Boiling Point Podcast

Introducing Calvin Milbury

Great innovations and inventions sometimes come from the smallest places.  Take the Boiling Point’s home province of New Brunswick.  This small province has been the home to things such as the snow blower, and the scuba tank.  Don’t forget the other New Brunswick innovation that affects all of our daily lives, the vortex flushing toilet. 

Our guest, Calvin Milbury is the man in charge of making sure the next big New Brunswick innovation gets the launch pad it needs to succeed.  Calvin is the president and CEO of the New Brunswick Innovation Foundation.  The foundation is a non-profit organization that was initially funded by the provincial government, which offers seed money and credibility to start-up companies doing unique things. 

Originally from Fredericton, New Brunswick, Calvin studied biochemistry at the University of New Brunswick and then went on to get his masters of business administration.   His first job was with a national venture capital firm where he was responsible for arranging early stage investments in biotech that was generally based on new technologies being developed by universities across the country.  At around the same time, the New Brunswick government launched the NBIF as a catalyst to develop innovation with a $20 million seed investment.  Initially this money was to be used in two ways.  First, it was to invest into applied research and aid in research and development at the regions universities and community colleges.  Secondly, it was used to back entrepreneurial ventures, not just with grants and loans, but instead with equity investment. 

The NBIF heard about the work Calvin was doing in Montreal at the time and offered him a job as a director of business development, which he took.  By 2009, the economy had turned and due to a restricting at NBIF, Calvin became their president and CEO.  Under Calvin’s leadership, the NBIF was able to bring in an additional $60 million of financing, bringing their total financing capabilities to $120 million.  The NBIF has also added new programs including a graduate scholarship program and an innovation research chair program that brings top researchers to the province to work with industry in research and development.  An important aspect to the NBIF is that it works as a separate body from government and that politics have been removed from funding decisions, allowing everyone an opportunity to receive funding.  One of the NBIF’s greatest success stories was the social media monitoring company, Radian 6.  An investment of $376,000 by the NBIF along with other investors helped the company go from zero to 350 employees and tens of millions in sales.  Radian 6 was then sold to SalesForce.com for US $370 million, netting the NBIF $9.5 million and a 28 times return.

In this episode

Calvin tells us the great things that are happening at the NBIF, and how you could have your innovative idea taken to the next level.  Dave finds the NBIF funding process to be helpful to up start entrepreneurs to get prepared for the big bad world.  Greg reminds us of his experience with the NBIF and appreciates how they get companies “sale ready”.  Everyone discusses his own favorite New Brunswick invention.

Hemmings House's commercials for the NBIF

NBIF Snowblower / Radian 6 - English from Hemmings House on Vimeo.

NBIF - Scuba Tank / Encore Interactive - English from Hemmings House on Vimeo.

NBIF - Vortex Toilet / Prosthetics Hand - English from Hemmings House on Vimeo.

New Brunswick Innovation Foundation - Behind The Scenes from Hemmings House on Vimeo.

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Introducing Lee Odden

Lee Odden has been called a pioneer and legend of SEO.  He has blogged over 1.2 million words on his TopRank Online Marketing Blog, and is the CEO of TopRank Marketing.  Lee is also amongst an exclusive club of marketers with beards.

Our host, Greg Hemmings, met Lee at last year’s New Media Expo, which was one of Lee’s twenty-ish speaking engagements of the year.  Lee’s speaking engagements not only help to educate attendees, but also generate sales leads for his company, as well as offering numerous ways to network.  However, you don’t become a trusted source as a blogger, public speaker, or social media maverick from just thin air; Lee was in the trenches for many years.  He got involved with SEO in the late 90’s, but in 2001 he decided to take the plunge as an entrepreneur.  He decided to forgo a salary and focus in on online marketing while starting an online PR firm with a few associates.  This was just shortly after the dot com crash, and many online firms were not investing in marketing.  What Lee’s group did that was pioneering, however, was mix in the SEO and marketing into one neat package.  Now TopRank Marketing works some of the heavy hitters including:  Staples, Dell, Linked In, General, and numerous other B2B technology companies.

