Business Retention and Expansion Final Report - City of Brantford

1Table of Contents1.0 Sponsor/Partner Acknowledgementspage 22.0 Messages/Greetingspages 3-103.0 Community Profilepages 11-14Brantford, County of Brant, Six Nations, NewCredit and Downtown Brantford BusinessImprovement Area4.0 Project Introductionpages 15-165.0 Project Coordinationpages 17-206.0 Methodologypages 21-237.0 Results /AnalysisPart 1: Profile of Businesses/Organizations surveyed inthe Brantford, County of Brant, Six Nations and NewCredit Tourism Sector: pages 24-39• Company Information• Current Business Climate• Future Plans• Business Development• Business Development – Markets• Business Development - Financial• Workforce Development• Local Community• Tourism• Community QuestionsPart II: Profile of Businesses/Organizations Surveyed inthe Downtown Brantford Business ImprovementArea/Downtown District of Brantford: pages 40-68• Company Information• Current Business Climate• Future Plans• Business Development• Business Development – Markets• Business Development - Financial• Workforce Development• Local Community• Retail/Service Business• Downtown Revitalization• Community Questions8.0 Strategic Action PlansPart 1) Tourism Sector: pages 69-83Part II) Downtown Brantford: pages 84-90Business ImprovementArea / DowntownDistrict of Brantford11.0 Conclusionspages 91-9312.0 Appendicespages 94-306Grand River: A Canadian Heritage RIver

2Sponsor/Partner AcknowledgementsWRITTEN BY:Susan Sager - Manager, Tourism & MarketingCity of BrantfordSURVEY & DATA ANALYSIS:Annette Fitch - Administrator, Downtown BrantfordBusiness Improvement AreaKevin Finney - Economic Development Information CoordinatorEconomic Development & Tourism Department, City of BrantfordLOCAL SPONSORS:Downtown Brantford Business Improvement AreaG.K. York Management ServicesOLG Casino BrantfordGOVERNMENT SPONSORS:Ontario Ministry of Agriculture,Food & Rural Affairs - Rural Economic Development ProgramCity of Brantford - Economic Development & TourismCounty of Brant - Economic Development & TourismTwo Rivers Community DevelopmentEnterprise BrantACKNOWLEDGEMENT:We would like to thank the members of the BR+E Leadership Teamand volunteers for their dedication and time to the project.A special word of thanks to Janet Annabel for her assistance.BR+E SURVEY PROJECT TEAM:Jill Yuzwa - BR+E Project CoordinatorStephanie Arnold, Justin Landreville, Betty McKillop & Sandy Lanning -Surveyors/ResearchersReport Designed By: Jacqueline Evans, Communications Specialist &Sherri Simpson, Senior Graphic Designer/Art DirectorCommunications Division, Economic Development & Tourism DepartmentQuotations used throughout this publication were takenfrom interviews done with project participants in 2007.

4Message from the Mayor of BrantfordOn behalf of the members of City Council I would like to congratulate the Downtown Brantford Business ImprovementArea and the partners involved with the Tourism Sector survey on the completion of the Business Retention andExpansion (BR+E) survey program in these sectors of our community. The project itself involved many different partnersand supporters. The City of Brantford was very pleased to participate and take a leadership role with the involvement ofthe Economic Development & Tourism Department, in particular, the Tourism Brantford Division.The Brantford community has become one of the fastest growing areas in Southern Ontario. Our local economy isaccelerating with many new businesses in operation, including several that are located in our downtown core. Thetourism sector in the area is gaining strong momentum with new investment and expansion in the hospitality and servicesectors.The BR+E process, first initiated in our community in the late 1990s, was geared primarily to industrial/manufacturingbusiness only. This study which has just been completed touches the heart of our local economy and involves manysmall business owner/operators and entrepreneurs. Congratulations to the over 330 participants for their involvement inthis process, and to the BR+E Leadership Team. With the support of the Province of Ontario and many communitypartners, for taking this first important milestone step for the commercial, retail and hospitality sectors of Brantford andarea.Once again, I would like to offer my sincere congratulations and gratitude to all the participants, volunteers, and partnerswho made this process so successful for our community. The results outline how the municipality and senior levelsof government can best assist the surveyed sectors, and help direct Brantford and area as we strive to maintain andgrow a healthy, sustainability and competitive local economy.Yours truly,Mayor Mike HancockCity of Brantford

5Message from the Tourism Advisory CommitteeOn behalf of the Brantford Tourism Advisory Committee, I would like to thank, and offer congratulations, to all of thoseindividuals and organizations who participated in the development, execution, and analysis of the Business Retentionplus Expansion Study of the Downtown Brantford and Tourism sectors of Brantford, Brant County and Six Nations/NewCredit.As part of the process in meeting several of the desired outcomes identified in the 2006 Community Strategic Plan, theTourism Advisory Committee and Tourism staff became involved in identifying possible models for gathering meaningfulstatistical data which could be used as the basis for ongoing economic development measurement and planning. TheBR+E model available through the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, having been utilized previouslyby the Economic Development Department, was identified as being most appropriate for our purposes. Throughstrategic partnerships with the Brantford BIA, Brant County, and Six Nations/New Credit, and funding by BrantfordEconomic Development and Tourism, Brant County, Two Rivers Community Development, GK York ManagementServices, and OLG Casino Brantford, It was possible to move forward with this major economic development project.Special thanks are extended to the staff of the OMAFRA Rural Economic Development Program for their guidance andassistance. Special thanks must also be extended to the 330 businesses and organizations who took the time to participatein the survey process, the BR+E Leadership Team, plus the large number of staff and volunteers from a wide varietyof areas who contributed to the planning, the interview process itself, the collation and analysis of the data collected,and the preparation of this report.We are confident that the results of this study and report will provide a solid basis for the development and refinementof strategic action plans to guide the work plans of the staff of Tourism Brantford and the Tourism Advisory Committee,as well as many others in the tourism sector, in the future.Vic PrendergastChair, Brantford Tourism Advisory Committee

6Message from the BIA Board ChairDowntown Brantford has seen significant growth over the past 5 years, with a great new public space (HarmonySquare), continued growth in post-secondary education, and lots of new businesses locating in the core. DowntownBrantford shows no signs of stopping, continuing to grow and rebuild at an inspirational pace.I think its continued success and growth demonstrates the people of Brantford’s dedication and passion for DowntownBrantford. And this is why as Chair of the BDBIA I feel it is extremely important to give Downtown stakeholders theopportunity to voice their comments and concerns (positive and negative). I think the BR+E is that opportunity. Theinformation we’ve received as a result of the BR+E surveys will be instrumental in setting the direction of the BDBIA andof Downtown Brantford. The information is also an effective way to direct the resources this community has to offertowards those businesses or organizations that are in need of help.Downtown Brantford continues to grow and rebuild and the only way to ensure its success is to work together, as acommunity, and I feel the BR+E was a very important part of this process.Sincerely,Josh BeanChair, Brantford Downtown BIA

7Message from the Mayor of The County of BrantCongratulations to all the volunteers, businesses, and partners who participated in theBR+E process for our communities. As part of Brant’s ongoing commitment to Business Retention and Expansion I ampleased that over 300 area businesses were able to take part in this valuable survey.While new business attraction can stimulate economic growth, the retention and expansion of existing businesses is vitalto maintaining and growing Brant and the entire area. By ensuring ongoing communication, issues and concerns can beidentified, addressed early, and opportunities can be explored. This will augment the Brant/Brantford and areas reputationas a pro-business jurisdiction.Once again, congratulations on a multi-partnership program designed to enhance local tourism and commercial businessessectors.Mayor – The County of BrantRon Eddy

8Message from Two Rivers Community DevelopmentTo: Susan Sager, Tourism BrantfordTwo Rivers Community Development is pleased to have been a partner in the Business Retention and Expansion (BR+E)project.This project has many mutual benefits for determining the needs of local businesses and promoting the products andservices of Two Rivers Community Development Centre as a business support organization serving the Aboriginalcommunities of SIx Nations and New Credit. We were pleased with the solid representation and participation in this collaborativeproject.We would also like to thank the City of Brantford and the County of Brant, the BR+E Leadership Team and the manyvolunteers who put in countless hours of service in surveying the businesses to make this partnership so successful.The tourism component of the BR+E survey has successfully tapped into the regional business community to take thepulse of the issues, concerns and opportunities that our entrepreneurs are living day-to-day. The data analysis andresulting strategic actions carved from this report will provide us with valuable tools for the planning andimplementation of joint initiatives and assist us to better serve our clients.We look forward to moving ahead with the recommendations and working with our regoinal partners to improve theoverall business environment in our region.Sincerely,Warren SaultPresident, Two Rivers Community Development Centre

9Message from G.K. York Management Services Inc.We became very excited about the BR+E when we first heard about it from the Brantford Downtown BusinessImprovement Area. We supported this project whole heartedly and expect it to strengthen existing businesses in thedowntown along with establishing strategic plans, promote business development and job creation.We wish to congratulate everyone that has been a part of this project; from the Advisors, Staff, Leadership Team, thecountless volunteers and the public who took the time to participate.Now with the final report completed we look forward to future benefits for Brantford’s downtown core along with thetourism sector in Brantford, County of Brant, Six Nations and New Credit.Sincerely,G.K. YORK MANAGEMENT SERVICES INC.Cathy Oden, RPAManaging Director

10Message from Enterprise BrantLet us begin by congratulating your team for successfully completing this business retention and expansion survey.On behalf of the Outreach Committee members and Enterprise Brant’s Board of Directors, we thank you for the opportunityto provide assistance to you and Tourism Brantford for this project that will greatly benefit the hospitality, downtown,and tourism sectors. This project was a necessary next step providing us with and opportunity to move forwardas a community with a clear understanding of where improvement is needed. We have already seen evidence that thesurvey results will be useful to assist with further developing both the downtown and the tourism sectors, and that theywill provide the information necessary for us to move forward as a community and plan and plan out the next steps ofour growth.We are pleased to provide a grant of $2,500 to be used to conduct the Downtown BIA & Tourism Brantford BusinessRetention & Expansion Survey Project.Your’s truly,Enterprise BrantCynthia Swanson, C.G.AGeneral Manager

11Community ProfilesIdeally situated in the centre of southwestern Ontario, and strategically centered in the heart of Canada's GoldenHorseshoe, Brantford, County of Brant, and the Six Nations, New Credit are well positioned for future growth eachhaving their own unique quality of life attributes andamenities. The Grand River, a designated Canadian River,winds through the area and has played a vital role in thedevelopment of these communities.Strategically centered in the largest industrial corridor ofthe free world, and ideally situated 55 miles southwest ofToronto and less than 90 minutes from Buffalo, N.Y., thearea offers larger urban centre services and linkages withthe quaintness of rural community living.BrantfordLocated on Provincial Highway #403, one hour (88 km) southwest of Toronto and 90 minutes (150km) from Buffalo,Brantford is situated in the centre of Southwestern Ontario and in the heart of Canada’s Golden Horseshoe.Boasting a current population of 90,000 residents and with a projected population reaching 115,000 by 2020,Brantford’s economic outlook is very promising.Possessing a diverse, qualified workforce of approximately 53,000 and an unemployment rate lower than theprovincial and national averages at 6%(Jan.2008), Brantford’s workforce is poised for future growth.Recent major investments in the industrial and commercial sectors, coupled with the continued expansion of three postsecondary campuses, has created an excitingbuzz in the City’s downtown that has not beenseen in years.Offering an affordable cost of living and all theamenities found in larger cities, Brantford stillemanates a small town feeling overall. Featuringone of the best urban trail systems in Canada,with over 40km of Trans Canada Trailmeandering through the community and alongthe historic Grand River, as well as numeroustourist attractions andhistorical landmarks, the future of Brantfordlooks very promising.

12County of BrantBrant is a predominantly rural municipality in southern Ontario which was created in 1999 by provincial restructuring.The County of Brant's larger centres include Burford, Paris, and St. George which contribute to the current population of34,415. Located approximately 80 kilometres southwest of Toronto, it is bordered by the Region of Waterloo, the Cityof Hamilton, Haldimand County, Norfolk County, and Oxford County and geographically encircles the City of Brantford.Brant offers a central location, making it prime for transport via major highways, rail systems and waterways, plus fiveairports within a one-hour radius. Brant has an extensive variety of amenities and shopping, excellent health carefacilities, ample leisure activities, plus vibrant cultural offerings from live theatre, to art galleries and festivals.With so many unique villages and towns to explore, there is no shortage of things to see and do. Brant has some of themost pristine wildlife and nature throughout Southern Ontario! The Grand River, a Canadian Heritage River, flowsthrough the County and provides an excellent resource for fishing, canoeing, kayaking or rafting. Residents and businessowners agree that Brant provides the ideal mix of business and pleasure.Six Nations & New CreditSix Nations/New Credit Economic OverviewTwo Rivers serves the two First Nations of Six Nations of the Grand Riverwith a band membership of 21,875, and theMississaugaof the New Credit with a membership of 1,400. Located in southwestern Ontarioin the counties of Brantand Haldimand-Norfolk, 23 kilometers southeast of Brantford, 112 kilometers southwest of Toronto, the communitiesare well placed to take advantage of a number of strengths:• As a major tourist destination• Easy trucking access to US markets• Close proximity to the rapidly growing JohnMunroeAirportlocated in MountHope• Proximity to Post Secondary Institutions interested in working with Aboriginal communities• Access to aboriginal specific training resources

13There are two banks in our community providing the traditional products and services to customers, alongside the TwoRivers Community Development Centre, an Aboriginal CFDC offering business support and financing that is located inthe Business and Opportunity Centre. The Opportunity Centre is an office complex hosting programs focused onemployment, training and business development as well as some local businesses.Aboriginal Business Canada has a satellite officeand serves the business planning and marketingneeds of some local business clients.EducationT h e re are 13 elementary schools, one postsecondary school and two public libraries locatedwithin Six Nations and New Credit.Cultural OverviewBoth Six Nations and New Credit are locatedwithin an area historically shared as part of theBeaver Hunting Ground, under the “Dish withOne Spoon” wampum (treaty). This treaty predatedthe Haldimand Deed and helped to establishrespectful guidelines for sharing of resources for the relatively peaceful subsistence of the people. Today, thesenations continue to co-exist peacefully while still maintaining separate cultural identities.Six Nations is an Iroquoian community representative of six different nations of Iroquioan or Haudenosaune peoples.These are the Cayuga Nation, the Mohawk Nation, the Tuscarora Nation, the Oneida Nation, the Onondaga Nation andthe Seneca Nation. The most predominant languages spoken are Mohawk and Cayuga in addition to English. Their traditionalterritory ran from the tip of James Bay, down through eastern Ontario into New Yorkstate and beyond down theMississippi River. After the war of 1812, some of the Six Nations who had assisted the British retreated with their alliesto the Beaver Hunting Grounds in Ontario. Some settled in eastern Ontarioand some settled along the Grand River.The word Mississaugapeople is derived from "Missisakis" meaning "many river mouths". By the mid nineteenth centurythe Mississaugas believed they had obtained their name from the mouths of the Trent, Moira, Shannon, Napanee,Kingston, and Gananoque rivers.The term New Credit is in recognition of the fact that the Mississaugatraded goods along the shore of theCreditRiverprior to the move to their new location in 1847. This First Nation was once a mighty and respected tradingnation with the Europeans in and around an area,which included Port Credit and the City now knownas Toronto. The city of Mississaugaowes its name tothe Mississaugas of the New Credit. TheMississaugas of the New Credit First Nation is locatedon some 600 acres south of Hamilton, Ontario.There are approximately 1400 listed Ojibwe memberswith one third living on reserve. Languagesspoken are Ojibwe and English.Six Nations and New Credit are very entrepreneurialcommunities with over 335 businesses listed in ourlocal business directory database.

14Downtown Brantford Business Improvement AreaMandate: Oversee the improvement, beautification and maintenance of municipally owned land, buildings, andstructures in the area beyond that generally provided at the expense of the municipality; and to promote the area as abusiness and/or shopping area.The DBBIA is a not-for-profit organization, created by a City of Brantford bylaw in 1977, that now representsapproximately 200 businesses and 160 properties in the downtown Brantford area.The DBBIA is managed by a Board of Management made up of volunteers from downtown businesses includingbusiness owners, a University representative and two City Councillors. The Board of Management oversees policies,financial decisions, and general management. Any property owner or business owner within the DBBIA area has theopportunity to apply for Board Directorship. In addition, this organization employs one staff member, the DBBIACoordinator who is responsible for the day-to-day operations of the DBBIA.All commercial/industrial property owners and business owners make up the membership of the DBBIA and a specificlevy is added to their property taxes each year which is collected by the City of Brantford.

