Welcome to your new weekly column for business news, tips and maybe even the odd trick.
This column will be a source for what is going on in all seven Wellington County member municipalities, as well as the county itself, when it comes to business. Business matters.
The goal is to tap into the pulse of the business community.
Right now, business owners, a survey is asking for your voice. When you have a few minutes why not fill out the fourth annual EmployerOne survey from the Workforce Planning Board of Waterloo Wellington Dufferin. You’ll be asked to share your insights into the employer-side of the local labour market. Don’t put it off too long. The survey closes Jan. 31.
Keep in mind survey results do not always lead to action. Take Centre Wellington for instance. In December council opted out of allowing marijuana retail stores in the township in a 4-3 vote, even though a survey of over 1,603 residents showed 64.1 per cent of respondents were in favour of allowing pot shops. Take surveys with a grain of salt, as they say.
As of Jan. 8, Centre Wellington and Erin are the only two Wellington municipalities to make a decision on cannabis stores (both decided to opt out). The remaining five municipalities had better ramp up their decision making, as the Jan. 22 deadline is just around the corner.
Truth be told, recent government reports show that only 25 licenses will be distributed by the April 1 deadline – through a lottery. Wouldn’t it be interesting if a Wellington municipality received the licensing go-ahead but Guelph wasn’t chosen? It won’t happen because Wellington municipalities don’t meet the population threshold for this round, but it’s definitely food for thought.
While I can throw my weight around and have an idea about what’s happening in the business community around Wellington, I’m going to need your help. If you have a business-related story idea or an idea for this column let me know. I’m writing this for you.
You’re the ones out there in the community. You’re the ones who have unanswered questions. I’m here to try to find those answers, but I need the questions first. If there’s something you want to know, email me at businessleader@wellingtonadvertiser.com.
I also want to highlight at least one new business each week in this column. So if you know of a new venture, let me know and I’ll check it out.
We do all this and more in our quarterly magazine, Business Leader. After two years of publication, we’re just entering the fray as a business leader ourselves. While the magazine is primarily about businesses for businesses, this column will be a vehicle to disseminate interesting tidbits to you, our newspaper’s loyal readers.
On the flip side, if you have a business-related story idea or have a burning question that is just too much for this column, let me know about that, too. Maybe you’ll find your answers in a future Business Leader. You never know.
Now for my first business spotlight … why not check out Elora Mercantile on Church Street in Elora this week? There’s a little bit of something for everyone.
