Business Barometer Comments, December 2011

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The following comments were taken directly from the survey:

• Our business would normally have the highest gross sales in November & December. This year we are having trouble keeping people working due to a lack of orders and we have two less employees than we had last year at this time.
• Starting this business in 2002 and then purchasing the property in 2006 and expanding with the recession hitting in August 2008 and it not recovering no matter what any one says. People are not spending money unless they have to. Every household has had an increase in fuel costs, hydro costs, union gas costs and food not say the added expense of HST on services. This has impacted small business tremendously as their costs in that regard have gone up also. You have to sell a lot of product to cover your overhead costs now.
• Need to make bringing goods across boarder cheaper so we can compete with internet pricing consumers can buy at. Need to reduce taxes, fuel costs so people have money to spend. Cut gov't spending by 20%. Cut govt wages and fat. There is just too much public overhead on the who economy right now.
• Times are definitely lean. We are working very hard for every dollar we earn. But we are a new retail operation only open for 1 and 1/2 years, so this is unfortunate, but somewhat expected.
• We are an insurance broker and are seeing a huge change in the demand for auto and home owners quotes as there is an influx of advertising from bank and insurance company owned providers that are national companies. This is significantly hurting small businesses all across Canada.
• We are finding that in general business is spending less and keeping inventories to a low. Competition is very tight. Less demand causes lower prices to compete.
• 2012 looks better than 2011
• Your question about access to credit should have included "do you have access to credit that you choose not to accept". That is our case. We will not give a bank a general security agreement, and we will not accept the terms and rates from other kinds of lenders.
• The mining business in Saskatchewan is booming. We need our government to devote money to infrastructure to keep us moving. Stop spending money on unproductive slugs and encourage them to get out in the labour force. There are lots of jobs for all.
• It is becoming increasingly difficult to retain employees , I think due to the fact of our public sector employees salary packages on the whole are much better than private sector can afford but through our taxes we are left footing the bill. I began my work life in the public sector but soon moved to private because it was more challenging and about a 30 % increase in pay. Today it has reversed and in this area the difference is about 20% in favor of public employment. I am not saying they don't deserve what they are receiving but as I was told ,when I became a business owner, by a self made entrepreneur millionaire , when your public sector employees make more money than your private sector your country is in serious economic trouble. I think also government should not use taxpayers money to bail out business's who are failing. Times change and maybe those business's have run their term and it is time to look forward at new possibilities.
• pretty good!
• Hopefully in November the USA will elect a pro business leader. That economy is holding us back right now.
• Property taxes seem very high for the size of our business.
• We need access to more skilled people who don't want exorbitant wages and benefits. Large corporations like Shaw and Telus can afford to pay skilled people a premium which skews the job market. The Larger corporations get all of the tax breaks and often they hire offshore thereby not reinvesting in the community. We on the other hand don't have that luxury.
• As long as we are not having to deal with another recession, we should be fine for the year(s) to come.
• we are at a difficult stage in our growth where we could use more warehouse space/staff/etc but not quite yet and we are unsure of the future
• FCC is THE best lender; the least costly, cumbersome red tape
• Kelowna still seems to be in a significant slump. It feels like this is the new "normal" and it barely pays the bills.
• We are a public works contractor and expect the work available to our industry will be lower this year due to budget cuts.
• As a new business just starting this year we, of course, expect to improve next year.
• The amount of time and money spent to address regulatory requirements (government and para-governmental like CSST) is becoming unbearable and appears to be increasing (the latest is the requirement to get a permit from Revenue Quebec for every construction contract over $25 K with any governmental agency.
• In our region, building & construction has slowed greatly in part to the additional cost of the HST on materials and Real Estate
• We could do a lot more in this country if half the people who have jobs were actually producing something tangible we could sell instead of creating hardship for the ones who are. All govt rules and programs that don't work and that hire people who enforce rules that make us spend more time filling paper then producing. Govt program people should be paid only when the program works. You can bet it would be a lot faster. In agriculture we have suppport programs that are two years behind.
