Kelowna One of the Top Entrepreneurial Places in Canada

The Canadian Federation of Independent Business (CFIB) says that Kelowna is one of the top cities in the country to be an entrepreneur.

The eight annual Entrepreneurial Communities report was released on October 19^th and for the second year in a row; the communities around Calgary took top spot. The region including Airdrie, Rocky View, Cochrane and Chestermere scored 73.0 out of a possible 100. Kelowna and the area surrounding Edmonton was close behind among major cities.

"The west is still best, but we're seeing the beginnings of a power shift away from the traditional entrepreneurial power centres in the prairies towards BC, as the fallout from oil prices continues to hit the region. We are also seeing parts of Central Ontario becoming more and more desirable for entrepreneurs," said CFIB chief economist Ted Mallett.

Saskatoon, Guelph, Barrie, Regina, Moncton and the grouping of communities that ring the cities of Toronto and Vancouver round out the top 10 among major cities. Among mid-sized cities, BC's Penticton fares best, followed by Grande Prairie, AB, Collingwood, Ont., Okotoks, AB, and Brooks, AB.

When it comes to places where business owners are considered most upbeat, the list is spread widely across the country, but Kelowna is tied for first. While Kelowna fares well in other categories, it falls to sixth place when it comes to the amount of red tape business owners must endure.

The study covered 14 indicators placed within three specific areas; presence, perspective, and policy to assess the level of entrepreneurship in a municipality. Each of these three major concepts relies on four or five data series to arrive at a numerical score. To create consistent scales, each variable is standardized to a scale of 0 to 100. The city with the top data point is given 100, while the bottom data point is given a zero.

The worst place in the country to be entrepreneurial is Sarnia, Ont, North Bay Ont, and the City of Montreal.