Type Scale 

Accomplishments of the 2010 Commerce Centre

As of March 30, 2010

The 2010 Commerce Centre was established by the BC Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games Secretariat in 2004 to help fulfill its mandate to ensure sustainable economic opportunities are identified early and realized before, during, and after the 2010 Winter Games.

The 2010 Commerce Centre developed a series of programs to inform, educate, and connect British Columbia businesses, communities and industry sectors to build capacity, attract investment, and develop new long-term trade and economic relationships.

Presentations

  • The 2010 Commerce Centre delivered almost 500 presentations across the Province of British Columbia to Chambers of Commerce, industry associations, economic development agencies, Government agencies, Aboriginal organizations and a diverse group of other business organizations from 2005 to 2009.

Publications

  • In Partnership with RBC Financial, the 2010 Commerce Centre wrote, produced and distributed 193,500 ‘2010 Business Guides’ in two editions. The first edition was produced in 2005 and an updated version was developed in 2008.
  • The 2010 Commerce Centre newsletter was produced quarterly since 2004 for 15,910 registered recipients
  • The Game-on 2010 information posted on the 2010 Commerce Centre website assisted thousands of British Columbia businesses to plan for the potential operational impacts of the Games period.

Opportunities

  • The 2010 Commerce Centre gathered Games-related business opportunities from Government, contractors, sponsors, communities, future Games hosts, and others to provide a single reliable source of information. A total of 1,330 business opportunities were posted on the website since 2005.
  • A free subscriber-based service of the 2010 Commerce Centre sent Email Notification of these 1,330 business opportunities to 9,650 subscribers.

Major Conferences

  • In Partnership with the Four Host First Nations Society, the 2010 Commerce Centre organized the highly successful 2010 Aboriginal Business Summit in 2007. More than 500 attendees from Aboriginal organizations across Canada learned about the opportunities of the 2010 Games and networked with leaders of Olympic organizations at this two day conference.
  • The 2010 Commerce Centre organized a second highly successful 2010 Business Summit in 2008. This one day conference connected more than 500 attendees with experts in the Olympic business world and provided a rare opportunity to connect directly with 2010 buyers.

Workshops

  • The 2010 Commerce Centre created the 2010 Business Opportunities Workshop: “Get ready for 2010 Business” in 2005. This workshop was delivered across British Columbia from 2005 to 2009. In all, 252 workshops were delivered to 7,637 business people in every corner of the Province.
  • In 2007, the 2010 Commerce Centre, in partnership with the BC Ministry of Economic Development, created the Think Asia Workshop in advance of the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games to help prepare B.C. companies to take advantage of opportunities in China and, in particular, the business programs planned for the British Columbia – Canada Pavilion in Beijing. A total of 27 “Think Asia” workshops were delivered to 536 individuals from across the province.
  • In 2008 and 2009, the 2010 Commerce Centre hosted 32 “Meet the Buyer” Information Sessions to 853 delegates from 500 companies. Attendees connected directly with Games-related buyers to learn about their specific needs and promote their goods and services.
  • In 2008 and 2009, in partnership with RBC Financial, the 2010 Commerce Centre hosted 7 Panel Sessions for more than 300 attendees to help local businesses understand and plan for the impacts and opportunities of the Games.

British Columbia Business Network

  • In 2007 the 2010 Commerce Centre launched the 2010 Business Network as both the prime database where BC companies from all sectors could profile themselves as suppliers of goods and services to Olympic buying organizations and as a B2B matching program where the Province could communicate directly with BC companies to connect them with national and international opportunities including meetings with inbound delegations, regional training programs, outbound trade missions and other similar opportunities. 5,527 companies registered with the Business Network including 236 Aboriginal owned businesses and 400 Inner-City Businesses.

