The Vancouver Business Thread - Page 90

Sheba · #**1781** Posted **Jun 23, 2020, 7:30 PM**

Shopify moves to poach foreign talent blocked by Trump's immigrant visa ban

Quote:

Shopify is looking to benefit from the United States’ move to ban immigrants for the rest of 2020, with founder and chief executive Tobi Lutke publicly inviting engineers to give Canada a try instead.

On Monday, U.S. President Donald Trump signed an executive order suspending immigrant visas to the United States, including the H-1B visa available to high-skilled workers.

The H-1B is used heavily by high-growth American technology companies, because hiring top engineering and software development professionals is one of the major challenges those businesses face.

Within hours of the news breaking on Monday, Shopify vice-president Kaz Nejatian posted on Twitter saying, “We’re hiring at Shopify. If you are an (engineer) getting screwed by this insanity, please message me.”

...

South of the border, some of the largest tech companies voiced their displeasure about Trump’s executive order. Sundar Pichai, chief executive of Google, posted on Twitter saying, “Immigration has contributed immensely to America’s economic success, making it a global leader in tech, and also Google the company it is today. Disappointed by today’s proclamation — we’ll continue to stand with immigrants and work to expand opportunity for all.”

Twitter posted a message from its vice-president of public policy, Jessica Herrera-Flanigan, saying “This proclamation undermines America’s greatest economic asset: its diversity. People from all over the world come here to join our labour force, pay taxes, and contribute to our global competitiveness on the world stage.”

rofina · #**1782** Posted **Jun 23, 2020, 9:39 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sheba

Shopify moves to poach foreign talent blocked by Trump's immigrant visa ban

As awful as it is, I see it as an absolute win for Canada, and Vancouver in particualr.

Right timezone, right climate, right location. Going to be easy for tech to use Vancouver as a proxy for US based projects for engineers that can no longer enter the US.

I realize this has already been the case, but this will certainly double down the trend.

I don't doubt Amazon is thrilled to have The Post going up.

WarrenC12 · #**1783** Posted **Jun 23, 2020, 9:47 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by rofina

As awful as it is, I see it as an absolute win for Canada, and Vancouver in particualr.

Right timezone, right climate, right location. Going to be easy for tech to use Vancouver as a proxy for US based projects for engineers that can no longer enter the US.

I realize this has already been the case, but this will certainly double down the trend.

I don't doubt Amazon is thrilled to have The Post going up.

This could all be reversed in November, or never actually happen at all. Trump being Trump.

Continuous instability in the US position on immigration will be good for Vancouver generally though.

jollyburger · #**1784** Posted **Jun 24, 2020, 12:40 AM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by rofina

As awful as it is, I see it as an absolute win for Canada, and Vancouver in particualr.

Right timezone, right climate, right location. Going to be easy for tech to use Vancouver as a proxy for US based projects for engineers that can no longer enter the US.

I realize this has already been the case, but this will certainly double down the trend.

I don't doubt Amazon is thrilled to have The Post going up.

Seems stupid if everyone plans on working from home.

rofina · #**1785** Posted **Jun 24, 2020, 9:05 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by WarrenC12

This could all be reversed in November, or never actually happen at all. Trump being Trump.

Continuous instability in the US position on immigration will be good for Vancouver generally though.

Definitely.

As you say though, the amount of guesswork and general instability is going to be a positive for the business sector in Vancouver.

Boring and predictable is going to be at a massive premium in the coming years, and we seem to have plenty of that - I mean that in all the positive of ways.

officedweller · #**1786** Posted **Jun 30, 2020, 2:27 AM**

Lululemon acquires home-fitness firm Mirror for US$500m
https://biv.com/article/2020/06/lululemon-acquires-home-fitness-firm-mirror-us500m

supercanuck · #**1787** Posted **Aug 24, 2020, 9:12 PM**

EA expansion plans

An existing four-storey office building with a floor area of 111,999 sq. ft., currently tenanted by Schneider Electric, will be retained. -- Is this the old Creo building they are talking about? Did not know that EA owned it.

https://dailyhive.com/vancouver/3700-gilmore-way-burnaby-electronic-arts-ea-campus

Klazu · #**1788** Posted **Aug 26, 2020, 12:19 AM**

The secret seems to be out. This is going to be a massive expansion of the EAV campus in Burnaby! Hopefully this will help to strengthen the local video game development scene overall after some tough years!

