Sorry but this EVENT is SOLD OUT. Please check back Tuesday morning as 10 additional tickets may be released if capacity can be increased. In the mean time, please join our mailing list: http://visitor.constantcontact.com/d.jsp?m=1102686629061&p=oi 

Our next event is scheduled for early December.

Harnessing the Power of Local: Positioning Your Business to Thrive in a Shaky Economy

A Bad Model...A Local Solution

As financial and economic systems in Canada and elsewhere imploded in the last year, the media called it “the end of capitalism”. The crisis has also signaled a fundamental values shift, as consumers and business owners questioned an economic model spinning out of control. Emerging from this crisis can mean something other than going back to the old system. We can create a new economic model – one that respects vital resources, creates wealth for communities and turns a profit.

Your local business is part of the solution. A local business spends locally more often (2-5 times) than a chain store, creating a ripple effect that results in greater wealth for the community. Consumers and businesses increasingly seek out local food and locally owned businesses because they want to shop with businesses and suppliers they know and trust. It makes sense and it’s more fun.

Support for Local

Come celebrate the launch of LoCo BC, a new business network working to create a diverse, vibrant local economy by strengthening small and mid-sized businesses, connecting and having fun in the process. We’re not saying we should make cars or computers in Vancouver, but we want to educate consumers and businesses about why it’s important to buy products and services from locally-owned companies whenever possible.

Join Us!

This event will briefly introduce you to LoCo BC’s plans to drive local purchasing and support local businesses. Then we will focus on supporting local businesses to thrive and grow with the effective use of branding and new media tools.

Kierstin Dewest of Conscientious Innovation (Ci), a sustainability marketing firm and think tank, will draw on Ci’s annual survey of 5,000 North American consumers to highlight why local is an important and authentic brand advantage for your business. Ci has extensive experience with integrity brands® globally and at home – Worldchanging, Nike, SPUD, Novex, and UBC to name a few.

Robert Ouimet of Bigsnit Media Consulting will illustrate how digital media (websites, blogs, Twitter, Facebook) can be used effectively to drive sales and create brand lift. Robert will explain how a merger of your online business presence with your core business is necessary for most businesses to keep up with technology, keep flexible enough to avoid a website revamp every two years, and keep it manageable with limited time and budget. Robert has worked in digital publishing with clients like the CBC, Biovia organic distributors, and VANOC’s collaborate art project CODE.

Appetizers will be provided. Cash bar.

Thanks to VANCITY for your generous support of this event. www.vancity.com