SMALL BUSINESS MONTH - SUPPLEMENT TO THE WINNIPEG FREE PRESS - SATURDAY, OCTOBER 17, 2020
OCTOBER 2020 MONTH
Manitoba’s outstanding
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SMALL BUSINESS MONTH - SUPPLEMENT TO THE WINNIPEG FREE PRESS - SATURDAY, OCTOBER 17, 2020
“A lot of businesses have been accessing programs and tax deferrals or mortgage deferrals. A lot of those things are coming due and businesses are not sitting on huge piles of cash to pay for them.”
- Chuck Davidson, president and CEO of the Manitoba Chambers of Commerce (MCC)
Back in January, the Manitoba economy appeared poised for a solid performance in 2020.
Davidson says. “As a result, a lot of tourism providers outside of Winnipeg told us that they had the best summer they had in the history of their organizations.” Despite the many challenges Manitoba business owners have faced of late, Davidson says most of those he’s spoken with remain optimistic about the future. That said, there is concern about the impact a second wave of the virus could have on businesses. The province instituted strict new measures for Winnipeg and surrounding communities on Sept. 28 that made mask use mandatory at all indoor public spaces, including bars and restaurants, as the number of confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the city began to climb dramatically. “A lot of businesses have been accessing programs and tax deferrals or mortgage deferrals. A lot of those things are coming due and businesses are not sitting on huge piles of cash to pay for them. It’s like a second economic wave and there’s going to need to be continued economic help for business to get through this,” Davidson says, adding the MCC would like to see the federal and provincial governments help businesses cover the costs of purchasing items such as safety shields and PPE. ■
ed in most other provinces. Davidson says one of the main reasons Manitoba has been able to weather the economic storm is that the province moved quickly after the first wave of COVID-19 to put measures in place to limit the spread of the virus. “What it allowed us to do was reopen our economy sooner than a lot of other jurisdictions, whether it was reopening restaurants to 50 per cent capacity or retail being able to open. In terms of bringing back employees, Manitoba has done well too. I think we’re somewhere between 90 and 95 per cent,” he says. “That’s all had a positive impact on our economy.” Another encouraging development is the fact the rural economy has experienced minimal interruptions during the pandemic. Some rural industries, such as agriculture, mining and manufacturing, haven’t really been impacted by the coronavirus. And unlike many tourism-dependent businesses in Winnipeg that were devastated by the pandemic, many rural tour operators actually enjoyed an increase in their bottom line this summer. “A lot of Winnipeggers and Manitobans spent the summer travelling around the province instead of going elsewhere,”
Business (CFIB) suggests it could take up to a year and five months for small businesses to return to return to normal sales. Considering that about 97 per cent of companies in Manitoba are considered small businesses (99 or fewer employees, according to Statistics Canada) and employ 72 per cent of all workers, it’s not difficult to see the impact such a slow down could have on the overall economy. Davidson explains that’s why it’s now more important than ever that people in Winnipeg and rural Manitoba support small businesses. “That’s a key part of what the MCC is continually encouraging is, regardless of whatever community you’re in, go out and support those small businesses,” he says. “It might sound hokey, but those small business owners are the backbone of our economy and those people need our help right now.” While recent economic news has been trou- bling, Davidson points out there have still been some positive developments when it comes to the Manitoba economy. One recent economic forecast from RBC indicated that while Manitoba’s gross domestic product is expected to shrink by 4.5 per cent in 2020, that’s a far smaller reduction than is expect-
By Jim Timlick
A number of key sectors, calling for steady, although not spectacular, growth. That all changed in March when the COVID-19 pandemic gripped the province and effectively forced many businesses to curtail their operations and, in some cases, temporarily close their doors. “Obviously, everything changed with COVID and everything changed for business as well,” says Chuck Davidson, including agriculture and manufacturing, were doing well at the time and many economic forecasters were
president and CEO of the Manitoba Chambers of Commerce (MCC).
“The key sectors that have been the most impacted, and I don’t think this is a surprise to anyone, are in the service sector, whether it’s retail or hospitality or restaurants and hotels. These are key industries that are big economic drivers that are not going to be back to pre-pandemic numbers for quite some time.” That’s especially true for many small businesses. A recent report authored by the Canadian Federation of Independent
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SMALL BUSINESS MONTH - SUPPLEMENT TO THE WINNIPEG FREE PRESS - SATURDAY, OCTOBER 17, 2020
Keep your business accessible during COVID-19
Is COVID-19 creating new accessibility barriers for your employees and customers? Consider your signage: • Where and how high is it posted? • Is the print large enough? • Can you use symbols or pictures to make the message clearer? • Does it block any other important features of your business, like a ramped entrance? • How do you communicate with customers who have low or no vision?
