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WELCOME TO THE NEW BARRIE BIZ BLAST!! We are thrilled to be introducing our new format for delivering our local business community information, resources and celebrations of local business success all in an effort to support the growth and development of Business in Barrie. The types of information will be presented in the same way as our previous Biz Blasts to allow you to skim the content quickly and link to more information on the topics of interest to you. In the sidebar, you will find a highlight of stories. Clicking on each story will take you straight to the article in the Newsletter for easy navigation. You will also find a new section Headlines - BIZ FYI full of quick facts/statistics about our economy and new information that may be relevant for your business. Also in the sidebar, we will be highlighting local business success through the success stories you share with us. As you review our inaugural issue, your feedback, comments and suggestions are welcomed as this publication is designed for you. Please email sschlichter@barrie.ca with your feedback.
Happy Holidays from the Strategy and Economic Development Office
The Strategy and Economic Development Team wish you and yours all the best of the holiday season and a happy, healthy and prosperous New Year. We look forward to working with you in 2010! In the spirit of the season, we would like to take the opportunity to appreciate the efforts of many of our community organizations who work tirelessly to ensure that those in our community in need are able to have a Christmas. Christmas Cheer: Supports people who need help during the holiday season. It's for people who work and don't make enough money to cover the extras at Christmas. In 2008, Christmas Cheer cared for approximately 4,300 people, providing food and toys for children and expect to assist 5,000 this year. Click here for more information or to support Christmas Cheer. Children's Aid Society of Simcoe County: Their Holiday Sponsorship Program matches sponsors' generous gifts of new toys, clothes, and grocery certificates to create complete holiday celebrations for individual families and young adults, who are under the supervision of the Children's Aid Society across Simcoe County. Click here for more information or to support the Holiday Sponsorship Program. Salvation Army Kettle Campaign: The National Kettle Campaign helps The Salvation Army provide direct, compassionate, hands-on service to more than 1.5 million people in Canada each year, restoring hope and dignity to the most vulnerable in society. Their Christmas Campaign helps provide food hampers and special Christmas dinners. Click here for more information or to support the Kettle Campaign. These are just a few of the many organizations who help to make our community a great community. Intake Two of the Community Adjustment Fund Released - Deadline January 18, 2010 Eligible applicants include commercial enterprises with a focus on SME's with up to 1,000 employees that are existing businesses with a proven track record looking to expand, modernize innovate and/or improve their competitiveness. Business start-ups will not be supported. Some business sectors are ineligible - please see contact information below for eligibility criteria. Eligible Projects include projects that: - Expand SME production capacity, technology, access to markets, and other SME projects that improve a business's competitiveness - Projects must be completed by March 31, 2011 with no obligation for continued spending. For additional details on program eligibility and investment priority, please see the Program Guidelines. To download an application form, please click here. Barrie Boundary Expansion Passes 3rd Reading
Once in effect, property of the Town of Innisfil and the County of Simcoe in the lands affected by the boundary change will transfer to the City of Barrie on January 1, 2010. For more information visit: http://www.ontla.on.ca/web/bills/bills_detail.do?locale=en&BillID=2213 New Economic Development Strategy and Action Plan Moving Barrie's Economy Forward The City of Barrie is launching a more focused, dynamic and practical Economic Strategy and Action Plan to meet the current and future needs of the community and maintain a prosperous economy. Lead by Millier, Dickinson, Blais, a leading economic development consulting firm, the creation of the new Economic Development Strategy and Action Plan included an extensive assessment of Barrie's current economic status through background and literature reviews, community consultations in the form of one-on-one interviews and focus groups, and an on-line assessment. To ensure a focused approach to the City's future economic development initiatives, Millier, Dickinson, Blais compiled, analyzed and prioritized all the findings into five major goals, with accompanying objectives and action plans. In shortened form, the goals are:
To view the entire Economic Development Strategy and Action Plan visit www.investbarrie.com.
