business in vancouver 2011-07-19

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Business in Vancouver Issue 1134

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Broadway transit battle lines drawnThe congested business and city transportation artery is likely next up for transit overhaul, but merchants and residents are torn over which option to support: 4-5

Coal boss quits amid takeover speculation 3

marching to the civic funding parade 6

avcorp’s fight for survival 7

Friedland hits platinum jackpot 7

insider trading: who’s buying what and for how much 9

Wineries seeking to reap vintage real estate harvest 10

vancouver tech firm aiming to address urban alienation 12

Companies tackle summer team-building opportunities 15

Who’s getting sued 22-23

objective housing price impact assessment needed 28

Calculating the cost of cultivating a city’s sports culture 29

lesley stowe: the queen of crisps looking for another recipe for success in b.C.’s food industry 31

INSIde

Biggest accounting firms in B.C. 20

Outgames athletes and visitors.” Gay festivals have come a long way since

Vancouver hosted 7,300 athletes and 1,500 cultural visitors for the third Gay Games in 1990 – the first tournament held outside San Francisco.

The Gay Games grew to include more than 12,000 athletes in Sydney in 2002 be-fore a schism took place.

sions on hate crimes, bullying and gender identity.

It will also have a cultural component. Local theatre groups, such as the non-profit Raving Theatre Co., would not have pro-duced its Confessions of a Mad Drag Queen were it not for the boom in gay tourists likely to buy tickets, Boychuk said.

“These events have either been stepped up or introduced because of their appeal to

Cashing in on the Outgames>North American Outgames festival promises to brighten summer business prospects with $13 million infusion into local economy

>Games to coincide with annual pride parade, which could be best-attended event in Vancouver history

By Glen Korstrom

The GLISA North America Outgames are projected to pump more than $13

million into the Metro Vancouver econ-omy next week as the city hosts its first ma-jor international gay festival since the 1990 Gay Games.

The 4,500 athletes, coaches and relatives who visit the Outgames are also expected to boost attendance at events in the Vancouver Pride Society’s annual festival given that both festivals cater to the gay community and overlap between July 25 and 31.

Depending on the weather, the result could be nearly 700,000 coming downtown for the July 31 Vancouver Pride Parade – the largest crowd of people for a single event in Vancouver’s history.

“If you wanted to take in all of our events, you couldn’t, because there’s 60 events hap-pening. You’d be quite tired if you tried to go to most of them. I know I would be,” said Outgames chairman John Boychuk.

“We have people coming from Africa, Europe, the Asia Pacific and South Amer-ica who are coming to our festival as par-ticipants.”

The festival includes a raft of sporting events, which are all free to attend, as well as a human rights conference that has ses- see Games, 6

vancouver pride society chairman Ken Coolen: expects to host the largest pride parade in vancouver’s history on July 31

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July 19–25, 2011 • Issue 1134 BIV.COM $3.00LocaL. BuSineSS. inTeLLigence.

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contentSColumnistsTrue Wealth 8

Thane Stenner Real Estate Roundup 10

Peter MithamHigh‑Tech office 12

Alan ZismanHR Strategies 17

Dennis WolffWorkplace Solutions 18

Sandra MilesPartners Podium 22

Karl GustafsonAt Large 28

Peter LadnerCity Business 29

Gordon PriceSales Moves 30

Jeffrey Gitomer

DepartmentsBy the numbers 8Insider trading 9BIV list 20Trouble 22–23Lawsuit of the week 23People on the move 24–25Datebook 26–27Letters 28

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next iSSueprofileChristopher Krywulak’s entrepreneurial success dates back to 1989 when he launched a car-phone installation business. iQmetrix, his latest venture, employs more than 200 people and generates over $50 million in annual revenue.

full DiSCloSureCarbon copy: LaFarge Cement’s Richard Gue is one among many business people keenly interested in B.C. government carbon cap and trade plans after California’s recent

decision to hit the cap-and-trade pause button. Meanwhile, a homegrown carbon offset market is coming under fire for creating a market in which cash-strapped schools and hospitals are being forced to subsidize private enterprise for energy efficiency initiatives.

Top 100 paid executives in B.C.

Study warns of risk of rushing into natural gas

Bear Creek files legal action in Peru

Interest rate moves are past due: C.D. Howe

Rich Canadians getting richer: Conference Board

Goldsource lands coal gasification technology through merger

Wild weather puts damper on logging

Hogtown beats Vancouver as Canada’s most expensive city

Pacific BioEenergy breathes new life into northwest forestry

Big pharma goes back to school days for R&D resources

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Walter Energy’s Vancouver-based CEO bows out amid takeover speculationAfter three months on the job, coal boss Keith Calder has called it quits citing differences in “management philosophy”

By Joel McKay

One of B.C.’s biggest coal bosses has thrown in the towel just

months after a major promotion and a $3.3 billion takeover deal.

On June 30, Tampa-based Walter Energy (NYSE:WLT) an-nounced the resignation of CEO Keith Calder, the former president and CEO of Western Coal, which operated three steel-making coal mines in northeast B.C. before Wal-ter bought it in April.

The sudden departure of the Vancouver-based executive sur-prised many in the industry who, just months before, were happy to see the leader of the smaller B.C. company take the helm at the much larger U.S. firm.

Calder said he resigned due to “differences of opinion concerning management philosophy.”

Days before his resignation, Cal-der sat down with Business in Van-couver for a one-on-one interview to discuss his plans for the company.

At the time, the 50-year-old executive said he had no plans to leave the company.

“I’m happy with where I am … this is the role that I should be in,” Calder told BIV.

His departure followed an ex-tensive search and interview process for a new chief executive after Wal-ter’s previous CEO, Victor Patrick, retired in March 2010.

The resignation comes at a critic-al time for the company as it at-tempts to integrate its Canadian, U.S. and U.K. operations under one banner.

Davenport & Co. LLP, a Vir-ginia-based research firm, down-graded its Walter Energy rating to “neutral” from “buy” following Cal-der’s resignation.

Analyst Christopher Haberlin

said the downgrade was a result of Davenport’s outlook on coal prices, Walter’s ongoing production chal-lenges and a “lack of stability” at the CEO level.

Haberlin told BIV there had been some speculation in the market that Calder’s exit was related to a po-tential sale of the company, though there’s no evidence to support that claim.

Calder, who’s known for his no-nonsense approach to business, told BIV in June the company has plenty of growth opportunities through its existing line of projects.

“One of the great things about where we are right now is we don’t have to make an acquisition …

which is a fantastic situation to be in,” said Calder.

He later added that his three-year goal for the company was to transform it into a major global metallurgical coal producer.

He said there are four “aces” a company needs to become a ma-jor global met coal producer – Asia, South America, Western Europe and India.

Each ace represents a market for coal products.

Calder said Walter already sells in Asia, South America and West-ern Europe.

“We are not in India yet … it would be great to get the India ace but only if it makes sense,” he said.

Haberlin suggested Calder’s de-parture opens Walter up to hostile takeover bids.

“In our view, stability at the CEO position is needed now more than ever as Walter integrates the acqui-sition of Western and moves for-ward on its plan to grow met coal production,” Haberlin wrote in a research note.

Jackie Przybylowski, an analyst

with Scotia Capital, agreed that Calder’s exit creates risk that the integration of Walter and West-ern Coal could be delayed, but she didn’t change her rating for the company.

“We do not expect any material alteration to Walter Energy’s operat-ing strategy at this time,” Przybylow-ski wrote in a note to investors.

During his time at Western Coal, Calder adopted an aggressive growth strategy that saw the com-pany re-open its Willow Creek mine in B.C. two months ahead of sched-ule, among other things.

Prior to Western, Calder was managing director of global min-ing giant Rio Tinto’s (NYSE:RTP) copper portfolio.

Allen Wright, president and CEO of the Coal Association of Canada, said Western had been one of the “rising stars” in this country’s coal sector.

“I’ve watched Keith over the last little while and I think he’s brought some stability to the company,” said Wright. “I’m sorry to see him go.”

Calder is expected to stay on as

CEO until July 31, when Joe Leon-ard will, for the second time, be named interim CEO.

Walter has already hired execu-tive search firm Spencer Stuart to find a new CEO.

Walter spokeswoman Nina Ng said Calder’s departure wouldn’t af-fect the company’s operations.

“It’s business as usual and that’s how we’re working,” said Ng.

At press time, Walter’s shares were valued at $111.56. •[email protected]

“In our view, stability at

the CEO position is needed

now more than ever ”

– Christopher Haberlin,analyst

Davenport & Co.

Walter Energy CEO Keith Calder days before resignation: “this is an opportunity to mentor an entire organization” Florida’s Walter Energy took control of the Brule coal mine in northeast B.C.

earlier this year following a $3.3 billion takeover deal walter energy inc. (NYSE:WLT)Tampa, FL

CEO: Keith Calder Employees: 4,000Market cap: $6.5bP/E ratio: 14.30EPS: $7.95

SourceS: Stockwatch, GooGle

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On Broadway: The city’s next transit-line battleThe Evergreen Line’s likely approval this fall is prompting activists and politicians to lobby for their preferred rapid-transit link to be next in the queue. The Broadway corridor is atop the list, but construction of SkyTrain or other transit option on the route will have a major impact on the transportation artery and area businesses

Vancouver mayoral candidates push for Broadway tunnelBut business owners, pointing to Cambie corridor’s Canada Line experience, fear business loss if subway option approved

By Glen Korstrom

Vancouver’s mayoral candidates are pushing for a SkyTrain tun-

nel link under the Broadway corri-dor to be the region’s top transit pri-ority once Evergreen Line financing is confirmed.

The proposed link would con-nect with the Millennium Line and go as far west as Arbutus – a route that will inevitably cause friction given that many Broadway business owners fear any type of tunnel con-struction along their corridor will kill their enterprise.

TransLink spokesman Ken Har-die told Business in Vancouver that TransLink’s board has yet to deter-mine the top regional priority after the Evergreen Line.

“Everything from Surrey rapid transit to Broadway rapid transit to gondolas going up Burnaby Moun-tain all fall into the queue,” he said.

Vancouver Mayor Gregor Rob-ertson and his Non-Partisan

Association challenger Suzanne Anton agree that reducing conges-tion on the Broadway corridor is vital for the region.

“It’s crucial that we have the Sky-Train technology through the Broad-way corridor,” Robertson told BIV in an exclusive interview June 29.

“The growth and population and the traffic challenges in the Broad-way corridor are unsustainable, so we’ve got to see the Broadway corri-dor served by the big pipe.”

Anton described the proposed link as a “regional line with regional importance.”

The Broadway corridor is the second busiest employment cen-tre outside the downtown core, and TransLink estimates that there are 110,000 trips along the Broadway corridor each day.

“In central Broadway, the only way you can manage the number of trips is with SkyTrain technology,” Anton said.

Anton and Robertson’s mutual

belief that SkyTrain is the only viable technology in the Broadway corridor worries business owners and frus-trates light-rail advocates.

Ray’s Beauty School for Hair-dressing owner Gina Law told BIV that she will close her 12-year-old business if regional politicians ap-prove any form of tunnel along Broadway.

She likes the idea of a burrowed tunnel but fears that construction will cause more disruption than au-thorities say.

“I don’t trust them,” she said. “On Cambie Street there were so many businesses that went bankrupt or had to close. They did not expect to have the cut-and-cover [construc-tion method].”

Indeed, Hazel & Co owner Su-san Heyes suffered a drastic drop in customers for her maternity wear store when the Canada Line con-struction consortium dug a tunnel outside her store.

She lost a B.C. Court of Appeal judgment after she sued to recover $600,000 in damages from the con-sortium for business losses. Her only hope now is for the Supreme Court of Canada to agree to hear the case.

The West Broadway Business Improvement Association (WB-BIA) officially opposes a tunnel.

Its directors have examined TransLink’s seven options for im-proved transit in the Broadway corridor and decided that at-grade transportation, whether it involves more buses or a light-rail system, is preferable.

“We don’t want a SkyTrain tun-nel. Whether it is cut and cover or a bored tunnel doesn’t matter to us, because bored tunnels take longer and construction would cut off all the east-west traffic on West Broad-way for a number of years,” said WB-BIA director Donna Dobo, who owns the West Broadway costume store Just Imagine.

Light-rail advocate Malcolm Johnston has been lobbying to build

light rail on Broadway for decades. Light rail would not require con-struction of a tunnel. It would in-stead run at grade along the existing corridor.

Now part of Rail For The Val-ley, Johnston spends much of his time lobbying to have light rail in the Fraser Valley. But he still thinks light rail on Broadway is the more prac-tical and a better value than build-ing a subway.

“TransLink’s planning is arcane,” Johnston said.

“It’s dated, and they misinform the public. What else can I say? I

West Broadway Business Improvement Association director Donna Dobo: her association opposes a rapid transit tunnel along its corridor

Local mayors expect the province to confirm Evergreen Line financing this fall By Glen Korstrom

Metro Vancouver mayors are confident that Victoria will

enact legislation this fall to hike gas taxes $0.02 per litre to fill the funding void for the long-stalled Evergreen Line.

T he cha nge wou ld g ive TransLink $0.17 from each litre of gas, or enough to provide $43 mil-lion annually to pay for the bor-rowing cost to build the Evergreen Line and finance:•improvements to the Metrotown, Main Street, Surrey Central and

New Westminster SkyTrain sta-tions as well as the Lonsdale Sea-Bus terminal; •B-Line buses along King George Highway from White Rock to Guildford; and•more bus routes in south Surrey and Langley.

In addition to the gas tax, the mayors are lobbying Victoria to create a funding framework that will pay for future regional public- transit improvements.

“We really want to get to long-term funding solutions,” West Van-couver Mayor Pamela Goldsmith-

Jones told Business in Vancouver earlier this month. “That’s where we’ve been stuck for a while.”

She said the new revenue struc-ture might also include:•a vehicle levy;•a regional carbon tax; and•road tolls.

Goldsmith-Jones and other mayors believe Transportation and Infrastructure Minister Blair Lekstrom and long-time Evergreen Line champion Premier Christy Clark will support the mayors’ re-quests. •[email protected]

“TransLink’s planning is

arcane. I wouldn’t trust them

to build an outhouse”

– Malcolm Johnston,adviser,

Rail For The Valley

Daily business news at www.biv.com July 19–25, 20114 News

full disclosure

wouldn’t trust them to build an out-house.”

Johnston, who is familiar with TransLink’s seven proposals, be-lieves the transportation authority has skewed its figures to make rapid transit appear to be a more viable op-tion than either light rail or buses.

He believes TransLink pulls numbers out of the air, such as its assertion that 110,000 bus trips are made daily in the corridor.

Despite BIV’s repeated requests for details about that figure and es-timates, TransLink was unable to provide that data.

“TransLink says SkyTrain at-tracts more ridership than light rail. This is absolutely unproven,” John-ston said.

“Sit down for this. Light rail has a bigger capacity than SkyTrain. This is contrary to the spin that TransLink has. De facto, a streetcar or even light rail has proven to have higher cap-acity than a subway unless you build a London-style metro [with multiple lines and longer trains].” •[email protected]

Vancouverites remain wary of light railBut expense of SkyTrain technology making it a hard sell elsewhere in the world

TransLink’s seven proposals for improving travel times and decreasing congestion on the Broadway corridor:

Option Explanation Capital Cost Annual operating cost

Projected daily ridership (2021)

Travel time from Commercial Drive to UBC

Travel time from Commercial Drive to Cambie Street

Option 1 Bus rapid-transit alternative

Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) uses articulated buses that can run on diesel, compressed natural gas or electricity. TransLink evaluated both diesel and trolley options. The buses would operate primarily in the middle of the street in designated, separated lanes. This alternative does not include the signal priority that is included in the light-rail and best-buy options.

Diesel: $350 million; trolley: $450 million.

less than $1 million; trolley: less than $2 million.

75,000 33 minutes 9 minutes

Option 2 Light-rail transit alternative No. 1

This driver-operated, electrically powered option operates primarily in the centre of the street in its own separated lane. Green traffic lights stay green slightly longer when it is approaching. It includes two scenarios: •the line will follow Broadway from Commercial Drive (a); or•the line will go from Commercial Drive along Great Northern Way and then turn up to meet Broadway at Main Street (b).

$1.1 billion (a) about $3 million; (b) about $6 million.

(a) 99,000 (b) 109,000

(a) 26 minutes (b) 29 minutes


Option 3 Light-rail transit alternative No. 2

Same driver-operated, electrically powered technology as alternative No. 1. It also has two options:•the line will follow Broadway from Commercial Drive (a); or•the line will go from Commercial Drive along Great Northern Way and have one link that then turns up to meet Broadway at Main Street. A second link would go along West 1st Avenue past Olympic Village Station and then along an abandoned rail line near West 6th Avenue to meet Broadway at Arbutus (b).

(a) 1.3 billion (b) $1.4 billion

(a) $3 million; (b) $2 million.

(a) 107,000 (b) 116,000



Option 4 Rail rapid-transit alternative

This automated rail technology is powered by electricity and would go either (a) from Commercial Drive along Broadway all the way to UBC or (b) from VCC Clark station via a short elevated guideway and then a tunnel to Broadway at Main Street. Both routes would primarily be made with a bored tunnel. The tunnel along University Boulevard would be built with the cut-and cover method.

(a) $3.2 billion (b) $2.9 billion

(a) $3 million; (b) $7 million.

(a) 137,000 (b) 146,000

20 minutes 6 minutes

Option 5 Combination alternative No. 1

Combines light-rail transit (LRT) and rapid rail transit (RRT). RRT would operate between VCC Clark Station and Arbutus Street primarily in a bored tunnel with an elevated section between Great Northern Way and VCC Clark Station. LRT would operate between Main Street–Science World Station primarily in the middle of West 1st Avenue and then along an abandoned rail line up to Broadway at Arbutus Street.

$2.4 billion under $5 million. 145,000 27 minutes. 6 minutes

Option 6 Combination alternative No. 2

Combines bus rapid transit (BRT) and rapid rail transit (RRT). RRT would operate between VCC Clark Station and Arbutus Street primarily in a bored tunnel with an elevated section between Great Northern Way and VCC Clark Station. BRT would run from Commercial Drive along Broadway to UBC following current B-Line bus routes.

$1.9 billion $4 million. 138,000 32 minutes 6 minutes

Option 7 Best bus alternative

Bus service is improved on Broadway and parallel corridors, such as 16th Avenue, 41st Avenue and 49th Avenue, through a range of measures, including increasing bus frequency on existing routes, adding new express routes and having technology synchronize with traffic signals to prolong green lights when the buses approach. Buses would also have designated bus lanes to speed service.

$325 million $18 million 75,000 30 minutes. 6 minutes

By Glen Korstrom

Vancouver’s automated rapid-transit system has captured

residents’ imaginations enough that many believe anything less would be a substandard solution.

Many who attended TransLink public hearings in April on pro-posed options to reduce congestion along the Broadway corridor told Jeff Busby, TransLink’s manager of infrastructure planning, they were concerned that light rail and other options that ran along the street would reduce parking.

The Lower Mainland’s 68.7-kilo-metre metro is one of the world’s longest automated people-moving networks. Other similar-sized cities around the world, however, have no similar infatuation with SkyTrain technology.

The core of the transit system for the 2.2 million people in Portland, Oregon, is at-grade light rail.

Surrey Mayor Dianne Watts is so enamoured by Portland’s transit system that she mentioned it in an April speech as a shining example of a more efficient use of taxpayer dol-lars than SkyTrain. She made light rail the centrepiece of her 2008 elec-tion campaign, arguing that spend-ing $1 billion on a six-kilometre Sky-Train was an inefficient use of taxpay-ers’ money when that same amount could pay for a network of light-rail lines connecting several commun-ities south of the Fraser River.

If TransLink proceeds with a net-work of light rail into the Fraser Val-ley, Metro Vancouver will be follow-ing in the footsteps of Copenhagen, Denmark.

That 1.9-million-resident city

completed a 21-kilometre driver-less metro system in 2002. Residents learned June 29 that they will next get a 28-kilometre light-rail transit sys-tem that will link suburban munici-palities with the city centre.

The cost is estimated at $745 mil-lion, with the Danish government chipping in $298 million. The rest will be paid by the Capital Region of Denmark, which includes Copen-hagen and 11 suburban municipal-ities that have agreed to the project.Despite its popularity in Vancouver, Bombardier Inc.’s proprietary Sky-Train system in Vancouver has failed to achieve much traction elsewhere in the world, even though many other driverless metro systems are in existence.

Vancouver built its Expo Sky-Train Line in 1985, which was around the time Scarborough, Ontario, com-

pleted a shorter line using the Sky-Train technology.

