Business owners in the Sea to Sky region face several unique obstacles. The ascent to peak profit isn’t always smooth, and some of these difficulties could disrupt your immediate and long-term goals.
Whether you’re self-employed or own a business with numerous employees, you don't have to forge your financial future alone. Fortunately, business advisors like Lauren Robinson from BlueShore Financial can provide personalized, tailored advice to help prevent you from falling between a rock and a hard place.
With access to a full suite of financial products and services, Robinson collaborates with advisory teams to help identify potential threats to your business operations, capital and earnings, among others, to better prepare you to mitigate risk and set you on your way to the summit of success.
Fostering financial connections in the Sea to Sky community
As an experienced advisor, Robinson is adept at working with the diverse businesses in the Whistler, Pemberton and Squamish areas and understands the commitment and tight-knit community shared across the local business and commercial environment.
"We apply a holistic approach and work together with a team of experts, including an investment advisor and financial advisor to put a full plan together to support your needs," she explains. "It's common to chat together in the same appointment, to reach our client's overall financial goal."
"We also have insurance and wealth advisors, too. You get the full spectrum at BlueShore and once our clients experience that, it's very valuable to them."
BlueShore Financial business advisors are well-connected to the local community and have access to knowledge about support programs, grants, professionals to partner with and other tools that could benefit small businesses.
"Our contacts are very broad and also include connections to many different resources in Vancouver as well, such as Small Business BC, Business Development of Canada, the BDC and Women Entrepreneurs Canada," Robinson explains.
3 areas small businesses can manage risk
Through her experience working with small businesses in the Sea to Sky region, Robinson has seen a few common themes arise that local business owners can immediately address:
Staffing
Offering a strong benefits plan is attractive to employees, says Robinson, both during the hiring process and to promote employee retention.
"Because we live in an active and very sports-minded resort area, offering a strong benefits plan that includes physio, registered massage therapy and preventative maintenance is key,” she describes.
“People move to this area for the mountains and outdoor lifestyle. Culture is important, so make your business stand out to employees: organize inventive social events, offer a rewards program and show employees value."
Housing
Another tip from Robinson suggests business owners be creative and look at purchasing rental property under a holding company. Subsidizing staff rentals for core staff can minimize turnover, she explains.
"In doing so, you gain an investment asset for the business, which is extremely valuable, and can open up opportunities later down the road," Robinson explains. "We can meet with business owners and support them to explore this process; it's something we look at on a regular basis."
Succession planning
Finally, Robinson proposes small business owners be prepared with a strategic plan five years in advance to address both unexpected health issues and future retirement. This foresight is crucial to consider and helps ensure they have a say in how the business moves forward.
"We offer insurance to protect the business and yourself,” she describes. “If possible, identify and develop internal staff to purchase the business and prepare for a smooth change of ownership. What we offer at BlueShore is proactive advice. It just provides a lot of peace of mind."
For more information about how BlueShore Financial can help set your small business up for success, visit blueshorefinancial.com.