Olympic Games-Time Business Programs

  • At the 2006 Torino Olympic Winter Games, the 2010 Commerce Centre supported a series of business programs which took place at British Columbia’s Pavilion - BC Canada Place. In total, 80 Companies participated and met with more than 100 qualified European prospects.
  • At the 2008 Beijing Olympic Summer Games, the 2010 Commerce Centre organized a comprehensive business program that took place at the BC Canada Pavilion near Tiananmen Square. BC delegates participated in a total of 34 business programs representing a full 60 days of programming. Overall, 871 delegates from Canada met with 2,378 qualified prospects from China. Those delegates reported a total of 690 specific business connections.
  • During the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games in Vancouver, the 2010 Commerce Centre hosted 46 business to business programs at its BC Showcase at Robson Square. A total of 3,197 business people attended these programs and BC firms reported making 2,072 new business connections.

International Olympic Business Agreements

  • On February 11, 2008, Colin Hansen, Minister Responsible for the Olympics, signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Lord Digby Jones, UK Minister of State for Trade and Investment. The purpose of the MOU is to assist one another to facilitate long term economic benefits as the hosts of successive Olympic Games. This MOU resulted in an informal knowledge transfer program and four UK/BC networking events during the 2010 Games.
  • On July 17, 2009, Philip Steenkamp, President and CEO of the BC Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games Secretariat signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Peter O’Byrne, CEO of the Australian Trade Commission to facilitate business to business networking opportunities between BC and Australia during the 2010 Games. This MOU resulted in the delivery of one major event during the Games and a number of smaller networking opportunities between BC and Australia.
  • On February 23, 2010, during the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games in Vancouver, Premier Gordon Campbell signed a Protocol of Intent with Governor Alexander Tkachev of Krasnodar, the host Region of the 2014 Sochi Olympic Winter Games, to explore opportunities to work together to maximize the economic and social legacies from hosting the Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games. A networking event followed the protocol signing with BC companies having the opportunity to meet leaders of the Krasnodar government.

Testimonials

"The 2010 Commerce Centre provides excellent access to local connections and facilities that are invaluable in the Games environment. I highly recommend the 2010 Commerce Centre to organizations participating in the Vancouver 2010 Winter Games" – Stephanie Keller, Head of Protocol & Hospitality, International Paralympic Committee (IPC)

“Samsung, as a foreign-entity Sponsor with very limited networks within British Columbia, owes a great deal to the 2010 Commerce Centre for our successful investment in the 2010 Games. Thanks to the work of the 2010 Commerce Centre in providing exceptional services and opportunities to Olympic Sponsors, the Province of BC has become the role model for Host Government-Sponsor Partnerships. We sincerely hope this relationship built for the Olympic and Paralympic Games will last well beyond 2010 in many other areas.” – Jaehoon Lee, Senior Manager, Global Sports and Event Marketing, Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.

“Canada owned the podium during the 2010 Winter Olympics showing that we can compete globally. Off the podium we also excelled by using the Olympic opportunity to create new business through the BC Government’s 2010 Commerce Centre. The Centre provided more than an excellent venue to exhibit, network, and demonstrate our world-class technologies. The design and services of the 2010 Commerce Centre were well thought out as were the events organized to promote business. Well done!” - John Tak, President & CEO, Canadian Hydrogen & Fuel Cell Association

“We worked with the 2010 Commerce Centre to hold valuable networking and education events at their facilities in Robson Square. I am confident that as a direct result of the Commerce Centre’s work, retail companies were aware of the potential impact of the Games on their businesses and were better prepared.” - Mark Startup, President & CEO, Shelfspace – The Association for Retail Entrepreneurs

“It is rare to find such a dedicated and hardworking team, who always kept the bigger vision clear. The work that the 2010 Commerce Centre has done to raise awareness of the great professional, natural and technical resources that exist within the Province, is commendable. Along the way, they continued to find ways to create synergies between sponsors, and the business community at large.” – Peter Bambridge, Vice President, Client Services, Jet Set Sports

"The 2010 Commerce Centre is an invaluable resource for any organization wanting to be involved with the Vancouver 2010 Winter Games. By managing the logistics such as invitations, registration, and venue provisions for several Public Works ‘Meet the Buyer’ sessions, the 2010 Commerce Centre has established itself as an extremely valuable resource to our organization. ‘Meet the Buyer’ sessions have been instrumental in ensuring we sign a contract with the best qualifies supplier." – Bill Cooley, Manager, Public Works and Government Services

For more information on any 2010 Commerce Centre programs and services please contact us.