SHOP LOCAL HOLIDAY EDITION
Issue 2 December 2012
SCOTIA-WHAT?
ahn-truh-pruh-nur, -noor; Fr. ahn-truh-pruh-nœr) A person who organizes and manages any enterprise, especially a business, usually with considerable initiative and risk.
(scoh-shah-pruh-nur) A Nova Scotian entrepreneur.
Š Scotia Preneur Publications 2012 www.scotiapreneur.blogspot.com www.facebook.com/scotiapreneurmagazine 1
CONTENTS
#SCOTIAPRENEUR
What’s Inside? The Lieutenant Governor 3
Independent Online Magazine scotiapreneurs@gmail.com Dartmouth Nova Scotia B2Y 3M6 Canada
What’s Happening Now? 4 Interviews! 5
Editorial Nicole Davis
5 Totally Practical Gifts 12 O OO OP PSS!! II SSttaarrtteedd aa B Buussiinneessss??
scotiapreneurs@gmail.com
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It’s DECEMBER! We have your wish list!
Number of Small Businesses by Maritime Province
NS 29,966
NB 25,421
NFLD 17,028
Photographers, Hair Stylists, DJ’s… OH MY! 5 Totally Practical Not Ridiculous At All Must Have Gifts For The Entrepreneur
PEI 5,889
In Your Life 2
DULY NOTED
be able to enjoy a society with a solid foundation for fostering entrepreneurship. Students of all ages have the responsibility to put their skills to good use and to apply the techniques they have learned if we collectively are to succeed in our objectives. One area that I visited this summer, Membertou First Nation, is a fine example of a community with a progressive vision for the future. My wife and I were delighted to join Chief Terrance Paul at the Annual PowWow in September to present the area with the Lieutenant Governor’s Community Spirit Award. The Membertou Band Council with a variety of local and outside partners work together, as one, to ensure that their community marches steadily toward a bright and prosperous future. With creative development plans and an enriched career training plan for their residents, the community was able to build new businesses and forge strong business relationships while at the same time maintaining their culture and protecting their environment through conservation and with a sustainable approach towards the utilization of their resources.
As Her Majesty’s representative in Nova Scotia, I take great pride in being able to travel throughout the province to recognize the achievements of our citizens. Many of them are small business owners and entrepreneurs who never cease to impress me with their ingenuity and creativity. The small business community is vital to our long term growth. To be able to participate in the global marketplace, we must continue to strengthen our local economy by producing competitive, dependable and imaginative products while offering innovative and useful services. Our citizens have a role to play in this ongoing venture. Nova Scotians are encouraged to expand their knowledge of what is available locally by using social media and other available resources to locate local businesses that offer home‐made and home‐grown products that suit their needs and wants. By utilizing local service providers, Nova Scotians contribute directly to the success of local companies and thereby will help to create sustainable jobs that support long term growth in both large and small cities, towns and villages. As consumers, employers and employees we have the responsibility to grow our small business base by “spreading the word” about the wonderful range of products and services that they have to offer.
Some businesses will succeed and others may not but if we do not try, we will never reach our full potential. All of us need to rise up to the challenge of strengthening our local economy by supporting our entrepreneurs and small businesses because our future depends on it.
In May I had the pleasure to meet with some of the recipients of the Junior Achievement Nova Scotia Business Hall of Fame Awards. Their numerous accomplishments remind me of something we all know very well, that businesses depend on their dedicated professional employees. We all have a responsibility to educate and train our citizens so that they will reap the benefits of a thriving economy and that they will
Brigadier‐General The Hon. J.J. Grant, CMM, ONS, CD (Ret’d) Lieutenant Governor December 2012 3
WHAT’S HAPPENING?
DECEMBER! Santa Claus is coming to town! Along with Christmas trees, house guests, and twinkly lights! Many folks are shopping local this year. Why? Because it’s awesome! Nova Scotia is one talented province. From handmade cards to handmade purses… you can get Nova Scotian gifts for your Nova Scotian friends and family. Flip through the rest of the pages to see some of the best examples of Christmas gifts this place has to offer!
