SEE FURTHER GROW HIGHER
2018 ANNUAL REPORT
MESSAGE FROM THE CEO AND CHAIR The life of any organization is a very rapidly moving journey. At EDR we recognize that progressive cities and economic development authorities must add new elements to our traditional approach and develop nimble strategies to maximize the benefit of emerging opportunities to build the economy and the community. The core of EDR’s business model is collaboration. We facilitate stakeholders in the community to help them achieve their goals. We believe that 2018 was a good year of progress in building capacity to do the important work in front of us, in that we were able to enhance existing partnerships and collaborations, and build new ones. One of the most exciting collaborations we were part of in 2018 was the plant protein super cluster initiative, which brought up to 153 million dollars in funding from the Government of Canada to focus on making western Canada the plant protein production capital of the world. As a result Protein Industries Canada is now based in Regina, and we have begun a multi-year strategy to engage Greater Regina Area (GRA) companies and researchers in this important work. We also took our partnership with Tourism industry operators to a new level with our first ever Tourism YQR: Collaborate & Connect conference, a day long professional development and training event for the industry. It was especially gratifying to see the growth in the depth of our working relationship with City Council and the city administration in 2018. This partnership has matured into a very productive exchange of ideas and information, and we are grateful for the level of trust and respect shown to EDR by our civic leadership.
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Support for EDR’s work from the private sector has never been stronger. In 2018 the number of companies and organizations directly investing in us through our Investment Partnership Program reached twenty, representing new revenues of some $1.2 million over multiple years. We are also receiving significant financial support from public agencies such as Innovation Saskatchewan and Western Economic Diversification. EDR received approval and support of our mission and vision from over 80% of our community stakeholders, in a recent stakeholder survey, which has been a consistent trend over the past three years. 2018 also saw EDR move forward a number of key initiatives to advance our priorities: . Increased incremental investment . Strong, competitive identity . Robust entrepreneurial eco-system . Smart growth sector strategies . Emerging opportunities The initiatives and partnerships we began and fostered in 2018 provide the foundation for the job ahead to grow the economy of the GRA for the benefit of all citizens. We are humbled and challenged by the confidence that has been shown in our plan and in our board and staff team, and grateful for the support and assistance of our stakeholders.
JOHN D. LEE, PRESIDENT & CEO
MURAD AL-KATIB, CHAIR
EDR BOARD OF DIRECTORS MURAD AL-KATIB, CHAIR
CHRIS HOLDEN, OBSERVER
President and CEO AGT Food & Ingredients Inc.
City Manager City of Regina
FRANK HART, VICE-CHAIR
MARTY KLYNE
Managing Director TD Greystone Asset Management
Senator Government of Canada
DAVID BRUNDIGE, Q.C.
MARK LANG
Partner Willows, Wellsch, Orr & Brundige, LLP
Managing Partner, Regina KPMG LLP
ERIC DILLON
TINA SVEDAHL
Chief Executive Officer Conexus Credit Union
Vice President, Investments Harvard Developments Inc.
JASON DRUMMOND
DR. VIANNE TIMMONS
Managing Partner York Plains Investment Corp.
President and Vice-Chancellor University of Regina
MICHAEL FOUGERE
RYAN URZADA
Mayor City of Regina
Managing Director Travelodge Hotel and Conference Centre
President & CEO JOHN D. LEE Economic Development Regina Inc.
DALE GRIESSER President Avison Young Commercial Real Estate
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EDR’s Vision of the Greater Regina Area’s Economy in 2020 and Beyond
The Greater Regina Area (GRA) prospers as a vibrant and diversified economy for investors, a strong destination experience for visitors, and a place of choice with a high standard and quality of life for residents.
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EDR’S ROLE EDR’s role is to advance a bold, collaborative vision and to build a foundation to ensure economic prosperity and growth for the GRA. Smart growth in strategic industry sectors continues to be the primary focus for EDR. As in previous years EDR’s business plan includes Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) that align with the strategic intents of the organization. These KPIs are designed to reflect the cross functional nature of each operating unit’s activities and the optimization of growth for each of EDR’s key sectors along with identify and advance emerging opportunities for the community.
Long-term Goals . The GRA is nationally recognized as an economic and entrepreneurial powerhouse in targeted sectors. . The GRA is one of the top places to start and grow a business. . Sales and employment in the Agri-value and Manufacturing sectors have doubled.
EDR’s business strategy to deliver on our vision was developed under the guidance of a fully engaged Board and our shareholder, the City of Regina, and through engagement and collaboration of the community, business leaders and other stakeholders.
. The impact of Events, Conventions and Tradeshows has grown by $ 50 million annually.
In order to execute our strategy effectively EDR is aligned with the City’s Official Community Plan, specifically the City’s provisions on economic growth, including:
. The Tourism sector has grown the GRA to be a destination of choice for over 2.5 million visitors annually.
. Establish and implement mechanisms to expand and diversify the economy, promote the attractiveness of the GRA as a place to live, invest, do business and visit. . Collaborate with community economic development stakeholders across the region to leverage shared economic advantage and tourism opportunities.