15Project IntroductionThe Business Retention and Expansion survey project is a community-based economic development tool designed tocreate capacity within communities to address the stability and growth of the local economy. One of the keycomponents to this process is an intensive, structured business/organization visitation program that includes one-on-onesurveying to identify issues and opportunities. The program does not stop and start with the surveying component, italso includes the implementation of strategic actions that address the outcomes of the survey analysis; on-goingdiligence with one-on-one business/organization visitations; and requires a cooperative effort betweenbusiness/organizations, local government, and partners in the community to help the area retain jobs and createopportunities for a diversified local economic base.The Business Retention and Expansion (BR+E) initiative was first introduced in Ontario through the Ministry ofAgriculture, Food and Rural Affairs (OMAFRA), in 1997. Ministry staff researched best practice models from the UnitedStates that were administrated by the Cooperative State Research Education and Extension Service of the United StatesDepartment of Agriculture which became the foundation for the provincial program. A cross-section of 12 communitiesrepresentative of both northern and southern Ontario participated in a series of pilot surveys in 1997, and from thispioneering work the program as grown to involve nearly 100 Ontario communities. (Appendix 1)“Business development and job creation are key factors in developing healthy and vibrant communities. Depending onthe characteristics of a community’s economy, anywhere from 40 to 90 per cent of new jobs come from existingbusinesses.” 1 The communities of Brantford and the County of Brant along with Six Nations have been engaged ineconomic development initiatives for several years through a variety of programs and support services in an effort tomaintain and grow a healthy economic base that results in job retention and creation as well as increased assessment.One of the tools that have been deployed in the area is the Business Retention and Expansion Ontario model that wasfirst introduced in the Brantford area in 1998 when the Economic Development Department of the City of Brantford, inpartnership with the County of Brant, conducted the first survey geared to the manufacturing/industrial sector. The 1998survey project resulted in the City’s Economic Development Department dedicating a staff person to Business Retentionand Expansion, which continues to be identified as a key component in the Brantford Economic Development AdvisoryCommittee Action Plan.The program was launched as an avenue for communication between industry and local government and has createdopportunities for direct firm assistance and increased awareness of available resources available to local industry. Theprogram assists community leaders in their work of developing strategies, setting priorities and establishing effectiveeconomic development programs aimed at retention and expansion of businesses and jobs in the City of Brantford, andthe County of Brant.Further, a Business Retention and Expansion working committee consisting of representatives from the three levels ofgovernment; Municipal (Economic Development Departments for both City and County), Provincial (Ministry of Small1 Business Retention and Expansion Resource Manual, Taking Care of Business in Rural Ontario, Ontario Ministry of Agriculture,Food, and RuralAffairs.

16Business & Enterpreneurship) and Federal (ServiceCanada) was established and meets quarterly todiscuss issues related to retention and expansion.The committee targets 150 company visits annually.There have been two subsequent surveys for thissector in 2001 and 2006 respectively. Companyfeedback from the 2001 survey was instrumental inthe City of Brantford creating the DowntownBusiness Performance Grants Program, used toredevelop former commercial sites contributing tothe revitalization of the downtown core. The 2006survey identified that firms have repeatedly identifiedlabour supply concerns and the need for localThe Arlington Hotel, Paris, ONgovernments to enhance existing business retentionand expansion programs and services. To addressthese findings, a community based Workforce Development Strategy Committee was formed comprised of local stakeholders.Funding was received the Ministry of Training, Colleges and Universities (MTCU) to hire a Researcher/Analyst toundertake a comprehensive review of established programs and services in the community, provide clear identification ofemployer needs and employee skills gaps and prepare a workforce development strategy final report that will form thebasis of a community workforce development plan.With the City of Brantford’s adoption of a Community Strategic Plan in 2006, the Tourism Brantford Division along withinput from the City of Brantford’s Tourism Advisory Committee set a course to explore ways to more effectively developa strategic approach to meet the long term desired outcomes of this plan in an effort to foster the first goal of,“Economic Vitality and Innovation” through expanding tourism opportunities and benefits to the community. 2 TheBusiness Retention and Expansion model that has worked effectively for the Economic Development Department for theCity of Brantford and County of Brant was chosen for the tourism sector in the area as well as a way to outreach to thecommunity, build capacity, and garner statistical benchmarking data that would provide grass roots direction for tourismdevelopment in the area.The tourism sector is diverse in the Brantford area and with a strong and demonstrative partnership base with theCounty of Brant, Six Nations, and New Credit communities it was decided to move forward with the Business Retentionand Expansion tourism survey project as a regional approach involving all four areas. Until that point, the Six Nations andNew Credit communities had not been formally involved in Business Retention + Expansion programming.At the time of the City of Brantford’s Community Strategic Plan adoption in January 2006, the need by the municipalityto support the work and activities of the downtown district of Brantford was identified as a priority. The creation of aDowntown Master Plan had also begun as a result of the strategic plan and initial discussions with stakeholders in thedowntown district and in particular the Downtown Brantford Business Improvement Area indicated the desire to addressthe need to connect with the constituents, provide proactive support to create sustainability for businesses in the core,and create opportunities for growth. With these needs clearly identified the Business Retention and Expansion surveyproject for the tourism sector in Brantford, County of Brant, Six Nations and New Credit grew to also include the downtowndistrict of Brantford.2 The City of Brantford’s Community Strategic Plan, Shaping Our Future, January 2006.

17Project CoordinationVolunteersThe Business Retention and Expansion (BR+E) survey project was driven by a partnership with the municipal EconomicDevelopment and Tourism staff members and key community stakeholders and project partners that formed the BR+ELeadership Team which was responsible for steering the project. The BR+E Leadership Team worked in concert withinput from the local Tourism Advisory Committee and Downtown Brantford Business Improvement Area (BIA) Board ofDirectors. The BR+E Leadership Team also engaged several municipal staff advisors to assist with providing feedback tothe surveying process. (Appendix 2 & 4)The BR+E Leadership Team met a key interval points throughout the course of the project, from October 2006 to June2007 and were provided orientation and training by the staff team of the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food & RuralAffairs (OMAFRA) – Rural Economic Branch. (Appendix 2)The BR+E Leadership Team provided suggestions and input to the communications plan for the project, and theformulation of the Community Questions that were included in the main survey instrument. These volunteers were alsoinvolved in a retreat, one for the tourism sector (May 2007) and one for the downtown district of Brantford (June 2007)to review the aggregated data as a result of they survey in an effort to develop strategic actions and next steps. Duringthis period both the Tourism Advisory Committee and the Downtown Brantford BIA Board of Management also had anopportunity each to review the aggregated data and provide input to potential Strategic Actions as well. (Appendix 3)Fifteen local community-based volunteer scribes who assisted the interviewers by attending the interview sessions andcapturing the verbal comments for each survey supported the BR+E staff project team. These volunteers were trainedand signed a confidentiality waiver for their involvement in this project in which they contributed collectively more than300 hours of their time to this effort and are commended for their assistance with this project. Furtherassistance was also garnered from some of the scribes who also helped with careful data entry work for the project.Their collective assistance with this project was a contributing factor to ensuring that 330 surveys were completed andentered into Executive Pulse, OMAFRA’s standardized and secure web-based survey instrument tool, in a six-monthperiod of time. (Appendix 5)The Brantford, County of Brant, Six Nations and New Credit tourism sector and downtown district of Brantford BR+Esurvey process involved eight months of work followed by the ongoing implementation efforts of some of the of thestrategic actions.

18PartnershipsOntario Ministry of Agriculture, Food & Rural Affairs (OMAFRA) support was two-fold. The province of Ontario provideda grant through the Rural Economic Development funding envelope in the amount of $35,000 for the implementationof this project. The field staff unit from the OMAFRA Woodstock Regional Office were extremely helpful throughout theduration of the project. This support was matched by contributions by the following public and private supporters: Cityof Brantford; Downtown Brantford Business Improvement Area; County of Brant – Economic Development & Tourism;Two Rivers Community Development; Enterprise Brant; G K York Management Services; and OLG Casino Brantford.These contributing partners enabled the project to move forward with the hiring of a BR+E Project Coordinator and twoSurveyor/Researchers.Business Resource Network/CommitteeA group of economic development/business and tourism professionals from both inside and outside the community whobring expertise and resources to assist in the implementation of the Strategic Actions that have resulted in the BR+Eprocess have been asked to form a Business Resource Network for the community for the longer term BR+E process.These contacts are excellent leads as well for the individual BR+E survey participants to follow-up with for information,assistance, and to answer inquiries as they pertain to their own individual business/organization needs and opportunitiesfor growth and development. (Appendix 6)CommunicationsA comprehensive communications plan was developed to support the implementation of the Business Retention andExpansion survey process in the area. Since this was the first time such a program was initiated for mainly small businessand not-for-profit organizations/agencies in the community effort was applied to heighten awareness of this process.The community was introduced to this project by:• A brand identifier/symbol was created for the project, which illustrated both the tourism sector and BrantfordDowntown BIA as one symbol.• A micro site was created for easy and quick information about the BR+Eprogram for the tourism sector and the downtown district of Brantfordwith links to both the Tourism Brantford, County of Brant andSix Nations Tourism web sites as well as the DowntownBrantford BIA site. www.brantford.ca/bre.• A full colour brochure (2,000 copies) was created and circulated throughout the community as a way to createawareness, and to fulfill initial questions about the program and surveying process.• A Fact Sheet was created outlining the key points of the project and distributed to local community stakeholders andmembers of the regional media.• Articles featuring the BR+E process were featured in Tourism Brantford’s Distinctly Grand industry newsletter; in theBrantford Cultural Network’s On Stream newsletter and in the BIA newsletter.• Media releases were also distributed in support of this program to local/regional media.

19• Staging of two public information nights one for the tourism sector in February and one for the downtown district ofBrantford in April.• Presentations were conducted for the Tourism Advisory Committee; the Economic Development Advisory Committeeand the Downtown Brantford BIA Board of Management on the status of the project and the surveying process.Project ImplementationPart AStage # 1The First Phase of the Business Retention and Expansion project included ensuring that through the development of acommunications plan the project was introduced to the community.Funding for the BR+E project was confirmed and announced in July 2006 and this was followed by the hiring of theproject staff team that was completed in the late fall of 2006.The recruitment of the BR+E Leadership Team and organization of the Business Resource Network was completed in thefall of 2006 along with the development of the Survey Sample Plan that was completed in December 2006. At this timeas well the formulation of the Tourism Sector Community Questions took place with assistance from the BR+ELeadership Team and the staff at the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food & Rural Affairs – Economic DevelopmentBranch.The one-on-one survey visits for the tourism sector in Brantford, County of Brant, Six Nations and New Credit wereconducted from January to April 2007. On average two interviews were conducted per day during this period alongwith three different opportunities for interviews at Blitz Nights that were conducted at the Brantford Visitor & TourismCentre; the County of Brant Administration Building in Paris, and at Six Nations Tourism in Ohsweken. These Blitz Nightswere coordinated in an effort to ensure that this process was available for all those who were sampled to participate.The coordination of the Blitz Nights was done in such away to maintain, with integrity, the confidentiality of the process.The Downtown Brantford BIA surveying period was from April and concluded the end of June 2007. Blitz Nightopportunities were provided during this process at the Brantford – Brant Business Resource Enterprise Centre, located indowntown Brantford.Stage # 2 - Red FlagsAs a result of the surveying process thirteen (13) businesses and organizations stated that they were very concernedabout their ability to continue with their current operations and were considering closing their operations. Eight (8) ofthese businesses were located in the downtown district of Brantford and were identified as a result of the survey. Areasof assistance that has been provided by the staff team of the Economic Development & Tourism Department includedmarketing and exploration of partnerships; business and financial planning; access to capital; parking issues in the downtownarea; and the potential for relocation. As a result of this intervention and provision of information eleven (11) fulltime jobs were maintained as well as the securing of all but one of the businesses who has since closed their operationsin the downtown district, but has remained within Brantford.

20Stage # 3The results of the individual surveys (330) were entered into OMARFA’s web-based survey and database instrument,Executive Pulse, and the quantifiable results have been analyzed using this tool. All quantitative results have beencaptured in this system as well. The task of entering the data was made possible through the efforts of the BR+E ProjectCoordinator, the volunteer scribes, and staff of the Economic Development and Tourism Department of the City ofBrantford. All those involved with this process were trained and held accountable through the signing of confidentialitywaivers.Once all the survey data was entered into the database the roll-up or aggregated data was analyzed by the ProjectCoordinator and presented during the tourism sector and Business Improvement Area BR+E Leadership Team Retreats.The input from the retreats and subsequent presentations to both the Tourism Advisory Committee and the DowntownBrantford BIA Board of Management was used by key staff members involved in this project from the EconomicDevelopment & Tourism Department of the City of Brantford as well as the Downtown Brantford BIA to create thestrategic actions for the project that are outlined on pages 69 - 90 of this report.Part BThe validation of the strategic actions that have resulted from the data and input gathered is taking several formsincluding presentations to several key stakeholders throughout the community. A formal community launch of the BR+Eproject has taken place the end of March 2008 that included the report presentation and requests for input. The reportwill then be brought forward to Brantford City Council for approval and then circulated to all survey participants, seniorlevels of government and stakeholders.It is the intent of both the City of Brantford Economic Development & Tourism Department and the DowntownBrantford BIA to utilize these strategic actions in on-going and future work plans as the community moves forward as anext step from the survey process.Laurier Brantford student, Victoria Park, downtown Brantford

21MethodologyThe Business Retention and Expansion project methodology involves interviewing either a specific sector within acommunity (ie: Manufacturing/Industrial only) or a cross-sector sample (ie: several economic sectors) of the community.Components of the survey include a main series of questions administered to all interviewees and shorter sector-specificcomponents that are included where appropriate.Confidentiality played a key role in the success of this survey project. The confidentiality rule was strictly reinforced bythe surveyors in the field, and by all staff and volunteers involved in this project.Determining how to sample a population must be a consistent, transparent process and must be easily reportable to anumber of audiences.Using the input and advice from the OMAFRA - Rural Economic Development Branch, a sampling plan was created forthe project that involved:1. Clearly defining survey objectives.2. Determining the criteria of the sample size.3. Identifying Confidence Level and Margin of Error/Confidence Interval.4. Creation of a consistent stratified sampling plan for both the tourism survey and downtown district of Brantford(sub sectors).5. Implementation of a random sampling process when selecting businesses/organizations to be interviewed. 3Survey ObjectivesThe Business Retention and Expansion Survey results will act as a voice for the tourism sector in Brantford, the County ofBrant, Six Nations, and New Credit areas as well as the downtown district of Brantford.• To compile an initial list of input and opinion from the survey participants regarding key issues to be addressedby the community• Address urgent business and organization issues• Improve and grow the relationship between businesses, organizations and the community• Encourage economic stability• Build a positive business/organization environment for success• Create a platform to voice concerns about what type of assistance is needed to help businesses/organizationto survive• An opportunity to build cooperation amongst a variety of community partners local businesses/organizations,municipal government, and small business• Participation and community engagement are key• Create jobs• Improve business and community competitiveness• Assist the municipality in developing long term strategy for economic development3 Understanding Your Local Economy and Developing a Sample Plan, BR+E Training Manual, 2006.

