The Vancouver Business Thread

[Hmoob]

Originally Posted by Changing City

There's already a fairly significant group of companies involved in biotech and medical research, some of them with pharmaceuticals. This database lists 38 in the City of Vancouver, and 21 others in the rest of Metro Vancouver (mostly in Burnaby and Richmond).

Thanks for the list. I can think of a few companies it's missing, and it names a few that arguably aren't worth mentioning, but it give a good idea of the scope of the biotech industry here.

With Stemcell as the exception (they're a special case), don't expect biotech manufacturing to really take off here any time soon. We don't have much depth of experienced human capital to support it. There are cheaper places to manufacture. And pharmaceutical manufacturing is in essence chemical manufacturing and likely to face an environmental backlash in our local climate that most companies don't want to expose themselves to.

Vancouver is home to world-renowned research and has plenty of early to late preclinical projects. That's where it frequently ends. We're short on individuals with clinical and/or product commercialization experience. A typical Vancouver biotech model is to develop an early stage project and sell it or license it out. Another approach is to set up a satellite office in the States to attract individuals with more late-stage expertise. It's more practical than trying to convince people to move here.

[Sheba]

This is the closest thread I could think of for this: Vancouver startup transforming restaurants into office space (their two locations are in Kits and Yaletown)

A growing number of entrepreneurs in Vancouver are spending their work hours in unlikely spaces.

A local start-up, Free Space, is transforming lounges by night into offices by day. It’s part of a growing trend across North America.

For Troy McNamara, a marketing strategist and consultant who works remotely, it just makes sense.

“When you have space that’s not being used throughout the day, it’s just a waste of space and it’s not very sustainable,” he said. “It makes so much sense to inhabit these spaces.”

James Komenda is the brains behind Free Space, a Vancouver-based startup connecting remote workers with restaurants whose spaces would otherwise be vacant from from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

“I’ve always been interested in the concept of space as a service and I think that started with my first experience with Airbnb, to be completely honest,” Komenda said.

For $50 a month, subscribers can access both of Free Space’s Vancouver locations, which are outfitted with dedicated high speed internet, power outlets and a steady supply of java.

Komenda said it provides an alternative to those looking who typically would work at home or in coffee shops — spaces that can be less than ideal.

“On one hand, we have people that were working from home, which is great but it can be isolating because there’s no human interaction,” Komenda said.

“Other users said that they traditionally work out of a coffee shop and a coffee shop can be great as well, but it can also be an inconsistent experience… Are you going to have access to a space to sit at, you have to buy coffee, is the Wifi gonna be strong or is it gonna be secure?”

Mangos Restaurant general manager Esteban Cuevas said there’s potential.

“If you’re not using the space and you get the opportunity to bring some people in, why not? It’s a no-brainer for me,” he said.

However, Ian Tostenson, president of the BC Restaurant & Food Services Association, says it’s an opportunity with limited potential.

“It has to be managed and there’s a cost to that so you have to sort of wonder what the cost benefit is really going to be, but it’s going to be really, really small in our market,” he said.

Still, Free Space is hoping to expand. Their next stop could be North Vancouver.

[SpongeG]

Sobeys plans new warehouse in B.C.

Sobeys has filed a proposal to build a new 500,000 square foot distribution facility in South Surrey, B.C. The warehouse will employ around 200 full-time-equivalent positions.

Much of the building will be refrigerated to handle produce and other food products, reports the Surrey Now-Leader, which viewed the development proposal.

...

The building will be located in South Surrey’s Campbell Heights Industrial Area, where Walmart plans to build a $175 million frozen grocery facility.

...

https://www.grocerybusiness.ca/news/sobeys-plans-new-warehouse-in-b-c

[SpongeG]

Alipay’s Vancouver head office scores major advances in Canada

By Chuck Chiang | January 10, 2019

While Alipay has grown rapidly in its first year of Canadian operations, the Chinese e-payment giant plans to focus on the spending patterns of tourists, students and other consumers from China, rather than potential local consumers.

But even if a North American “wallet” app may not be on the near horizon for those hoping to use Alipay – the world’s largest platform of its kind – in B.C. without a Chinese bank account, officials from the company said Canadian businesses can still benefit from the Alipay platform by using it to gain access to Chinese consumers who are otherwise less likely to spend their discretionary income during their Canadian visits.

...

Since opening its office in Vancouver in January, Alipay has built a base of 180,000 North American merchants who now accept Alipay as a method of payment. The latest addition came in November, when 7-Eleven became the first Canadian convenience retailer to jump into the fray, adding Alibaba’s payment platform along with WeChat Pay to 25 stores in Metro Vancouver.

...

https://biv.com/article/2019/01/alipays-...z6dGr4umGXgxe8JtCurm-Uzu3XM-1s2rPfT1mbfo

[SpongeG]

Newmont Mining to acquire Goldcorp in multi-billion-dollar deal

The USD$10-billion transaction will see both companies merge to form Newmont Goldcorp, which will hold the world's largest share of gold resources and reserves

By Hayley Woodin | January 14, 2019

American gold giant Newmont Mining Corporation announced Monday it will acquire Vancouver-based Goldcorp Inc. in a USD$10-billion stock-for-stock transaction.