• We have a multi-line insurance brokerage so that might be different than a retail, wholesale or manufacturing type of business.
• If the government does not get control of the public sector hogs at the trough we will soon be Greece.
• Take away the Walmart model in business and everyone would be doing better, you can't keep cutting prices and expect companies to turn a profit and employ people. Walmart have created a breed of people who just want price, and they are served with more people who think that if that person has a cheap rate from XYZ company then they should match it or beat it, and none of them know the truth, and they cannot believe they lost money at the end of the year.
• We are a beer distributor and with the pending change in legislation for tolerances of alcohol levels we are more than likely to experience a decline in volumes due to fear of, and not clear understanding of the impending changes and the effect on our customers.
• This is scary times for small business and each day I wonder if I should apply for a job with the Government. Seems that there are a lot of them under Dalton Liberal government. It's a huge struggle to keep doing this.
• I have a 5 year plan since I'm hoping to retire at that time. I'm hoping for better sales in the future but time will tell. We definetly need a big boost in the economy....more secure jobs....pay less taxes.
• Given the last couple of years it is really difficult forecast the next year. Too much uncertainty in the media.
• Bad competition, unlicensed competitors, 20% increase in insurance fees. All of the above make it very difficult to improve our capability in improving our sales.
• Need less government interference and regulation
• Issues with economically depressed area, and since we are affected by First Nations issues in Caledonia, there is no business growth or growth in population in this area for the last 4 years.
• Customers are re-thinking their expenditures as a result of the unstable economy. Plus uncertainty with their current state of employment .... no job security. I have lost two months of work over this in the last quarter of 2011.
• I am not foreseeing any major change in our area unless more retail competition sets up.
• As a small business, 4 staff, I do not have the resources, human or technical to access why my business may be less busy. I expect it is because of the economic climate as well as very a aggressive marketing by others.
• Business is definitely soft, we expect this to be the case for some time to come, probably two or more years. We've been through it before.
• Oil prices must go down to remain stable.
• Pricing has dropped dramatically due to Immigrant influx in industry, They work as many hours as it takes for minimum wage and some shops pay cash so no tax or deductions Can't compete with that, there overhead is nothing
• Our business, and many around us, is suffering due cross border shopping. Our strong Canadian dollar combined with Canadian Customs officers that are too lazy to do their jobs are allowing consumers to over spend in the US. I realize there is nothing to be done about our dollar, but if Canada Customs would do their part, more taxes and duties would be collected at the border and it would also deter consumers from spending in the US thus keeping our Canadian dollar at home.
• Faced with tighter pricing we would see lower retentions even if we are able to maintain volumes. Consistent effort to compensate margin erosion with a volumetric increment is the mantra.
• Have not expanded past current level by choice.
• Our business outlook is poor to grim. I had to lay off 6 skilled employees makes me sick that I'm unable to keep them employed. Applied for work share and was refused . They only looked at our present sales and was not interested in knowing what the next several months would bring.
• In my business which is fitness we need the government to move fast on the adult tax credit for gym memberships.
• Very nervous about the next 12 months
• In our particular business the opportunity is always there for us. Other people are not as fortunate as we are and poach in our area when the demand for their services in their traditional area becomes less. We find that this tends to drive prices down. We also find that even though the cost of borrowing is cheap, its still harder to collect money from people.
• We are a franchisee so high agent and royalty fees.
• dealing with insurance company presents many problems and difficulties -
• 2011 business was down by 14% and costs were up by 13%. The increases mainly came due to HST and gas prices. being a service industry we can't control a lot of our costs.
• Credit card rates are what's hurting me, the interest each month costs me $200.00 out of my profits and that does not include all the fees
• Sinking margins do not make for great profits
• Our biggest concern is the government's plan to roll out full day junior and senior kindergarten. This will impact child care centres in a huge way.