22Survey Sample CriteriaA critical part of the Business Retention and Expansion Survey methodology is setting the criteria for selecting the surveysampling.For the tourism sector survey the utilization of the existing tourism client database as a platform for the sample was thefoundation for the project. A great deal of work was done to qualify the contacts in the database in order to achieve asolid grouping to sample.The contacts within this database are based on business and organizations that are located within the geographicboundaries of the City of Brantford, County of Brant, Six Nations of the Grand River Territory, and Mississaugas of theNew Credit First Nations geographic areas (Please see Community Profiles, pages 10 - 12.)The Downtown Brantford Business Improvement Area utilized the current membership of the BIA along with otherbusinesses and organizations within the geographic boundaries of the downtown district. (Please see CommunityProfiles, page 13.)Survey InstrumentThis project utilized the OMAFRA Rural Economic Development secure web-based tool "Executive Pulse" to manage thedata collected.The survey questions were comprised of the following sections:• Core survey questions: (116 questions)- Company Information- Current Business Climate- Future Plans- Business Development- Business Markets- Financial Development- Workforce Development• Local Community Specific Sector:- Retail/Service (12 questions)- Tourism (26 questions)- Downtown Revitalization (31 questions)• Community Questions:- Tourism (23 questions)- Community Questions Downtown Brantford BIA (17 questions)In total the Tourism Sector survey comprised of 165 questions and the downtown district survey was comprised of 176questions. The average length of time for the one-on-one interviews to be conducted took 1.5 hours per session.Identification of Sub-Sectors for the SampleFor the purpose of the survey process the following sub-sectors where determined and used for both the tourism surveyas well as the downtown district of Brantford:1. Accommodations, Food & Beverage2. Attractions3. Retail4. Services5. Festival & Events6. Not for profit

23It was determined at the onset of this project that these sub-sectors represented the order of business of most tourismbasedbusinesses and organizations and could also reflect the scope of activity in the downtown district of Brantford.Random SamplingOnce the lists from both the tourism sector and the downtown district were tabulated in alphabetical order, in each ofthe sub-sectors, then every fourth entry was selected for surveying. Three verbal and or electronic attempts were madefor each selected entry to set-up a potential interview opportunity and if this was not successful, then the next entry inalphabetical order was selected. The due diligence in adhering to the random selection process was strictly reinforcedand was the responsibility of the Project Coordinator. No municipal staff, volunteers, or any other party was involved inthis process.Confidence Level and the Margin of Error/Confidence IntervalIndustry recognized tools that were recommended by the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food & Rural Affairs – RuralEconomic Branch that were utilized for this project’s sampling were the Confidence Level and the Margin of Errorfactors. A Confidence Level (how certain you are that other businesses will answer in the same way) of 95% is a widelyaccepted standard in the research community. The Margin of Error or Confidence Interval reflects the range of certaintythat businesses will answer in a certain way (i.e. + 5% or 10%). 4In preparation for the survey an extensive review of contacts in the Tourism Brantford client database resulted in theidentification of 750 businesses/organizations in the tourism sector throughout the area (Brantford, County of Brant,Six Nations, and New Credit).To reach a 95% Confidence Level and a 5% Margin of Error this project would need to interview 254 businesses in thetourism sector of Brantford, County of Brant, Six Nations and New Credit communities. 210 businesses or organizationswere identified in the Downtown Brantford Business Improvement Area’s district, resulting in 136 businesses targeted tobeing interviewed.The surveying process resulted in the following:1. Tourism Sector – Brantford, County of Brant, Six Nations and New Credittotal surveys completed – 232 out of a potential of 750 resulting in a 31%participation rate and a 5.35% margin of error/confidence interval. 52. Downtown Brantford Business Improvement Area/downtown Districtsurveys completed – 98 out of a potential of 210 resulting in a 46% participationrate and a 5.25% margin of error/confidence interval. 5“Both margin of error/confidence intervals results for each survey project areaare extremely good and demonstrate a high level of accuracy of your surveyresults.” Stephen Morris, Rural Policy Advisor, Ontario Ministry of Agriculture,Food & Rural Affairs – Rural Economic Development Policy Branch,Guelph, ON.4 Understanding Your Local Economy and Developing a Sample Plan, BR+E Training Manual, 2006.5 Survey Systems, Creative Research Systems, Petaluma California, USA.

24Results / AnalysisProfile of Businesses/Organizations surveyed in Brantford, County of Brant, Six Nations and NewCredit in the Tourism Sector:Company InformationThe company information section of the BR+E Survey asked various questions with respect to business activity,owner/employee information, legal form, business age, number of employees and firm planning.Firms were asked to indicate what primary activity is conducted by their business based on the North American IndustryClassification System (NAICS) 6 . Table 1 below outlines the chosen sectors with their respective proportions.Table 1: NAICS sector breakdown (2-digit level)NAICS Sector Count Percent %72 - Accommodation and Food Services 52 2244 - Retail Trade (motor vehicle, furniture, etc.) 48 2145 - Retail Trade (sporting goods, books, music, etc.) 34 1571 - Arts, Entertainment and Recreation 32 1481 - Other Services (except public administration) 13 661 - Educational Services 10 4No NAICS Code 9 453 - Real Estate, Rental and Leasing 6 311 - Agriculture, Forestry, Fishing, and Hunting 5 251 - Information 4 233 - Manufacturing (primary and fabricated metal, etc.) 3 142 - Wholesale Trade 2 148 - Transportation and Warehousing (air, rail, truck, etc.) 3 152 - Finance and Insurance 2 154 - Professional, Scientific and Technical Services 3 162 - Health Care and Social Assistance 3 192 - Public Administration 2 1Total 231 100The above table clearly illustrates the primary activities that are associated with the tourism sector within the community.Accommodation and food services, retail sales and the arts, entertainment and recreation sector, account for 72% (166)of the firms surveyed.6 The North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) is an industry classification system developed by the statistical agencies of Canada, Mexico,and the United States. Created against the background of the North American Free Trade Agreement, it is designed to provide common definitions of theindustrial structure of the three countries and a common statistical framework to facilitate the analysis of the three economies. NAICS is based on supplysideor production-oriented principles, to ensure that industrial data, classified to NAICS, are suitable for the analysis of production-related issues such asindustrial performance.

25Generally speaking, firms indicate that the owner(s) are involved with day-to-day operations (79%), owner(s) andemployee(s) are members of the community (69%) and (86%) respectively, and more often than not, businesses arefamily owned (60%).In terms of the firm’s legal form, approximately half of the businesses (48%) indicate they are corporations, followed bysole proprietorships (25%) and non-profit corporations (14%)-Refer to Figure 1.Figure 1: Legal form of firmsFrom a temporal perspective, the age of businesses within the community vary considerably (Figure 2). In saying this, it isimportant to highlight the 63% of firms that have been in operation for more than 10 years within the community, asthese numbers would suggest that firms are generally maintaining a sustainable business operation.Figure 2: Number of years firms have been in business

26The Ministry of Small Business and Entrepreneurship defines a “small business” as a goods-producing firm with fewerthan 100 employees or a service firm with fewer than 50 employees. Companies above that size, with up to 499employees, are considered medium-sized, while firms with greater than 500 employees are considered large.In the case of this survey, firm sizes ranged from one-employee/owner businesses up to establishments with more than300 employees (Table 2).Table 2: Number of years firms have been in businessFirm Size Count PercentOwner 27 12%1 to 19 153 67%20 to 49 29 12%50 to 99 12 5%100 to 299 6 3%300+ 2 1%Total 229 100%It is interesting to note that 96% of firms (221) employ fewer than 100 employees, with 67% of these firms (153)employing 1 to 19 people. With respect to employment status, firms indicate that they employ more part time (1,612)than full time (1,547) workers, followed by seasonal/temporary (237). Overall, 93% of businesses report that their workplaceis non-unionized.The bulk of businesses stated that they had a business plan (75%) and a marketing plan (69%), while only 45% had asuccession plan. The latter is often a concern cited in business literature, particularly for businesses with aging ownerswho are reluctant to plan for a business that will be closing and/or sold in the near future (See CFIB Research, 2005).References:CFIB Research. 2005. Succession Can Breed Success: SME Succession and Canada's Economic Prosperity. CanadianFederation of Independent Business.Ministry of Small Business and Entrepreneurship, 2007. Snapshot of Small and Medium Enterprises in Ontario.November 2007. www.sbe.gov.on.caStatistics Canada, 2006. North American Industry Classification System-NAICS Canada. Catalogue 12-501-XIE,Statistics Canada, Ottawa, March 2007.

27Current Business ClimateGenerally speaking, firms in the community’s felt that the area, and the Province of Ontario as a whole, were both good(60%) to excellent (24%) places to do business. Over the past three years in particular, attitudes towards doing businessin the community’s did not change siginificantly (40% Yes, 60% No), however of those businesses that expressedchange, 71% responded to the change being more positive.“Growth in the community, more buzz about community, more positive.” - Brantford Business OwnerFirms were provided with a list of factors and asked which of the factors, if any, were barriers to the expansion ofexisting businesses and the development of new businesses in the community. The factors cover a broad range of topicsincluding labour force, operating costs, land development, community services and infrastructure capacity/availability.The top 5 barriers in the communities surveyed were: availability of skilled labour, water/sewage capacity, business taxes,public transit and serviced land. Figure 3 below outlines the top 5 barriers for the four communities surveyed.Figure 3: Percentage of firms indicating the following factors as barriers to theexpansion of existing businesses and to the development of new businesses.Overall, firms were satisfied with the variety of services provided by local government and community organizations.Specifically, firms acknowledged that they were very satisfied with policing, fire prevention services, local communitycolleges and universities, as well as library resources. Furthermore, a variety of firms also acknowledged that someservices were not applicable to them in general, most notably: permits, health unit approvals, public transit, local trainingboard(s), childcare services and cultural facilities.“Lack of developmental grants - especially needed for downtown Brantford.” - Brantford Business OwnerOverall, the majority of firms reported having no contact with the provincial, federal and business organizations includedin the survey. That being said, for those firms that did use the services offered through the listed organizations,satisfaction was either attained or surpassed in a number of cases (ie: Ministry of Tourism and Recreation, HumanResources and Skills Development Canada, Chamber of Commerce/Board of Trade, BIA/BTA, Business or EconomicDevelopment Corporations, Business Self Help/Enterprise Centre/COBSC).

28Future PlansFirms were asked a number of questions in relation to the future plans of their business over the next 3 years. Firms hadthe opportunity to select one of five responses, which included: remain the same, expand, relocate, downsize or close(Table 3).Table 3: Future plans to be undertaken over next three yearsAction to be Undertaken Count PercentRemain the Same 126 53.4%Expand 86 36.4%Relocate 21 8.9%Downsize 2 0.9%Close 1 0.4%Total 236 100%Overall, 89% of the firms indicate that they will remain the same (53%) or expand (36%). Business relocation rankedthird highest, accounting for approximately 9% of the responses. Of these, 90% (19 respondents) state that they will berelocating within their community as a result of inadequate building space (27%), a change in markets (17%), expansionlimitations (13%), and/or head office decisions (13%). Only 1.3% of the firms indicate that they will either downsize (2firms) or close (1 firm)-due to retirement.More than have of the firms (56%) indicating that a building expansion was in the near future cited innovation as abasis for their decision, with 83% of the firms planning to invest in new equipment to achieve this initiative.The expansion of these firms is expected to lead to additional services for customers (82%), an increased workforce(79%), increased floor space (60%), additional investment in equipment and technology (60%) and an increaseddemand for skills training (35%). Forty-two percent of firms reporting an expansion is in the foreseeable future areexperiencing difficulty with their expansion plans. These difficulties include: Financing, developing a marketing plan,labour force training, labour availability and water infrastructure. From a financial standpoint, cash, private investmentsand lines of credit are cited as the main revenue streams for expansion undertakings.Business DevelopmentThe business development portion of the survey focused on three main areas: location, markets and financialinformation.LocationIn terms of location, firms were asked to rate their level of satisfaction with their current site and specify which issueswere impacting on their satisfaction. Overall, 57% of firms indicate that they are completely satisfied with their site,while the remaining businesses are somewhat satisfied (33%), somewhat dissatisfied (7%) and very dissatisfied (3%).Reasons for dissatisfaction included: site being too small (34%), location is inconvenient for customers (29%), noopportunity for expansion (25%), business taxes (22%) and condition/general appearance of building/site (21%).“Parking availability of downtown Paris, and cleanliness of our community.” - Brant County Business OwnerIn terms of energy use, the vast majority of firms use electricity/hydro (99.5%) and natural gas (81%) for theiroperations. Less intensive energy uses include propane (10%), fuel oil (7.5%), bio-diesel (1%) and wind (0.5%).

29In addition, firms noted that other alternative energy sources (19%) and wind energy (17%) would be their preference,however unavailability (48%), cost of installation (36%) and price (30%) were barriers to such uses in their respectivecommunity.With respect to energy supply, management and efficiency, the majority of firms (58%) have no concerns. However, thecost of energy (78%), inconsistent supply/periodic brownouts (35%) and unusually high-energy consumption (17%), areof concern to local businesses. In saying this, 61% of firms also note that their business would benefit from engineeringor technical support with respect to energy conservation and efficiency.The growing dependence of information technology (IT) on business operations has steadily increased in recent years.More and more, businesses are capitalizing on the various benefits that online applications provide, as the Internetbecomes a mainstay in day-to-day business functions. Marketing (42%), customer service (37%), finance and accounting(32%), broadening market potential (25%) and E-commerce (online sales transactions) (21%), are the most importantfunctions carried out online by area businesses. In terms of online presence, 77% of firms have their own website, 65%are on others websites and 92% use email.Overall, 85% of firms indicate that Internet service in general is somewhat important to their business, with some firmsacknowledging that high-speed satellite and high-speed T1 connections are very important.Firms cited that having what was needed (52%), start up costs (22%) and the ongoing costs of service (20%) are themain barriers to implementing new telecommunication technologies.Looking forward to the next three years, respondents were asked to specify what factors would ensure that their businessremains competitive. Firms indicated that local market development (77%), improved customer service (76%) andenergy costs (58%) as the most important. The remaining factors and their relative importance are outlined in Table 4below.Table 4: Future factors ensuring business competitiveness (next 3 years)Factor Percentage (%)Market development (local) 77Improved customer service 76Energy costs 58Market development (outside local area) 55Strategic marketing 55Availability of labour 54Business planning 53Workforce health and safety 53Workforce skill development 48Availability of telecommunications services 45Water/sewer availability 45Water/sewer costs 44Add/change products 43Worker productivity 38Accessing capital 38Strategic alliances 33Exchange rate for Canadian dollar 29Resolution of cross border issues 28

30From a logistics perspective, 66% of firms import products or services from outside the municipality, 57% import fromoutside of Canada and 49% attain their products from outside Ontario, but within Canada.In summary, the majority of firms are completely satisfied with their current site. In saying this, firms report that businesscompetitiveness over the next three years will reflect local market development, improved customer service and energycosts.Business Development - MarketsThe markets portion of the business development section focused on information pertaining to market share, salesvolume, customer needs and marketing programs.Fifty-six percent of firms are interested in collaboration/networking and information sharing with other businesses.Similarly, 52% indicate that they would pursue joint marketing initiatives, while 21% are interested in joint productpurchasing.Overall, 67% of firms indicate that their total dollar sales are within the area, while 23% are outside the area, but withinthe rest of Ontario, while the remaining 7% are outside of Ontario, but within Canada. With respect to sales trends,58% of firms report that sales have increased over the past three years, 15% have experienced a decrease while 13%have seen uneven sales patterns and the same/no significant change.“The US dollar has made a major difference. Consumer demands are changing and there are moreimports from China.” - Brantford Business OwnerLooking ahead to next year, 73% of firms expect to see higher sales volumes compared to last year, but it is interestingto note that 61% believe that competition will increase. From a market share perspective, 42% of businesses also feelthat their market share will increase, 46% anticipate the same, and 13% believe a decrease is imminent.Survey respondents noted that a variety of sources are available to them for market research/trend information. Mostnotably, industry/sector newsletters (67%), trade shows (58%), suppliers (57%), business networking (44%), andindustry/sector websites (35%) are the main avenues for market intelligence.From a customer standpoint, firms report that they identify the majority of customer’s needs through informal customercontact (86%), customer complaints (69%), and electrical communications (ie. internet, web page) (40%).In terms of the marketing used by firms to advertise their products/services, virtually all firms concentrate their marketingefforts within Ontario/Canada regardless of the marketing scheme employed (Table 5).Table 5: Marketing methods by locationMarketing Scheme Ontario/Canada (%) Outside Canada (%)Internet 99 33Flyers/Brochures 99 10Trade Show Attendance 98 15General Publications 99 10Sponsorship of Events 98 6Business Cards 99 10Total 99 14

31Business Development - FinancialThe financial portion of the business development section focused on financial/lending sources and financial planningpractices.Based on the previous three years, firms were asked to identify what financial/lending sources they have investigated,secured, currently use for operations and/or use for expansion. Table 6 below outlines the various responses for thedifferent financial/lending sources.Table 6: Firms financial/lending sources over past 3 yearsResponse Bank Trust Credit Union CFDC BDC Private Venture CapitalInvestigated 68 9 5 12 8 20 2Secured 87 5 3 7 5 20 3CurrentlyUsed for 138 8 4 10 4 28 3OperationsUse for 24 0 1 4 2 7 1ExpansionTotal 317 22 13 33 19 75 9As is evident in the table, most firms use banks and private capital for financial/lending sources, while some capitalize onthe services offered through the Community Futures Development Corporation (CFDC).From a planning perspective, firms report a variety of time lines when planning their financial performance (Figure 4).Figure 4: Financial performance planning

32Most notably, almost half of all firms (45%) plan their financial performance on an annual basis, followed by monthly(18%) and quarterly (9%) planning. In terms of reviewing these financial plans against actual performances, firms indicatemore frequent monitoring with monthly (34%), quarterly (19%) and daily (17%) reviews being the most prominent(Figure 5).Figure 5: Reviewing financial plans against actual performanceIn summary, the vast majority of firms rely on banks for their financial/lending needs and tend to plan their financials ona yearly basis, while reviewing their performance at monthly and daily intervals.Workforce DevelopmentThe workforce development section of the survey concentrates on past and anticipated changes in workforce size whileinvestigating the factors related to such changes. Information pertaining to employee availability, quality and stability isalso examined. In addition, recruitment and retention, as well as training and mentorship programs are also evaluated.Over the past 3 years, 89% of firms indicate that their employee base has either increased or remained the same (Table7). Firms citing an increase, added 4.3 employees on average (accounting for a total of 304 new employees). Only 10%of businesses noted a decrease in their workforce with an average change of 4.5 employees per firm, for a total declineof 61 workers. Overall, 243 new employees were gained by businesses in the respective communities.Table 7: Employee changes over past 3 yearsCounts Percent Average Change Total ChangeIncreased 78 37 4.3 304Remain the same 110 52 - -Decreased 22 10 4.5 61Don’t know 3 1 - -Total 213 100 - -

