One stop shopping for entrepreneurs at Kamloops conference

Nov 23, 2017 | 4:11 PM

KAMLOOPS — It was a day for local business people to network and make new contacts at the second annual Venture Kamloops ‘Link Up’ Business Development Conference.

Hundreds of Kamloops entrepreneurs and business people ranging from those in the tech and construction industry, to artistic design and insurance, took part in Thursday’s event at the Coast Hotel.

The event gives businesses the chance to seek advice on a variety of topics ranging from financial planning and understanding government regulation, to attracting new talent to the city.

“It’s impossible for a business owner who is trying to run a business on a day to day basis to research everything that might be out there,” said Venture Kamloops Executive Director Jim Anderson. “We had the idea, why don’t we bring as many as those resources together as we can in one day and in one place and just allow Kamloops businesses to find out what’s going on and what’s available to them.”

The conference also featured four panel discussions ranging from community support services available for businesses, to funding opportunities provided by Community Futures.

“The theme that we have this year is collaboration and the power of partnerships,” said Anderson. “All of these organizations that are presenting in panels, they don’t charge for their services, they may have some application fees for various parts of the things that they do, but generally speaking they exist to partner with business and help business succeed.”