October 19th Newsletter

We hope that you had a wonderful Thanksgiving last week with the people that mean the most to you. Those can be friends, family, neighbors, co-workers – anyone at this time that helps you feel safe and welcome.

In your businesses you can also be thankful for the support that you have received to keep your business open and this thanks again can go to the people that mean the most to you – family, friends, neighbors, co-workers – anyone that has come forward to assist you with your transition into the “New Normal” that we are experiencing at this time.

As we move into the Fall and into Winter we are going to see changes to our work places. Business may slow down for a while but visitors will be looking for a winter getaway, and our cross country and snow shoeing trails are some of the most scenic in BC. We also have some great ice fishing, and just simply skating on the lake – something that people in Vancouver and the Lower Mainland don’t get to do very often. Our communities are easily accessible to the Lower Mainland and other larger communities that surround us. And if you need staff, look close to home. We have older youth that are attending university and college online and living at home, and a skilled older population that will not be heading south for the winter. This may also be the time to look at partnering with an organization to look at hiring someone to train that may have a disability that just needs that extra time for training. Go2HR is one organization that can help you with staff recruitment to find the right person for your business.

Let’s also celebrate Small Business Week 2020 this week – October 18-24! Small Business BC will be offering free educational webinars during this time. Also Community Futures Shuswap is hosting three days of business development workshops – To learn more, register and access the links for each day’s events, visit here. Let’s thank all of the small businesses that provide us with services and products and for supporting us every day!

The Tsuts’weye Team is thankful, too, for all the amazing women we’ve met and worked with over the past year. We’ve been busy over the past month, hosting small group networking events in various communities, delivering workshops – from digital content creation with Ashley Doan to Brene Brown’s Braving Trust with Laura Cooke and more. Be sure to check our events calendar for upcoming opportunities to advance your skills, improve your business, and network with other women in business. And don’t forget to connect with us on Facebook, Instagram and also sign up for our newsletter.

Eleven women are now engaged in an intensive Business Recovery and Expansion program and our consulting professionals have been actively working one-on-one with numerous Tsuts’weye clients through our FREE business support program.

Please everyone stay safe and healthy, support each other, follow the COVID protocols always, and most of all be kind and patient with each other. And again – our residents and businesses will benefit by everyone remembering that we can make it through this by working together.

Dear Tsuts’weye Client:

It is important to us to reflect on our first year of service and ensure we are continually improving to meet the needs of our clients.

Please take 10 minutes to complete a short survey about your experience with Tsuts’weye. There are 9 questions in total. You can access the survey here. The survey will be available until October 31, 2020.

Your feedback is essential in helping us improve where we need to and continue doing what is having the most impact.

Not many teenagers can say they have found their life’s passion and know with exacting detail what they want to do with their lives by the time they graduate high school, but Dawson Rae can. At just 17-years-old, the creator of BlueJadeFinds knows precisely where she wants her life to lead, and has a plan already in motion to help her reach her impressive goals.

Dawson Rae created BlueJadeFinds, an Instagram-based business that sells pre-owned clothing and accessories to customers around the world less than one year ago in 2019, and it has already grown significantly in that time. With more than 8,500 followers, Dawson’s business reaches all corners of the globe, thanks to her creative marketing and diligent internet-based business model.

“The concept behind BlueJadeFinds is based on creating a more sustainable and ethical way of shopping, by reducing the manufacturing of the fast fashion industry,” Dawson explained.

Read more about Dawson Rae and her business here.

One of the Tsuts’weye Women’s Innovation Network’s newest members, What The Woof Pet Supplies in Sicamous, has taken the bull by the horns and pivoted her business in a constructive and economically-sound way, allowing her shop to flourish during the downturn. Opening on July 1, 2020, right in the midst of the global pandemic, owner Sheena Graham had the odds stacked against her dream of opening a new business, except for the knowledge that there was a gap in the market and that pets still need to eat regardless of what else maybe occurring in the world. With the majority of people limiting their travel and looking to support local businesses more than ever before, the community welcomed Sheena and her business with open arms and she has since been thriving in her new space located at 117 Finlayson Street in Sicamous. Read the full article on Sheena on the Tsuts’weye website.. For more information on What the Woof Pet Supplies visit them on Facebook! Congratulations Sheena!

The Tsuts’weye Network hosted two networking sessions – one in Enderby at Belvedere Park and one in Salmon Arm at Tanto Latte. These were small events, maximum 10 participants, and the main comment was that it was great to get together and network face to face again.

Thanks to the Enderby Chamber of Commerce, Small Axe Bistro, Tanto Latte and Toliver Advertising and Design for hosting these events. Make sure that you are connected with us on Facebook, Instagram, and sign up for our newsletter for more networking events to come!

Small and medium-sized businesses are vital to British Columbia’s economy. The Small and Medium-Sized Business Recovery Grant program provides fully-funded grants to businesses to ensure they have the support they need during and beyond COVID-19.

The Small and Medium-Sized Business Recovery Grant program will invest up to $300 million in targeted financial support for some of the hardest hit businesses in B.C. that employ between two and 149 B.C. residents and have experienced declines in revenue since March 10, 2020.

Grants of $10,000 to $30,000 are available. An additional $5,000 to $10,000 grant is available to eligible tourism-related businesses that have been hit especially hard by COVID-19.

The program runs until March 31, 2021 or until the funds are fully allocated, whichever comes first.

More information here.