33Reasons for the workforce increase included increase or decrease in sales (63%), increase or decrease in market share(20%), new products or services introduced (20%), increase or decrease in market competition (18%) and renovation orexpansion (16%).Looking ahead to the next three years, 93% of firms believe they will either increase or maintain their current workforce,while 4% anticipate a reduction and 3% remain uncertain (Table 8). For those projecting an increase in employment, anaverage of 4 workers will be added to their operations, representing 336 jobs overall. From a downsizing perspective,only 23 positions in total (2 positions on average) are expected to be lost over the next 3 years.Table 8: Employee changes over next 3 yearsCounts Percent Average Change Total ChangeIncrease 104 50 4 336Remain the same 89 43 - -Decrease 8 4 2 23Don’t know 7 3 - -Total 208 100 - -Firms acknowledge that an increase or decrease in sales (74%), new products or services introduced (36%), renovationor expansion (32%), an increase or decrease in market share (31%) and entering a new market (21%) as the main factorsfor future workforce changes.With respect to the workforce, 51% of firms rate the availability of workers in the area as excellent or good, followed byfair (37%) and poor (12%). In terms of employee quality, 50% of firms rate the workforce as good, followed by fair(34%), excellent (10%) and poor (5%). From a stability standpoint, the majority of firms feel that the workforce is good(51%), followed by fair (31%), excellent (9%) and poor (8%) (Table 9).Table 9: Workforce ratingsAvailability Quality StabilityRating Count Percent Count Percent Count PercentExcellent 24 12 22 10 18 9Good 78 39 99 50 103 51Fair 74 37 68 34 63 31Poor 25 12 11 5 17 100Total 201 100 200 100 201 100In addition, businesses also indicate that skilled trades, unskilled labour and sales positions are currently, and areprojected to be, in demand over the next 3 years. Table 10 outlines the specific figures relating to the current andprojected employee needs for the businesses surveyed.Table 10: Current and 3-year projected employee needs for businessCurrent 3-Year ProjectedPosition Count Average Count AverageSkilled Trades 448 4.5 569 5.75Unskilled Labour 1,056 6.25 16 6.25Sales 151 1.00 7 1.5Total 1,655 - 592 -

34“ Avaliability of workers is slim everywhere. More competition between employers.” - Brantford Business OwnerAs the table illustrates, unskilled labour positions are the highest in demand for current firms with 1,056 total workersneeded (6.25 workers per firm on average). Skilled trades rank second in demand, accounting for 448 positions and 4.5workers on average. Lastly, 151 sales employees (1 worker on average per firm) are currently in need by area businesses.These needs are projected to be far less prominent in the next three years, as skilled trades account for nearly all thefuture positions required by employers (569 workers total, 5.75 workers on average per firm). Unskilled labour positionsand sales employee demands decreased substantially, accounting for only 23 positions in total.From a recruitment and retention standpoint, 73% of businesses are able to recruit sufficient qualified employees fortheir location, while 82% of firms have no problem retaining their workers. Firms cite wages (50%), competition fromother businesses (22%) and seasonality (19%) as the major issues for employee retention.“Marketing the need/lack of qualified aboriginal candidates.” - Six Nations Business OwnerFirms also report that skills related to customer service, computer software, sales and marketing, oral communicationand working with others as the areas needing the greatest improvement (Table 11).Table 11: Skill areas in need of improvementSkill Areas Count PercentCustomer service 81 62Computer software 64 55Sales and marketing 58 50Oral communication 53 48Working with others 53 47Health and safety 46 43Supervisory 44 41Quality assurance 37 37Written communication 35 35Financial management 29 31Computer hardware 28 30Numeracy 21 23Reading 13 15Other 3 9Further, firms indicate that the majority of their employees receive training in-house (87%), through customized methods(33%), and at the local community college (22%). Collectively, 93% of businesses believe that the training methodsprovided to their employees meet their needs. However, despite this success, several barriers do exist that impede theability of firms to provide necessary training. Most notably, cost (51%), loss of productivity during training periods(45%), loss of trained employees to other businesses (26%), availability of training locally (24%) and the awareness ofexisting training programs (20%) are the most significant barriers to training.In addition, 51% of firms also note that a mentoring program would benefit the businesses in this community.Specifically, programs dealing with marketing (71%), business planning (44%) and human resources (30%) are seen asthe most beneficial.In summary, over the past 3 years most firms have either increased or kept their workforce stable. Similarly, projectionsfor the next 3 years appear to be optimistic with the majority of firms expecting to expand or maintain their currentemployment base.

35Local CommunityThe local community section of the survey outlines the attributes of the area that make it a desirable place to dobusiness. Businesses were asked to rate a variety of factors associated with business operations, as well as comment onthe economic development program in the community.Overall, nearly two-thirds of firms (64%) know that the local community has an economic development plan, while 33%are unsure and 3% believe such a plan does not exist. Of these respondents, the vast majority (90%) believe that theplan is either being implemented effectively or do not know. Approximately half (49%) of area businesses feel that thelocal municipality is taking an adequate role in business and economic development, while 30% are unaware of what isbeing done and 21% think more can be achieved.Using a scale of excellent, good, fair and poor, firms were asked to rate a number of factors associated with doingbusiness in the community. The top five factors of doing business in the community are quality of life, support from localresidents, access to markets, access to suppliers and availability of utilities. Conversely, the bottom five factors includemunicipal taxes, water and sewage capacity, availability of transportation, availability of appropriately zoned land andthe local permit process. Table 12 outlines all of the factors and the respective ratings they received.Table 12: Factors for doing business in the communityFactorRating (Percent)Excellent Good Fair PoorQuality of life 26 61 11 2Support from local residents 20 57 16 2Access to markets/customers/suppliers 17 65 16 3Access to suppliers 16 70 10 3Availability of utilities 13 67 14 6Support from local businesses 12 61 22 5Access to training facilities 10 58 28 3Labour costs 7 64 25 4Cost of construction 3 56 37 3Size of local market 6 67 22 5Access to research and development 7 56 32 5Municipal by-laws 6 54 33 7Transportation costs 3 60 29 8Land costs 6 56 29 9Telecommunications infrastructure capacity 13 58 19 10Availability of skilled labour 8 51 30 11Support from municipality 7 49 32 12Cost of leasing space 5 53 30 12Local permit process 6 48 31 15Availability of appropriately zoned land 6 49 28 16Water and sewage capacity 9 51 21 19Municipal taxes 5 33 38 24“Good location/proximity with southern Ontario.” - New Credit Business Owner

36It is important to note that these factors are rated differently depending on the community in question. For example,while water and sewer capacity were rated as good by 63% of respondents in Brantford, 44% of firms from the Countyof Brant and 53% of businesses from Six Nations rated these services as poor; placing this factor 2nd last overall.Firms were then asked to comment on how local business associations and/or economic development offices could assisttheir business sector. Joint advertising and marketing (66%), marketing seminars (48%), business networking sessions(47%), trade shows (45%) and website development (40%) appear to be the top areas where businesses need assistance.To summarize, businesses evaluated the strengths and weaknesses of doing business in the community. Quality of life,support from local residents, access to markets, access to suppliers and availability of utilities are seen as thecommunity’s assets from a business perspective. Municipal taxes, water and sewage capacity, availability oftransportation, availability of appropriately zoned land and the local permit process are the main shortcomings for thearea.“Strong family presence in the community.” - Brant County Business OwnerTourismThe tourism section of the BR+E survey focuses on the type and location of businesses and the nature of the tourismmarket in general. Information pertaining to the physical presentation of the community, various marketing approachesand the development of new products is also highlighted. Businesses also commented on the benefit of a variety ofevents, services, marketing and promotional approaches geared toward the tourism industry.In total, 201 firms indicate they are involved in the tourism sector. Of that number, 56% report other as their businessfocus, followed by 21% providing food services only, 13% offering attraction destinations, 4% in accommodation andfood services, 3% in accommodation only, and 1% in tour guide operations.With respect to business locations, there is almost an equal distribution of firms located on a highway/commercial area(40%) as there are in the downtown (36%). In addition, there are double as many companies in outlying non-urbanareas (16%) as there are in outlying villages (8%). While most businesses report being opened year round (89%), morethan one-third (38%) describe the tourism industry as mostly summer with some off-season traffic.“Small town atmosphere and our historic buildings are a real plus.” - Brant County Business OwnerAddressing buildings in poor condition (59%), having more and better festivals and events (56%), increasingentertainment facilities (52%), more niche market specialty shops (50%) and improving signage (50%) top the list asattributes that would make the area more appealing as a tourist destination.There were various community assets that the tourism sector would like to see developed. Specifically, walking and biketrails, sports or recreation facilities, farmer’s markets or open markets, public cultural facilities and parks/open spaceswere the top 5 responses (Table 13).

37Table 13: Community assets to be developedAsset Count PercentWalking and bike trails 103 51Sports and recreation facilities 97 48Farmer’s markets and open markets 96 48Public cultural facilities (libraries, 95 47museums, entertainment centres)Parks and/or green spaces 76 38Waterfront access, marinas, boat landings 69 34Public parking 63 31Public washrooms conveniently located downtown 57 28Other 15 7Overall, tour packaging does not seem to be used much to attract clients (19% on average). For those who do capitalizeon tour packages, the majority (52%) handle the promotion and selling of these packages themselves. Most firms (59%)acknowledge that they have little or no communications with the local visitor/tourism centre.Currently, and looking into the future (next 3 years), the main target markets are leisure travelers (90%), outdoorenthusiasts/outdoor recreationalists (85%), coporate (85%) and motorcoach groups/travel trade (80%). Firms report thatlocal patrons (within 100km) (90%), those living in the United States (87%) and those residing in Ontario (85%) as thetop three target markets.Table 14 identifies the top ten primary products that attract visitors to the area currently, as well as those projected to bein demand 3-years from now (Table 14).Table 14: Primary products that attract tourists (current and 3-yr projection)Primary Product Current Future (3-Years)Count Percent Count PercentOutdoor activities 93 97 87 91Heritage 96 97 92 89General attractions 83 97 72 84Arts and culture 104 90 104 90Performing arts 91 88 95 92Trails 72 89 74 91Sightseeing 59 88 59 88Family focus 81 87 82 88Cycling 81 88 81 88Museums 57 84 62 91“Accessibility to our community uniqueness.” - Six Nations Business OwnerFrom a satisfaction standpoint, tourism operators feel that information centres, food services, signage, accommodations,attractions and retail establishments are good to excellent in the community. In contrast, and not surprisingly, areaoperators consider highway rest areas, availability of public washrooms and the condition and cleanliness of publicwashrooms as unsatisfactory.

38Items considered very beneficial to the tourism sector include local one-day events, websites, festivals, sporting eventsand highway signage. Local tourist association marketing, tourism information, magazines/newspapers with a tourismfocus and newspapers in general are seen as somewhat beneficial. Canadian tourism commission marketing, travelagents and public viewpoints/outlook spots are seen as having no benefit to local business.To summarize, the majority of tourism firms in the area describe their business focus as being outside the realm of thetraditional services offered by operators (ie. food services, attraction destinations, accommodation). In general,addressing buildings in poor condition, having more festivals/events and increasing entertainment facilities would makethe area more appealing to prospective tourists. Businesses also feel that walking and biking trails, sports and recreationfacilities and farmer’s/open markets should be the focus of development in the coming years. Currently, and looking tothree years time, leisure travelers, outdoor enthusiasts/recreationalists and corporate clients are seen as the primarytarget markets, however the arts (visual and performing), as well as cultural attractions, are projected to increase inpopularity in the coming years. For the most part, area businesses seem quite satisfied with the tourism facilities the areapossesses and view local one-day events, websites and festivals as being very beneficial to the local tourism sector.“We have a variety of attractions, natural and historic, which are very positive for the city.” - BrantfordBusiness OwnerCommunity QuestionsThe community questions section of the BR+E survey differed from previous sections because the questions wereformulated based on input from Tourism Brantford, County of Brant - Economic Development & Tourism, Two RiversCommunity Development as well as input from the BR+E Leadership Team that was developed to help guide the projectand the staff input at OMFRA - Rural Economic Development Branch. Questions ranged from tourism demandgenerators, visitor retention, apparent weaknesses in the tourism sector, marketing and branding amongst others.The top five demand generators for the area are gaming/casino (76%), outdoor adventures/Grand River (58%),theatre/live performances (56%), special events/festivals (51%) and aboriginal tourism (44%).Approximately half (49%) of area businesses noted that they do not rely on revenue from visitor spending, however forthe 44% who do, varying levels of dependence exist (Figure 6).Figure 6: Percentage of revenue received from visitors

39Of those firms indicating a reliance on visitor spending, 53% report an increase, 14% have experienced a decrease and33% have seen no change over the past five years.Looking at the tourism sector as a whole, 64% of firms feel that there are weaknesses at a local level. Shortcomingsvary across the four areas in question, but generally speaking, lack of attractions, accommodation facilities, andmarketing/promotional efforts are consistently cited.From a service perspective, businesses think that the Brantford Visitor & Tourism Centre could facilitate referrals (72%),assist in brochure distribution (68%) and provide web site links (64%) to better serve operator’s needs.“The Brantford Visitor & Tourism Centre assists outlying areas with support of business throughdeveloping marketing and information systems and opportunities.” - Six Nations Business OwnerFirms also feel that nightlife/entertainment venues (62%), family attractions (60%), hotel expansion (56%), shoppingoutlets (56%), restaurants (39%), conference space (39%) and museums (30%) as the top tourism-related investmentthat would enhance the region’s ability to attract visitors. In addition, special events (76%), tournaments (64%), andmeetings/conferences (38%) are seen as the primary catalysts for increasing foot traffic/sales volume. Specifically, tourismbusinesses report that approximately half (51%) of their total sales are from middle-aged patrons, followed by youthsand seniors (Figure 7).Figure 7: Percentage of total dollar sales by ageFrom a marketing standpoint, 82% of firms believe that their materials are effective, while 72% feel that a strong, singleidentifiable brand is needed for the area. Firms also feel that the local government is supportive towards the tourismsector (82%) and that a tourism strategic plan for Brantford and area is strongly needed (98%).“Better communiction between towns and villages - making clients aware of funding issues, initiatives andour connection with the province and the City of Brantford.” - Brant County Business OwnerIn summary, the tourism sector has its strengths and weaknesses. While firms believe that the area does have severalamenities that attract visitors to the area (ie. Grand River, casino, live performances, aboriginal tourism, etc.), moreattractions, accommodation facilities and stronger marketing efforts would only improve the area’s tourism market on awhole. Further, consensus is also given to the idea of a ‘regional’ branding campaign that would provide the area with asingle identifiable image for marketing and promotional efforts.

40Results / AnalysisProfile of Businesses/Organizations surveyed in the Downtown Brantford Business ImprovementArea/Downtown District of Brantford:Current Business ClimateThe Business Climate section of the surveys reviewed the climate for doing business in the City of Brantford. It coveredthe owner/managers’ perception of the climate and factors which facilitate/hamper the development of business in thecity.Overall, the businesses’ general impression of Brantford as a place to do business was very positive. The majority rated itas good to excellent (79%). Fifty-one percent (51%) said their attitude had changed over the last three years and ofthose that did express a change, 80% stated that their attitude was now more positive.Some of the reasons cited for the positive change in attitude were: the growth of the Universities, an increase inbusiness development, growth in the employment sector, an increase in the housing sector and a willingness at City Hall.Some of the negative changes in attitude were due to: a lack of parking, security, the appearance of the downtownand students not spending more in the core.Their general impression of doing business in the Province of Ontario was also very positive with an eighty-seven percent(87%) rating of excellent to good.“The economy is strong, but falls short in terms of assistance/support for small business.” - DowntownBrantford Business OwnerThrough the interview process, we gain a glimpse into the general overview of the community, including factors whichbusinesses believe are barriers to existing, expanding or new businesses. Some of the barriers included: Business Taxes(35%), Approval Process (32%), Availability of Skilled Labour (27%) and Public Transit (26%).The Business Climate section of the survey also measured levels of satisfaction with services provided by the localgovernment, and other business organizations. High levels of satisfaction (very to somewhat satisfied) with servicesprovided by the local government were recorded for:Figure 1: Businesses Very to Somewhat Satisfied With Services Provided by the Local Government

42Nine businesses plan to relocate within the next three (3) years, and five (5) are exploring the possibility. Twelve (12)businesses plan to remain within the municipality and one (1) plans to relocate elsewhere in Ontario.Decisions to relocate include the following reasons:71% Other reasons (building sold, too big/old, safety and lack of businesses and parking)29% Inadequate facilities in terms of building space21% Expansion limitationsEach business cited either a head office decision, a change in the market, availability of appropriate labour, or that utilityinfrastructure is inadequate.Participants were asked what assistance, if any, could prevent the relocation and five respondents said, “other type ofassistance (available parking and more people are needed downtown),” four respondents said, “finding anappropriate site location,” two respondents said, “nothing, decision is made,” and one each said, “finding andsecuring adequate labour; infrastructure upgrades”, and “assistance in making business case remain”.Within the next 3 years, 65% do not plan on undertaking major renovations, and 35% plan to renovate.Businesses were then asked whether they were planning to invest in new equipment in their operations within the nextthree years and 96% said “yes”, while the other 4% said “no”.Of those businesses (27) planning on expanding, 24 answered the question regarding innovation being the reason forexpansion. Seventy-five percent (75%) said “yes’, while 25% said “no”.Twenty-seven businesses indicated that they have plans to expand their businesses within the next three years. Thoseexpansion plans will lead to the following (participants could select more than one answer):“Downtown is moving in the right direction.” - Downtown Brantford Business Owner

43Fifty-seven percent (57%) of businesses wanting to expand are experiencing difficulties with their plans. Some of thesedifficulties include:Reason for Difficulty With ExpansionNumber of BusinessesFinancing 9Other difficulties (parking, rail system, resource allocation) 5Land availability 3Developing a business plan 2Availability of buildings 2Labour force training 1Road and highway system 1Highway and roadside signs 1Finding/developing strategic alliances 1Local by-laws 1To finance their expansion, businesses will:Method of FinancingP e r c e n tUse another method (grants, donations, government funding, internal capital) 64%Cash 32%Private Investment 32%Long-term bank loan (>1 year) 23%Other methods include: short-term bank loan, line of credit, credit card, new owner equity and venture capital.Within the next three (3) years, two (2) businesses will close. Reasons for closing: (businesses were able to pick morethan one (1) answer).Reason for ClosingNumber of BusinessesLocal infrastructure 2Head office decision 1Loss or change of customers/clients 1Labour supply 1Profitability 1Unable to find purchaser 1Loss or change of export/product mandate 1Other reason (facility rentals have increased; can no longer manage fees) 1It is believed that assistance could help prevent the closure, such as finding a new site, financing and improvements tolocal infrastructure.

