Indigenous entrepreneur Gordon Shank (centre) co-founded SLC Inc. with Marcus Belac (right) and Tony Hua (left), with an aim to reduce Canadian businesses’ reliance on U.S. suppliers amid ongoing trade tensions.
While U.S. tariffs continue to put pressure on B.C. businesses, some are finding new business opportunities amid the trade tensions.
Gordon Shank, an Indigenous serial entrepreneur and survivor of the Sixties Scoop, recently launched SLC Inc. with business partners in Burnaby. The import firm aims to reduce Canadian businesses’ reliance on U.S. suppliers.
Shank grew up in a foster home as a ward of the state and was not allowed to leave B.C. until he was 18. He spent much of his adult life travelling, finding opportunities to source products from countries beyond the U.S. and China.
His multimillion-dollar consulting firm has helped Canadian businesses source highly technical materials and solutions from countries such as South Korea and Japan.
This time, he has identified an opportunity to source everyday products such as pallet wrap for Canadian companies amid trade tensions with the U.S.
“Even if the tariffs are gone next week, the cat's out of the bag. We know that trade policies now from the United States can be weaponized,” said Shank.
The majority of the pallet wrap supply in Vancouver comes from the U.S. or China, according to Shank. Although American pallet wrap is not particularly high-quality, Canadian businesses often end up paying higher prices because ownership of the material changes hands multiple times before it reaches Canada, he said.
“What we aspire to do is create high-value pallet wrap that's [high quality] and get it here in the most efficient way, so it can compete with the commodity items that are here already,” said Shank.
He said his team is working with countries that have advanced manufacturing capabilities and high democracy scores, while avoiding the U.S. and China, and eliminating middlemen.
“I don't agree with buying from a country that dominates our imports and our exports. And I absolutely don't agree with buying from countries that don't espouse our values. … It means that we're going to deal with other advanced economies,” said Shank, adding that there are many innovations around the world that have never been seen in Canada.
“If you do it in an efficient way, you can absolutely compete in terms of quality [and pricing].”
The new company has received a positive response from the market, securing about a dozen deals since its launch in March, according to Shank.
Indigenous businesses look for a bigger role
Uncertainty with Canada’s southern neighbour has prompted many domestic businesses to look for alternative suppliers or else seek opportunities to buy local, creating opportunities for B.C. Indigenous businesses, according to Matthew Foss, vice-president of research and public policy at the Canadian Council for Indigenous Business.
“This latest round of tariffs has been much broader, getting products such as honey or some of the local crafts that are produced in the cosmetics and textiles. The spectrum of businesses that has been impacted now is so much larger,” said Foss.
“So it will be an opportunity for businesses to take a closer look at who are they buying from and can they find an alternative source for those products.”
Foss said Indigenous businesses can supply a wide range of products and services across supply chains, from software designers and programmers to drone security, plastics, steel and agricultural food products.
They also have characteristics that can make them strong business partners.
“Indigenous businesses are businesses that typically have their culture ingrained within the business in some way, whether that's in traditional ways like artwork or whether it's just in the philosophy of how business is done,” he said.
“And that tends to make them more reliable and relationship-driven businesses.”
The federal government’s five per cent procurement mandate for Indigenous businesses has provided opportunities. However, Foss said there is still room for improvement in this policy. For example, there is no mechanism to track what portion of the contracted work is actually performed by an Indigenous business.
“What sometimes happens is you get an Indigenous business [that] wins a contract but then it subcontracts the work,” Foss said. “While that itself is not a problem … to consider the entire contract then as Indigenous spend—it is not fair.”
A common challenge many Indigenous businesses face with government procurement is establishing relationships, according to Foss.
“If you're not known by the bureaucracy that is responsible for administering the contracts and deciding the requirements for it, it's very hard for you then to have the purchase requirements come out in a way that is amenable to your business,” he said.
Foss said there is a need for government to engage more with Indigenous suppliers and for Indigenous businesses to take more opportunities to interact with government and participate in networking opportunities, and the same applies to private-sector businesses.
“This is a fantastic time for all Canadians to be shaping and relooking at how they interact in the commercial marketplace, and figure out how to do things that help support Canada,” he said.
“And obviously one of those things is to include Indigenous businesses within their purchasing.”
Shank said focusing on efficiency and diversifying supply chains could help B.C. businesses become more resilient as trade tensions continue.
“What they say is, when you put gold in the fire, it becomes more pure,” he said.
“We are going to go through a difficult period, but we're going to come out of it more resilient and better with a much better sense of adaptability, less reliance on the American market.”
