'It has been excellent feedback from everybody': Inaugural Southwest Business Summit wraps up in Saint Andrews

A first of its kind summit has come to a close in Saint Andrews, N.B., and organizers couldn’t be more thrilled with the results.

Charlane Hatt is the director of economic development with the Southwest New Brunswick Service Commission and is the Southwest Business Summit’s main organizer. When she first started planning the event she was nervous about the turnout. However, following three sold out days, she says she couldn’t be more thrilled with the results.

“It has been excellent feedback from everybody,” said Hatt. “We’ve had no negative feedback so far, so we are really looking forward to working on this.”

The Southwest Business Summit was a three day event held at the Algonquin Resort. It provided a chance for those in business to connect with one another, while at the same time learn from experts and enjoy the seaside town. The summit included workshops on building meaningful business relationships, the importance of mental health in the workplace, and the importance of 2SLGBTQI+ inclusivity.

The three-day event also included excursions that highlighted tourist attractions in the Saint Andrews area, like the Kingsbrae Garden, golf at the Algonuin, and whale watching in the Bay of Fundy.

Initially planned as an event for Southwest New Brunswick entrepreneurs, Hatt says organizers were quick to expand their invitation after noticing events like this are not common. Businesses from all three Maritime provinces were in attendance, as well as some from as far as Ottawa.

“We had workshops available for all different sectors,” says Hatt.

“It didn't matter what sector we were from and, for a small business, they wear many hats. So you could be doing human resources, it could be for marketing, you could do your own accounting, there were workshops available tailored for you for all areas of your business.”

Workshop facilitators included Elizabeth Eldridge, Pierre Battah, and Steven Foran among other business related experts. It also featured a large trade show, gala award dinner with Comedian James Mullinger, and a closing brunch with Chef Michael Smith.

Tracy Craig, the owner of a Co-operators agency in Saint Andrews, said the event exceeded her expectations.

Mainly specializing in commercial insurance, Craig says she learned lessons during the summit that she will be able to take back to her profession, including the importance of a strong workplace culture, especially when working for a national organization.

“We need to make sure that we truly are listening to our clients in our area of Charlotte County,” says Craig. “That's been really key, is kind of really truly thinking about how our agency and our business clients, what their needs are, as they may be a little bit different than maybe others.”

The importance of a strong positive workplace culture was also one of realtor Paul Logan’s key takeaways.

“I'm dealing one-on-one with folks that are making one of the biggest purchases or sales monetarily in their life, so the conversations can be delicate,” Logan notes. “But when you start your conversation with gratitude and being grateful for the opportunity, their time, those are the things that I take away most in terms of being successful.”

Logan is also the president of the Saint Andrews Chamber of Commerce. He believes it’s important for business owners and entrepreneurs to come together to discuss what works and doesn’t work in their respective industries.

He also says it’s important to be able to learn more about the different education, resources, and advocacy opportunities that can benefit local businesses.

“That's the major takeaway for me as president, to be able to put those tools into our business owners’ hands so that they can be more successful,” he says.

Saint Andrews Mayor Brad Henderson says the event was a massive success and looks forward to the summit returning next year. He also takes pride in the fact that Saint Andrews will be the home of what he calls an important conference, as opposed to being held in a larger New Brunswick city.

He even picked up a few things he hopes to implement within his town to help it grow further.

“Probably the most powerful session I went to is actually around AI (artificial intelligence) and how it can be used for marketing,” Henderson says. “I do dabble a little bit in AI but to see actually what the potential of it is, although it's a little bit scary, it also can greatly enhance productivity.”

He said there were other tools and resources he was already aware of, but didn’t understand how valuable they could be before this conference.

The summit closed with confirmation that the Southwest Business Summit will return to the Algonquin Resort next year, with organizers promising an even bigger event.

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