44Company InformationThe Downtown BIA district was divided into four geographic quadrants, and within each quadrant, there were sixsub-sectors:• Not for Profit• Attraction• Event• Food, Beverage, Accommodation• Retail/Consumer Goods• ServicesOf all the businesses interviewed, the legal form of the businesses were as follows:The majority of downtown businesses interviewed are independent and only 3% indicated that they are a franchise.The primary activities of the BIA businesses sampled are:Primary ActivityPercentRetail trade 16%Accommodation and food services 14%Educational Services 14%Professional, scientific and technical services 12%Finance and insurance 9%Arts, entertainment and recreation 9%Seventy-six percent (76%) of respondents said the owner of the business is involved in the day to day operation of thebusiness.Seventy-four percent (74%) of business owners reside in this community and 89% of businesses sampled have been inoperation for over three (3) years.

45Participants were asked how many years the business has been in operation:Thirty-five percent (35%) of interviewed businesses are family-owned and there would appear to be an opportunity toassist over 25% of the businesses with succession, business and marketing plans.Eighteen percent (18%) of BIA businesses that responded are unionized.Businesses were asked to specify how many of their employees are:Employee StatusNumber of EmployeesPermanent full time 1,391Permanent part time 367Seasonal/temporary 93Spring 2Summer 5Fall 100Winter 144Contract employees 133Total employees 2,235They were then asked what percentage of their employees at this location live:71% Within the municipality11% Outside the municipality but within county/district/regional municipality3% Outside county/district/regional municipalityBusiness DevelopmentThe Business Development portion of the survey considered the factors and strategies that impact growth of business.These ranged from site considerations to energy sources, technology implemented, and factors which made a businesscompetitive in its market.Fifty-seven percent (57%) of those surveyed said their location was the only one while the other 43% said they werepart of multiple locations. These locations included 20 within the municipality, 9 outside of the municipality, 20 elsewherein Ontario, four in another province and three outside of Canada. For 38% of respondents their location is theheadquarters for their business.

46Fifty-two percent (52%) of the businesses surveyed were completely satisfied with their location of their businesses and32% were somewhat satisfied with their location. Ten percent (10%) were somewhat dissatisfied and 6% were verydissatisfied.Those that were not completely satisfied with their location (48%) had the following concerns: other reasons (52%),location is inconvenient for customers (36%), general appearance of community (32%), site is too small (23%), noopportunity for expansion (23%), condition of building (20%), policing/security/fire protection (20%) and business taxes(16%).Only 4% of businesses surveyed indicated that their business is a home-based business operated from their residence.Forty-one percent (41%) of businesses own their facility, while the remaining 59% of businesses leased a facility and 6%of those anticipate a problem in renewing their lease.For those leasing a facility, 30% rent from month to month, 28% will need to renew their lease in one to three years,26% will need to renew over 3 years from now, 11% will need to renew next year and 4% will to need to renew theirlease this calendar year, and six businesses anticipate a problem renewing their lease.The energy source most often used in the Brantford businesses surveyed is electricity/hydro (98%) followed by naturalgas (72%). The preferred energy source is electricity/hydro (82%) and natural gas (68%). Thirteen percent (13%)would prefer an alternative energy source. The major reasons identified for not using these sources included: notavailable in this community, price and cost of installation.The majority of respondents (59%) do not have concerns with respect to energy supply, management or efficiency. Butof the 41% that did were concerned with: cost of energy, and inconsistent supply/periodic brownouts.Forty percent (40%) feel their businesses would benefit from engineering or technical support with respect to energyconservation and efficiency.Internet AccessType of Internet Access Use Prefer Importance (Very Important)Dial-up 10% 3% 33%High Speed: Cable 28% 16% 59%High Speed: DSL 61% 62% 84%High Speed: Wireless 22% 30% 70%High Speed: T1 11% 19% 47%Internet ready devices (Blackberry) 27%

47Online ApplicationsApplication Use Prefer Importance (Very Important)Own website 80% 63% 79%On others websites 69% 44% 73%Email 95% 66% 89%e-commerce (online sales transactions) 26% 34% 63%e-commerce (online business/marketing) 23% 28% 58%Government reports/payments 36% 22% 62%Finance & accounting 45% 28% 70%Customer service 51% 41% 83%Broadening market potential 29% 22% 55%Human resource management/training 36% 25% 66%Distribution/supplier network 24% 13% 57%Marketing 41% 34% 47%Video conferencing 15% 13% 43%Video CommunicationsType of Voice Communication Use Prefer Importance (Very Important)Personal data application (PDA) 21% 22% 48%Pager(s) 13% 19% 41%Cellular telephones 73% 70% 77%Digital telephones (touch tone) 90% 56% 94%Voice over internet protocol 8% 11% 39%Others 0% 4% 0%Reasons cited for not implementing any of the technologies were:• Telecommunication infrastructure in community• Start-up cost of service• Ongoing cost of service• Privacy and/or security concerns (e-commerce)• Experience with telecommunication applications within the business• Local training opportunities for staff• Effectiveness or usefulness of the technology & potential business application unknown• Have what is needed

48Participating businesses were asked to indicate how important certain factors will be in ensuring that their businessremains competitive in the next three years.Percentages shown are for respondents indicating very important:Factors (Very Important)PercentageProduct research and development 48%Market development:- locally 74%- outside local area 43%Access to exporting and international markets 11%Access to importing of products & services 11%Add or change in products or services 43%Strategic alliances (joining with other business to provide products/services) 43%Improving worker productivity 43%ISO9000/14000 or HACCP management standards 14%Industry/professional standards 48%Availability of labour 55%Workplace health and safety 60%Workforce skill development 57%Energy costs 49%Water/sewer availability 35%Water/sewer costs 33%Improved customer service 78%Availability of telecommunication services 65%Exchange rate for Canadian dollar 25%Resolution of cross border issues 15%Accessing capital 44%Business planning 61%Strategic marketing 66%Other 13%Fifty-seven percent (57%) of businesses surveyed import products or services from outside the municipality and 40%imports from outside Ontario but within Canada.Products or services which businesses would like to purchase locally, that are now being purchased outside of the areainclude: Specific food items, office supplies, books etc., computer hardware and software and business specific items.Thirty-eight percent (38%) of surveyed businesses participate in a product and/or service buyer-supplier network, ofthose that said “no” felt it would be a benefit and 46% said there is a concentration of firms in the area that couldprovide complimentary products or services.

50Businesses market their products/services through the following:Marketing Scheme Within Ontario/Canada Oustide CanadaInternet 78% 88%Flyers/Brochures 79% 38%Trade Show Attendance 43% 13%General Publications 51% 0%Distributor 14% 0%Sponsorship of Events 49% 0%Business Cards 77% 50%Other ways 27% 13%Total Average 52.5% 25.25%Business Development – FinancialThis section provides an insight into the inner workings of local businesses including: Lending sources investigated,secured, used for operations and expansions. It also includes the behaviours regarding planning and reviewing offinancial performance.Chartered banks were the primary financial source investigated (53%), secured (57%) and used for operations (80%)and expansions (56%). The next most common source was Private, followed by Business Development Bank of Canada.In regards to financial planning, there was a variety of time-frames used, however, a significant number of businessesplan their financial performance quarterly (49%) and review them monthly (41%) and quarterly (23%).Fourteen (14) participating businesses requested information related to financial planning and six (6) businessesrequested assistance related to financial planning.Workforce DevelopmentThis section provides factors responsible for the increase and decrease of employees, and at the current and futurenumber of employees needed and the type of employee needs businesses will have. Further skills the workforce needsto improve and what the barriers are to employees receiving the necessary training is also highlighted.Size of businesses interviewed, by number of employees

51Forty-one percent (41%) of the businesses surveyed reported an increase in employees in the past three years. The mainreasons reported were: other (33%), an increase in sales (31%), management effectiveness (27%) and a change incorporate decisions or policies (27%). Forty-either percent (48%) think that the number of employees will remain thesame in the next 3 years and forty-four percent (44%) think it will increase for the following reasons: increase in sales(50%), corporate decisions or polices (40%) and new products or services being introduced (38%).Availability of workers was deemed excellent to good by 59% of the businesses interviewed and fair to poor by 42%.Difficulties expressed were that employees were hard to find and most need specialized training.The quality of the workforce was rated as excellent to good by 79% of the businesses, and fair to poor by 22%. Themajor concerns noted were lack of training and the tendency to “recycle”.Stability of the workforce was rated as excellent to good by 72%. Twenty-seven percent (27%) rated the stability of theworkforce as fair to poor. Some businesses reported that once trained, they would then lose the employee to othercommunities.The current type of employees needed and the current number of employees needed and projected needs inthree (3) years are:Type of Employee Current ProjectedSkilled trades 54 50Unskilled trades 136 123Industry specialists 8 9Manufacturing technology 0 0Environmental technology/management 5 7Electric engineering 1 2Clerical 148 63Sales 17 21Business administration 29 39Product development 1 2Market development 3 4Other business needs 141 159Apprenticeship 0 0Total Employee Needed 543 479In total there are 543 employees needed currently and 479 projected over the next three years.Sixty-nine percent (69%) of businesses believe they are able to recruit sufficient qualified employees, while thirty-onepercent (31%) were having problems recruiting labour. The recruitment difficulties were noted to be related to both theindustry sector and the availability of qualified skilled resources locally. A large majority of the businesses surveyed arehaving no difficulties retaining employees (78%). Those that were having problems retaining employees cited “other”(44%), wages (39%), seasonal (28%) and competition (22%) as reasons for these difficulties.Sixty-nine percent (69%) of those answering the survey would like information on employee retention strategies.Workforce skill improvement needs were cited in computer software, customer service and sales and marketing.Seventy-nine percent (79%) of businesses were training employees in-house while customized training (49%) and university(30%) and local community college (30%) were the next most commonly used sources, followed by distanceeducation (28%).

52The most significant barrier to training cited was the cost of training (50%). Additional barriers were availability oftraining locally (29%), loss of productivity during the training period (27%) and being unable to release employees(23%).Fifty-one percent (51%) of businesses surveyed feel a mentoring program would be a benefit to businesses in thecommunity.Mentoring programs most beneficial according to participants would be in:Mentoring Program Benefit to Business Willing to Participate as a MentorMarketing 57% 57%Business Planning 50% 38%Human Resources 40% 33%Financial 27% 24%Local CommunityThe Local Community section identifies issues with regards to Economic Development Plans, and the role themunicipality is taking in providing adequate business support.Ten businesses surveyed know of a business that has an interest in locating in our community and of those, five arewilling to provide the contact information for that business and two would be willing to contact the company on thecommunity’s behalf.Business owners/managers participating in the survey were asked if they would be interested in participating in aBusiness Ambassador program and 51% agreed to participate.New suppliers of products or services that surveyed businesses would like to see added to this community are:1. More restaurants2. More retail3. More health services4. Recreational/athletic facilities5. Culture/entertainment/arts facilitiesA total of 79% of those interviewed believe that Brantford has an Economic Development Plan, while in fact Brantforddoes not currently have a written Economic Development Plan document. Two percent (2%) of the participants did notbelieve that a plan existed, while 17% were unaware of whether a Plan existed at all. When asked whether the plan isbeing effectively implemented, 48% said yes, while 38% didn’t know and 14% said no.The survey respondents were asked if they felt the municipality took an adequate role in economic and business development.Sixty-five percent (65%) believe the municipality plays an adequate role, while 20% are unaware of what isbeing done and 15% felt that the municipality does not play an adequate role. Some of the comments documentedfrom downtown Brantford business owners included:“The municipality is working hard but not effective, they need a targeted plan for small business otherthan manufacturing,” and “They are not focusing enough on the downtown.” - Downtown Brantford BusinessOwner

53A community’s advantages as a place to do business are key factors in maintaining existing businesses while encouragingnew businesses to establish. The following items were cited as the top five advantages to doing business in Brantford(not in any certain order):- Location- Universities (education)- 403- Small town feel- AffordabilityIn terms of disadvantages of doing business in Brantford, the following five factors were cited (not in any certain order):- Downtown parking- Condition of the downtown (appearance)- Perception/Reputation of the city- Property taxes- Transportation/transitBusinesses surveyed were asked to rate factors in their ability to conduct business in this community.The following are the highest ratings (excellent to good):Factor - Excellent to GoodPercentAccess to suppliers 90%Availability of utilities 89%Water and sewer capacity 86%Access to markets/customers/clients 83%Quality of life 79%Support from local businesses 79%Telecommunications infrastructure capacity 78%Access to training facilities 74%Size of local market 73%Support from local residents 72%Transportation costs 67%Access to research and development 67%Labour costs 65%Cost of construction 61%Support from municipality 60%The lowest ratings ranked as fair to poor included:Factor - PoorestPercentCost of leasing space 57%Availability of skilled labour 55%Land costs 55%Municipal by-laws 55%Development charges 53%Local permit process 48%Availability of appropriately zoned land 45%Municipal taxes 41%

54To assist the Retail and Business Sector, businesses indicated that Business Associations and EconomicDevelopment groups could:Retail/Service BusinessThis BR+E Project allowed respondents to answer an additional set of questions dealing directly with issues faced byRetail and Business Services businesses in the downtown.All businesses interviewed were located in the downtown business improvement area (BIA).Sixty-two percent (62%) of businessess believed that there is a strategy or plan in place for promoting and managingthe downtown district, while 27% didn’t know and 11% answered no.Of those responding yes, 56% said it identifies the issues important to the future of their business, 23% said it didn’tand 21% didn’t know if it did. Fifty-four percent (54%) said it proposes actions to address those issues, 20% said itdidn’t and 26% didn’t know if it did. Forty percent (40%) said either it was being implemented effectively or didn’tknow, and 19% said no.Fifty-eight percent (58%) believe the strategy is a comprehensive and integrated plan, 31% said they didn’t know and12% said no.Forty-two percent (42%) of respondents believe the plan is primarily focused on retail marketing and promotion, 31%said they didn’t know if it was and 27% said no.When asked if there is a group or organization that represents the interest of the downtown, 90% felt that the BIA representedtheir interest, as opposed to the Chamber of Commerce(60%).Participants were then asked to rate the condition of their commercial district. Percentages shown are for those thatselected “excellent to good”:Physical Setting:Condition - Excellent to GoodPercentStreet furniture 45%Public amenities 50%Planting, trees/flower boxes 67%Graffiti and litter 33%

55Transportation:Condition - Excellent to GoodPercentSidewalks, pedestrian environment 64%Traffic flow on streets in the area 61%Adequacy of public transit 61%Accessibility for people with disabilities 50%Parking:Condition - Excellent to GoodPercentNumber of parking spots/facilities 23%Parking signage 44%Fees, enforcement 53%Gateways/Entrances:Condition - Excellent to GoodPercentHighway signage/tourism directional signs 60%Roadside advertising 51%Visual identity of the area - unifying banners 40%Storefronts:Condition - Excellent to GoodPercentExterior Appearance of facades 16%Window displays 12%Signage 22%Other Issues/Social Conditions:Condition - Excellent to GoodPercentVagrancy/homelessness/panhandling 12%Vandalism 13%Public safety services 34%Conditions of housing stock 20%Competitive Position:Condition - Excellent to GoodPercentAppropriate mix of businesses 38%Appropriate range of quality/price for target markets 44%Number of vacancies/turnover 14%Joint Marketing/Position:Condition - Excellent to GoodPercentOrganization of special events 31%Uniform hours of operation 43%Customer service programs 39%Advertising campaigns 29%