When the deal closes, the rebranded Newmont Goldcorp will hold the world’s largest share of gold assets.

"This combination will create the world's leading gold business with the best assets, people, prospects and value-creation opportunities," stated Newmont Mining CEO Gary Goldberg in a news release.

Newmont Goldcorp’s North American regional office will be located in Vancouver and responsible for overseeing the company’s operations in the United States and Canada. These will produce more than three million ounces of gold per year – more than triple Goldcorp’s current Canadian gold production.

...

https://biv.com/article/2019/01/newmont-mining-acquire-vancouvers-goldcorp-10-billion-deal

[rofina]

That's another exciting development for Vancouver. So much positive business news for city lately.

[misher]

Originally Posted by rofina

That's another exciting development for Vancouver. So much positive business news for city lately.

Helps to balance out Anbangs withdrawal from Vancouver.

[whatnext]

Nice to see another odious legacy of the BC Liberals being dismantled: raw log exports. They aimed that squarely at reducing well-paying union jobs in the lumber industry. Better we add value to our timber here, rather than offshore:

B.C. to curtail log exports, rebuild forestry industries

Premier John Horgan today revealed the pillars of a “conscious and deliberate strategy” to curtail exports of minimally processed lumber.

The goal: to rebuild the province’s solid wood and secondary forestry industries, and to turn profits from processing abroad into investments in British Columbia.

“The changes that were made by the BC Liberals have enabled log exports to be the easiest way to make quick money. We’ve seen Canadian companies investing in U.S. mills, not investing in British Columbia. We want to turn that around,” the premier told attendees of the 76th annual Truck Loggers Association (TLA) Convention...

https://biv.com/article/2019/01/bc-curtail-log-exports-rebuild-forestry-industries

[WestCoastEcho]

Originally Posted by whatnext

Nice to see another odious legacy of the BC Liberals being dismantled: raw log exports. They aimed that squarely at reducing well-paying union jobs in the lumber industry. Better we add value to our timber here, rather than offshore:

B.C. to curtail log exports, rebuild forestry industries

Premier John Horgan today revealed the pillars of a “conscious and deliberate strategy” to curtail exports of minimally processed lumber.

The goal: to rebuild the province’s solid wood and secondary forestry industries, and to turn profits from processing abroad into investments in British Columbia.

“The changes that were made by the BC Liberals have enabled log exports to be the easiest way to make quick money. We’ve seen Canadian companies investing in U.S. mills, not investing in British Columbia. We want to turn that around,” the premier told attendees of the 76th annual Truck Loggers Association (TLA) Convention...

https://biv.com/article/2019/01/bc-curtail-log-exports-rebuild-forestry-industries

The Private Forest Landowners Association has this to say about raw log exports:

https://www.pfla.bc.ca/log-export/6-basic-facts-everyone-should-know-about-bcs-log-exports/

1. Log exports are essential to private forestry.

Without access to log export markets, none of the 3,000-plus people directly employed in the stewardship of BC’s coastal private managed forest land would be working today.

2. A surplus of timber is available to sawmills, pulp mills and value-added manufacturers on the BC coast.

We’ve said it before, but we’ll say it again: there is no log shortage. In fact, there’s a surplus of logs. Here’s the math:

Timber available for harvest and processing = 24 million cubic meters
Domestic processing capacity = 16 million cubic meters
The difference = 8 million cubic meters of surplus logs

3. Domestic sawmills need to take responsibility for their own “supply” problems.

There are plenty of logs available on the BC coast. If domestic sawmills want to ensure an adequate supply of logs, there are a number of ways to do it:

Offer competitive log prices.
Fully harvest public land timber quotas.
Buy logs on the open market from First Nations, market loggers, community forests, woodlot licences and BC Timber Sales (BCTS) operators.
Bid directly for timber available through BCTS timber sales.

4. Log prices are the issue, not log shortages.

BC has the world’s lowest log prices. Domestic sawmills offer prices lower than production costs. The result: No incentive to produce and sell logs to domestic sawmills. Here’s some more math:

Cost per cubic meter to produce a log from coastal public lands = $78
Typical log price offered (Teal Jones) = $60
Recent low-ball log price offer = $43
Average price of the same logs sold to export customers = $90

5. Log exports are NOT the cause of mill closures and job losses.

In fact, without log exports domestic mills wouldn’t have any timber at all. There would be no forest stewardship and no log production. The ability to sell some logs at a premium (log exports) is the only reason it’s economically viable to sell other logs, at artificially low prices, to domestic mills. Jobs, economic activity, crown land stumpage and tax revenues all grind to a halt without log exports.

6. There’s no such thing as a raw log.

Manufactured logs are no different than any other product – lumber, pulp, poles, veneer – they are but one in a mix of many forest products. A product, that at this point in time, plays an essential role in keeping the boat of BC forest stewardship afloat.

