How two world-class golf courses helped resuscitate a tiny Nova Scotia town s economy

Transcription

1 Shot in the arm How two world-class golf courses helped resuscitate a tiny Nova Scotia town s economy Business success stories can be hard to come by on Cape Breton Island. But the Cabot Links and Cabot Cliffs golf courses fit that description. The two 18-hole courses (Cabot Links opened in 2012 while Cabot Cliffs debuted in 2016) have turned the community of Inverness from a ghost town into something of a boom town as golfers flock to courses that have been ranked among the top 100 in the world by several golf publications. It s definitely changed the whole atmosphere in Inverness, says Paul Smith, a local realtor. The town as a whole is much more upbeat. Two new stores are opening on main street right now. When I first came to Inverness it seemed something was always closing. The success has led to steady construction on the Cabot properties and a large uptick in employment at the courses. Cabot Links general manager Andrew Alkenbrack says when Cabot Links opened there were 24 rooms on the property. Now there are 72, as well Andrew Alkenbrack as 19 villas (five new ones opened in June.) He says general manager management is now deciding what accommodations to Cabot Links build on the Cabot Cliffs property. The two courses have also become major employers in the area. Alkenbrack says Cabot Links started with just 12 employees. This season between will work at the two courses, including 50 who work and live in Inverness year-round. That s significant in a town with just 1,300 residents. Alkenbrack is hoping to see close to 40,000 rounds of golf shot during the 2017 season, which lasts from May until late October. As the legend of the two courses grows, that goal seems well within reach. In the early days people were convinced nobody was going to come here, Alkenbrack says. But we re doing at least a few things right. In the early days people were convinced nobody was going to come here. But we re doing at least a few things right. GROWING PAINS The popularity of Cabot Links and Cabot Cliffs has presented management with at least one thorny problem. As employment has grown at the two courses, finding housing for staff, many of whom don t live in Inverness year-round, has become an immense challenge. They ve got over 300 employees there now and they ve got to stay somewhere, says Paul Smith, an Inverness real estate agent. People get a six-month job at Cabot and call me all the time about rentals. There is a big shortage of housing here. Sometimes potential employees can t find a place to stay. While we expanded our staff housing, we are approximately beds short and lost some great people due to not being able to guarantee accommodations, says Cabot Links general manager Andrew Alkenbrack. Cabot Links has had to get creative to find more staff housing, including taking on some leases in Inverness and starting an employee billeting program with people in the community. However, Alkenbrack knows this issue isn t going away as the two-course complex gains a reputation as a must-golf destination. While we are set for this year, barely, we will need a better plan of attack as we will no doubt have the same issue next year, he says. ABM V28N indd 11 11

2 Losing their cool Government scuttles iceberg water-use fee after it ruffles feathers among impacted small businesses Danny n Bath was mad as hell and he wasn t going to take it anymore. So when the Newfoundland and Labrador government introduced a $5,000 annual fee for businesses that use iceberg water in October of 2016, the general manager and part owner of the Auk Island Winery in Twillingate fought the increase. In May, he learned his efforts had paid off. The government agreed to eliminate the annual fee for businesses if they use less than 5,000 cubic metres of iceberg water. Maybe $5,000 isn t everything to a business, but I thought it was a little bit much, Bath says. The issue is unique to Newfoundland and Labrador. Every year thousands of icebergs break off from glaciers in Greenland and then they drift south through Iceberg Alley, an ocean corridor that runs from Greenland to the northeast coast of the island of Newfoundland. Over the years, a small group of businesses have tried to profit from these icebergs by either harvesting them or making products from the water, which is prized for its purity. Auk Island is one of these businesses. It uses the water to produce a line of iceberg wines. However, if the annual fee had remained in place, Bath vowed to stop making iceberg wine. He says it would have also negatively impacted other small businesses that use the water. The Department of Municipal Affairs and Environment says it decided to reverse course on charging the annual water use fee to support small businesses that may have been negatively impacted by the increase. Bath is pleased that it did. He says it also opens up opportunities to increase production and explore new markets for his iceberg wines. We currently produce 1,200 cases of iceberg wine. We d like to get that to 30,000-40,000 cases a year, he says. Because of this change we ll be pursuing those export opportunities. BUSINESSES THAT TURN ICEBERG PROFITS A handful of businesses in Newfoundland and Labrador have made use of a unique resource, iceberg water, to craft products that you won t find anywhere else in Canada. Here are three of them. East Coast Glow This Bonavista-based business owned by Roger and Karen Dewling a husband and wife team make soap and skin creams from the glacial water collected from melted chunks of icebergs. Iceberg Vodka The company unleashed its Iceberg Vodka on the world in But over the years it s added to its spirits line, also making rum and gin from iceberg water. Quidi Vidi Brewery This St. John s company sells its Iceberg premium beer in a distinctive blue bottle. According to its website, the beer is brewed with 25,000 year-old iceberg water harvested from Newfoundland s aweinspiring icebergs. 12 Atlantic Business Magazine July/August 2017