56The following statistics reflect the programs or services that could be used to benefit businesses that scoredhigher than 50%:Those programs or services that scored lower than 50%:

57Participants were asked for their top three suggestions to improve the retail business environment:SuggestionPercentRepair or remove eyesore buildings 87%Improve parking 44%Focused on downtown revitalization strategy 37%Also high on the list were:28% Improved streetscape20% More niche market specialty shopsIn order for their businesses to be more competitive, the following number of businesses indicated that theywould attend a seminar or workshop on the following topics (42 businesses answered this question):Seminar/WorkshopNumber of BusinessesRetaining/attracting customers 27Marketing 22Evaluating market opportunities 16Assessing new technologies 16Customer service training 16Staff training and development 15Participants were asked whether the following costs of operation were a serious concern to the success oftheir business (ratings for those that said “yes”):“There is a stigma attached to Downtown Brantford - preconceived notions are hard to shake.” -Downtown Brantford Business Owner

58The top four community assets businesses would most like to see developed in their community are:Downtown RevitalizationThe Downtown Revitalization portion of the survey contained the following topics:• General Business Information• Typical Business Activity• Marketing and Sales• Consumer Profile• Competition• Parking• Incentives• General InformationGeneral Business InformationNumber of years in business:Of those businesses interviewed (59 answered):

59Fifty-seven (57) participating businesses answered a question regarding annual total sales:Total Annual Sales Number of Businesses Percent$0 - 50,000 15 26%$50,000 - 100,000 7 12%$100,000 - 250,000 3 5%$250,000 - 500,000 5 7%$500,000 - 1,000,000 7 12%over $1 million 20 37%Almost half (46%) of the downtown businesses had no foot traffic, 32% had less than 100 customers per week and10% had between 500-1,000 customers per week.When asked what was the busiest day for the businesses, the majority said it varies, with the next busiest day beingThursday, followed by Monday.The two busiest times of the day for businesses (each business could select two times):DaySundayMondayTuesdayWednesdayThursdayFridaySaturdayTimeClosed/Varies1 - 5 p.m./11 a.m. - 1 p.m. and 8 - 11 a.m. were tied1 - 5 p.m./11 a.m. - 1 p.m.1 - 5 p.m./11 a.m. - 1 p.m.1 - 5 p.m./11 a.m. - 1 p.m.1 - 5 p.m./11 a.m. - 1 p.m.Closed/VariesThe three busiest months of the year are December, September and May, in that order.The majority of businesses, 61%, do not typically plan major sales/specials for their businesses. For those that did planmajor sales/special, the majority was tied for May and September, followed by October.Participants were asked which events they participate in and/or support. Businesses participate in and/or support mostoften: Canada Day, Telephone City Car Show, Tunes in the Park, Chili Cook-off and events held at the Sanderson Centrefor the Performing Arts.Fifty-seven percent (57%) said that they participate in and/or support community events and festivals that take place inthe downtown commercial district, but only 30% say they increase their sales.When determining what their customer profile was, businesses were asked what gender their clients were: 79% saidthere was no distinction, 16% said females and 5% said males.Eighty-four percent (84%) of the business owners interviewed said they do have specific target markets.

60Market Share by Age Group (1 is the most important and 4 the least)Youth Young Families Baby Boomers Retirees & Seniors(14-25) (25-40) (40-60) (60+)Market Share for Business1 24% 26% 54% 21%2 12% 43% 30% 21%3 26% 24% 12% 21%4 38% 7% 4% 38%Most Potential for Sales Growth1 30% 43% 41% 13%2 16% 36% 28% 16%3 24% 11% 26% 28%4 30% 11% 4% 44%Has the most potential for growthin Business for Downtown as a Whole1 60% 60% 43% 0%2 17% 29% 13% 18%3 13% 11% 35% 12%4 10% 0% 9% 71%Market Share By Type of Customer (1 is the most important and 4 the least)People Who Local Visitors/ Seasonal ResidentsWork Downtown Residents Tourists & CottagersMarket Share for Business1 33% 71% 21% 5%2 58% 18% 15% 5%3 6% 5% 36% 45%4 3% 5% 27% 45%Most Potential for Sales Growth1 29% 73% 23% 5%2 62% 24% 13% 5%3 9% 2% 40% 33%4 0% 2% 23% 57%Has the most potential for growthin Business for Downtown as a Whole1 54% 79% 42% 7%2 29% 15% 21% 0%3 18% 3% 21% 29%4 0% 3% 16% 64%

61When asked if the businesses track where their customers come from, 70% said that they did, 35% of those usedpostal codes to track, 12% used telephone numbers, and 53% used another method.Businesses were then asked to estimate the percentage of customers that live within the following differentradiuses of their businesses:DistancePercentWithin a walking distance Less than 10%Within a 5 minute walk 20 - 50%Within a 15 minute walk 20 - 50%Within a 15-30 minute walk Less than 10%More than 30 minutes Less than 10%Businesses were asked to name the top five communities outside of this community that their customers come from:1. Ancaster/Hamilton2. Burford3. Simcoe4. Cambridge5. Kitchener/WaterlooBusinesses felt that the following six (6) products and/or services separate their business from their competition1. Pricing2. Customer Service3. Variety4. Specialty Service5. Unique product6. Quality productWhen asked to select the two main competitive edges of their business, owners selected “Service” 31%, and “Quality”27%. “Price” then “Location” were third and fourth most selected.The majority of participating businesses, 60%, target “average to mid-point” price point, “all price points” was 18%,and “high-end” was 12%. Only 10% saw themselves at the “low-end” price point.The toughest competition, for businesses interviewed was located (in the community), followed closely by (in anothercommunity) and then (in the downtown). The toughest competitors were defined as National Franchises, LocalIndependents and Other.Participants were asked to specify up to three (3) existing downtown businesses/services that complement their businessthe most:1. Sanderson Centre for the Performing Arts2. Government services/employees3. RestaurantsWhen participants were asked what three (3) businesses they would like to see available in the downtown, businessowners stated the following:1. Restaurants2. Retail/Specialty stores3. Health Services

6274% of businesses said that the downtown should build on the current mix and develop a cluster of stores/servicesoffering related products to a similar market segment.Parking:Fifty-six percent (56%) of respondents say their customers typically park on the street, 27% park in a customer parkinglot they own or rent, and 18% park in a municipal/public parking lot.Forty-eight percent (48%) of respondents say they and their employees park in a customer parking lot they own or rent,32% park in a municipal/public parking lot and 12% park on the street right in the closest available spot.Financial Assistance:When asked if the business owners knew if the community offers any financial assistance programs to its businesses,49% said they didn’t know, 41% said yes, and 9% said their community did not.Incentives included and percentages of businesses that were aware ofthe incentives are:IncentivePercentDevelopment charges exception 15%Development application fee exemption 9%Sign permit exemption 8%Building permit fee exemption 8%Grants and loans - design assitance 14%Grants and loans - building façade program 17%Residential conversion 14%Building rehabilitation 17%Brownfield redevelopment assistance 15%Brownfield tax increment financing program 13%Of the types of incentives listed, most have not used them or felt they would not apply for the incentive. One businessused the Sign Permit Exemption, two used Design Assistance and one (1) used a Building Façade Program.

63General InformationThis portion of the survey asks if business owners are facing any particular issues: (more than one answercould be selected):

64Participating businesses were asked to select statements about the owner’s habits or beliefs regarding the downtownand their own business.The following percentages represent the statements where the business “Strongly or Somewhat Agree”:

65Community QuestionsAlong with the BR+E survey questions developed by OMAFRA, the Downtown Brantford Business Improvement Area(DBBIA) Board of Management and the BR+E Leadership Team developed a set of questions specific to the DBBIAregarding Management Practices, Operational Practices, Service Delivery, and Downtown Advancement.Management Practices:Respondents were asked to what extent do they consider the following information important to the development ofpolicy and improvement strategies for the BDBIA. Percentages shown are for those that answered Very Important:Respondents were asked to indicate the importance of the following organization administrative functions for theDBBIA. Percentages shown are for those that answered Very Important:

66Eighty-eight percent (88%) of participating business owners responding said the DBBIA should establish performancestandards to evaluate improvement. Of those that said yes, the following measures should be used: (respondents couldcheck all that applied)Consumer satisfaction surveys 78%Visitor counts (face to face, email, telephone, and mail) 66%Jobs created: Full time equivalency 40 hours/week) 65%Lease rates (over time) 50%Occupancy costs (TMI/CAM) 50%Net Sales 45%Operational PracticesParticipants were then asked to rank the five following initiatives as potential pursuits for the DBBIA:Potential Pursuites for the DBBIAFundraising is a supplemental way for the DBBIA to develop organizational capacity. The majority (76%) of respondentsfelt the DBBIA should actively raise funds to supplement the levy. The DBBIA levy is currently the only source of revenue.Of those that responded yes, participants were asked which fundraising efforts should be pursued: (business ownerscould check all that applied)

67Service Delivery:Business owners were asked to rank the level of importance the DBBIA should place on delivering the following services:(percentages reflect those that answered Very Important):Community Economic DevelopmentDowntown Policy Development (partnerships)Downtown Public Relations Programs

68Downtown Advancement:Participants were asked to list what they felt were the three (3) most important places downtown:1. Victoria Park2. Civic Square3. Laurier UniversityThe main hurdles that prevent residents or visitors from making use of Brantford’s Downtown according toparticipants are:Current image of the core 40%Parking concerns 22%Condition of public spaces 17%Variety of consumer products 16%Personal safety 11%Level of organized activities 4%Vehicular and pedestrian access and circulation 3%“Improve parking! If people can’t park, the types of businesses opening in downtown won’t matter.” -Downtown Brantford Business OwnerSixty-eight (68) of the downtown businesses that took part in this survey are Brantford residents, and three (3) areCounty residents, while 21 are not residents of Brantford/Brant County.“Clean up Colborne Street, do not destroy it, but clean it up and preserve our history.” - DowntownBrantford Business OwnerSeventy percent (70%) of downtown business owners participating felt the area closest to how they wouldgeographically describe the Downtown was “Brant Avenue, Dalhousie Street, Colborne Street and Clarence Street.”Harmony Square, Downtown Brantford

69Strategic Actions - Tourism SectorArea of Effort: Capacity Building#1 Strategic Action - Effective Networking for Tourism SectorTo implement an effective networking program for the tourism sector in the area to replace the Brant Tourism NetworkingGroup.Lead ContactsEconomic Development & Tourism - City of BrantfordAction1) Build on the “Partners in Success”networking program that wasestablished in 2007 replace the nowdissolved Brant Tourism NetworkingGroup to include:• The promotion of regularnetworking sessions (up to six peryear)• The offering of a professionaldevelopment component to eachsession• Creation of a communicationsplan to support the programincluding the use of e-bulletins,media releases, and features in theTourism Brantford industrynewsletter and other communityoutletsResponsibilityLead - Tourism BrantfordPotential Partners• County of Brant –Economic Development& Tourism• Two Rivers CommunityDevelopment• Six Nations/New CreditMarketing Collective• Chamber of CommerceBrantford/Brant• Enterprise Brant• Brantford - BrantBusiness ResourceEnterprise Centre• Paris Chamber ofCommerce• Downtown BrantfordBusiness ImprovementArea• Brantford Public Library• City of Brantford - Parksand Recreation:Tournament Capital ofOntario Committee andSpecial Event & FestivalServicesTimingJanuaryFebruaryMarchAprilMayOctober- Annual SymposiumNovemberEvaluation MethodsQualitative:• Questionnaires (hard copy) and on-line will be circulated toall participants and potential users of the program to obtainedfeedback on the program.Quantitative:• Number of participants in the networking sessions• Sectors that are presented• Front line staff vs. Management participation• Sponsorship derived• Media coverage

70Area of Effort: Capacity Building (#1: Effective Networking for Tourism Sector cont’d)Current Progress• Name of the program has been adopted by Tourism Brantford• Logo/identifier has been created• The launch of the program was initiated in May of 2007• Schedule of potential dates has been determined along with themes for each networking opportunity for 2008• Partners in Success as been integrated into the BR+E professional development and training follow-up program as a directresult of the surveying process and the requests for information and support from the community• A calendar of events brochure has been developed and distributed for 2008 outlining at a glance the full line-up ofnetworking and workshop opportunities• Promotion of the program is currently being implemented to community stakeholders and partners.

71Area of Effort: Capacity Building#2 Strategic Action - Education & Professional DevelopmentTo implement a series of workshops and professional development opportunities designed to enhance the capacity of thetourism sector in the area that will highlight the following key priorities as identified in the results of the BR+E survey:a) Business Planningb) Succession Planningc) Financial Planning• Cashflow forecasting• Keeping records – Freedom of Information Act• Understanding Financial Statements• Attracting financingd) Marketing Plan Research, Development andImplementation• E-Commerce and Web Site Developmente) Workforce Training and Development• Effective Communications• Maximizing computer software for small business• Sales & Promotions• Customer Service (i.e. Superhost)Lead ContactsEconomic Development & Tourism - City of BrantfordAction1) Review the workshops andprofessional developmentopportunities potential list of topicsand set priorities based on the resultsof the data from the BR+E survey.2) Create a list of potentialsupporters to help offset the cost ofthese learning opportunities for thecommunity.3) Develop a calendar to coordinatethe timing and logistics of the workshopsand professional developmentopportunities and integrate thisline-up with the Partners in Successnetworking program alreadyestablished by Tourism Brantford.4) Create a communications plan topromote these opportunities in thecommunity.ResponsibilityBrantford-Brant BusinessResource Enterprise CentreTourism BrantfordPotential Partners• Economic Development• County of Brant –Economic Development &To u r i s m• Two Rivers CommunityD e v e l o p m e n t• Chamber of Commerc eB r a n t f o rd / B r a n t• Paris Chamber ofC o m m e rce• Downtown BrantfordBusiness Improvement Are a• Brantford Public Library• Enterprise Brant• Private Sector Sponsors –Financial Institutions• Ministry of Small Business& Entre p re n e u r s h i p• Ministry of Tourism –Investment DevelopmentO ff i c e• Ontario Tourism EducationCouncil (OTEC)• City of Brantford - Parksand Recre a t i o n :To u rnament Capital ofOntario Committee andSpecial Event & FestivalS e r v i c e sTimingOngoing

72Area of Effort: Capacity Building (#2: Education & Professional Development cont’d)Evaluation MethodsQualitative:• Questionnaires (hard copy) and on-line will be circulated toall participants of the workshops and professionaldevelopment opportunities program to obtained feedbackon how to improve this service.Quantitative:• Number of participants in the networking sessions• Sectors that are presented• Front line staff vs. Management participation• Sponsorship derived• Media coverage

73Area of Effort: Capacity Building#3 Strategic Action - Customer Service InitiativeTo implement a grass roots Customer Service initiative for the community that will address the need to create customerservice standards of best practice, training, and accreditation in order to achieve a community of customer service excellence.Lead ContactsEconomic Development & Tourism - City of BrantfordAction1) Investigate how othercommunities address the need forstandards, training and accreditationfor excellence in customer servicedelivery including information fromthe Ontario Tourism EducationCouncil. (OTEC).2) Establish a Community CustomerService Steering Committee ofstakeholders and partners who canprovide grass roots suggestions andsupport of the program and furtherto advocate for the need for this typeof on-going programming.3) Establish a work plan based oninput from the community on nextsteps (ie: vision, needs assessment,strategic actions).4) Review the workshops andprofessional developmentopportunities and training dealingwith customer service and setpriorities.5) Create a communications plan topromote these opportunities in thecommunity.ResponsibilityTourism BrantfordPotential Partners• Economic Development• County of Brant –Economic Development& Tourism• Two Rivers CommunityDevelopment• Brantford - BrantBusiness ResourceEnterprise Centre• Six Nations/New CreditMarketing Collective• Chamber of CommerceBrantford/Brant• Paris Chamber ofCommerce• Downtown BrantfordBusiness ImprovementArea• Brantford Public Library• Enterprise Brant• Private Sector Sponsors• Ministry of SmallBusiness &Entrepreneurship• Ministry of Tourism –Investment DevelopmentOffice• Ontario TourismEducation Council(OTEC)• City of Brantford - Parksand Recreation:Tournament Capital ofOntario Committee andSpecial Event & FestivalServicesTimingJanuary to June 2008:• Initial workplandevelopment includingthe creation of the visionand goals of theprogram.June to October 2008:• The creation of strategicactions/workplan• Implementation of theprogram Winter & Spring2009

74Area of Effort: Capacity Building (#3: Customer Service Initiative cont’d)Evaluation MethodsQualitative:• Questionnaires (hard copy) and on-line will be circulated toall participants of the workshops and professionaldevelopment opportunities program to obtained feedback onhow to improve this service.Quantitative:• Number of participants in the networking sessions• Sectors that are presented• Front line staff vs. Management participation• Sponsorship derived• Media coverageCurrent ProgressThe Ontario Tourism Education Council (OTEC) has been contacted and initial research has been conducted with othercommunities on their customer service delivery model.A Community Customer Service Steering Committee has been formed and they have begun the process of determiningpriorities and next steps with this grass roots initiative.

