10 Castlegar News Update ‘91 y “ o oad 7 Sometimes a small business needs a silent partner We're not as silent as all that, In fact, | capital but’we also feature a host of at the Federal Business Develop- , invaluable ¢ ling, planning and ment Bank, we have a great deal to management training services. The say about how we can help you Federal Business Development start or grow your own business. Bank. We're a good business part- We not only offer you loans and venture | ner every step of the way. FEDERAL BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT BANK 30-11th Avenue South Cranbrook, B.C. VIC 2P1 Telephone: 426-7241 MIKE WILSON — BRANCH MANAGER COMMITTED TO YOUR SUCCESS services dane les deux langues officielles. é Federal Business Bank Banque fedérale = necegmmmmun Canada je The staff of Bank of Montreal in Castlegar. The Bank of Montreal is your full service bank with deposit services, personal lending, mortgages and commercial services. When you think of quality and friendly service think “Bank of Montreal!” HOURS OF SERVICE MONDAY-THURSDAY jaa Bank of Montreal 420 Columbia Ave., Cast! © 365-8133 10.4.m.-3 p.m. les ® INDUSTRIAL EQUIPMENT IE Ce) DUSTRiAL— EQUIPMENT CO. Ltn. Specializing Igo BEARINGS HYDRAULICS LUBRICATION POWER TRANSMISSION MATERIALS HANDLING 2243-6th Avenue, Castlegar 365-7767 CALL YOUR NEAREST BRANCH OFFICE IN B.C. AND ALBERTA CALGARY __ (403) 243-2524 (604) 485-9781 FORT MAMURRAY __ (403) 791-1880 WILLIAMS LAKE _ (604) 392-2388 Leyla Szabo (left) of Top Notch Person: A i both of V: The was nel and Harriet Lemer of Einblau and Issues at the Business Success for inc Business Development Bank. d by the Federal FBDB services guide businesses to success Access to affordable services is leading to more success stories for small- and medium-sized business ac- cording to CASE counsellor Carl Linden of Creston. Linden, one of more than 1,100 experienced CASE counsellors located across Canada, said en- trepreneurs have always needed professional advice but it was unaf- fordable or unavailable. “Now, there are programs and counselling services available which are affordable,"” he said. ‘‘From start up to total development it's there.’” Linden, who says he ‘‘sort of retired but never really retired’’ from business, has assisted several hun- dred clients in the East and West Kootenays through the CASE program. CASE is a unique counselling ser- vice offered exclusively to small- and medium-sized businesses by the Federal Business Development Bank, a Crown corporation which promotes the creation and develop- ment of businesses in Canada. In one of its latest surveys, 40 per cent of the respondents reported that CASE counselling had helped them show an increase in sales, and 38 per cent noted that their profits were higher. In addition to CASE training and planning, the FBDB provides term loans and loan guarantees and ven- ture capital. The Cranbrook branch, which services the West and East Kootenays, is one of 77 branches in Canada. Barbara Peabody, the FBDB’s manager of training and counselling at the Cranbrook branch, said one of the recent successful projects has been the free business counselling sessions in the West Kootenay. The session was conducted by CASE counsellors for the provincial Ministry of Regional and Economic Development pilot project. A measure of the success of this project was the 425 appointments which Linden had scheduled with him alone for the free counselling sessions in the West Kootenay region. Peabody noted that the FBDB is also involved in workshops and seminars, for small businesses. A seminar, Bookkeeping Made Easy, is scheduled for Castlegar on April 15 and 16. The Business Success for Women Conference, which explored business ownership and personal develop- ment, was held in Castlegar this month. A combination of workshops and speakers provided the oppor- tunity for women entrepreneurs to spend a full day on topics designed to develop their individual potential. This conference was sponsored by the provincial ministers of gover- nment management services and regional and economic development, and the FBDB. A number of home-based business workshops, conducted in co- operation with chambers of commer- ce, have also been undertaken. Through its loans and venture capital division, the FBDB provides flexible financing to small- and di ized i Mike Wilson, Cranbrook branch manager, said that as a lender the FBDB is eligible for guaranteed loans under the provincial government’s small business assistance’ program and. Business Expansion program. The B.C. government may provide a guarantee to a maximum of 85 per cent of the loan for eligible businesses. Wilson said that branch personnel make regular visits to the West Kootenay on a monthly basis. The visits are advertised in the local newspapers. : The bank’s varied counselling and training services help entrepreneurs cope with the increasing complexity of the business environment, Wilson said. He noted that FBDB training ser- vices are evolving to meet the changing needs of today’s en- trepreneurs. They include full- and half-day seminars, as well as Com- munity Business Initiatives, the latest program designed by the bank. Designed to help owner-managers of small enterprises to help them- selves succeed and prosper, the CBI program is underway in several cen- tres in British Columbia. One of the most recent was started to assist en- trepreneurs in Fernie, Sparwood and Elkford. Through its various services the FBDB recognizes that as businesses Prosper, jobs will be created and maintained. As a result, local economies grow and new em- to help them start or expand. PPO! ities are opened up. KREDA aids intiatives The Kootenay Regional Em- D Be (KREDA) is a non-profit society, which operates a Business Develop- ment Centre under the umbrella of the Central Kootenay Community Futures Committee. The BDC, located at 540 Baker Street in Nelson, offers the business com- munity and residents of the Central Kootenay region access to business counselling, term lending, business training and the Self Employment Incentive program. Business counselling is available to the existing business community as well as area residents who may wish to establish themselves in a business in the region. In addition, KREDA acts as a referral service to other private and government counselling programs. KREDA’s loan program is designed to supplement the existing term lending functions of the char- tered banks and government lending agencies. Business loans of up to $75,000 per client may be authorized