The Covid-19 pandemic has a way of crushing people’s plans, but for Dumaresq Valpy it’s given him a new opportunity. Last March, as Covid-19 infections spread across Canada, Valpy happened to be in the final stages of acquiring his tourism operator licence. “My original plan was to start a tour business,” he said. “I was …
The time was right for Darlene Sibbeston to pursue a lifelong business aspiration, and the Covid-19 pandemic was no barrier. The Fort Simpson resident and village’s former mayor started the new year with big plans for her new businesses, the Nahanni Inn and Maroda Motel, which she bought on Dec. 18. The Maroda has 16 …
Jo-Ann Cooper’s business has felt the push and pull of the pandemic, but in the end many pets have come out better for it as their owners give them more love, said Cooper, who owns Borealis Kennels and Pet Specialties. Borealis’ experience of the opposing forces of Covid has virtually split the company’s functions in …
Blunt Yk is among the very few Yellowknife businesses that initially shut down in the pandemic only to reopen and thrive, and a new location and expansion of services has played a central role. The hair salon went from having no clients after it closed in March, to being at full capacity currently. “We are …
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The lack of international tourists in November might have convinced some people it would be a tough month for art sales, but seeing the receipts from Down to Earth Gallery would change their minds. “It was the best November I ever had… in 15 years,” said gallery owner Rosalind Mercredi. She attributes the strong sales …
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For most of 2020, business at Rebecca’s Flowers has come into bloom slower than usual. Yellowknifers are still buying flowers amid the Covid-19 pandemic but their purchase habits have changed. Like a barometer of the times, flower sales are a measure of the pandemic’s effects on large gatherings. “We’re not doing any funerals or any …
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The Covid-19 pandemic took away almost all of the tourist guests of Bayside Bed & Breakfast, but it also helped Yellowknifers eat cake. Bayside has only had a handful of bookings since March, some of which included people self-isolating before starting new jobs or attending funerals in the NWT. The staycation windfall that some tourism …
Strong sales numbers are good. Record sales numbers are better. Or are they? The answer is complicated for Polar Tech. “We’ve had a record-breaking year,” said project manager Mike Bryant. “We made a million dollars, I believe, in one month in snowmobile sales. And we’ve already broken that.” Of the 200 snow machines that started …
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The business fallout of the Covid-19 pandemic left Andrew Moore with no choice but to cast north, a bid that helped Yellowknife Sportfishing Adventures hook a stronger-than-expected summer. Since Moore launched the company in 2017, he has come to rely on anglers from outside the territory for half of his business, which revolves around fishing …
After a summer of no tourists, for a lodge that depends on tourists, the owners of Peterson’s Point Lake Lodge look back at the season without blinking, while they look to the future with eyes on Northern tourists. “(It was) just another challenge,” said owner Margaret Peterson, with a shrug. Margaret and her daughter Amanda …