By Gagandeep Ghuman
Published: Aug. 25, 2012
You have read about the woeful state of local economy and the familiar routine of businesses closing.
As many as ten new businesses, however, are bucking that trend, bringing to bear new twists on that old story.
The District of Squamish has signed on ten new business licences in the past one month.
Pacific preferred developments, Cameron Chalmers Consulting, Alpen Construction, Once Ocean Expeditions, Elemental Book Keeping, Red Apple, Rethink Creative Society, Green Earth Organics, Ruddy Duck, and Dixie Lee Chicken are just some of the new businesses that have signed up to test their luck in Squamish.
While some businesses, like Dixie Lee, Red Apple store (which replaces Fields), and Ruddy Duck will be highly visible, most of the other businesses are home-based enterprises.
At least one, Rethink Creative Society, aims to work as a non-profit, bringing artist together under one roof.
Rethink Creative Society will provide storage space for artists, and a space for them to create art,” said Andrea Graham.
Graham is also the force behind the highly successful Bass Coast Festival.
“We hope it will be able to fund itself,” Graham said.
In an earlier interview with the Reporter, Dixie Lee Chicken CEO has also expressed hope that his business would be a success.
“It’s right on the highway, I’m sure we will do quite well,” Murano said.
Green Earth Organics is an organic food delivery business that started in Toronto, expanded to Vancouver, and is now operating out of Squamish.
The owner of Elemental Book Keeping, Tricia Boer, said she moved to Squamish last year.
“I moved to Squamish last year and have been eager to contain my business in Squamish, working from home,” she said.
Boer said one reason she moved to Squamish was the sense of community she felt here.
“Businesses seem to care more for people here and build relationships with their clients and customers,” she said.
She said one disadvantage of Squamish was that it was a small town, and much of the business conducted here has been taken from the locals and given to big corporations that have moved here.
She said she is aware that she is taking a certain risk in opening a new business.
“The town seems to be in a state of confusion after the Olympics,” she said.
“I see a lot of vacant and even abandoned office buildings, many residential vacancies and houses for sale.”
Tracy says
Great that new businesses are willing to take a risk in Squamish, but it appears that the businesses opening are service industry which do not offer high paying wages. These are support businesses for industries that offer higher pay. It would be great for the District to attract businesses that employ more workers & offer higher wages, then the success of the support industries would be more hopeful.
Don Patrick says
Please state one attraction for business coming to Squamish. It is not Squamish, it is the times. I was fortunate to have a business in the 70’s & 80″s.. if you did not make it you were just a dismal failure. Six days a week, 10 hours a day and you could be above the norms. Everything was here, high wages, confidence, security and all the other stuff that makes business prosper…. but when you lose the high paying jobs, there is just no one with residual cash to spend… and that is where we are at this time. Sure some will say we lost BC Rail, Weldwood, FMC, Hooker Chemical, Woodfibre and the private logging companies, well they are correct and all of those companies left or sold because there was not a strong enough market for their services or they would still be in the valley…maybe the exeception being BC Rail which was always a loser. Of course creative accounting convinced some that the system was doing a good job…. the sad thing is that many of the employees were great dedicated railroaders… but what can you say when it comes to economics. In a nutshell, we are in a risky area and unfortunately most of the new businesses are just tax shelters… what we need is some industrial or mining of course, I am now becoming delerious … or just plain dreaming. Cheers
Lynda gerhardt says
I believe Squamish biggest problem is that there is no reason for tourists to stop and turn left at Cleveland. Our signage is horrible and it is always the big franchise names get the prime real-estate, ( we can’t change that but we need to entice people to want to visit downtown. I’m starting my own marketing business & I would love to take on Squamish for a great project to get my name out there!! Squamish has sooo much potential but no effort is made. The amount of traffic that drives by is stupid, we r in a perfect location for a shopping Mecca we would service lions bay, furry creek, britannia beach, squamish valley, paradise valley, whistler, pemberton & maybe even lillooet if it’s done right!