75Area of Effort: Capacity Building#4 Strategic Action - Communication & Joint MarketingTo develop an information sharing network to quickly and efficiently disseminate to community partners and industryowner/operators current tourism trends and research; and to promote strategic joint marketing opportunities in order topromote the area as a compelling travel destination.Lead ContactsEconomic Development & Tourism - City of BrantfordAction1) Investigate with the City ofBrantford’s IT Department and theCommunications Division thepotential of distributing via theInternet e-bulletins and marketresearch to tourism sector partnersand industry owner/operators.Posting of this type of informationand enabling easy requesting by individualsshould also be integrated intothe City of Brantford corporate website (ie: One window application).2) Review the existing methods ofhow the current annual PartnerOpportunities (joint marketing)document is coordinated; investigatehow other “best practice”communities promote theseopportunities and revise the currentprogram to reflect this strategic inputto improve the methods ofcommunication to partners.ResponsibilityTourism BrantfordPotential Partners• County of Brant –Economic Development &To u r i s m• Two Rivers CommunityD e v e l o p m e n t• Six Nations/New Cre d i tMarketing Collective• Minstry of To u r i s m• Ontario Tourism MarketingPartnership (OTMPC)• Economic Development• B r a n t f o rd - Brant BusinessR e s o u rce Enterprise Centre• Chamber of Commerc eB r a n t f o rd / B r a n t• Paris Chamber ofC o m m e rce• City of Brantford - Parksand Recre a t i o n :To u rnament Capital ofOntario Committee andSpecial Event & FestivalS e r v i c e sTimingSummer/Fall 2008 reviewImplementation-OngoingEvaluation MethodsQualitative:Input from partners on the value of the information received,the timing of the material and in general terms how theyutilize the research provided; and input on the value of thejoint programming.Quantitative:Total number of partners and sectors represented; number ofpartners involved in joint marketing opportunities and theircontribution towards this programming; tracking the results ofthe joint marketing efforts including number of inquiries,sales, and follow-ups generated.Current ProgressAn existing Partner Marketing Opportunities newsletter style tool has been developed and is distributed with theaccompanying Business Plan document. This will be reviewed and with the information gathered from others a new plan willbe coordinated to involve greater and more effective participation.

76Area of Effort: Business and Organizational Support#5 Strategic Action - Business/Organization Visitation ProgramTo implement a business/organization visitation program for the tourism sector in the area.Lead ContactsTrudy Belanco, Brantford - Brant Business Resource Enterprise CentreAction1) One-on-one consultations to dealwith red flag issues identified as aresult of the BR+E survey2) One-on-one consultations for theremainder of all the surveyparticipants to ensure issues andquestions are being dealt with as partof the Economic Development &Tourism Department’s overall mandate.3) Support mechanisms have beenidentified in the creation of acommunity-based BR+E BusinessReferral Network. This network hasbeen established to assist theBrantford - Brant Business ResourceEnterprise Centre in the follow-uprequirements of each business/organizationthat was interviewed in theBrantford and County of Brant catchmentarea. Two Rivers CommunityDevelopment is coordinating the follow-upfor each of the survey participantsfrom the Six Nations and NewCreditcommunities.4) Creation of a questionnairetemplate tool that will be used duringthe one-on-one consultations togather information, monitor, andbenchmark.ResponsibilityBrantford - Brant BusinessResource Enterprise CentrePotential Partners• Tourism Brantford• Economic Development• County of Brant –Economic Development& Tourism• Two Rivers CommunityDevelopment• Chamber of CommerceBrantford/Brant• Paris Chamber ofCommerce• Downtown BrantfordBusiness ImprovementAreaTimingOngoing

77Area of Effort: Business and Organizational Support (#5: Business/Organization Visitation Program cont’d)Evaluation MethodsQualitative:• Questionnaires (hard copy) and on-line will be circulated toall participants of the one-on-one consultations program toobtained feedback on how to improve this service.Quantitative:• Red Flag Issues: number of follow-ups and results (i.e. numberof jobs saved, etc.)• All Others: number of one-on-one consultations conductedand results (i.e. company growth/expansion)• Number of one-on-one interviews conducted per month,size of business enterprise, etc.Current Progress• May to July 2007 Red Flags identified as a result of the BR+E survey have been followed-up on with the survey partners.• The Brantford - Brant Business Resource Enterprise Centre and a variety of community partners, including Tourism Brantford,are assisting through their involvement in the BR+E Business Referral Network and are currently administering other referrals.

78Area of Effort: Business and Organizational Support#6 Strategic Action - Workforce DevelopmentTo address the short and long term labour needs of current and future employers while ensuring employment opportunities forthe citizens of Brantford by improving the availability of a qualified pool of job-ready applicants.Lead ContactsGrand Erie Training & Adjustment Board (GETAB), Brant Jobs, and Grand River Education and Training (GREAT),in conjunction with the existing workforce development committee.Action1) Establish a list of positions thatbusinesses are currently looking forbased on the input from the BR+Esurvey and one-on-one consultations.2) Determine from this list what skillsare required for the positions andpossible upgrades anddeficiencies to existing skills.3) Obtain list of programs availablefor employees to upgrade their skillsand forward to businesses anddistribute.4) Investigate the need to develop arecruitment and attractions strategyfor the community. (Similar to therecruitment community strategy forphysicians).5) Improve local awareness ofsecondary programs for hospitalityand tourism career opportunities.(Apprenticeship/mentorshipprograms).ResponsibilityGrand Erie Training &Adjustment Board (GETAB)Brant JobsGrand River Education andTraining (GREAT)Workforce DevelopmentCommitteePotential Partners• Grand Erie Board ofEducation• Brant – Haldimand andNorfolk Catholic SchoolBoard• Laurier University• Mohawk College• Economic Development• Brantford - BrantBusiness ResourceEnterprise Centre• Tourism Brantford• County of Brant –Economic Development& Tourism• Two Rivers CommunityDevelopment• Chamber of CommerceBrantford/Brant• Paris Chamber ofCommerce• Downtown BrantfordBusiness ImprovementArea• Brantford Public Library• Enterprise Brant• Ministry of SmallBusiness &EntrepreneurshipTimingSpring 2008- initial development andresearch phaseImplementation- Ongoing

79Area of Effort: Business and Organizational Support (#6: Workforce Development cont’d)Evaluation MethodsQualitative:Tracking comments and suggestions on how to improve theavailability of a qualified labour pool for the area as part ofthe one-on-one consultation and business visitation program.Quantitative:Total number of positions required; skills inventory that isrequired to meet the need; distribution of opportunities forskills upgrades; total number of employees assisted by thiseffort; and tracking the total number of outreachopportunities with the local education system(secondary and post secondary).Current ProgressBoth GETAB and Brant Jobs have been invited to participate in the BR+E Resource Network list of contacts to assist businessesand organizations.Workforce Development Committee has been made aware of the BR+E survey and next steps.

80Area of Effort: Infrastructure#7 Strategic Action - Infrastructure NeedsTo address the need for improved water/sewage and telecommunications services’ capacity infrastructure through an advocacyand communications strategy.Lead ContactsEconomic Development & Tourism - County of BrantSix Nations Economic Development & TourismAction1) Create a communications strategytargeting influencers, politicians anddecision-makers at all levels of thegovernment in the community on theneed to address water/sewage andtelecommunications services’capacity in the communities of theCounty of Brant, Six Nations andNew Credit.ResponsibilityCounty of Brant -Economic Development &TourismSix Nations EconomicDevelopment & TourismPotential Partners• MPP Dave Levac• MP Lloyd St. Amand• County of Brant• Six Nations Band Council• Mississaugas of the NewCredit Band Council• Chamber of CommerceBrantford/Brant• Paris Chamber ofCommerceTimingImmediate need thatrequires follow-up.Implementaion- ongoingEvaluation MethodsStill TBD.Current ProgressNo action to-date.

81Area of Effort: Tourism Business Development#8 Strategic Action - Strengthening Local Economy and JobsTo provide support of the community’s tourism sector that encourages business development and growth.Lead ContactsEconomic Development & Tourism - City of BrantfordEconomic Development & Tourism - County of BrantTwo Rivers Community DevelopmentAction1) Creation of the BR+E services“brand” that will be used on allpromotions and marketing tools thathave been put in place to support thecapacity building and developmentneeds of the community as a result ofthe survey. This action will helpreinforce a one-stop-shop approachfor the community to accessinformation at the local level.2) Provide current information in atimely way to requestors on how tobest access municipal and seniorlevels of government to supportinquiries regarding local bylaws,development charges, utilities, andpermit processes; as well asprogramming from various Ministry’sof the provincial and federal government.3) Support opportunities to createnew investment in the tourism sectorthat will encourage higher levels ofvisitation and visitor spending intothe local economy.ResponsibilityTourism BrantfordBrantford- Brant BusinessResource Enterprise CentreCounty of Brant EconomicDevelopment & TourismTwo Rivers CommunityDevelopmentPotential Partners• Six Nations/New CreditMarketing Collective• Ministry of Tourism• Ontario TourismMarketing Partnership(OTMPC)• Ministry of SmallBusiness &Entrepreneurship• Economic Development• Chamber of CommerceBrantford/Brant• Paris Chamber ofCommerceTimingBR+E services brand asbeen created- January 2008Implementation- ongoing

82Area of Effort: Tourism Business Development (#8: Strengthening Local Economy and Jobs cont’d)Evaluation MethodsQualitative:Tracking level of service that is provided at the local level toclients; and ensuring that comments regarding the quality oflife and amenities in the community are channeled to theappropriate organizations and agencies.Quantitative:Tracking of the number of clients served regarding these typesof business development inquiries; the number of new jobscreated and maintained; the wage level of those jobs; and theeconomic impact of increased assessment for the community.Current ProgressA brand has been designed and implemented for the BR+E services that are provided in the local area for all promotions andmarketing tools that are used for BR+E work.

83Area of Effort: Destination Marketing & Tourism Services#9 Strategic Action - Community Tourism Services Strategic Action PlanTo create an Action Plan for tourism services involving the City of Brantford, County of Brant, and Six Nations/New Creditcommunities that provides a platform for more effective branding, marketing, and service provision.Lead ContactsEconomic Development & Tourism - City of BrantfordEconomic Development & Tourism - County of BrantTwo Rivers Community DevelopmentAction1) Review of existing servicesprovided in concert with a furtherneeds assessment of communitystakeholders based on the datareceived through the BR+E survey.2) Investigate other communityDestination Marketing Organizations(DMO) best practices as well as theDestination Marketing Association ofCanada as a further method ofbenchmarking service delivery.3) Coordinate a planning session toidentify priorities and areas of effort.( i.e. Branding, Marketing(International Markets, Advocacy,Dissemination of information, etc.)4) Involve the community in assistingwith reaffirming these priorities as wemove forward and provide an opportunityfor further input.5) Integrate the action plan into ourrespective Business and MarketingPlans, Budgets, and work programsfor 2009 including the City ofBrantford’s Economic DevelopmentStrategy that will involve alleconomic sectors in the city.6) Ensure that this is a livingdocument and will be revisited on anannual basis with the keystakeholders.ResponsibilityTourism BrantfordCounty of Brant EconomicDevelopment & TourismTwo Rivers CommunityDevelopmentPotential Partners• Six Nations/New CreditMarketing Collective• Six Nations Tourism• Ministry of Tourism• Ontario TourismMarketing Partnership(OTMPC)• Ministry of SmallBusiness &Entrepreneurship• Economic Development• Brantford - BrantBusiness ResourceEnterprise Centre• City of Brantford - Parksand Recreation:Tournament Capital ofOntario Committee andSpecial Event & FestivalServices• Chamber of CommerceBrantford/Brant• Paris Chamber ofCommerceTimingInitiate terms for theAction Plan –Spring/Summer 2008Implementation- 2009 ongoingEvaluation MethodsQualitative:TBDCurrent ProgressQuantitative:TBDNo action to-date.

84Strategic Actions - Downtown Brantford BIA(Downtown District of Brantford)#1 Strategic ActionTo develop a strategy/plan for promoting and managing Downtown Brantford.Lead ContactsDowntown Brantford Business Improvement Area - Board of Management (BIA)Action1) Work with the EconomicDevelopment Department of the Cityof Brantford to develop a businessrecruitment plan & market analysisand to assist them in making theDowntown more attractive to potentialnew businesses by:• Improving the appearance ofsome store-fronts and streetscapeswithin the downtown• Helping to develop clusters ofcomplimentary retail2) Develop a new brand image forthe Downtown and the BDBIA including:• New Downtown BrantfordMarketing Material• New Dynamic DowntownBrantford website• New marketing projects to assistin promoting DowntownBrantford3) Develop a variety of marking initiativesincluding:• Joint Advertising Initiatives• Street Light Banner Program• New Dynamic DowntownBrantford website• Events calendar• Online promotions (to attract peopleto the website)• Business profiles• A Downtown Dollars Program• A “Buy Locally, Shop Downtown”campaignResponsibility1) Lead – EconomicDevelopment Departmentof the City of Brantford2) Lead – BIA3) Lead – BIA4) Lead – BIA & Parks andRecreation (City ofBrantford)5) Lead – BIAPotential Partners• BIA Membership(Downtown Businesses)• Brantford CulturalAdvisory Committee• Tourism AdvisoryCommittee• Brantford-Brant BusinessResource Centre• The Expositor• Chamber of Commerce -Brantford/Brant• Unnormal Media(Graphic Designer)Timing1) Spring/Summer 20082) Jan – May 20083) Ongoing4) Ongoing5) Spring 2008

85(Action cont’d)• Coordinate hours of operation forDowntown businesses• Business Ambassador Program• A Downtown Restaurant Guideand Passport4) Organizing, sponsoring, marketingand supporting special events inDowntown Brantford to assist inattracting more people.5) Develop a membership communicationsstrategy to effectively andefficiently communicate upcomingpromotions, upcoming events, andimportant information to the BDBIAmembership.Evaluation MethodsQualitative:TBDCurrent ProgressQuantitative:TBD• A Marketing Committee (an internal committee of the BDBIA) has been established• Branding focus groups were held• Information from focus group has been forwarded to graphic designers• New logo was chosen at the BIA’s annual AGM• The marketing committee has begun developing various initiatives• A Valentines Day program was established in Feb 2008• A strong partnership with Parks and Recreation and Harmony Square has been established• Collecting data for the Downtown Restaurant Guide has begun

86#2 Strategic Action - Addressing social conditions in Downtown BrantfordLead ContactsDowntown Brantford Business Improvement Area - Board of Management (BIA)Action1) Work with the Social Services (Cityof Brantford) Department to educateDowntown Businesses and Patronson social issues by:Assisting in the redistribution of thecommunity support cards created bythe Social Services department of theCity of BrantfordProviding information pamphlets toall Downtown Business ownersUsing old parking meters as donationboxes to assist in funding varioussocial programsAssisting in organizing and hostingclothing and food drives throughoutDowntown Brantford2) Assist in supporting outreach programsfor socially disadvantaged citizensby supporting projects such as:Arts classes and workshopsCommunity arts projectsAnti-graffiti programmingA youth arts drop in centreOther arts programmingResponsibility1) Lead – Social Services &BIA2) BIAPotential Partners• St. Leonard’s• The Brantford Arts Block• Brantford CulturalAdvisory Committee• Tourism AdvisoryCommittee• Brantford-Brant BusinessResource EnterpriseCentreTiming1) Spring/Summer 20082) OngoingEvaluation MethodsQualitative:TBDQuantitative:TBDCurrent ProgressNo action to-date.

87#3 Strategic Action - Resolving Infrastructure Issues (repair/remove eyesore buildings, improve parking)Lead ContactsDowntown Brantford Business Improvement Area - Board of Management (BIA)Action1) Encourage City Council to reimplementan incentives program toencourage development inDowntown Brantford2) Review and Encourage BrantfordCity Council to implement theDowntown Master Plan3) Improve the BDBIA’s relationshipwith the Public Works (City ofBrantford) and Planning (City ofBrantford) Departments to coordinateor assist with:• A garbage collection informationcampaign for Downtown Businessesand Residents• Implementing the DowntownMaster Plan recommendations• Implementing more of the propertystandards in the core• Two Downtown Clean-up Events(spring and fall)4) Improve Parking in DowntownBrantford by encouraging BrantfordCity Council to implement therecommendations of the DowntownMaster Plan in regards to parkingissues.5) Improve Parking by developing otherp rograms to encourage long-term use ofo ff street parking and short term use ofo n - s t reet parkingResponsibility1) Lead – BIAPotential Partners• Planning Department(City of Brantford)• Works Department (Cityof Brantford)• Brantford City Council• The ExpositorTimingOngoingEvaluation MethodsQualitative:TBDQuantitative:TBDCurrent ProgressNo action to-date.

