Retail & Manufacturing

Companies urged to step outside of comfort zones and be more creative

Big firms opt for offshore, but home suits local manufacturers

Kelowna is British Columbia's most entrepreneurial city when looking at cities with populations over 150,000 and eighth in Canada overall, while Vancouver does not break the country's top 10, according to the results of a Canadian Federation of Independent Business (CFIB) study released October 21.

Advances in technology, changing demographics and the recession of 2007-08 have led to five emerging consumer trends that entrepreneurs should take advantage of to create business opportunities, according to the results of a Business Development Bank of Canada (BDC) study released October 21.

Canucks are more loyal to their brands of choice than their neighbours to the south, according to the results of a Hotels.com poll released October 16.

Manufacturing sales in British Columbia edged upward by 0.8% in August to $3.28 billion, according to Statistics Canada data released October 16.

Customer reviews play an increasingly influential role

Regular networking is essential for those wanting to open up opportunities through new connections

Of the more than 1.1 million businesses currently operating in Canada, 98.2% of those have fewer than 100 employees, according to information released by the Business Development Bank of Canada (BDC) in celebration of BDC Small Business Week (October 20-26, 2013).

Consumers choose the people behind a business, not just the product: small-business coach