JUNE 2015
» COMMERCIAL REAL ESTATE
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NANAIMO Eriks Industrial Services is the island expert in hoses and fittings
Hardware Software
Vancouver Island WWW.BUSINESSEXAMINER.CA
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PORT ALBERNI Dol Construction is a petroleum focused construction firm that delivers quality service
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INDEX News Update 2 Sales 7 Cowichan Valley 9 Nanaimo 10 Parksville 22 Qualicum 22 Port Alberni 30 West Coast 34 Comox Valley 38 Campbell River 39 Who is Suing Whom 46 Movers and Shakers 47 Law 51 Contact us: 1-866-758-2684
OUR 10TH YEAR
Business background will help new Ucluelet First Nation President Excited about the future, Les Doiron’s homecoming 50 years in the making
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CLUELET – Les Doiron has been a business owner and most recently a salesman at Alberni Toyota. Those skills will come in handy in the next chapter of his life, as the newly elected President of the Ucluelet First Nation. “T here is no such th i ng as ‘President’ school,” says Doiron, a l low i ng he ex pects a steep learning curve in his new position. “My thought was ‘I can make a difference here’. That’s why I threw my hat in the ring.’ Following a two-year tenure as a member of the Nation’s operating board, Doiron put his name forward for the President’s position, running on a diverse platform focused on uniting the Nation and driving it towards self-sufficiency. “I was intrigued by the potential that I saw,” he says. “My time on the board provided me with a look at the big picture of what was going on.
SEE BUSINESS BACKGROUND | PAGE 6
Les Doiron, President of the Ucluelet First Nations
Nanaimo’s 16-year overnight success story Real Estate Webmasters is creating a campus in the downtown core BY GOODY NIOSI
Canadian Publications Mail Acct.: 40069240
In addition to the role of President, he also chairs the Treaty Implementation and Economic Development committees. Economic development is another significant component of Doiron’s vision. The Nation has a treaty with the provincial government that requires it to become self-sustainable in the next few years. “There have been a number of successful projects initiated through the Ucluth Development Corporation,” he says. “My goal is to build off of that and develop new long-term partnerships with government and business that are mutually beneficial. “There are employment needs here,” he adds. ”We need jobs that pay, and are able to sustain our members. Self-sustaining businesses will fund the preservation of our heritage, and give our youth opportunities in
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ANAIMO - As CEO Morgan Carey puts it, “Real Estate Webmasters is a 16-year overnight success.” With its recent acquisition of 8, 10 and 12 Church Street, following on the heels of its purchase
of the historic Great National Land Building, and adding that to its first downtown building at 223 Commercial Street, the Real Estate Webmasters (REW) campus now pretty much owns that section of Nanaimo’s core. With 200 staff housed in those three buildings plus two other
buildings on Terminal Avenue and Fourth Street, REW is rapidly becoming one of the largest and most successful enterprises in the city. Carey attributes the company’s success to his team, but it would be remiss not to give due credit to a man who fought against all
odds to achieve what many can only dream of. His mother was a Nanaimo street musician who would often put him to sleep in her guitar case. But from her, he learned a love of music that has stayed with SEE NANAIMO’S 16-YEAR | PAGE 42