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Cranbrook, BC (October 5, 2020) --  The City of Cranbrook, along with its partners, are excited to announce the first annual #LiveLocal #EatLocalYXC Festival kicking off Oct. 22, 2020. 

“There is no question, 2020 has forced many in our business community across the region, to innovate and manage some pretty unique situations,” said Darren Brewer, Cranbrook’s Business Development officer.

“The City, along with our colleagues within Ktunaxa and Kimberley, have been watching the trends to see how our entrepreneurs, producers and creators are going to be successful through this year and going forward,” Brewer added.

Consider some of these facts:

• Several studies have found there has been a huge spike in Canadians’ collective screen time. A September 2020 Harvard Business Review reports social media, video and content marketing are THE forms of communication for business in our “new normal.”
• According to Statistic Canada, year-over-year, e-commerce sales have more than doubled, reporting a 110.8 per cent increase since May 2019. 

The #LiveLocal #EatLocalYXC Festival capitalizes on these trends by empowering Ktunaxa, Cranbrook and Kimberley’s entrepreneurs, producers and creators with digital media education and promotion allowing them to harness the changing landscape of e-commerce.  

“Digital media education is critical for our business community in 2020,” said Janice Alpine, #LiveLocal festival partner and director of the Kootenay Aboriginal Business Development Agency (KABDA). “They need to be able to do more online that generates awareness and ultimately sales.”

Launching Thursday, Oct. 22 and running through Nov. 12, 2020, those who shop local across our three communities are invited to “tune in” to a series of Facebook LIVE events, hosted by Cranbrook, Kimberley and Ktunaxa’s business community on their Facebook pages.  The collection of Facebook lives includes virtual tours and the ability to “go behind the scenes” at some of our top regional offerings. 

The City has partnered with the Cranbrook Chamber of Commerce, Kimberley, and District Chamber of Commerce, KABDA, the City of Kimberley, Cranbrook Tourism and Community Futures East Kootenay to make this unique experience a reality.  Thanks to Columbia Basin Trust for funding a portion of the initiative.

“We’ve recruited Seekers Media to support the Festival’s production, a Western Canadian award winner in advancing local business opportunities through social and digital media,” said Brewer. He added Cranbrook Economic Development has been following the success of Seekers Media’s efforts in Alberta, which garnered them the Alberta Urban Municipalities Association award.

“With this template, we knew it would be a perfect fit for our community’s strategy in supporting our small business,” added Brewer.

Seekers Media founder Jim Barr explained the process, in which businesses are encouraged to join the free festival, where they will receive one-on-one training on the art of using their smartphone as a content generation and business development tool. “With an increased online presence, this template has shown increased sales for those participating, while encouraging more people to #LiveLocal and shop local,” Barr said. 

For more about #LiveLocal #EatLocalYXC, check out the event’s Facebook page - https://www.facebook.com/events/451960912446796/.

For those businesses interested in learning more, they are encouraged to reach out to KABDA or to the Cranbrook and Kimberley Chambers of Commerce, but do not delay as space is limited.