Strange that they didn't opt for an indoor skyway over Sanderson Way. That roundabout on Sanderson Way is going to be interesting as that uphill from Willingdon Avenue sees lots of trouble when it snows...

DailyHive.com

jollyburger · #**1789** Posted **Aug 26, 2020, 12:59 AM**

EA also leased 68,000 square feet at 4260 Still Creek Drive last year. Maybe they'll move out of there when the new offices are finished.

It was in some reports last November:

Quote:

The purpose of the proposed rezoning bylawamendment is to permit the construction of two three-storey office buildings with
underground parking for the expansion of the Electronic Arts (EA) Bumaby campus

And EA is just a tenant.

Quote:

Turner Construction and Dialog are pleased to submit an Application for Rezoning for the site located at 3700 Gilmore Way on behalf of Joseph Segal of Kingswood Capital Corporation. The proposed development seeks
to construct two office buildings for the expansion of the Electronic Arts (EA) Burnaby campus.

https://pub-burnaby.escribemeetings.com/filestream.ashx?DocumentId=44828

Kingswood got all the properties in 2009.

Quote:

4225 Kincaid Street Burnaby $18,060,000 146,800 $123 Kingswood Capital
3700 Gilmore Way Burnaby $11,900,000 90,500 $131 Kingswood Capital
3755 Willingdon Avenue Burnaby $6,450,000 27,600 $234 Kingswood Capital

https://leevancouver.com/wp-content/uploads/DTZ-Barnicke-Year-End-2009-Office-Report.pdf

Anyone know what's happening with that land to the north (the old youth custody centre?) The province tried to build a pretrial centre there ten years ago.

Migrant_Coconut · #**1790** Posted **Aug 26, 2020, 1:31 AM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by Klazu

Yep, the secret seems to be out. This is going to be a massive expansion of the EAV campus in Burnaby! Hopefully this will help to strengthen the local video game development scene after some tough years!

Friendly reminder that the Vancouver studio mainly does EA Sports games. So yes, this is good news... but only for FIFA, NBA and NHL, which were already doing pretty well; you want to look at Blackbird or Relic for signs of local growth.

We are getting a Respawn studio, though.

Klazu · #**1791** Posted **Aug 26, 2020, 3:49 AM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by Migrant_Coconut

Friendly reminder that the Vancouver studio mainly does EA Sports games.

I believe FIFA, NHL and UFC are the only remaining EA Sports games being made in Vancouver. NBA was transitioned years ago to their studio in Orlando with some other sports titles. There is a lot of non-sports game development happening at EAV and as the news tells, it only continues to expand. It's really good news for the industry in here.

Migrant_Coconut · #**1792** Posted **Aug 26, 2020, 4:05 AM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by Klazu

I believe FIFA, NHL and UFC are the only remaining EA Sports games being made in Vancouver. NBA was transitioned years ago to their studio in Orlando with some other sports titles. There is a lot of non-sports game development happening at EAV and as the news tells, it only continues to expand. It's really good news for the industry in here.

If you've got an inside track, more power to you... as it stands, Plants vs Zombies or Need for Speed don't really count as big ticket items, and IIRC their Star Wars game got cancelled. I know they do some supplementary work for DICE games.

What I'd really be psyched for is a BioWare or (reopened) Rockstar studio.

Sheba · #**1793** Posted **Sep 28, 2020, 8:31 PM**

Amazon looks to fill 3,000 jobs at newest Vancouver tech hub

Quote:

Online retail giant Amazon will be filling 3,000 new jobs at its latest tech hub, in the former downtown Vancouver post office.

