OCRI's Entrepreneurship Centre Releases Annual Trends Report

October 23, 2009 (Ottawa, ON) - The most recent summary of small business trends in the Ottawa region was released today. The annual survey of clients illustrates that activity at OCRI's Entrepreneurship Centre has dramatically increased over the same time last year and that the percentage of clients who have been in business for two years or more is also up indicating a trend toward long term success.

"The annual survey provides us with a very clear picture of the types of businesses and people that we serve on a daily basis at the Entrepreneurship Centre. This information is very valuable as it enables us to stay in synch with the entrepreneurial community and fine tune our services to meet a very specific set of needs," explains Stephen Daze, Executive Director, Entrepreneurship and Innovation, OCRI. "Although the percentage of people who have followed through with starting their own business has decreased, the overall demand for our services has continued to escalate as people considered their options during a year of challenging economic times."

OCRI's Entrepreneurship Centre, located at Ottawa City Hall, provides services to local entrepreneurs in order to help them make educated decisions about starting and growing their own businesses. The Centre aims to promote Ottawa's economy through the development of products and services that encourage entrepreneurship and support business growth. The Centre is a one-stop source of business information and planning services including: satellite kiosks in Barrhaven, Kanata and Orleans; walk-in resource centre; business consultations; mentorship; free and fee-based seminars; and youth entrepreneurship programs.

Overall, activity at the Centre increased by approximately 80 per cent with 12,815 client contacts and close to 5,000 email and phone inquiries. Throughout the course of the year, 104 seminars and 903 business and professional consultations were held serving 1,200 individuals. Other notable findings from the report include: the creation of 2,996 net new jobs; total sales by EC clients reported at an estimated $247 million; and capital investment has increased to more than $166 million. The diversity of our business community is well represented across 14 unique industry sectors including: accommodation and food services; retail; and professional scientific or technical services representing 20 per cent, 13 per cent and 15 per cent respectively.

The complete report can be accessed online and is also available in hard copy from the OCRI Entrepreneurship Centre.

About OCRI:

Leading the way for Ottawa, OCRI is the city's economic development agency. OCRI is the rallying point to bring business, education, research and talent together to create the winning economic conditions that allow Ottawa's knowledge-based companies to thrive locally and compete globally. At OCRI we promote sustainable economic development to maintain our high quality of life. For more information on OCRI visit our website at www.ocri.ca and for more information on the Ottawa Region please visit www.ottawaregion.com.

For more information please contact:

Kim Cunningham
Manager, External Communications
OCRI
Business: (613) 828 6274 ext.256
Cell: (613) 851 0768
Email: kcunningham@ocri.ca