Small Business in Canada Deidre and Sales win OCT 2017

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2 INDUSTRYANDBUSINESS.CA A sponsored feature by Mediaplanet IN THIS ISSUE Going Global There are many rules to follow when small businesses look to expand in the United States. p04 Infographic Showcase What you need to know about small business. p07 Rise and Grind For many Canadians, their day doesn’t end at 5 p.m. p08 Find out how much fi nancing your small business qualifi es for today. Apply online at ThinkingCapital.ca or call Thinking Capital at 1-866-889-9412. Photo | Štefan Štefančík / Unsplash THINKING CAPITAL Dedicated to Helping Small Businesses Grow When the roof caved in last year at Shelley Simon’s Station 4 restaurant in northwestern Ontario, she knew she had to move to another location — and fast. She also knew she’d unlikely be able to get her bank to lend her the money to finance it. Fortunately, by turning to alternative financing, Shelley was able to not only quickly access funds for the move, but also afford the upfront labour costs of extending the hours of operation of her third restaurant in Thunder Bay, The Scandinavian Home. Alternative financing refers to financial channels and instruments that have emerged outside the traditional finance system, or are offered in collaboration with banks. “We use proprietary technology to make lending decisions based on how well a business is managed rather than just the owner’s personal financial and credit information,” says Jeff Mitelman, CEO at Thinking Capital, a leader in the Canadian fintech industry with offices in Montreal and Toronto. “This innovative, technology-driven approach means small business owners, like Shelley, have a much greater chance of securing financing when they need it and fast.” Managing cash-flow challenges Managing cash flow while keeping up with customer demand or the competition can be a big challenge for small to medium-sized business (SMB) owners, especially with seasonal changes, local events, or big holidays. For example, owners might need to increase staffing, invest in updated equipment, expand their facilities, boost their marketing, or face an emergency as Shelley did. Gaining access to small business loans from traditional banks typically requires a personal guarantor or personal collateral in the form of a home or other assets, along with a solid history of high personal credit scores. With restaurants in particular, “I think it is very hard to get a loan from traditional banks because the ratio of restaurants closing all the time is not up to their standards,” says Shelley. Add in the long wait and approval times and SMBs can have a hard time maintaining or growing their business. Helping Canadian small businesses access credit Thinking Capital is reinventing the way small businesses access credit. By combining industry experts and technology, Thinking Capital is transforming the opportunity for business owners to obtain capital to ultimately grow their business through speed and convenience. The firm offers two products — Flexible Financing and Fixed Financing. Flexible Financing offers a financing solution that aligns with the cash flow of a business with no payback time restrictions on the payment schedule. That way small business owners can plan financing that works best for them. Alternatively, through Fixed Financing, small business owners also have the option to pay back loans within a set time period. While interest rates for these types of loans could be higher than those from a traditional lender, they are still quite competitive when compared to other business loans and credit cards used by business owners as an alternative to bank loans — and faster to obtain. Through a simple online application process, applicants can get a no-obligation quote within minutes and funding in as little as 24 hours. Alternative financing offers more options to SMBs When evaluating the best options available, here are some things to consider about Thinking Capital’s Flexible Financing or Fixed Financing products: • It’s an option even if personal credit is a challenge. • It’s fast and convenient. • Thinking Capital is trusted by over 10,000 SMBs across Canada. • Thinking Capital partners with well-known companies such as CIBC, Staples, Moneris, The UPS Store, and Money Mart. • Thinking Capital is a Canadian business focused only on meeting the needs of Canadian SMBs. Anne Papmehl Dan Kelly President, Canadian Federation of Independent Business CFIB’s President Dan Kelly Discusses Hot Topics Surrounding Small Businesses Mediaplanet What classifies a company as a small business? Dan Kelly The most common definition of small business is based on the number of employees. Typically, a small business is defined as having 50 or fewer workers, and a medium-sized firm has between 50 and 500. Given that the vast majority of businesses are small, more people suggest a small firm has fewer than 20 workers. For us at the Canadian Federation of Independent Business (CFIB), 85 percent of our 109,000 members have fewer than 20. MP How important are small businesses to Canada’s economy? DK Small business is big in Canada. Of the 1.1 million businesses with paid employees in Canada, 97 percent are small. In fact, it often surprises Canadians to learn that two-thirds of businesses have fewer than five employees. From an employment perspective, over half of Canadians own or work in a small or