Increases to capital gains tax plus other letters, April 20: ‘It will affect every single cottage owner across the country and every doctor, lawyer and small-

Spread the pain

Re “Middle-class Canadians could be hit by increases to capital gains tax. Here’s how to prepare” (Report on Business, April 18): The irony of the fact that some people believe only the truly wealthy have been hit by new capital-gains taxes.

It will affect every single cottage owner across the country and every doctor, lawyer and small and medium-sized family-owned business. The tax code has far greater implications than blaming the 1 per cent for not paying their fair share.

Keith (Angus) McDonald London, Ont.

Tough climate

Re “We are ignoring potentially valuable climate-change technologies” (Opinion, April 13): When rich nations are hesitant to contribute hundreds of billions of dollars to the least-developed nations for climate mitigation and adaptation, can we really expect those same nations to contribute huge sums to global-scale climate projects?

My fear is that such projects would serve as smokescreens for business-as-usual greenhouse-gas emissions. They will probably be more costly than simply cutting emissions with currently available technology.

The average carbon level is about 425 parts per million. Scientists have cautioned that exceeding 450 ppm may push us past a tipping point into irreversible and self-reinforcing atmospheric warming.

Emissions continue to rise about 3 ppm annually. This explains the importance of the 2030 target.

We should respond effectively to the climate emergency.

Derek Wilson Past appointed member, climate action committee, City of Port Moody, B.C.

Are politicians who advocate that we “should make big polluters pay” naive, ignorant or dishonest? The way I see it, companies affected would simply raise prices, and consumers would pay more without the benefit of rebates.

Ultimately, we all will have to pay to address global warming. The only questions are how and what is the fairest way to do so.

In times of war, political parties put aside partisanship for the good of all. Sadly, rather than do so in the fight against climate change, many choose to use it for political gain.

John Rankin Burlington, Ont.

Political decorum

Re “Conservative MPs display statesmanlike behaviour – not!” (Opinion, April 13): The runway to the next federal election is a long one. Hopefully it will not be one paved with this kind of despicable behaviour.

Wordsmithing of cuts, posturing and gesturing is on vivid parliamentary display as engaged in by Conservative MPs, with the worst behaviour coming from Pierre Poilievre, who would stick out like a sore thumb

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More than 100 small businesses petition Ottawa’s Mayor for support

An open letter to municipal politicians says these businesses want increased access to funding, rent control measures, training on de-escalation and naloxone use and more.

Published Mar 21, 2024  •  Last updated Mar 21, 2024  •  4 minute read

Adrienne Row-Smith from the Grove and Jo Masterson of Little Jo Berry’s Bakery, pose for a photo in Ottawa March 21, 2024. These small business owners have written a letter to the mayor with more than 100 signatories, calling for improved municipal support for small businesses, including funding and rent control measures. Photo by Tony Caldwell /POSTMEDIA

More than 100 small businesses and entrepreneurs have called on Ottawa Mayor Mark Sutcliffe and city councillors for funding, rent control and other measures while they struggle with rising inflation and rents.

“There is a fundamental failure on the part of the City of Ottawa to provide small businesses with the necessary opportunities, supports, and grants that are observed in other cities,” says an open letter from the businesses to municipal politicians. “The challenges we face, including rising inflation and uncontrolled rent hikes, are threatening the existence of many valuable businesses.”

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Happy Valley-Goose Bay business owners map road to success in small, remote town

Even though there are less than 10,000 people in Happy Valley-Goose Bay, business is booming. 

It is, at least, for entrepreneurs who identified distinct gaps in the town’s services, and jumped at the opportunity to fill them. 

Business owners in the community will tell you that responding to specific needs and providing good quality work and service is enough to keep you going.   

Terry Whey is one of them. 

He took his shoe repair business to Happy Valley-Goose Bay in 1992 after learning the town was in need of one. 

Because he was moving from St. John’s to a rural area, he was able to get a hand setting up shop from the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency (ACOA). 

We don’t go looking for work. It just keeps coming in the door.– Terry Whey

The shoe repair shop was busy, but after a little while he learned customers were often looking for specific canvas products that weren’t locally available. 

That’s when Whey’s focus shifted into manufacturing canvas tents and knapsacks, and Terry’s Tents was born. 

“We don’t go looking for work. It just keeps coming in the door,” Whey said. 

“I think people have seen our products and they’re happy with them, and then they just tell their friends … and sometimes good products just sell themselves.”

Whey works six days a week and hasn’t spent a dime on marketing in the last 20 years.  

The work isn’t slowing down, but he is. After 32 years, Whey is preparing for retirement. 

He’s trying to find a buyer for Terry’s Tents, but if he doesn’t find one his booming business will have to close its doors, and people in Happy Valley-Goose Bay will have to look elsewhere. 

