Ottawa Business Journal 20150316

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Local retail experts say Seattle-based chain bringing higher standards of customer service along with designer brands > PAGES 4-5

March 16, 2015 Vol. 18, NO. 9

creating the right space for your business merkburn.com 613.224.5464

For daily business news visit obj.ca

Seeking a fare deal Consumer columnist Michael Prentice says frugal flyers are wise to depart from Ottawa rather than northern New York. > PAGE 8

Green means go Downtown ecodistrict enlists group of heavy corporate hitters to help launch new projects.

Kelp Records founder Jon Bartlett (left) and singer-songwriter Andrew Vincent say music can actually be a catalyst for economic growth. PHOTO BY COLE BURSTON

Banding together to give Ottawa a boost

> PAGES 14-15

Study says thriving music scene could be just what region needs to kickstart economy

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Advocates point to Texas capital of Austin as prime example of how investing in music talent can attract business talent > PAGES 12-13

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Setting Up For Business Success: A Lawyer’s Perspective

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he Internet has created a do-ityourself culture, but if you’re a business owner, trying to be your own lawyer can result in disaster.

MONDAY, MARCH 16, 2015

“The money you save trying to draft an agreement yourself or incorporate your own business is not worth the costly problems and possible lawsuit you will face later,” says Anna Keller, a corporate lawyer at law firm Low Murchison Radnoff LLP.

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Frequently Anna sees this lack of foresight as clients try to draft important documents on their own, such as shareholder agreements or articles of incorporation, or use questionable online resources. That may make things easier in the short-term, Anna says, but can create major problems later.

“What they don’t realize is that even a bad agreement, once you sign it, is still an agreement,” Anna says. “I often see clients who drafted their own documents and contact me later because now there is a

problem with the agreement. Once it is signed, I can’t do a lot with it at that point.”

When a new business client comes to Low Murchison Radnoff Anna spends a lot of time talking to the client about their business, so she can understand both their goals and their challenges, including how the business interacts with other people and third parties. This helps her identify any legal risks that exist before they become problems.

This approach allows her to craft creative legal solutions that are tailored for the client’s business.

Clients may encounter different legal issues in the life of their business and Anna’s practice includes not only drafting various contracts, but assisting with financings and transactions, as well as helping clients raise money through various types of investment.

“What they don’t realize is that even a bad agreement, once you sign it, is still an agreement.”

“For me,” she explains, “being a business and corporate lawyer means drafting documents and creating structures that allow the business to grow in a way that is stress-free for the client – both now and in the future.”

Once your business has been set up properly with well-drafted agreements, you’ll be better prepared to exit from the business successfully when the time comes, Anna explains.

“For some people, that means selling their business in five years,” she says. “For others it means keeping the business for 35 years and passing it on to their children. These are all great goals and ideally, if I know this information in the beginning I can setup the business properly so the owner can reach their goal and make the most money along the way.”

Budgets are important to business owners and Anna says she knows large legal bills often scare people away from calling a lawyer. There are many cost-effective ways clients can work with a lawyer. For example, Anna says she always discusses the budget for the project before any work is done, which may include flat rates for certain services.

“I understand that entrepreneurs work hard for every dollar and they want to get the most value for their money – and that includes legal services.”

Anna is passionate about corporate law and helping business owners succeed.

She is a frequent guest speaker in the community and she teaches courses in corporate law, media law and technology law at Carleton University.

“Working with businesses is so rewarding.

Being a part of their team and seeing the business grow is a great experience.”

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“I’ve long said Nordstrom is going to do very well when they come to Canada. They know what they’re doing. Nordstrom’s always been very cautious. They study the markets, they hire local consultants, they look at the demographic data. They don’t do things flippantly or frivolously.” — IAN LEE, ASSISTANT PROFESSOR AT CARLETON’S SPROTT SCHOOL OF BUSINESS

Nordstrom opened its first Ottawa store at the Rideau Centre on March 6. PHOTO BY COLE BURSTON

Buying into the ‘Nordstrom Way’ Upscale fashion chain will raise the bar when it comes to customer service in Ottawa, experts say

BY DAVID SALI david@obj.ca

MONDAY, MARCH 16, 2015

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he most anticipated new store at the Rideau Centre in years brought more than just exclusive fashion brands when it officially arrived in the capital earlier this month, retail experts say.

Nordstrom also sets a higher standard of customer service than most Ottawa shoppers are accustomed to, they argue, and that could have ripple effects for highend retailers across the city.

“Nordstrom walks their own talk,” says Ian Lee, an assistant professor of business strategy at Carleton University’s Sprott School of Business. “If they didn’t invent superior customer service, then by God, they certainly were the people that refined it.”

Long one of the most recognizable upscale retailers in the United States, the Seattle-based fashion chain launched its expansion into Canada with a store in Calgary last fall. Ottawa is the second of

six stores Nordstrom is planning to roll out north of the border over the next two years.

The 157,000-square-foot Rideau Centre location features many of the company’s latest design concepts, incorporating natural light, wood finishes and other elements it hopes will make the store inviting and easy to navigate for shoppers.

The chain is aiming to raise the bar for fashionistas’ retail experiences in other ways, too.

For example, Nordstrom offers instore alterations and shoe shines as well as a complimentary wardrobe and shopping service that sees fashion experts picking out items ahead of time for busy customers. Its restaurant Bazille has a range of menu selections, from tuna salad to flat iron steak to roasted salmon and herbed mushroom risotto, not to mention a fully stocked bar. There are interactive games for the kids, and one of the store’s dressing rooms even features a couch and flat-screen TV in the waiting area.

Barry Nabatian, director of market research at Shore Tanner & Associates, says

the Nordstrom model caters to higherincome consumers who “expect to be pampered.”

He says he thinks Ottawa is an ideal market for the retailer given the capital’s relatively high number of upper-middle class and wealthy residents. About 40 per cent of the city’s 400,000 households earn more than $150,000 a year, and those are exactly the kind of customers Nordstrom is targeting.

“I think they and Tiffany (the famed jeweller, which is coming to the Rideau Centre this summer) and a few others, they really cater to people for whom money is irrelevant,” Mr. Nabatian says with a chuckle.

Nordstrom is bringing a new dimension

to fashion retail, just as Whole Foods did in the supermarket business, he says. With Holt Renfrew now gone from the local scene, shoppers looking for top designer brands in the capital don’t have many other options, he notes.

“In a way, one can say that Nordstrom does not have any serious competition,” Mr. Nabatian adds. “Its competition is a number of small stores in the Glebe, the ByWard Market and Westboro, but they are very small.”

Still, he says the added competition might actually give homegrown boutique retailers a boost, especially if they capitalize on their ability to provide personalized service.

“Will the other stores suffer? At the

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beginning, yes, but a lot of these small stores have established a good relationship with their customers and I don’t think they’re going to suffer really much,” he says. “In a way, as high-end shopping becomes more popular, they may even benefit from (Nordstrom).”

Other Canadian fashion chains such as Quebec-based Simons, which will open its first Ontario store at the expanded Rideau Centre next year, will also be forced to step up their game to compete, Mr. Nabatian adds.

“They probably will have to rethink some of their strategy because Nordstrom and Tiffany, in addition to the quality, it’s just the personal service that they offer,” he says.

Mr. Lee, who says Nordstrom is a

they understand that,” Mr. Lee says.

“I’ve long said Nordstrom is going to do very well when they come to Canada,” he adds. “They know what they’re doing.

They’re not going to do the mistakes of Target, which was to go in whole hog, all nine yards, 120 stores all at once.

Nordstrom’s always been very cautious.

They study the markets, they hire local consultants, they look at the demographic data. They don’t do things flippantly or frivolously.”

Nordstrom spokesperson John Bailey says the company’s buyers made regular trips to Ottawa ahead of the March 6 opening, studying the way downtown shoppers dressed and where they bought their clothes.

“They really try to grasp as much as

they can about the style of the community, and they go to work at trying to find merchandise they think customers might like here,” he says.

Mr. Bailey says the chain is well aware of the challenges of expanding into a foreign market. But he adds Nordstrom is confident it will succeed.

“We just opened our first store in Calgary a little over five months ago and are still learning how we can best serve the customer in Calgary,” he says. “We know that we may stub our toe, and we know that we have a lot to learn, as we will in each city that we open up in as we expand across Canada. For us, it’s really about listening and responding in real time to the feedback that we’re hearing from customers.”

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A LIST OF SOME OF THE DESIGNER BRANDS AT NORDSTROM WOMEN’S SHOES • Manolo Blahnik (exclusive to Nordstrom in Ottawa) • Jimmy Choo (exclusive to Nordstrom in Ottawa) • Pedro Garcia (exclusive to Nordstrom in Ottawa) • Rudsak Shoes (exclusive to Nordstrom in Ottawa) • Valentino (exclusive to Nordstrom in Ottawa)

popular case study topic in his fourth-year class because of its long history of success, marvels at how the 114-year-old chain has been able to maintain consistently high standards of service even as it continues to expand.