Detroit, Michigan, completed its SkyTrain line using Bombardier cars in 1987, and Kuala Lumpur, Malay-sia, followed suit in 1998.

Since Vancouver completed its Millennium Line in 2002, however, no other major city has built a tran-sit line using Bombardier’s SkyTrain technology, according to transporta-tion blogger Malcolm Johnston.

TransLink spokesman Ken Har-die confirmed that Hyundai built the cars for Vancouver’s Canada Line.

Other SkyTrain systems are either in airports (John F. Kennedy Inter-national Airport; Beijing Capital International Airport) or amuse-ment parks (Everland in South Korea). •[email protected]

July 19–25, 2011 Business in Vancouver 5News

full disclosure

Montreal was awarded the 2006 Gay Games, but the Fed-eration of Gay Games then stripped the city of its right to host because of concerns over its organizers’ fiscal account-ability.

Organizers of the Mont-real event created their own World Outgames, and later that year filed for bankruptcy protection, owing $5.3 million. The Outgames, however, sur-vived to be hosted in 2009 in Copenhagen.

Confusingly, a continental Outgames offshoot was organ-ized. So, Vancouver is hosting the North America Outgames

four months after Wellington, New Zealand, hosted the Asia-Pacific Outgames.

The regional Outgames take place in-between World Outgames, and the Gay Games still exist.

The result is a spate of com-peting gay-themed festivals around the world, all of which court the lucrative gay tour-ist dollar.

The 4,500 visitors at Van-couver’s games are expected to spend about $385 each and stay eight days.

Athletes pay 70% of the Games’ $1.2 million budget, while sponsors such as the provincial government, Shaw

Media Inc. and the Vancou-ver Park Board combine to pick up the remaining $3.6 million, Boychuk said.

Dozens of small business

owners have combined to give discounts to athletes worth $350 each. The discounts kick in when athletes show a card in their orientation package.

In contrast, the Vancouver Pride Society’s (VPS) annual festival has a $738,000 budget that includes $500,000 cash and the balance in in-kind do-nations.

About half of that budget comes from parade fees and other revenue; 40% comes from sponsors such as Toron-to-Dominion Bank (TSX:TD), Telus Corp. (TSX:T) and Pfiz-er Inc. (NYSE:PFE) and 10% comes from public grants. •[email protected]

Games: Attendees projected to spend $385 each per day from Cashing, 1

“Events have either

been stepped up or

introduced because of

their appeal to Outgames

athletes and visitors”

– John Boychuk,chairman,

North America Outgames

Vancouver urged to follow Toronto and New York and pay parade policing costsAdvocates say the civic events stimulate tourism and create business for merchants, hoteliers, restaurateurs

By Glen Korstrom

As Vancouver prepares for the economic stimu-

lus of hosting the GLISA North America Outgames next week and what could be the largest-ever Vancou-ver Pride Parade July 31, civic politicians are squabbling about who should pick up the tab for police and gar-bage collection costs at large civic events.

The City of Toronto pro-vides about $200,000 to cov-er police and clean-up costs at the largest parade in Canada – the Toronto Pride Parade, according to Pride Toronto interim executive director Glen Brown.

“That’s a significant part of our budget. I don’t know what we would do without it,” he said.

New York City also picks up the tab to cover police and sanitation costs for the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, which is the largest parade in the U.S., Macy’s spokesman Orlando Veras told Business in Vancouver.

The Vancouver Pride Pa-rade drew about 640,000 people last year, and organ-izers expect that, because the city is hosting an internation-al gay sporting and cultural festival in the lead-up to the parade, this year’s attendance could be closer to 700,000.

That’s a fraction of the nearly one million people who watch the Toronto Pride Parade or the 3.5 million who watch the Macy’s Thanksgiv-ing Day Parade.

But the economic impact for merchants, hoteliers and restaurateurs in Vancouver is just as significant given Van-couver’s smaller economy.

The City of Vancouver provides a $10,000 cash grant and a $10,000 service grant to the Vancouver Pride Society for its parade, but Non Parti-san Association (NPA) coun-cil candidate Sean Bickerton said his party’s policy is to change the status of the Van-couver Pride Parade, the Sikh community’s spring Vaisakhi Parade and the Chinese com-munity’s winter Chinese New Year Parade to make them of-ficial civic events.

That means the city would

pay both police and clean-up costs to host the events:•about $58,000 for the pride;•$15,000 for the Vaisakhi; and•more than $10,000 for the Chinese New Year parade.

That money would come from the city’s $600,000 car-free budget, which covers

costs involved with closing Main, Commercial, Gran-ville and Denman streets as well as various streets in Kitsilano during the sum-mer, Bickerton said.

“These [parade] events were the original car-free days,” Bickerton said. “[The Vision Vancouver-dom-inated council] shuts down Main, Commercial and other streets, and it really hasn’t helped business. Sometimes it has hurt business. We could cut back on some of these

days and devote the money to the days that are car-free and really help business.”

He added that making the pride, Vaisakhi and Chi-nese New Year parades of-ficial civic events is also an equality matter given that the city long ago agreed to pay the costs for Grey Cup parades, as well as the three Celebration of Light fire-works nights July 30 and August 3 and 6.

Vision Vancouver coun-cillor Tim Stevenson said

he doesn’t understand how the NPA could just award civic event status to three new events, particularly be-cause the Vaisakhi and Chi-nese New Year parades at-tract about 50,000 people, or one-tenth the audience of the pride parade.

Granting only the pride parade with new civic status might be justifiable because of its size, he said, but grant-ing that same status on some smaller events means that size alone is not the criteria.

“If a motion comes for-ward, we would ask staff to look at what are the possi-bilities. Should we be spon-soring any public events?” Stevenson told BIV.

Bickerton said the NPA is open to including other events after a staff review.

“We should define a process and create a set of standards for what can be a civic event,” Bickerton said. “What exists now is ad hoc and arbitrary.” •[email protected]

“We should define a

process and create a set

of standards for what

can be a civic event.

What exists now is ad

hoc and arbitrary”

– Sean Bickerton,candidate for city council,Non-Partisan Association

YVR lands second all-cargo flightBy Jenny Wagler

Securing the second-ever all-cargo flight to Van-

couver International Air-port (YVR) is a key win for the airport and the B.C. econ-omy, according to the Van-couver Airport Authority (VAA).

This mont h, China Southern Airlines Co., Ltd. launched an all-cargo flight, which will carry luxury B.C. fresh foods from YVR to Shanghai four times a week. The return trip will bring China-made goods, particu-larly electronics, back to the West Coast.

Tony Gugliotta, VAA’s senior vice-president of mar-keting and business develop-ment, said that while an all-

cargo flight doesn’t yield as much revenue for YVR as a passenger flight because it generates no terminal fees, it’s a business area the airport is keen to develop.

He added that the flight will boost B.C.’s economy.

“[The f light] facilitates trade,” he said. “When trade is facilitated, obviously there’s an economic impact, which is pretty positive and results in the creation of jobs locally.”

YVR estimates that the flight will generate about 41 jobs. This is only the second all-cargo flight YVR has se-cured; the first, operated by Cathay Pacific since 1993, travels to Hong Kong three times a week.

Dora Kay, VAA’s sen-ior policy adviser for Asia,

said YVR’s crucial competi-tive advantage over its North American competitors in at-tracting Asia-bound all-cargo flights is its ability to fill the “back haul” – the flight back to Asia.

“Normally, large cities in North America take in a lot through imports but don’t have much to export,” she said.

“Whereas in the Pacif-ic Northwest, we can satis-fy that demand in that we’ve got products to export back to Asia.”

She said the new China Southern f light goes from Shanghai to Los Angeles, then up to Vancouver to fill remaining capacity before heading back to Shanghai.

Goods being shipped to

Shanghai, she said, include Dungeness crabs, geoducks, blueberries, strawberries and cherries. Kay said YVR is looking to attract other carri-ers to operate flights to other cities in China.

As for other Asian destin-ations, Gugliotta said those countries’ cargo demands have thus far been met with the cargo capacity of passen-ger aircraft.

“But obviously as the busi-ness opportunity arises that supports an all-cargo freight-er I think you’ll see them to other points in Asia as well.”

In June, China South-ern announced its first ser-vice with YVR: a passen-ger service to Guanghzhou, China. •[email protected]

Daily business news at www.biv.com July 19–25, 20116 NeWs

YourCentral City

law fi rm,in Surrey.

MCQUARRIE.COM

Avcorp’s flight for survivalDelta-based aerospace company battling to return to profitability after being hit hard by recession

By Jenny Wagler

It has been a tough stretch of late for Avcorp Industries Inc.

(TSX:AVP).The Delta-based aerospace com-

pany’s stock has plummeted from more than $15 in 1997 to approxi-mately $2 since late 2002 and flat-lined to below $0.10 since late 2009, but it maintains that brighter times are ahead.

“We’ve got shareholders who are confident in what we’re doing,” Avcorp president and CEO Mark van Rooij said. “We’ve got a path laid out for the coming years, and I think in the longer term, this com-pany will be profitable.”

Avcorp designs and builds air-frame structures for companies such as the Boeing Co. (NYSE:BA), Bombardier Inc. (TSX: BBD.B) and Textron Inc. (NYSE:TXT) subsidi-ary Cessna Aircraft Co.

But it has posted only two profit-able quarters in the past eight. Since the recession struck, the company’s

annual revenue fell from nearly $129 million in 2008 to just over $69 mil-lion in 2009; for 2010, its revenue increased slightly to just over $77 million. On June 14, the company released its first-quarter 2011 results. Despite achieving revenue of just under $21 million compared with around $17 million in the same per-

iod a year prior, Avcorp posted a loss of just over $1 million.

However, van Rooij said that after re-financings in 2009 and again this year, Avcorp’s balance sheet “looks good” and isn’t his top challenge right now.

Top challenges, he said, are to keep the company delivering high-quality work and to be more aggres-sive in building sales, particularly in the defence sector.

“We want to get our fair share of that procurement pie.”

As an example of Avcorp’s re-cent success in that area, he point-ed to the company’s $500 million contract signed last year with BAE Systems Operations Ltd. to deliver joint strike fighter (JSF) wing tips for the F-35 Carrier Variant Out-board Wing (CV-OBW) over 10 to 15 years.

But van Rooij noted that the de-fence “pie” is shrinking for the aero-space industry generally and point-ed to Canada’s withdrawal from Afghanistan and the U.S. winding

down its presence there as reasons for that shrinkage.

Van Rooij said Avcorp is there-fore offering new assembly tech-nologies and partnering with other suppliers to integrate their offerings

into Avcorp’s products.For 2011, van Rooij said the com-

pany’s top priorities are to produce its first JSF products and to keep a tight focus on producing qual-ity work.

He said the aerospace industry is “at the beginning of an up cycle,” citing the dramatic improvement in the mood at last month’s Paris Air Show compared with what it was in 2009, when it was last held.

“That [2009] was a little bit of a funereal feeling; this year it was much more upbeat,” he said. “There was a lot of opportunities and a lot of people thinking again about improvements and about growth.”

Van Rooij said he’s confident that Avcorp will return to profit-ability.

Steven Hansen, an equity ana-lyst with Raymond James Ltd., said the release of Avcorp’s 2011 first-quarter results shows that it’s mak-ing progress. But he added that re-turning the company to profitabil-ity depends in large part on the will-ingness of a large Avcorp strategic investor to fund its existence.

“[Avcorp] has been bleeding cash on a pretty regular basis. There have been intermittent periods where they’ve been showing positive cash flow, but they’re not quite there yet, they haven’t turned the corner en-tirely, although the market is show-ing good signs of turning.

“And so I think it’s going to be a matter of time, but as the cycle is evolving in business jets and as the company has also positioned itself to win a lot more military and commercial work, I think they will eventually achieve that profitabil-ity.” •[email protected]

“[Avcorp] has been bleeding

cash on a pretty regular basis” –Steven Hansen,

equity analyst,Raymond James

Mark van Rooij, president and CEO of Avcorp Industries: “we’ve got shareholders who are confident in what we’re doing”

Younger Friedland strikes it rich in ArgentinaRookie explorer Peregrine Metals sold to platinum miner for US$487 million

By Joel McKay

The Friedland name was again in the limelight

last week after Montana-based Stillwater Mining (NYSE:SWC) agreed to buy Peregrine Metals (TSX:PGM) for US$487 million.

The deal was a windfall for Eric Friedland, who, as chair-man and CEO, has a 12% stake in Peregrine and is the younger brother of Robert Friedland, one of the mining industry’s best-known financiers and the man behind Ivanhoe Mines (TSX:IVN).

For Eric, the deal to sell Peregrine is vindication that the Friedland name continues

to strike success in the oft-haz-ardous junior mining sector.

“The Friedland name is very well known within min-ing, and I’m happy for Eric with this transaction because he’s worked very hard on this project,” said Mike Wester-lund, a Peregrine spokesman.

The deal comes barely a year after the junior miner completed a $20 million in-itial public offering on the To-ronto Stock Exchange.

Since then, the company has filed an updated resource estimate that revealed some 11.7 billion pounds of copper sitting in the ground beneath

its flagship Altar project.Altar, which is in Argen-

tina, is also believed to contain 2.4 million ounces of gold.

Westerlund said it’s ex-tremely rare for a junior com-pany to own such a large de-posit.

Peregrine had yet to com-plete a preliminary economic assessment of the project be-fore Stillwater launched its bid.The cash and share deal rep-resents a 279% premium for the early stage explorer, and even more if you consider that Peregrine has invested only $50 million to $60 million in Altar to date.

Westerlund said the key to landing such a good deal for the company is its under-standing of the rocks in the ground.

“The work we’ve done brings confidence for people to move a little earlier to buy it,” said Westerlund. “This deal also reflects the value that these deposits in juniors are very rare … they realized if they want to win it they’re go-ing to have to aggressively go after it or someone else will.”

Peregrine’s stock soared 221% to $2.60 after the deal was announced, but Stillwater in-vestors haven’t taken so well to

the transaction. The Montana company’s shares were down 22% $18.46 after the takeover was announced.

Stillwater operates two platinum group metal mines (PGM) in Montana and car-ries a reputation in the mar-ket as one of the few signifi-cant PGM producers outside of South Africa and the Rus-sian Federation.

J.P. Morgan analyst John Bridges said most investors bought into Stillwater for its palladium exposure, and the Peregrine deal seems to “bring too much base metal into the company.”

The deal is expected to close September 30.

At press time, Peregrine Metals’ shares were valued at $2.57. •[email protected]

Peregrine Metals CEO Eric Friedland has stepped out of his brother’s shadow with copper in Argentina and diamonds in the Canadian arctic

July 19–25, 2011 Business in Vancouver 7NeWs

Now Open in Calgary!

True wealTh

Thane STennerEmotional rescues: Taking a hard look at your emotions is key to protecting personal wealth

Wealth management can be an emotional process. Just be-

cause you’re a successful high-net-worth (HNW) individual doesn’t mean you’re immune to fear, greed, pride or other emotions that can sabotage sound financial decisions.

If you want to build and protect your wealth, you must become fam-iliar with scenarios where emotions can get in the way of reasoned in-vestment analysis. More important-ly, you’ll need to step “outside your mind” and consider the life experi-ences that lead to these emotions from an objective, emotionally neu-tral point of view.

Here are four typical situations.

Sticker shockThe scenario: The market suffers a correction, and your portfolio shows a 10% paper loss. You know that cor-rections are normal and common-

place, but you can’t help but feel anx-ious.

What to understand: HNW in-dividuals often have difficulty getting comfortable with their new financial circumstances. They may relate fluc-

tuations to the past – a correction may result in a paper loss greater than their previous liquid net worth. Others, such as former business owners, may not have been completely aware of their wealth prior to selling their busi-ness, but now that they track it regu-larly, they become anxious.

What to do: Ask your adviser to review statements in person if pos-sible. Establish reasonable expecta-tions and benchmarks when building your portfolio, and discuss perform-

ance in percentages, not dollars.

Chasing performanceThe scenario: You have lunch with a colleague who has a close contact in the energy sector. Based on his in-sight, you consider opening a large position in XYZ Inc., even though most advisers (including your own) believe valuations in the sector are rich.

What you need to understand: Business owners and executives are used to making quick decisions. Many have developed a keen sense of intuition about opportunities and feel comfortable going with their “gut” when investing. Some may mistrust detailed analysis as “fence-sitting,” or believe a bad decision is better than no decision at all.

What to do: Understand the dif-ference between business decisions and investment decisions – invest-

ment decisions require more analysis than instinct. Remember your pri-mary goal: to protect wealth.

Loss of controlThe scenario: You feel vaguely un-easy about your portfolio. You call your wealth adviser several times in the same week to ask pointed ques-tions about recommendations – de-spite the fact that your portfolio is in positive territory.

What to understand: Many HNW individuals find it difficult to relinquish control of their financial affairs. This is especially true of busi-ness owners, executives and highly trained professionals.

Because investment performance is largely out of their control, these in-vestors can feel anxious about not be-ing able to affect change, even when there’s nothing “wrong” with their portfolios.

What to do: Discuss big-picture decisions, but leave day-to-day man-agement to your adviser and/or port-folio managers. Establish a partner-ship with your adviser, rather than treating him/her as a subordinate who simply executes orders.

Over-concentrated portfolioThe scenario: You recently sold your operating business to a former com-petitor in exchange for a large block of common stock. You want to hang on to this position because you’re ex-cited about the company’s (and the industry’s) prospects. This position represents more than 95% of your net worth.

What to understand: Entre-preneurs are used to keeping the bulk of their wealth in concentrat-ed positions. Many enjoy thinking of themselves as “risk takers.” Many have an intense loyalty to the indus-try in which they made their money and might be reluctant to move on to other opportunities.

What to do: Emphasize the shift from wealth-building to wealth pres-ervation. Investigate hedging strat-egies with your adviser and ask for back-tested examples of how they work. •

Thane Stenner ([email protected]) is the founder of Stenner Investment Partners within Richardson GMP Ltd. His column ap-pears every two weeks.

Investment decisions require

more analysis than instinct

BY THE NUMBERS Losses are shown in brackets. Graph information by Stockwatch.

China Education Resources Inc. (TSX-V:CHN). Figures in U.S. dollars

▲29% $444k $0.01Textbook tales: The China-focused education company saw a significant increase in net profit in the first quarter, posting a profit of $444k compared with a loss of $289k during the same period in 2010. Meantime, the company’s online teacher training revenue was up 50% in the first quarter to $426k, and textbook sales increased 24% to $1.8m. China Education finished the quarter with $479k in cash.

Revenue: $2.2m3 months 2011

Net income 3 months 2011

Earnings per share 3 months 2011

Belvedere Resources Ltd. (TSX-V:BEL). Converted from Euros.

N/A $1.7m $0.01Nickel numbers: Belvedere’s Hitura nickel mine resumed production in 2010, helping the junior explorer produce 547 tonnes of nickel in the first quarter of 2011. Although production rates were 4% below the company’s forecast, Hitura milled 2% more tonnes than planned. Still, the company’s net income decreased 56% during the quarter, though its cash position increased significantly.

Revenue: $7.7m3 months 2011



Leading Brands Inc. (NASDAQ:LBIX)

▼3% $448k $0.13Juiced up: The healthy brand beverage company saw its revenue decline in the first quarter due to colder than average weather, but gross profit margins increased to 40.3% from 39.2%. That helped the company post a small increase in net income when compared with the first quarter of 2010. Leading Brands finished the quarter with $2.1 million in available cash and credit, a decline from 2010.

Revenue: $3 months 2011



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Daily business news at www.biv.com July 19–25, 20118 Finance

Get on BIV’s Fastest List> BIV's Fastest Growing Companies list ranks by highest

percentage revenue growth between 2006 and 2010.

> Include total revenue 2006, total revenue 2010, company name and contact information

> Companies that make the list will be invited to a celebration awards dinner hosted by Business in Vancouver in October 2011.

> Submission deadline: 5pm, August 5, 2011 to [email protected]

Sponsored by:

Issue: September 13, 2011

b.C. priCes Climb 3.1%soaring energy prices drive inflation

▲11.4% ▲0.9% ▲5.2% ▲6.6%B.C. Mayinflation(energy)

B.C. Mayinflation(shelter)

B.C. Mayinflation(food)

B.C. Mayinflation

(transport)b.C.’s year-over-year inflation rate climbed to 3.1% in may as soaring energy prices (11.4%) put upward pressure on the Consumer price index (Cpi). excluding energy, the province’s inflation rate would have been 2.4%. shelter (0.9%) and transportation (6.6%) costs were affected by climbing fuel prices. motorists spent 20.7% more to fill up their tanks, while residents saw even bigger increases (22.1%) in the cost of oil and other fuel. Travellers were also impacted, with air, ferry, bus and other intercity transporation fares jumping 8.8%.