3 Room for improvement Will proposed changes to ferry service be a boon to eastern P.E.I. s businesses? A federal government commitment to examine how the ferry service operates in P.E.I. has the island s business community in the eastern part of the province breathing easier. In May, Ottawa announced it was looking at having the ferry operators own the vessels and sign long-term service contracts for the routes. The new system would also require ferry operators to acquire newer vessels to service those routes. Currently the federal government owns the ferries and leases them to operators. Northumberland Ferries Limited is the current operator. The system has bothered the business community in eastern P.E.I. for some time. The ferry service that runs from Woods Island, P.E.I. to Caribou, Nova Scotia is vital to its tourism industry in particular, and businesses in general. There have been complaints for a long time in the area about how the service has been operated, says Jay Adamsson, owner of AOR Web Solutions in St. Peter s Bay and a board member of the Eastern PEI Chamber of Commerce. The complaints grew louder during the summer of 2016 when one of the two aging ferries servicing the Wood Islands-Caribou route, the MV Holiday, was in dry dock for repairs most of the season. That left only the MV Confederation to take passengers on that route. Adamsson says not only is the region s tourism industry largely dependent on the ferry, but so are other sectors like transportation, shipping and forestry. If the new system is implemented, how will it help eastern P.E.I. s business community? Newer ferries will improve the reliability of the service, and with operators entering long-term contracts, the region will know the ferries are here for the long haul. There s never been any sort of security around the service, Adamsson says. Ever since the Confederation Bridge was built in 1997, there s been a fear it would be used as an excuse to end the ferry service. Ever since the Confederation Bridge was built in 1997, there s been a fear it would be used as an excuse to end the ferry service. Jay Adamsson, owner AOR Web Solutions ABM V28N indd 13 13

4 Suiting up Startup looks to right-size clothing for women in the trades Norman s business idea came from her experience working in the trades. In 2013 she became a power engineer, but noticed the clothing women had to wear on the job didn t fit her. Strong enough for a man, but made for a woman. That classic slogan for the Secret deodorant brand also applies to a clothing line St. John s entrepreneur Tenai Norman has launched. Norman s startup is called Gear Up Safety Solutions Inc. and it sells protective clothing for women working in the trades. Norman s business idea came from her experience working in the trades. In 2013 she became a power engineer, but noticed the clothing women had to wear on the job didn t fit her. It was so bulky and heavy that when you are trying to work, it s not comfortable at all, Norn says. I felt it was time for women to have something to wear. With women making up just eight to 13 per cent of tradespeople in Canada, Norman is catering to a niche market. But she says that market is growing as more women enter the trades every year. Gear Up Safety Solutions clothing line features coveralls, jackets, pants, gloves, hoodies and more. Norman has no plans to open a store yet. For the time being, the clothing will be sold online. The biggest challenge any new business faces is getting customers, and Norman s business is no different. She will have to convince large companies that work in heavy industrial sectors and employ lots of tradespeople to use her clothing. To gain that exposure, she had a fashion show in St. John s in May to unveil the clothing line. Norman estimates between people were there. Will her idea catch on? Norman says it is early days in her venture, but she s hopeful. I m getting calls every day and large oil and gas companies have been showing interest, she says. ExxonMobil came to the fashion show and so did AcklandsGrainger. So far, so good. Always in Vogue is synonymous with quality, luxury and outstanding service and the number one retailer for sealskin products in Canada and the longest-existing manufacturer of seal products in the world, constantly revolutionizing the material and pushing the boundaries of fashion. Every product is made carefully, meticulously and every piece is crafted mostly by hand. Quality, luxury and outstanding service, we are the number one retailer for sealskin and fur products in Canada. 167 Water Street St. John s, N.L. Canada voguefurriers@nl.rogers.com alwaysinvogue.ca 14 FOLLOW US ON Atlantic Business Magazine July/August 2017 ABM V28N indd 14

5 Waste no more Can a New Brunswick firm make money from plastic and electronic refuse? Bernard Morin (right) sees profit in plastic. That s not unusual. The owner and CEO of Thermopak Ltd, based in Shippagan, New Brunswick, is in the plastic packaging business. But now the company is investigating ways to turn plastic and electronic material that typically ends up in the province s landfills into products he can sell. It s pretty exciting. We re taking a problem you don t think is solvable and trying to come up with a solution that helps the environment, Morin says. Milk jugs are one example of plastic material Morin says Thermopak can keep out of landfills. He says most recycling facilities in the province don t recycle the jugs. But like all plastic products, they can be recycled many times. Morin says the company has been researching how it can take milk jugs and other plastic and electronic waste and turn it into material it can sell. What that might be is still being studied. But Morin says one possibility is a material that could be used at construction sites to compete with wood and metal products. The company is currently working on developing a pilot plant that could produce 1,000 tonnes per year of a composite material from plastic and electronic waste. Morin says the goal is to have the pilot plant up and running by July of If the pilot project can produce something that Thermopak thinks customers will want, Morin says it would develop a plant that could produce this material at a commercial scale. While the venture could provide the company with another revenue stream, Morin says it will benefit not just his company but the environment. I think we can entice people to recycle more because we ll buy plastics and other stuff from you, he says. Milk jugs are one example of plastic material Morin says Thermopak can keep out of landfills. He says most recycling facilities in the province don t recycle the jugs. But like all plastic products, they can be recycled many times. 40 private estate size lots FOR SALE Discover a place like no other..ca Emeraldvale Developments helps coordinate financing, foundations, water, sewer, site works and more so that your home buying journey is about celebrating the home you will love and enjoy for years to come. Settled on the beauty of South River, near Cupids and Brigus Newfoundland, Emeraldvale waterfront and river front Subdivisions is a place like no other. A breathtaking view of scenic wilderness Emeraldvale Development Corporation and Homeworks Ltd. authorized builder for Kent Homes are partnering to build your dream home for the future. It will open your eyes. Large land acreage available at discounted prices for investment purposes. For more information view Private tours can arranged. FOR MORE INFORMATION CONTACT DAVID HUTTON huttond@nf.aibn.com ABM V28N indd 15 15