to assist with the purchase of fixed assets; provision of long-term working capital and/or changes of ownership. Applicants must be able to demonstrate the creation of ad- ditional employment positions as a result of their proposal. Profit Training for Small Business includes a series of five training modules designed to expand the business skills of entrepreneurs who have been in business for one to two years. Offered wn weekends, the course covers financial management, marketing, customer service and supervisory management. In ad- dition to that course, im- mersion program is for people with no prior business ex- perience who plan to enter the business community. KREDA also administers the Self and Immigration Canada. SEI is a wage replacement program . for people on unemiployment insurance or social assistance who would like to start a business venture. The Program offers participants $200 per week for one year to offset their per- sonal expenses while they are establishing their business. Since its inception in 1985, KREDA has approved investments in excess of $1.8 million and assisted in the creation of 387 jobs in the Cen- tral Kootenay region. In addition, the SEI program has created an ad- ditional 292 jobs in the region. The key to the success of a program of this nature is the in- volvement of the various com- munities in the region both finan- cially and providing direction for future growth. KREDA is committed to regional economic growth and will continue to act as a catalyst in em- (SED program on behalf of Employment in the Central Kootenay. Castlegar was the first branch to be opened, in 1965, specifically to service the pulp, lumber and mining industry in- the K Branches at Industrial Equipment Co. shares local pride Today, IECO has 18 branches in B.C. and Alberta. Cranbrook, Prince George, Nanaimo and River followed shortly thereafter. Industrial Equipment Co. Ltd. of Vancouver was formed in 1952 with a focus on being a stocking distributor operating in close proximity to a manufacturer. log kickers and hydraulic power units. for Westar Timber, SM Cyclo reducer drives for ft Schneider’s says its reputation is building Schneider's Building Supplies, located at the Waneta Junction in Trail, has long prided itself on its friendly, knowledgeable staff and its conscientious service to customers. In fact, they brag, ‘Our reputation is building.” Owner Greg Schneider has always emphasized such values as ‘‘customer satisfaction,"’ ‘‘wide selection" and “conscientious service."’ They put these ideas into actual practice at Schneider's. This adherence to a customer- oriented business philosophy was recognized both in 1988 and again in 1989 when Schneider’s was presented with the Store of the Year Award for Friendly Staff and Atmosphere by the Building Supply Dealers Association of B.C. Typically modest, Schneider credits his employees with being “the real winners of the award.’’ “‘Schneider’s won the award because of our staff's friendly and competent level of service to customers,"’ Schneider says. Sales representatives get a feeling for a store and its staff when they call on one regularly. Obviously they got the right feeling when they called at Schneider's. The building sup- plier’s name was submitted to the annual contest for Store of the Year and the good feeling continued when it came down to the vote. On the plaque that Schneider’s received it says: will h, of hecks out a ‘8 d order on a rs isting the firm's huge inventory. “To the retail store whose. em- ployees exhibit the most friendly at- mosphere and service to their customers and for their support of and ticipation in their com- Customers and friends are very pleased when they visit the store and see the awards in the outer office. 38,000-square-foot Quadra Manufac- turing building to be used as a storage area. Schneider's had good use for the larger warehouse, the largest in the Kootenays. The previous year it joined the Tim-Br-Mart group of independent building supply stores. The began i of the building supply store in 1962 and opened for business in “September 1963. He later expanded the original building still situated at Waneta Jun- ction, In 1977, Schneider’s purchased the gave jider’s access to a larger selection of products and offered its members over-all savings from quantity buying. Because Schneider’s planned to fully stock products for~ their please see SCHNEIDER'S page 14 West K Concrete gets set for future growth West K Concrete Ltd. mixed its first batch of concrete in 1984, and has been growing steadily since. Now, the company is still selling quality, ready-mixed concrete and various types of gravel products, but keeps adding to its operations to make West K bigger and better. This past year saw the addition of a new 644E John Deere loader to the crushing operation and plans for next year include more upgrading to the crushing operation. Owner-manager Michael O’Con- nor says other plans for West K in- clude improvements to the screening and washing system with the addition of a new El-Russ Triple deck wash plant, plus the construction of a new fresh-water washing pond. But what makes West K really suc- cessful is its employees, O’Connor says. He keeps all his staff up to date on advancements made in concrete and related products, enabling them to serve West K customers with the best products. and knowledge available. West K employees take pride in what they do and really care about their customers, O’Connor says. “All our employees are our stars,”” he said. ‘‘Each person brings his in- dividual qualities to the firm."" West K stands behind its motto: Top quality service and products, especially when it comes to com- petition. **We have no quarrel with those who sell for less —- they know what their product is worth,’’ O'Connor says. COMMUTES throughout BC to creat a climate for growl @ Small Business Assistance Program @ Business Expansion Program @ Equity Capital Program @ Employee Investment Program @ Investment Matching Program Our programs have been designed with the assistance of local business people to see you through the current challenge of tough economic times. "We're working with Creating a Climate or Growth @ Business Start Up Program 1-800-663-7824 Honourable Bud Smith, Q.C. Minister Z ional and Economic me Development Whether you're starting a business, or exploring expansion options, the Ministry of Regional and Economic Development can help. Best of all, the information is available in your own community! 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