B.C. sawmill production grew despite local declines Production at B.C. sawmills was 5% higher in April than in the same month of 2010. Although mills in coastal regions of the province posted a decline (-3.2%), ramped-up production from the Interior (6%), where most of the province’s mill activity occurs, managed to offset the decline.

-bC stats infoline, issue 11-26, June 30

National inflation higher than B.C.’sThe Canadian inflation rate (3.7%) was higher than B.C.’s and May marked the largest increase in the CPI since March of 2003. Nationally, energy prices surged 16.6%, while the cost of other goods and services was up just 2.4%. Among the provinces, inflation rates ranged from 2.8% in Alberta to 4.6% in Nova Scotia.


Vancouver median family income dropped in 2009lAccording to income data derived from personal income tax returns, total median census family income in B.C.’s largest city was $67,550 in 2009. This was lower than the previous year (-1.9%) and below the national figure of $68,410.


InsIder TradIng

The following is a list of trades made by corporate executives, directors and other company insiders of B.C.’s public com-panies filed during the week ending July 7. The information comes from a compilation of required reports filed with the BC Securities Commission within five calendar days of a change in an insider’s holdings.

Insider: Clive Johnson, president and CEOCompany: b2Gold Corp. (TSX:BTO)Shares owned: 9,347,610Trade date: July 6Trade total: $5,558,600Trade: Sale of 1.7 million shares at prices ranging from $3.25 to $3.50 per share.

Insider: Thomas Garagan, senior vice-president of explorationCompany: b2Gold Corp. (TSX:BTO)Shares owned: 6,498,750Trade date: July 5Trade total: $3,250,000Trade: Sale of one million shares for $3.25 per share.

Insider: mark Corra, CFO

Company: b2Gold Corp. (TSX:BTO)Shares owned: 6,492,500Trade date: July 5Trade total: $3,250,000Trade: Sale of one million shares at $3.25 per share.

Insider: robert Cross, board chairmanCompany: b2Gold Corp. (TSX:BTO) Shares owned: 3,831,660Trade date: July 5Trade total: $1,625,000Trade: Sale of 500,000 shares indirectly owned by paloduro investments inc. at $3.25 per share.

Insider: Connie lillico, corpor-ate secretaryCompany: First majestic silver Corp. (TSX:FR)Shares owned: 0Trade date: June 29, July 5Trade total: $727,950Trade: Sale of 40,000 shares at prices ranging from $17.90 to $18.98 per share following the acquisition of 40,000 shares for $4.15 per share through the exercise of options.

Insider: leonard Harris,

metallurgical engineerCompany: endeavour silver Corp. (TSX:EDR)Shares owned: 50,000Trade date: May 6Trade total: US$649,600Trade: Sale of 70,000 shares at US$9.28 per share following the acquisition of 100,000 shares for $2.85 per share through the exercise of options.

Insider: sheldon inwentashCompany: Western potash Corp. (TSX:WPX)Shares owned: 8,040,200Trade date: June 29, July 5Trade total: $594,159Trade: Sale of 400,000 shares over two trading days at share prices ranging from $1.46 to $1.50 per share.

Insider: bob mcFarlane, CFOCompany: Telus Corp. (TSX:T) Shares owned: 127,170Trade date: June 27Trade total: $462,770Trade: Sale of 12,349 non-voting shares at prices ranging from $49.80 to $50.02 per share, plus the gifting of 5,100 shares for $50.82 per share.

Insider: roger Hardy, founder

and CEOCompany: Coastal Contacts inc. (TSX:COA)Shares owned: 6,779,277Trade date: June 30Trade total: $367,500Trade: Sale of 150,000 shares at $2.45 per share following the acquisition of 150,000 shares through the exercise of options.

Insider: richard Haslinger, vice-president, explorationCompany: Keegan resources inc. (TSX:KGN)Shares owned: 65,850Trade date: July 4, 5, 7Trade total: $341,400Trade: Sale of 45,000 shares for prices ranging from $7.53 to $7.62 per share.

Insider: Charles brown, COOCompany: Great panther silver ltd. (TSX:GPR)Shares owned: 412,000Trade date: July 6Trade total: $175,000Trade: Sale of 50,000 shares for $3.50 per share follow-ing the acquisition of 50,000 shares for $0.70 per share through the exercise of options.

July 19–25, 2011 Business in Vancouver 9finance

Growing interestB.C. grape growers are look-ing for a little more heat to draw their vineyards along this summer, after a cool, wet spring delayed the start of the growing season two to three weeks.

Vineyard real estate, on the other hand, is starting to feel some decent warmth that owners believe makes offer-ings ripe for the market.

Black Hills Estate Win-ery on Black Sage Road south of Oliver recently an-nounced its first offering of limited partnership units in four years. Black Hills, whose red-blend Nota Bene has garnered a cult following, saw significant buy-in from North Shore investors in 2007. The latest share offer-ing is meant to garner funds for further investment in its vineyards and operations.

Painted Rock Estate Winery, meanwhile, is see-ing renewed interest from developers in a 14-acre par-cel adjacent to its winery and

vineyard operation, which is separate. Proceeds from the sale would support further development of the winery business.

“It would make great sense for whoever I do a deal with on the other property to work on some comprehen-sive plan,” he said.

Penticton council sup-ports some form of housing for the site; Skinner is also discussing the possibility of a boutique hotel with another group that’s been active at the south end of the valley.

eight deals last year and two in the first five months of this year.

Suite interestStrong investor demand has bumped up apartment sales in Vancouver for the first six months of 2011 versus the same period last year.

David and Mark Good-man of HQ Commercial Real Estate Services Inc. report that 52 buildings changed hands in Metro Vancouver versus 40 in the first half of 2010. The bal-ance shifted in favour of

the suburbs, with 28 trans-actions in the ’burbs total-ling $193.2 million – a 207% increase over the first half of 2010. Vancouver, on the other hand, saw 24 sales valued at just $109 million – a decrease in dollar terms of 18%.

The Goodmans said de-mand for suburban proper-ties is linked to cheap finan-cing, overseas demand and developers securing older buildings on sites with good redevelopment potential. •[email protected]

“But there’s got to be a market for it,” he said. “We can’t push against a string.”

Mounting interestWhile critics continue to mobilize opposition to Rize Alliance Properties Ltd.’s planned 19-storey tower at 180 Kingsway, a number of smaller projects are being discussed that also promise to give the so-called Uptown district at the heart of Mount Pleasant a higher profile.

C o n c o r d P a c i f i c ’s eponymous Uptown con-do project at Kingsway and Prince Edward is on the go, while the existing three-storey office building at 133 East 8th Avenue is slated to be replaced with a six-storey building with commercial at grade and 45 residences. A rezoning application is afoot across the back lane for 138 East 7th Avenue, which seeks to allow a building of up to 60 feet, accommodating of-fices and a school for “arts or self-improvement.”

The projects come on the heels of residential projects by Amacon and Onni on the east side of Main Street, both of which predate adoption of the new Mount Pleasant Community Plan in Nov-ember 2010.

Completion of the plan coincided with an upswing in transaction activity. Ac-cording to RealNet Canada Inc., there were no deals in Mount Pleasant in 2009,

Real estate Roundup

Peter MithaMMid-year dealing boosts development prospects; vineyards cultivating investment opportunities

“If I sell it to someone, it

has to be what the market

is ready for at that time”

– John Skinner, owner,

Painted rock estate Winery

vineyards overlooking Skaha Lake just south of Pentic-ton.

The property was listed with Cushman & Wakefield Ltd. in spring 2010 for $4.25 million, but owner John Skin-ner wasn’t in a rush to sell.

“I wanted to put it out there to see who and what

was interested,” he said. “If I sell it to someone, it has to be what the market is ready for at that particular time.”

The parcel is contiguous with a 15-acre tract, Skin-ner said, creating an oppor-tunity to develop a compre-hensive plan for the site that complements the winery and

Vintage advantage: John Skinner is seeking a buyer for a 14-acre development site above Painted rock estate Winery’s vineyard in Penticton

Interest rate hikes are past due: C.D. HoweThe C.D. Howe Institute is recommending the Bank of Canada raise interest rates.

In a new report, monetary economist Michael Parkin warns that delaying interest rate hikes poses risks and the prospect of “ugly policy choices” ahead.

“If more ‘no-change’ decisions are made by the Bank of Canada regarding its interest rate policy, inflation expectations might begin to slip loose of their 2% anchor,” said Parkin.

If the Canadian dollar moves with the greenback because the Bank of Canada keeps its interest rate close to the U.S. federal funds rate, the high inflation rates of energy and other commodity prices,

which currently are seen as temporary, might start to look permanent, Parkin warns.Wednesday, July 13

Hogtown’s cost of living surpasses Vancouver’sToronto has surpassed Van-couver to become the most expensive Canadian city, according to Mercer’s 2011 Cost of Living Survey.

The global ranking cov-ers 214 cities across five continents and measures the comparative cost of more than 200 items, including housing, transportation, food, clothing, household goods and enter-tainment.

Toronto, ranked at 59, rose 17 points to overtake Vancou-ver at 65, due to higher rents.

Montreal ranked 79, Cal-gary 96. Ranking 114, Ottawa

is the least expensive city in Canada.Tuesday, July 12

Tomato restaurant may return to Cambie StreetThe iconic Cambie Street eat-ery Tomato is likely to return somewhere near its old loca-tion at West 17th Avenue, says owner Christian Gaudreault.

Gaudreault was a vocal critic of the way Canada Line developers used the cut-and-cover method of building the tunnel underneath Cambie Street.

He moved his restaurant to the corner of West Broadway and Bayswater Street in 2007, but the building that he moved to is now slated for demolition.

Tomato officially closed on Bayswater on May 30.Monday, July 11

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Daily business news at www.biv.com July 19–25, 201110 Real estate

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Metro Vancouver’s retail market experienced short bursts of leasing and investment activity in the first half of 2011. The transactional volume for retail investment was down from this time last year as investors were eager to place their money in 2010 following the end of the recession. This year has proven to be more challenging for investors as the lack of supply continues to restrict high volumes of capital from entering the market. From a leasing perspective, landlords will be happy to see that vacancy rates have dropped from 3.3 percent in Q4 2010 to 2.8 percent this quarter. Rental rates remained stable across the Metro Vancouver region and should continue to be steady throughout the rest of the year.

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City Number of Centres

Anchor Rates

CRU Rates

Pad Rates

GLA (SF) Vacancies Vacancy

RateAbbotsford 6 $10-25 $ 15-40 $ 35-45 825,135 19,079 2.3%Burnaby/New Westminster 10 $ 8-32 $ 28-40 $ 22-40 1,461,755 27,362 1.9%Chilliwack 5 $ 14-18 $ 19-30 $ 24-32 433,935 56,844 13.1%North Delta 2 $ 12-20 $ 22-30 $ 15-25 220,814 3,099 1.4%South Delta 5 $ 10-20 $ 23-30 $ 25-30 468,501 6,986 1.5%Langley/Aldergrove 11 $ 11-23 $ 22-46 $ 24-36 1,466,586 36,164 2.5%Maple Ridge/Pitt Meadows 4 $ 15-20 $ 25-30 $ 30-35 782,716 8,467 1.1%Mission 2 $ 14-16 $ 18-30 $ 25-32 422,562 5,459 1.3%North Shore 8 $ 10-30 $ 24-65 $35-60 954,502 15,339 1.6%Richmond 8 $ 9-20 $ 18-45 $ 23-49 727,286 24,203 3.3%Squamish 3 $ 11-22 $ 22-35 $ 25-32 203,952 7,350 3.6%South Surrey/White Rock 6 $ 15-35 $ 18-55 $ 28-40 1,685,529 87,175 5.2%Surrey - North 15 $ 10-25 $ 12-38 $ 25-35 1,587,307 44,284 2.8%Tri-Cities 10 $ 12-25 $ 22-55 $ 22-40 989,154 23,289 2.4%Vancouver (Open) 5 $ 15-20 $ 25-35 $ 35-55 406,930 6,580 1.6%Vancouver (Urban mixed-use) 6 $ 18-28 $ 35-100 N/A 561,500 16,590 3.0%Total 106 13,198,164 371,680 2.8%

*Survey excludes closed food anchored and non-food anchored shopping centres due to the large amount of gross leasable area and vacancies.

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This document/email has been prepared by Colliers International for advertising and general information only. Colliers International makes no guarantees, representations or warranties of any kind, expressed or implied, regarding the information including, but not limited to, warranties of content, accuracy and reliability. Any interested party should undertake their own inquiries as to the accuracy of the information. Colliers International excludes unequivocally all inferred or implied terms, conditions and warranties arising out of this document and excludes all liability for loss and damages arising there from. This publication is the copyrighted property of Colliers International and /or its licensor(s). © 2011. All rights reserved. This communication is not intended to cause or induce breach of an existing listing agreement. Colliers Macaulay Nicolls Brokerage Inc. (Vancouver). *Personal Real Estate Corporation. PO #11060.

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July 19–25, 2011 Business in Vancouver Daily email edition: www.biv.com 11

Local tech company aiming to address urban alienationNew social media site links people with similar interests within a 20-minute walk of each other

By Nelson Bennett

One of the paradoxes of big-city life is that the more people a

city has, the more isolation its cit-izens often experience.

“It’s pretty much a global phe-nomenon that happens around high-density cities around the world, and the Internet’s actually contrib-uting to it,” said Emir Aboulhosn, founder and CEO of Kinjoe.com, a new social media site designed to lessen urban alienation by bringing strangers together through common interests.

Kinjoe (Japanese for “neighbour-hood”) officially launched last week with 500 Yaletown subscribers.

The new free site is similar to Meetup.com in that it brings stran-gers together based on common interests. The big difference is that users’ social spheres are limited to a 20-minute walking radius.

Two years ago, Aboulhosn founded Ryzoe Technologies with his own money specifically to de-velop Kinjoe. An angel investor and a $100,000 research grant has helped the company develop the site over the last 18 months, and Blenz Cof-fee has signed on as a partner to help promote the site. Aboulhosn and his team of five decided to limit the so-cial network to a 20-minute walk because they determined there’s a

higher chance of meeting someone who lives within that radius. The project was originally intended as a communication tool to help people living in highrise apartments get to know their neighbours.

Subscribers either sign up on the site or through Facebook Connect, which will pull their name, photo and email, although email addresses are never published. Neither are resi-dential addresses. The site has a “me too” button that can be used to reply

to comments posted on the site. This tags users’ interests and allows the site to build their social graph.

Once the company has built so-cial graphs around members, it will start generating revenue through advertising. Tennis enthusiasts, for example, who have met other tennis players on Kinjoe might start getting recommendations for sports stores in their area that sell sporting goods. Because no one wants to join a social media network that’s a virtual ghost

town, the challenge for Kinjoe’s de-velopers has been to build a critic-al mass of users – something made more difficult by the network’s nar-row geographical reach. And unlike Facebook, which connects people who already know each other, Kin-joe is more like a dating site in that it connects strangers.

The one advantage Kinjoe has is that people living in cities like Van-couver can be desperately lonely. A 2010 Angus Reid poll found Van-

couverites among the loneliest city dwellers in Canada. It also found them to be among the most heavily connected to social media.

Original ly from Ontario, Amanda Schwartz moved to Van-couver two years ago. A couple of months ago, a neighbour in her building posted information about Kinjoe, so she signed up.

“I think Vancouver’s much like any other city,” said Schwartz, who lives in a 36-storey highrise. “It can be difficult to meet new people. Things like this are really great for breaking the ice. In a highrise build-ing you don’t have a chance to meet neighbours on other floors.”

To help build an initial critical mass, Aboulhosn approached Blenz Coffee president George Moen to help promote a beta version of the site in Yaletown, which now has 500 members.

“Blenz is very active in social media,” Moen said. “The Blenz brand has always been very neigh-bourhood focused … so Kinjoe’s format of building a social media platform based on neighbourhoods was very appealing to us. We felt by aligning ourselves with a Kinjoe product it was a good business move because where do people typically meet when they meet for the first time? Often in coffee shops. It was an easy fit.”

Blenz will be helping Kinjoe build its base in B.C. by advertising it with its own internal digital tele-vision in 65 coffee shops around the province.

Over the next six months, Aboul-hosn plans to launch the site in Se-attle, San Francisco, New York, Chi-cago, Toronto and Montreal. The company will use community man-agers based in each city to help build membership. •[email protected]

HigH-TecH Office

AlAn ZismAnFocusing on new camera options for business travel

When I was travelling this summer I noticed

something that I haven’t seen commented on. Lots of people had digital SLR (DSLR) cameras around their necks. That’s nothing new. What was new, I think, is that a lot of those necks were female.

In the past, while popular, DSLRs seemed to be a guy thing. Apparently that’s no longer the case.

They’re not my thing, however. The other popular picture-taking option, using the camera built into a mobile phone, also doesn’t appeal to me. I like – especially when I’m travelling – a DSLR’s abil-ity to go from wide angle to close up, but otherwise find

them too big, too complex, too heavy.

Camera manufacturers offer “ultra zooms” lacking a DLSR’s detachable lenses, with zooms up to 36 times, but they’re still too bulky for my taste. More recently, we’ve started to see “com-pact zoom” models – not as powerful as the ultra zooms, but much smaller. Both Nikon and Canon loaned me current models to take on my trip.

Nikon’s Coolpix S9100 packs an 18x optical zoom, going from the equivalent of a traditional SLR’s wide-angle 25mm lens up to super-telephoto 450mm. It has very good close-up (macro) ca-pabilities and is very easy

to use. Some users (not me), however, will be put off by its lack of manual controls.

Like the Coolpix S9100, Canon’s PowerShot SX230 HS takes 12-mega-pixel im-ages. Both cameras include image stabilization (a must-have at high zooms), mul-tiple shooting options, in-cluding night modes, and 1080p high-definition mov-ie recording. Neither camera offers a high-end RAW image mode. Also on each: the flash pops open manually – a fea-ture that I like, making it easy to control whether the flash fires or not.

While Nikon’s mod-el comes in black or silver, Canon offers its PowerShot in your choice of black, red

(actually hot pink) or blue. It’s also a bit slimmer than Nikon’s model, perhaps be-cause its lens is a more modest 14x zoom (ranging from SLR- equivalent 28mm to 390mm). Unlike Nikon’s model, it of-fers manual exposure op-tions but delivers less power-ful macro abilities.

The PowerShot includes GPS, which makes it possible to tag shots with their loca-

tion. Your photos can then display where they were taken on a map in software like Apple’s iPhoto or uploaded to a website like Flickr. The downside: leaving the GPS on dramatically reduces bat-tery life.

Both cameras start up and are ready to fire quick-ly – about two seconds after pressing the power button. Nikon’s camera produces sharper images in low-light settings and offers smoother 1080p video (30 frames per second compared with the Canon’s 24 fps). It can also re-focus while shooting video.

A plus for the Canon, however: its settings dial stays put. The Nikon’s dial didn’t when popped in and out of pocket or carrying case. The resulting incorrect modes ruined some of my shots.

With both cameras list-ing for the same $380, each will have its fans – the Nikon for its larger zoom and bet-ter macro and low-light pic-ture taking; the Canon for its manual options, GPS and slimmer body in cuter col-ours.

Another Nikon model has a feature that might appeal to some: the Coolpix S1100pj

(about $450). While offering a more modest 5x zoom, it has a built-in projector, can be used to project the images (or video) on the camera and can be connected to a Win-dows PC or Mac – after in-stalling software on the com-puter. It can also be used to display PowerPoint presen-tations and the like.

While it won’t replace a dedicated projector for large presentations, it delivers an image of up to a metre-and-a-quarter wide that is sur-prisingly bright. For some-one on the road with a laptop making sales presentations to small groups, it could be handy. I wish it could con-nect to a smartphone or tab-let, though, for real minimal-ist presentations.

Maybe the next model. •

Alan Zisman (www.zisman.ca) is a Vancouver educator and computer specialist. His column appears weekly.

For someone on the road

with a laptop making sales

presentations to small

groups, it could be handy

Emir Aboulhosn, founder and CEO of Kinjoe.com: “[isolation] is pretty much a global phenomenon that happens around high-density cities around the world, and the internet’s contributing to it”

Ne

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oN

Be

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Daily business news at www.biv.com July 19–25, 201112 Technology

Stay green with toothbrush or purse Entrepreneurs capitalize by making everyday products from reclaimed and biodegradeable materials

By Glen Korstrom

Concern that consumer products will end up in landfills and that

society is manufacturing products in an unsustainable way has prompt-ed innovative entrepreneurs to pro-duce everyday products that are either made from reclaimed materials or that will easily decompose.

