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Province doubles funding limit for small exporters

Jun 15, 2017 | 5:51 PM

 

MEDICINE HAT, AB — The province is looking to help more Alberta companies get their products to international markets.

Earlier this week it was announced they’re doubling how much money small exporters can get for developing business plans or market assessments in other countries.

Instead of being capped at $5,000 export companies with fewer than 100 employees are now able to receive $10,000.

“A lot of the companies were saying $5,000 isn’t quite enough for us to get an adequate market assessment, or a business plan in place, that is really going to help them set them up for success,” said Alberta Economic Development and Trade minister Deron Bilous over the phone Thursday.

The minister says six companies in Medicine Hat and the surrounding area have received funding from the Alberta Export Expansion Package that was set up in 2016.

He adds a total of 99 companies in Alberta have received the Export Readiness Micro-Voucher Program grants that have now doubled, allowing those businesses to go to 33 countries.

“$10,000 to a small business or startup company is a huge amount of money,” says Bilous. “What we’ve heard from businesses is this is the difference between them exploring new markets and then going into new markets.”

For the Medicine Hat & District Chamber of Commerce the announcement earlier this week was a welcome one.

“That could be a jump start that some businesses are looking at to get their foot in the door,” he said at the chamber’s office. “The government actually doing that, I think, is a great thing for businesses looking at exports.”

And it turns out there are a lot of such businesses in Medicine Hat and the surrounding area.

“When you look around us and you look at some of the businesses in Medicine Hat that are exporters…up in our industrial area you look at Cancarb and Methanex and Canadian Fertilizers, you have other companies like Weddingstar,” says Fleming.

And that barely scratches the surface when it comes to the number of exporters here notes the chamber of commerce president.

“Those are a few of the names that I can think off the top of my head that are exporters that are set up here in our community and have jobs, and people that are employed, and people that are contributing to Medicine Hat’s economy,” Fleming said. “They’re (exporters) absolutely huge to our local economy.”