York Region Economic Development’s monthly e-newsletter shares highlights and news from the business community, small business supports, events, economic data, and more.
IN THIS ISSUE
COVID-19 BUSINESS SUPPORT
- Ontario Moving to Next Phase of Reopening on February 17
- Ontario COVID-19 Small Business Relief Grant Applications Now Open
- COVID-19 Business Resources & Funding Programs Overview
BUSINESS COMMUNITY & INVESTMENT NEWS HIGHLIGHTS
- High QA Brings Revolutionary QMS Into Canada With Opening of New Office
- Multimatic and Ford Performance to Develop Mustang GT3 Race Car
- Canada’s Wonderland Will Open April 30 and is Hiring 4,000 Workers
SMALL BUSINESS & ENTREPRENEURSHIP HIGHLIGHTS
- Calling All Students Interested in Entrepreneurship
- Are You A Black Foodpreneur Looking to Launch or Scale? Read This
- Want To Take Your Packaged Goods Business To The Next Level? Apply Now
YORK REGION ECONOMIC DATA
BUSINESS EVENTS & OTHER INFORMATION
COVID-19 BUSINESS SUPPORT
Ontario Moving to Next Phase of Reopening on February 17
With key public health and health system indicators continuing to improve, the Ontario government, in consultation with the Chief Medical Officer of Health, is cautiously and gradually easing public health measures sooner, with the next phase of measures being eased on February 17, 2022 at 12:01 a.m. This includes removing capacity limits in many indoor public settings, such as restaurants, cinemas, events spaces and more.
Further restrictions will be removed on March 1, 2022, including proof of vaccination requirements. READ MORE
Ontario COVID-19 Small Business Relief Grant Applications Now Open
The government is announcing the Ontario COVID-19 Small Business Relief Grant for Small Businesses that were required to close under the modified Step Two of Roadmap to Reopen. Eligible businesses that were required to close as a result of the modified Step Two of the Roadmap to Reopen will receive a grant of $10,000. READ MORE
COVID-19 Business Resources & Funding Programs Overview
To help you make sense of all the available funding programs and resources, we continue to update our COVID-19 Business Resource page. This page contains information on supports announced by the federal, provincial, and municipal governments, as well as, events, and other pertinent information to impacted businesses. You can find information on all programs such as the Canada Emergency Wage Subsidy, Canada Recovery Hiring Program, and more, over on our dedicated COVID-19 support page.
BUSINESS COMMUNITY & INVESTMENT NEWS HIGHLIGHTS
Ontario Launches Program to Support High QA Brings Revolutionary QMS Into Canada With Opening of New Office In Richmond Hill
High QA®, a provider of quality management software solutions for manufacturers announced the opening of an office in Richmond Hill, Ontario, to accommodate continued growth in Canada and leverage the area’s diverse manufacturing talent pool. READ MORE
Markham Headquartered Multimatic and Ford Performance to Develop Mustang GT3 Race Carlar facility’ in the Works for Woodbine Avenue in East Gwillimbury
The new Mustang effort, announced in advance of this weekend’s Rolex 24 at Daytona, will be a joint program between Ford Performance and long-time racing collaborator Multimatic Motorsports. It will feature both a two-car factory-backed IMSA GTD Pro works team managed by Multimatic, as well as customer Mustangs for the GTD class. READ MORE
Canada’s Wonderland in Vaughan Will Open April 30, and is Hiring 4,000 Workers
Canada’s Wonderland will open April 30 and is now in the process of hiring 4,000 workers (full-time and seasonal), the theme park announced. The park continues to work closely with provincial and regional health officials and will provide updates to its COVID-19 safety protocols closer to opening day. READ MORE
SMALL BUSINESS & ENTREPRENEURSHIP NEWS HIGHLIGHTS
Calling All Students Interested in Entrepreneurship!
Are you enrolled in a secondary or post-secondary institution as a full-time student and thinking about launching your own business? Each summer, in partnership with the Government of Ontario, the York Small Business Enterprise Centre administers its Summer Company program. The program is designed to foster and develop the entrepreneurial spirit in students between the ages of 15 to 29. If you’re interested in becoming an entrepreneur and registered to return to school full-time in September 2022, this might be the program for you! READ MORE
Want more small business news? Subscribe to the Small Business E-Newsletter
Are You A Black Foodpreneur Looking To Launch Or Scale Your Product? Read This
If you are a Black foodpreneur and you need individualized support to launch a new or scale an existing food product, then this project, funded by the Government of Canada is for you! Apply for the Start Path if you are pre-revenue and you do not yet have a prototype for your brand new product, and the Scale Path if you already have a food product in the market. READ MORE
Want To Take Your Packaged Goods Business to the Next Level? Apply Now!
Applications are now open to YSpace’s Food and Beverage 5-month accelerator program to support consumer packaged goods (CPG) entrepreneurs as they grow their in-market business. The program includes workshops, expert mentorship, industry connections and peer-to-peer support to help you perfect your investor pitch, discover new distribution channels, and more! READ MORE
Want more agri-food news? Subscribe to York Region’s Agri-Food E-Newsletter.
YORK REGION ECONOMIC DATA
Unemployment Rates (%)*
*Statistics Canada, Labour Force Characteristics, 3-month moving average, unadjusted for seasonality
CMA – Census Metropolitan Area
BUSINESS EVENTS & OTHER INFORMATION
A Selection of Upcoming Business Events:
02/17 | Vertical Farming 101: Navigating Approvals Process and Permits | OMAFRA
02/22 | Funding For Canadian Manufacturers | Mentor Works
02/23 | Business Builder Plan Session 4: Operations and Financials | RHBOT
Subscribe to our other monthly e-newsletters on these topics:
YORK REGION BUSINESS UPDATE / AGRI-FOOD / SMALL BUSINESS
York Link | York Region Economic Development
The York Link team are here to help and are committed to supporting local businesses. We are still providing business advisory and consultation services, information on business resources, support for startups, and more in a virtual capacity at this time.