While he doesn’t shop there himself when he travels down south – “I’m a Macy’s kind of a guy” he confesses with a hearty laugh – he says he’s visited Nordstrom locations across the United States and always comes away impressed.

The chain does its homework before entering a new market, he says, which will bode well for its move into a foreign country. While buying habits and retail trends in Canada and the United States are very similar, “there’s lots of subtle differences underneath the surface and

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The partners of Collins Barrow Ottawa are pleased to congratulate Cynthia Runolfson, CPA, CA, CBV, CFF, a manager in the firm’s Business Valuation and Litigation practice, on attaining her Chartered Business Valuator designation.

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LAUNCH PAD

Welcome to the latest instalment of OBJ’s LaunchPad, a monthly section dedicated to local startups and entrepreneurs. Story ideas and other suggestions can be sent to adam@obj.ca.

Crates contain hope for housing Carleton grads say plan to convert cargo containers into homes can do good – and be good business

BY ADAM FEIBEL adam@obj.ca

A

MONDAY, MARCH 16, 2015

n early-stage Ottawa startup has high hopes of “making a difference while making a profit” by building an international social housing enterprise from the ground up, using not much more than some old cargo containers.

Magdalena Plesa and Binayak Kanungo are the founders of Second Chance Homes, which aims to provide more affordable social housing to developing countries by converting used shipping containers into fully functional homes.

“In a lot of emerging economies there are shipping containers wasting away because it’s found to be cost-prohibitive to send these containers back to where they were originally shipped from,” Mr. Kanungo explains. “In these same countries, there’s also a pretty large percentage of the population that’s either displaced or homeless or don’t have access to proper housing.”

The startup figured the solution to each problem could help address the other, and after doing some research found that it was actually quite cost-effective and even better than many developing nations’ existing housing projects.

A single container will run the startup about $1,000 to $3,000, purchased from a third-party company that gathers them from junkyards, cleans them up and ships them to buyers. Second Chance Homes estimates the cost of turning it into a house – complete with living room,

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bathroom, kitchen and bedroom – will be anywhere from $30,000 to $40,000.

In some South American countries the company has researched, it says its model would save local governments as much as 30 per cent of the cost of current housing developments in those areas.

The long-term goal is to work directly with governments in developing nations and procure contracts for new social housing projects.

“I think we’re at a good point in time right now where (governments) are looking at new ways of dealing with old problems,” says Ms. Plesa.

Shipping container architecture has picked up in popularity around the world over the last few years, especially set against the backdrop of the broader micro-home movement. The crates have been used not only for affordable housing, but for luxury homes of varying sizes, retail spaces, restaurants, offices and more. It’s part economy, part sustainability, part novelty.

And it’s not hard to get your hands on material, either. There are 25 million cargo containers lying around in junkyards all over the world, according to Janice Abbott, head of Atira Women’s Resource Society, a Vancouver non-profit that over the last couple of years has introduced Canada to social housing made of stackable steel.

The country’s first such development was a three-storey, 12-unit structure in Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside that Atira unveiled in 2013. In December, the company announced new plans for another seven-storey, 26-unit

Binayak Kanungo (left) and Magdalena Plesa of Second Chance Homes. PHOTO BY ADAM FEIBEL

“In a lot of emerging economies there are shipping containers wasting away because it’s found to be cost-prohibitive to send these containers back to where they were originally shipped from.”

— BINAYAK KANUNGO,

CO-FOUNDER OF SECOND CHANCE HOMES

social housing project in the same neighbourhood.

Second Chance Homes hopes to have a prototype built here in Ottawa by April and a second contract elsewhere in Canada within a year. It’s the firm’s way of starting small to establish a proof of concept before pitching to governments abroad.

“We’ve been focusing on figuring out our process and seeing whether it’s feasible enough to expand it abroad,

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because we don’t want to go somewhere and not be ready,” says Ms. Plesa.

Currently, the company is funded with just $5,000 in prize money from last year’s entrepreneurship challenge at the Collegiate DECA International Career Development Conference in Washington, D.C. – the event that spawned the idea – and up to another $5,000 from the Hatch incubator launched in September by the student association at Carleton University, where both founders have studied international business.

They say the startup will benefit greatly from a model that puts cash from contracts in hand before developing each project so the fledgling firm can stay out of the red.

When it comes time for construction, the pair say they will contract out some of the roles, but they will also be right there themselves with hammers and hard hats.

It’ll be a milestone moment when that first home sits finished and ready to house a family, says Ms. Plesa.

“I will feel so relieved to have it done finally, and to be able to point and look at it and say … we made something.”

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CALENDAR OF EVENTS CHANGE LOG Klipfolio captures another $6.2M Ottawa cloud software company Klipfolio announced Feb. 25 that it’s raised $6.2 million from a series-A round led by OMERS Ventures.

The round featured all existing investors from the firm’s $1.7-million seed round a year ago.

Props social hub gets wide release at SXSW A four-man team from Carleton University has launched an app called Props to act as a central hub for social media, including Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and LinkedIn. The company comes from the Lead to Win program with the expectation that it will generate $1 million in revenues within three years. Props held its North American launch at South by Southwest in Austin, Texas, where Twitter blew up in 2007.

Bumpn follows the party A new mobile app startup hopes to be the life of the party. Bumpn is a social networking app that lets users automatically share photos they take at an event to a single feed dedicated to the occasion. The bootstrapped company launched its beta version in January and has since been using customer feedback to develop a 2.0 version for a planned April release.

Three uOttawa teams share $10K in prizes Three teams of young entrepreneurs took home helpful prize money from the University of Ottawa’s Entrepreneurship Concepts PEI student competition on Feb. 6. Enplex earned the $5,000 first prize for its “effortless networking” system that uses bracelet technology to automatically exchange contact information when two people shake hands. Second-place winner eCelery received $3,000 for its food and nutrition social platform. In third place was Insomnia Skis, which won $2,000 for the team’s plan to bring its garage-based custom ski collection to the web.

Funding Roadshow Thursday, March 19 8:30 a.m.-5 p.m.

EY Centre, 4899 Uplands Dr. Info and registration at fundingroadshow.com Startup Weekend Algonquin College Friday, March 20 to Sunday, March 22 AC Student Commons, 1385 Woodroffe Ave. Info and registration at algonquincollege.com/ business/entrepreneurship-events Startup Ottawa Expo Thursday, March 19 8:30 a.m.-7 p.m.

EY Centre, 4899 Uplands Dr. Info and registration at startupottawa.ca/ events Digicom Ottawa Saturday, March 21 1-5 p.m.

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The Case for #WhyOttawa

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One of our biggest supporters is none other than Ottawa Mayor, Jim Watson. Watson, who is co-chair of Invest Ottawa’s Board of Directors, has participated in the evolution of the #WhyOttawa messaging. He told my team recently, “This presentation clearly explains why Ottawa is the best place in the country.”

Now it’s your turn to share this message.

I’m challenging business leaders to share the #WhyOttawa presentation just once over social media, highlighting one thing that surprised them about their own city. Every time I give this presentation, I ask the crowd if they learned something they didn’t know about Ottawa. And every time, a roomful of hands go up.

Visit our website at investottawa.ca/ why-ottawa and grab a copy of the #WhyOttawa presentation. It’s the proof that our city is “the best place to work, play and grow”.

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It’s a message I hear time and time again from local business leaders like

Tobi Lutke. The newly crowned CEO of the year has grown Shopify from modest beginnings to a Billion Dollar company; all in the shadow of the Peace Tower. Lutke told me recently, “This presentation highlights the reasons Ottawa is a wonderful place to build great companies.”

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t took nearly two years to assemble all the pieces. Our team scoured research papers, websites, government statistics, even blogs to find every shred of evidence. Now more than 65 facts have been married with rich visuals to create a powerful presentation everyone can use. Here are just a few: • Ottawa has the county’s most educated workforce.

• Ottawa voted most sustainable city in Canada.

• Ottawa has 2nd highest concentration of scientists and engineers in North America.

• Ottawa sees 2084 hours of sunshine a year.

• Ottawa is the least expensive city in Canada.

I’ve had the honour of sharing this presentation with international business leaders in countries such as China, India and Brazil. Showcasing the tremendous benefits of doing business in Ottawa instills a deep sense of pride. Now I want to give Ottawa’s business community the same tools and experience. Our city is in a global race to recruit the best talent and the best companies to the region. This presentation makes the case for why Ottawa is a prime location for top talent.

