The Vancouver Business Thread

[SpongeG]

Lululemon back in kits

The company announced last month that it was expecting to complete the purchase of its Global Store Support Centre, located at 1818 Cornwall Avenue shortly, meaning that it would be returning to its Kitsilano origins.

The building, originally operated as a bottling plant and converted into an office building in the 1980s, is 130,000 square feet. Approximately 70,000 square feet have been occupied by more than 300 Lululemon Athletica employees since late 2010.

Read more: http://www.vancouversun.com/news/Lul...#ixzz1I7NANmPp

[hollywoodnorth]

Originally Posted by SpongeG

Lululemon back in kits





Read more: http://www.vancouversun.com/news/Lul...#ixzz1I7NANmPp

crappy! as that site was planned to be redeveloped into a mixed use project .....

[SpongeG]

where is it? is i that building at burrard?

[LeftCoaster]

Likely to see heavy mining consolidation in the next few years, especially if gold prices keep climbing.

New Gold to acquire Richfield Ventures in friendly $550-million deal
By Mary Gazze, The Canadian Press

Shares in Richfield Ventures Corp. soared 25 per cent early Monday morning after New Gold Inc. (TSX:NGD) announced a friendly $550-million takeover deal for the B.C. company and its Blackwater gold project.

New Gold shares fell 33 cents to $10.93 shortly after morning trading opened on the Toronto Stock Exchange, while shares in Richfield (TSXV:RVC) climbed $2.05 to $9.98.

The Blackwater project, 160 kilometres southwest of Prince George, B.C., is projected to contain 1.8 million ounces of gold.

New Gold said it expects to begin production at the mine in about five or six years, and that Richfield's project is a good fit with its own New Afton project, which is well-advanced towards production.

"This adds a large, advanced stage exploration gold asset into the New Gold portfolio. The project is in British Columbia, in a good location, near infrastructure," Randall Oliphant, New Gold's executive chairman said in a conference call with analysts.

Oliphant, a former chief executive of Barrick Gold Corp. (TSX:ABX), has guided New Gold through a number of deals including a $1.2-billion combination with Western Goldfields in 2009 and last year's flip of a 70 per cent stake in the El Morrow copper-gold project in Chile to Goldcorp Inc. (TSX:G) for US$463 million.

New Gold said Monday that the Blackwater project will be easy to manage because it has good access to roads and skilled local workers who are out of work due to the effects of pine beetle infestation on the forestry industry.

Under the deal, Vancouver-based New Gold will issue 0.9217 of a share, worth about $10.38 based on Friday's closing price, for each share of Richfield. The sale price is a 31 per cent premium to Friday closing prices.

Upon closing, Quesnel, B.C-based Richfield will own about 10 per cent of New Gold's equity.

"I think New Gold's offer is by far the most compelling and clearly advanced, which is why we've locked up the New Gold offer," Peter Bernier, Richfield president and CEO said in the conference call, adding that the company waded through several bids over the past year before finally deciding on a buyer.

The two boards unanimously approved the deal.

http://www.canadianbusiness.com/mark...ntent=b6457545

[LeftCoaster]

Teck Resources and Steelworkers reach deal at Elkview coal mine for second time
By The Canadian Press

VANCOUVER - Teck Resources Ltd. (TSX:TCK.B) has reached a tentative agreement with the union representing striking workers at its Elkview coal mine, the company announced Monday.

Terms of the deal, which would end a labour dispute that began in January, were not released.

The agreement follows an earlier deal that was voted down by the members of the United Steelworkers local 9346.

The mine, near Sparwood in southeastern British Columbia, is the second-largest of Teck's six operating coal mines, with about 700 workers.

The new agreement was reached with the help of mediator Vince Ready.

Teck said a ratification vote was scheduled to be complete by Thursday. If the deal is approved, Teck said production at the mine could resume by Friday.

Teck cut its 2011 guidance for coal production last month by about one million tonnes due to a tough winter and the Elkview labour dispute.

The company said it expected coal sales in 2011 to be between 23.5 tonnes and 24.5 million tonnes, compared to previously announced guidance of 24.5 to 25.5 million tonnes.

