they shouldn’t be followed - reducing packaging & distances goods travel, and recycling as much as possible is simply a more responsible way to treat the environment we’re all sharing.

Climate change, regardless of its cause, is altering the world environment and is creating new situations that affect water, air, soil and both plant and animal life.

The survey poses a few quick questions dealing with thousands of changes, causes and effects. I have the distinct impression it has been contrived for a client who is ‘fishing’ for something, and after completing it, I confess to feeling a little manipulated, with no idea of ‘to what end’.”

Only three groups were named by more than one person: both the City of Vernon and UBCO each received two nods as did Green Step Sustainability Coaching, a subsidiary of Tigress Ventures.

The City of Kelowna received the nod for the production of Ogogrow and Natures Gold from its composting operations. A private company in Vernon, Bin to Curb Composting, was also acknowledged along with Russ’ Recycle & Compost Removal Services.

Two other consultant groups mentioned include Summit Environmental Consultants and DCW Consulting.

Okanagan College was acknowledged for its extreme green facility being constructed in Penticton.

Other firms in the business of building and construction in one way or another, include Complete Home Energy, which does home renovations aimed at energy savings and efficiency and Cancadd Reproductions & Engineering Supplies. Geotility Geothermal installs in ground heating extraction systems.

Once construction is finished one reader recommended turning to Green Earth Lawncare for earth-friendly outdoor care.

There is also Advanced Pavement Technologies, which provides permanent pavement repair.

The Best Western in Kelowna and the Delta Grand hotels were named as being green. Still in the tourist zone is Vernon’s RareEarth Music festival and Outdoor Discoveries, which is a Vernon firm providing nature adventure tours.

Hi-tech was represented by RackForce Networks and BC Hydro.

Retail operations named by survey respondents include Urban Harvest, Nature’s Fare, Anita Studios (a pottery studio), Staples Advantage service, Digitech Renewable Printer Cartridges and J Ball Electronics.

Two service providers named were InfoTel and Missketo Designs, which is a graphic design and art studio.

While one respondent named all Okanagan wineries, others were more selective, singling out Quail’s Gate and Tantalus Vineyards for special mention.

Another blanket nomination was the Okanagan Nation Alliance.

If you would like to be included in future surveys conducted monthly by the Business Examiner please send your e-mail address to: [email protected] and indicate in the body of the text that you want your name added to the survey list.

What’s More Important the Brakes or the Steering Wheel?

What’s More Important Voice Communications or

Data Communications?

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The answer is of course that one is no more or no less important than the other. Both are integral parts of your business’s overall communication strategy. They both connect your customers to you and you to your customers.


During a business restructure employers are often under tremendous financial pressure and may be tempted to skip or try to get around the Employment Standards Act’s minimum requirements. Giving in to that temptation can be expensive.

Employees who believe their employer has not met these minimum standards may file complaints. Employers found to have breached the ESA will be ordered to pay wages owed and in most cases, an additional penalty. These mandatory penalties start at $500 for each violation, increase to $2,500 for later violations and top out at $10,000 per violation.

Keep in mind that the ESA sets minimum requirements. If an employment agreement or the common law provides greater protections, the employee may choose to pursue those greater protections in Court. Collective agreements may set different ground rules, so here I will address the ESA in the context of a nonunion workplace restructuring.

Layoffs and changes to terms and conditions of employment are common in business restructures, but if the ESA isn’t taken into account, the cost of the business restructure may outweigh the benefit.

Under the ESA a “temporary layoff” means “a layoff of up to 13 weeks in any period of 20 consecutive weeks.” So an employer should be safe to lay off an employee and bring

them back to work without consequence, as long as the employee is back within 13 weeks of the original layoff date. That unfortunately may not be the case. As a result of some recent developments in the law, a temporary layoff is automatically treated as a termination of employment unless the possibility of a temporary layoff is expressly provided in a contract of employment; is a well known industry practice (e.g. “breakup” during logging); or is agreed to by the employee.

The ESA also defines a “week of layoff” as a week in which an employee earns less than 50% of his or her regular wages at the regular rate, averaged over the previous eight weeks. So an employee can continue to work, but on a reduced rate, and at the end of 13 weeks may take the position that he or she has been terminated, triggering the employer’s obligation to provide termination pay.

