SPIN Volume 17 Issue 6

YOURS FREE TO TAKE HOME

VOLUME 17 ISSUE 06 JUNE 14 — JULY 12, 2019

ONE STEP CLOSER TO CANNABIS RETAIL PAGE 2

SUNPEAKSNEWS.COM // @SUNPEAKSNEWS

LEGEND MAKES NEW TRAIL MAP FOR MOUNTAIN PAGE 11

20 YEARS OF PADDLING The journey of the NorthWest Voyageur Company TESSIER PADDLING MCGILLIVRAY LAKE WITH A TOUR GROUP IN EARLY JUNE. Photo SPIN

NIKKI FREDRIKSON

TWENTY YEARS AGO SNOWBOARD INSTRUCTOR KEVIN TESSIER MADE THE DECISION TO OPEN HIS OWN BUSINESS, A CANOE TOUR COMPANY KNOWN AS NORTHWEST VOYAGEUR COMPANY. AT THE TIME IT RAISED EYEBROWS OF OTHER LOCALS AS THE SUMMER MONTHS WERE AN OFFSEASON FOR THE RESORT. BUT TESSIER WAS ABLE TO CREATE A MARKET FOR HIMSELF, EXPANDING OVER THE PAST TWENTY YEARS FROM ONE CANOE TO FOUR, PRIVATE DINNERS, TOUR GROUP PRESENTATIONS AND IS NOW ALSO A RESTAURANT OWNER. “Everyone thought I was out of my mind to start a summer business out here at the time that didn’t involve construction,” said Tessier. “I think achieving this milestone is what I’m most proud of. I never dreamed I’d be here...I thought I would have moved somewhere else or done something else.” The evolution of his entrepreneurship began when

he was 26-years-old, working as a raft guide at Mount Robson. He became enthralled with the works of Peter C. Newman, Canada’s history, and the North West Company. “Everybody knows the story of the Hudson Bay Company, but at that time in my life I was almost 30 years of age, and I had never heard of the North West Company and their accomplishments during the fur trade are just remarkable,” he said. The North West Company was a direct competitor of the Hudsons Bay Company based in Montreal. It was a partnership of nine different fur trading groups which expanded across the continent. He realized most visitors to Canada and many Canadians were unaware of the early explorers’ accomplishments, and decided to try to create a voyageur canoe tour in Sun Peaks. He was familiar with the area and wanted to incorporate the wilderness aspect into his tours and chose a smaller, secluded local lake to house his new venture. “There was one December when there was no snow and the lake was frozen, but you could

actually drive to McGillivray Lake. That was like 1997. I was like ‘Wow. This is a beautiful lake, it would be a really good spot to do tours.’” To build his company from concept to reality Tessier attended a program called Community Futures, which helps people who are on unemployment insurance become entrepreneurs. “There was a former banker (at Community Futures). He said if you want to make a business like that work at a resort...to get

in touch with the bus tours and that’s largely what’s carried us through for this long,” he said. Tessier started his business with just one canoe and expanded to offer the Canadian history talk he provides to bus tour guests. Renting out 5Forty Cafe, then Oronge Boardshop, to conduct 45 minute presentations. Six years later he expanded yet again offering the presentation product to Scenic Tours entertaining up to seven buses of guests at a time with the historical narrative.

“Now all of a sudden I have a contract with a bus company and I knew exactly how much revenue I was going to make throughout the summer. So now the business wasn’t relying on weather, it wasn’t relying on busses breaking down anything like that,” he said “ It was solidified, guaranteed business right from the start.”