The reduction followed an announcement earlier this month that the company would sell between 4.6 million and 4.9 million tonnes of coal compared with an average of 5.3 million tonnes in recent years.

The company said at that time that the strike had not been a significant reason for the lower sales as deliveries of Elkview coal from inventory continued.

Teck is Canada's largest diversified miner, focused on copper, steelmaking coal and zinc. It also owns an interest in a large oilsands project.

Its shares traded at $54.63, up $3.38 or nearly seven per cent, on the Toronto Stock Exchange.

http://www.canadianbusiness.com/mark...ntent=b6458072

[whatnext]

Yesterday's Sun had a top 10 list of individuals, enterprises and events shaped city's business over the first 125 years:

CPR, Woodward's, MacBlo, Jimmy Pattison, H.Y. Louie Co., Expo 86, Delgamuukw aboriginal land-claim trial, BC Hydro, VSE, Real Estate (of course!)

http://www.vancouversun.com/business...960/story.html

[Hed Kandi]

Published: March 29, 2011
Vancouver vies for new Square Enix video-game studio
By Blaine Kyllo

Japanese video-game publisher Square Enix is planning to open a new development studio in Canada in 2012. The studio would employ at least 100 staff in the development of games for the new consoles expected in the coming years from Microsoft, Nintendo, and Sony.

Vancouver video-game industry still suffering

Stéphane D’Astous, general manager of Square Enix’s Eidos Montreal studio, has been tasked with finding a location for the new studio. He told the newspaper La Presse that Vancouver, Toronto, and Montreal are all being considered and the negotiating process has begun.

D’Astous hopes the Quebec government will consider an incentive like the $7.5-million and $3.1-million grants that went to Warner Bros. Interactive and THQ, respectively, when those publishers opened studios in Montreal.

Those subsidies are in addition to the labour tax credit of 37.5 percent that is available to companies that produce video games and other multimedia products in Quebec. B.C.’s Interactive Digital Media Tax Credit, by comparison, is 17.5 percent.

Square Enix Europe turned down a Straight request for an interview. Spokespeople from two B.C. ministries—Finance and Jobs, Tourism and Innovation—told the Straight that investor meetings are not discussed publicly. A Vancouver Economic Development Commission representative said the city agency has not been contacted by Square Enix.

http://m.straight.com/article/383889

[whatnext]

Uh oh - CBC Vancouver reporting rumour that Disney cruises which were supposed to be operating out of Vancouver this summer aren't bookable?

[SpongeG]

are they sold out?

[SpongeG]

they have them listed on the schedule for the cruise ship season

http://www.portmetrovancouver.com/en...schedules.aspx

May 3rd 2011 is the first one for them

the Disney Wonder is going to be here that day... i wanna go down and see it


simplonpc.co.uk

[whatnext]

Disney has apparently bailed on homeporting in Vancouver, in favour of Seattle.
Fourteen sailings, starting in May, 2012, and going through August, will be aboard the Disney Wonder, a massive red, white and blue 2,400-passenger ship, with three pools and 10 decks. Ports of call will include Skagway; Juneau; Tracy Arm, a fjord near Juneau; Ketchikan; and Victoria, B.C.

The cruises will replace some of 18 sailings Disney plans this year from Vancouver, B.C., its first foray into Alaskan market.

"There will still be cruises departing Vancouver in 2012, but they will be greatly outnumbered by the Seattle cruises," said Disney spokesman John McClintock
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/htm...rdisney06.html

A port call in Victoria pumps nowhere near the same amount of money into BC's economy. Maybe we need to consider a transit tax for the Inside Passage.

[SpongeG]

i just saw on CTV - 2011 disney will be here in vancouver and 2012 they will move to seattle - they may come back in 2013 or not - they want to see whats better

oh well will go down and see em while they are here this year

[Millennium2002]

I don't think there's anything bad about them trying out ports... maybe the word of a trial may entice (slightly useless) Transport Canada to do something with regards to improving YVR and enticing more international and US connections.