• Dec. and Jan. are quiet for self storage operations
• Too many other firms entering the marketplace selling the same products especially big stores
• Like many businesses we cd use some government help to improve our infrastructure: new equipment is badly needed, as well as increased warehouse space. Most grants are for high tech only, wch is prejudicial.
• Stay the course of responsible conservative management of the country.
• The Gvt is not helping out enough the SME.
• We have been very pleased with our Account and manager at Scotiabank. They are very personable, accommodating and go beyond the call of duty to help us when needed.
• It would seem we are missing that 30-50 demographic that spend money and need everything.
• Our biggest challenges are (1) cash flow and (2) difficulties in upgrading our website to meet increased online competitors
• Minimal financing is required. Higher than normal receivables are the only reason we require financing>
• I find the constant battering by our government's decisions and policies to be detrimental and very wearing. The HST nearly shut down our business with an instant 50% decrease in sales and increase in costs (13% charged, 5% in GST recouped), not to mention the increased costs to simply collect and process the tax. It is idiotic to think that such a huge increase in consumer tax burden does not affect their spending. The response to this concern raised to the rep at Economic & Dev't Canada was that I should, quote "move the business to China" The HST was followed up with the Canada Post strike. This strike cost us a $250,000 contract as we were unable to cost effectively ship product, resulting in immediate lost sales and frustration with our US supplier (they have many options to ship economically where as we have one government run monopoly). The immediate losses due to the strike were over $30,000. Canada Posts operating inefficiencies and costs continue to be a constant struggle.
• Our biggest challenge upcoming is the shortage of labour. The TFW is not working and takes to long to process applications and issue work permits. The embassys are also taking 3-4 months to process an application. This must change and change fast if we are to capitalize on future opportunites upcoming. Otherwise other countries will benefit and canada will be left behind with much lower production capabilities. We have 8 million in truck assets with 20% of our fleet being operated by mangement due to the current TFW programs inability to meet demand creating issues for our long term growth as future sales and management are not being completed because managers are driving trucks. By the time we apply for an LMO and the TFW approves the application through to the embassy and the permit is approved the LMO has expired. What a waste of time!!
• Toughest Christmas season since we opened 13 years ago. Hoping it will pick up!
• Hydro is my pet peeve. Time of use hurts business, costs keep increasing and there isn't a competitor I can look to for comparison. There is no accountability there. Merchant rates, bank charges etc. are out of control but we are at their mercy. Frustrating.
• Things are looking good for the forseeable future.
• We are a border town and retail is hurting due to people travelling across the border
• The governments have to realize that small business is the backbone of this country and stop adding taxes and user fees at every turn of the road.A good example is the Hfx.Water Commissiopn's reasoning that because people are conserving their water usage the rates must go up.Have they not heard of cutting expenses?
• I am self employed. Many of the options do not apply to my business.
• Low interest rates continue to encourage us to increase inventory (when we can get it)
• The media needs to not promote doom and gloom or make it look like were going the way of Greece or Italy. i don't see the problems happening here.
• Skilled labour is a big problem.. We should be investing more into apprentices and grooming them at high school level to enter the trades.
• We have had a great year, sales are up at least 20%.My greatest concern is governments (local, provincial and federal) thinking that they can increase taxes to get more money. Small business can't handle any more increases in taxes.
• Increased competition and flat pricing to have a negative effect.
• due to the crisis in europe our grain prices are likely to go down, and therefore our profit will be less
• We are trying to expand our real plant to maintain growth, but have run into delays with building permits. I want to hire employees, but have no space for additional work stations. I have the work. I have paid fees in excess of $3,000.00 so far to three levels of government & government sponsored bodies. I could have hired one full time employee with those funds this month. A family is missing christmas this year because of government inefficiency and waste. They just don't get it and need a reality shake.
• I feel the National and Municipal outlooks are more positive than the Provincial outlook - An NDP government certainly does not help encourage investment and growth.