When a layoff becomes a termination, the employer is liable, at a minimum, to provide pay in lieu of notice based on a formula of nil for the first three months’ employment, one week from three months to the completion of 12 months employment, increasing to two weeks until three years employment has been completed, with one extra week per year of service topping out at eight weeks. This is a minimum, however. Under the common law or an employment agreement an

employer may be liable for more.

The ESA also provides that a termination may occur where a condition of employment is substantially altered. So an employer who restructures the business by changing terms or conditions of employment to minimize layoffs, could find itself faced with an ESA complaint seeking termination pay.

Employers who terminate 50 or more employees within a two month period face additional liability. The ESA requires that these employees be given an additional eight to 16 weeks of working notice or pay in lieu (depending on how many over 50 there are). The termination count includes employees on a layoff exceeding 13 weeks in that two month period. So count carefully.

And lastly, directors and officers are liable for up to two months unpaid wages for each employee, which includes termination pay.

The liability for termination pay can be avoided by planning ahead, assessing whether temporary layoffs or permanent layoffs (i.e. terminations) are appropriate, giving working notice of termination of employment and seeking advice from an experienced employment lawyer.

Veronica Ukrainetz is the principal of the Ukrainetz Law Corporation in Vernon, B.C. Her website is www.ulclaw.ca. This article is meant for reference only and should not be construed as legal advice.


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OKANAGAN FALLS

TAKES A BOW IN THE

SPOTLIGHT

Okanagan Film Commissioner Jon Summerland assisted Cannery Studios in its move from West Kelowna to an advantageous facility in Okanagan Falls. Summerland told Castanet that the new property has better working space for film productions including 32,000 sq. ft. for staging film shoots, a separate 3,000 sq. ft. carpentry section, first aid and security rooms, a fenced lot and three acres for

parking. In addition it is attracting attention from a number of companies that support film work across the country. Several of them, including Harold’s Custom Equipment, HollyNorth and Offset Rentals are expected to open their doors in Okanagan Falls.

In an unrelated story the province is moving to boost video and digital effects work in the province by extending the tax credits given to films to digital media sectors. None of that work occurs in the Okanagan currently, but with the rise of the Canadian dollar to near parity film makers have

been urging the government to give the industry all the breaks it can to keep the work happening here.

PANDOSY BIA

MOVES AHEAD

The South Pandosy Business Improvement Area in the Mission district of Kelowna is going before Kelowna city council to make their case. The new BIA has put together a proposed budget of $124,000 annually, based on a rate of $1 per thousand of assessed commercial value. Points of interest to members include parking, signage, more community events, better lake access and creating an identity for the business area.

LESS GETS ALTITUDE

Adam Less, founder and former half owner of Think Marketing, has sold his share of the business and struck out on his own. His new company is Propeller Creative Brand Strategists, and uses the logo of “Altitude is Everything”. Less believes his strengths combine creative skills with experience in marketing. He says, “I'm a graphic artist and a writer, but I'm also a strategist with a career’s worth of experience developing brands and strategic platforms behind me.”

VERNON CHAMBER

TALKS TO VERNON

CHAMBER

The Greater Vernon Chamber of Commerce announced its newest program to better connect with its own members. The 12@12 membership feedback program involves nine Chamber members sitting down with two staff members and one board member “to discuss the issues that most affect their business today.” The meetings will occur monthly and will continue until June of this year, when their effectiveness will be reviewed. Each meeting will be based on one business

JON SUMMERLAND

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Labour Relations, Employment and Human Rights Law

PROVIDING STRATEGIC LEGAL REPRESENTATION TO UNIONIZED AND NON-UNIONIZED EMPLOYERS THROUGHOUT THE THOMPSON OKANAGAN.

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Ukrainetz Law Corp.

Employment Law Considerations in a Business RestructurePart 2 of 3 on what business leaders need to think about when considering

the restructure of their company.


living wage. You need to know how much the business should pay so that you do not need to dip into the company “cookie jar”.

• Second, the timing of a business’s cash inflow and outflow often does not line up with revenues and expenses. In other words, cash in hand often represents money owed or required to produce products and services. You need 12 months of cash flow projections and a system to track the actual flow of cash relative to those projections on at least a monthly basis.