These companies tend to fall into one of two categories:•businesses that make useful prod-ucts out of items that would otherwise be thrown away; or •businesses that put biodegrade-able materials in products that would otherwise contain plastic as a way to reduce the product’s half-life.

Saakori Lifestyle Inc. co-owner Tanuja Dabir believes her Vancou-ver-based company, which makes dinner plates out of palm tree leaves that have already fallen to the ground, is doing more for the environment than companies that simply aim to replace plastic.

“The leaves that go into our plates would have been burned normally,” she said. “That’s unlike corn, which is being diverted from being a food re-source to being made into products.”

Dabir said she also uses much less energy than if her plates were made from potato or corn resin.

The only time that she needs to use energy is when the leaves go into a heated mold at the factory in India that she subcontracts to produce them. Other than that, workers craft the plates from hand.

“If we used bamboo or corn, it would have to go through a high-energy process,” she said.

Vancouver’s Earthen Trading also produces bowls and plates from fallen palm leaves.

And ventures such as Manitoba’s U.S.E.D. Recycled Seatbelt Bags similarly push the boundaries of in-novation by making purses and hand-bags from seatbelts that were once in condemned vehicles. Were the seat-belts not reused, they would simply be trash.

Locin Industries, Ltd. president Andrew Horembala, however, be-lieves it is wrong to think that in or-der for a product to be considered sustainable it must be made from re-claimed ingredients.

His company manufactures and distributes toothbrushes and dental f lossers out of a compostable bio-resin that comes from potatoes.

The resin meets international standards for bioplastics and com-postability and biodegrades within 180 days in a commercial compost fa-cility. Unlike petroleum-based plas-tics, Horembala’s toothbrushes will decompose into organic materials even when they are thrown into a regular garbage.

His products are similar to the cups, plates and cutlery that Oregon-based Biodegradable Food Servi-ces Inc. produces under the brand Taterware.

“We started making the compost-able dental products because den-tal products are our heritage. It’s something that we know. It was also

because of the disposable nature of dental products,” Horembala said.

Critics, however, question how environmentally less burdensome flossers are given that rolls of floss require only a small amount of plas-tic whereas individual dental flossers, which are meant for one-time use, have a tiny amount of floss held rigid by a plastic or potato-resin handle.

“Flossers have become big busi-ness because there are advantages over floss,” Horembala explained. “There’s the convenience of flossing with one hand. You can do it while travelling in a car.

“You can keep it in your desk and do it discreetly. Try using string floss discretely and it’s next to impossible It’s also the easiest way for kids to floss. Their mouths are too small for parents to get their hands in.”

Horembala, wife Jane Nicol, Ni-col’s sister Sue Collins and Collins’ husband, Brad Collins, bought Locin in 2005 for an undisclosed amount from the sisters’ parents, who found-ed the company in the 1970s.

The company had morphed from being primarily a sheet-glass company to now being primarily a manufactur-er and distributor of vitamins, mineral supplements and cough and cold im-munity products.

About 40% of sales are for dental products, most of which continue to be made out of petroleum-based prod-ucts.

Only about 5% of sales are for the compostable dental products that the company launched last year and sells through both Shoppers Drug Mart and London Drugs.

“This year we project that sales for [potato-based products] will be only slightly higher than 5% of sales,” Horembala said.

“The reason is that when you start shipping out a product, you get the pipeline effect. The following year it starts to flatline and then you can start ratcheting up.”

Only when customers deplete cur-rent inventory will they order more product, Horembala added. •[email protected]

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Locin Industries president Andrew Horembala last year launched sales of toothbrushes and dental flossers made from potato resin

July 19–25, 2011 Business in Vancouver 13SuStainability

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Business plan

Billionaire investor helps pioneering food manufacturer expandBy Glen Korstrom engineering at Southern Alberta Institute

of Technology then studied psychology be-fore opening a couple of convenience stores in Calgary.

A few years later, he passed the stores to his family and pursued a career in telecommuni-cations working at various Calgary companies before moving to Vancouver seven years ago to work at Radiant Communications Corp.

Soon, however, he realized that his passion was organic, healthy food so he pumped about $500,000 of his own money and that borrowed from family and friends to launch, in 2008, what was originally an online food seller. It then morphed into a warehouse and a restau-rant and food manufacturer.

Challenges: The Marwahas had several chal-lenges, including: •how to get funding to expand the business to a size large enough to boost economies of scale so that prices could come down and the customer base could grow;•how to reliably source organic, fair-trade, sustainable ingredients; and•how to attract customers to eat vegan raw food.

Solutions: The Marwahas spent a lot of time seeking sources of capital but the task was made doubly difficult because of their own high standards for whose funding they would accept.

“We went down the path of exploring vulture capital and that kind of thing. It just wasn’t enough,” Marwaha said. “We need-ed a partner that understands the business, understands what we’re doing and under-stands the importance of organic, sustain-able food. It took us a long time to find that.”

Networking led to billionaire philan-thropist Frank Giustra, who made his money from mining and movie ventures but is best known for creating the Clinton-Giustra Sustainable Growth Initiative with former U.S. president Bill Clinton. Giustra donated US$100 million plus half of what he makes in the resource industry for the rest of his life.

Giustra instinctively understood the need for organic sustainable food and shared the same values as the Marwahas.

Giustra agreed to inject capital into the Marwahas’ business so the couple has the capacity to build a new facility to manufac-ture products. They are currently seeking that facility in Vancouver.

Current wholesale customers include Whole Foods Market, Capers Commun-ity Market and Lifestyle Markets.

“A new facility will enable us to meet the demand we’ve created in the marketplace for our products. Prices will absolutely be able to come down,” he said.

The cash injection will also help the Mar-wahas source a direct supply for their in-gredients.

“In Thailand, we have our own macada-mia nut farm going now,” Marwaha said. “We are also going to start growing a supply of vegetables in the [Fraser] Valley.”

A solution to overcoming the challenge of luring people scared of eating vegan food has been to put more attention on the fact

that the food is healthy and organic, not that it is vegan.

“Most people don’t know what they eat. They buy things in packages or cans and simply don’t know what is in their food. We have a whole educational focus around food and helping people understand what food is and how important it is to their health and well-being.”

Analysis: Organic Lives could one day be the Lululemon Athletica Inc. of food, ac-cording to Ray Leung, who is CEO of Hon’s Wun-Tun House and formerly headed juice-maker Happy Planet.

He believes that the key is to first grow slowly by serving its core vegan customer base well enough that word of mouth will at-tract nine people for each core customer.

Those additional customers will not be as close to the hard-core vegans or vegetarians but serving that next group well will make that group be the company’s “ambassadors,” Leung said.

It is a much better strategy than trying to target mainstream customers first, he added.

“That smaller group is who they need to focus on, not the million people first. When they service those 1,000 people well, then those 1,000 people become their ambassa-dors and then it becomes 10,000.”

Lululemon CEO Christine Day, however, has explained to Business in Vancouver that Lululemon does not actually target its core customer.

The first customers Lululemon aims to sell to in a new market are those whom Day calls “attractors” – healthy and active women around 32 years old.

“We know that when we build and design our stores toward her and around her, that the brand is attractive to the core customer who is slightly older and a bit more affluent, but who wants to be that 32-year-old,” Day told BIV in 2009. •[email protected]

Organic Lives co-founder Preet Marwaha has landed funding for his raw vegan, fair-trade, sustainable restaurant and food manufacturer from billionaire Frank Giustra

Company Name: Organic Lives

Principals: Preet and Amarit Marwaha

Location: 1829 Quebec Street, Vancouver

Business venture: Organic, raw vegan, sustain-able, fair-trade restaurant and food manufac-turing business

Business lesson: Be clear what kind of busi-ness you want to run and then don’t be afraid to stick with it without compromising prin-ciples or values for the sake of growing the business.

History: Co-founder Preet Marwaha be-lieves that it was his poor diet as a teenager that prompted him to get colitis when he was 19 years old.

“I changed my diet radically. It was from one extreme to the other,” said Marwaha, who is now 40 years old.

He completed a diploma in computer

Daily business news at www.biv.com July 19–25, 201114 Small buSineSS

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Quarterly News Report July 19–25, 2011; issue 1134

Human ResouRces

InsIde

Investing in human assets — 16Companies turn to consultants to be an integral part of their management teams Dennis Wolff — 17Why top talent still chooses Vancouver

Sandra Miles — 18Hiring and managing temporary staff

Building teams with interactive events Completing a task together, where employees take on different roles, enhances kinship more than attending a staff barbecue

By Glen Korstrom

Offices can be more relaxed in summer thanks to human resources teams or-

ganizing activities such as staff barbecues, baseball games and social events on Friday afternoons.

Those events help employees in different departments get to know each other – some-thing that builds morale and has intangible benefits.

Effective team-building, however, often requires that employees not only socialize but also complete a task.

That task could be a volunteer project or an activity such as dragon boating where rowers soon realize that the boat glides across the water much more quickly when everyone paddles in unison.

“[Team-building initiatives] allow people to play different roles than they would regu-larly play in the workplace,” said Telus Corp. senior community investment manager Katie Gove.

“Someone who might be more in an ad-ministrative role can take on a management role in a volunteer setting.”

Effectively showing those skills can build trust and may even prompt a manager to promote an employee or give him or her dif-ferent tasks.

Gove’s company designates a day each spring that it calls the Telus Day of Giving, when employees are encouraged to use work time to volunteer together and complete tasks such as building a playground.

These kinds of events may particular-ly help employees who normally work in-dependently, doing something such as in-stalling Internet wiring. In the volunteer activity, they are forced to rely on Telus co-workers to hold up a beam or to hammer nails.

They learn to trust other employees while the lesson is enforced that a task can be com-pleted much faster when more people pitch in.

“Team-building events are a physical way to get a team focused on a single outcome,” said Big Fish Interactive Inc. owner An-drew Reid.

Reid founded his executive coaching and team-building venture 16 years ago in To-ronto. Now Vancouver-based, the company generates about one-third of its nearly $1 mil-lion in annual revenue from team-building events.

About one-third of the 12-employee com-pany’s revenue comes from executive coach-ing, and the remainder comes from custom-ized leadership or management events.

Reid’s team-building events are some-times all-day sessions that involve some class-room work as well. Many of his clients are na-tional companies.

“We find that a lot of national corpora-tions give more attention to their Ontario staff versus western staff, simply because that’s where the bigger teams are,” he said.

“Now that Big Fish is here [in Vancou-ver], it’s easy for us to extend the work we do with national head offices to the Vancouver local offices.”

One effective team-building activity, Reid said, can be scavenger hunts.

Sewell’s Marina’s calls its version of a corporate scavenger hunt Sea Quest. It cre-ated Sea Quest 15 years ago as a way to train its own employees to be more familiar with Howe Sound.

Employees are broken into groups and given a list of either questions to answer or things to find. For example, one question might be to identify the flag flying on a pole next to a blue house. Groups might also be asked to bring back a pine cone or a birch leaf.

Last year, about 50 groups booked scav-enger hunts, and general manager Eric Sewell said a similar number of trips are al-ready booked this year. Fortis Inc., Whistler Blackcomb Ski Resort and Telus are some of the companies through the years that have booked these excursions.

Often, however, corporate executives do not want it known when they take their staff on a day of scavenger hunting or dragon boating.

Reid said one of his clients had endured severe layoffs recently and “heads would roll” if it were reported in the media that they had gone dragon boating.

Sewell agreed that executives at strug-gling companies may not want it known when they spend money on something that many would consider a pat on the back for a job well done.

“When you bring your company out and do a boating adventure and usually a dining experience afterward, I think it’s a reward for your team members,” he said. •[email protected]

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When Big Fish Interactive owner Andrew Reid takes corporate groups dragon boating as a form of team building, he helps them understand how much faster a boat can go when everyone is synchronized

“When you bring your company out and

do a boating adventure and usually a

dining experience afterward, I think

it’s a reward for your team members”

– Eric Sewell,general manager,

Sewell’s Marina

“Team-building events are a

physical way to get a team

focused on a single outcome”

– Andrew Reid,owner,

Big Fish Interactive

Investing in your human assetsMany companies are turning to specialized consultants who become an integral part of their team

By Jennifer Harrison

Companies often state that their employees are

their most valuable assets, however many of them talk the talk but fail to walk the walk.

Neil Belenkie , COO of Growth Point Group, a Vancouver-based organiza-tion of senior business lead-ers who work with company owners to build their com-panies when they can’t do it on their own, echoes this sentiment.

The GrowthPoint Group typically works with com-panies that have $10 to $50 million in annual revenue, are owner-operated and pri-vately held.

These companies are gen-erally not achieving their goals or have a material event planned and think they won’t achieve it. For example, com-pany owners may want to sell their company and think its not worth what it could be; or they are trying to achieve revenue growth or a profit-ability margin and can’t fig-ure out how to do it them-selves.

What makes Growth-Point different from other business consultants is that once it completes its dis-covery session and creates a roadmap or strategic plan for a company, it stays on and sees that plan to fruition.

The roadmap is project-based and easily identifies the necessary skills required to complete each project.

The ownership group of the organization looks at the roadmap with GrowthPoint and says, “OK, we have the resources and expertise to take on the following pro-jects, but we can’t handle or

even know how to handle project.”

GrowthPoint then takes responsibility for all aspects of that strategy and its im-plementation, matching the skill sets required with mem-bers of its seasoned team of experts, which includes for-mer executives from Voda-fone and WestJet. The ex-perts then go in to complete the project.

Belenkie noted, “We have yet to encounter an organ-ization where human capital isn’t a problem or even the problem keeping them from achieving their goals.”

That means clients haven’t been able to develop an or-ganization that can support the growth they’re looking for, they haven’t been able to put the people together who rep-resent enough credibility and proven experience that invest-ors will trust them and they don’t have the people who are skilled enough to bring new people on board to support the organization’s growth.

“Essentially you are in-vesting in your human cap-ital when you bring the GrowthPoint Group in,” said Belenkie.

Belenkie was responsible for the human resources por-tion of a project with Kam-loops-based home-builder and developer the Mibroc Group.

He developed the organ-izational chart to support the company’s growth, then had to phase in that growth and hire according to that phas-ing.

“I actually took care of the hiring of all the different pos-itions to support their organ-izational growth to support their objectives,” said Belen-kie. “So before we could really build the revenue portion of the business we had to build the infrastructure to support the business growth.”

Since May of 2010, the GrowthPoint Group has helped Mibroc hire 15 em-ployees.

President and CEO of

Mibroc Darryl Caunt ex-claimed, “They’ve been ex-cellent in helping me create the opportunity to attract the right people. And retain the right people. And that is the magic.”

Caunt noted the signifi-cantly unique aspects of the Growth Point Group are that it has a truly hands-on approach and the expertise within its partnership allows it to come in at a moment’s notice with the ability to exe-cute.

“I’ve gone through two other business consultants in the past five years,” said Caunt. “They had good ideas but it wasn’t as in-depth or integrated as the Growth-Point model.”

The private sector is not the only one that can benefit from this hands-on approach to business development.

Belenkie said an add-ed benefit of Mibroc’s work with the Grow thPoint Group is the fact that four of GrowthPoint’s partners are

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Neil Belenkie, COO of the GrowthPoint Group: “we develop a strategic roadmap for a company and that is typically where the consulting model would end, but it’s where we begin”

represented on the organiza-tional chart of Mibroc’s web-site, showing where the ex-pertise is and what they have access to. This expertise can be leveraged for future in-vestments.

This type of foot-in-the-door consulting often takes place in the non-profit sec-tor when charities can’t af-ford the full-time specialists they need.

Rose Terzariol, vice-president of Ketchum Can-ada Inc., a fundraising con-sultancy in Vancouver, works exclusively with not-for-prof-its that need some kind of ex-pertise or service that is not provided in-house.

She says that because the business of fundraising has changed and become more sophisticated, these organ-izations need someone with expertise in the short term for the duration of a cam-paign or initiative.

“If they are doing a capital campaign and don’t have the resources internally to do it and they don’t want to hire because the campaign will be over in a year or two, we come in and provide more intensive counsel, whether it be two, three, four or five days a week,” said Terzariol.

She also noted a trend she has seen in recent years toward not simply provid-ing human capital on an as-needed basis, but creating long-lasting legacies within a specific non-profit.

“We can come in and work with them intensive-ly to help build their organ-ization and leave employ-ees with a specific skill set. So next campaign down the road they have that experi-ence in house. We are work-ing intensively to build cap-acity in the shorter term.” •[email protected]

Vice-president of Ketchum Canada Rose Terzariol helps ensure the future success of non-profits by providing new skill sets to in-house employees

Daily business news at www.biv.com July 19–25, 201116 Human ResouRces sponsored by Bc HRma

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HR StRategieS

DENNIS WOLFFWhy top talent continues to choose Vancouver

in the story “Home truths hurt talent search” (issue

1127; May 31-June 6), several executive recruiters warned that Vancouver-based em-ployers lose out on recruiting top talent due to our red-hot housing market and high cost of living.

While this is true, there is also no denying the fact that a lot of people have deliber-ately chosen to make Van-couver their home, despite the challenges of the city’s affordability.

When asked about the origin of applicants to the BC Cancer Foundation, Cindy Dopson, director of human resources, said that only 50% of all resumés ac-tually come from B.C. A large number are being re-ceived from Alberta, fol-lowed by other provinces, mainly Saskatchewan, On-tario and Quebec. On top of that, quite a few resumés come from the U.S. When screening those applicants, it turns out that most of them are keenly aware of what they are getting them-selves into.

To avoid surprises later on, recruiters at Lululemon Athletica cover the home truths right off the bat. Most importantly, though, they stress what still makes Van-couver such a desirable place to move to.

“We tell them, ‘Yes, your place will likely be smaller, but it might only be a few blocks away from the ocean. Your commute might be 10 minutes by ferry as op-posed to two hours in traffic. Thirty minutes and you’re in the mountains,’” said Steph-anie Corker-Irwin, head of recruitment at Lululemon.

All this is part of a well-developed recruitment strat-egy as the company purpose-fully looks to hire people who embrace the West Coast lifestyle, which is also part of Lululemon’s corporate cul-ture, states Corker-Irwin.

“We are not looking for people who want to repli-cate their NYC lifestyle, but rather who will embrace the beautiful experiences here in Vancouver.”

Eric Perez, HR director at WorleyParsons, remem-bers discussions with candi-dates from places like Texas, where taxes and cost of liv-ing are substantially low-er compared to Vancouver. Surprisingly, some have told

him they would much rather live in a society that values inclusivity and has a strong social culture.

That said, Perez is still cognizant of the fact that fi-nancial concerns are a re-ality for hiring managers looking to bring people to Vancouver. But if companies can’t ease the pain by max-ing out their budgets and paying newcomers top dol-lars, what else can employ-ers do?

Perez suggests that re-cruiting managers are forced to really understand their candidates much better.

“This is a great oppor-tunity for companies to see what else they can do to ac-commodate their candi-dates’ personal and family needs.”

In her career as an HR professional, Sabeeha Pard-han, now HR manager at Molson Coors Canada , would routinely connect new hires with real estate agents, invite potential candidates to events in Vancouver and offer assistance in finding work for their spouses.

“You really have to spend time with them to find out what they want,” Pardhan said, recalling situations where new hires were offered regular flights home and ex-ceptions were allowed to va-cation and education reim-bursement policies. In one case, a paid golf club mem-bership did the trick, regis-tered as a taxable benefit.

Other than meeting can-didates’ unique needs, some companies have understood that building extraordinar-ily strong corporate brands can withstand the challen-ges of a place where many think only the rich can af-ford to buy. Lululemon is a great example.

The same goes for or-ganizations such as the BC Cancer Foundation, which is known as one of the top fundraising organizations in the province.

Vancouver’s hot hous-ing market and high cost of living is a reality compan-ies have little control over. What they are in control of,

however, is their brand as employers of choice. Com-panies like Lululemon know exactly who fits their cul-ture. They have mastered the art of attracting the right talent by focusing on all the things that truly matter to their people outside of basic monetary needs.

