MOUNTAIN LIFE - Blue Mountains | Summer 2020

NAVIGATING A PANDEMIC – Bruce County Style Bruce County beckons the explorers-entrepreneurs with an infinite mindset that, given time and space to grow, can positively shape the outcome of the crisis. When the Ontario government declared a State of Emergency in March in response to COVID-19, Bruce County’s business community was presented with devastating challenges. Bruce County entrepreneurs have persevered by exploring ways of pivoting their business models, moving sales online, for example, or responding to the more immediate demands of the pandemic. For Jeff Carver, owner of the Wismer House and Three Sheets Brewing in Port Elgin, pivoting his business model meant retooling his craft beer-brewing initiative into a hand sanitizer manufacturing and distribution operation, in partnership with Bruce Power. Jeff also changed the service delivery model for the restaurant, the Wismer House, offering food delivery and take out options. The community rallied to support the local business and Jeff actually realized an increase in sales compared to pre-COVID numbers. “As entrepreneurs, we thrive on change and the unknown, and the risks associated with that,” says Jeff. “I think people would be mistaken to diminish the potential of the human spirit. We want to help one another.” Recognizing the tremendous resiliency of local entrepreneurs like Jeff, the upper-tier municipal government has stepped up to help other businesses navigate the COVID-19 pandemic, too. In May, Bruce County Council endorsed a $1.75 million investment in local businesses over the next two years. The “Support the Bruce: Business Sustainability Fund” –unveiled in collaboration with Bruce County’s Economic Task Force- includes grants and loans to stabilize the local economy, helping local communities to overcome the challenges of doing business during–and recovering from–a pandemic.