• Offer seating in lineups and priority service. • Allow support persons to assist customers, clients, and loved ones. • Make accommodations for people with disabilities in places with one-way traffic, entrances and exits. • Check in with employees and ask about their accessibility needs. The solutions to balance public health measures with accessibility concerns are often simple, low or no cost. Provide flexible customer service to people with disabilities:
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SMALL BUSINESS MONTH - SUPPLEMENT TO THE WINNIPEG FREE PRESS - SATURDAY, OCTOBER 17, 2020
Living in a bubble for weeks or months at a time convinced many Manitobans that they needed to spruce up their homes with greenery, such as citrus trees, cacti, succulents and ficus trees.
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Many Manitobans are discovering the benefits of greenery, both indoors and outdoors. Photos courtesy of St. Mary’s Nursery & Garden Centre
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SMALL BUSINESS MONTH - SUPPLEMENT TO THE WINNIPEG FREE PRESS - SATURDAY, OCTOBER 17, 2020
COVID-19 has forced many of us to work from home and cancel our tropical getaways this winter, but that doesn’t mean we can’t get up close and personal with nature.
“They’re also motivational. They can be your new pet to look after — just put them in the sunlight and make sure they’re fed properly. Greenery indoors livens up the space but it’s also been known to increase productivity.” (One word of caution: If you do have pets or young children around the house, make sure to tell a staff member at St. Mary’s because some plants can be toxic. You can get a good sense of what’s suitable for your little ones by going online and checking out local poison centres.) St. Mary’s isn’t your typical garden centre. It also has a fashion store for women, a gourmet section and gift store on the premises. In a few weeks, the entire facility will transform into a winter wonderland, featuring Christmas trees, live-cut greenery, silks, florals, berries and birch poles. This much-anticipated seasonal display takes about six weeks to create, so anyone who visits early enough will have the chance to witness the transformation in person. If you prefer your plants and trees living in the wild, Trevor Olynyk has you covered. The sales manager of GNR Camping World RV Centre has a wide range of recreational vehicles at its Dugald Road location that can help you not only survive but thrive in the great outdoors. “A lot of people who had never dreamed of camping in their lives have bought RVs this year. I have customers who own vacation properties in Mexico or Florida and are unable to get there (because the U.S. border is closed) and they’re buying RVs to explore Manitoba
and support the local economy,” he says. At GNR Camping World RV Centre, new and used RVs start at $70 biweekly, and financing can be arranged on site. These RVs can sleep as few as two or as many as 10, depending on the layout and the number of bunk beds. The fancier the model, the more technology that can be controlled by your fingertips. For example, some models come equipped with satellite systems that enable you to turn the heat or air conditioning on or off, automatically level the vehicle or even put the awning out so it’s ready for Happy Hour. You can even go RVing if you don’t have a trailer hitch or a vehicle to tow it. Olynyk’s crew will deliver any kind of trailer to a private campground or provincial park, hook up the water and sewage and all you’ve got to do is unlock the door. “It can be a turn-key little cottage that you never have to move but it’s way less expensive,” he says. Even after a vaccine for COVID-19 has been found and the border is opened up again, Olynyk thinks the popularity of RVs will keep growing for a number of years. “People aren’t going to be jumping up to go to the U.S. until things get under control with the pandemic. I have customers who camp in Manitoba in the summer and then head to Texas for the winter and they’re saying they’re not going back to the U.S. and are now on permanent seasonal sites in Manitoba,” he says. “It’s great for the economy.” ■
By Geoff Kirbyson
T wo local companies are here to help, whether nature to you means outfitting your dining room office with tropical plants and turning your backyard into a natural habitat or heading out on the road to explore what Manitoba has to offer. St. Mary’s Nursery & Garden Centre has welcomed all kinds of new visitors this year who have been eager to paint their uncallused thumbs green. Carla Hrycyna, co-owner of the 35-year- old destination location just south of the Perimeter Highway, says plants and anything plant-related — such as shrubs, annuals, perennials and ornamental grasses — have been moving quickly. But it’s the “newbie” customers who have established themselves in 2020. “We’re getting people coming in who have never grown anything before. They’re venturing into uncharted territory. They’ve physically got their hands in the dirt as much as possible,” she says. Living in a bubble for weeks or months at a time convinced many Manitobans that they needed to spruce up their homes with greenery, such as citrus trees, cacti, succulents and ficus trees. But the new additions do much more than simply make the place look and smell nice. Plants are also good for air purification. “They give us oxygen,” Hrycyna says.
If you prefer your plants and trees living in the wild, Trevor Olynyk has you covered. The sales manager of GNR Camping World RV Centre has a wide range of recreational vehicles at its Dugald Road location that can help you not only survive but thrive in the great outdoors.