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COMMENTARY Great River Media 250 City Centre Ave., Suite 500 Ottawa, Ontario, K1R 6K7 obj.ca PUBLISHER Michael Curran, 238-1818 ext. 228 publisher@obj.ca SENIOR VICE-PRESIDENT OF SALES Don Mersereau, 238-1818 ext. 286 CHIEF MARKETING OFFICER Terry Tyo, 238-1818 ext. 268 EDITOR, PRINT CONTENT David Sali, 238-1818 ext. 269 david@greatriver.ca EDITOR, ONLINE CONTENT Tom Pechloff, 238-1818 ext. 291 editor@obj.ca COPY EDITOR Krystle Kung CREATIVE DIRECTOR Tanya Connolly-Holmes, 238-1818 ext. 253 creative@obj.ca

U.S. savings a flight of fancy Air travel from northern New York not worth it when time, expenses factored in

MONDAY, MARCH 16, 2015

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any times I’ve heard people in Ottawa say they save a fistful of money on air travel by driving to the United States to catch a flight from one of the northern New York airports in Ogdensburg, Watertown or Syracuse.

In actual fact, I’ve discovered it often costs more to reach your destination from one of those three U.S. airports than it does if you fly from Ottawa. It can cost a lot more if you factor in the time and expense of getting to these airports.

I think we’ve been brainwashed into thinking there are always better deals available in the United States than in Canada. Not so.

Also, we tend to equate a Canadian dollar with a U.S. dollar. That’s all right when the loonie is close to par with the greenback. But lately the Canadian dollar has been worth only about 80 U.S. cents. I suspect that some people tend to overlook this when they compare U.S. and Canadian airfares.

I looked at the cost of round-trip airfares to five destinations: Boston, Los Angeles, Orlando, Philadelphia and London, England. For each destination, I compared the cost of air travel from Ottawa with the cost from one of the three upstate New York airports.

In any such comparison, you must first pick the dates you want to travel. I opted for flying on Feb. 19 with a return flight on Feb. 26. Then, in mid-January, I got a sample quote from an airline flying from Ottawa and an airline flying from one of the three U.S. departure points.

In three of the five cases, I found it

would be cheaper to fly from Ottawa than from a U.S. airport (see sidebar).

In one case, I found it would be much cheaper to fly from a U.S. airport (Watertown to Philadelphia). And in one case (Ogdensburg to Boston), I found the savings not worth the cost of getting to the U.S. departure point, especially since the flight from Ottawa on Air Canada was non-stop and the flight from Ogdensburg included one stop on the way.

Ogdensburg is just an hour’s drive from Ottawa (plus frequent delays at the border). But it only offers service by one tiny commuter airline – Cape Air – to Albany, N.Y., and onwards to Boston.

Watertown is a two-hour drive from Ottawa and has recently been using the Ottawa news media to promote its new American Airlines 50-seat regional jet service to Philadelphia.

Syracuse offers the greatest choice of flights, with connections to the entire world. But it is at least a three-hour drive from Ottawa, by which time you are almost halfway to New York City, a favourite destination for Ottawans.

Having driven nearly halfway, why switch to a plane to get to the Big Apple?

(I would give myself a 50-50 chance of winning a race in which I drove from Ottawa to New York’s Central Park, while my opponent drove from Ottawa to Syracuse – in plenty of time for the flight – and then took a plane and taxi to Manhattan.)

Why does Ottawa do so well in my price comparison?

ART DEPARTMENT Jamie Dean, 238-1818 ext. 278 jamie@greatriver.ca Regan VanDusen, 238-1818 ext. 254 regan@obj.ca ADVERTISING SALES Wendy Baily, 238-1818 ext. 244 wbaily@obj.ca

On either side of the border, airlines charge as much as they can for the service they provide. Competition is what keeps prices in check. Ottawa, it seems, is a competitive marketplace.

But clearly, some routes are more competitive than others.

HOW FARES COMPARE Here, for five destinations, is how airfares compare (first giving examples where Ottawa departure was cheaper). All taxes and fees are included. For simplicity, all fares are in Canadian dollars.

• Ottawa-Orlando non-stop on WestJet: $623. Syracuse-Orlando non-stop on JetBlue: $708.

• Ottawa-Los Angeles on Air Canada with one connection: $677 Watertown-Los Angeles on American Airlines with one connection: $779.

• Ottawa-London non-stop on Air Canada: $1,080. Syracuse-London on United Airlines with one connection: $1,205.

• Watertown-Philadelphia non-stop on American Airlines: $460. OttawaPhiladelphia non-stop on US Airways: $759.

• Ogdensburg-Boston on Cape Air with stop: $310. Ottawa-Boston non-stop on Air Canada: $358.

Michael Prentice is OBJ’s columnist on retail and consumer issues. He can be contacted at news@obj.ca.

Kimberley Allen-McGill, 238-1818 ext. 299 kimberley@obj.ca Karen McNamara, 238-1818 ext. 259 karen@obj.ca Susan Salsbury, 238-1818 ext. 229 ssalsbury@obj.ca CAREER ADVERTISING & MARKETPLACE ADVERTISING SALES 238-1818 ext. 251 VICE-PRESIDENT OF OTTAWA BUSINESS EVENTS Susan Blain, 238-1818 ext. 232 susan@ottawabusinessevents.ca FINANCE Jackie Whalen, 238-1818 ext. 250 jackie@greatriver.ca SUBSCRIPTIONS/DISTRIBUTION 238-1818 ext. 248 subscribe@obj.ca PRINTED BY Transcontinental Qualimax 130 Adrien-Robert, Parc Industriel Richelieu Gatineau, QC J8Y 3S2

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READER COMMENTS Few cheers for LeBreton arena Re: “NCC invites four groups to submit LeBreton Flats development proposals” (Feb. 18 on obj.ca)

The last thing we need is another arena. A site that earns money for wealthy people, and does not add anything culturally to Ottawa’s core, that will require large sums of public money so that they can earn more money. A major colossus, that will not improve the quality of life for the majority of Ottawa citizens or those visiting the capital. The general nature of the other three proposals are much more imaginative. An arena equals lots of parking space for the 15,000 fans. And don’t use the argument that they can access the site by the LRT. That won’t happen!

– ags The NCC asked for an anchor tenant of national or international importance. I’m as much of a fan of the Senators as the next guy, but I would have to disagree that they represent a site/institution of national or international importance. While hockey may be a national cultural institution, I would argue that the Ottawa Senators are not.

Even if you discount the traffic for the use of LRT, there would still be an extra 8,0009,000 cars trying to get to LeBreton on game nights. Down Preston? Bronson?

– Craig Ogden

The Sens would be a great choice as long as the site is developed with other cultural attractions. The Bell Centre (in Montreal) and (Toronto’s) Air Canada Centre are able to limit car volume to much busier games then we have here. With a proper plan, the Sens could make a move there and still have room for a secondary purpose. Let’s keep in mind that we are working with 21 hectares.

– Remi Morvan

Companies must do more to cultivate talent My suspicions are that, especially in the high-tech sector, the problem is that companies don’t want to spend money training someone who is a near-fit to a position. How often do we see HR systems where they are looking for key words in resumes? The problem is that doesn’t capture the situations where someone has knowledge/experience in a similar area and can be quickly and easily converted. The other issue I tend to see is in “credential creep,” where companies start looking for people with higher and higher academic qualifications even though those aren’t needed for the position.

– Kevin

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MONDAY, MARCH 16, 2015

BIZ BRIEFS

It’s the core values

that matter

Winners will spark traffic at pedestrian mall, experts say

T

FORTY UNDER 40 DEADLINE LOOMS

ANGEL NETWORK GETS NEW BOSS The Capital Angel Network announced recently that Jane Baird will take over as executive director of the Ottawa investor group.

Ms. Baird replaces Parm Gill, who will remain a member of the network.

“I’m going to be building on all the great foundational work that he’s done,” said Ms. Baird.

“The big thing is really increasing awareness.”

Ms. Baird said she will work to build membership in the network, which now has more than 40 investors on board.

Ms. Baird comes to the network with 20 years experience in business-to-business enterprise marketing with Cognos and IBM. She was most recently executive director of Ryan’s Well, a non-profit organization that provides clean water and sanitation in developing countries.

Ms. Baird said she will work to enhancing the network and increasing awareness of the organization.

CAN began in 2009 with the aim of strengthening ties between investors and entrepreneurs.

Rent Frock Repeat, GestureLogic, 360pi, Glitchsoft, SavvyDox and Tattoo Hero are all companies in the network’s portfolio.

— OBJ staff

Name:

Brent Taylor

Title:

y Corporation Owner, Brentcom Realt

What it is Brentcom Realty?

Brentcom is a leading commercial brokerage in the Ottawa area highly focused on leasing and selling retail and owner-user commercial properties. Taylor runs the business with wife and partner, Risa. He does the leasing and selling, while she handles all of the administrative aspects. It‘s a small brokerage that has staked its claim in an industry dominated by larger organizations. Brentcom’s diverse clientele has included retail chains such as Shoppers Drug Mart and Farm Boy, as well as small and large property owners.

