BC Aboriginal Business Association announces Sts’ailes Aboriginal Business Regional Forum

 

 

 

 

For immediate release                                                                                        October 24, 2012

BC Aboriginal Business Association announces Sts’ailes Aboriginal Business Regional Forum

VANCOUVER, BC – The Aboriginal Business Association (BCABA) in partnership with the Sts’ailes Economic Development Corporation located in Harrison Mills, BC is hosting its fourth Aboriginal business development Regional Forum November 15 & 16. The Regional Forum provides a wide-range of business development seminars delivered by the BCABA corporate Partner Circle. The two-day forum also features an Aboriginal Meeting Marketplace which brings regional non-Aboriginal companies together with local Aboriginal suppliers to identify potential procurement, partnership and employment opportunities.

“British Columbia has the second-highest concentration of self-employed Aboriginal people in Canada and the BCABA is committed to providing skills development to support this sector,” says Brenda Ireland, BCABA executive director.

Forum seminar topics include business set up, business and financial management, communications, governance and corporate structure, using internet-based technology to maximize business efficiency, media relations, taxation – on and off reserve, webpage development, enhancing business computer skills, insurance and risk management, group insurance and employee benefits plans, negotiating impact benefit agreements and more.

The BCABA’s corporate Partner Circle includes Bull, Housser & Tupper; HUB International; IMI Brokerage; KPMG; Maggie Geiser & Associates; Native Education College; PR Associates; Roslyn Kunin & Associates; SFU – Aboriginal Executive MBA; Suite/Apps; T.E. Wealth and Vancity.

“The Aboriginal business owner and entrepreneur sector is growing at five times the rate of self-employed Canadians overall with more than 8,000 Aboriginal businesses operating in BC. The BCABA is an innovative approach to the standard chamber of commerce model with the focus on addressing the specific needs of Aboriginal business,” adds Ireland.

Many corporations have business agreements that require them to source Aboriginal suppliers, but finding those businesses can be a challenge. The Aboriginal Meeting Marketplaces hopes to break down that barrier by bringing the two groups together as part of the Regional Forum. 

“The Aboriginal Meeting Marketplaces connect corporations and Aboriginal suppliers so that potential regional opportunities and what it takes to successfully participate in those opportunities can be discussed,” notes Ireland.

Aboriginal businesses can register for the Sts’ailes Regional Forum at www.bcaba.ca and non-Aboriginal companies can register for the Sts’ailes Aboriginal Meeting Marketplace at www.icab.ca. For more information contact the BCABA at info@bcaba.ca.

Regional sessions schedule:

• January 17 & 18, 2013 – Prince Rupert
• March 4 & 5, 2013 – Terrace
• April 4 & 5, 2013 – Central Interior

The BCABA is an initiative of the Industry Council for Aboriginal Business (ICAB).

About ICAB

ICAB is a non-profit, member-focused organization guided by a volunteer Board of Directors. The ICAB mission is to foster successful working relationships between industry and Aboriginal business through effective programming and by promoting mutual respect and understanding. Its vision is to realize a vibrant BC economy where Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal people prosper together. For more information, visit www.icab.ca or contact:

 Brenda Ireland

Executive Director, Industry Council for Aboriginal Business

E: ed@icab.ca

C: 604-786-3818