Growing On Up

Posted on November 6, 2014 by Brad Ferguson

When the new Stantec tower was announced and most people gasped at the concept of a 62 floor tower in downtown Edmonton, Darren Durstling from WAM Development Group beautifully stated, “Just to give perspective, our lowest floor of residential starts where the Pearl ends.” … “We’re not competing with existing condominium products on the market, we’re introducing an entirely new echelon that the city has never seen.”

Edmonton’s growin’ on up.

When I went to Toronto last week to meet with Brad J. Lamb, aka the Condo King, who is launching Jasper House on Jasper & 106th Street behind the Boston Pizza, he eloquently stated, “We’re bringing something brand new to the Edmonton market, a 36-story, 260 unit high-design development where average unit sizes will be 725 sqft. We’re introducing a vibrant mixed-use concept at street level that will be new for some, but very familiar to many who travel to other major metropolitan centers.”

Edmonton’s growin’ on up.

What’s fantastic about these and other developments underway in the downtown core, is the fact that we are shedding the era of stamp-it-out condo kits and bringing a wide variety of choice to the marketplace. Some appeal to our growing student population. Some appeal to retirees. Some to empty-nesters. Some to singles. Some to investors. But together they bring density to the downtown core and embrace a culture of diversity that makes Edmonton so welcoming.

Speaking of investors, remember that each project represents an opportunity for Edmontonians to get involved, I’ve seen pricing for some of these new products ranging from $300K to $3M which creates investment opportunities for some people out there to actually invest in something that they can drive by every day.

So over the coming months, keep your eye out for open houses and information sessions. They’re fun nights out that get you aware of what’s happening in your downtown. Brad J. Lamb is launching his Jasper House project on Thursday night. I’m sure he’d welcome some of you interested people (see: JasperHouseCondos) for information and contact information) at the Art Gallery from 7pm-9pm for the launch.

Cheers.

Filling the Pointy End

Posted on November 4, 2014 by Brad Ferguson

Monday was a great day for the Edmonton Region. After three weeks of rumors swirling around the city, Edmonton International Airport (YEG) was delighted to announce a new non-stop flight to Amsterdam (AMS) beginning May 5th 2015, operated by KLM Royal Dutch Airlines.

This is good news.

Tremendous work goes into securing direct flights for the region, spearheaded by CEO Tom Ruth and his team at EIA in tight coordination with Mayor Don Iveson’s office, the Edmonton Chamber of Commerce, the Province of Alberta, Travel Alberta, Leduc County and our Edmonton Tourism and Enterprise Edmonton teams at EEDC.

Common Objective. Unified Voice.

Businesses can move people, goods and ideas faster to markets around the globe as a result of direct air access, and tourists can flow back and forth between destinations. Amsterdam was identified by Edmontonians as one of the most effective hubs into Europe, Africa and the Middle East … and it was delivered for your benefit.

Now, it is your turn.

There are three parts to every airplane – the pointy end (business class), the back end (economy class) and the underbelly (cargo) – all of which combine to determine the yield (return) on each flight. I never gave this too much thought, until I started understanding what it takes to secure new routes … and most importantly, what it takes to keep the routes we work so hard to secure.

And, our businesses have a big role to play.

If we don’t fill the pointy end of the plane … the business class … and we don’t ship our products from Edmonton International Airport … the cargo … then direct flights will be near impossible to maintain by travelers simply going to Expedia and clicking on the cheapest fare.

So, here’s what I’m asking you to do this week in your business:

– Explore whether you are trucking products to other airports before they head overseas;
– Explore whether you have a “fly economy” policy on international flights; and
– Explore whether you have a “direct flights first” policy that helps support your community.

This is a simple, but profoundly important request, folks. I respect that we are still living in the residue of extreme frugalness due to certain people abusing public funds … but we actually need to step up our commitment to these new direct flights in order to continue to build an economy of competitiveness and prosperity.

Play your part. You have an important role.

Thank you.

One Eye Open

Posted on October 22, 2014 by Brad Ferguson

I’m generally a very optimistic person. You have to be to be effective in this role. I tell people how the future looks bright and how capital expenditures are expected to keep flowing. I get to celebrate our wins, and share how we are outperforming every other economic jurisdiction in North America.

I also sleep with one eye open.

As I travel to different regions, it doesn’t take long to realize that we in the Edmonton Region are insulated from a lot of the pain and struggle in other places. Specifically, the short, medium and long term impact of youth unemployment … which in my mind is the biggest risk to our economic freedom.

Whether it be 26% in Greece, 24% in Pakistan, 22% in Turkey, 20% in Spain, 18% in Italy, 16% in the USA or 14% in Eastern Canada … it adds up to over 100 million people (largely young men) who are being economically, socially and politically left behind.

And that is not good.

Because what do young men do when their bored? When they can’t make a contribution? When they are tired of shooting things on Xbox? When they can organize through social media?