What is an interesting fact about Brentcom?

When clients call, they get Taylor himself, not an assistant. He guides clients through the many technical details involved in negotiating and closing even the most complicated commercial real estate deals, so they are free to concentrate on the other facets of their businesses.

How is Brentcom involved with the Sens?

Taylor has been a season-seat owner and proud Sens supporter for more than a decade. He has a pair of seats in the first row of Section 210 that he uses for family and business purposes, as well as to support his charitable endeavours.

“Being associated with the Senators is great exposure for our business,” he said.

“It’s a fun way to show appreciation for our clients and to solidify long-term business relationships with them.”

Taylor also considers a season ticket package to be a platform to show support for, and pride in, the local community. It’s not just about the hockey. There are the values espoused by the entire Sens organization – a healthy and active lifestyle, good sportsmanship, the support of worthy causes through the Ottawa Senators Foundation, and of course, the never-give-up attitude that characterizes the team’s tireless pursuit of the Stanley Cup. “We take great pride in associating with a team that demonstrates such strong core values,” Taylor said. “I feel it’s important for the business community to support the team so we can keep professional hockey in Ottawa.”

11 OBJ.CA

With the nomination deadline just a couple of weeks away, response to the 18th annual Forty Under 40 Awards has been strong, OBJ publisher Michael Curran says.

“More than 150 nominations are underway, but I don’t want to take anything for granted,” he said.

In partnership with the Ottawa Chamber of Commerce, OBJ will be honouring up-and-comers who reflect the economic diversity, entrepreneurial spirit and future of Ottawa’s dynamic business community at an awards gala June 18 at the Hilton Lac-Leamy.

Past recipients have included high-tech CEOs, health-care providers, financial consultants, sports enthusiasts, federal cabinet members, restaurant owners, newscasters and professionals and executives from a wide range of industries.

Applications are judged on the nominee’s professional accomplishments, level of expertise and community involvement.

Nominations can be submitted at fortyunder40.fluidreview.com/ up to and including March 31. There is no disadvantage to self-nomination.

MONDAY, MARCH 16, 2015

he arrival of discount retailer Winners to the space formerly occupied by Zellers at 156 Sparks St. should help breathe new life into the stagnant downtown pedestrian mall, retail experts predict.

The Mississauga-based chain, which sells clothing, footwear, furniture and housewares at more than 300 stores across Canada, confirmed that week that it will move into 23,000 square feet of space in the basement of the old Zellers location this fall.

Toronto-based restaurant and beer chain Bier Markt opened its first Ottawa location on the ground floor of the property last year. About 4,000 square feet of prime ground-floor space still remains to be leased at the site.

Barry Nabatian, director of market research at Shore Tanner & Associates, said those tenants, as well as other new businesses that have recently moved to Sparks Street such as the Expedition Shoppe and Nate’s Deli, are just what the doctor ordered for a shopping area in dire need of revitalization.

“That’s four good, needed types of stores that are there,” he said. “Hopefully, with the construction on the north side almost finished, Sparks Street will be reinvented again.”

Ian Lee, an assistant professor at Carleton University’s Sprott School of Business, said Winners will appeal to budget-conscious consumers who work in the shadow of the Parliament Buildings and don’t have time to walk all the way to the Rideau Centre to do some lunchtime browsing.

“It’s providing good value at low prices,” he said. “I thought it was a good move.”

The former Zellers space at the corner of Sparks and O’Connor streets is part of a parcel of properties owned by Morguard.

U.S. retailer Target acquired the lease on the property in 2011 as part of its purchase of 220 leases from Zellers. While most of those properties were converted to Target stores, some were sold to other retailers or returned to landlords.

ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT Music City North?

Pointing to the success of Austin, Texas, singers, songwriters and arts advocates in Ottawa say a thriving music scene could be a ticket to increased economic growth in the capital

BY TOM PECHLOFF tom@obj.ca

MONDAY, MARCH 16, 2015

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new study of the Ottawa music industry calls for the city to “make music one of its priorities for economic development,” and at least one councillor is already on board.

The study, funded primarily by the provincially backed Ontario Music Fund, also recommends the city “immediately assign a point person for the music industries” to act as a pipeline of communication between the industry and the city.

Local singer-songwriter Andrew Vincent, who co-wrote the study, says the research indicates a thriving music scene is economically beneficial to cities.

“There are studies out there showing there’s connections between high tech and music ... It’s like music is a really great catalyst, I think, for cities, so that’s why cities are interested in it. Now the question is, what can cities do about it?”

Mr. Vincent says one of the great things about music is that it doesn’t always take a lot of money “to make something interesting happen.”

“It may not require huge investments, as it could be something like a point person at the city … that can be there to help (music) businesses navigate the startup phase or if they run into certain problems, how to effectively deal with those problems, so it isn’t a matter of your business shutting down, it’s a matter of putting up a solution and creating new connections.”

Kitchissippi Coun. Jeff Leiper says such an investment would be well worth it.

“If we can get one person whose job it is to do that, I think it would pay off in spades,” he says. “One person costs the city … let’s say, by the time you set them up, with IT, and all this sort of stuff, it’s $120,000. Could one person generate $120,000 worth of ROI through more proactive outreach, collaboration, working with the Jon Bartletts (founder of Ottawa-based Kelp Records) and Andrew Vincents? I think so.”

Mr. Leiper says one of his top priorities over the next few months will be trying to find the money to fund such a “music office” at city hall. He commissioned his own study shortly after he was elected last fall to look at ways other municipalities have joined forces with local music industries to

Ottawa singer-songwriter Andrew Vincent (left) and Kelp Records founder Jon Bartlett think a livelier cultural scene would be music to the ears of local businesses. PHOTOS BY COLE BURSTON

generate economic spinoffs.

While the full study will be released later, “Austin is the one that keeps coming up,” he says.

Mr. Vincent also points to the Texas state capital as an example of how to do things right. Even before the nowmassive South by Southwest Music Festival was launched there in 1987, advocates were already promoting music as a good investment for private businesses in the city.

“The chamber of commerce is one of the biggest influences in Austin’s transformation into what we know it as today, as this kind of music hub,” he says. “They sponsored reports on music, they got involved, they actually had a music liaison person who worked very closely with the Austin chapter of the Texas Music Association to just basically create an environment where music was positioned as an opportunity and part of the Austin brand, essentially.”

There are many similarities between Austin and Ottawa, which are both government towns with reasonably similar populations – metropolitan Austin is home to about 1.9 million people, compared with 1.3 million in Ottawa-Gatineau – and thriving tech sectors. But the key differences, according to Mr. Vincent’s report, are the 18,000 jobs and $1.6 billion in direct and indirect economic activity Austin’s music industry generates each year.

While Ottawa will likely never become Music City North, Mr. Leiper points to the tech sector as another reason why the city should support the industry. The competition for knowledge-based talent is fierce, he says, and any edge the capital can get will help.

“I think a lot of those young knowledge workers whom we’re trying to attract are really interested in good strong culture, the performing arts, visual arts,” he says. “They’re looking for those

MUSIC: BIG BUSINESS IN AUSTIN In 2010, Austin’s music industries produced: • $856 million in economic output • $478 million in value-added impact • $230 million in tax revenues • 7,957 jobs Music tourism added another $806 million in economic output and more than 10,000 jobs, for a total economic output of $1.6 billion from music-related activity. The city has about 120 live music venues.

Source: Connecting Ottawa Music: A profile of Ottawa’s music industries

cultural opportunities, vibrant urban living, and music is a huge part of that.”

Ottawa Chamber of Commerce president Ian Faris says his group is working with tourism industry partners to lobby for more provincial funding for

Looking for local business data? VISIT OBJ.CA AND CLICK “BOOK OF LISTS DATABASES” IN THE MORE BOX. “I think a lot of those young knowledge workers whom we’re trying to attract are really interested in good strong culture, the performing arts, visual arts. They’re looking for those cultural opportunities, vibrant urban living, and music is a huge part of that.”

— KITCHISSIPPI COUN. JEFF LEIPER

festivals and large-scale events.

He says a recent chamber survey showed that one of the top concerns of local businesspeople was a lack of skilled labour. Innovative companies in any field, including music, will help attract more innovative workers to the city, he adds.

“It certainly works well into the themes that we’re developing and working in,” Mr. Faris says.

“This is one that we can certainly

go out and test and we can get into how important is it to the business community to have this integrated knowledge community that wants that ‘play’ attribute to the city.”

Mr. Leiper says he wants to be known as the “music councillor” at the end of his four-year term, and that means more than just helping musicians. He is also pushing for stronger music education in schools and support for music retailers.

While he concedes there is only so

much he can do, Mr. Leiper says if he can use whatever clout he has at city hall to generate support for initiatives such as a new mid-sized concert venue, he will.

