Some of Manitoba’s top business people made the trek up to Flin Flon Oct. 9 to take part in one of six economic tours of the north.
The trip was organized by the Manitoba Chambers of Commerce (MCC) and gave leaders a chance to get a taste of what Flin Flon has to offer. The Flin Flon Chamber of Commerce went over how the tour went at their regular meeting on Oct. 15.
“There were a lot of individuals in that room that hadn't been to Flin Flon before,” said the Flin Flon Credit Union’s Kory Eastman, who took part in some of the events.
“After they went to Denare Beach, seeing all there was to see there, they were really impressed with the beauty of the area and what the opportunities were here. I think it was a very good experience.”
Community Futures Greenstone general manager Becky Cianflone said the tour built upon other tours of the north, pointing to a Thompson outing that turned heads.
“I think changing that perception is a huge part of why these tours are important,” she said.
“If for nothing else for the tourism benefits, because we had a number of people that said that they wanted to come back and visit the community in the summer. They asked about accommodations and asked about things to do in the summer. Even seeing benefits from that, I think, can be really impactful for our community.”
The tour met with municipal councils from Flin Flon, Creighton and Denare Beach and toured locations all around the three centres. The group also stopped in at Hudbay to hear the company’s plans for the future.
““I think it was a great success,” Cianflone said.
“We had a really good cross section of people and we had a very jam packed agenda for the two days.”
Cianflone added they’ll be looking to follow up with MCC president Chuck Davidson.
“We saw a lot of positive feedback, a lot of interest in the community and we hope to see some more connections and opportunities come out of it,” she said.
“We have asked [the chamber] to provide us with some feedback on how they felt about the tour and some of the comments that they heard.”
Meeting notes
While not many people showed up for the chamber’s monthly meeting, two important planning sessions were on the agenda. With the Chamber’s annual action taking place Oct. 19, last second preparations and scheduling took place.
The chamber also discussed the plans for the Infusion conference taking place Oct. 28. Tickets are still available, although early bird pricing has finished.
The list of businesses who will be taking home awards during the conference was also announced.
Stephanie Johnson was introduced to the chamber as the area’s representative for Look North. She’s one of six employees working in northern communities across Manitoba.
“I've been in Flin Flon for 20 years and had the most wonderful opportunity through look north to come and see and advertise and promote beautiful area that I call home,” she said.
Johnson will be working with other representatives in The Pas and Thompson to help advertise northern Manitoba.
“It's an interesting and new and exciting initiative,” she said.
“I'm really looking forward to having the opportunity to see the north and appreciate it from this side of things. There’s going to be some good things coming down the line.”