• Overall things are fine.
• put the foreign worker permits back to 2 year terms. maybe make it a 5 year term and with the stipulation the employee MUST stay with the employer due to all the stress of recruiting them in the first place.
• The turn around is yet to happen struggling with cash flow...The tough times are dragging on.
• We have concerns for 2012 with the greatest being a recession brought on by world financial failures.
• HST is killing us! The 8 percent increase was greater than our profit margin. We can't compete with the underground economy.
• Traffic has been less the entire year. We depend on tourist and cottagers in our area, however fewer people are travelling to our area and fewer people are shopping. During our peak months of July, August, September and October, we have reduced our staff in one store from 4 to 1.5, and our other store from 6 to 4.
• Business is good, next year even better. Why the negative spin?
• things look decent for 2012, but it can all change very quickly
• More people are buying on line.People are losing jobs.Many are buying used,and some are opting to buy nothing at all due to economic down turn. People are fearful of spending.The list goes on.
• Our company is struggling due to the court protection awarded to ... our company supplied services for... Only in Canada you say, if they tried this in the US someone would go to jail.
• The strength of the canadian dollar is my biggest challenge, as I export the majority of my product.
• Minimum wage increase was/is inflationary to wage cost. Sales decreasing but need same number of employees to operate or would layoff
• The biggest issue is the media hyping how bad things might get. The next thing is the unfair playing field that internet firms have with tax and the lack of regulation.
• The world economy is very poor and this reflects on what people spend.
• 2011 was a tough year
• We have already felt a definite "pinch" to our business and are very concerned about the future of our economy.
• none
• US $ Exhange and farm commodity prices dictate the success of our business.
• We are a seasonal business - hospitality/tourism establishment in Ontario...and this is our off season... so survey is difficult to complete. HOWEVER 2011 summer season was toughest in years (we have been in business 74 years) - largely due to reduced domestic (Ontario) customers largely due to negative impact of tax increase on tourism due to HST (some guests saw an 8% increase - all saw at least a 3% increase) However - we will be in business long after Dalton McGuinty is nothing but a bad memmory!
• My business has to move, which is the reason for the expenses, expenditures and Loan and banking needs, but the present state of my business is flat compared to last year. It is a consignment business and more goods are coming in than going out at this time.
• shortage of workers, most workers who have the skills and are collecting benefits, simply will not work, they tend to go through the process to stay on benefits. Tax how much more tax can I pay the HST has not help my business at all. The extra cost has placed some people in the position they can not afford the program. People and companies are telling they have no extra funds available due to today's economy, the feeling for most is not knowing what tomorrow will bring. Can we stay in business, can well pay our bills, part time, poor paying jobs that our government has creativied. You should ask what employers are paying today how many hours do employees work on an average. Maybe that's why we all are in debit. On the CBC new they said the poor are poorer and the the rich are much richer. That's the way our Government want it, that why we recession.
• Our growth will depend on the growth of our clients in the manufacturing sector as we are a service provider.
• I would like to see a simpler tax system for small employers. A FLAT TAX WHERE I would not need to have an accountant overlook the books that I pay a bookeeper to tend all year long. Also an easier source deduction system that allows me to send deductions to the Receiver General with all the rules and hoopla involved. It appears that the gov't wants to control small business because they can't do anything to control big business. I would like to see a strong affiliation of small business that can put pressure on gov'tthe same way big business gets the perks they do. I would want that possibly your organization could possibly do some good for us small business people that employ a greater amount of people than does big business. Hope you can make a difference but I doubt it!!!!!!
• Feeling optimistic for 2012
• The holiday season is off to a slow start , we will see Jan 1st what 2011 was like but things have been up until Dec 7
• Business is very bad for this time of the year and we are heading into our slow season
• In our line of work there seems to be no margins able to have when pricing jobs must price at cost or lower to land projects
• Still not sure about the economy, and interest rates to go up.
