Spotlight on Wayward Distillery

Categories: Vancouver Island/Coast

Dave’s first career was in the Canadian Armed Forces and Air Force. The military supported him to think about what he wanted to do after completing his service. His travels had helped refine his palate with rum from Jamaica, beer from Belgium and wine from France; and Dave decided he wanted to become a distiller. … Read More

Spotlight on Twirling Umbrellas

Categories: Thompson Okanagan

Growing up during the ‘dot com’ era, Chris translated his interest in cars into developing an automotive website. As he worked his way through university, his website became more successful and he learned to code and design more complex websites. He started making websites for friends and family, and soon stumbled into the world of … Read More

Spotlight on The Historic Chilcotin Lodge

Categories: Cariboo

Brenda and her husband Kurt both grew up with parents who ran their own businesses. Knowing that they also wanted to work for themselves, the couple gained experience working for franchises before opening their own café chain called “Chestor’s House of Cinnamon” in Salmon Arm in 2003. After many years of hard work, they chose … Read More

Spotlight on Grand Uproar

Categories: Lower Mainland/Southwest

Ziggy and Tara worked together on a creative team at a high-growth marketing firm. KK, a contract photographer, worked with them to create monthly content. As the company grew and was  acquired, they became more siloed in their roles and realized that they missed the nimble creative collaboration that they had when the firm was … Read More

Spotlight on the Royal Theatre

Categories: Kootenay

Lisa moved to Trail 15 years ago. Her husband, Jason, grew up there and often went to the Royal Theatre, established in 1927. Lisa fell in love with the community and the lifestyle in the Kootenays. After a dinner date in 2009, Jason took Lisa to the old one-screen theatre and proposed they buy it … Read More

Use these resources to find business continuity information and a checklist of considerations for your small business to help minimize the impacts of COVID-19. Business Continuity & COVID-19 Small Business Resources This resource available in the following languages: Korean Punjabi  Simplified Chinese Traditional Chinese

2020 was a record-breaking year for the number of nominations, with 61 diverse communities receiving nominations, encompassing every region of British Columbia. These winning communities demonstrate their strong support for their local small businesses by adopting business-friendly practices in their region. The 2020 Open for Business Awards Winners are: Small Category (under 5,000 residents): WINNER … Read More

The Open for Business Awards celebrate communities that have created a business-friendly environment, allowing small business to flourish. During the nomination period an unprecedented number of local governments and Indigenous communities were nominated from across B.C. The 2020 Open for Business Awards finalists are: Small Category (under 5,000 residents): ·       District of Ucluelet ·       Village of Harrison … Read More

Spotlight On Ogopogo Tours

Categories: Thompson Okanagan

Darren Sweet grew up in Penticton and spent most of his life in the Okanagan. Struggling with an anxiety disorder, Darren held over a hundred different jobs, and never really felt like he fit in anywhere. Ogopogo Tours, an environmentally sustainable tour operator based in Summerland, B.C., has given him a new lease on life … Read More

Spotlight On Spearhead Inc.

Categories: Kootenay

Ted Hall grew up in North Vancouver and became immersed in the worlds of construction and design as a teenager when his parents hired a well-known Canadian architect to design a home. Eventually, a Danish construction team was hired to build the home. Ted admired the skill, training, and discipline of these individuals – so … Read More