medium-sized business. MP What are some of the most pressing issues surrounding small businesses? DK There sure are a lot these days. Beyond the broader challenges of NAFTA uncertainty and low commodity prices, most of the major problems the small business community is facing are caused by the federal and provincial governments. Currently, the small business community is on red alert with proposals to fundamentally change the small business corporate tax structures that have been in place for over 40 years. The federal government has proposed some radical changes to the way small firms can pay family members in the business, save for the future and transfer the business to the next generation. All three will significantly increase taxes on small business owner, including those with very modest incomes. In my 23 years of advocacy for small business, I’ve never seen business owners become so spontaneously angry at a government as I have since these proposals were announced. MP What role does CFIB play to help small businesses grow and be successful? DK Everything we do at CFIB is designed to help increase the odds of a business owner’s success. That happens in three important ways. One, we provide specialized business resources and help on topics ranging from HR to government compliance. Two, we leverage the strength of our 109,000 members to negotiate savings and benefits for small firms with carefully selected service providers, such as Mastercard, Scotiabank, Chase Paymentech, and Payworks. And three, we serve as Canada’s top advocate for small business concerns with governments and policy makers. Business owners — from a startup to a serial entrepreneur — are set up for success when they have a CFIB membership. MP Do technology and innovation give small businesses a better chance to succeed? DK Technology and innovation are critical for smaller businesses and can be a huge competitive edge. Technology has allowed smaller firms with fewer staff to be able to compete with some of the big guys — particularly if the business isn’t located in a big city. Innovation has always been a strong suit for smaller firms. While they are often resource starved, smaller firms don’t have the institutional bureaucracies of big businesses, so they can make changes far more quickly to respond to customer needs. But technology can also be a challenge too. I think of Amazon and other large eRetailers who are putting pressure on the retail sector in a big way. MP What does the future hold for small businesses in Canada? DK As I said earlier, governments are sure not making it easy for small business right now. I deeply hope that this is a short-term phenomenon and our political leaders will self-correct and recognize that the economic success of the middle class is directly linked to small business growth. But entrepreneurs are optimistic by nature. Despite the challenges, more young people are opting for entrepreneurship over a career as an employee. This gives me great hope for the future. Stay in Touch facebook.com/MediaplanetCA @MediaplanetCA @MediaplanetCA pinterest.com/MediaplanetCA Please recycle after reading Publisher: Aaron Rosin Designer: Wynn Yau Managing Director: Jacob Weingarten Production Director: Carlo Ammendolia Lead Designer: Matthew Senra Web Editor: Camille Co Contributors: Randi Druzin, D.F. McCourt, Anne Papmhel Cover Photo: Richmond Lam Photo credits: All images are from Getty Images unless otherwise accredited. Send all inquiries to ca.editorial@mediaplanet.com This section was created by Mediaplanet and did not involve National Post or its Editorial Departments.
A sponsored feature by Mediaplanet MEDIAPLANET 3 Find out About Simple Tools Levelling the Playing Field Jack Dorsey Co-founder & CEO, Square Square Co-founder and CEO Jack Dorsey discusses how local businesses can thrive. Mediaplanet What does Square offer local businesses in Canada? Jack Dorsey We launched Square five years ago to enable anyone with a mobile device to accept credit cards. Easy and affordable access to card payments is the foundation of Square, but that is only part of our story. Commerce extends beyond payments, so we’ve added many software tools over the years to help sellers in Canada start, run, and grow their business. MP What do businesses want when it comes to accepting payments? JD A reasonable expectation from business owners is that they can get started in minutes, take payments instantly, and get their money as soon as the next business day. This simplicity has been hard fought, but we’ve delivered it. It’s also important that payments tools are easy to use, accessible, and convenient for business of all sizes, whether you are an individual with a side hustle or already have multiple brick-andmortar locations. MP What do you hear are the greatest challenges that local businesses face? JD I often hear that after the ability to make the sale, the next most critical challenge is organizing the business and making sure it’s integrated. We looked at countertops and saw businesses stitching together different systems to handle basic business operations like inventory, employee management, and accounting. The problem is, these systems aren’t connected and they don’t allow sellers to make informed decisions. We saw this as something we could fix, so we made everything on Square digital and opened our platform to connect with other key business partners, such as QuickBooks. Our free point-of-sale app