Keeping your business and personal finances separate legitimizes what you’re doing in the eyes of other interested parties, including bankers and the Canada Customs & Revenue Agency (CCRA). Keeping separate

records might not seem like a big deal when you’re just scraping by, but once you start making more money the consequences can be considerable if your records are too mixed up to make good management decisions.

Legitimate business expenses can be deducted from your business revenues to reduce taxable income.

The second benefit from drawing a clear distinction between your business and personal finances is an accurate and objective view of your business’ viability. You’ll never know if it can support both you and your goals in the short and long term if you have a compromised picture of its finances.

Here are tips on how to keep it separate:

• If you operate from your home, try to confine your work to one room or one area and keep that space exclusively for your business.

Find ways to clearly distinguish what belongs to the business and what doesn’t.

• If you can, set up a separate business phone line or at least track your business telephone usage.

• Set up a company credit card for business expenses. Remember the card is a tracking tool, not a source of financing.

• Establish a filing system for your business receipts. Don’t throw them all in a shoebox and hand them to an accountant at the end of the year. The shoebox provides you with virtually no ongoing financial information. At least figure out the major expense categories and, as your costs are incurred, file the invoices and receipts accordingly. Then, once a month, enter the information into your revenue/expense and cash flow statements.

• If you use your car for business

purposes, keep a log of the kilometers you travel for the business.

Don’t think you need to do it all. Sarah Holland of Holland Advisory Services says, “I don’t believe that all entrepreneurs should do, or be able to do, their own bookkeeping and tax returns – and in some cases, I would strongly advise that they shouldn’t. However, it is critical to have enough financial understanding to tell if you’re making a profit, how your cash flow is doing, and how each area of your business is doing.”

Women’s Enterprise Centre is the go-to place for B.C. women business owners for business loans, skills training, business advisory services, resources, publications and referrals. Call us at 1.800.643.7014 or e-mail [email protected] from anywhere in B.C.


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Veronica M. Ukrainetz

A business restructure will impact employees, and you can’t avoid it, but you can create an atmosphere where employees don’t need to resort to outsiders (lawyers, courts, unions) for protection.

While it is important that employers be aware of the legal claims employees may have in a business restructure, it is at least equally important to recognize that keeping employees in the dark is an invitation to such claims.

A legal claim, even if unsuccessful, is a cost a business doesn’t need to add to its bottom line. Also, employees aren’t stupid. They will know if a business is facing challenges and if they don’t know what is going on, they look to the rumour mill and to outside sources, like

unions, to get answers.

I am not saying that employees should be made fully aware of all aspects of a potential business restructure. Too much information at the wrong time could backfire; it’s all about balance, knowing what to say when and why.

The three most important legal areas to be mindful of in a business restructure are: the Common Law; Employment Standards legislation and Human Rights legislation, but right now I will address only the Common Law, the law set by the Courts.

The Common Law requires that an employee who is dismissed and who does not have an employment contract is entitled to reasonable notice of dismissal or pay in lieu. Employees who are short changed are awarded damages to make up the shortfall. The Common Law also says that employees who keep their employment, but face a fundamental change, without sufficient notice, in their position, duties, compensation or other key areas may have a claim for constructive dismissal.

The amount of notice an employee is entitled to have depends on a number of factors, but the most important are the employee’s age, length of service, responsibility or specialization of position and the availability of alternate equivalent employment. The notice entitlement can be different for every employee, but it can be as much as 24 months.

So it is important that employers know what the potential liability is before going ahead with the restructure, not after.

Fortunately for employers, the Common Law does

require that the dismissed employee (whether outright or constructively) “mitigate” her damages by taking reasonable steps to reduce the losses. The employee is not entitled to take a holiday, take the employer to court and collect damages for insufficient notice.

The dismissed employee is required by the Courts to look for work and the constructively dismissed employee will have to explain to the judge why he chose unemployment over employment.

Employees who quit and sue for constructive dismissal may win the battle, but lose the war. The Court may well find that the change to the employee’s job was fundamental, so was a constructive dismissal, but the Court will also consider whether the employee’s duty to mitigate included staying in the changed job.

