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Richmond: It has a
business buzz
Receptive approach to commerce and development help the island city win a
spot in the hearts of lively entrepreneurs
Businessman Kam Choi sits
in the elegant boardroom of his vast headquarters in Richmond and explains
why T&T Supermarket Inc. loves the business climate of this Lower
Mainland island city.
A joint venture with
President Enterprises Corp., one of Taiwan's most successful and closely
followed corporations, T&T started up in Richmond in 1993, attracted by
the city's positive attitude.
It is now the largest
Asian supermarket chain in Canada, employing more than 1,200 people in
Greater Vancouver.
Richmond "understood
very well the demographic change that was going on and it has worked very
well," Choi says.
The city's ability to
successfully marry business with livability recently garnered several awards
for its innovative business and environment practices.
One quick drive through
Fu Gwai Men (Fortune Elegant Gate), as Richmond is known in Chinese, quickly
tells you this is not your average Canadian municipality.
Given the bustling
traffic and thickets of Chinese-language signs, you could be forgiven for
thinking you were in Hong Kong or any other southeast Asian city.
Within minutes, however,
you find yourself first in farm country, then surrounded by orderly
industrial parks housing some of the world's top corporations, such as
Honda.
Mayor Malcolm Brodie says
that development has never been a dirty word in Richmond, which has a
tradition of making business feel welcome and, wherever possible, snipping
red tape.
"We have long had an
attitude here of cutting down on bureaucracy whenever we can," Brodie
says.
With more than 10,000
local businesses, the city has a real business buzz to it. That's partly
because 40 per cent of its population is Chinese -- bringing an
entrepreneurial spirit -- and partly because the city is home to Vancouver
International Airport.
YVR is both the largest
employer in the city and major economic provider, shovelling millions of
dollars into city coffers annually. Some 16 million passengers pass through
its portal each year and its associated businesses generate more than $1.5
billion in annual revenue, including $800 million in wages for more than
20,000 workers.
The open business climate
appeals to a wide variety of businesses -- and cuts across the many ethnic
lines.
Kevin Mahon, president of
Adera Development Corp., an award-winning developer, says Richmond council
and staff have always been open to business.
"We have been doing
business in Richmond for over 30 years. In fact, our flagship commercial and
residential projects were in Richmond," Mahon says.
"We are currently in
that market in a big way with two residential neighbourhoods -- Rivers Reach
in Steveston and Riviera Gardens in Terra Nova -- and we plan to maintain
our presence there."
Retired bank executive
Henry Fetigan, who has lived here for 25 years, agrees with Mahon that
Richmond's business friendliness has paid dividends for municipal residents.
"There are obviously
frictions that arise, but I think Richmond has done things right in
welcoming business and that can be seen from the number of smaller
businesses that have opened up here," Fetigan says.
Richmond now has 20
hotels with 4,113 rooms and, if Brodie has his way, it will soon have a big
trade and convention centre on federal land off Garden City Road.
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by Ashley Ford Monday,
November 26, 2001 The
Province
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