He says professional services surrounding the music industry need to be bolstered as well. There aren’t a lot of labels, publishers or booking agents in Ottawa, for example.

That was one of the reasons Mr. Bartlett spearheaded the recent Megaphono showcase and festival – to connect Ottawa musicians with these industry types from out of town.

City staff will soon be presenting council with a document outlining Ottawa’s economic priorities for this term, and Mr. Leiper says he is optimistic music will be among them.

“As I talk to my council colleagues about what it is that I’m hoping to

achieve, as I talk to staff, both at arts and culture and in economic development and Invest Ottawa about what I’m trying to achieve, I’m hearing huge appetite for it. So I’m not going to predict a slam dunk, but I’m encouraged,” he says.

Mr. Leiper says the chances of landing city funding for music-related projects will improve if they can demonstrate a clear tie-in to Canada’s 150th birthday celebrations two years from now.

“A whole whack of people are going to visit Ottawa,” he says. “How do we keep those people here one more night and get them in to Hintonburg or Old Ottawa South or into Vanier or further afield, Carp, right? If we’ve got a music scene that’s offering something, maybe we can get that extra $180 for a hotel room, that extra $200 in restaurant meals by keeping them here another night.”

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came from. Danish was very much a part of developing and growing this really unique product in Ottawa. He’s still quite involved with the program. Although he has graduated, Danish volunteers with the museum and is very involved in the social media aspect, which is incredibly important to the audience.”

“I wanted people to enjoy themselves,” Meman says. “At the same time I wanted people to leave the museum wanting to come back. We merged education and a night out.

That’s what Nature Nocturne became and I

think that’s exactly what it needed to be.”

The relationship has lasted beyond the internship with Meman continuing to volunteer there and working in a marketing role via his current position with Ottawa-based firm Demand Generation.

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13 OBJ.CA

to the president of the museum.”

Cynthia Iburg, who worked alongside Meman at the Museum of Nature, says the internship was “a really good experience” overall.

“It was quite an involved internship so it wasn’t coming in and doing little tasks here and there. It was really engaging with a program from beginning to end and being part of that team. Danish also complemented the team here with some strengths we don’t have.”

When Meman arrived, adult programming at the museum had been paused for a study into how to best serve its clientele, she explains.

“Danish was involved with a lot of the research into the audience. He did a wonderful, extensive scan of who the audience is and what they are likely to want.

We worked with that information to develop some proposed programs. We came up with a whole structure of programs and ideas we could bring forward.”

In addition to this foundational work, Iburg says Meman was equally outstanding in the process of presenting these new concepts to museum management.

“He helped us in explaining how these programs were going to reach the market we were trying to engage. That is where our headlining program, Nature Nocturne,

MONDAY, MARCH 16, 2015

There’s been some confusion around the subject of internships recently.

Employers and students alike should know that, at reputable institutions like Carleton University’s Sprott School of Business, internships are a valuable part of preparing students for the workplace and, because they’re for academic credit, they are entirely legitimate – even if unpaid.

Sprott interns arrive in the workplace with a full toolbox of knowledge and skills gleaned from their MBA classes as well as their previous work experience and undergraduate program. Their drive to learn and succeed means they’ll hit the ground running and start making real contributions to your organization.

And, whether the internship is paid or not, the Sprott team works diligently to ensure that the students’ experiences are enriching and relevant while also offering support to the employer with services such as candidate pre-screening, job design and interview coordination.

Sprott MBA graduate Danish Meman completed an internship with the Canadian Museum of Nature as part of his program.

“I believe in what museums mean to a community,” Meman says, explaining that he was deliberate and proactive in seeking out a museum-based placement where his personal passion could come into play. “I went straight

ENVIRONMENT Ottawa’s green machine kicks into gear Eco-district organizers aiming to reimagine downtown core with help from landlords, developers

BY ALEXIA NAIDOO SPECIAL TO OBJ

A

group dedicated to making Ottawa’s downtown more ecologically friendly is planning to launch a trio of major projects in conjunction with local developers, landlords and other businesses.

The Ottawa Centre EcoDistrict has signed up 31 new members known as “champions” that are located downtown and are committed to making the central business district greener and more sustainable.

Among them are major landlords Minto and Morguard, Windmill Development Group and agencies such as Invest Ottawa and Ottawa Tourism.

The network also has “ambassadors” who represent interests from across the city but also want to build a better and more innovative central core.

Ottawa Centre EcoDistrict executive

director Don Grant says the group believes that when the whole community pulls together to improve things such as transportation, waste management and energy efficiency, everyone benefits.

“We want to make this a No. 1 place to live, work and play,” he says, adding the initiative will make downtown firms more attractive to the best and brightest business talent and more desirable for companies looking to relocate.

At a community meeting last month at city hall, the organization received 334 suggestions for making the downtown core more eco-friendly. Those have since been boiled down to 10 major ideas, including making buildings more energy-efficient, expanding downtown cycling networks, connecting downtown gardeners with new urban gardens, boosting the number of sustainable food retailers and planting more native tree species.

For now, the group says it is

and

committed to taking on three projects, which it is hoping to nail down by the end of March. The non-profit organization, which is funded through grants from the Ontario Trillium Foundation, the Federation of Canadian Municipalities and private-sector partners, is asking the community to help make the final choice online at engage.greatwork.io/welcome-oced.

Many of these initiatives will cost money up front – some a lot and some a little. But they’ll be worth it in the long run, says Minto’s vice-president of sustainability Alison Minato.

“Every business needs to look at what makes sense for them, what kind of impact it will make,” she says. “There might be a direct benefit by investing up front on retrofits, for example, that could result in savings over the long term. It could be a benefit if you’re creating a more comfortable place for your employees to work in or for your

customers to live in, or just a better sense of community. All of those things are good for business.”

In turn, that will benefit the city as a whole, she says.

“Anything that makes downtown Ottawa a better place is good for Minto, because a stronger, more vibrant community brings people to live and work in Ottawa,” Ms. Minato says.

Minto’s head office at 180 Kent St. is located within the eco-district and includes a city block with a mix of commercial, residential and public space.

“And that’s great for our business because we sell homes and office space and we want people to be there to buy those homes and lease that office space,” Ms. Minato says.

The idea for the eco-district, which includes the area from Gloucester Street north to the Ottawa River and from Bronson Avenue east to the Rideau

present:

Mayor’s Breakfast Series A unique opportunity to enjoy breakfast with His Worship Mayor Jim Watson and hear from business and community leaders about issues critical to Ottawa.

Guest Speaker: Yves DesjardinsSiciliano, CEO of Via Rail Canada Topic: The future of VIA Rail Canada Friday, March 27, 2015 Location: Ottawa City Hall Registration: 7:00 am Buffet breakfast: 7:30 am Presentation: 8:00 am

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ANNUAL CHAIR’S L U N C H E O N Thursday, April 16, 2015 | 11:15 am – 1:15 pm The Westin Ottawa | 4th floor - Confederation 1 Ballroom

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This year’s Annual Chair’s Luncheon will focus on the exciting topic of Canada’s 150th birthday celebrations in Ottawa and the lasting economic benefits this historic milestone will have for our city. A dynamic presentation from the Ottawa 2017 Team will be followed by a panel discussion with Mayor Jim Watson, industry leaders and prominent community figures.

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“We’re working to build a reputation for what will be one of the greenest, most sustainable, most socially vibrant downtowns in Canada. That will hopefully bring people back into the downtown core. ” — OTTAWA CENTRE ECODISTRICT EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR DON GRANT

Canal (with a jog to include city hall, the Westin Hotel, the Ottawa Convention Centre and Lisgar High School, as well as Windmill’s new Zibi development), was hatched in 2012 when the federal government began exiting downtown Ottawa for the suburbs, leaving vacancies in older and less energy-efficient buildings.

The plan to create the district and look at the larger issue of neighbourhood sustainability grew from there.

“We’re working to build a reputation for what will be one of the greenest, most sustainable, most socially vibrant downtowns in Canada,” says Mr. Grant. “That will hopefully bring people back into the downtown core.”

As an example, he points to Windmill’s $1-billion development of the Domtar lands, which is expected to be among the most environmentally friendly mixeduse real estate projects in the country. Ottawa eco-district organizers are hoping to work with other partners on a range of

initiatives and to ask questions about various aspects of city life and how they can be adapted to fit their overall strategy.

“Is there more that we can do to encourage conservation by working with Hydro Ottawa?” says Mr. Grant. “Is there more that we can do to address waste and recycling?

The answers benefit business.”

Even something as esoteric as a garden has a positive impact on local commerce, he says.

“If we get a really interesting gardening program going and people who work downtown can put on their gloves and take care of a plot of land or a planter, that’s going to give them more job satisfaction,” he says.