The Elves Are Shopping Local!
But wait! Isn’t the world supposed to end… this month?!!! Let’s hope the Mayans just broke their chisel . . . and Christmas is still on!
Inkwell Boutique’s in house Holiday Cards. See page 11. 4
INTERVIEWS
Talent flows freely through the veins of this 22 year old photographer and film maker from Dartmouth. From the creativity and attention apparent in his videos online, to the intense stills he captures; one can see his passion of the industry. And he’s only just begun.
Steven Spielberg, Quentin Tarantino, Jason Goldwatch…
What lead you to start your own business?
Do you have a wish list of people to work with?
I've always been obsessed with classic films and vintage photo's since Nicole Davis, Kid I was a kid. I remember “The uphill battle lasts for a long time but Cudi. Donald saying to myself "I'm if you work your hardest, don't give up, and Glover, Schoolboy going to create this type believe in yourself you'll be fine.” Q, ASAP Rocky, of art someday." But I've Ellen Page, Michael always been in love with sports also, so I Cera, Rachel McAdams, JMSN & many focused more on football until I turned 20. more. When I was 20 I worked at a hospital which paid the bills, but I knew I couldn't do that What does a day-in-your-life consist of? forever, I wanted to be my own boss and do what I love. This is when I started Tyler I wake up, meditate, check my email then Simmonds Images. get breakfast. After that I send emails out, check in with the team of people I work How have your entrepreneurial motivations with; @OWLHalifax and the Tyler changed since you first started? Simmonds Images team. After that I'm editing, shooting or working on new business When I first started I wasn't very organized ideas for my company "Our Wealthy Life." and I relied on my talent to make up for it. That is just a typical day though. Now I make sure that I schedule everything the right way, surround myself by a reliable What’s @OWLHalifax? team and set deadlines. I often study other people in my field of work and get ideas. For OWL is a team of photographers, a example; Jason Goldwatch and Yarvo are screenwriter, business student, and a hip hop who I've been studying for some time now. group…we are quite new. We all work together on projects. For the next few Who inspires you? months we will be working on music videos 5
INTERVIEWS
and a short film. We will also be having events and a clothing line in Downtown Halifax in the near future. Our Wealthy Life is a company that will inspire individuals to live a life of fulfilment without being too "preachy." work hard but don't forget to have fun! Sounds awesome. Any struggles in Nova Scotia? I don't feel like I struggle much as an entrepreneur in Nova Scotia. Of course when you first start out you're going to feel discouraged at times, but I got past that. The uphill battle lasts for a long time but if you work your hardest, don't give up, and believe in yourself you'll be fine.
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Tyler’s skills are apparent in his work. Even watching his first time in front of the camera; one falls into the story of Smriti; a psychologically perplexing video that leaves you wanting to see more of this young talent. If you could offer a first-time entrepreneur only one piece of advice, what would it be? Make smart decisions and surround yourself by people who are supportive and honest. [] 6
INTERVIEWS
Master Stylist and co-owner of Cutting Edge Salon in Digby, Gaylene’s hands are rarely idle. What made you want to get into hairdressing? Being selfemployed, my clients are the ones who support me!! Without them, I wouldn't be where I am today!
I always wanted to be a hairdresser! From the time I could pick up a brush! I grew up doing everyone's hair and loved it.
What are your aspirations in this business?
What is your favorite part of your job?
To never stop learning and keep up-to-date. There are always new techniques to learn, be it cutting techniques or color techniques. Color or foil placement, it constantly changes. I've been doing hair for ten years, have my masters, and I still learn new things through continued education, hair shows, etc. The more you are willing to learn, the better you will become.
I love being able to make people feel beautiful and happy! What's the most exciting thing in your field? Being able to attend different hair shows, and see all the stage work being done. To watch famous people within our industry show their craft and learn new things in turn. Do you feel the demand for hairdressers is growing? I think hairstylists are always going to be needed! People will always need their hair cut, colored, etc.