MÓR Meats is a specialty butcher shop in Happy Valley-Goose Bay. Owner Niamh Roche said business is good, but could be better, so she’s decided to expand. (Mór Meats/Facebook)

Niamh Roche, meanwhile, only opened her butcher shop in 2022. But after 18 months in business, she’s ready to expand. 

“We feel that we’ve kind of maxed out what we can do in our current location,” Roche said. 

“I feel in order for the business to survive, it really does need to take this step. It’s a huge investment for us and it’s a huge risk, but we feel that we’ve built up a strong customer base.”

Roche believes a larger and more centralized storefront

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Here’s how going viral impacts small businesses

NEW YORK –

The Lexington Candy Shop in New York City has served burgers, fries and shakes to hungry patrons for decades. Last remodelled in 1948, the diner is the definition of old-fashioned.

But that hasn’t stopped it from getting a wave of new fans.

In August 2022, this old school business met the new world when Nicolas Heller, a TikToker and Instagrammer with 1.2 million followers known as New York Nico, popped in for a traditional Coke float — Coke syrup, soda water and ice cream. Naturally, he took a video. It went viral, garnering 4.8 million likes.

“The next day (after the video was posted), the lines started forming at 8 in the morning,” John Philis, the diner’s third-generation co-owner, recalls with amazement. “And it was like, huh!”

When a smaller restaurant unexpectedly goes viral on TikTok or other social media, the sudden demand can be overwhelming. Owners have to adapt on the fly, revamping operations to quickly serve a crush of people. But savvy business owners who are able to adapt can parlay newfound fame into a lasting boost for their business.

Ali Elreda opened Fatima’s Grill in Downey, California, in 2016, drawing in customers with an eclectic range of tacos, wraps and burgers.

He sprinkled Flamin’ Hot Cheetos in some of them, inspired by his daughter’s love of hot chips. By 2020, Elreda had worked hard to develop his restaurant’s social media presence, shooting videos with music. But after a TikToker dubbed @misohungry posted a video of Elreda’s Flaming Hot Cheeto Fusion burger that August, things suddenly “just went crazy.”

Dominique Ansel, second from right, greets people who have been waiting in line for the opening of his namesake bakery in New York, Thursday, Sept. 28, 2023. In 2013, before most people knew the term “going viral,” the French pastry chef created the Cronut, a cross between a croissant and a doughnut, at his newly opened New York bakery. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)

Lines to get into the restaurant ballooned to two to three hours — for months. At first, the store wasn’t ready for the influx.

“We just couldn’t adjust,” he said. “We would stay late hours to prep for the next day and then the lines would continue and continue and continue and continue.”

Opening two nearby restaurants helped relieve the pressure. Elreda now has 10 locations, including newly opened restaurants in Detroit and Brooklyn

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Aging, high living costs prompt small business owners to sell

An aging Canadian population and demand for higher wages are among the factors pressuring small Canadian business owners to sell their companies, according to a seasoned expert in mergers and acquisitions.

Michael Morrow, managing director of merger and acquisitions and capital markets at BDO Canada, is forecasting a rise in the sale of businesses within the next five years compared to the previous half decade.

 

He attributes that forecast to a lack of succession options for aging Canadian business owners, post-pandemic burnout among entrepreneurs and pressure to match competitive salary expectations amid high cost of living.

 

“The drivers for business owners to sell that we’re seeing have a lot to do with an aging population and no plans for family members to take over the companies,” Morrow told BNNBloomberg.ca in a telephone interview. 

 

SUCCESSION GAPS

 

After decades of growing a business and steering it through the pandemic, many owners feel it is time to sell their companies now that their businesses have recovered, Morrow explained. However, many business owners do not have successors in place to take over their operations, he added. 

 

“Another reality that is pushing owners to sell their businesses is the lack of management they have been able to retain since COVID,” Morrow added. 

 

HIGHER WAGE DEMANDS

 

Demand for higher wages is also posing challenges for small businesses, Morrow said.

 

Small businesses can’t find the right employees, he said, because qualified candidates are seeking opportunities at larger corporations that can pay higher salaries or offer better employment perks, he explained. 

 

Morrow is observing these trends through clients he works with at BDO Canada which offers accounting, advising and professional services to businesses. 

“Someone with 20 to 30 years of expertise in a field is now a highly sought after resource in this labour market and large companies will bid to have them,” Morrow said. “This leaves smaller companies with less competitive options to offer them.”

 

TECHNOLOGY COSTS

 

Another challenge driving business owners to sell is the steep cost of new technology used in business operations today, he added.

 

“We’re seeing a lot of owners who have been in business for years who are now simply unable or unwilling to invest in the technology needed to bring their companies up to speed. They either

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