Organizers are hoping the momentum they’re gathering will spread to other parts of Ottawa.

“We want to take the lessons learned from this eco-district and have them available for any other part of the city that’s interested in looking at them,” says Mr. Grant.

“Whatever we learn in the core, we want to share.”

Eco-district “champion” Windmill Development Group has an eco-friendly vision for its Zibi project. FILE PHOTO

Celebrating 20 years of Ottawa's fresh food fave

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Sheraton Ottawa Hotel –150 Albert St., 2nd floor- Rideau Room for Next-Generation Networks (CENGN). CENGN brings together representatives of every link of the supply chain as well as researchers to accelerate the commercialization of new network technologies. The federal government has awarded this consortium with $11.7 million in government funding ($46m total over seven years).

In August, the federal government announced a $14.9 million investment into the Medical Devices Commercialization Centre. The centre will help medical device innovations get to market faster, by creating a collaborative network that removes commercialization roadblocks, for devices designed and produced in Canada.

In November, Ottawa’s innovation ecosystem came together to present a comprehensive week of events for the annual celebration of entrepreneurs, Global Entrepreneurship Week. Once again Ottawa was among the top cities in Canada with 80 events on the calendar, just a few shy of first place Vancouver.

In October, Invest Ottawa played host to another important federal government announcement. $7.7 million in funding ($24 million total over five years) for a partnership involving Wesley-Clover that will deliver incubator-accelerator services to support entrepreneurs and start-ups in the enterprise software market through L-Spark. Companies that make it through the program will emerge ready to compete at an international level. L-Spark has the potential to be one of the best programs in North America.

In support of all of these tremendous collaborative partnerships, Ottawa’s four post-secondary academic institutions have come together to promote their co-op programs, encouraging local companies to hire locally and prompt business who don’t currently hire co-op, to add it to their hiring plan.

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MONDAY, MARCH 16, 2015

At Invest Ottawa, our activities focus around a theme. In 2012 that theme was “Transformation”, in 2013 it was “Results” and in 2014 our theme was “Collaboration”. In just the last six months, we have been fortunate to participate in a number of collaborative proposals and projects that promise to enhance Ottawa’s innovation ecosystem in a significant way.

CONSTRUCTION

presents

The Women’s Business Network is proud to announce the Finalists for the Businesswoman of the Year Awards.

Professional

Tarion chair says confidence in firm steadily building Cracking down on illegal builders next on agency’s list of priorities, Ottawa lawyer says

BY DAVID SALI david@obj.ca

Rosa Iuliano

Partner Collins Barrow

Paula Clancy

Lorraine Mastersmith

Jennifer Stewart

Caralyn Tierney

Owner/Partner Clancy P.C. + Brion Raffoul

Partner Perley-Robertson, Hill & McDougall

Entrepreneur

Laura Dubois

Owner/Manager Laura’s Your Independent Grocer

Owner/President JS Communications

President/Owner Caralyn’s Hair & Wig Design Inc.

Company

Dina Bell-Laroche

Partner Sport Law & Strategy

Frances Mannarino Senior Commercial Account Manager BMO Bank of Montreal

Marie Boivin

Managing Director Accu-Rate Corporation

Who will be this year’s recipients in the Professional, Entrepreneur and Company categories? Join us on April 23 and find out!

16

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MONDAY, MARCH 16, 2015

Nine Finalists. Three Recipients. All deserving.

www.womensbusinessnetwork.ca

T

he Ottawa lawyer who chairs the private corporation that protects buyers of new homes in Ontario says the organization has boosted consumer protection dramatically in his 10 years on the board, but more work still needs to be done.

Chris Spiteri, who became the first local person to head the board of Tarion Warranty Corporation in more than 25 years when he was elected last year, said homebuyers used to complain the non-profit agency was biased in favour of builders.

“I don’t hear (those complaints) anymore,” Mr. Spiteri, a partner at Spiteri & Ursulak, said in a recent interview with OBJ. “In some ways, I think maybe we’re a little too humble in getting that message out.”

Over the past decade, Tarion has boosted protection against problems such as major structural defects from $150,000 to $300,000 and has extended warranties from just two years to as much as seven, he said. The agency has also launched an external review of its dispute resolution mechanism to ensure it’s as fair as possible, he noted, adding it successfully resolves such cases “almost 100 per cent of the time.”

Mr. Spiteri, whose one-year term as chair ends in April, said the corporation is now focused on cracking down on illegal building, which he calls a “real problem in the province.”

All dwellings built for sale in Ontario must be constructed by builders who are registered with Tarion and have proven they have proper expertise and the financial resources to protect buyers’ deposits. The only exceptions are rental properties, homes built by the owners themselves and seasonal housing such as cottages.

Mr. Spiteri said buyers of illegally built homes can be on the hook for repair costs due to shoddy workmanship and can be liable if the builder’s employees are injured on the job.

“For new homebuyers, it’s a real problem because they’re unaware of what

warranty rights are extended to them,” he said.

He said Tarion will be vetting applications for new building permits much more rigorously in the future to ensure builders have the proper paperwork. In the past, he said, violations were often brought to the company’s attention only after the fact.

“If we can take this step forward to ensure that new homes are predominantly done legally by legally registered builders, I think we have served new homebuyers tenfold over,” Mr. Spiteri said. “This is the biggest initiative to protect consumers that I’ve seen Tarion take.”

But an NDP MPP who has tabled a private member’s bill that would give the province’s auditor general and ombudsman the power to investigate Tarion says he doesn’t think illegal building is a major worry for most consumers.

“It may be an issue … and I support that initiative, but that’s not the concern that I’m hearing at the doors,” said Jagmeet Singh, adding he hears far more complaints about legitimate builders who dodge their responsibility to homebuyers. “People tell me, ‘Hey, we bought from this builder and the builder’s not fixing and Tarion’s not paying up.’”

Mr. Singh’s bill, entitled the Tarion Accountability and Oversight Act, would also force the corporation to ensure that employees who earn more than $100,000 a year are included on the provincial “sunshine list” and make its bylaws subject to government approval.

Tarion, which was created by the province in the 1970s to oversee the Ontario New Home Warranties Plan Act, is funded mainly through enrolment fees of up to $1,600 per home that are usually passed on to buyers.

Mr. Spiteri said he’s proud of Tarion’s record when it comes to protecting consumers. Each year, he noted, only a handful of disputes between buyers and builders end up at the provincial Licence Appeal Tribunal, the arbitrator of last resort.

“That’s a remarkable number,” he said.

“By the time it gets to that point, Tarion has already gone to great lengths to bring about a resolution.”

ECONOMY

“There’s never really been a business survey that everyone in Ottawa knew about.” — BRUCE RAGANOLD OF WELCH LLP

Taking the pulse of local business Chamber survey to get entrepreneurs’ opinions on everything from taxes to LeBreton Flats

BY DAVID SALI david@obj.ca

A

ttention, all businesses: the Ottawa Chamber of Commerce wants to hear from you.

The organization plans to send out an online survey to hundreds of local companies later this month aimed at getting a more accurate picture of the city’s economy. Questions will touch on everything from how well various levels of government are promoting economic growth to what should be done with LeBreton Flats.

“We wanted to make sure that we were understanding those (businesses) that we represent, but also the

Chamber boss Ian Faris. FILE PHOTO

business community at large,” says chamber president Ian Faris, whose organization has conducted two smaller surveys of its members in the past year.

He said those earlier polls found that the biggest barriers

to doing business in Ottawa were a lack of skilled workers, transportation and traffic issues, bureaucratic red tape and excessive fees and taxes.

Mr. Faris is hoping the latest survey, which is comprised of about 45 questions, will flesh out those results. He plans to send the questionnaire to a wide range of business groups across the city, including other chambers and BIAs, with the aim of getting at least 500 responses.

“We really want to improve the accuracy and the validity of the numbers,” he says. “This is going to help develop our priorities.”

Local pollster Abacus Data is overseeing the project, which is co-sponsored by the chamber,

accounting firm Welch LLP and the Ottawa Business Journal. Abacus founder David Coletto says the results should provide a much more accurate barometer of the local economy than past studies.

“It’s always difficult to survey businesses because it’s difficult to generate a random sample,” he says. “There’s no master list of every business in the city that we can easily access. Last time we relied primarily on the chamber’s membership to generate the data. This time (with more partners), we’re going to have a much larger pool of business leaders to pull from. The results are going to be much more meaningful than they’ve been in the past.”

For example, the new survey breaks down the skills shortage issue into specific components, such as whether it’s harder to find workers with technical

skills or soft skills.

“We want to understand, what does that mean to (businesses) and what are some of the challenges they’re facing finding skilled workers, whether it’s finding them at all or retaining them, and so on,” Mr. Coletto says. “I think that’s going to be an interesting deep dive.”

