October 20, 2002
HURON BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION
Nomination for CFDC Achievement Award 2002
Huron County, Ontario’s West Coast, is located in southwestern Ontario north of the City of London and west of the GTA. Our rural and small town economy offers a diversified mix of agriculture, manufacturing and tourism. The region’s population of 59,000 is remarkably entrepreneurial, with over 21% of the labour force self-employed (about 3 times the Ontario average). Huron County is home to approximately 2,100 businesses, most of them very small, employing fewer than 5 people.
It is within this economic environment that the Huron Business Development Corporation (HBDC) operates. Our mandate is to "help small businesses grow and prosper in Huron County”. Since being established as a CFDC in November of 1993, we have fulfilled this aim by providing strategic community planning & development, business services and access to capital. In that time, the HBDC has:
- Created broad-based sectoral and community strategic plans for economic development, including the Seaforth & Area Business Retention and Expansion Initiative, the Huron Manufacturing Strategic Initiatives and the Sustainable Huron Community Evolution Project
- Encouraged youth retention by exposing over 6,200 young people to the opportunities of small business through business education programs like Junior Achievement, Bridges to Agriculture, the Manufacturing Labour Pool Initiative and the Summer Company Program
- Nurtured entrepreneurial spirit by providing business start-up services like the Huron Business Self Help Office, which last year dealt with over 1,300 inquiries, and the Self Employment Benefits program, which to date has help 128 participants launch successful business ventures
- Focused business development resources on women entrepreneurs by sponsoring programs like Business Basics training for women and the Rural Enterprise Loan Fund
- Facilitated the adoption of information technology as an economic development tool by championing the Data Services Improvement Program, an E-business Mentoring Program for Manufacturers and a Huron Perth Connects funding application for development of a regional ICT strategy
- Taught new economy skills to local residents of all ages by operating a Community Access Program site, which last year handled 1,600 bookings from clients seeking to learn more about the Internet
- Diversified the farm economy by exploring and launching opportunities like the Farm Business Initiative, Farm Ventures, Quality Jersey Cheese Products and the Huron Harvest Trail
- Promoted new tourism opportunities around the region’s rich history & culture by supporting community-led initiatives like the Blyth Festival, the Goderich Marine Heritage Project, the Zurich Historical Revitalization Project and the Huron Heritage and Cultural Partnership
- Matched local job seekers with available job opportunities by operating an Employment Resource Centre, which last year dealt with over 15,000 employment related inquiries and to date, has helped over 1,100 residents find employment in their communities
- Enhanced the management abilities of entrepreneurs by offering regular business seminars that last year attracted over 625 participants, and by counseling over 1,700 individuals to date in various aspects of their business operations
- Developed the export potential of local enterprises, by delivering an Export Development Mentoring Initiative that has assisted over 60 local companies in becoming export ready
- Expanded access to capital by disbursing over 80 small business loans totaling $3.1 million that in turn have leveraged an additional $2.6 M in funds from traditional sources of investment
- Realized the capacity of local residents for community economic development by graduating over 125 participants from our 10 Steps to Community Action leadership training program and by co-coordinating a Business Partnerships for Job Creation program that last year involved 50 partner groups and over 430 volunteers in various aspects of CED
- Spearheaded a made-in-Huron response to economic issues by working with 171 partner organizations on 78 distinct economic development initiatives, mobilizing over 1,000 community volunteers
In 8 years, the HBDC has invested $258,275 in community projects and $3.1 M in small business loans. When combined with the $2 M provided in operating funds from Industry Canada, a total of $5.4 M in Community Futures Program dollars has gone directly toward economic development activities in Huron County. In turn, these dollars have leveraged an additional $11.1 M from the private sector and $3 M from other public sources for a grand total of $19.5 M worth of economic development activity throughout Huron County.
But have these investments paid off? We think the results speak for themselves. To date, the HBDC has directly assisted in the launch and/or expansion of 416 enterprises that are currently operating in Huron County. In other words, almost 1 in 4 of the area’s small businesses acknowledge our role in helping them to grow and prosper. In turn, there are currently 2,988 local jobs impacted, representing approximately 1 job for every 10 found in the Huron County labour market.
These efforts have not gone without recognition. The HBDC and its partners have been acknowledged through several national and provincial awards, including the 1999 & 2000 Awards of Rural Excellence for Contributions to Economic Growth, the Pan Canadian Initiatives 2000 Award for Best CED Project, the 2000 Royal Bank Economic Development Program Award, the EDCO 2001 Ontario Marketing Award of Distinction, the 2001 Excellence in Education Award for Community Partners and the 2001 Yves Landry Award for Best Technical Career Awareness Program.
This is not to suggest that Huron County’s approach to CED is somehow better than the rest. Rather, through our efforts and acknowledgements, the HBDC hopes to showcase and create national awareness about the Community Futures Program in general, and all the great things that 260 CFDC’s do across this country.
CONTACT INFORMATION
CFDC: Huron Business Development Corporation
138 Main St. S
Seaforth, Ontario
N0K 1W
Contact: Paul Nichol, Economic Development Manager
Telephone: (519) 527-0305
Fax: (519) 527-2240
Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.