Recreational vehicles have been popular during the pandemic as more Manitobans explore the province.
Photos courtesy of GNR Camping World RV Centre
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SMALL BUSINESS MONTH - SUPPLEMENT TO THE WINNIPEG FREE PRESS - SATURDAY, OCTOBER 17, 2020
‹‹ Acryl Design Limited shifted gears to produce strong, lightweight sneeze guards. ›› Patent 5 Distillery is pitching in during the pandemic by producing hand sanitizer that adheres to World Health Organization guidelines.
‹‹ “Of course, we had to lay off our cocktail room staff, but producing hand sanitizer kept our people in the back busy. Sales were strong during the early part of the pandemic. It helped us weather the storm.”
Acryl Design Limited Photos by Mike Sudoma
Patent 5 Distillery photos submitted
PAIR OF BUSINESSES EXECUTE PANDEMIC PIVOT TO PERFECTION When the COVID-19 pandemic hit Manitoba in mid-March, its impact was immediate. T o limit the spread of the coronavirus, the Province of Manitoba instituted a lockdown that allowed only businesses that offered so the hand sanitizer wasn’t safe to use and was recalled by Health Canada. Ours was very safe, so people continued to buy it.” As the pandemic stretched into late spring and early summer, the demand for hand sanitizer essentially kept Patent 5 afloat. the pandemic hit, a former customer called, asking for a new design.” Wardrope and his production team quickly obliged, coming up with a strong, lightweight plastic design. Comprised of three panels that used packing tape as hinges, it was compact and portable. “Within a day, we got an order for 3,500 of the guards. We manufactured those 3,500 guards in about five days.” By Todd Lewys
Brock Coutts, co-owner of Patent 5 Distillery
‹‹ “Fortunately for us, we’d designed a type of sneeze guard for a food chain in the 1990s. When the pandemic hit, a former customer called, asking for a new design.”
“Of course, we had to lay off our cocktail room staff, but producing hand sanitizer kept our people in the back busy,” Coutts says. “Sales were strong during the early part of the pandemic. It helped us weather the storm.” Today, Patent 5’s cocktail room is once again open. Staffing levels are back to about 65 to 75 per cent of normal, all cocktail room employees are working regularly, and alcohol production for those delicious spirits is going at a good clip. However, as is the case everywhere else, management and staff at Patent 5 are dealing with the new normal that’s been imposed by the pandemic. “Business is far from normal. Tables in the cocktail room have been set at distance and everyone is wearing masks, including our production staff,” he says. “Right now, hand sanitizer is about two per cent of our business. We sell hand sanitizer to school divisions in 20-gallon drums.” Like Patent 5 Distillery, Acryl Design Limited was also hit hard by the pandemic.
essential services to remain open. Countless small businesses were forced to close, immediately putting them into survival mode. One of those businesses was Patent 5 Distillery, a craft distillery located in the Exchange District at 108 Alexander Ave. “Having to close really shook us,” says Brock Coutts, co-owner of Patent 5, which produces specialty vodka and gin spirits, and operates a cocktail room at the front of its distillery. “We closed our cocktail room on March 17 and wondered what we were going to do next.” Then, a friend asked a timely question. “He asked if we were making hand sanitizer,” recalls Coutts. “After a quick look around, I realized we had everything to make it except hydrogen peroxide and glycerin.” Four days later — after rapidly procuring the hydrogen peroxide and glycerin — Patent 5 was producing hand sanitizer in place of spirits. “We were up and running inside a week. Our biggest issues were getting glycerin and proper bottles,” he says. “Within two weeks, we were pumping out large quantities under World Health Organization (WHO) guidelines.” As it turned out, it was critically important to adhere to those WHO guidelines. “Fortunately, our sanitizer was safe. Some producers used fuel grade ethanol to make it,
John Wardrope, owner of Acryl Design Limited
As things stand today, Acryl Design is still operating, though in a far different way than Wardrope ever imagined. “We’re now supplying a western Canadian grocery store chain and a number of schools in Toronto,” he says. “In fact, this past August was the best month for our company in 35 years of being in operation, even though the business I was in doesn’t exist anymore.”