In this market, employers

have two choices: they can complain about how the housing market prevents them from recruiting top people to Vancouver or they can start to think what unique value they can of-fer to meet their employees’ non-financial needs. Which option will your company pick? •

Dennis Wolff is a recruiter with Futurestep, a Korn/Ferry com-pany. Futurestep’s solutions range from recruitment process outsourcing to talent acquisi-tion consulting, project-based recruitment and mid-level re-cruitment (www.futurestep.com). He can be contacted at [email protected] and 604-609-5151.

“We are not looking

for people who want

to replicate their NYC

lifestyle, but rather

who will embrace the

beautiful experiences

here in Vancouver”

– Stephanie Corker-Irwin, head of recruitment,

Lululemon

July 19–25, 2011 Business in Vancouver 17Sponsored by BC HRMA HUMAN RESOURCES

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Workplace solutions

Sandra MileSAttracting and managing temporary workers for tourism and hospitality

With the constant ebb and flow of events, seasons

and celebrations in hospitality and tourism sectors, “staffing up” at certain times of the year is critical, but often left to the bottom of the to-do list.

Being on the front lines of staffing and employment, I am often approached for help with HR needs at a point of urgency or confusion about where to look, how to hire and how to manage temporary or season-al workers. All of this at the risk of spoiling best-laid plans, events or promotions due to a lack of the right team to repre-sent or execute effectively.

There is no doubt about it – an essential ingredient of suc-cessful events, promotions or celebrations is the quality and management of the front-line staff. The importance of ef-fective staffing strategy con-tinues to grow within tourism and hospitality, as organiza-tions discover that temp work-ers allow them to adjust eas-ily and quickly to fluctuations and unexpected demands.

Staffing, especially on a temporary basis, however, can prove difficult due to the rela-tively short-term offer of em-ployment.

Based on the increasing demand for temporary work-ers that we are seeing through our employment agency, I have recognized that those in seasonal or event-based busi-nesses such as hospitality and tourism could use some tried, tested and true tips for hir-ing and managing staff dur-ing those times where they are faced with the task of staff-ing up.

First, determine the exact staffing requirement for your event or promotion and de-cide what percentage of the staff could be comprised of temporary workers. Can you bring in promotional staff, kitchen staff, administrative staff, etc., on a temporary-only basis? Will this actually save you time and money?

Remember to expand your estimate number of tem-porary workers (particularly

event or promotional workers) by about 10% to account for no-shows, cancellations or un-expected issues.

Next, focus on the basics and consider the style of your event, promotion or season-al need as well as your overall brand. How can you work to ensure staffing will also reflect this vision or feel? This may be as simple as uniforms for temp workers or as complex as put-ting together a desired person-ality profile or attitude to look

for in workers.Job descriptions pro-

vide clarity of mind for your management team and also for candidates. It is best that everyone be on the same page about expectations and dut-ies from the outset. Even in a rush situation, time spent on a brief job description is well worth it.

Descriptions should in-clude responsibilities, tasks, expectations, hours of work (including any overtime), dress code and necessary experience for recruitment purposes. Not-ing these details ahead of time will save you time in the long run and serve to attract the best-fitting candidates.

When examining the ac-tual act of recruitment, staff-ing agencies can help delin-eate the line between tempor-ary and permanent workers to avoid any legal issues. But ensure that you get to know the agency, its approach and culture, and allow it to do the same, acting as a joint employ-er to ensure a smooth working

relationship. Job boards or other recruitment methods should be adhered to using the same careful approach.

Understand that even after you have rounded up job descriptions and post-ed the jobs or worked with a staffing agency to fill your temporary needs, your work in hiring and management is not complete. Particular-ly when time is an issue, we see companies hoping that employees will learn on the f ly or jump into action as needed. It is better to be safe than sorry on this note and host an official orientation to communicate the details, goals, event branding, sched-ule and employee expecta-tions to ensure smooth oper-ation on event day or during peak season.

Beyond orientation, some training for temporary staff may still be required. During training, ensure you include all employees (even your 10% overflow staff), no matter how skilled and experienced, to

ensure they can perform and meet your company or role-specific needs.

Provide temporary staff with as much structure as pos-sible. Tools such as timesheets to document hours and check-out times provide materials for your records but also help keep staff organized, accountable and on track. Where possible, assign in-house managers to ensure workers are fulfilling specified job duties.

Peak season and special events in tourism and hospi-tality can be a trying time. All of the moving parts necessary to produce a memorable cele-bration or meet the demands of a certain time of year can be overwhelming. Easing the pain, implementing structure and ensuring smooth presen-tation of your brand can be executed through temporary staffing. •

Sandra Miles is president and CEO of Miles Employment Group and can be reached at [email protected].

Host an official

orientation to

communicate the details,

goals, event branding,

schedule and employee

expectations to ensure

smooth operation on event

day or during peak season

Western Canada top for relocationemployees and their fam-

ilies are far more likely to move to Western Canada than to other areas of the country, according to a sur-vey released by the Canadian Employee Relocation Coun-cil (CERC).

According to CERC CEO Stephen Cryne, “Those numbers are expected to grow as employment activ-ity picks up in the oil and gas and natural resources sec-tors, particularly in Western Canada.”

On the international front, survey results also found that Canadian firms are assigning employees around the globe in increasing numbers. The top five destinations are the U.S., the EU, China, Australia and South America.

The survey included sev-eral B.C.-based organizations with operations in Canada, such as the BC Government, UBC and organizations with international activities such as Methanex Corp. and QLT Inc.

For organizations moving people to B.C. – and typical-ly Vancouver – housing costs were cited as a major concern for transferring employees, followed by concerns about spousal career issues.

While the recession has impacted the number of people companies have moved since 2009, there’s lit-tle doubt that volumes will strengthen with the business cycle. The survey found that employers have a far more optimistic outlook than they did in the 2009 survey pub-lished by CERC.

Over the next year, 25% of firms responding to the sur-vey expect relocation volumes in Canada to grow, 20% ex-pect activity between Canada and the U.S. to grow and 40% expect international moves to increase over the next year.

Other key findings in the

survey continue to show that spousal and family issues are the most likely reason why an employee will reject a trans-fer. Not surprising, with the continued growth of two in-come households in Canada.

“The typical profile for a transferee is a married pro-fessional in that 26 to 40 age range earning about $95,000,” said Cryne. “It’s very likely that the spouse is also a pro-fessional with similar income and so decisions to move are made as a family unit. The spouse is very likely to ask, ‘What does the move mean for my career and what are the options?’”

The average cost to re-locate an employee in Can-ada is in the $57,000 range, although some organizations shell out twice that much. The average cost of a move be-tween Canada and the U.S. is in the neighbourhood of $77,000 and can be more like $150,000. For international transfers the average cost is about $97,000.

CERC (www.cerc.ca) is a not-for-profit association that represents the interests of leading organizations across Canada that relocate their employees for employment purposes. •

Stephen Cryne, CeO, Canadian employee relocation Council: the typical profile of a transferee is a married professional

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Daily business news at www.biv.com July 19–25, 201118 Human ResouRces sponsored by Bc HRma

Accounting firms turn to peddling advice as new business growth areaConsolidation continues among smaller firms in the province

By Richard Chu

Advice is a growing busi-ness for B.C.’s largest

accounting firms.Based on staffing fig-

ures provided by the biggest companies, the total num-ber of advisory staff has in-creased 23% over the past year alone.

Deloitte & Touche LLP, MNP LLP and Ernst and Young LLP were among the largest firms with grow-ing advisory staff in the past year.

Mackenzie Kyle, region-al managing partner for ad-visory services at MNP, said many accounting compan-ies are trying to capitalize on the opportunities to ex-pand their range of services to complement accounting and tax-related services.

MNP has been aggres-sively expanding its exper-tise and geographic reach over the past three years by merging with a dozen dif-ferent firms across the coun-try. Nearly half have been

advisory-focused mergers, although its three Low-er Mainland mergers were primarily accounting prac-tices. In April, it merged with Vancouver’s Chang Lee LLP; last November, it merged with Richmond’s Doug Wootton CA; and in January 2010, it closed the merger with HLB Cinna-mon Jang Willoughby.

While mergers bring in new clients, Kyle noted that the expanded range of servi-ces from those mergers has also contributed to the firm’s organic growth, “because we now can provide clients with more services.”

Despite the growth in advisory services, audit and tax services remain the bread-and-butter business for B.C.’s largest accounting firms. On average 70% of the staff from the top 23 firms

are accounting-focused. However, the number of

accountants at the largest firms has remained rela-tively flat over the past few years.

Total accounting staff of the largest 23 has hovered around 4,000 for the past three years.

Hiring at some firms has dropped since the recession,

but any decline in staff could also be due to professionals taking advantage of private-sector opportunities as the economy improves.

Roopa Dave, manager of talent attraction at KPMG, said that while many new chartered accountants (CAs) grow within the firm, some choose to leave public prac-tice.

“There are tonnes of op-portunities outside of the ac-counting firms if you have your CA. They fill the fi-nance groups of a lot of com-panies out there.” •[email protected]

Mackenzie Kyle, MNP regional managing partner of advisory services: accounting companies are trying to capitalize on opportunities to expand their range of services

“There are tonnes of

opportunities outside

of the accounting firms

if you have your CA”

– Roopa Dave, manager of talent attraction,

KPMG

Percentage of advisory staff in B.C. accounting firms growing

Accounting staff 69%

Support staff19%

Advisory staff 12%

Source: BIV reSearch

Total staff numbers up slightly

Source: BIV reSearch

4,700

4,800

4,900

5,000

5,100

5,200

5,300

5,400

5,500

5,600

5,700

2008 2009 2010 2011

($ m

illio

ns)

July 19–25, 2011 Business in Vancouver 19

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ETHICSTENACITYRIGOURANALYTICS

THE MARK OFPROFESSIONALISMWhen you seek an uncompromising commitment to clients’ financial interests and demonstrable dedication to the investment industry, look no further than the CFA® designation.

This gold standard credential is recognized around the world for professional mastery, a motivation to excel, and a deep and abiding devotion to the integrity of the investment profession.

To learn more about the CFA designation, visit www.cfavancouver.com.

Do not miss the Book of Lists, a compilation of lists featured in BIV, including biggest law firms, construction companies, biotech firms and many more. Free to subscribers ($79.95 plus HST for one year) or $35 plus HST as a separate purchase. Purchase lists as Excel files at www.biv.com/listsforsale

Business in Vancouver makes every attempt to publish accurate information in The List, but accuracy cannot be guaranteed. Researched by Richard Chu, [email protected]

Biggest accounting firms in B.C.Ranked by number of staff in B.C. in 2011

Rank 2011 Rank 2010Company

Yearfounded

No. of B.C. locations/National head office

No. of int'loffices/Countries

Nationalrevenue '10

Local managingpartner

No. localpartners'11

No.supportstaff '11

Total no.accountants'11

Total no.advisorystaff '11

Totalstaff'11/'10

1 1KPMG LLP777 Dunsmuir St, Vancouver V7Y 1K3P: 604-691-3000 F: 604-691-3031 www.kpmg.ca

1897 9/Toronto

695/151 $1.1 bil. Elio Luongo, managing

partner 128 223 777 145 1,1491,143

2 2PwC1250 Howe St Suite 700, Vancouver V6C 3S7P: 604-806-7000 F: 604-806-7806 www.pwc.com/ca

1912 2/Toronto

764/154 $1.1 bil.

John DeLucchi,managing partner, B.C.region

79 152 586 124 862853

3 3Deloitte & Touche LLP1055 Dunsmuir St Suite 2800, Vancouver V7X 1P4P: 604-669-4466 F: 604-685-0395 www.deloitte.ca

1845 3/Toronto

670/140 $1.5 bil. Paul Fletcher,

managing partner 77 143 496 221 860811

4 4MNP LLP21055 Dunsmuir St Suite 2300, Vancouver V7X 1J1P: 604-685-8408 F: 604-685-8594 www.mnp.ca

1945 15/Calgary

0/1 $313.6 mil.

Ron Miller, regionalmanaging partner,Vancouver region

57 122 251 59 427430

5 5Ernst & Young LLP700 Georgia St W Suite 2300, Vancouver V7Y 1C7P: 604-891-8200 F: 604-643-5422 www.ey.com

1945 1/Toronto

700/140 NP Fiona Macfarlane,


6 6BDO Canada LLP600 Cathedral Pl, 925 Georgia St W, Vancouver V6C 3L2P: 604-688-5421 F: 604-688-5132 www.bdo.ca

1921 13/Toronto

1,138/110 $393 mil.

Don de Jersey,Vancouver officemanaging partner

26 68 313 29 412407

7 7Grant Thornton LLP333 Seymour St Suite 1600, Vancouver V6B 0A4P: 604-687-2711 F: 604-685-6569 www.grantthornton.ca

1919 4/Toronto

489/93 NP Dave Rickards,


8 8Manning Elliott LLP1050 Pender St W Suite 1100, Vancouver V6E 3S7P: 604-714-3600 F: 604-714-3669 www.manningelliott.com

1952 2/Vancouver

384/89 $19.3 mil. Michael Corney,


9 10MacKay LLPChartered Accountants1177 Hastings St W Suite 1100, Vancouver V6E 4T5P: 604-687-4511 F: 604-687-5805 www.mackay.ca

1969 3/Vancouver

0/1 $39 mil. Hugh Livingstone, CEO 23 24 111 0 135

128

10 9Dale Matheson Carr-Hilton Labonte LLP1140 Pender St W Suites 1500 & 1700, Vancouver V6E 4G1P: 604-687-4747 F: 604-689-2778 www.dmcl.ca

1978 3/Vancouver

0/1 NP James Carr-Hilton,

managing director NP NP NP NP 1283128

11 11Smythe Ratcliffe LLP355 Burrard St Suite 700, Vancouver V6C 2G8P: 604-687-1231 F: 604-688-4675 www.smytheratcliffe.com

1980 4/Vancouver

245/125 NP Larry Vicic, managing

partner 13 27 94 7 128109

12 13KNV Chartered Accountants LLP15300 Croydon Dr Suite 200, Surrey V3S 0Z5P: 604-536-7614 F: 604-538-5356 www.knv.com

1973 2/Surrey

300/86 NP Joint committee 9 19 84 2 105

99

13 12Davidson & Company LLP609 Granville St Suite 1200, Vancouver V7Y 1G6P: 604-687-0947 F: 604-687-6172 www.davidson-co.com

1984 1/Vancouver

590/100 NP Grant Block, partner 9 19 82 0 101

100

14 14Wolrige Mahon LLPChartered Accountants400 Burrard St Suite 900, Vancouver V6C 3B7P: 604-684-6212 F: 604-688-3497 www.wolrigemahon.com

1962 1/Vancouver

150/120 $12 mil. John Smiley, managing

partner 15 8 71 3 8292

15 15D&H Group LLP1333 Broadway W Suite 1000, Vancouver V6H 4C1P: 604-731-5881 F: 604-731-9923 www.dhgroup.ca

1952 1/Vancouver

0/1 NP Bruce Macfarlane,


16 16EPR Canada Group IncBox 21148, Maple Ridge V2X 1P7P: 604-476-2009 F: 604-467-1219 www.epr.ca

1979 8/Maple Ridge

0/1 $39.2 mil. Paul Walker, president 13 15 57 0 72

81

17 17Berris Mangan1827 5th Ave W, Vancouver V6J 1P5P: 604-682-8492 F: 604-683-4782 www.berrismangan.com

1989 1/Vancouver

0/1 $7.9 mil. Patrick Mangan,


18 18Rolfe, Benson LLPChartered Accountants900 Hastings St W Suite 1400, Vancouver V6C 1E3P: 604-684-1101 F: 604-684-7937 www.rolfebenson.com

1958 1/Vancouver

467/89 NP Robert Watts,


19 19Reid Hurst Nagy Inc, Certified GeneralAccountants13900 Maycrest Way Suite 105, Richmond V6V 3E2P: 604-273-9338 F: 604-273-9390 www.rhncga.com

1964 1/Richmond

0/1 NP Leo VanWensem,

managing director 6 8 31 0 3941

20 20Nordahl Craig Cumming & Gares1285 Broadway W Suite 512, Vancouver V6H 3X8P: 604-736-2571 F: 604-736-4280 www.nordahl.bc.ca

1972 1/Vancouver

200/90 NP Management by

committee 4 6 30 5 3435

21 21Collins Barrow1030 Georgia St W Suite 800, Vancouver V6E 3B9P: 604-685-0564 F: 604-685-2050 www.collinsbarrow.com

NP NP/Waterloo, ON

NP/NP NP Gordon Duff, managing

partner 4 NP NP NP 3434

22 22Lohn Caulder LLP1500 Georgia St W 3rd floor, Vancouver V6G 2Z6P: 604-687-5444 F: 604-688-7228 www.lohncaulder.com

1978 1/Vancouver

NP/1 NP Kelly Lohn 4 26 27 0 30

30

23 NRSunRonkai LLP1188 Georgia St W Suite 1440, Vancouver V6E 4A2P: 604-688-6191 F: 604-688-2052 www.sunronkai.com

2009 2/Vancouver

0/1 $1.2 mil. Mao Sun

Jonathan Ronkai 2 4 11 0 169

Sources: Interviews with representatives of above firms and BIV research. NP Notprovided NR Not ranked 1 - PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP 2 - Formerly known asMeyers Norris Penny LLP 3 - 2010 figure

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July 19–25, 2011 Business in Vancouver Daily email edition: www.biv.com 21

Trouble

ParTners Podium

Karl GustafsonPossible pitfalls of offering warranties in British Columbia

Companies that offer war-ranties as part of their

product and services packages may be surprised to learn that they are actually selling insur-ance, as that term is broadly defined in British Columbia’s Financial Institutions Act.

This is particularly alarm-ing when one considers that it is an offence under the act to sell insurance without au-thorization – an offence that can lead to fines of up to $200,000.

Therefore, it is crucial to fully consider any warranty offering to determine whether it falls within a permitted ex-ception under the act and, if not, to consider the potential consequences of failing to ob-tain the appropriate author-izations and licences required for the sale of “insurance.”

Warranty or insurance?The act contains a broad def-inition of “insurance busi-ness,” which includes “under-taking … to indemnify an-other person against loss or liability for loss in respect of a certain risk or peril to which the object of the insurance may be exposed.”

It is easy to see how a war-ranty might be caught by this definition since, in essence, a warranty is an assurance to replace or repair a good, or to indemnify in the case that goods or services result in some loss to the purchaser.

While one does not common-ly think of warranties and in-surance as interchangeable, the act treats them that way in many circumstances.

Under Section 75 of the act, in order to carry on “in-surance business,” a company must be an “insurance com-pany” (usually meaning a cor-poration incorporated for the purpose of carrying on insur-ance business).

Further, Section 59 pro-vides that an “insurance com-pany must not carry on insur-ance business unless author-ized to do so by a business au-thorization” issued to it under the act.

The requirement to ob-tain a business authorization to carry on insurance busi-ness applies to companies lo-cated in British Columbia, as well as companies from other provinces that offer warran-ties in British Columbia.

The process of obtaining the necessary business au-thorization to carry on “insur-ance business” is likely more involved and restrictive than those in which most compan-ies offering warranties would be willing to engage.

For instance, the act re-quires that insurance com-panies maintain both ad-equate liquid assets and cap-ital base. What constitutes “adequate” is determined by reference to “the class of busi-ness that it proposes to carry

on, the expected volume of its business and the restrictions on its business.”

Further, the Insurance Company Reserves Valua-tion Regulation contains cer-tain reserves requirements that not all warranty-offering companies may be willing or able to meet. Finally, it may also be important to remem-ber that the Financial Insti-tutions Commission may or-der in-depth investigation and disclosure, further complicat-ing the process.

Some exemptionsThankfully, the Insurer Exemption Regulation con-tains exemptions that pro-vide relief, but only in cer-tain circumstances. The two most important exemptions apply to “product warranty

insurance” and “vehicle war-ranty insurance.”

Under the act, “product warranty insurance” is de-fined as “insurance … against loss of or damage to person-al property, other than a mo-tor vehicle, that is contracted between the purchaser of the property and an insurer whereby the insurer under-takes for a specific period to assume the cost of repairs or replacement.”

“Vehicle warranty insur-ance” is defined as “insurance … against loss of or damage to a motor vehicle arising from mechanical failure, that is con-tracted between the purchaser of the motor vehicle and an insurer whereby the insurer undertakes for a specific per-iod to assume the cost of re-pairs or replacement, towing fees, car rentals and accom-modation as a result of a cov-ered mechanical failure.”

The first main limitation on these exemptions is that the sale of the warranty must be “solely incidental to the sale

of the vehicle or product by the manufacturer or retailer” (see Section 4 of the regula-tion). This prevents a third party from offering warran-ties on products or vehicles without first obtaining a busi-ness authorization to do so.