Almost 800 positions are already available, while the rest are expected to be filled when construction at The Post, between Georgia and Dunsmuir at Homer Street, nears completion in 2023, said Jesse Dougherty, an Amazon-vice president and Vancouver lead, in a statement.

“Amazon’s investment has tangible benefits for the broader economy and community — from the people we employ, to the small businesses we empower, to the charities we support, to the academic opportunities we fund. We’re proud to reaffirm our commitment to Canadian cities at this critical time,” said Dougherty.

The jobs span several departments across the company, including Alexa, Amazon advertising, retail and operations technology, and include roles such as software development engineers, user experience designers, speech scientists working to develop Alexa, cloud computing solutions architects, and sales and marketing executives.

It was previously reported that Amazon would be the sole corporate tenant at The Post, with plans to occupy 18 floors in the complex’s north tower and 17 floors in the south tower.

“The city of Vancouver is so excited to see Amazon creating an additional 3,000 well-paying jobs for people who want to work and live in our city,” said Vancouver Mayor Kennedy Stewart in a statement. This “highlights the strength of our tech sector and shows that Vancouver is where companies want to establish themselves and grow.”

rofina · #**1794** Posted **Sep 28, 2020, 9:39 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sheba

Amazon looks to fill 3,000 jobs at newest Vancouver tech hub

Beautiful news.

That's a lot of well paying jobs.

svlt · #**1795** Posted **Sep 29, 2020, 10:22 AM**

Looks like that brings the total Amazon employment in Vancouver to 8,000, from the 5,000 already announced previously:

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/business...00-employees-to-its-canadian-work-force/

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/canada/b...n-new-vancouver-office-create-3000-jobs/

It's almost like Vancouver hit the HQ2 "jackpot".

WarrenC12 · #**1796** Posted **Sep 29, 2020, 3:34 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by svlt

Looks like that brings the total Amazon employment in Vancouver to 8,000, from the 5,000 already announced previously:

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/business...00-employees-to-its-canadian-work-force/

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/canada/b...n-new-vancouver-office-create-3000-jobs/

It's almost like Vancouver hit the HQ2 "jackpot".

These future announcements should be taken with a bit of salt. Who knows what is overlapping or which plans have changed since the original number.

Good news for Vancouver for sure, but I'll wait until we see people actually employed and living in Vancouver.

rofina · #**1797** Posted **Sep 29, 2020, 3:54 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by WarrenC12

These future announcements should be taken with a bit of salt. Who knows what is overlapping or which plans have changed since the original number.

Good news for Vancouver for sure, but I'll wait until we see people actually employed and living in Vancouver.

That's fair. But Amazon taking all 1.1 million square feet is definitely a vote of confidence, and shows a clear commitment to setting up in Vancouver.

s211 · #**1798** Posted **Sep 29, 2020, 10:28 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by svlt

Looks like that brings the total Amazon employment in Vancouver to 8,000, from the 5,000 already announced previously:

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/business...00-employees-to-its-canadian-work-force/

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/canada/b...n-new-vancouver-office-create-3000-jobs/

It's almost like Vancouver hit the HQ2 "jackpot".

That would be Virginia, actually: https://www.cpexecutive.com/post/amazon-buys-northern-virginia-hotel-for-hq2-phase-two/

rofina · #**1799** Posted **Sep 29, 2020, 11:49 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by s211

That would be Virginia, actually: https://www.cpexecutive.com/post/amazon-buys-northern-virginia-hotel-for-hq2-phase-two/

That's a beautiful flip.

Bought for 99 million in 2019.
Sold for 150 million in 2020.

Damn.

WestCoastEcho · #**1800** Posted **Sep 30, 2020, 12:29 AM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by rofina

That's fair. But Amazon taking all 1.1 million square feet is definitely a vote of confidence, and shows a clear commitment to setting up in Vancouver.

Makes a lot of sense for Amazon; close to Seattle, and Canada's immigration is far less schizophrenic than the Americans, so it's easier to hire foreign talent and bring them close to their HQ.