That said, the ability to shift gears has enabled Acryl Design to thrive
during challenging times. The company launched an e-commerce website for its sneeze guards and other barriers (www. sneezeguardcovid19.com) in addition to the regular website (www.acryldesign.com). “I’ve hired another full-time employee, bought another C & C machine to bolster production, and leased the building next to us to house the guards,” Wardrope says. “As I said earlier, I feel fortunate.” And with COVID-19 cases rising both in Winnipeg and Canada entering fall and winter, Coutts says Patent 5 is poised for a quick reboot if the demand for hand sanitizer increases. “Not only can we help others by producing the hand sanitizer, but doing it will also help us sustain our business,” he says. “We’re ready to pitch in if necessary.” ■
Their business — which normally produces specialty products for the
entertainment, escape game and theatre industries — also came to a full stop when the lockdown was enforced. It was time to pivot, but the question was how. “Fortunately for us, we’d designed a type of sneeze guard for a food chain in the 1990s,” says longtime owner John Wardrope. “When
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SMALL BUSINESS MONTH - SUPPLEMENT TO THE WINNIPEG FREE PRESS - SATURDAY, OCTOBER 17, 2020
EDUCATION FOR ENTREPRENEURS
It’s always good to have a plan — in life and especially when starting a small business. These days, during the challenging COVID-19 era, it’s never been more important to have a sound plan when going into business for yourself.
By Todd Lewys
A nd while the University of Manitoba’s Stu Clark Centre for Entrepreneurship wasn’t created to help people cope with COVID-related business challenges, the Centre and the Asper School of Business have stepped up to deliver critical guidance through these uncertain times and provide the tools needed to succeed, says Debra Jonasson-Young, executive director of the Stu Clark Centre. In response to the challenges that COVID has presented, the Asper School of Business created a Small Business Consulting course as a way of giving back to the community and providing students with real-life consulting experience. “In their fourth year, our marketing, accounting and supply chain students are matched up with small businesses. They study the businesses, then work with them to help them solve specific problems. Under the guidance of professors, students submit reports on their findings to businesses along with solutions to the issues they’re facing,” says Jonasson-Young. “It’s important for us that we be responsive to the community, primarily providing support for our students at the University of Manitoba while also interfacing with people in the community. Our goal is to deliver an education for entrepreneurial-minded individuals.” She adds that both students and members of the public can benefit greatly from that education. “That person could be a student, someone who’s out of work but looking to start a business, or an accountant who wants to go into business for themselves. It can be anyone.” In a nutshell, course content consists of five pillars: learning to solve problems, building a business plan, learning from successful small business start-ups, a venture coach program, and connecting to the larger community. Those intent on starting a small business — no matter whether they be a student or member of the public — need to heed the content of the second pillar: building a business plan. “When starting a business, it’s critically important to understand the planning process. The big thing is validation. We ask people, ‘Who are you going to sell it to?’ They go into business with the idea that they’re going to make lots of money,” she says. “Then, they get into a marketplace and don’t succeed.” There’s a major reason why so many businesses fail early on: they don’t define the market they’re about to enter.
Top left: Debra Jonasson-Young is the executive director of the Stu Clark Centre for Entrepreneurship. Top right: Asper School of Business students participate in a pitch competition. Lower left: The Stu Clark Centre for Entrepreneurship is at the University of Manitoba. Lower right: An Asper School of Business student completes her coursework. Photos by Tony Nardella
“We teach people to think about how big a market is, what their customer focus is and profitability potential. If they don’t think about those things, they might have a great idea, but there might not be a market for it.” The third and fourth pillars are equally important. “Creating opportunities for students to see what successful start-ups do is very important. We’ll send students out to observe successful businesses like Skip the Dishes. They’ve gone through all the steps necessary to create a successful business and are doing many things right,” Jonasson-Young says. “You can learn a lot by watching what an industry benchmark does.” A little coaching doesn’t hurt, either. “Our venture coach program matches students with an entrepreneur that meets with them free of charge. Basically, they have their own private coach to help them work through things. They learn how to market properly, find money and identify target markets, among other things.” That program then extends into webinars where students meet with coaches to cover topics such as doing the perfect pitch, the business planning process, raising capital, validating customers, building a team and marketing principles. “The webinars are very beneficial,” she says. “They cover all the nuts and bolts of being in business. Even better, it’s led by someone who’s a successful entrepreneur.” Finally, students are connected with the larger business community. “There’s no better place to interface with other small businesses than North Forge Technology Exchange, an innovation-based economic development agency and community of entrepreneurs where students can learn from award-winning mentors,” notes Jonasson- Young. “They can help make sure you don’t make mistakes that can trip you up in the early stages of your business.” With the margin between success and failure so thin in the COVID era, it’s essential that those looking to start a small business are able to cope with and meet the myriad challenges of today’s turbulent economy, she adds. “These days, you have to be innovative, creative, flexible and nimble to succeed. At some time, every small business will experience a barrier that they will need help with. We’re here to equip people with the knowledge and skills they need to get their business over the hump and survive during these challenging times.” ■
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“With the margin between success and failure so thin in the COVID era, it’s essential that those looking to start a small business are able to cope with and meet the myriad challenges of today’s turbulent economy.”
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D ebra Jonasson-Young, executive director of the Stu Clark Centre for Entrepreneurship
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