. New growth sectors have emerged that are significantly impacting economic growth and employment in the GRA.
. Encourage innovative options to support and incubate new entrepreneurs and commercial ventures.
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2018 HIGHLIGHTS INCREASED INCREMENTAL INVESTMENT
STRONG, COMPETITIVE IDENTITY
$1.45 million in partner funding
Regina Advantage: See Further. Grow Higher.
EDR exceeded its target of $1.3 million by reaching over $1.45 million of incremental investment in 2018. This included funds from partners of the Investment Partnership Program, the Regina Hotel Association, business services contracts, and other strategic partnerships.
EDR continues to promote Regina as the choice destination for business and leisure travel.
The Investment Partnership Program has doubled the number of partners in the past year to 20, totaling well over $1 million (multi-year program) to support EDR’s growth strategy and the ongoing execution of the Regina Advantage. The Regina Hotel Association (RHA) invested over $630,000 of cash and value-in-kind as part of our partnership to attract Events, Conventions and Tradeshows to Regina as well as to promote Regina as a visitor destination. The 2018 leverage ratio is .85:1.0 (i.e. partner/alliance investment: City of Regina core investment), as compared to actual results of .60:1.0 in 2017 and .55:1.0 in 2016.
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The Regina Advantage initiative creates and markets a defined and succinct competitive identity, focused on growing Regina. The national campaign ran for its first full year in 2018, funded 100% by private sector and our partners. The campaign reached 14 key Canadian markets with significant companies in the key sectors of agri-value and agri-food, oil and gas, and manufacturing, achieving over 20 million advertising impressions. Community partners and stakeholders are increasingly sharing the Regina Advantage message and using Regina Advantage materials in their communications. Tourism Regina marketing campaigns were structured to align with the Regina Advantage campaign. 2018 focused on sharing our stories with the regional market.
ROBUST ENTREPRENEURIAL ECO-SYSTEM AudacityYQR Cultivator Path Cowork
SUPPORTING ENTREPRENEURS EDR works with start-ups and early stage businesses primarily through complimentary programs, Square One and the Saskatchewan Immigrant Nominee Program (SINP). A few notable highlights from this work: . Provided
In 2018 EDR launched: Entrepreneurs Powering the Greater Regina Area, A Community Strategy, driven by the Council for Entrepreneurial Growth. From the identified targets of the Entrepreneurship Strategy the following successes were achieved: . Campaign launched to promote and recognize entrepreneurs under the banner of AudacityYQR; . Coordinated the delivery of two highly subscribed half-day workshops in partnership with the Saskatchewan Capital Network; . Conexus announced they will be building and operating Canada’s first industry-led business incubator, Cultivator;
services to 1,007 entrepreneurs in Regina and area, 91% of which were new clients.
. 9 new businesses in Regina were launched this year which had significant support from EDR. . Assisted 149 new immigrant entrepreneurs with establishing their business, with the intent to create 113 jobs resulting in over $16 million intended or committed investment to southern Saskatchewan, mostly Regina. . Met with an additional 206 individuals looking to immigrate to Regina through our Exploratory Seminar which outlines the benefits of establishing a business in the GRA.
. Federation of Sovereign Indigenous Nations (FSIN), Saskatchewan Indian Equity Foundation (SIEF), First Nations University of Canada (FNUC) and FHQ Developments announced a partnership with Women Entrepreneurs of Saskatchewan (WESK) to develop female Indigenous entrepreneurship workshops; and . Saskatchewan’s largest co-working space, Path Cowork, opened in Regina.
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SMART GROWTH SECTOR STRATEGIES AGRI-VALUE Protein Industries Canada (PIC) was selected as one of five supercluster initiatives – approved to receive up to $150 million in matched federal funding. PIC, a non-profit corporation, has its head office in Regina. EDR built a regional plant-protein cluster activation strategy focused on positioning the GRA as a North American agri-technology hub, supporting the start-up, growth and attraction of food processing and food ingredient manufacturing, and supporting inclusive entrepreneurship.
TOURISM Most recent statistics show a new all-time high of 2.4 million visitors to Regina. Tourism Regina opened new visitor information kiosks at Wascana Centre and RCMP Heritage Centre to place a greater emphasis on supporting a positive visitor experience. A new Tourism Regina website was launched, tourismregina.com. EDR and stakeholders collaboratively invested to enhance the visitor experience during events and conferences including the Tim Hortons Brier, Congress of the Humanities and Social Sciences, Mastercard Memorial Cup and the CP Women’s Open. The first ever tourism stakeholder event was held on November 8 at Conexus Arts Centre, TourismYQR: Collaborate & Connect. 130 tourism industry partners, stakeholders, organizations and attractions came together for professional development and networking.
