Cover Story Indigenous Businesses

Indigenous Businesses

Poised for Growth in Saskatoon and Beyond

By Véronique Loewen

In Saskatoon and area are a number of business organizations that are thriving. The three highlighted here have a common bond - they are all operated by Indigenous people and focused on employing and training as many First Nations and Métis people as they can.

Some of them are more familiar than others in the community. The Whitecap Development Corporation is well known for its Dakoda Dunes Golf course and hotel. Others such as Des Nedhe Group are more familiar in the mining and construction industries. And organizations such as the SaskMétis Economic Development Corporation are somewhat less familiar to the general public, yet gaining ground in Métis communities. As we celebrate National Indigenous Peoples’ Day this year and in the spirit of economic reconciliation, here is an opportunity to discover these organizations’ history, learn more about their operations and understand their aspirations for continued growth in Saskatoon, across the province and beyond.

Des Nëdhë Group Investing Locally and Growing Nationally

Image: Sean Willy, Credit: Photo Supplied

When in 1991 the English River First Nation (ERFN) established Des Nedhe Development Corporation, one of the first Indigenous Economic Development Corporation to work nationally, to provide sustainable employment and business opportunities for ERFN members, they set the stage for today’s Des Nedhe Group - a diverse group of Indigenous-owned businesses operating across Canada, employing upwards of 500 people.

From its origins providing construction and mining services for northern Saskatchewan’s uranium operations, Des Nedhe Group is now focused on growing nationally. It means moving beyond its traditional territory. “Our strategy is to diversify our customer base. We seek out partnerships, particularly with Indigenous communities. With excellent customer service, we’ve become a tier one Canadian company, that is Indigenous-owned,” says Sean Willy, President and Chief Executive Officer, Des Nedhe Group.

The group of companies include retail, property management, professional services and more. Yet, the group does not abandon its roots in the mining and nuclear industries. It is a strong advocate for the development of small modular reactors (SMRs) in Saskatchewan. “Northern Saskatchewan First Nations and Métis communities have 40 years of experience along side the nuclear industry. Our Elders and business leaders have knowledge to share. Rather than just watching from the sidelines, we want to be part of the discussion and have equity in this development. And with the work we do for some of the nuclear power plants in Ontario, we have even more experience to bring to the table,” explains Willy.

At the eve of National Indigenous People’s Day celebrations and as the organization also celebrates its 30th anniversary this year, it has lots to be proud of and more to accomplish says Sean Willy. “We have come a long way but to continue to grow and contribute to the socio-economic development of our communities, we need people to know us better and use our businesses. Economic Reconciliation has to happen. Thousands of cars drive daily by our urban reserve, Grasswood, south of the city. Don’t just drive by, stop in and see what we have to offer. See our infrastructure, and establish your business here. Partner with us. Together, we can grow our local economy and expand nationally.”

SMEDCO Advancing Métis Entrepreneurship Across The Province

Image: Tristan Zachow, Credit: Photo Supplied

For the SaskMétis Economic Development Corporation (SMEDCO), the business and economic development division for the Métis Nation- Saskatchewan (MN-S), the mission is to assist Métis people who want to start a business, purchase an existing business or scale-up their operations. It is an ongoing pursuit. “We have everything available to accomplish our mission, but we need Métis entrepreneurs to know we exist – that’s the challenging part,” says Monica Brunet, responsible for Community Economic Development and Community Engagement at SMEDCO.

Since its opening in 1987, SMEDCO has become the preferred lender for over 1,500 Métis entrepreneurs and communities across the province. “Our approach is grounded in our understanding that historically Métis entrepreneurs have lower access to equity due to a lack of intergenerational wealth in families and little flexibility in traditional banking systems. We understand the hurdles they encounter. We work with them to alleviate obstacles and create tailored solutions. For example, with the pandemic we implemented a six month cease payment option to lessen the financial burden on these businesses,” explains Tristan Zachow, SMEDCO’s CEO. SMEDCO and MN-S also successfully negotiated an agreement with the federal government to administer and disburse over $10 million in COVID-19 pandemic funding. Zachow says that “Since May 2020, SMEDCO made contributions to 520 impacted businesses, 25 Métis community-owned businesses and 16 Métis economic development corporations. These contributions had a real impact to preserve jobs.”

Looking to the future, SMEDCO is focused on expanding its services. It is now able to engage in strategic partnerships and investments to create business opportunities on behalf of MN-S. “We are in a constant quest to strengthen Métis communities by working to engage more Métis businesses into the economy. We adapt our programs regularly to meet Métis people’s needs as the business landscape evolves. We encourage Métis people to leap into entrepreneurship or grow their businesses and allow us to make their journey a smooth ride,” adds Zachow.

For the board and staff at SMEDCO, celebrating National Indigenous History Month means sharing knowledge about the contributions – past and present - of Métis people to the country’s economy and supporting the next generation of Métis entrepreneurs, something SMEDCO has been proudly doing for 34 years. www.smedco.ca

Chief Darcy Bear Says Whitecap Open For Business

Chief Bear, Whitecap Development Corporation Chair and Darrell Balkwill, WDC CEO along with two Whitecap Development Corporation Board members, Councillor Frank Royal on the left and Councillor Dwayne Eagle on the right. The Whitecap Dakota First Nation has had lands on both sides of the Canada, US border since time immemorial. The current reserve was established in 1879, twenty-six kilometres south of Saskatoon. In 1882 Chief Whitecap assisted John Lake in forming the colony that became Saskatoon – the start of a long-standing relationship.