Second, both definitions limit potential recovery to re-placement or repairs respect-ing the product or vehicle sold to the customer. There-fore, any offer to indemnify for damage caused to or by anything other than what the company sold is “insurance.”

Third, but perhaps least harmful, is that both defin-itions require the warranty to last only for a “specific

period,” essentially preventing lifetime warranties.

In this competitive eco-nomic climate, it is import-ant for companies to differ-entiate themselves in any way they can, and a common tech-nique to do this is to offer a warranty to pay for damage caused to or by its products and services.

However, companies must be wary of the pitfalls of of-fering warranties because of the broad scope of the Finan-cial Institutions Act and the limited scope of the exemp-tions. Because of the poten-tially onerous fines, it is pru-dent for any company con-sidering offering a warranty to consult with the regulator or seek legal advice to ensure compliance with the act. •

Karl E. Gustafson, QC*, is a partner at McMillan LLP’s Vancouver office. This article was prepared with contribu-tions from Lorway Gosse Jr., an associate in McMillan’s Calgary office. * - Law Corporation

Any offer to indemnify

for damage caused to

or by anything other

than what the company

sold is “insurance”

DISCIPLINE•The British Columbia securities CommissionTwo individuals were arrested following an extensive investigation by the British Columbia Securities Commission (BCSC)’s criminal investigations team, the regulator announced July 8.

Arrest warrants were issued for Ronald James Conn and his wife, Sze Man “Ella” Conn, on June 28, 2011. The warrant was in connection with multiple charges under the Securities Act and criminal code, including unlawful trading, fraud and breach of previously imposed bail conditions. The Conns were arrested outside a residence in Vancouver by members of the BCSC’s criminal investigations team, with assistance from

the Vancouver Police Department.

It is alleged that Ronald (and to a lesser extent Ella) solicited over a million dollars from 21 different investors between July of 2008 and September of 2010. As a result, Ronald is charged with 119 counts under the Securities Act and 15 counts under the Criminal Code. Ella is charged with five counts under the Securities Act and one count under the Criminal Code.

This is the third arrest for Ronald and the second arrest for Ella related to illegal trading in the securities of Follicles, a company involved in the manufacture of a hair-restoration device. Ronald was first charged, arrested and released on bail in May of 2010. Ronald and Ella were then together charged, arrested and released on

bail in October of 2010. These previous arrests stemmed from 20 charges against Ronald and four charges against Ella.

Ronald was also sanctioned by the BCSC under the Securities Act in 1997 for his then involvement with a company called Mindoro Corp. As a result of these proceedings, Ronald received a 15-year trading ban and a $50,000 fine.

Since the arrests, Ella has been released on bail, while Ronald remains in custody awaiting completion of his bail hearing.

BUYER’S ALERTCompanies listed below, which are not members of the Better Business Bureau, have failed to respond, as of March 18, 2011, to Better Business Bureau of Main-land B.C.’s efforts to medi-ate complaints from June 27, 2011 to July 01, 2011. In some instances, the company may have taken care of the com-plaint and considered the matter closed, or may believe the complaint is unjustified; however, if the BBB has not received a response, records cannot reveal either position. Please note that BBB mem-bers must respond to cus-tomer complaints that are brought to their attention. Source: BBB.Alberto Moving Express, DeltaEaton’s Commercial & Residential Services Ltd., BurnabyHoliday Trails Resorts Western Inc., RosedaleJordan Autobody Ltd., BurnabyKatayoon Roohani Notary Public, North VancouverKid Supply Clothing Co.,

RichmondMemory Express, RichmondMy Next Paycheck, VancouverOdenza Marketing Group Inc., BurnabyValley Mobile Mechanic, West KelownaThe following compan-ies have responded to the BBB subsequent to being published:Action Care Carpet & Furnace Cleaning, Coquitlam

Who’S GETTING SUEDThese corporate writs were filed with the B.C. Supreme Court registry in Vancouver. Information is derived from notices of civil claim. Civil claims have yet to be proven in court.

Defendants: The Authentic T-Shirt Co. ULC dba Sanmar Canada 1600–925 W. Georgia St., Vancouver

Plaintiff: 0726364 B.C. Ltd. 1200–925 W. Georgia St., Vancouver

Claim: $1,263,796 for debt related to a shareholder loan.

Defendants: Sze Coast Operating Corp. and Robert Lowrey aka Robert Edwin Lowrey and David Lowrey and Rebecca Lowrey and Evelyn Neufeld 37–21928 48 Ave., Langley and 4691 224th St., Langley

Plaintiff: Roy M. Terry Jr., receiver of International Fiduciary Corp. S.A. 1100–505 Burrard St., Vancouver

Claim: US$835,744 against Robert Lowrey and

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Sze related to a ponzi scheme; a declaration the payments were fraudulent conveyances and are void; a declaration Rebecca Lowrey, David Lowrey and Evelyn Neufeld hold the payments as constructive trustees; accountings; and an order.

Defendants: Wiltech Developments Inc. and Trisura Guarantee Insurance Co. 202–1433 St. Paul St., Kelowna and Box 48600, 1200 Waterfront Centre, 200 Burrard St., Vancouver

Plaintiff: South Cariboo Ventures Ltd. 6993 Levick Rd., Lone Butte

Claim: $249,981 for debt arising from a subcontract to crush and supply granular material from a pit; and damages.

Defendants: Becker Galleries Inc. and D. Michele Becker 112 E. 42nd Ave., Vancouver and 5757 Dunbar St., Vancouver

Plaintiff: Johnston Allen Properties Ltd. 1100–505 Burrard St., Vancouver

Claim: $176,864 for outstanding rent due and owing; $58,719 for rent; $145,403 for a loan; and damages for breach of the sublease.

Defendants: International Road Technologies Inc. and Graham Bradley Gilfillan 300–180 Seymour St., Kamloops and 26–1104 Quail Dr., Kamloops and 1A–1445 McGill Rd., Kamloops

Plaintiff: Royal Bank of Canada 3rd floor, 650 W. 41st Ave., Vancouver

Claim: $162,281 against International Road for debt; and $145,000 against Gilfillan as guarantor of the debt.

Defendants: Jameson House Ventures Ltd. and Jameson House

Properties Ltd. and Jameson Development Corp. and Bosa Properties Inc. and Bosa Properties (J.H.) Inc. and Bosa Properties (J.H. Mgr) Inc. and Axiom Builders Inc. and James Holdings Ltd. and The Bowra Group Inc. and Trustee of the Estate of Advanced Glazing Systems Ltd., bankrupt 920–1055 W. Hastings St., Vancouver and 7–3349 Kingsway, Vancouver and 1800–4555 Kingsway St., Burnaby and 1802–4555 Kingsway St., Burnaby and 1930–1095 W. Pender St., Vancouver

Plaintiff: Advanced Glazing Systems LLC 14580 Northeast 95th St., Redmond, WA

Claim: $US137,950 for labour and material for installation of glazing works on Jameson House; and a builders lien for $US137,950.

Defendants: Apollo Muffler Centres Ltd. and Upstream Investments Ltd. and Ernesto Lopez, administrator of the estate of Frederick Nicholas Chernoff, deceased, and Ray Chernoff 371 W. 2nd Ave., Vancouver and 1550–520 5th Ave., Vancouver

Plaintiff: Watson Goepel Maledy 1700–1075 W. Georgia St., Vancouver

Claim: $75,909 for debt for legal services; a declaration of a charge, pursuant to the Legal Profession Act, for $75,906 against the property the clients recovered or preserved as a result of the services the plaintiff provided in legal proceedings; and all necessary directions for the purpose of realizing and enforcing the charge.

Defendants: Almaval Building Inc. and Jeffrey Karl Wiegel and 0772835 B.C. Ltd. 200–5611 Cooney Rd., Richmond and 102–225 Smithe St., Vancouver and 200–5611 Cooney Rd.,

RichmondPlaintiff: 0734148 B.C. Ltd. 3410 Lynmoor Pl., Vancouver

Claim: $64,134 for a promissory note; and orders.

Defendant: Kendall Kemp trading as Pinnacle Custom Wood Finishing 34546 York Ave., Abbotsford

Plaintiff: The Bank of Nova Scotia 2900–550 Burrard St., Vancouver

Claim: $63,639 for debt related to a line of credit.

Defendant: William Houghton Address unavailable

Plaintiff: Anson Industrial Manufacturing (1989) Corp. 7392 Progress Pl., Delta

Claim: $61,189 for wrongful appropriation of money; and damages.

Defendants: Christian Brule aka Joseph Brule and Chris Brule coba Stockprophet Investments and Stockprophet Investments Inc. 974 Montroyal Blvd., North Vancouver and 1507–1185 Quayside Dr., New Westminster

Plaintiff: Jon Lever 2080–777 Hornby St., Vancouver

Claim: $35,446 for debt related to outstanding loans; and damages.

Defendant: Connex See Services Inc. 70 Valleywood Dr., Markham, ON

Plaintiff: Pensionfund Realty Ltd. 1200–200 Burrard St., Vancouver

Claim: $19,237 for debt related to a lease; and damages.

Defendants: M. Jorjezian Investments Corp. and Martiross Jorjezian aka Martiross Sarvarian and Ardineh Sarvarian and Imor Capital Corp. and Envision Financial, a division of First West

Coast Credit Union, and Amarpaul Singh Dhaliwal and Ly Sok and Harji’s Fire Pl. Manufacturing Ltd. aka Marji’s Fireplace Mfg. Ltd. and Varoujan Basmadjian and YCO Corp. Investments Ltd. and Vancity Cabinets Ltd. 220–7565 King George Hwy., Surrey and 503–1311 Howe St., Vancouver and 2165 123 St., Surrey and 220–1040 W. Georgia St., Vancouver and 6470 201 St., Langley and 10325 150St., Surrey and 25th floor, 700 W. Georgia St., Vancouver and 12386 69A Ave., Surrey and 490–1177 W. Hastings St., Vancouver and 1900–1040 W. Georgia St., Vancouver and 205–8388 128 St., Surrey

Plaintiff: Dulay Roofing Ltd. 12565 69A Ave., Surrey

Claim: $3,225 for roofing; and a builders lien for $3,225.

Defendants: Sam Ventures Ltd. and Anwer Lalani and Grace An 1300–999 W. Hastings St., Vancouver and 101–1871 Marine Dr., West Vancouver and address unknown

Plaintiffs: 658140 B.C. Ltd. and Dr. Karim Lalani 700–595 Burrard St., Vancouver

Claim: A declaration that Anwer and Sam Ventures did not have the authority to sell the property, arising from a previous agreement for Lalani to purchase the property; and orders.

Defendant: Ronald Herbert Mitchell dba Ron Mitchell TruckingLeasing (2004) Inc. 9430 204th St., Langley

Plaintiff: Equirex Vehicle Leasing (2004) Inc. 1800–1095 W. Pender St., Vancouver

Claim: Judgment for the amounts due under the lease agreement, arising from breach of contract.

Defendants: Wendy Joan Harvey and Douglas Michael Edgar 102–5555 Yew St., Vancouver

Plaintiff: The Owners, Strata Plan VR 390 5555 Yew St., Vancouver

Claim: Damages arising from interference with remedial work, resulting in delays and extra expenses.

Defendants: Intercity Equity Corp. dba Leaders Insurance Agencies and Rosa Pinto and Economical Mutual Insurance Co. 1200–805 W. Broadway, Vancouver and 1000–840 Howe St., Vancouver and 106–3003 St. Johns St., Port Moody

Plaintiff: Diem Thi Kieu Tran dba Four Seasons Nails and Spa 3081 Clark Dr., Vancouver

Claim: Judgment against Economical for breach of an insurance contract in connection with a fire; judgment against Leaders

Trouble

LawsuiT of The week

Wedding garland behind tumble, lawsuitA “hazardous” wedding garland and the people allegedly responsible for it are at the heart of a lawsuit launched by a Surrey insurance agent.

Kulwinder Kaur Tatla filed suit in B.C. Supreme Court May 11 seeking damages and health-care costs after a wedding garland allegedly caused her to slip and fall at a wedding.

Named as defendants are: GKN Enterprises (2004) Ltd., Mirage Banquet Hall Ltd., Moore Wedding Centre Ltd. and Satwinder Gakal.

The suit alleges that the incident occurred August 8, 2010, when Tatla was an invited guest at a wedding reception.

It states that at approximately 10:20 p.m., as Tatla was in the process of leaving the reception premises, her foot became entangled in a “decorative wedding garland” which was laying on the floor at the top of a staircase.

The suit claims that she then slipped and fell down the stairs and sustained “serious harm and injuries” including: shoulder, neck, back, head, arm and leg injuries; headaches; sleep loss; chronic pain; loss of appetite; bruises; and physical disability.

The claim states that at the time of the plaintiff’s fall and at all times material to the claim, “the wedding garland was loosely laying on the ground at the top of the stairs at one end and was tied to the banister of the railing descending down the stairs at the other end, creating a trap or hazard for pedestrians, including the plaintiff.”

The suit argues that the defendants owed Tatla a duty of care and that they breached that duty. It also cites the Occupiers Liability Act and the Negligence Act.

At press time, no statement of defence had been filed.None of these allegations have been proven in court.

and Pinto for failing to exercise the care that a reasonable insurance broker would exercise in selling or brokering a policy of insurance for the plaintiff, or, judgment against Leaders and Pinto for breach of contract.

Defendant: The Owners, Strata Plan LMS1751 688 Fairchild Rd., Vancouver

Plaintiff: Bo Suen Leung Fung A111–688 Fairchild Rd., Vancouver

Claim: Injunctive relief requiring that the corporation restore the original lock for the unit, arising from The Owners entering Fung’s unit and changing the locks; and/or, damages or compensation.

Defendants: The Owners, Strata Plan BCS 2196 and Stratawest Management Ltd. 2355 Madison Ave., Burnaby and 202–224 West Esplanade, North Vancouver

Plaintiff: Rosalind Chang 307–6330 Fraser St., Vancouver

Claim: Damages for injuries sustained when the plaintiff opened a door leading to the parking lot on the property and her left big toe got caught under a low security panel at the bottom of the door; and health-care costs.

Defendants: Francisco Dias dba Frantech Solutions and the said Frantech Solutions and John Doe and Jane Roe and other persons unknown who have conspired with the named defendants Addresses unavailable

Plaintiff: Nexon Korea Corp. 1200–200 Burrard St., Vancouver

Claim: A declaration that copyright subsists in the MapleStory Program and that the copyright is valid and owned by Nexon, arising from hackers infringing Nexon’s copyright in the program; a declaration that the hackers have infringed Nexon’s copyright in the MapleStory Program; a declaration that the defendants,

by aiding, abetting, assisting, encouraging or authorizing the wrongful conduct of the hackers, have infringed Nexon’s copyright in the MapleStory Program; and/or injunctions; and/or an order; and/or damages.

Defendants: Coby Electronics Corp. and London Drugs Ltd. 301–1991 Marcus Ave., Lake Success, NY and 3000–1055 W. Georgia St., Vancouver

Plaintiff: Douglas Fisher and Michelle Fisher 18252 69 Ave., Surrey

Claim: Damages for a portable DVD player that caught on fire and caused damage.

Defendant: Labatt Brewing Co. Ltd. 1200–200 Burrard St., Vancouver

Plaintiff: Jody Trainer 2020–650 W. Georgia St., Vancouver

Claim: Damages for lacerations to the left eye that were the result of a beer bottle that exploded.

Defendants: Island Veterinary Hospital Ltd. and Central Victoria Veterinary Hospital Ltd. and Patricia Rosenstein and Suzanne Smith and Lana Bissett and Sally Moore and John McCleary and Blair Gurney 2010–1055 W. Georgia St., Vancouver and 800–1070 Douglas St., Victoria and 760 Roderick St., Victoria

Plaintiff: Robert Anderson 700–595 Burrard St., Vancouver

Claim: Damages for negligence related to an operation performed on a cat that resulted in death.

Defendant: Pakit Inc. 1300–777 Dunsmuir St., Vancouver

Plaintiff: Craig Barton and Fairfax Financial Holdings Ltd. 2600–595 Burrard St., Vancouver

Claim: A declaration the security interests granted under the debentures are interests charged against the property related to debentures in default; and a declaration the security interests are charged against the property. •

July 19–25, 2011 Business in Vancouver 23Law

MCQUARRIE.COM

YourCentral City law fi rm,in Surrey.

Justine Greene appointed executive director, Big Sisters of BC Lower Mainland

Nicholas Roos is associate at Fasken Martineau DuMoulin

John McKendry is acting president of Kwantlen Polytechnic University

Tamara Little is director, public affairs, at NATIONAL Public Relations

PeoPle on the MoveEmail your For the Record information to: [email protected]. Please include a high-resolution, colour head-shot where possible.

•Associations/SocietiesJeremy Chan, corporate counsel of Methanex Corp., has been appointed president of the Hong Kong-Canada Business Association, Van-couver section.

Chris Hilliard, chair and managing director of Mag-Power Systems Inc., has been elected president of the Simon Fraser University Alumni Association.

Maurice Poulin has been appointed president of the Insurance Brokers Associa-tion of BC. He owns Poulin Agencies.

Beth McKercher has been appointed president of the Dunbar Village Business Association. She is propri-etor of Splash Toys.

Craig Wisehart has been appointed program director of the Electronic Steward-ship Association of BC. He was previously on the board of directors of the BC Truck-ing Association and was on the advisory committee for the Trucking Safety Coun-cil of BC.

•Biotech/Life SciencesMichael Aldridge has been appointed a director of Allon Therapeutics Inc., replacing Michael O’Brian ,who has retired. Aldridge is executive director and member of the board of Xenome Ltd.

•Communications/PRTamara Little has been appointed director, public affairs, at NATIONAL Public Relations. She was previously communications and gov-ernment relations director for Partnerships BC and com-munications director to the Ministry of Energy Mines and Petroleum Resources, Ministry of Transportation and the Treaty Negotiations Office.

•Development/ConstructionRolf Skala, Darrell Mott and Crystal Kwon have joined Kryton International Inc. as director of marketing; operations manager; and public relations co-ordin-ator, respectively. Skala was previously director of Brand Visioneering, group direc-tor, Canada, for YPartner-ship and group account dir-ector at DDB. Mott was pre-viously the Vancouver oper-ations manager for Vicwest Corp. Kwon is PR manager of Five Hole for Food and was previously PR manager for the Vancouver International Dance Festival.

•EducationJohn McKendry has been appointed acting president

of Kwantlen Polytechnic University, replacing David Atkinson, who has resigned. McKendr y was prev i-ously special adviser to the president of Kwantlen and provost and vice-president, academic, at the university.

•FinanceKeith Hill has been appointed director of Denovo Capital Corp. He is president and CEO of Africa Oil.

•LegalDavid Claassen, Rahim Esmail, Krista Johanson, Cherie Mah, Robert Wal-lis and Maria Zeldis have joined Borden Ladner Ger-vais LLP as associates. Claas-sen, Esmail, Johanson, Wal-lis and Zeldis all completed their articles at BLG. Mah was an articling student at BLG Calgary.

Nicholas Roos and Kareen Zimmer have joined Fas-ken Martineau DuMoulin LLP as associate in the bank-ing and finance practice and partner in the securities and M&A practice, respectively. Roos completed his articles at Borden Ladner Gervais LLP. Zimmer was previously with McCarthy Tetrault LLP.

Brent Rentiers has joined Farris, Vaughan, Wills & Murphy LLP’s Kelowna office as an associate in the litigation group. He was called to the B.C. bar in 2011.Rina Jaswal has joined Mil-ler Thomson LLP as asso-ciate in the capital markets and securities group. She was previously with Clark Wil-son LLP.

•Not-for-ProfitJustine Greene has been

appointed executive direc-tor of the Big Sisters of BC Lower Mainland, replacing Shannon Newman-Ben-nett, who has stepped down. Greene was previously a con-tract operations professional with the Vancouver Foun-dation, InspireHealth and AIDS Vancouver.

•ResourcesRichard Lyon has been appointed COO of Bell-haven Copper & Gold Inc. He was previously executive director of Angola LNG and CEO and global projects dir-ector for Australian-Amer-ican Energy Co.

Lindsay Bottomer has been appointed to the board of Driven Capital Corp. He is vice-president of busi-ness development for Entree Gold Inc. and was previ-

ously president and CEO of Southern Rio Resources Ltd. Margo Peters has been appointed as the company’s corporate secretary, replacing Mark Achtemichuk, who remains as CFO and director. Peters is corporate secretary for the Progressive Explora-tion Group.