But the survey isn’t all business. Questions about respondents’ favourite local sports franchises and summer festivals have also been thrown in to lighten things up.

Bruce Raganold, director of business development at Welch LLP, says the project is long overdue.

“There’s never really been a business survey that everyone in Ottawa knew about,” he says.

The chamber will start tabulating the results in midApril and release them in May.

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THE LIST

MONDAY, MARCH 16, 2015 OBJ.CA

(Ranked by number of local employees)

No. of Key Ottawa- Year Ottawa area established Publicly traded?/ employees executive in Ottawa exchange Major clients

Main technologies

Description

Y NYSE: ABT

WND

Medical diagnostics; high technology; biotech

Manufacturer of real-time blood analysis systems for patient-side testing of electrolytes, metabolites, gases, coagulation and cardiac enzymes.

Scott McIntosh 1946 Tom Burnett president, Gamma Technologies and Corporate Services president, Medical Isotopes Imants Lauks 2001 CEO

N

Pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies; medical device manufacturers; hospitals; clinics; research laboratories

Radioisotopes, radiation and related Medical isotopes; targeted therapies for technologies used to diagnose, prevent cancer; radiopharmaceutical and treat disease. development; clinical and commercial manufacturing; gamma sterilization technologies

N

WND

Epoc point-of-care blood analysis system

Point-of-care blood analysis solutions for health-care enterprises.

160

Lisa Schoenhofer 2008 marketing coordinator

N

Hospitals; clinics; cancer centres; research centres

Gamma beam teletherapy (external beam therapy for oncology); blood and research irradiators; cyclotrons for radioisotope production and research

Manufactures and sells medical equipment worldwide. Radiation teletherapy for oncology; cyclotron systems; blood and research irradiators.

90

Ian Curry president

Y NASDAQ: OSUR (parent company)

Specializes in kits and reagents to Creates products that allow donors to collect, stabilize and prepare samples provide a reliable, high-quality sample in for genetics, microbiome and infectious a non-invasive and cost-effective way. disease.

75

Greg Nyman 1973 general manager

Y NYSE: TMO

Academic institutions; hospitals; Harvard, Stanford, Cambridge and Johns Hopkins universities; The Hospital for Sick Children; Karolinska Institutet; 23andme.

Clinical and industrial microbiology laboratories

60

Diane Hosson director of security solutions

1982

Y NYSE: SWK

Hospitals; medical centres; government; health networks; skilled nursing; assisted living; retirement communities; rehabilitation centres

Visibility and analytics solutions based Provider of real-time locating systems to on RTLS technology for monitoring the locate and protect people and medical location, status and inter-relationships equipment in health-care environments. of staff, patients and equipment.

1992

Y NASDAQ: BABY (parent company)

WND

Real-time acquisition of clinical patient Medical software and hardware for the data as well as an SQL-based health-care industry, specifically sleep information system labs and respiratory care departments, to diagnose patients with sleep disorders.

2001

Y NYSE: PFE

Health-care industry

Immune modulatory drugs treating cancer, chronic infectious disease, asthma and allergy

Research and development up to phase 2 clinical trials.

1995

Y NASDAQ

WND

Clinical trials management, electronic data capture

Global contract research organization providing therapeutic and clinical expertise in the management of phase I IV clinical trials. Provides protocol design, medical monitoring, monitoring data management, regulations, pharmacy and report writing.

DNA testing

1 2

Abbott Point of Care 185 Corkstown Rd. Ottawa, ON K2H 8V4 613-688-5949/WND abbottpointofcare.com Nordion Inc. 447 March Rd. Kanata, ON K2K 1X8 613-592-2790/613-592-6937 nordion.com

900

Sean Tomalty plant director

367

3 4 5 6

Epocal Inc.* 2060 Walkley Rd. Ottawa, ON K1G 3P5 613-738-6192/613-738-6195 epocal.com Best Theratronics Ltd. 413 March Rd. Kanata, ON K2K 0E4 613-591-2100/613-591-6627 theratronics.ca DNA Genotek Inc. 2 Beaverbrook Rd. Kanata, ON K2K 1L1 613-723-5757/613-368-4628 dnagenotek.com Thermo Fisher Scientific, Microbiology Division Canada 100-1926 Merivale Rd. Nepean, ON K2G 1E8 613-226-1318/613-226-3728 oxoid.com/ca STANLEY Healthcare 309 Legget Dr. Ottawa, ON K2K 3A3 613-287-1339/613-592-4296 stanleyhealthcare.com Embla (a division of Natus) 202-1 Hines Rd. Kanata, ON K2K 3C7 613-254-8877/WND embla.com Pfizer - Ottawa Laboratory 200-340 Terry Fox Dr. Kanata, ON K2K 3A2 613-254-5622/613-254-5625 pfizer.com PRA International* 600-1145 Hunt Club Rd. Ottawa, ON K1V 0Y3 613-739-8162/613-739-8163 www.praintl.com

250

7 8 9 10

18

Company/Address/ Phone/Fax/Web

Largest life science companies

40

40

40

WND Heather Davis executive director WND

1988

1998

Prepared culture media and diagnostic Manufactures and distributes products kits for microbiology laboratories.

11 12 13

Spartan Bioscience Inc. 37 204-6 Gurdwara Rd. Ottawa, ON K2E 8A3 613-228-7756/613-228-8636 spartanbio.com Annidis Corp.

33 100 Maple Grove Rd. Ottawa, ON K2V 1B8 613-596-1800/613-596-9453 annidis.com Allphase Clinical Research Inc. 30 301-320 March Rd. Ottawa, ON K2K 2E3 613-287-0366/613-287-0367 allphaseclinical.com

Paul Lem CEO

2005

N

WND

WND

Zelkjo "Nick" Ribaric president

2007

Y TSXV: RHA

Optometric and ophthalmology clinics; eye care research institutes; veterans hospitals

Devices designed to allow eye care professionals the ability to visualize the earliest evidence of retinal and choroidal disorders.

Jeff Smith president

2001

N

Novartis; Merck; Janssen; Nordion; Wex; Roche

WND

14 15 16

Braebon Medical Corp.

1-100 Schneider Rd. Kanata, ON K2K 1Y2 613-831-6690/613-831-6699 braebon.com Phreesia* 110-1 Hines Rd. Ottawa, ON K2K 3C7 888-654-7473/WND phreesia.com STACS DNA 206-2255 St. Laurent Blvd.

Ottawa, ON K1G 4K3 613-274-7822/613-274-3825 stacsdna.com

30

Richard Bonato 1998 CEO

N

WND

Hardware, software, services and consumables for sleep medicine.

30

Kathy Anstey director, customer solutions

2005

WND

WND

Point-of-service solution digitizes intake, automates eligibility and benefits verification, calculates and collects patient responsibility.

19

Jocelyn Tremblay president and COO

2005

N

FBI; RCMP; US Army; state police DNA labs in Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, Illinois, Michigan, Missouri, Pennsylvania, and Texas; regional labs in Miami Valley (Ohio) and Washoe County (Nevada)

Sample tracking and control software helps DNA labs increase capacity, reduce turnaround time, save time, prevent errors, cut costs, improve data quality, maintain chain of custody, simplify audits and meet accreditation standards.

17

ARC Healthcare Solutions Inc. 15 105 Willowlea Rd. Ottawa, ON K0A 1L0 613-254-5531/613-254-5521 arc-hcs.com

Robert Swayne president

11

N

18

GestureLogic Inc. WND Ottawa, ON WND WND/WND gesturelogic.com, www.leohelps.com Alio Health Services 301-320 March Rd. Ottawa, ON K2K 2E3 613-287-0366/613-287-0367 aliohealth.com Imasight Inc. 10-925 de la Carriere Blvd.

Gatineau, QC J8Y 6W5 819-777-7979/WND imasightchiro.com

14

Leonard MacEachern CEO

2013

N

10

Jeff Smith president

2012

N

10

Jean Caseault president

2001

N

19 20

Sample processing software designed for forensics and healthcare DNA labs.

Tracks and controls samples; captures detailed audit trail; manages workflows, consumables, inventory, storage, maintenance; integrates systems and instrumentation Winnipeg Regional Health Authority; Manufactures medical-grade Sutter Health; William Osler equipment used to clean, disinfect and Hospital; Ottawa Hospital; Trillium store flexible re-usable endoscopes used Health Services; Emory University in medical procedures such as Hospital; Eastern Health; Peter colonoscopies.

Lougheed Center; Niagara Health Services; Macclesfield District General Hospital WND LEO introduces muscle and bio-signal monitoring capabilities matched with software that provides a cycling-specific solution with the ability to create, use, and customize cycling training programs.

Janssen; Novartis Home health care workflow management software platform that facilitates the expeditious delivery of home care services.

WND

Multi-spectral imaging technology is a tool for diagnostic retinal imaging. It is the gateway to the RPE, allowing eye care professionals to identify, diagnose and monitor retinal disorders non-invasively.

