May 2021

Welcome to the new Norfolk County Business Bulletin, the monthly newsletter for Norfolk's business community! You'll receive all the latest news and updates from Norfolk's Economic Development team, delivered straight to your inbox. Let us know what you think at business@norfolkcounty.ca.

Assistance for Businesses

Shop Norfolk - Digital Marketplace
Are you a retailer that would like to sell products online, or sell more products online, including during COVID-19?  Then Norfolk County would like to hear from you.   As part of the County’s Economic Recovery Plan, we are currently working on a new digital marketplace platform (think Amazon, but specific to Norfolk businesses) to help businesses grow and diversify their sales channel.  We’ve started onboarding local retailers, but the platform is not yet live. So if you would like to be part of this exciting and innovative project, with no cost to your business, please complete the short registration form, below.

Complete registration form

Visit Norfolk - Tourism App

Does your business thrive from tourism visitation to Norfolk County? Would you like to showcase your business on a new Norfolk County tourism app called Visit Norfolk? The app will help visitors plan their trip to our community, discover things to do, and find businesses to visit. If this sounds good to you, then we would like to hear from you! We will soon begin onboarding businesses to this exciting and innovative project, so sign up today to let us know that you’re interested in learning more!

Restaurant Patios 2021

Aimed at helping the restaurant industry during the ongoing pandemic, Council has approved various enhanced measures for businesses looking to set up patios in 2021. With changes that both expedite the approval of some patios and offset municipal patio fees through the County’s Economic Recovery Plan, interested owners who would like to learn more about establishing a patio this year (pending public health approvals) are encouraged to visit the website, below.

Learn more about temporary outdoor patios

SSUP last call

Students, there is an ongoing pandemic, social distancing is required which means no face-to-face interaction, health and safety protocols are required, we could end up in a stay-at-home lock-down at any time, can you still think of a business idea in this environment. This year’s SSUP will draw on your creativity and resourcefulness. Are you up to the challenge?

Learn more about SSUP

Government Funding Opportunities

There are a number of funding opportunities available

Ontario Investing $25.5 Million in Technology to Protect Agri-Food Workers (media release)

Ontario to Introduce Paid COVID-19 Leave (media release)

Resilient Communities Fund

Norfolk County’s Community Improvement Plan (CIP) Grant Program (media release)

Ontario Tourism and Hospitality Small Business Support Grant and One-Time Recovery Program (media release)

County Updates

Business Visitation Program

Good news for businesses looking to connect with the Economic Development Department. The team is continuing the visitation program virtually. Sign up, below. Or call 519-426-5870 ext. 1264.

Unemployment rate - Q1 2021

Building permit stats

Bidding opportunities in Norfolk County

All Norfolk County bid documents are posted to the bids&tenders bidding system. This makes it easy for vendors to review, register, download, and submit bids online. To ensure receipt of email notifications generated from the system, please be sure to add noreply@bidsandrenders.ca to your safe sender list.

View bidding opportunities

Community Updates

Execulink Telecom - Virtual Career Fair

On May 12, connect with Execulink Telecom at their first Virtual Career Fair where you could meet your future colleagues and managers. They are hiring and accepting online applications. This drop-in event is 100% free to job seekers. Positions are open in Sales, Customer Care, Finance, and more, with Work-From-Home opportunities available. Be prepared with your resumes, cover letters, and join Execulink virtually!

During uncertain times, the Execulink family continues to grow as an essential service provider, connecting customers to everything that matters. Many people are reinventing themselves right now, so register for this event and learn more about working with a company that feels like family and will support your growth!

Countywide business directory

The Norfolk County Chambers of Commerce in partnership with Norfolk County and spearheaded by Simcoe Chamber is enhancing their business directory to a more robust BuyNorfolk Online directory. It's free to all Norfolk County businesses. Register today!

Regional Jobs Portal

The Workforce Planning Board of Grand Erie (WPBGE) job board is now available. This central resource has a robust search function that allows you to filter by several criteria like region, or industry. Businesses may also monitor the site to see if their job postings are being featured.

Learn more

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