BurnabyNOW WEDNESDAY January 24, 2018 13
BURNABY
BUSINESS NEWS
Burnaby Board of Trade Pounds the Pavement to Get Pulse of Business Community By Cory Redekop | cory@bbot.ca
JAN–FEB 2018
As 2017 was winding down, the Burnaby Board of Trade (BBOT) was busy reviewing nearly 80 interviews and surveys conducted during its Business Walk of the Big Bend-Glenlyon business district and compiling the results into a Business Sentiment Report on the area. The results? Most businesses are doing well and experiencing growth, a result consistent across industries and business sizes. Almost all businesses name Burnaby’s central location in the region as the best advantage of locating here, and most businesses surveyed say they would try to stay in Burnaby first if forced to change buildings. Amongst the challenges facing local businesses, finding and keeping employees, transportation issues, and increasing expenses and costs were mentioned as common concerns. A Business Walk is an economic development activity which sees dozens of volunteers from the BBOT, its members, and the City of Burnaby visiting companies door-to-door in a specific neighbourhood to uncover how businesses are doing and what issues or challenges they may be facing. This most recent Business Walk focused on the growing business neighbourhood of Big Bend-Glenylon which falls between Marine Way and the Fraser River in south Burnaby. The area is home to several business parks and industrial estates and focuses on providing high quality office, research and light industrial spaces.
BURNABY BOARD OF TRADE
86%
33%
Affordability Access to Labour
100%
17%
Access to Customers
72%
80%
26%
Business Friendly
60%
25%
Transportation and Access
33%
40%
21% 20% 0%
Good/Increasing
Fair/Steady
0%
FEB 1 BYPN: STEAMWORKS BREWERY SOCIAL
JAN 26 NRG MORNING: NETWORKING GROUP
FEB 8 LUNAR NEW YEAR BANQUET
JAN 30 BBOT MEMBERSHIP LUNCH AND LEARN
FEB 19 AFTER HOURS MIXER: ACQUA RESTAURANT & BAR
Casa Madera BRUSHED OAK $5.49 Starting at
Sq. Ft.
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
90% 100%
Slow/Poor
Burnaby’s location is the top advantage to locating a business in the city. Its central location allows ready access for employees, puts the region’s 2.4 million customers within reach, and allows good connections to the airport, USA border, and port facilities. Burnaby’s considerable transportation infrastructure (roads and transit) and its affordability when compared with other regional jurisdictions are other advantages named by the business community. Con’t on p.3
When asked, a full 72% of businesses reported that business was increasing, which is the highest percentage recorded in any of the BBOT’s previous Business Walk exercises. When combined with the 21% which are holding steady, more than 9 in 10 Burnaby businesses are doing well.
JAN 24 LOCAL GOVERNMENT REPRESENTATIVES RECEPTION
6%
None
7%
Events Calendar
ENGINEERED HARDWOOD
Geographic Location
How is Burnaby business doing?
FEB 1 BUSINESS DIALOGUE: ATTRACTING TALENT DURING A LABOUR SHORTAGE
9/16”x 7.5”
What’s good about doing business in Burnaby?
The full Business Sentiment Report for this Business Walk can be found online at www.bbot.ca.
FEB 19 POWER HOUR REFERRAL ROUNDTABLE FEB 23 NRG MORNING: NETWORKING GROUP FEB 28 BBOT MEMBERSHIP LUNCH AND LEARN For event detals, please visit:
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