Warren Johnstone has rejoined Gemcom Software International Inc. as vice-president of global services. He was previously regional vice-president at Gemcom Africa and a mining ana-lyst for Edison Investment Research.

Guy Gilron has been appointed vice-president, environment and com-munity relations, at Card-ero Resource Corp. He was previously director, environ-

Daily business news at www.biv.com July 19–25, 201124 For the record

Hi-res 4C News speC’d images iN plaCe

Job Desc.: BMW Vancouver RetailersDocket: BMWVA0177Client: BMWSupplier: Type Page: Trim: 9.75" x 7.125"Bleed: Screen: Pub.: Business in VancouverColour: CMYKDate: June 8, 2011Insert Date: June 21, 2011Ad Number: BMWVA0177-BV-4C-E-X1

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European model shown. Features and equipment may vary in Canada. MSRP of a 2012 BMW X1 xDrive28i All-Wheel Drive starts at $38,500. Lease rates are those offered by BMW Financial Services Canada only on approved credit (OAC). *Lease rate of 4.9% available for up to 48 months. Lease example based on $398 a month for 48 months. Down payment or equivalent trade of $5,900. Freight and PDI and other additional fees are extra and due on signing. HST and licence fee are extra. Total obligation is $25,021.76. The residual value of the vehicle at end of term is $18,480. Annual kilometres limited to 20,000; $0.15 per excess kilometre. Excess wear-and-tear charges may apply. Additional province-specific fees, taxes, and charges may be extra. Retailers are free to set individual prices and charge administration fees, which may change the APR or the price of the vehicle. Offer expires August 2, 2011. Delivery must be taken by August 2, 2011. Offer requires Retailer participation. Offer is subject to availability and may be cancelled or changed without notice. Certain conditions apply. See your local BMW Retailer or vancouverretailers.bmw.ca for full details. †Certain limitations apply; see Retailer for details. ©2011 BMW Canada Inc. “BMW”, the BMW logo, BMW model designations and all other BMW related marks, images and symbols are the exclusive properties and/or trademarks of BMW AG, used under licence.

Metro VancouverBMW Retailers

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ThE all-nEW BMW x1 28i WiTh xDRiVE all-WhEEl DRiVE.

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BMWVA0177_BIV_4C_E_X1.indd 1 11-07-12 3:56 PM

Brent Rentiers joins Farris, Vaughan, Wills & Murphy’s Kelowna office as associate

Beth McKercher is president of the Dunbar Village Business Association

Rolf Skala, Darrell Mott and Crystal Kwon join Kryton International as director of marketing; operations manager; and public relations co-ordinator, respectively

Rina Jaswal has joined Miller Thomson as associate

Lloyd Oppel, chair, BCMA Council on Health Promotion; Mark Schonfeld, CEO, BCMA; Laurie Forbes, vice-president of administration, Coastal Pacific Xpress; Sally McCarthy, people consultant, Coastal Pacific Xpress

Don Mann, board chair, Canadian Diabetes Association; John Orr, assistant vice-president, B.C. south, CN; and Dan Sibley, vice-president, human resources, CN

mental science, for Teck Resources Ltd.

Tayfun Eldem has been appointed president and CEO of Alderon Resource Corp. and Mark Morabito, former president, CEO and co-founder of the company, has been appointed execu-tive chair of Alderon. Eldem was previously vice-president, expansion projects and engin-eering, and vice-president, operations and engineer-ing for the Iron Ore Co. of Canada.

Abraham Jonker has been appointed to the board of EastCoal Inc. He is interim chair of Mandalay Resour-ces Corp. and was previously CFO of Cambrian Min-ing Plc. and Western Coal Corp.

Pierce Carson and Robert Kramer have been appointed to the board of Canamex Resources Corp. and Basil Pantages has stepped down as a director. Carson is president and CEO of Santa Fe Gold Corp. Kramer was previously chair of the audit committee of Silver Bull Resources Inc.

Carson Seabolt has been appointed president and CEO of Worldwide Promotional Management Inc. He is an officer of Terra Nova Min-erals and partner at Skander-beg Capital.

William Woolford has joined the board of GMV Guyana Resources Inc. He was previ-ously senior mining engineer, manager (mines), chief min-ing engineer, deputy com-missioner and commissioner of the Guyana Geology & Mines Commission.

James Gibbons has joined International Enexco Ltd. as a member of its board and senior adviser to the com-pany on corporate affairs. He was previously governor of Nevada.

Marion McGrath has been appointed corporate secretary of PMI Gold Corp. She is the owner of iO Corporate Ser-vices Ltd.

•TechnologyJames Pratt has been appointed chief business offi-cer of Functional Technolo-gies Corp. He was previously CEO of Sepp’s Food Group and vice-president of corpor-ate finance at Midland Wal-wyn Capital Inc.

Hats OffBusiness in Vancouver wel-comes submissions from local small businesses and large cor-porations alike that demon-strate examples of corporate philanthropy and community involvement in the Vancouver area. High-resolution images are also welcome.

Fraser Milner Casgrain LLP donated $200,000 to the UBC faculty of law building project.

ICBC employees and family participated in the Ride to Conquer Cancer and raised over $157,000 for the BC Cancer Foundation.

N o r t h S h o r e C r e d i t Union’s annual golf tour-nament raised $54,000 for North Shore Rescue to go toward final construction of the Seymour search and rescue station and nine physio-control automated external defibrillators.

S c o t i a b a n k d o n a t e d $50,000 to SFU to support the Scotiabank Graduate Award in Business.

The Osoyoos Volunteer Fire Department donated $5000 to VGH & UBC Hospital Foundation in support of the BC Profes-sional Fire Fighters’ burn

plastic and trauma unit at Vancouver General Hospital.

Triwest Mechanical Ltd. donated $2,050 to Zajac R a nc h for C h i ld ren , which prov ides a sa fe

and fun camp experience for children with serious and chronic illnesses and disabilities.

Coastal Pacific Xpress was awarded the BC Medical Association’s Council on

Health Promotion Award of Excellence for its staff wellness programs.

CN won the Outstanding Corporate Regional Award from the Canadian Dia-betes Association. •

Patricia St. Laurent, VGH & UBC Hospital Foundation; Chris Parker, Osoyoos Volunteer Fire Department; and Kara George, burn plas-tic and trauma unit at Vancouver General Hospital

ICBC’s Ride to Conquer Cancer team members

July 19–25, 2011 Business in Vancouver 25for the record

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Breakfast, Luncheon, Dinner MeetingsSupporting Canada’s Growth and Prosperity Through Immigration J u l y 1 9 , 2 0 1 1 , 1 1 : 4 5 A M : T h e H o n o u r a b l e J a s o n K e n n e y , M i n i s t e r o f Citizenship, Immigration and Multiculturalism. $79 members and guests/$110 future-members (+HST). Vancouver Marr iot t Pinnacle, Pinnacle Ballroom, 1128

Hastings Street West. Vancouver,

BC. reservations@boardoftrade.

com. www.boardoftrade.com.

Professor Stephen Toope

September 14 , 2011 , 1 1 :45

AM: Professor Stephen Toope,

President & Vice-Chancellor

University of British Columbia.

$69 members and guests/$96

future-members (+HST). The

Fairmont Waterfront, Waterfront

Ballroom, 900 Canada Place Way.

Vancouver, BC. reservations@

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conferences, conventions, traDeshows20/20 SMART Session: Market Research and AssessmentAugust 18, 2011 , 8 :00 AM: Effective market research will increase the probability of a successful product launch . This session will introduce tools and techniques for conducting effective market research and assessment in the product deve lopment proces s . $ 25

members/$35 non-members. Hampton Inn & Suites, 19500 Langley Bypass (Route 10) . Surrey. Kimberly Hall: 604-713-7809, [email protected]. http://bc.cme-mec.ca/.

The World MoneyShow VancouverSeptember 19, 2011, 8:30 AM: Learn how to best posit ion your portfolio for profit in 2011 and beyond. As this new era of investing unfolds , smar t investors know it’s imperative to stay informed and educated. Free admission . Vancouver Convention Centre, 1055 Canada Place. Vancouver. 800-970-

4355. http://www.moneyshow.com/tradeshow/vancouver/w o r l d _ m o n e y S h o w /m a i n .asp?scode=023199.

APEGBC Annual Conference & AGMOctober 13, 2011 , 8 :00 AM: J o i n u s a s w e c e l e b r a t e a c c o m p l i s h m e n t s i n t h e professions of engineering a n d g e o s c i e n c e . A s B C ’ s p remiere en g ine er in g an d geoscience event, the Annual Conference and AGM are sure to offer participants valuable opportunities to network with leading professionals in the industry. Price varies. Delta Grand Okanagan Resort and Conference Centre. Kelowna, BC. Shirley Chow: 604-412-4865, [email protected]. http://www.apeg.bc.ca/ac2011/.

consuMer showsRob Schneider Comedy Tour in VancouverJuly 22, 2011, 9:00 PM: Rob Schneider Comedy Tour in Vancouver: Emmy nominated comedian and star of Deuce B iga low mov ies br ings h is stand-up tour to the Vogue Theatre. Tickets starting from $29.99. 918 Granville Street. Vancouver. Call 604-569-1144 or www.funnyfarmcomedy.ca. www.funnyfarmcomedy.ca.

Rob Schneider Comedy Tour in VictoriaJuly 23, 2011, 9:00 PM: Rob Schneider Comedy Tour in V ic tor ia : Emmy nominated comedian and star of Deuce B iga low mov ies br ings h is s tand-up tour to the Royal Theatre. Tickets starting from $29.99. 805 Broughton Street. Victoria. call 250-386-6121 or www.funnyfarmcomedy.ca. www.funnyfarmcomedy.ca.

courses, workshops, seMinars20/20 SMART Session: Product Management for Product DevelopmentJ u l y 2 1 , 2 0 1 1 , 8 : 0 0 A M : Innovat ion c an of ten lea d businesses into unexplored t e r r i t o r y w h e n p r o d u c t developers have to cope with varying levels of uncertainty r e g a r d i n g t h e p r o d u c t development process. Join us to learn how to manage your produc t development . $ 25 members/$35 non-members. Hampton Inn & Suites, 19500 Langley Bypass (Route 10) . Surrey. Kimberly Hall: 604-713-7809, [email protected]. http://bc.cme-mec.ca.

HR Metrics Service - Demo & Overview: ManufacturingJuly 21, 2011, 9:30 AM: Come join us for an overview of the H R M e t r i c s B e n c h m a r k i n g Service with a special focus on the Manufacturing Sector.

No charge. Online. 604-694-6946. http://www.bchrma.org/co n te n t/eve n ts/ls /de ta i ls .cfm?EventID=035-237.

HR Metrics Benchmarking Service - Demo & OverviewJuly 22, 2011, 8:30 AM: If you a re lo ok in g to l ear n m ore about the HR Metrics Service, sign up for this 1-hour demo. No charge. Online. 604-694-6946. http://www.bchrma.org/co n te n t/eve n ts/ls /de ta i ls .cfm?EventID=035-222.

Finding Love OnlineJuly 27, 2011, 6:30 PM: Online dating is a huge industry and there are a multitude of options out there. Join us for a free online seminar to hear what we’ve learned from our research into online dating sites. Free. Go to www.dating4boomers.com and click EVENTS to register. Online Event. [email protected].

SharePoint 2010 as a Records Management and Retention SolutionAu gust 19, 201 1 , 1 : 30 PM : Attend a free seminar on how SharePoint 2010 can be used for records management and retention . The presenter is Marcel Roy, SharePoint Specialist and Records Manager. Free. BCIT Downtown Campus, RM 281, 555 Seymour Street. Vancouver. [email protected]. www.tracrecords.ca/events.

Canadian Securities Course (CSC)September 8, 2011, 8:00 AM: Be qualified to apply for licensing as a mutual funds salesperson. Sign up for the CSC at Ashton College. Contact an Admissions Adviser now. Ashton College. Vancouver. 60 4-89 9-0803/[email protected]. www.ashtoncollege.com.

Foundation in Sustainable Community DevelopmentSeptember 15, 2011 , 9 :00 AM: This course addresses the confusion surrounding sustainability and presents the certificate’s vision of sustainable community development and related principles. $900. 515 W. Hastings St.. Vancouver. Joshua Randall, 778-782-5254. http://www.sfu.ca/city/course1popup.htm.

CTT+ Train the Trainer CourseSeptember 19, 2011, 8:30 AM: Anybody who needs to train groups of people in an effective a n d e f f i c i e n t m a n n e r c a n benefit from this course. Those looking to show instructional presentation skills for their MCT designation. $995/person. 555 Seymour Street. Vancouver. Bart Simpson: 888-480-1629, [email protected]. www.trab.com.

HR Metrics Benchmarking Service - Demo & OverviewSeptember 28, 2011 , 9 :00 AM: If you are looking to learn more about the HR Metr ics S e r v i c e , s i g n u p f o r t h i s 1-hour demo Complimentary.

Daily business news at www.biv.com July 19–25, 201126 DatebookGuarantee the publication of your listing for $50 per issue (plus hst). 604-608-5189 or [email protected] www.bivdatebook.com

Showcase your non-profit to B.C.’s business and philanthropic leadersBusiness in Vancouver Media Group, publishers of Business in Vancouver newspaper, Western Investor and more than a dozen business-related magazines, are delighted to launch an exciting new print and digital publication called Giving Guide – Regional Philanthropic Opportunities. This informative glossy, full-colour magazine will showcase to B.C.’s business community the diverse range of non-profit organizations that have a presence right here in the region.

Giving Guide provides non-profits with a great opportunity to share their story with the region’s business leaders. Non-profits play a huge role in improving the quality of life of residents throughout the region. This new essential reference tool – with year-long presence in print and online – will showcase a non-profit’s compelling mission, progress, governance and many other initiatives.

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Giving Guide 2012Regional PhilanthRoPic oPPoRtunities

Deadline for Datebook listings is noon Tuesday for the following week ’s paper. Listings are published on a guaranteed basis for $50 per week, plus gst. Free listings will run in print as space permits. Go to www.bivdatebook.ca to post your listing. Published Datebook listings are at the discretion of BIV.

Online. Liz Whalley : Metrics Specialist, [email protected]. http://www.bchrma.org/co n te n t/eve n ts/ls /de ta i ls .cfm?EventID=035-252.

Applications in Sustainable Community Development September 30, 2011 , 9 :00 AM: Through f ield tr ips and presentations by sustainability project champions, you will exp lore the app l icat ion of sustainability principles in a variety of programs, projects and business ventures. $600. 515 W. Hastings St. Vancouver. J o s h u a R a n d a l l , 7 7 8 -7 8 2 -5254. http://www.sfu.ca/city/course2popup.htm.

HR Metrics Benchmarking Service - Demo & OverviewOctober 28, 2011, 8:30 AM: If you are looking to learn more about the HR Metrics Service, sign up for this 1-hour demo. No charge. Online. 604-694-6946, [email protected]. http://www.bchrma.org/content/events/ls/details.cfm?EventID=035-223.

Sustainable Economics for the Real WorldNovember 4, 2011, 9:00 AM: This course provides an overview of the emerging field of sustainable economics, as well as the tools for building the business case for sustainability. $600. 515 W. Hastings St. Vancouver. Joshua Randall, 778-782-5254. http://www.sfu.ca/city/course3popup.htm.

Communicating Sustainability for Awareness, Accountability and ActionNovember 25 , 2011 , 9 : 0 0 A M : T h i s c o u r s e p r o v i d e s tips and tools for ef fective communications practice and examines how sustainability is perceived by the public. $600. 515 W. Hastings St. Vancouver. Joshua Randall, 778-782-5254. http://www.sfu.ca/city/sust906.htm.

HR Metrics Benchmarking Service - Nov Demo & OverviewNovember 30, 2011, 9:00 AM: I f you are looking to learn more about the HR Metr ics S e r v i c e , s i g n u p f o r t h i s 1-hour demo. Complimentary. Online. Liz Whalley, Metrics Specialist, lwhalley@bchrma.

org. http://www.bchrma.org/co n te n t/eve n ts/ls /de ta i ls .cfm?EventID=035-253.

HR Metrics Benchmarking Service - Jan Demo & OverviewJanuary 18, 2012, 9 :00 AM: I f you are looking to learn more about the HR Metr ics S e r v i c e , s i g n u p f o r t h i s 1-hour demo. Complimentary. Online. Liz Whalley, Metrics Specialist, [email protected]. http://www.bchrma.org/co n te n t/eve n ts/ls /de ta i ls .cfm?EventID=035-254.

FestivalsAgassiz Slow Food Cycle TourJuly 23, 2011, 9:00 AM: This tour provides an educational a n d c u l i n a r y e x p e r i e n c e exploring many farms, some that are open to the public on these days only. This is an event that is suitable for families of all ages. $20/person, children 12 and under are free. Meet at the corner of Cameron and McCallum Road. Agassiz. www.slowfoodvancouver.com.

Chilliwack Slow Food Cycle TourJuly 24, 2011, 9:00 AM: This tour provides an educational and culinary experience exploring many farms, some that are open to the public on these days only. This is an event that is suitable for families of all ages. $20/person, children 12 and under are free. Tourism Chilliwack Visitor Centre, 44150 Luckakuck Way (Exit #116 from Hwy 1, in front of Heritage Park). Chilliwack. www.slowfoodvancouver.com.

Dances for a Small Stage 24August 10, 2011 , 8 :00 PM: A wildly energized, cabaret-themed evening of cutting- edge choreography at The Legion on The Drive. Tickets: $20 cash at door. Doors at 7pm. 19+ only. 2205 Commercial Drive. Vancouver. http://movent.ca.

GolF tournamentsVancouver CREW 6th Annual Golf Tournament and Silent Auction FundraiserJuly 21, 2011, 11:00 AM: Join us

at the 6th Annual Vancouver CREW Golf Tournament . The tournament includes 18 holes of golf with a golf cart, the West Coast Classic Buffet dinner, and prizes . Members $225; non-members $250. Mayfair Lakes Golf & Country Club. Richmond. Vancouver CREW: 604-601-5107, [email protected]. www.vancouvercrew.org.

Business Leaders Golf TournamentAugust 23, 2011 , 12 :00 PM: Play golf with the Vancouver business community including s e n i o r e x e c u t i v e s , d e a l -ma ke r s a n d p rofe s s io na ls involved in corporate growth, development, and mergers and acquisitions. A full day event including golf, dinner and great prizes! $175 BIV Subscribers, ACG or TMA members/$200 general public. University Golf C lub, 5 185 Universi ty B lvd . Vancouver. Azadeh Hollmann: 604-608-5197, [email protected]. https://www.eplyevents.co m /B u s i n e ss Le a d e rs G o l f Tournament.

networkinG FunctionsMature Women’s Network Annual Bus TripAugust 6, 2011, 8:45 AM: An invitation to women over 40 years to our annual day bus trip. Includes lunch, museum tours , farms, histor ic sites and gift shops in the Harrison area. Our bus trips are always a highlight of the year for an enjoyable social day. $30.00 non-members (includes membership for balance of the year). 411 Dunsmuir Street. Vancouver. Prepay to register. Call 604-681-3986 or [email protected]. http://upcoming.yahoo.com/event/8149717/BC/Vancouver/Women39s-Annual-Summer-Bus-Trip/Mature-Women39s-Network/. •

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July 19–25, 2011 Business in Vancouver 27Datebook

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Business linesBusiness/Organization Name: Infinitus Enterprise Services Inc.

Business Focus/Specialty: Leading businesses in creating efficiencies and profits through strategic planning, effective implementation, and use of technology. I won the contract and led the development of Corporate Online, so if you are incorporated and operating in BC or you are a corporate lawyer, your company uses the system my team developed to report to the government every year.

Business Advantage: Our advantage is summed up with the title of our new book Leaking Money: How Your Business is Losing Money, Customers and Opportunities and How To Stop It.

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FoundationName: Brenda Crompton

E-mail: [email protected]

Occupation/Position/Title: Consultant and Business Vision Architect, Speaker

What I do: I help people see past the blind spots in their business, through to the possibilities that the future represents for them.

Credentials: B.A. Economics, University of Waterloo, extensive experience in using process, workflow, project, and analysis methodologies to solve real world business challenges.

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Favourite Achievements: Delivering and implementing Corporate Online on time and on budget, to ensure the government met their balanced budget and achieving the Premier’s Award for Service Excellence. Raising money for Kids Help Phone and achieving Volunteer of the Year.

Goals: To challenge Entrepreneurs to achieve their business objectives and to help them Stop Leaking Money.