[misher]

Nice post West Coast, if it’s true that foreign exports are subsidizing the industry then its a dumb move to stop them.

[ClaytonA]

Read the comments of WE's article in the link there's more discussion... are these opinions?

... There are facts and there are opinions on this subject and the two often get mixed up with one another. ...

https://www.pfla.bc.ca/log-export/6-basic-facts-everyone-should-know-about-bcs-log-exports/

[whatnext]

Originally Posted by WestCoastEcho

The Private Forest Landowners Association has this to say about raw log exports:

https://www.pfla.bc.ca/log-export/6-basic-facts-everyone-should-know-about-bcs-log-exports/

Not that they have any agenda....

[misher]

Originally Posted by whatnext

Not that they have any agenda....

They did give numbers though and if it’s only half true that’s still important.

[s211]

Originally Posted by whatnext

Not that they have any agenda....

Lesson of the day: Everyone has an agenda.

[LeftCoaster]

Originally Posted by rofina

That's another exciting development for Vancouver. So much positive business news for city lately.

I'd hardly say one of the city's largest corporate HQs getting bought out good news. This is definitely a blow to the city's mining sector.

Originally Posted by misher

Helps to balance out Anbangs withdrawal from Vancouver.

Anbangs withdrawl? You mean the sale of some assets they own. If so the sale of the Bentall centre will result in a net loss of exactly 0 jobs...

Originally Posted by whatnext

Not that they have any agenda....

Their agenda is to ensure the continued health of the forestry sector. Forcing low skill value add jobs back to BC only makes us uncompetitive and will hurt the forestry sector. This NDP economic intervention is coming from a good place of restoring jobs but it's folly. It's like trying to bring textiles jobs back, it just isn't economically viable when other jurisdictions can do it for a fraction of the price.

[misher]

Originally Posted by LeftCoaster

Anbangs withdrawl? You mean the sale of some assets they own. If so the sale of the Bentall centre will result in a net loss of exactly 0 jobs...



Their agenda is to ensure the continued health of the forestry sector. Forcing low skill value add jobs back to BC only makes us uncompetitive and will hurt the forestry sector. This NDP economic intervention is coming from a good place of restoring jobs but it's folly. It's like trying to bring textiles jobs back, it just isn't economically viable when other jurisdictions can do it for a fraction of the price.

No Anbang had offices in those towers. My friends in there are finding new jobs.

[whatnext]

A shame, isn't it:

Sales of Maseratis in B.C. fell by almost half in 2018, while Mercedes sales were down close to 10 per cent, as the shine comes off parts of the luxury auto market in the province.

According to the latest breakdown of new-car sales, provided by Ontario-based DesRosiers Automotive Consultants, there were 135 Maseratis sold in B.C. last year, compared with 248 in 2017...

https://vancouversun.com/news/local-news/maserati-and-mercedes-sales-fall-in-b-c

[misher]

Originally Posted by whatnext

A shame, isn't it:

Sales of Maseratis in B.C. fell by almost half in 2018, while Mercedes sales were down close to 10 per cent, as the shine comes off parts of the luxury auto market in the province.

According to the latest breakdown of new-car sales, provided by Ontario-based DesRosiers Automotive Consultants, there were 135 Maseratis sold in B.C. last year, compared with 248 in 2017...

https://vancouversun.com/news/local-news/maserati-and-mercedes-sales-fall-in-b-c

Dennis DesRosiers of DesRosiers Automotive Consultants told Postmedia News that while luxury car sales in B.C. had fallen (3.7 per cent), the percentage of luxury cars purchased in B.C. last year actually grew a few points to 16.6 per cent, meaning B.C. remains the per-capita luxury car hotbed of Canada.

Honestly Maserati lost sales because their new sedan and suv that aimed for a lower tier market fell short. They were just too plain to attract customers. The Macan and even the Q5 looked a lot better than their Maserati brother for a lower price.

Companies like Mercedes, Volvo, BMW, and Porsche who have built a kick ass lineup at competitive prices are still doing amazing. Every luxury brand is introducing lower tier models to capture the entry level market and most have hit home runs.

[CivicBlues]

Originally Posted by misher

Honestly Maserati lost sales because their new sedan and suv that aimed for a lower tier market fell short. They were just too plain to attract customers. The Macan and even the Q5 looked a lot better than their Maserati brother for a lower price.

Companies like Mercedes, Volvo, BMW, and Porsche who have built a kick ass lineup at competitive prices are still doing amazing. Every luxury brand is introducing lower tier models to capture the entry level market and most have hit home runs.

Don't you know only money laundering Chinese buy luxury vehicles in Vancouver? That's why a hit against those car companies are a hit against illegal money laundering Chinese. Take That!

/whatnext logic.

[whatnext]

Originally Posted by CivicBlues

Don't you know only money laundering Chinese buy luxury vehicles in Vancouver? That's why a hit against those car companies are a hit against illegal money laundering Chinese. Take That!

/whatnext logic.

There are none so blind as those that will not see.