What is your favorite hairstyle? Most challenging? I have a few favorites! For long hair, would be soft waves. They are so feminine and pretty. Another would be bobs!! There are so many different variations of it so they aren't always the same. They can look classic or edgy, depending on styling. They are very versatile!
How have the Nova Scotian people supported your venture?
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INTERVIEWS
And anyone can wear a bob, it just has to be haircut! Also Carrie Underwood's hair always customized to their features (as all styles are). looks amazing- cut, color and style! And another would be pixies! They are fun, sexy and stylish. The most challenging haircut Who is your inspiration? technically is the A-line bob because the perimeter has to be perfectly even and straight. There are a lot! There are so many amazing Although I don't find it to be myself, but I'm a stylists in our industry! A couple would be perfectionist anyway, so everything has to be Sam Villa, who is a Redken platform artist. done right. Fine hair is challenging because it And Martin Parsons who is the king of updos! can show every cut in the I have had the pleasure to be “Scarlett Johansson had an interior of the cut. able to watch both of them and they are amazing!! And absolutely horrid one!” You gave me an A-line bob Martin Parsons is absolutely once... it was perfect. I named you Gaylene hilarious! Scissorhands that day! Anyone else call you that? Do you have a wish list of people to work with? Yeah! When I point cut people say that's what I look like! Of course!! I think everyone in this industry does! If Hollywood called tomorrow and offered you employment, would you leave NS? Keeping it a secret? That's actually a hard question! I'd be silly to say no, but honestly I'm not sure. I left NS once, four years ago, and I told my clients I wouldn't be leaving again no matter what! But if I could do both, then absolutely!
I sure am! ;) [] Contact @ (902) 245-6906
What’s the worst haircut you have seen on a celebrity? The worst would be the mullet! Scarlett Johansson had an absolutely horrid one! The best? There are a lot. One would definitely be Halle Berry, her hair cut is always done perfect, be it long or short, straight or curly. Her curls look fantastic when long, indicating a great 8
INTERVIEWS
for when they might be needed, but I am actively working on a new project right now.
What does a day-inyour-life consist of? Sackville native IT Consultant, Brian Joudrey, heated up his career using his love for hot sauce!
A day in the life of ... well, it starts with coffee and email. Follow that with more coffee. Packing From Mild to Wild orders for hot sauce started as a sideline project, but now to ship out to all parts of Canada. accounts for half of his workload! Importing Answering phone calls and dealing with gourmet sauces; Brian’s products can’t be customer enquiries from the hot sauce shop found in a grocery store. and my other business. I try to find time to eat. You can always tell that you need to eat What would you be doing right now if you if you completely lose focus and can't think. weren’t here? That's when I remember that food is I'd probably be slaving away at a 9 to 5 in important. Updating the website. Throwing the concrete jungle. I love the freedom that something interesting up on Facebook to I have. You just need to remember that if promote hot sauce. Dealing with suppliers, you abuse the long leash that you've got as a existing and those seeking to supply me with self employed individual that “A day in the life of ... well, it new products. I get a lot of you can also use it to hang contacts from small hot sauce starts with coffee and yourself. You alone are producers that want me to carry email. Follow that with responsible for your success their products, but the reality of more coffee” and if you don't put time and a lot of those requests is that care into what you do, you're their production volumes are so not going to get anything out of it. small that their unit cost is way too high for it to be a viable product. It's a real catch 22 How have your entrepreneurial motivations to ramp up to the volume that you need to changed since you first started? increase sales without being able to easily increase sales. When I first started I had a full time job and this was a hobby. Now I rely on selfWhat’s the biggest thing you struggle with as generated income to survive and that an entrepreneur in Nova Scotia? Biggest definitely changes things. I'm always surprise? coming up with new ideas for new businesses and new products. Most of those get shelved The biggest issue that I have right now is that I'm in RURAL Nova Scotia. Lack of 9
INTERVIEWS
access to a local customer base. I've probably got about half a dozen local customers. Everything else is done online. Selling spicy food products in Nova Scotia is a challenge because we've got the oldest age demographic in Canada, and Annapolis County that I'm located in has the oldest age demographic in Nova Scotia. It's no secret that most people that fit into that demographic range aren't huge consumers of spicy food.