Exactly.

So when we send off our CF18s yesterday, or when there are shots fired in Ottawa today, or when there is a rally to ban a pipeline tomorrow … I encourage you all to take a moment to really start understanding that the real risk to our economic prosperity is not the price of oil … but growing social unrest in our country, across North America and around the world.

Peace.

Are We Smart Enough?

Posted on September 4, 2014 by Brad Ferguson

Complacency is a dangerous disease. It’s forever affected General Motors, Kodak, Microsoft and Blockbuster. And it is a widespread addiction amongst Alberta companies.

Why?

Because things are good. Why change? Why invest? Why try harder … when you can just sit back and enjoy the prosperity that comes from underlying economic growth?

Look at your own organization. Look at yourself. What are you investing in today that will allow you to reap dividends in 2-3 years or 5-7 years?

These are important questions, and they are the questions every Albertan should be asking every day. They are the questions that we will explore at E-Town (www.e-town.ca) next week, and it is important that you invite yourself to the conversation. Here’s why (true stories from the past week):

Me: Is your team coming to e-town this year?
CEO: It looks fabulous, but we’re too busy working too hard.
Me: Is working harder your competitive advantage?
CEO: Ummm … shut up.

Employee: I’d like to attend e-town this year. It only costs only $399.
Boss: What will you learn?
Employee: Technology, leadership and creativity trends affecting our business.
Boss: I don’t think those are our priorities right now.

Do these stories sound familiar? Are we simply trying to win by working harder? Or is it time we start thinking about competing by being smarter than your competition? One of our speakers, Estelle Metayer, focuses solely on this topic, and I’m probably looking forward to her session the most.

Why?

Because it strikes at the heart of our economic future. And you can’t afford to miss it.

Thank you.

Chief Curator, E-Town Festival

Posted on August 22, 2014 by Brad Ferguson

If you could invite eight incredible people for dinner, who would they be?

That’s the magical question we always ask as we begin planning our annual E-Town Festival (www.e-town.ca) at the Shaw Conference Centre … held this year on September 11th & 12th.

Futurist? Coach? Artist? Astronaut? Athlete? Entrepreneur? Musician? Poet?

What a mix. What a conversation. What ideas. What motivation. And we work hard to set the dinner table specifically for you … the entrepreneurial thinkers, the people building our city, the people taking risks or wanting to take risks … the people that are helping move our city, every day, away from “good enough” and towards “remarkable.”

E-Town is an event designed specifically for you. And just as Chris Hadfield and The Barenaked Ladies blew away everyone’s expectations, E-Town 2014 has been designed and curated to be a life experience, right here in Edmonton.

Let’s take peak inside this year’s event:

Peter Diamandis, Founder & Chairman of X-Prize, who slapped $10 million on the table for the first private spaceflight, will chat about the biggest technology trends that are reaching their tipping points;

Estelle Metayer, an expert in competitive and strategic intelligence, is my hidden secret of E-Town 2014, as she blew me away in Montreal in May and promises to deliver insights as to how our companies need to be less competitive and more intelligent;

Shane Koyczan, Canada’s greatest slam poet, who shook the Vancouver Olympics and is excited to share his commissioned story of Edmonton with our audience;

Tom Peters, the timeless leadership guru, who will change the way we prioritize culture and innovation in the workplace and who will leave you with a redefined understanding of your potential;

Haley Wickenheiser, our 4x Olympic gold medalist and captain of our women’s national team, will share stories of dedication and sacrifice and will talk about how pride can be an incredible motivator for success;

Bob Nicholson, the new Vice-Chairman of the Oilers Entertainment Group, will share how he transformed Hockey Canada into an international sports marketing powerhouse;

Raine Maida, the two-time JUNO Award Winner, Founder and Lead Singer for Our Lady Peace has created a customized session on creativity for all attendees which will have people leaping out of their seats and keen to hear him play live with his wife Chantel Kreviazuk on stage in a private event for all participants.

This year’s E-Town will simply be magical and memorable … and of huge value to everyone that attends. Last year we were inundated with people who missed out or simply didn’t know what was happening. This year, there is no excuse. Consider this your invitation.

The eighth (8th) seat is reserved for you.

It is unfortunate that Daryl Katz had to miss out this year, as his story is truly spectacular and his vision will forever change our city. We welcome him back next year and thank the Edmonton Oiler organization for everything they have done to assist as an inescapable situation presented itself.

September comes fast, so get your tickets today. It starts 4:30pm on Thursday (Sept 11th) after work and goes all day Friday (Sept 12th). Anywhere else this is $1500-$2000 plus flights and hotels. So the value to you and your organization at $399.00 is tremendous.

The dinner table is set.
We look forward to having you there.
E-Town is one of the Top Events of the year.
And you won’t be able to stop talking about it.
Register at www.e-town.ca

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