Small Business Week: October 15-21, 2023

Thank you local small businesses!

Every year we are proud to support and celebrate Small Business Week and there's a fantastic reason why! Small businesses are the heart and soul of our community. You create jobs, drive innovation and fuel economic growth. Behind each small business, there's a dreamer, an innovator and a hardworking team making a difference.

During this week (and always!), we recognize the incredible impact small businesses have on our lives. You are the corner coffee shop where we start our day, the boutique with unique finds, the local restaurant that feels like home and so much more!

Together, we can make a big difference in the success of small businesses in Okotoks! Happy Small Business Week!

This week, municipalities across Canada come together to celebrate small businesses in their communities. By definition, small businesses are those with 99 employees or less, which in Okotoks, equates to over 97% of our business community. This number is significant - it highlights just how integrated and important small businesses are to our community. In Okotoks, keep this in mind if you are:

• Out for a bite to eat - 1/10 business are food service industries
• Grabbing a new pair of skates for practice - 1/3 of businesses are retail
• Having your furnace serviced - 1/7 business are professional, scientific and technical service                                                      industries

The likelihood that small businesses are utilized every day is very high. In fact, there really isn’t an industry or niche that small business doesn’t exist in.

Just as important though, are the opportunities that small businesses create for local employment. Business Development Canada (BDC) estimates that 9 in 10 Canadians in the private sector work in an SME (small & mid-sized enterprise); a figure that aligns with the overall makeup of SMEs in Okotoks. So, when we refer to “small business” as the backbone of our local economy, there really is truth to that statement. To learn more, review these BDC stats.

The Town of Okotoks is proud to partner with the Okotoks and District Chamber of Commerce for Small Business Week and we're celebrating it the entire month of October! Check out several great in-person events topical to your business, including a not-to-be-missed event from local business owner David Proctor on “Adapting to Excel.” You can find more information on these events on the Chamber website by clicking the button below!

Small Busines Week events