see the government supporting the survival of rural towns and industries instead of failing to support infrastructure that is key to businesses having an interest in doing business here. The Yarmouth to Bar Harbour and Digby to Saint John ferries are one good example of this. Without long term commitments supporting those links, Southwest Nova Scotia is so isolated that no one would want to have an industry of any size here. However, we've only been able to get guarantees that those links are going to be there for windows of 1-3 years at a time before it goes back to crisis mode again. Long term guarantees are needed that the infrastructure isn't going to vanish if we want anyone to consider this a viable place to do business.
If you could offer a first-time entrepreneur only one piece of advice, what would it be? I jumped into things with only a love for hot sauce and a professional background in information technology. I wish that I had known more about the food industry before getting started. I would advise a new entrepreneur to make sure that they really understand all aspects of the business that they are getting into. At the very least if you don't have in depth experience for an aspect of your business, make sure that you've got a go-to person very close by that is always available to walk you through unexpected challenges until you fortify your knowledge in that area. And PASSION. Heaven help you if you can't be passionate about what you're doing because it's going to consume so much of you getting started, that you need that to keep you going.
Would you leave Nova Scotia to help the success of your business? If the opportunity was right, I would absolutely. At the end of the day, the most important thing to me is being able to provide for family. If that meant that I had to go somewhere else, then that decision wouldn't be a hard one to make.
Out of all your products, what is your favourite? Favourite product ... that is something that changes on an almost monthly basis. There are so many that I enjoy. I just got my hands on a bunch of new products from Island Fire that are made in PEI. One of those is called Shuckin' Delicious – and it really is! Not too spicy, super tangy and amazing profile. I'm quickly pouring this bottle out on all sorts of food. []
What could this province do to make your efforts more successful? This is a more general response on behalf of rural Nova Scotia: the solution to our problems is NOT to move to Halifax. It seems like there is more incentive to leave rural areas than to stay, but these regions are key to industries like agriculture. Small businesses located outside of HRM need to
www.frommildtowild.com info@frommildtowild.com 10
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Holiday Cards Made Right Here in Nova Scotia!
Price: $6.00 for single $17.50 for set of 5. Available at Inkwell. Designed and printed by Inkwell Letterpress. 1658 Market St, Halifax, NS Tel: (902) 405-8309 www.inkwellboutique.ca 11
PRACTICAL GIFTS
1
A WEBSITE! Give the gift of a worldwide platform! What better way to tell someone that you believe in their vision than to buy them their own domain so they can
2
share it with others? (You may want to invest in an IT guy too – if you don’t know how to build a website, having one will just make you break more stuff.) Websites start as low as $5 month
3
Never underestimate the power of a shiny new stapler. It’s what keeps our stuff together! Just ask Milton from Office Space!
A STRESS BALL! Because smashing office equipment gets pricey. $2.49 INK!
4
It’s costly and annoying. And having a hefty supply of this ready to go will add years to the stress ball!
5 COFFEE!
$20 to $80
We cease to exist without it. $2 for the first cup 12
A STAPLER!
Pretty ones start at $5
OOPS!
“Ordered my first 1,000 business cards from this ritzy printing company. I was really excited about the metallic leaf and engraving. When they arrived they were gorgeous! And they would have been perfect… had I remembered to put my phone number on them.”
OOPS! I started a business! Real life start up mistakes and mishaps shared anonymously. “Instead of emailing clients, I stalk them on Facebook. Is that bad?”
“For the One Year Anniversary of my business, my girlfriend bought me a book! It was called Business For Dumbies.”
I went to the tax place to get my taxes done. The accountant took one look at my paperwork and said “You’re gonna get audited”.