50% Off Lean Manufacturing Training Ontario's Ministry of Economic Development and Trade - MEDT (Communities in Transition) and Excellence in Manufacturing Consortium (EMC) are continuing to help manufacturers increase competitiveness and become more efficient, through the rapid deployment of much needed productivity skills training. Announced recently, all Ontario manufacturers are eligible to receive 50% off the cost of Lean training, at more than 50 hands-on Lean training sessions being hosted by EMC across the province. Over 2,600 manufacturing leaders benefited from the EMC-MEDT funded Lean training during the first round of this initiative. Click here for program information. Lexus is making its way to Barrie Lexus of Barrie has broken ground on its new $7-million dollar dealership at 281 Mapleview Drive West. The 22,000 square foot facility is expected to employ 30 associates when it opens its doors in Spring, 2010. The facility will incorporate a 12-vehicle showroom, a unique indoor delivery area for new owners, 12 mechanical bays and an interior drive-through. Local company Bertram Construction and Design is leading the project. New Funding for Small and Medium Manufacturer's to Provide Workers with Skills Training The Federal Economic Development Agency for Southern Ontario has invested $12-million dollars in the Yves Landry Foundation for the Achieving Innovation and Manufacturing Excellence (AIME) Initiative. Through the AIME initiative, the Yves Landry Foundation will fund up to 75% of a projects total direct and indirect eligible costs up to a maximum of $50,000 and includes skill training in:
Please note: Preliminary Applications must be submitted by December 31, 2009 For more information and to apply, visit: Yves Landry Foundation Upcoming Trade Missions - ICT Sector Canadian Pavilion at the International ICT Expo 2010 (April 13-16, 2010, Hong Kong) The Consulate General of Canada in Hong Kong, in partnership with The Hong Kong Trade Development Council (HKTDC) and The Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office (HKETO) in Canada, would like to invite Canadian companies to participate in the International ICT Expo scheduled for April 13-16, 2010 at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre. Participants could participate in the mission as a panel exhibitor, or as an individual exhibitor or as a trade visitor. All the Canadian delegates will also be invited to join a mission program specially designed to increase their access to partnership and business opportunities in Hong Kong, Mainland China and the region. Some of the potential sub-sectors include: Smart Phone Applications (including mobile applications) For additional information, please contact: Adrian Cheng, Business Development Officer Health Information Management Systems Society (HIMSS) Annual Meeting and Trade Show - March 1 - 4, 2010 - Atlanta, Georgia, Georgia World Congress Center The International Trade Branch (ITB), Ministry of Economic Development and Trade, is organizing an exhibit designed to accommodate 12 Ontario HIT companies at HIMSS 2010, Atlanta, Georgia. Participants and visitors to HIMSS will have the opportunity to find out what's new in this sector, assess the competition, learn about developments in the US HIT market, and network with potential business partners and customers. Co-exhibitors will benefit from: 50 square feet of furnished exhibit space, production of company signage, a shared lead retrieval system, and inclusion of the company's profile in the Ontario Exhibitors Directory for pre-show and on-site promotion. The International Trade Branch believes that participating in trade shows and trade fairs is an excellent way for Ontario companies to gain valuable exposure, assess new markets and future trends, make business contacts, and generate sales. If your company is interested in participating in HIMSS, please contact: Patricia Cosgrove, International Marketing Consultant, USA-Life Sciences, International Trade Branch. Telephone: 1-416-212-1030, Email: patricia.cosgrove@ontario.ca Canadian Delegation to the FILMART 2010 (March 22-25, 2010, Hong Kong) The Hong Kong Trade Development Council & The Hong Kong Economic & Trade Office in Canada would like to invite Canadian companies to join the delegation. This mission might be of interest to those Canadian companies interested in expanding their business to Mainland China, Hong Kong and Asian markets with focuses in the following areas:
To register or seek further information regarding the delegation, please contact: Adrian Cheng, Business Development Officer |
In this Issue: Intake Two of Community Adjustment Fund Released Barrie Boundary Expansion Passes 3rd Reading Barrie's New Economic Development Strategy 50% Off Lean Manufacturing Training Funding for Skills Training for Manufacturers Upcoming Trade Missions - ICT, Digital Media & Health Sectors
Competition Bureau Publishes Guidelines on "Product of Canada" and "Made in Canada" Claims for Non-food Products - Click for details. Accessibility Standards for Customer Service - Private Business in Ontario must comply by January 1, 2012. Watch for an upcoming Information Session in January to learn more! Barrie's CMA continues to maintain one of the lowest unemployment rates in Ontario at 6.9 per cent in November as compared to the provincial average of 8.4 per cent. Canada's GDP rose in the third quarter 2009 for the first time in four quarters. GDP rose 0.4% between July and September. According to a report released by BMO Financial Group which examined small business growth between 2004-2009, Barrie CMA is among the Top 10 for small business growth. Click here for report. New Barrie Business Growing Fast…
As Barrie's only commercial records centre, Archive Document Storage is a small business that is growing fast. Archive Document Storage started operations last year and quickly realized a latent demand for their services. In their first year of operations their industrial warehouse was completely filled. As a result, Archive has shifted operations to a high-density facility near Hwy 400 and Essa Rd. Archive Document Storage has added two additional employees and purchased two new vehicles. The vehicles, along with most of their infrastructure upgrades, have all been acquired locally. About Archive Document Storage: Archive is a records storage and management company specializing in offsite storage of paper-based files and records. Documents are stored in a secure, offsite facility, reducing liability for their clients and improving business continuity in the event of a disaster. Archive customers have full access to their files and files are barcoded for tracking and maintaining retention schedules. Click here to visit their website. Share your success story with us! Have you entered a new market, reached a new sales peak, hired new staff, leveraged a government program, expanded, relocated or purchased new equipment? WE WANT TO KNOW! We are looking for opportunities to showcase the success of our local businesses as part of our business retention and attraction efforts. Please send your success story to Stephannie at sschlichter@barrie.ca and let's celebrate business in Barrie! |
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