gives sellers a toolkit that includes invoices, digital receipts, analytics, customer directory, inventory, and employee management — all in one place. MP How do you help local sellers compete with big businesses? JD One way we level the playing field is by offering our sellers real-time sales data and analytics so they can make informed decisions. For example, we recently heard from Matthew Senecal-Junkeer of Birds & the Beets in Vancouver, who said that every time he refreshes the app he’s refreshing his understanding of his business. He’s come to understand what the days after a long weekend will be like saleswise, that rainy days mean a later coffee rush, and that sunny weekends are slower than rainy ones. By understanding the changing demands of his business, he has been able to make adjustments to prep levels, minimize waste, maximize his staff’s utility, and ultimately better serve his customers. MP What type of businesses in Canada use Square technology and tools? JD Hundreds of thousands of individuals and businesses across all provinces and territories in Canada have accepted payments using Square. We serve sellers from a diverse set of industries, from contractors and professional services to coffee shops and retail stores. Our sellers also range in size from a single vendor at a farmers’ market to multi-location businesses. MP Take us back to where the idea of Square came from. JD Jim McKelvey, my co-founder, is a glass artist. He was missing out on sales because he couldn’t accept cards. He had a smartphone in his pocket, so we built a hardware prototype in 2009 to accept card payments on a mobile phone, and it worked. We then started rolling it out to neighbourhood businesses and the company grew from there. MP What’s next for Square in Canada? JD We’re focused on delivering as many tools as we possibly can to empower more Canadian businesses to participate and thrive in the economy. We have a lot more to come this year — stay tuned! SPONSORED Small Businesses Use ViewSonic’s New Line of VP Monitors to Increase Productivity For more information on ViewSonic digital display solutions for business, visit www.viewsonic.com/smb. When one of ViewSonic Canada’s customers ordered more than four dozen VP monitors at once, general manager Deidre Deacon was delighted but not surprised. “The VP series of monitors is the best professional monitor line we’ve ever brought to market,” she says. The line, which includes models and functionality to cover the full gamut of needs, is ideal for small businesses and creative professionals looking to increase workplace productivity. One of the most popular features of every VP monitor is the exceptionally small bezel, the frame around the outside of the screen. It allows users to focus fully on their work, utilizing the entire screen without distractions such as logos and menu control buttons. The bezel is so small on each of these monitors that when several of them are put together they appear as a single screen, giving the user a fully immersive experience. This multi-monitor setup is ideal for group projects and collaboration, when several employees are working on the same image. Another feature that has been well-received by ViewSonic customers is the auto pivot, which enhances users’ ability to review and edit images. When a portrait-oriented photo is displayed on a standard 23.8-inch monitor, it’s reduced to a mere 13.3-inch viewing size, Deacon explains. However, when the same image is viewed on a monitor with auto pivot functionality, the user can twist the screen to align the monitor with the photo orientation. The entire screen is utilized and the image appears much bigger. This productivity feature allows users, working alone or in groups, to pay the same close attention to detail while working on portrait-oriented images as they do while working on landscape-oriented images. Precise colour reproduction for colour-critical applications Not only can these monitors be pivoted, they can also be swivelled and tilted based on the user’s height and seating preference, saving users from having to make constant adjustments in the operating system settings menu. The ViewSonic line of VP series monitors, with state-of-the-art LCD panels providing vivid colour and brightness, are calibrated at the factory and come with individual colour calibration and uniformity reports. The monitors are ideal for businesses focused on creative design — such as photographers, graphic designers, engineers, and architects — that depend on colour precision so that what they create on-screen matches real life. Aware that calibration is needed on an ongoing basis, many users also invest in the ViewSonic Calibration Kit, because it allows them to calibrate their monitors regularly. This also ensures a reduction in the degradation of screen performance, enabling time and cost savings from having to replace monitors sooner. ViewSonic has received positive feedback on all these features and on the monitors’ advanced ergonomic design. VP series monitors are available to be shipped in packages that contain two monitors and no stands — an ideal solution for environmentally conscious customers who are looking for a multi-monitor set-up. Randi Druzin Deidre Deacon General Manager, ViewSonic Canada SPONSORED
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Small Business in Canada Deidre and Sales win OCT 2017

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