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INTERVIEWS
Inspired by his favorite electronic artists, Mitchell
Pineo from Bedford, taught himself everything he needed to be a successful DJ! What would you be doing right now if you weren’t here? I've learned that selling music is becoming an increasingly futile way of making money but on the other hand there are so many more exciting opportunities in live music that create unforgettable experiences that feels even better and is more profitable than selling records.
Without music probably in film school or sitting at home not feeling motivated to do anything. If you mean normally other than this interview I'd probably be sitting with my head in my hands trying to get inspired, haha!
What does a day-in-your-life, consist of?
How has our government supported your venture?
An average day consists of going to my music business school, then usually thinking about and working on new tracks and then working live sound or tech on musical productions, my whole life surrounds the local music scene it at this point.
I'm applying for government grants right now to help with marketing and production on my new EP, those grants would be a massive help!
What’s the biggest thing you struggle within the music industry here? Biggest surprise?
How have the Nova Scotian people supported you?
Keeping motivated and staying innovative are a struggle on a personal level, but the lack of venues in the city really is the biggest struggle of local musicians. The biggest surprise to me is how much work it takes to run an event and actually advertise to get people out to shows, there’s a lot to it!
It's the Nova Scotian people that believe in me and come to my shows, which is the most insane motivation. Haven't really done any shows outside the province, but I can only hope that they're as awesome!
How have your entrepreneurial motivations changed since you first started?
What could this province do to make your efforts more successful?
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INTERVIEWS
People just need to get out to these amazing shows and the scene will flourish. Peoples’ tolerance for cover prices is getting lower and lower but when you see the numbers it comes down to you learn that 6 bucks at the door or 10 dollars for a headline act is amazing.
What is your favorite part of what you do? Playing my originals at clubs and seeing people genuinely having an amazing time is the best feeling I've ever experienced! What are you most proud of?
If you could offer aspiring artists only one piece of advice, what would it be?
My LIGHTS remix is still really important to me, I put so much time in it and I was really excited with how it came out.
Persistence , hard work, and YouTube tutorials are all you need to be successful in the music industry! Oh and of course stickto-it-ivness.
Would you leave Nova Scotia to help the success of your career?
What is the most embarrassing thing that’s happened to you “on the job”?
So many DJs leave to make better connections but we have a lot of hard working people helping the EDM scene in the east coast that could help make this city compete with say, Montreal. I'm working hard to support them and by bringing in acts like Alex Metric and Lazy Rich; these promoters are making Halifax such an exciting place. []
At one of my recent shows opening for an artist that I'm a big fan of; one of the other opening DJs changed the headliner’s gear around and when it was time for him to play it wasn't working correctly, and he thought I had done it! We cleared it up later and I got his equipment working, but the brief moment was painful!
www.facebook.com/pineomusic
Who inspires you? I could go on for days about this. All the hard working local artists, but most importantly the friends and fans that love the music and come out every week; they're what it's all about and make me so excited to do what I do. Artists that really progress their sound like Calvin Harris, or Daft Punk. Both were the ones that really inspired me to make music in the first place. 15
SHOP LOCAL | CREDITS
♼A big
thank you
goes out to the
following people and organizations that provided stories, interviews, photos, and their time to this publication.
His Honour the Lieutenant Governor Tyler Simmonds Gaylene Potter Brian Joudrey Mitchell Pineo Inkwell Boutique Jayme Walters Rawr is I Love You in Monster Santa Claus
Get this 6 pack of Stocking Stuffer Hot Sauce with Personalizable Labels for 20% off! http://www.frommildtowild.com/p roduct.php?productid=527
JJiinnggllee EEeeppss By Rawr is I Love You in Monster $30 eePs are miniature sock creatures and stand approximately 3" tall. Each creature is unique and hand sewn using found buttons, baubles and assorted oddities. eePs love keeping you company on your desk or occupying branches of Christmas trees. They also enjoy eating peppermint bark and gift bows and are easy to care for. www.rawrcreatures.com www.etsy.com/shop/rawrisiloveyou www.facebook.com/pcwmonsters 16
ŠScotia Preneur Publications 2012 17