88#3 Strategic Action - Improve Downtown Assets – parking, cultural, farmers market and public washroomsLead ContactsDowntown Brantford Business Improvement Area - Board of Management (BIA)Action1) Assist with the development andpromotion of Downtown Destinationssuch as:• Brantford Farmers Market• The Sanderson Centre• Harmony Square• The Ford Plant• Brant Museum and Archives• Laurier Brantford• Nipissing University• Mohawk College• Downtown Restaurants• An arts centre2) Assist in the development ofDowntown Brantford as the culturalcentre of Brantford, keyimprovements could feature:• Ice skates (for renting)• Chess & Game board (for renting)• Food vendor equipment (for re n t i n g )• Tables and chairs (for renting)• A new Downtown TouristInformation office• Signage• Gateway Signage• Public Washroom Signage• Parking Signage• Directions to downtown from thehighway• Information Kiosks• Poster Boxes• Funding for Festivals and otherspecial events• Assistance to downtown culturalfacilities• A 200-300 seat theatre• Workshops and seminars• Street furniture• Light fixtures• Benches• Public art• Garbage cans• ClocksResponsibility1) Lead – BIAPotential Partners• Brantford CulturalAdvisory Committee• Tourism AdvisoryCommittee• Parks and Recreation• Brant Museum andArchives• The Sanderson Centrefor the Performing Arts• The Brantford Arts BlockTimingOngoing

89Evaluation MethodsQualitative:TBDQuantitative:TBDCurrent ProgressNo action to-date.

90#5 Strategic Action - Promote Downtown Brantford as a clean, safe place to visit.Lead ContactsDowntown Brantford Business Improvement Area - Board of Management (BIA)Action1) Organize a spring and fall cleanupevent2) More Downtown events toincrease the amount of people visitingthe Downtown3) Develop a “Best Foot Forward”CampaignResponsibility1) Lead – BIAPotential Partners• B r a n t f o rd CulturalAdvisory Committee• Tourism AdvisoryC o m m i t t e e• Parks and Recre a t i o n• Laurier Brantford• The Downtown B.E.A.T.Unit of the BrantfordPolice ServicesTimingOngoingEvaluation MethodsQualitative:TBDQuantitative:TBDCurrent ProgressNo action to-date.

91ConclusionThe purpose of the Business Retention + Expansion project was to engage the community in order to identify challengesand opportunities for the advancement of positive community-based economic development. Tourism Brantford andDowntown Brantford Business Improvement Area has made a significant first data collection from 330 businesses andorganizations in the Brantford, County of Brant, Six Nations and New Credit area.The implementation of the standardized BR+E survey instrument that included 165 questions for the area’s tourismsector and 176 questions for the downtown district of Brantford stakeholders has resulted in a comprehensive poolingof information that will allow the community to move forward with several strategic actions that were formulated as anoutcome of the surveying process. The support of many volunteers and the active participation of the businesses andorganizations that were involved in the one-on-one interviews are all to be congratulated.Respondents in both the tourism sector and the downtown district of Brantford rated the business climate for the areaas good to excellent. Overall 212 of the firms in the tourism sector stated that they would remain the same or expand.The downtown district indicated that 57 businesses would either remain the same or expand. 63% of the firmsinterviewed in both the tourism sector and the downtown district stated that they had been in business for more than10 years. In total the tourism sector reported a total of 3,396 employees and the downtown district reported 2,235employees in the survey data collected.Sales volume projection is one of the indicators of a healthy economic future and for the tourism sector 73% of thosesurveyed are anticipating an increase and in the downtown district 70% are predicting increased sales. Factors that willensure that the firms in both sectors remain competitive are the same – market development and improved customerservice are ranked the top two factors.With an increase in sales and the likelihood for growth and development the ability to retain and attract skilled andunskilled labour is an issue for most communities across many sectors in Ontario and the Brantford area is no different.Over the past three years in the tourism sector and the downtown district 41% of the companies interviewed statedthat their employee base had increased. Looking ahead 93% of the firms in the tourism sector believe that they willeither increase or maintain their current workforce with on average an increase of four employees or 336 jobs overall.The downtown district respondents stated that there is a projected 479 jobs that will be created over the next threeyear.The local community indicators revealed similar responses from both the tourism sector and the downtown district.Quality of Life ranked excellent to good by 87% of the respondents for the tourism sector and in the downtown 79%of those surveyed. 82% of the tourism survey participants stated that they had adequate access to markets/customers/suppliers, while 83% indicated this factor from the downtown core. 73% of the tourism sector indicated that they hadsupport from the local business community while the downtown data illustrated a higher rate of 79%.In contrast within the tourism sector the County of Brant, Six Nations and New Credit communities it is important tonote that overall the lack of water/sewer capacity and telecommunications infrastructure has been identified as a

92significant barrier in the respondents ability to do business. Overall, the local permit process was ranked as poor by 46% of the respondents, as well as, municipal taxes which were cited by 62% of the respondents in the tourism sector, aswell the availability of appropriately zoned land which was ranked poor by 44% of the respondents in terms of barriersto growth. The downtown district indicated that the poorest factors for their ability to conduct business is cost ofleasing space at 57%; availability of skilled labour, municipal by-laws and land costs at 55%. Respondents were thenasked to identify methods to assist both the tourism and downtown district by Business Associations and EconomicDevelopment & Tourism Groups. 66% of the tourism sector respondents indicated that joint advertising and marketingwould be helpful, 48% stated marketing seminars and 47% thought that business networking would be a help tothem. The downtown district survey indicated that 58% of the respondents stated that networking; 50% jointadvertising and marketing and 43% cited marketing seminars would be beneficial to their efforts.For those who participated in the tourism sector survey it is worth noting that 97% of the respondents felt that outdooractivities, heritage, and general attractions are the primary products to attract visitors now and in three years time,followed by arts and culture at 90%. Community assets that should be further enhanced and developed are the walkingand bike trails at 51% followed by sports and recreation facilities and the Farmers’ Market/Open Markets at 48%.The respondents to the downtown district surveys had an opportunity to comment on the specifics of retail/businessclimate and downtown revitalization. In terms of Retail/Business services downtown respondents were asked to rank avariety of factors. Parking fees and enforcementwas ranked by 53% of the respondents as excellentto good; plantings, trees/flower boxes wasranked excellent to good by 67%. The exteriorappearance of facades and vagrancy/homelessness/panhandlingwere cited as needing improvement.Several ideas weregenerated by respondents how to address some ofthe concerns in the downtown district includingthe hosting of networking events, buildingimprovement loans and grant programs, retail andspecial event coordination, and customer servicetraining. The top two suggestions given by therespondents on how to improve the retail businessenvironment is to repair or remove eyesorebuildings – 87%; followed by 44% improvedparking.Both the Tourism sector and the DowntownBrantford Business Improvement Area also had anopportunity to integrate community questions intothe main survey instrument that was administered.These questions were formulated with input fromthe BR+E Leadership Team and the staff unit fromthe Rural Economic Development Branch ofOMAFRA.The Community Questions for the tourism sectorprovided an opportunity for the respondents to notonly provided quantifiable responses, but as wellCaptain Joseph Brant Monument, Victoria Park, downtown Brantford

93qualitative feedback was also collected which can assist in creating the context and perceptions for the currentcommunity landscape. Both the County of Brant Economic Development & Tourism staff as well as the Two RiversCommunity Development provided direct input to the formulation of the questions. The tourism questions in this sectionasked for input on demand generators for the area, infrastructure needs, customer demographics, catalysts for foottraffic, and the issue of branding and overall service delivery by tourism offices in the area.The tourism sector respondents stated the Six Nations community had the highest percentage of revenue received fromvisitor spending at over 51% followed by New Credit at 45% County of Brant at 37% and City of Brantford at 33%. Ofthose that rely on visitor spending 53% are indicating an increase since 911(September 11, 2001). The data collectedalso indicates that tourism development is needed in the areas of more attractions and accommodation facilities andstronger marketing/promotions efforts are needed. Respondents also indicated the desire for a strong identifiable brandto support marketing efforts.The Downtown Brantford Business Improvement Area’s Community Questions focused on the organizational services,and how to advance the downtown district. Overall the planning and implementation of projects was ranked the highest(82%) and the need to be responsive to the membership’s inquiries and requests (88%). Respondents also indicatedthat the BIA should focus their efforts on community economic development projects as one of their key areas ofresponsibility as well as the coordination of BIA sponsored events. One of the key areas of effort for the BIA as indicatedin the survey result is advocacy and the need to form stronger partnerships with the area’s tourism sector. The threemost important hurdles to overcome in the downtown district were cited as the current image of the core (40%),followed by parking concerns (22%) and the condition of public spaces (17%).Some of these highlights from the survey data collected were used as the basis for the structuring of the strategicactions for both the tourism sector in the community and the Downtown Brantford Business Improvement Area. It ishoped that the participation and community engagement efforts that resulted from the surveying process would beused along with the information gathered in both sectors by stakeholders and decision-makers to improve and grow therelationship between businesses, organizations, and the community; build a positive business/organization environmentfor success; create opportunities to grow cooperation amongst a variety of community partners local businesses/organizations municipal government, and small business; and to assist the municipality in developing a long termstrategy and vision for community-based economic development.Finally, it is important to note that with the eventual implementation of the 14 strategic actions from this inauguralBR+E program for the tourism sector and the Downtown Brantford BIA should be considered as the foundation for thisstrategic approach to improve the health of the local economy by the creation of jobs; improve business andcommunity competitiveness; and ensure effective communication. These actions for both sectors are the building blocksto effect positive change that the voice of the community has identified through the process that involves capacitybuilding, training and networking; implementation of business supports and making meaningful connections to thecommunity; infrastructure needs; business development and improving the growth and assessment of the area; andservice delivery in order to better meet the needs of the community and in the case of the BIA the membership.

94AppendicesAppendix 1 - History of Business Retention and Expansion in Ontario• In 1997, Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs staff were introduced to Business Retention andExpansion programs as an economic development strategy through a conference and undertook further research onthe models that were in use.• U.S. programs developed and administered by the Co-operative State Research Education and Extension Service of theUnited States Department of Agriculture became the foundation for the development of the Ontario model.Programs offered through Agricultural Extension Services associated with the Universities of Minnesota, Ohio,Pennsylvania and West Virginia were primary models that were considered during the development of the OntarioBR+E initiative.• Unlike the U.S. models where paid government/university staff is responsible for implementation, the Ontario model iscommunity based and promotes and utilizes volunteers. The community driven model was taken for a variety ofreasons, including but not limited to the differences between how government “extension services” are funded andstaffed in Ontario and the U.S.; to minimize costs to local communities; and the recognition that for a BR+E programto be successful in Ontario, community ownership and the involvement of volunteers was critical.• The business surveys from the U.S. programs were reviewed and compared to determine the types of questions thatshould be included. The Ontario BR+E survey was then developed by a committee of provincial staff, with input fromcommunity volunteers and economic development agencies.• George Morse, University of Minnesota was hired to assist with training sessions for Ministry staff (Agriculture, Feedand Rural Affairs and Northern Development and Mines) and pilot communities• Twelve communities participated as pilot communities and tested the Ontario survey, data-base and overall model in1998 and 1999. These communities included – Northern Ontario – Towns of Parry Sound (testing of survey) andWawa (testing of revised survey and revised data-base); Southern/Eastern Ontario – United Counties of PrescottRussell; City of Belleville; Towns of Smith Falls; Perth; Cambellford-Seymour; New Tecumseth; and Seaforth; andTownships of Beckworth; Woolwich; and Watford-Warwick.For the pilot communities with the exception of Wawa, the BR+E data-based were housed with the Ministry ofAgriculture, Food and Rural Affairs (Guelph) and the BR+E Specialist entered the survey data. The raw data and reportswere printed and forwarded to the communities. The second phase of the data-base (input and manipulation bycommunities) was tested by Wawa.

95• A committee of Provincial Government Staff (Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs and Northern Development andMines) developed the Ontario BR+E Tool Kit resources in 1999 – 2001. The Tool Kit (resource manual, working withpeople and evaluation guidelines booklets, promotional materials, and data-base) was available for purchase bycommunities wishing to implement BR+E.• George Morse, University of Minnesota and Business Retention and Expansion International (BREI) assisted Ontario indeveloping its BREI certified training program for BR+E Co-ordinators. Five courses (110 participants) were held between2000 and 2002.• The Ontario BR+E Program and resources were recognized by and received the BREI Award (2001-2002).Appendix 2 - BR+E Leadership Team• Cathy Dawson, Paris Chamber of Commerce• Brent Gordon, Tourism Advisory Committee – City of Brantford• June Grieve, Downtown Brantford Business Improvement Area, Board of Management• Kim Hill, Two Rivers Community Development• Arlene Laskey, Arts & Culture Sector• Candis McInnes/André Gonsalves, OLG Casino Brantford• Danielle Nekoda, Days Inn Brantford• Cathy Oden, GK York Management Services• David Prang, Laurier Brantford, Tournament Capital of Ontario Committee, Sport Sector• David Purdy, Chamber of Commerce Brantford/Brant• Eric Rowen, County of Brant – Economic Development & Tourism• Cindy Swanson, Enterprise BrantSTAFF LEADS:• Susan Sager, Economic Development & Tourism Department – City of Brantford• Annette Fitch, Downtown Brantford Business Improvement Association

96Appendix 3 - Boards and CommitteesDOWNTOWN BRANTFORD BIABOARD OF MANAGEMENT• Paul Barrieau – Treasurer• Josh Bean – Chair• Brian Heap• Stephen Huszczo – Secretary• Keri Korfmann• Ann McDonald• Cathy Oden – Vice Chair• Len Offless• David PrangCITY OF BRANTFORD COUNCIL REPRESENTATIVE• Councillor John BradfordLIAISONS• Mary Ellen Heiman, Brant Museum & GalleriesAssociation• Keri Korfmann, Downtown Brantford BusinessImprovement Area Board of Management• Wendy Prowse, Parks Recreation & Waterfront AdvisoryCommittee• David Smith, Chamber of Commerce -Brantford/BrantCITY OF BRANTFORD COUNCIL REPRESENTATIVES• Councillor John Bradford• Councillor James CalnanTOURISM ADVISORY COMMITTEE• Bev Scott, Chair• Hamish Robertson, Vice Chair• Vic Prendergast, Past Chair• Bob Coyne• Alan Emarthle, Six Nations Council• Brent Gordon• Gwen Hunter• Mary Welsh• Carol Ann Wilson• Bob Wyatt, County of BrantTrans Canada Trail, Brantford • BrantAppendix 4 - BR+E Leadership Team - Staff Advisors• Trudy Belanco, Brantford-Brant Resource Enterprise Centre• Donna Clements, Economic Development & Tourism Department, City of Brantford• Bob Ham, Economic Development & Tourism Department, City of Brantford• Astero Kalogeropoulos, Economic Development & Tourism Department, City of Brantford and the Brantford CulturalAdvisory Committee• Gil Martino, Brantford/Brant Employment Services• Pat Shewchuk, Parks & Recreation Department, City of Brantford and Tournament Capital of Ontario Sub-Committee

97Appendix 5 - BR+E Project Volunteer Scribes & Data Entry• Debbie Billard• Tricia Broer• Frank Gleeson• Blake Grieve• June Grieve• Sandy Lanning• Arlene Laskey• Lucy Marco• Rachel Martin• Suzanne Mitchell• David McKee• Cathy Oden• Dale Simpson• Margaret Simpson• Pam WatkinsThank-you to the office staff at the City of Brantford Economic Development & Tourism Department:• Marion Bailey• Kim PetittiSpecial thank-you is also extended to:• Annette Fitch, Downtown Brantford BIA• Kevin Finney, Economic Development & Tourism Department• Janet Annabel• James Chowhan, Economic Development Advisory CommitteeFor their survey analysis work.Appendix 6 - Business Resource Network/Committee• Trudy Belanco and Karen Elridge (Pam Banks & Bob Rigg July 2006-Fall 2007), Brantford Brant Business ResourceEnterprise Centre• Donna Clements, City of Brantford Economic Development & Tourism Department• Alan Emarthle, Six Nations Tourism• Nancy Fallis, Ministry of Tourism• Annette Fitch, Downtown Brantford Business Improvement Area• Elvera Garlow, Grand River Education and Training Board (GREAT)• Jill Halyk, Grand Erie Training & Adjustment Board (GETAB)• Bob Ham, City of Brantford Economic Development & Tourism Department• Kim Hill, Two River Community Development• Gil Martino, Brantford/Brant Employment Services• Charlene Nicholson, Chamber of Commerce - Brantford/Brant• Erin Panek, OMAFRA, Rural Economic Development Branch• Susan Sager, City of Brantford Economic Development & Tourism Department• Cindy Swanson, Enterprise Brant

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