Page 82 - FDI Alliance International Magazine Summer 2020 Digital Interactive Issue

MRS. DUNSTER’S ■
HOW A PANDEMIC CAN RALLY COMMUNITIES

AND SMALL BUSINESSES

→ SMALL BUSINESSES kit based on nucleic acid detection of novel coronavirus. Since then, they’ve
Small businesses matter, and at well over 95 per cent of the business population, partnered with researchers investigating how wastewater monitoring could
60-70% of employment and 55% of GDP in developed economies, they be used for early detection of the virus’ presence within the community, to
matter a lot to the communities and economies that surround them. mitigate risks of pre-symptomatic and asymptomatic spread.

→ COMMUNITY Something wonderful was happening, and the community was an active
Community is no longer just a group of people living in the same town participant. Companies that could pivot were doing so to survive…they
or having something in common. Community is integrated into our were nimble, they had fire in their belly, they were resilient, and they had
families, both at home and at work. Community now has a collective no other choice! Collaboration was happening. Hope was being restored.
social conscience and empathy, taking on a role of ensuring a safe and
vibrant environment, promoting quality of life, and supporting one another. → MRS. DUNSTER’S
Community is now part of economic development with community-driven In New Brunswick, one of the first small businesses to lead the community by
processes to identify and initiate their own solutions to economic, social and example was Mrs. Dunster’s, co-owned by Blair and Rosalyn Hyslop since
environmental issues, and build healthy, economically viable communities. 1996 in Sussex, population 4,282.

For the past five or six months, most of us have spent the majority of When COVID hit, they had to continue to supply 600 stores in three
our time in our communities… we didn’t travel, we worked from home, provinces and one state, while adjusting quickly to safety measures, manage
we spent time with our families, all in our bubbles. We had time to see record-high demand, and operate with 25 percent less staff. They went
what was happening in our communities; in fact, we were only able from producing 2,500 loaves of bread per day to 25,000 by late March,
to see what was happening in our own communities. So, this is a story due to increased demand.
about a community rallying to support small business; but it’s really a story
about any community. This is not about showcasing the Province of New Within a couple of weeks, they were sharing with other essential retail
Brunswick or Atlantic Canada as the attractive business destination it is; it’s operations in their communities, including their competitors, measures they
about showcasing any community which supports small businesses, the had taken to protect staff and customers in their retail stores including hand-
foundation of our economies. washing stations for customers, floor markings for social distancing, and
plexiglass shields for cashiers.
What does all this mean to FDI? Everything! Companies looking to establish
a presence, or deciding which existing facility to expand, will be looking at Next, along with The Ginger Agency, they launched an on-line home delivery
a new decision criterion: communities who supported their small businesses service with the option of buying a produce pack for someone in need, and
in the most challenging of times. then waved the delivery fee for all first responders and healthcare workers.

→ LOVE IN THE TIME OF COVID In the same month, they once again joined forces with The Ginger Agency
As talk of a pandemic started infiltrating Canada, government quickly to create a free platform to connect laid-off food service workers with
stepped up with programs for small businesses: wage subsidies, to help suddenly short-staffed food manufacturers in Atlantic Canada so they could
keep employees on staff; government-guaranteed loans, interest-free for continue to feed our communities: hospitals and nursing homes, and supply
a year; funds to help with operational cash flow requirements; deferred grocery stores.
tax payments; and a call out to industry for COVID-response solutions,
whether therapeutics, testing, personal protective equipment, and of course They did it by being resilient, adaptable, and compassionate… they did it
a vaccine. for the community, and the community stepped up to support them in any
way they could.
Government set aside $50 million to support companies producing critically-
needed technologies, equipment, and medical products to aid in the fight But something bigger was happening… bigger companies in bigger
against COVID. LuminUltra Technologies, a small business based in New communities were collaborating with smaller companies in smaller
Brunswick, was awarded funding to support the development of a novel test communities, tiny in fact, even smaller than what we call parishes.

82. FDI ALLIANCE INTERNATIONAL