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2.4 million visitors to Regina EVENTS, CONVENTIONS, AND TRADESHOWS (ECT) 2018 was an exceptional year for events and conventions in Regina, including the Congress of the Humanities and Social Sciences, Tim Hortons Brier, Mastercard Memorial Cup and the CP Women’s Open. The Congress of the Humanities and Social Sciences is the largest academic gathering in Canada. More than 6,000 visitors came to Regina creating an estimated economic impact of over $7 million. The CP Women’s Open hosted by the Wascana Country Club was the event of the year in Saskatchewan. The tournament broke records and set a high standard for anyone to follow: . Second highest attended CP Women’s Open ever . Highest corporate hospitality sales . Highest merchandise sales . 4 5,000 attendees . Estimated economic impact of over $ 8 million
During the year EDR’s ECT team worked with community partners to bid for 21 future conventions and six events including the successful bid for the 2020 Grey Cup.
IDENTIFICATION OF NEW STRATEGIC OPPORTUNITIES STRATEGIC AND COMPETITIVE INTELLIGENCE (SCI) EDR provided research and analysis on many key projects and initiatives, allowing the organization and stakeholders to make better business decisions. Those include:
EDR’s stakeholders have encouraged the organization to identify opportunities that will differentiate the GRA nationally and internationally and continue growth of a diverse and sustainable local economy.
. Produced
2018 saw significant progress on a detailed analysis of the industrial land inventory in the GRA, existing regional services and analysis of the unique service requirements of key sector companies. EDR consulted with private-sector developers to understand the region’s competitive advantages, challenges and to identify areas to enhance our competitive position.
. Provided economic insight and analysis to inform
EDR pursued opportunities to support future growth such as:
. In-depth economic impact and key demographic analysis for the Queen City Marathon,
the Regina Craft Brewing Economic Impact Study, the City of Regina’s Standard and Poor’s credit rating,
. Contributed economic intelligence to help attract transborder flights to the GRA for the Regina Airport Authority, and . Provided the most up-to-date economic data and analysis on the GRA economy to our stakeholders, including analysis of trends, opportunities and challenges. This included producing a monthly analysis of the economy, called the Economic Report Card, as well as the Regina Executive Leadership Outlook, a quarterly survey of leading GRA executives, which provides EDR with insight on executive confidence, hiring and investment intentions, and thought leadership on economic issues.
. Secured $150,000 from U of R and ISM to undertake
a feasibility study to establish Regina as a Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder International Centre of Excellence.
. Led
the creation of Regina’s first technology leadership group who has prioritized labour attraction and retention and mentoring as short-term priorities to grow the industry.
. Initiated the development of local procurement supply chain framework to support retention and growth of local industry.
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FINANCIAL STATEMENT Statement of Operations Year Ended December 31, 2018. REVENUE
2018 BUDGET
2018
2017
$ 1,719,500
$ 1,719,500
$ 1,719,500
Regina Hotel Association
385,000
632,068
351,175
Partner contributions
590,000
516,533
455,109
Project funding
225,000
307,160
225,338
85,900
93,804
82,104
$ 3,005,400
$ 3,269,065
$ 2,833,226
Administration
$ 616,800
$ 601,942
$ 576,822
Enterprise
1,109,301 992,938 909,648
City of Regina core funding
Other income
EXPENSES
Tourism, Events, Conventions & Tradeshows
851,700
Corporate
563,950 596,780 651,230
Loss on disposal of tangible capital assets
EXCESS (DEFICIENCY) OF REVENUE OVER EXPENSES
10
998,510
785,690
–
18,694
–
$ 3,141,751
$ 3,208,864
$ 2,923,390
(136,351)
60,201 ( 90,164 )
DID YOU KNOW? $10.7 million in economic impact
Our population will reach 276,000
The craft brewing industry accounted for $10.7 million in economic impact in 2017 and sales are expected to grow by 30% in 2018.
The Conference Board of Canada forecasts that the Regina CMA economy will grow by an average of 2.2% per year in 2018–2022 and that our population will reach 276,000 during that time.
More than $27 million in total economic benefit New ECTs that will be hosted in Regina in 2019 and beyond, as a result of the work of EDR and its partners, are expected to contribute more than $27 million in total economic benefit.
Services to over 1,000 entrepreneurs EDR provided services to over 1,000 entrepreneurs in Regina and area in 2018.
Over 7 million viewers In 2018 the CP Women’s Open was hosted in Regina and was broadcast to over 7 million Golf Channel viewers across the globe.
Hosting mega events 2018 was a landslide year for Regina hosting mega events including the Mastercard Memorial Cup, Tim Hortons Brier, the Congress of Humanities and Social Sciences as well as the CP Women’s Open.
Over $4 billion in contributions The Manufacturing sector in the GRA contributes over $4 billion in sales and accounts for 5.0% of total employment in Regina.
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PARTNERS Valued Partnership EDR, Tourism Regina and the Regina Hotel Association (RHA) share a common vision to attract leisure and business visitors to the GRA.
Investment Partners EDR’s Investment Partnership Program provides opportunities for companies and organizations to invest directly in our long-term
growth strategy. These are the partners who showed leadership and commitment to the future of the Greater Regina Area.
FOUNDERS
CONTACT US
Economic Development Regina Inc. info@economicdevelopmentregina.com
PREMIER
P: 306-789-5099 TF: 1-800-661-5099
economicdevelopmentregina.com tourismregina.com