Whitecap established its economic development arm, the Whitecap Development Corporation in 1990. It’s mission is “to responsibly invest Whitecap Dakota First Nation resources and maximize the economic benefits to our shareholder and partners.”“Everything we do is to implement this mission. The Indian Act was created to keep Indigenous people out of the economy. So, to be able to be self-sustaining we first have to change the systems that prevent us from participating,” says Whitecap Dakota First Nation Chief Darcy Bear.

Utilizing the Framework Agreement on First Nation Land Management, Whitecap developed its own Land Code to govern their land and be able to issue up to 99-year lease holds. That opened the door for residential and commercial interests and the development of the needed infrastructure for the community. “Whitecap successfully lobbied the federal government to allow First Nations to participate in the Investing in Canada Infrastructure program. Today we operate one of Canada’s best public golf courses, Dakota Dunes Golf Links, and a brand-new hotel that we opened last October in the middle of the pandemic,” adds Chief Bear.

Whitecap Development Corporation (WDC) prides itself on its main Key Performance Indicator - the quality-of-life improvements it brings to its community members. “When our businesses do well, the local economy does well. People have jobs, pay taxes, buy houses, spend money in stores. When WDC does well we invest more in infrastructure to benefit our members, like building one of the first primary health care clinics on a Frist Nation in Saskatchewan,” explains Darrell Balkwill, CEO of WDC.

Today, Whitecap’s economic strategy includes continued roll-out of their Dakota Dunes Resort vision with a spa and recreational and cultural experiences; promoting their Whitecap Industrial Services to the Saskatchewan industrial market; and welcoming Indigenous and non-Indigenous businesses to lease land in their Chief Whitecap Trail Business Park.

Chief Bear concludes by saying, “We’re focused on working together. That’s the spirit of Reconciliation. Celebrating Indigenous Peoples’ Day with Covid 19 may be tough to do in person but the spirit of it is still there – it’s recognizing Indigenous peoples’ contributions. If we all work towards a fair and equal business environment and promote economic development, it’s good for everybody. I want people to know that at Whitecap we’re open for business. Come meet us, partner with us, visit with us and stay a while.” www.whitecapdakota.com and www.whitecapdevcorp.ca

5 Major Reasons Why E-commerce Stores Fail

by Mouneeb Shahid, CEO of 2Web.ca

Since April of 2020, we have experienced how the pandemic has fueled a rapid adoption of change among businesses, particularly in the uptake of e-commerce solutions. Due to lockdowns, safety regulations and limited access to customers, many enterprises had to evolve drastically to stay in business. The most sensible step was to launch an e-commerce store; however, a rushed approach led to an underwhelming response from customers. Let us dive deeper into why e-commerce stores fail.

Lack of Planning and a Digital Strategy "If you build it, they will come" approach no longer applies. Your e-commerce store needs to meet your customers on their turf. The e-commerce experience needs to be well thought out and align with how your customers decide to buy. Start with creating a digital strategy that maps out your customer buying journey. Then decide on the digital assets (such as content, videos, etc.) required to meet your customers' buying behaviour at different stages. Finally, have a system in place that allows you to track user behaviour and present the right content at the right time.

2. Poor User Experience

Your competition is just a click away. So many websites lose visitors and never see them again due to a poor experience. Your website should be intuitive to use so that customers can find what they are looking for easily. Navigation should be straightforward, and products should be categorized appropriately. Moreover, the content should clearly and concisely communicate the product value without clutter. All content should be accessible within a couple of clicks, and the page should be load lightning fast. Every second your prospect is spending on your website is critical for making their purchase decision. It is important not to underestimate the value of a well-designed website as it can deliver a memorable experience that will encourage repeat visits and increase sales.

3. Focusing only on desktop/laptop devices Traditionally customers were more inclined to enter payment details on a desktop device as there was a perception of greater security. Today, mobile commerce is taking over, and successful retailers utilize the power of digital wallets for quick and easy access to payment information. Many have taken the route of designing mobile apps to facilitate mobile commerce sales. Mobile apps make sense when providing customized user experiences and stimulating sales. They can also increase customer loyalty and offer more insight into customer behaviour. Try giving Amazon's website a shot to order online versus their mobile app, and you can experience the significant advantage of mobile apps first hand.

4. Disorganized marketing

Marketing is an investment rather than an expense, and if done right, it can generate strong results to make a brand successful. Today we have a plethora of marketing channels available, and it is easy to get dispersed and spread your efforts too thin without creating an impact. Start with creating a marketing strategy that leverages the proper digital marketing channels for your target audience. For starters, you should optimize the e-commerce store for search engines, especially Google. Google is making it more competitive for websites to rank, and their criteria are constantly evolving. Understand what makes a quality ranking score for your website and invest in a sustainable content strategy that gives you organic rankings. You can also pay Google and channels like Facebook to get more traction; however, paid Ad placements continue to increase in cost as the market becomes saturated.

5. E-commerce platform

We have seen Shopify dominate the e-commerce landscape as the platform provider; however, each platform has its advantages and disadvantages. Subscriptionbased platforms such as Shopify are easy to get started with but can have limitations in expanding functionality. Another approach is to select a self-hosted platform such as WooCommerce (an e-commerce plugin for WordPress), which provides additional flexibility when it comes to customization.

For additional insights and more information, and a comparison between different platforms, please visit www.2web.ca.

The Chamber and Saskatoon Media Group have recently partnered to provide radio exposure to Chamber members to get Saskatoon shopping, buying and eating Totally Locally. Supporting local means that your hard earned money stays within our community and will go towards local economic stimulus including the support of the local workforce. Your local retailers are diverse and here to serve you. Be sure to check out the featured businesses below who have been apart of the Totally Locally radio campaign.

For more information on how to participate contact Pam Kenny (306) 664-0704 memberrelations@saskatoonchamber.com