The direction coming from the Supreme Court of Canada is that if the employment environment is not humiliating or toxic the employee should stay in the job and look for other work while employed. So it is critical that employees are treated with respect and dignity. The easy way to do that is to involve the employee in the impending change and provide the employee with support to help the employee adapt. If this happens, most employees won’t want to sue and the rare employee who does, isn’t likely to win.

So it doesn’t just make sense from a human point of view to treat employees with respect and dignity during a business reorganization, it makes legal sense!

Veronica Ukrainetz is the principal of the Ukrainetz Law Corporation in Vernon, B.C. Her website is www.ulclaw.ca.

Employment Law Considerations in a Business Restructure

PERSONAL CONTINUED FROM PAGE 11

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107 - 3640 Gosset Road, Westbank, BC 250.707.1153 www.discoverycomputers.com

A s k t h e P r o f e s s i o n a l sMichael Dias Owner

Q: What are the ways to try to prevent Viruses to come into my computer?

A: Always have an Antivirus in your computer. There are many flavours of Virus protection out there. Some are better than others but our favorite here at Discovery Computers is Panda. We have been using

Panda Antivirus since 2003 and every year it gets stronger and stronger and easier to use. Like I have said

many times though any Antivirus is not 100% and it is up to the user to be diligent about how they use their

computer. Go to only trusted websites. Download only trusted files. Always scan the files you download.

Lastly do a manual scan on the computer using your antivirus at least once a week.


by devon brooks

If pictures are worth thousands of words than the corollary must be that picture takers are story tellers thousands of times over. Photographer Shawn Talbot’s one man business, it turns out, is a treasure trove of stories waiting to be told.

Some of the stories are the obvious ones, like the behind-the-scenes information that goes with some of his most beautiful shots. And he knows it: “Facts tell but stories sell. We’ve been trying to attach a story to each photo.”

In this instance Talbot is talking about photos that are part of the new company Majestinction (www.majestinction.com).

Majestinction, says Talbot, is the child of Rob Woodhead, who is president of the Planet Woodhead Group in Kelowna. Woodhead’s idea was to recruit a superb photographer who would go to different locales around the globe and take extraordinary photos.

The shots would be printed in stunning large formats (60”x40”).

Talbot describes the Lightjet printing system: “There are only a handful of these machines in North America. They utilize a laser that “burns” the image onto the metallic paper and produces stunning, vivid colours. These photographs are then trans-mounted onto a sheet of acrylic. It is the highest quality printing and mounting

process available anywhere. It truly is ‘museum quality’. The photographs are then custom framed.”

Selling for a minimum of $5,000, with most in the $9,000 to $13,000 range, a buyer is guaranteed that no other large print will ever be made. Should a purchaser decide to sell the photo later, Majestinction will put it back in their gallery at whatever price the owner thinks they can get for it.

Indeed the signature image of Horseshoe Bend (reprinted above) is back on the market for a cool $50,000.

This is a photographer’s dream. Talbot started by compiling a list of locations around the globe where he will go to obtain these photos. “I’ve got the bucket list of about 60 places on the planet I need to shoot.”

Horseshoe Bend, situated near the Grand Canyon in Arizona, was one of those locations. Other images already shot come from another location in Arizona, the Oregon coast and winter shots at Silver Star in Vernon. More trips are in the offing for this year and next.

On site a typical day for Talbot begins at 4 am and lasts until midnight. “To get the ‘beauty’ light I’ll get up really early and stay up really late.”

If the site is road accessible he’ll go in an SUV, tossing a mattress in the back.

The photographer describes these trips as a real joy, but admits he brings the same intensity to all of his shoots and wonders, half in jest, whether he is going to pay the price for the more dangerous shots.

When he wanted action shots of a Vector speed boat racing across Lake Okanagan he hired a plane to chase the craft, but found the results unsuitable. Next he tied himself to a helicopter skid, urging the pilot closer and closer. When the boat pilot swerved the wake inundated Talbot and sloshed into the helicopter.

The helicopter pilot was forced to swerve the other way, causing g-forces that bent Talbot back like a pretzel. The 29 year old’s back hurt so much he was laid up in bed for days afterward.

Shooting a boat for SVFARA Marine, another Kelowna company, Talbot had a different vision. “I will often strap myself to the bow of the boat.” Images from that shoot are still displayed prominently on the company’s website at: www.svfara.com/showroom.htm.

