By Mandy Vocke

Report suggests Prince George is a good place to run a business

Apr 25, 2019 | 11:05 AM

PRINCE GEORGE— The City of Prince George released its 2018 Business Insights Report of local businesses. The results suggest the city is a good place to run a business.

The report summarizes and analyzes interviews conducted by City staff with 47 local business owners from a diverse range of employment sectors and representing companies of various sizes.

“These surveys are conducted every two years and are a means to identify key indicators of the challenges and opportunities businesses are facing,” Manager of Economic Development Melissa Barcellos says. “87 per cent of businesses said that they think Prince George was a good or excellent place to do business, which is a strong endorsement for the local business climate. Eighty per cent of businesses said that they thought the business climate was better today than five years ago, and 77% said they believed the business climate would be even better five years from now, which indicates confidence in the economy and market conditions.” 

Other highlights of the report include:

• Nearly 60 per cent of companies reported they have unfilled positions
• Nearly two-thirds of companies said they were aware of trends, technologies, or other changes in their industry that will require new skills, including virtual reality, social media, artificial intelligence, robotics, and smart technologies
• More than two-thirds of companies are anticipating their sales will increase over the next year and
• One-third of businesses are planning to expand in the next three years. 

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The biggest challenge and a potential barrier to expansion identified by the report was access to qualified labour. Many companies indicated the number of unfilled positions was stable, but a significantly greater number in 2018 indicated they are having more trouble filling positions than in previous years.