• We anticipate slow but steady growth over the next year.
• We in the private sector, are taking all the competitive heat from around the world. The public sector has to scale back too. Cops making close to $ 100,000 ....... come on! There is no hardship in the public sector per say. I haven't given my guys a raise in 10 years . I can't afford it
• small business seems to create jobs ,maybe ask to have the tax credit reinstated to at least 5000.00 for homeowners , maybe$ 15000.00 for small business improvements, &$50,000.00 for larger small business ie. 20-50 employees. this is a made in caanda solution &maybe takes some of the sting out of the global economic problems that could affect us, therefore help ourselves within our own borders this could be why we did better than other countries the last time or at least helped . maybe there could be a fed\prov split on these incentives
• We have seasonal help and the new Minimum Wage changes are very hard on small business that are seasonal
• I employ Heavy-duty / Transport mechanics. The lure of the Alberta oil patch has taken three people from here over the past three years. Who can blame them though? Houses are 1/2 the price, wages are 10-20 dollars an hour more, and they DON'T have a Provincial sales tax! The month of November had us dealing with a PST auditor, she said we owed 38K! I said NO WAY! after a couple of weeks the auditor apologized and said she'd made a mistake, we only owed 7.7K , and no I did not receive any stress related compensation from the Province. How many businesses don't question auditors, and just pay? I am sick to my stomach. Do we even owe the 7.7K ?
• World demand for our product is down and prices have fallen by about 25%---so we now have sell more units to keep up with the price drop---- that is almost impossible and therefore we are trimming overhead where ever we can!
• Landscaper...we as an industry cannot buffer for high fuel costs. Contracts mailed and signed in Spring. Fuel costs up 22% from 2010 with a 10% increase in consumption because of bad weather in 2011 and sales were down 20%. Net result I personally took a hit on my salary for $25,000 from fuel alone. My income in 2011 was only 60% of 2010. I will try to reduce staff by one man for 2012. Yellow page ad is removed. All projects outside our work zone will be subject to huge increases. Too many reductions to list. I expect fuel to be $1.40 liter in 2012. Sadly in landscaping everyone who loses a job becomes one. We are disrupted by off-duty firemen, policemen, teachers, city workers. All paid well with pensions. They mess up all the trades with incompetence and cheap cash discounts to do work. CRA will not investigate them. I have reported many of them. CRA would rather levy me with fines. Thanks to all at CFIB. Keep up the great work!
• Desperately need help (employees) Tried 15 in Past 5 years - ALL UNEMPLOYABLE !! No Work Ethic/ Unreasonable Expectations/ No Responsibility
• We provide employment opportunities for many new Canadians. This part of the workforce is very motivated to achieve. However many are very well educated and as soon as they become more settled in the city, they seek out opportunities in their chosen field - engineering, vet med, IT etc. It seems like many of us in Canada are not as motivated to work and we as a society need to do better. There are plenty of jobs in the New West but we need workers. Thank you for the opportunity to be heard.
• In BC I really think if the govt. continues to drag their feet on reinstating the gst pst it will hurt the const. industry.
• Need to allow more skilled foreign workers in to fill the jobs or at least try to get more people moving from other parts of Canada to fill the positions. Possibly give financial incentives through taxes etc to get people to move.
• Economy, foreign exchange, cost of doing business are making things very difficult. Need government and financial institutions working with small business to get thru these hard economic times via tax breaks and cut in borrowing rates and service charges
• High expenses is making it difficult to make ends meet, especially when there is a shortage of work available.
• We need a change in provincial government, I say again
• We plan to cut employees immediately starting today as retail sales are down dramatically and our labor costs are killing us. One major reason is on-line shopping and cross border shopping. We plan to eliminate at least 5 employees by January and this has never been done in our company for at least 10 years.