[trofirhen]

Dunno if this is the appropriate thread for this remark or not, but here goes ... today, going through Vancouver > Seattle comparisons, I saw Vancouver entitled "the largest non-corporate city in North America."

And it was not just a remark by some forum member. It was the main text of the page.

True? Partly true? Somewhat true? Slightly true? Not really true? Rather false? Totally false? Total b.s, and I've got the stats to prove it? !!

[LeftCoaster]

Phoenix.

/discussion

[SpongeG]

Originally Posted by trofirhen

Dunno if this is the appropriate thread for this remark or not, but here goes ... today, going through Vancouver > Seattle comparisons, I saw Vancouver entitled "the largest non-corporate city in North America."

And it was not just a remark by some forum member. It was the main text of the page.

True? Partly true? Somewhat true? Slightly true? Not really true? Rather false? Totally false? Total b.s, and I've got the stats to prove it? !!

you see it as a bad thing i see it as a good thing, we are more innovative, artistic and against the grain kind of place, the birth place of greenpeace and ballard fuel cells - we go our own way and it has served the city well

[trofirhen]

Originally Posted by LeftCoaster

Phoenix.

/discussion

Really? Please elaborate. This is interesting. Thanks.

[Hourglass]

Numerix opens up Vancouver office. Interesting they would base in Van...

Numerix Opens Vancouver Office Expanding Global Sales and Quantitative Development Teams

New office and hiring’s expand firm’s sales, quantitative development and business analyst sales teams

NEW YORK AND VANCOUVER, B.C.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Numerix (www.numerix.com), the leading provider of cross-asset analytics for derivatives valuations and risk management, is pleased to announce the successful opening and immediate expansion of its Vancouver, Canada office which includes the hiring of several new inside sales, quantitative development and business analyst team members.

“After the events of 2008 and 2009 and the ensuing focus on rigorous risk management practices and accurate pricing of assets, we are witnessing strong demand for flexible analytics and portfolio risk solutions for derivatives and structured products such as the solution suite from Numerix”

The new Vancouver office immediately expands on Numerix’s existing sales force and quantitative development presence in North America. The Global Inside Sales team will be tasked with selling and supporting Numerix’s LiquidAsset product for the pricing, valuation and risk analysis of OTC vanilla derivatives globally and more widely introducing customer’s to Numerix’s full product lines built upon the market leading Numerix CrossAsset analytics pricing platform. Numerix offers clients a highly flexible and fully transparent framework for pricing any type of financial instrument, from vanillas and “semi-exotics” to bespoke derivatives and structured products, allowing users to calculate prices and perform scenario analysis using any data set.

“With access to the best and brightest talent in the region, the creation of our Vancouver based inside sales team represents the successful addition of the proven talent and industry experience needed to drive sales and accelerate our position in the OTC vanilla derivatives segment of the market,” said Steven R. O’Hanlon, President and COO of Numerix. “We continue to be innovative in packaging our superior pricing analytics in new ways to meet the needs of different market segments in the capital markets. Together, I am confident in our team’s ability to achieve the goals and strategic objectives that we have set in place for them.”

“A diversified economy and favourable tax environment make Vancouver a highly desirable and competitive location for financial businesses,” said Lee Malleau, CEO of Vancouver Economic Development Commission. “Companies like Numerix add strength to our financial sector and in turn they can leverage Vancouver’s strong connections to emerging Asian economies and our excellent position as a global gateway.”

"After the events of 2008 and 2009 and the ensuing focus on rigorous risk management practices and accurate pricing of assets, we are witnessing strong demand for flexible analytics and portfolio risk solutions for derivatives and structured products such as the solution suite from Numerix,” states Dr. M. Habbal, Senior Vice President, Head of Securities & Investments, Celent.

Highlighted among the new hires is Sean Hwang, Vice President of Global Inside Sales. Also joining Numerix are Jeff d’Avignon; Greg Murray; Rodney Stewart- all Inside Sales; Tom Davis, PhD – Client Solutions; Daniel Wan as a Senior Software Developer; Dominic Brecher, PhD - Quantitative Development; Darren Swan- Quantitative Development; Karan Samra – Outside Sales Americas, and Liyang Wang – Client Solutions.