Last November, near Big White, he carefully set up his equipment on a large rock in a lake for a timed shot. Coming back to check on the process he stepped onto the rock and found his body weight to be the literal tipping point. The rock turned pitching Talbot and almost every piece of equipment he owned into the water.

He smiles ruefully, glad no one was there to

Facts tell but stories sellA local photographer’s journey from childhood fascination to capturing the planet

horseshoe bend: this leading iMage on the MaJestinction site is rePresentative oF the eFFort talbot Puts into all oF his Photos, requiring three

days oF hiking out to get the “beauty” light. on the third day, talbot waited while all the other PhotograPhers Packed uP and leFt and the sun had

set. only aFter when light FroM below the horizon Painted the clouds and reFlection in Many hues did he get this iMage.

capture that moment on film. He was impressed to find his Canon camera kept working even when it was under four feet of water.

Talbot, who is from the Okanagan, says, “I’ve had a camera in my hand since I was eight years old.”

By the time he was 18 Talbot knew he wanted a career in photography, and decided on courses from Ryerson University, Capilano College and the Vancouver Film School to give himself exposure to many different kinds of shooting.

After graduation he was hired to do extra shoots for marketing firms before getting involved in the film industry, shooting stills and video.

Still photography is where his heart is and when he got the chance to do a three month stint shooting for Campion Boats back on his Okanagan home ground, he leapt at the chance.

Talbot doesn’t shoot family portraits or weddings. He says, “My bread and butter is commercial photography.”

His varied schooling, plus the film background has paid off in ways he hadn’t foreseen. He was used to doing whatever was required. If that meant cranes, he’d get a crane. If it meant strapping himself to the front of a power boat skipping across the lake at 80 kph he’d do that too. Once he’s passionate, he admits, “I’ll get tunnel vision for the shot I want to get.”

Talbot worries that descriptions of his “big shot” techniques will scare people off, thinking that every photo shoot will require a fortune to realize.

He insists his philosophy actually leans the other way. “The goal is to keep it as simple as you can; it doesn’t have to be big.” Talbot says it’s just that he isn’t afraid to go big, fast or chancy if that’s what is required.

Since his return to the Okanagan his vision has taken him many places, shooting for seven different boat manufacturers, UBC, the Western Hockey League, Fortis BC, Kal Tire, Lake City Casinos, Valley First, several marketing firms and others. Dozens of his pictures are available for viewing online at www.shawntalbot.com.

Despite his successes, when the recession hit last year he quickly realized that marketing and advertising budgets were drying up. He also realized, after several years of working with great marketers that a recession was not the time to pull back.

So he took the advice he had heard so often. “I rebranded, hired a marketing agency and tripled my budget and ended up with the busiest March/April [2009] I’ve ever had.”

lower anteloPe canyon: “this iMage was caPtured inside one oF the Most

sPectacular Places i’ve ever seen - lower anteloPe canyon in arizona. beFore going

i contacted the navaJo tribe and sPoke to one oF their elders about the Possibility

oF entering this restricted and sacred land. they Provided Me with a guide and

allowed Me to sPend two days inside the canyon taking PhotograPhs.”

all Photos by shawn talbot

shawn talbot in a b&w selF Portrait

taken while shooting in oregon.


Eastern-Canadian blabbermouth Naomi Klein has made a lucrative career of telling us how unfair capitalism is, but please don’t dwell on the irony just yet. After the earthquake struck Haiti, Klein got to work on a Facebook movement warning that capitalists plan to take advantage of the chaos by “infiltrating” Haitian society and privatizing its services. Right...like Haiti was such a socialist utopia before the quake.

Now here’s where the irony thickens. President Obama, with whom you’d think Klein would find affinity, came under attack from socialists because he sent in the

world’s best-equipped military to save lives and start rebuilding Haiti.

France committed a paltry $15 million and yet its Cooperation Minister Alain Joyandet joined hands with Venezuelan socialist dictator Hugo Chavez in accusing America of seeking to occupy Haiti “undercover.” Chavez for his part sent a single airplane to help with the relief effort.

I wonder how much money will Klein’s Facebook page raise to help Haiti? Oh that’s right, she’s not in that business; she raises people’s social consciousness!