Passions and Interests: Business, real estate, economy, skiing, kiteboarding, fine wine, pets.

Current Read, Author: The Go Point, Michael Useem

Someone I Admire/Why: The person who believes in him/herself enough to start a business and is confident enough to seek assistance because they don’t have all the answers.

Five people (of all time) I would invite to my dinner gathering: Kim Campbell, Eckhart Tolle, François de la Rochefoucauld, Betty White, Stephen King

Business Tip or Motto: “The only thing constant in life is change” ~François de la Rochefoucauld

Brenda Crompton

ConSultant and BuSineSS ViSion arChiteCt, Speaker

Cartoon by riCe

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What price fame? I have been honoured to be recognized

in new ways in real estate circles in recent months, since speaking out on the need to address unaffordable housing prices and the impact of off-shore investors. A homebuyer on the west side says realtor Danny Deng approached her and showed her my picture, saying that because of me, foreign ownership of local real estate may soon be restricted, so she should sign up with him now so she could get a high cash payment from his wealthy overseas buyers.

Earlier, in May, I rated a men-tion in Bob Rennie’s annual talk to the Urban Development Institute, who said my comments about the influence of foreign investors in local housing affordability may contain more speculation than those I accuse of speculating.

You have to take out the top 20% of the market to get a clear picture, Rennie said. The average sale price of the remaining 80% is only $313,500, he said, concluding, “Vancouver is definitely not worthy of a ‘least af-fordable title.’”

To which one online commen-tator said: “Yeah, if you take out the 20% of the people with drug issues in Vancouver, the city is definitely not the drug capital of Canada.”

Besides, said Rennie, we can prove there are only a small number of for-eign buyers because there are a min-uscule number of buyers whose prop-erty tax documents are sent to a for-eign address. And this proves some-thing?

The Urban Futures Institute, clinging desperately to “proven data” from census figures, shrugged off the whole affordability issue by conclud-ing that the average homeowner in Vancouver spends only 18% of his or her household income on housing costs, so “there is no empirical basis on which to say that B.C. currently suffers from widespread owner-occu-pied housing affordability problems.”

That average homeowner, of course, includes people who have long since paid off their homes, which blithely ignores the load on struggling entry-level homebuyers.

Remember, this all started with a January 2011 Demographia Inter-national housing affordability sur-vey that showed for the third quarter of 2010, the city had a median house price of $602,000 and a median household income of $63,100, mak-ing us the third most unaffordable city of 325 surveyed, outranked only by Hong Kong and Sydney. Our ratio of house prices to income was 9.5, with 5.1 being considered “severely unaffordable.”

Royal LePage seemed to agree, with its latest study showing “the average price of detached bungalows and standard two-storey homes both over $1 million and double-digit year-over-year gains, [even] though the

average price for a standard condo-minium saw a very modest increase of 2.5 per cent … as investment from outside of the country continues to support higher price levels.”

They’re missing the point, counter the deniers.

CIBC’s chief economist repeated Rennie’s theme but with wildly differ-ent numbers, saying 80% of the mar-ket is “normally functioning, consist-ent with income,” based on an aver-age sale price of the bottom 80% of “just over $590,000” compared with Rennie’s $313,000.

OK, so that puts us at a 9.4 ratio, about three times what’s considered affordable. That’s “consistent with income?”

Not to worry, it’s only out of whack because we don’t understand the dif-ference between “average” and “medi-an” and we’re not including proper-ties in Abbotsford and Mission, says Central 1 Credit Union economist Brian Yu, pegging the entire Fraser Valley and Metro Vancouver aver-age house price at $738,000, 11% below the number cited by the Greater Van-couver Real Estate Board, a body I would have thought knew something about calculating housing prices. OK, let’s go with $738,000.

That makes the price-to-income ratio a crazy 11.7 to 1.

All of this is to say that Greater Vancouver needs a sober assessment of the impact and source of wildly unaffordable housing prices, and real estate industry people should not be leading it.

Peter Ladner ([email protected]) is a founder of Business in Vancouver and a former Vancouver city council-lor. His book, The Urban Food Revo-lution: Changing the Way We Feed Cities, will be published by New Soci-ety in October 2011.

That puts us at a 9.4 ratio,

about three times what’s

considered affordable

At LArge

PETEr LAdnErObjective assessment of city’s housing price impact needed

Letters

Consumption taxes like the HST are fairer for everyoneRe: “Why I’m voting against the HST: the harmonized tax fails the fairness test” (Seth Klein Podium column – issue 1129; July 14-20)

Seth Klein writes “… such that upper-income households have seen a much larger drop in their taxes … .” He admits that the HST is a consumption tax. obviously, the rich are going to spend more and thus will pay more taxes than before, and they will pay more taxes than low-income groups, who will also get HST credits.

Income taxes are really a tax on low-income individuals who are trying to save and prosper. upper-income individuals can afford to pay income taxes. Consumption taxes are fairer for everyone.

William Clarke, Vancouver

Restaurant VP credits HST with helping pub open new location The harmonized sales tax (HST) has helped us expand our operations and open a new restaurant in Vancouver. The HST is creating between 40 and 60 new jobs at our new location alone. It’s also helping to protect the jobs of our employees and keep our prices in line for our customers. We are paying less tax and that means we can use those savings to reinvest.

Vote “No” to keep the HST. Mark Reid,

vice-president at Ceili’s Irish pub and restaurant, Vancouver

On the right road to solar power solutions in North AmericaIf there is an award for thinking outside the box then the folks who came up with the idea of converting asphalt road surfaces into clean, solar-energy generators definitely deserve the prize.

They’ve made a very imaginative connection between the need for clean, green energy and the miles of paved asphalt road surfaces all around us that absorb sunlight day in and day out.

According to the people who came up with the solar road idea, there are 25,000 square miles of parking lots, driveways and road surfaces in the lower 48 united States alone.

And if those 25,000 square miles of road surface were covered with solar panels (at a mere 15% efficiency) it would produce three times more elec-tricity than the united States uses annually, or almost enough to power the whole world.

Such an ambitious undertaking would obviously be expensive, but the technology already exists to make it happen: it just needs to be used in new ways.

For example, glass can apparently be made as strong as steel and could be adapted for use as a road material, which would allow solar panels embedded underneath to absorb sunlight.

The solar road idea may sound a bit out there, but when you consider the pressing need the world has for finding new sources of clean, green energy, thinking that comes from outside the box is what it’s going to take to get us there and allow us to leave a cleaner, greener world for our grandchildren.

And when you look at the ever-increasing price of non-renewable petrol-eum (which is needed to make asphalt), solar roads and highways may ultim-ately prove to be one of the less expensive options for creating the greener world we want for future generations.

Trudy Gordon, Burnaby

Daily business news at www.biv.com July 19–25, 201128 Comment

City Business

Gordon Price Calculating the cost of cultivating sports culture

Where does “riot con-trol” fit in when you’re

budgeting for the arts?Culture, says Tourism

Vancouver, should be the priority for the next decade if Vancouver is to become a truly “world-class” city. Cul-ture is what gives us a global brand that will keep people coming here, and staying around longer, spending more money when they do.

And because a city has to express its character in an entertaining way – since that’s really what culture is about as an economic ac-tivity – how much should civic government spend to cultivate a thriving cultural scene?

Civic-owned institutions like the art gallery, check. Grants for the major arts organizations and dozens of small companies, check. Public art, check. Policing and engineering services …um, not really.

For those services, the city bills out on a cost-re-covery basis. Even non-prof-

it events like the jazz festi-val have to cover the costs incurred, from policing to engineering, plus adminis-tration.

Yes, they get grants, but they’re still expected to put up a big chunk of change. If they can’t, they may not survive.

So two questions: is sport culture? And should it pay its way?

No doubt sport is a cul-tural expression – nota-bly when the brand of the winning hockey team is in-separable from the identity of the city for months at a time. “We are all Canucks” is meant to be taken literally.

But should Big Sport pay for the costs incurred by its success? Specifically, are pro-fessional sports in the same category as, say, the fire-works festival?

Apparently not. While the Canucks and Lions may be profit-making entities, when it comes to the costs of handling the consequences of their success, Vancouver

taxpayers pay. Yes, the Canucks are billed

for street closures around their stadium, but when it comes to closing Georgia Street for live sites and hand-ling the traffic everywhere else in the city, city hall eats it. Hell, the Canucks didn’t expect to pay for the victory parade in the event they won the Stanley Cup.

Though the money spent on jerseys alone was likely greater than the ticket re-ceipts of every arts com-pany in town, the Canucks were not expected to divert a nickel to the city’s coffers. Nor does the city get any sales tax from the economic benefits that shower down on every bar and restaurant and cheerleading media out-let.

Property taxes don’t go up in the event the Stanley Cup comes to town; the team gets the silver and the civic taxpayers get the bill.

No one minded the pub-lic expenses, of course – least of all the politicians, may-

Should Big Sport pay

for the costs incurred

by its success?

or and councillors of every party, who donned the jer-seys and didn’t question the expenditures, except to ask the province to chip in. (An-swer: no way.)

When the team is win-ning and the sports jocks are amplifying the tribal spirit, no one in leadership wants to be called out for reinfor-

cing the image of “No Fun Vancouver” – just possibly the most intimidating meme ever used to suppress com-mon sense.

Who would have dared, in the heat of the playoffs, to have put out a public an-nouncement: don’t come downtown. No more street parties. Turn off the TV screens.

Until, of course, three hours after Game 7.

So what now for the fu-ture management of the playoffs? Will the public shaming by Facebook pre-vent another e-riot?

Or do we give the police chief a blank cheque, be-cause we can’t afford the risk of burning cars and smash-ing glass?

Let’s assume Tourism Vancouver is right: culture means world-class status – and accept that sports means culture. Then where should the money come from to foster and promote a world-class cultural scene if Big Sport doesn’t pay, but every-one else does?

Do we divert resources that might go to fund the non-profit arts sector, which pays around minimum wage, to cover the ancillary costs for an organization in which every principal is a millionaire?

Doesn’t seem quite fair, does it?

But the city can’t really

send the Canucks a bill for policing off-site events, can’t stop the media cheerleading, couldn’t prevent people from coming downtown to drink and celebrate and won’t like-ly get anyone else – region or province – to contribute. Nonetheless, the leadership – whoever is in power – would certainly have to pay the pol-itical price for another riot.

If Doug Keefe and John Furlong want to be really helpful in their investigation, they will tell us not just who was responsible for the last riot but who should pay to prevent the next one. •

Gordon Price ([email protected]) is the director of Simon Fraser University’s city program and a former Van-couver city councillor. His column appears monthly.

July 19–25, 2011 Business in Vancouver 29comment

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You rarely use the sales tips you’re given, even though

they’re obvious and may be better than the way you’re selling. Reason? You’re com-fortable with moderate success and don’t want to chance los-ing what you have.

The classic example is my tip: cold calling is a waste of time. You’re calling on people you don’t know, interrupting their day, manipulating your way in and, if you get through to an actual decision-maker, odds are you’ll say the wrong thing anyway.

“If I could just have a few minutes of your time, I can save you some money.”

Pathetic.First: real leaders don’t

want to save money, they want to make a profit. Second: re-jection 98 out of 100 times is depressing, demoralizing, de-grading and giving you a bad rap as a rep.

Remedy: earn and gener-ate referrals. It’s a much high-er-percentage sale, much more respected in its approach and more likely to breed a relation-ship – and another referral.

Note well: cold calls do work, just not that well. Two or three out of 100. Referrals work 50 out of a 100. Hello!

Seems obvious to me, yet cold calls persist.

So let me give you a few more pieces of sales gold.

See which ones you can cash in on.

Sales tip: Never call on pur-chasing or procurement. Only talk to people who tell pur-chasing what to do. Thousands of salespeople start with some-one in purchasing because it’s the easiest point of entry. All purchasing people want to do is cut costs and reduce vend-or profits in the process. Hint: CEOs tell purchasing agents what to do. Convince the big boss of your value, and the

little boss in purchasing will follow his orders like a puppy.

Sales tip: Always leave a message. When salespeople ask me, “Should I leave a mes-sage?” the answer is always the same. “Yes!”

The main reason sales-people do not leave a message is fear that they will not get the call returned and/or that they have nothing of value to say. The reason they have nothing of value to say is that they are completely unprepared to en-gage the customer with any-thing of value. The reason that they’re unprepared is that they are unwilling to invest the time it takes to get ready.

Sales tip: Ask for the sale every time. Salespeople go through their presenta-tion and the customer says, “Sounds great. Can you send me a proposal?” Salesperson says, “Yes,” and leaves with-out asking for the sale. Hap-pens every time. Salespeople should walk in with a propos-al. Salespeople should ask, “If the proposal is exactly what we discussed today, will you accept it?” And finally if you, the salesperson, do leave say-ing OK to the proposal, never leave without a firm appoint-ment for presenting the pro-posal in person and finalizing the deal.

Sales tip: Start your pres-entation with engaging, emo-tional questions, not a bunch of self-serving crap about you and your product. It’s likely your customer already has a pretty decent working know-ledge about your product and your company. Your goal is not

to educate. Your goal is to en-gage. And this is most easi-ly done by asking emotional-based questions.

One that I always ask is, “Where did you grow up?” This is a very emotional ques-tion. It immediately brings back thoughts of early child-hood, siblings, parents and hometowns. Oftentimes it’s different from the town you’re making a presentation in. Oftentimes it will reveal com-monalities and similar inter-ests. That one simple question will guide you to a beginning point of a relationship and can easily be segued into brief cus-tomer history. (How did you get from there to here?)

Add questions like “What made you choose this career?” or “Why did you choose to get involved in this business?” If you feel comfortable enough to ask deeper questions like “What are you most proud of?” or “How did that event impact your success?” you can develop solid rapport. Taking an interest in the other person is key to them taking an inter-est in you.

Sales tip: Friendly beats professional every time. It’s al-ways interesting to me to see the word professional when referring to salespeople or sales training. Maybe it’s just me, but I’d rather deal with a friendly person than a profes-sional person, because while I can get along with a friendly person, I can’t always get along with a professional person. And I want to like the people that I do business with. There’s a subtlety. You can act profes-sionally, but when you speak, it should always be in a friend-ly manner. Be conversational rather than contrived – to me friendly is conversational. Pro-fessional is contrived.

There’s a few tips you can use. Will you use them? You decide. •

Jeffrey Gitomer ([email protected]) is the author of The Little Red Book of Selling and The Little Red Book of Sales Answers.

Real leaders don’t want

to save money, they

want to make a profit

SaleS MoveS

Jeffrey GitomerHey, have I got a sales tip for you

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Do

min

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ae

fe

r

Lesley StoweBy Jennifer Harrison

Mission: To duplicate

her Raincoast Crisps

success with a new

product scheduled to

launch this fall

Assets: A foundation

in French cuisine and a

fiercely loyal following

Yield: A pioneer and

leader in the crisp bread

product market with over

$10 million in revenue

last year and a product

that has been served in

the White House

Since revamping her high school’s Grade 12 home economics pro-

gram to include lessons in international cuisine, Lesley Stowe has been a trail-blazer in Vancouver’s food scene, work-ing to educate people on eating well and appreciating good food.

And success has followed every step of the way from starting her own catering business and amassing a loyal following to opening her eponymous gourmet foods shop and, in the last six years, scoring a hit in the food retail world with her Raincoast Crisps.

Stowe always had a keen interest in food – she started reading cookbooks when she was 10 and catered a black-tie dinner party for her parents at the age of 12 – but she never thought she was going to pursue a career in food.

However, when planning a back-packing trip through Europe after her third year at the University of British Columbia, where she studied art his-tory, her mother suggested she stop in for a day at a family friend’s cooking school, La Varenne, while in Paris.

After spending one day at the school, Stowe was hooked.

She graduated university and re-turned to Paris the following year to work as a stagiere at La Varenne, where her culinary skills and passion for food were reignited with visits to the mar-kets and private night classes with mas-ter chefs.

At 22, Stowe returned to Vancouver to teach cooking classes at a small shop in Kitsilano, but after a year was offered an opportunity to run the Salt Box, an established kitchen and catering shop, also on Vancouver’s Westside.

When the owners decided to sell the business, Stowe leveraged the Salt Box’s clientele and began her own catering business.

She worked out of her apartment and her mother’s house before ending up in a space on Commercial Drive.

On a trip to Toronto she recalls see-ing companies servicing restaurants that didn’t have their own pastry chefs and correctly figured that Vancouver needed something similar.

The restaurant clientele for her des-sert confections included the English Bay Café, Bishop’s and the Raintree Restaurant. For Bishop’s, Stowe created the famous Death by Chocolate, which quickly became a local hit.

In 1991, with the lease on her catering space up and seeing a need in the city for a gourmet specialty food store, she opened Lesley Stowe Fine Foods Ltd.

Inspired by stores she had seen else-where, like New York’s Dean and De-luca, Stowe determined to focus on sell-

ing high-quality prepared foods from around the world, including oils and vinegars and coffee and cheese, pre-serves and chutneys and mustards.

“A big part of it was educating the public on why they should spend this amount of money on a bottle of olive oil,” said Stowe.

The store built up a fiercely loyal fol-lowing. But it was a tough business.

“With just one shop and everything being custom-made and from scratch the margins were really small. I don’t think people appreciated that.”

In 1997, Stowe went to a Fancy Food Show in New York and saw bagel chips being widely used for condiments, dips and more.

“We used to make this thing called graham bread for smoked salmon, and we sold it in the store. I thought, why don’t we take that and dry it out? We were using them for parties and put-ting the extra in the stores, and they were gone. We couldn’t make it fast enough.”

After successfully testing the retail market with her Raincoast Crisps at a few local shops and a store in Calgary, Stowe decided she was ready to make the leap from the retail storefront and catering business into manufacturing crisps full time.

In 2005, the business moved into a 10,000-square-foot space a couple of blocks from the old store and started

production. Stowe had created a name and a

brand, and now was her opportunity to leverage it.

Soon Raincoast Crisps were in Whole Foods and Choices, and Stowe was getting requests from stores in On-tario to carry her product.

A host of copycats have followed with their own version of crisps, includ-ing an offering from Terra Breads.

Stowe is philosophical about the new competitors, noting that recipes can’t be patented or trademarked.

“[So] you always have to worry about competition, but better to have competitors that copy the product but not as well. ”

With her name on the product, Stowe says her top concern is quality.

Rhonda Pedersen, vice-president, customer services at Pedersen Event Rentals, has known and worked with Stowe for 20 years.

“She is all class, with a strong work ethic and tremendous commitment [to all her endeavours]. You would walk into the back of her store and there she was in her apron, working the big job. She handled everything person-ally. Her name was on the building, but you knew her name was all over the food you were eating as well. Her heart was in it.”

Six years and six flavours in, Rain-coast Crisps are now available through-

out the U.S., first launched through a one-year exclusive deal with Whole Foods and now with West Coast dis-tribution through a Sacramento out-fit. And with interest from stores in Europe, Asia, and even Dubai, the opportunity to take Raincoast Crisps international beckons.

But for now, Stowe is focused on building the business from home. She said initial growth of 75% in the first year and 50% in the second has lev-elled off at around 15% annually.

Stowe’s company moved from its original facility to a 20,000-square-foot space in Richmond a year and a half ago. It now employs 60 people. On an average day, they produce 6,000 boxes of Raincoast Crisps. The company is working on another fla-vour and a new product launch under the Lesley Stowe name.

Although she remains mum on what the new product might be, Stowe admitted that venturing into new arenas makes her nervous.

“I want it to be really successful. But when you’re making something on a large scale, there are so many factors involved. We can’t do it small scale. It’s a risk and financial invest-ment, because you need to buy other equipment, and it’s not even out there yet and you’ve already put yourself out.” •[email protected]

Crisp operationsAfter 14 years of running a successful gourmet shop and

catering business, Lesley Stowe hit the jackpot again with a new

brand of crisp bread snacks that has spawned a slew of copycats

Lesley Stowe, founder of Lesley Stowe Fine Foods: “[so] you always have to worry about competition, but better to have competitors that copy the product but not as well”

July 19–25, 2011 Business in Vancouver 31Profile

DiD you miss these recent eDitorial profiles?

Check them out at

www.biv.com/profiles

Ken SpencerRetired Creo co-founder now helping build B.C.’s high-tech sectorIssue: July 12

Mark KeserichLongshore union boss aim-ing to market port’s labour reliability to Asian shippersIssue: June 28

Lara KozanYYoga co-founder helping to secure company’s positive revenue positionsIssue: July 5

Daily business news at www.biv.com Business in Vancouver July 19–25, 201132

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business in vancouver 2011-07-19

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