| Community Futures
Northwest
Northwest CF Helps Float Boat Tour Business
If it's true that a rising tide floats all boats,
then the Saskatoon Princess – and soon the Meewasin Queen
– are in the right place at the right time. Shearwater Boat
Tours has been offering tours on the Saskatoon Princess along
the South Saskatchewan River as it winds through Saskatoon since
1996, a venture begun by Peter and Valerie Kingsmill and two business
partners. With Saskatoon recently named the fastest-growing city
in Canada, and increased emphasis on developing the city's River
Landing area, the timing certainly seems right.
"Whether it's being fortunate, or maybe
even lucky, it's exciting to be part of it when growing a business,"
Peter says.
The Kingsmills launched their first water tour
business in 1989 at Redberry Lake, near Hafford, offering bird
watching tours in the bird sanctuary there. (UNESCO designated
the area a Biosphere Reserve in 2000. Peter has also been involved
in ecotourism development in the area).
In 2002 Valerie and Peter bought out their business
partners and decided to build or buy a larger vessel that could
offer more options, including catering and a licensed bar. They
tracked down a boat that had once plied the Rideau Canal in Ottawa,
and after a re-fit financed by the Northwest Community Futures
Development Corporation, The Queen of Ottawa became the Saskatoon
Princess. Northwest CF later provided a smaller loan to upgrade
the business's docking system and most recently to purchase and
re-fit the Meewasin Queen, which will go into service in 2008.
"There is a strong desire to have a water
taxi service in Saskatoon, similar to those at Granville Island
in Vancouver and The Forks in Winnipeg," Peter explains.
"We've learned that many city-based water taxi services
fail; what people want is a sight-seeing experience. If part of
the experience includes landing at a different dock than where
you boarded, that can enhance the experience."
The Kingsmills have clearly done their homework
before taking this major step. Through surveys they know that
just over 40 per cent of their passengers on scheduled tours are
tourists. They participate in Tourism Saskatoon ad campaigns,
publish a brochure and manage their own website. "All of
our advertising drives people to the website and our toll-free
number," Peter states.
"I believe the biggest challenges to establishing
this – or any business – are acquiring knowledge,
gaining wisdom and building trust," he adds. "You can't
build trust until you're well along the path with the other two,
and you have to build trust in the marketplace, with staff, suppliers,
partners and with investors and/or lending institutions. This
is where Northwest CF has been of most assistance; both as a key
lender and often as a financial advisor."
During a typical operating season Shearwater
Boat Tours employs a pilot, two stewards and a part-time reservations
clerk. Valerie serves as catering manager and cook, while Peter
is the engineer and maintenance person, and fills in as pilot
when the regular operator has time off. The addition of the Meewasin
Queen in 2008 will mean a major expansion for the business, requiring
more pilots and stewards, a cook to take some of the load off
Valerie, and a second part-time reservations clerk. The Kingsmills
are confident their "typical small family business"
is ready for the challenge.
"Neither Valerie nor I would even consider
buying a lottery ticket or going to the casino in hopes of being
lucky, but we believe in our province, our city of operation and
our hometown," Peter says.
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