If only these people knew a bit of history. After Japan’s unconditional surrender to the United States in 1945, General Douglas MacArthur, Supreme Commander of the Allied Powers in Japan, instituted peasant land reform, freed political prisoners and gave women the right to vote. Not bad for a military guy. Japan went from feudalism to capitalism overnight, and while some are bothered that the U.S. still maintains military bases on Japanese soil, would anyone claim Japan did not become a successful, sovereign and democratic nation?

The United States Marine Corps occupied Haiti from 1915 to 1934 and established most of its infrastructure. And now, as U.S. soldiers again walk on Haitian soil, it’s time to overcome the failed thinking of socialists like Klein, Joyandet and Chavez who believe that prosperous and just societies will somehow, someday spring forth just as soon as the state controls everything. Capitalists by contrast, along with U.S. soldiers, recognize that healthy economies and robust democracies have only ever resulted when individual citizen initiative was allowed to play the leading role. The United States, along with other “shamelessly capitalist” nations like Canada, MUST use military strength to give Haitians the opportunity to adopt free enterprise. President Clinton wasted $3 billion on Haiti between 1992 and 2000 because he failed to provide military backing. President Obama will spend at least another billion and will do well if he instead lets highly trained Americans and Canadians with guns and the license to use them keep an eye on everything from start to finish.

For the first time, perhaps since the Korean War, Canada’s effort in this crisis has been exemplary. This is thanks to our Conservative government streamlining the myriad of federal aid organizations the Liberals established in the ‘90s, organizations that routinely spent more than two-thirds of their budgets within Canada (mostly in Ottawa) instead of in the nations they were supposed to help.

Of most obvious positive effect were the two new C-17 strategic-lift aircraft recently delivered to our Canadian Forces. Make no mistake; these are military instruments which are performing well in a secondary peacekeeping/humanitarian role in Haiti. Ordered by the Harper government in 2007 amid harsh criticism that Conservatives were too chummy with the American military industrial complex, the alternative would have been to waste precious time and rent Soviet-era heavy-lift aircraft like the Liberals did after the 2004 tsunami in the Indian Ocean.

Thousands of motivated Haitians wake up every morning in that stricken nation with the compassion and drive to rid themselves of the anti-capitalist, anti-individual, anti-American paradigm which has kept Haiti poor. Is Klein’s crowd, which wants to export the very concepts we have rejected, going to provide these individuals with the means for success or the American and Canadian militaries followed closely by capitalist investors?

Mischa Popoff is a freelance political writer with a degree in history. He can be heard on Kelowna’s AM 1150 on Friday mornings between 9 and 10.


Sandler Training utilizes continual reinforcement through

ongoing training and individual coaching sessions not only to

help you learn but also to ensure your success. With over 200

training centers worldwide to provide support, you won’t fail...

because we won’t let you.




sales?John Glennon






sales?John Glennon






sales?John Glennon



John Glennon109B-3677 Highway 97 North

Kelowna, BC V1X 5C3P: 250-765-2047 F: 866-314-3410

www.glennon.sandler.com



sales?John Glennon



107 - 3640 Gosset Road, Westbank, BC 250.707.1153 www.discoverycomputers.com

A s k t h e P r o f e s s i o n a l sMichael Dias Owner

A. There are many ways to back up your photos and other items. The three main ways of backing up is Either on a Flash Drive (or also called Thumb Drive, USB Drive/Stick) A Flash Drive is what replaced the old floppy. Although more durable and can hold more that a DVD

you can accidentally erase the contents inside so be careful. Another backup medium is the external Hard Drives. With prices of hard drive

come crashing down you can possibly get an external that is bigger than probably your hard drive in your computer for under 150 dollars or less.

Still like the Flash Drive, you can accidentally erase the contents for good. Last back up is the more permanent. Although you can’t hold as much in it you will not erase everything and that would be backing up onto DVD.

DVD’s should be your final backup choice as once it’s on the DVD you will pretty much be guaranteed not to be lost. Last word of advice. Make 2

copies of the same backup and put them in different locations.

Q. I have photos and other items to back up. What is the safest way of backing up.

ThisDemocracyOnly one thing can save Haiti

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270 Highway 33 West Kelowna, BC V1X 1X7 Ph: 250.491.0206 Fax: 250.491.0266

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