Vancouver Office Information:

Numerix Canada LLC
Suite 375, Two Bentall Centre
555 Burrard Street
Vancouver, B.C.
Canada
V7X 1M7
Phone: +1-604-566-9655

The opening and immediate expansion of the Vancouver office caps a strong 2010 for Numerix in the Americas. In 2010 Numerix signed 25 new clients across all regions—from North America (including Canada and the US/Alaska) to the Caribbean and Latin America (including Mexico City).

In November 2010, the Chartis RiskTech 100™ survey acknowledged Numerix as the category winner for both customer satisfaction and OTC pricing and analytics. Also in May 2010, Numerix was named Technology Innovation Provider of the Year for the Americas by Structured Products Magazine. This is the fourth consecutive year that Numerix has won the award, demonstrating the company’s continued success at delivering timely and important innovations for the modeling, pricing, valuation and risk management of vanilla instruments and structured products. In the May 2009 Celent Report Numerix was identified as the leader among its peers- providing advanced technology and functionality for pricing derivatives products, breath of cross asset coverage and depth of client services.

About Numerix

Numerix is the award winning, leading independent analytics institution providing cross-asset solutions for structuring, pre-trade price discovery, trade capture, valuation and portfolio management of derivatives and structured products. Numerix offers clients a highly flexible and fully transparent framework for the pricing and risk analysis of any type of OTC derivative financial instrument. From vanillas and "semi-exotics" to bespoke derivatives, structured products and variable annuities, Numerix allows users to calculate prices and manage risk using any data set.

Since its inception in 1996, over 700 clients and 50 partners across more than 25 countries have come to rely on Numerix analytics for speed and accuracy in valuing and managing the most sophisticated financial instruments. With offices in Australia, Beijing, Chicago, Dubai, Hong Kong, India, London, New York, San Francisco, Paris, Singapore, South Korea, Tokyo and Vancouver, Numerix brings together unparalleled expertise across all asset classes and engineering disciplines. For more information, please visit www.numerix.com.

http://www.businesswire.com/news/hom...g-Global-Sales

[trofirhen]

Yay!!! Another piece of corporate presence for Our Town.

[SpongeG]

City to gain 10,000 cruise ship passengers in 2012: official

Additional travellers could mean an extra $2.6 million in tourism revenues for Vancouver despite loss of Disney

By Brian Morton, Vancouver Sun April 28, 2011

Mickey Mouse may be heading to Seattle, but Vancouver's 2012 cruise season is still set to record more passengers visiting the city.

That's the word from Carmen Ortega, Port Metro Vancouver's manager for cruise trade development, who said that 2012 will experience a slight increase in the number of passengers in Vancouver, although the number of home port calls by ships will drop.

"We're forecasting 660,000 passengers [for 2012]," Ortega said in an interview. "This year we're up to about 650,000."

The passengers could result in an additional $2.6 million for Vancouver's tourism industry, based on estimated average per-passenger spending of $256 in Vancouver in 2010.

However, Ortega said the estimate is not precise, because the port's economic impact model also includes crew and cruise line spending, which she was unable to provide. "Overall, the economic impact numbers will be slightly higher than in 2011."Ortega said that although the number of home port calls to Vancouver will drop to 188 in 2012 from 199 this year, some of next year's ships are larger so they can handle more passengers.

Ortega also said Princess Cruises' Sapphire Princess, one of its larger vessels, will return to Vancouver in 2012 after leaving the city in 2010.

"Now, they have three ships home-ported [in Vancouver]. With the Sapphire Princess, they'll have four."

The return of the Sapphire Princess, which holds at least 2,670 passengers, is expected to add an extra $20 million to Vancouver's tourism economy.

Despite that, Vancouver's cruise industry recently suffered a major hit when Disney Cruises announced that its Disney Wonder was moving its home calls for the Alaska cruise market from Vancouver to Seattle next year.

It's estimated the Disney decision could cost Vancouver's tourism industry well over $30 million in economic benefits.

...

Read more: http://www.vancouversun.com/life/Cit...#ixzz1KqWQKur9