• Without a change in Provincial gov. spending i expect our credit rating to continue spiralling downward and Ontario will continue to be a have not province. We need to address the provincial debt and quit subsidizing the green energy program and get back to the basics of staying out of small business way so we can generate new jobs.
• KEEP BRINGING UP THE $1.40 EMPLOYER RATE TO THE $1.00 EMPLOYEE RATE FOR E.I. THIS WAS SUPPOSED TO BE REDUCED 5 TO 10 YEARS AGO BUT WAS NEVER ACCOMPLISHED.
• We are seasonal so some of these questions are not pertinent.
• We are looking to hire additional staff, both full and part time in the coming months.
• As long as the Canadian population continues to send its money overseas through foreign businesses on Canadian soil, our economy will continue to flounder. The shortsightedness of political policymakers, the Canadian business community, and consumers are steering the wealth of Canada into other country's (America's) pockets. This shift of wealth does nothing to aid Canada in providing health care, building infrastructure or feeding the poor.
• As we are in the property/asset management business some of the questions do not exactly apply.
• We simply cannot work any harder. Government must stop cutting services to the public, to the small business. We are the backbone of this country, and Governments allow big box stores from USA take over our small enterpreneur. Enough. enough
• We export 90% of what we make and are at the mercy of unfavourable exchange rates, our business would be in a far better position if the C$ was below par by at least 10%. To combat this we have to be more efficient which includes updating to the latest machinery and computers/software, to do this we would like to see more government help in low interest loans or grants to help make us more competitive.
• I need work that pays more everybody wants a deal.
• Taxes need to be lowered
• The continued local economic bubble of northern Alberta makes affordable staffing difficult. It is very difficult to compete with the wages offered by the oil and gas sector or the benefit and pension packages provided by government agencies.
• NS Power will the one force that could cause my business a great hardship!!!! They forced an on-demand meter onto a hair salon!!! It doubled my power costs in the first month alone! Please stop them from destroying small businesses!
• My biggest hurdle is government red tape, and the monetary penalties that accompany those changes. I am sure that if our organization had as much clout as government employee unions THEY WOULD NOT ALLOW penalties to be assessed by the government for normal mistakes in carrying out duties as agents of the crown ( unpaid at that). When have you ever heard of a government employee being assessed a penalty for an honest mistake.
• The negative press reports will cause the most decrease in business for all of us, when consumers stop spending, they will be right as we'll have another downturn.
• My company consists of partners which are paid via profit share and contractors/contract employees which are paid on an as needed basis.
• The Governments needs to stop coming up with make work projects like the handicap awareness, and Violence in the workplace acts. There are sufficient forces to make sure look after these issues without having burdensome red tape and government enforcement.
• For this year we were lucky our business increased. But it is due to other company closures in our area due to the government new rules and regulations.
• I am a self employed plumber who is finding it hard to grow the business. They say it takes money to make money, but it is hard to find someone to loan you the money when you have only been in business for just less than one year. As for government grants what a joke. They have all kinds for everyone but
• Very cautious to spend and upgrade due to uncertain financial climate. Big Box stores having greater impact every year.
• OPERATING A MANUFACTURING BUSINESS IN A MUNICIPALITY WHERE THERE ARE VERY FEW OTHER MANUFACTURING FACILITIES.
• The BestBuy buyers group in the US continues to erode the distribution channel of IT products in Canada. If all the global arms of IT manufacturers continues to liquidate new but older generation products through this group, including Staples, Future Shop, Walmart & Costco, all store fronts reselling the Canadian arms of the same manufacturers through the Canadian distribution channel will disappear.
• After 24 years of self employment, seeing the ups and downs and being successful enough to always pay the bills maybe it is time to move on and let someone else take over. Even though we may not be increasing the business, someone with a fresh outlook may be able to take it to a new level. A lot of changes in the economy, technology and product knowledge tend to wear a business person out.
• We need the U.S. dollar to strengthen against the Canadian dollar as our exports are costing us too much money.