Business retention part of plan.

• Author: GOULIQUER, DIANNE
• Position: Brief Article

Too much emphasis on attracting new business, officials say

The Fort Frances Chamber of Commerce is taking a different approach to stimulating new economic development and growth in the town: it's placing more emphasis on existing businesses rather than focusing on attracting new business.

A business retention and expansion (BR and E) project is now underway, and the project coordinator says its an initiative that will keep Fort Frances' businesses competitive.

Crystal Godbout says community leaders in other cities and towns where BR and E projects have been initiated have indicated the project has had positive results. She is confident the one-year program will have the same impact in Fort Frances, where she says more emphasis needs to be put on building up businesses already in place.

"The business retention and expansion project was first started in Minnesota," Godbout says. "As far as I know they've been using it in the U.S. for about 20 years and have had some really good results."

"The reason it was developed was because too much emphasis for economic development was being placed on attracting new businesses, whereas local businesses are responsible for 70 to 90 per cent of new employment."

The BR and E project relies on volunteers who will visit local businesses to identify their needs, concerns and problems. Business owners and managers will be asked to complete a survey that allows the volunteers to collect the information they need. That information will be brought back to Godbout who will analyze it and then work with the appropriate people to solve the problems or better meet those needs identified by the businesses.

"The survey doesn't ask specific questions about things, like how much money the business makes," Godbout says, adding the surveys are confidential. "The questions are more generic than that. The interview probably takes 45 minutes to an hour.

"The purpose of the project is to help the local businesses we have here to stay here. If we do come across a business that is possibly going to close, we want to know why they're closing and if there's anything we can do to help them to stay open."

Godbout says she is hoping volunteers will visit and assist about 100 Fort Frances businesses by the time the project ends early next year. Volunteers are still being sought.

"We're trying to get people who aren't necessarily in business, just so that they're not...