Phase 2 to 4 clinical trial development and management services, including protocol development, project management, data management, biostatistics and medical writing. Quality assurance services: site, vendor, process audits and QMS development.

Solution provider for the diagnosis and treatment of snoring and sleep apnea.

Increases endoscope cleaning efficacy and reduces reprocessing costs, thereby increasing patient throughput and saving hospitals money.

Provides cyclists with physiological data and is designed to enhance their performance by meshing seamlessly with, and improving upon, their current training regimen.

Facilitates all aspects of patient support programs and provides home health care services that include education and medication/injection/infusion support to patients in their home.

CCD-based ImaSight sensor; ImaSight Digital radiography solutions and VisionXpert annotation software software for medical chiropractors

WND = Would not disclose. *Did not respond - 2014 data Should your company be on this list? If so, please send details to research@obj.ca. This list is current as of March 16, 2015 by Ottawa Business Journal. All rights reserved. This material may not be reproduced by any method in whole or in part without written permission by Ottawa Business Journal. While every attempt is made to ensure the thoroughness and accuracy of the list, omissions and errors sometimes occur. Please send any corrections or additions by e-mail to research@obj.ca. OBJ lists are primarily compiled using information provided voluntarily by the organizations named. Some firms that may qualify for the list are not included because the company either failed to respond to requests for information by press time, because the company declined to take part in the survey or because of space constraints. Categories are drawn up in an attempt to gather information of relevance to the Ottawa market.

Research by Patti Moran. Please send questions and comments to research@obj.ca.

FOR THE RECORD People on the move Women in Communications and Technology has appointed seven new board members and a new executive committee.

The Ottawa-based organization’s new board members are: Kristine Emmett, vice-president of organizational development for Bell Canada; Sandra Pasquini, vice-president of human resources, IT and network for Rogers Communications; Denise Shortt, vice-president of industry development for the Information Technology Association of Canada; Staci Trackey Meagher, vicepresident of the enterprise and partner group for Microsoft Canada; Nilufer Erdebil, founder and CEO of Spring2 Innovation; Robyn Heaton, dean of the faculty of arts, media and design for Algonquin College; and Fawn Annan, president and group publisher of IT World Canada.

Norton Rose Fulbright Canada has announced that Pierre-Paul Henrie is the new managing partner of the firm’s Ottawa office.

He is also the chair of the Ottawa business law group.

Mr. Henrie brings more than 20 years of experience as a lawyer to the role.

Hats off Gowlings Ottawa partner Frank Mulock has been awarded a Client Choice Award for 2015 by the International Law Office, in partnership with Lexology.

Mr. Mulock received the Client Choice Award for Intellectual Property: Trademarks for Ontario.

Export Development Canada has been awarded the Deal of the Year by Trade Finance magazine for its issue of a five-year, $1-billion U.S. bond in November 2014. The award recognizes innovation and achievement in the trade finance market.

N-able Technologies general manager JP Jauvin and senior vice-president of sales Mike Cullen were named to The Channel Company’s 2015 CRN Channel Chiefs list. In addition, Mr. Cullen was selected for the 50 Most Influential Channel Chiefs list, comprised of industry executives honoured for demonstrating the highest levels of IT channel influence.

Hierarchy Development & Design has been chosen as the winner in the Canadian Home Builders’ Association’s 2014 National SAM Awards for the “any room” category.

The Canadian Corps of Commissionaires 100 Gloucester St. Description: Commissionaire services Buyer: PWGSC $297,611,148 TELUS Communications Inc. 215 Slater St. Description: GCNet WAN services – invitation to qualify Buyer: Shared Services Canada $33,380,932 Allstream Inc. 150 Laurier Ave. W. Description: GCNet WAN services – invitation to qualify Buyer: Shared Services Canada $22,253,954 Calian Ltd. 340 Legget Dr. Description: CFSCE training and support services Buyer: DND $9,416,403 DEW Engineering and Development ULC 3429 Hawthorne Rd. Description: Portable heater kits Buyer: DND $3,740,296 Oracle Canada ULC 45 O’Connor St. Description: ADP software Buyer: Statistics Canada $3,394,272 Graebeck Construction Ltd. 160C Terence Matthews Cr. Description: CD Howe Building 1st floor refit Buyer: PWGSC $2,832,700 CGI Information Systems and Management Consultants Inc. 1410 Blair Pl. Description: Informatics professional services Buyer: Office of Infrastructure of Canada $2,134,073 Advanced Chippewa Technologies Inc. 802 Nesbitt Pl. Description: ADP software Buyer: Citizenship and Immigration Canada $1,984,765 Saint Paul University 223 Main St. Description: Government accommodation Buyer: PWGSC $1,625,857 TELUS Communications Inc. 215 Slater St. Description: GCNet WAN services – invitation to qualify Buyer: Shared Services Canada $1,387,130 ESRI Canada Ltd. 1600 Carling Ave. Description: ADP software Buyer: DND $1,365,765

$375,254

S.i. Systems Ltd. 170 Laurier Ave. W. Description: Technology architects Buyer: Canada Border Services Agency $1,193,280 CAE Inc. 1135 Innovation Dr. Description: Human factor research and modelling Buyer: DND $994,400 Motorola Solutions Canada Inc. 360 Albert St. Description: Radio and television communications equipment, except airborne Buyer: RCMP $966,466 Eclipsys Solutions Inc. 411 Legget Dr. Description: ADP software Buyer: DND $603,537 Valcom Consulting Group Inc. 85 Albert St. Description: Human resource services, business consulting/change management; project management services supply arrangement Buyer: DND $678,001 Millwork North 409 Industrial Ave. Description: 4th floor retrofit Sir Charles Tupper Building Buyer: PWGSC $639,000 Interis Consulting Inc. 275 Slater St. Description: Develop subsidy models and support an engagement with communities for the Nutrition North Canada program in 2015-16 Buyer: Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development Canada $549,605 D-TA Systems Inc. 2500 Lancaster Rd. Description: Communications network software (R&D) Buyer: PWGSC $493,538 Stadacona Sports and Fitness Centre 193 Grey Fox Dr. Description: Fitness equipment Buyer: DND $410,642

Raymond and Associates Roofing Inc. 3091 Albion Rd. Description: Roof replacement Buyer: Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada $308,795 ESRI Canada Ltd. 1600 Carling Ave. Description: ADP software Buyer: Parks Canada $306,849 Compucom Canada Co. 2280 St. Laurent Blvd.

Description: ADP input-output and storage devices Buyer: DND $278,161 Totem Offisource Inc. 1 Promenade du Portage Description: Teknion workstation refit and install – optimization of floors 3 to 7 Buyer: Transport Canada $273,973 FreeBalance Inc. 411 Legget Dr. Description: ADP software Buyer: Veterans Affairs Canada $260,307 iPolitics Inc. 17 York St. Description: Media monitoring services Buyer: PWGSC $248,920 Cache Computer Consulting Corp.

275 Slater St. Description: A.2 ERP functional analyst Buyer: Employment and Social Development Canada $247,470

Oracle Canada ULC 45 O’Connor St. Description: ADP software Buyer: Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada $377,861

Access Corporate Technologies Inc. 1600 Carling Ave. Description: Human resource services, business consulting/change management; project management services supply arrangement Buyer: DND $239,205

DEW Engineering and Development ULC 3429 Hawthorne Rd. Description: Field heater replacement project spares Buyer: DND

Rohde & Schwarz Canada Inc. 1 Hines Rd. Description: Electronic test and measurement equipment Buyer: DND $238,308

19 OBJ.CA

Solomon M.W. Gold has joined the intellectual property group at PerleyRobertson, Hill & McDougall LLP/s.r.l. as a partner and patent and trademark agent. Mr. Gold has more than 24 years of experience and joins the firm from his recent position with Smart & Biggar/Fetherstonhaugh.

David Black has been promoted to the role of vice-president of business development in Ontario for Cowan Insurance Group. Mr. Black will be accountable for leading the continued growth, overall strategy and development of Cowan’s Ontario branch distribution network.

The following contains information about recent contracts, standing offers and supply arrangements awarded to local firms.

Advanced Chippewa Technologies Inc. 802 Nesbitt Pl. Description: ADP software Buyer: Employment and Social Development Canada $1,221,833

MONDAY, MARCH 16, 2015

St. John Ambulance has appointed Allan Smith as CEO. Mr. Smith brings more than 30 years of relevant leadership and management experience to his new role, having previously served as president, CEO and board director of Saxon Financial, and as a senior executive with MD Management.

Patrick Nichols has been appointed the new CEO of Corel. Mr. Nichols joined Corel as the president of WinZip five years ago. His responsibilities grew to include the company’s digital media brands and more recently its graphics and productivity product lines.

Contracts

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