Local entrepreneurs are being asked to contribute to the development of the 2024 Kitimat Business Bootcamp series through a feedback survey prior to the event. The outreach aims to help tailor the upcoming workshops more closely to the community’s needs.
The Bootcamp is a series workshops, launched last year, targeting small to medium-sized business owners facing challenges with staffing, digital navigation, or succession planning. It is jointly organized by the District of Kitimat and the Kitimat Chamber of Commerce. The bootcamp concludes with the Kitimat Business Builders Competition where business owners pitch growth ideas to win part of a $10,000 prize pool sponsored by LNG Canada and Rio Tinto.
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Organizers are now seeking input through a two-question survey available at getinvolved.kitimat.ca until April 22. The survey asks participants to select preferred workshop topics and to suggest convenient times for sessions, reflecting a community-driven approach to scheduling and content planning.
In 2023, the program attracted over 20 local business leaders, focusing on pressing issues like temporary foreign workers, succession planning, grants, housing supports, and digital resources. The series ended with Harmonized Soul, Big Jim’s Liquor Store, and Vitality Spa and Clinic winning $5,000, $3,000, and $2,000, respectively, for their pitches.
The bootcamp series this year will feature four workshops from June 5 to 26, with the business builders competition scheduled for the second week of July.