When it comes to creating content online, Lee finds many companies to be impatient.  He quotes a statistic that 90% of corporate blogs do five posts and then never post again.  He notes that you must survive to stand out.  Also, to stand out you need to differentiate yourself from others and be specific in your messaging.  By following through and creating interesting, useful content, you can generate more leads.  This can be exponential if you further engage your current advocates in order to make them feel a part of the team.  One way this can be done is thanking them for sharing your content.  Another way is by giving them content that is in easy to swallow sound bites.  Sound bites are superficial but effective ways to spread your message, especially in the time of Twitter.  

In this episode

Lee offers up some tidbits from his many years of experience in content creation, and public speaking.  He tells us how he developed a fantastic business with large-scale clients out of his neck of the woods in Minnesota.  Dave is engaged by Lee’s notion of being the best answer in order to be noticed.  Greg likes Lee’s business design, which has a win-win philosophy for the client, creator, and customer.

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Introducing Nancy Mathis 

Nancy Mathis is a lady who knows how to lay down the framework that allows entrepreneurs to become better and achieve more.  She is the founding executive director of the Wallace McCain Institute; a group that was formed in 2007 to see the entrepreneurs of Atlantic Canada have a better chance of success.  Nancy has a background in chemical engineering, and a designer by nature.  Prior to the Wallace McCain institute, Nancy ran a venture capital backed company, which unfortunately went into bankruptcy.  Not to be dismayed, the unfortunate circumstance allowed her to take the reigns of an organization that has benefitted numerous entrepreneurs of her region. 

The Wallace McCain Institute offers about 20 programs, serving 200 members.  It is based out of the University of New Brunswick, but is unaccredited.  Its main program is its Entrepreneurial Leadership Program, of which our hosts Greg Hemmings and Dave Veale are alumni.  This program takes in 16 rising entrepreneurs from the region that must meet once a month for two days over a yearlong period.  Not only do the entrepreneurs learn from the program, but from each other as they relate and commiserate.  The program also encourages leaders to be vulnerable and honest as everything discussed is confidential.  Entrepreneurs can often feel lonely at the top of their businesses, and such program allows them to bounce ideas off others in very similar circumstances.  The response rates show that 92% of those who take the program say their business is stronger; they feel more connected and more confident after concluding the program. 

The institute was formed after a $2 million donation from Wallace McCain.  Wallace and his bother Harris formed the McCain Foods Group back in the 1950’s and it has since grown to an $8-9 billion business.  The brothers originally worked in a single office with their desks butted up against each other.  This allowed for them to connect easily and frequently bounce ideas off each other.  This idea is the spirit of the institute, to find like-minded people to foster the best courses of action.  The institute also offers programs for those that are second in command and those who are the future leaders of multigenerational businesses.

In this episode

Nancy tells us about the Wallace McCain Institute and what it has to offer entrepreneurs.  She further explains how those who have taken the program are three times more likely to helping others in the entrepreneurial ecosystem by doing things like angel investing, sitting on boards, and mentoring.  Greg and Dave recount their experiences in the program, including how Dave was labeled a dove.  Greg recounts how his experience allowed him to become vulnerable and build trust with other leaders.  Dave is inspired by the fact that the model for the program can be taken to other communities around the world.  Also, Dave and Greg jam on "Drop it like it's Hot".

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Introducing Gene Fowler

Gene Fowler is a man who knows the ups and downs of running a creative business in an untraditional location.  He is the owner and creative director at the animation studio Loogaroo, which is a boutique animation agency focusing on commercial animations and tablet gaming.  Gene is also the creative director at the publicly traded e learning company Blue Drop.  He works both jobs out of his hometown studio in Miramichi, New Brunswick-- an area mostly known for fishing and the pulp and paper industry.

Loogaroo wasn’t Gene’s first kick at the “animation” can.  Back in 2000, he and a few fellow animators were laid off at another animation studio and decided that they would try to take the reigns of their own gig.  They formed Fat Kat Animation Studios in Halifax, Nova Scotia and made some animations and put them online.  Soon enough, they got noticed and started creating flash animated training videos.  Three years later, Fat Kat had 50 employees and was making animations for Fortune 500 companies like Nike and Boeing.  Gene ended up giving away the company to its CEO for next to nothing and the company went out of business shortly later.  Gene went back home to Miramichi and decided to try again, but this time focusing less on e learning and more on entertainment.  The idea of a successful animation studio in the middle of the woods of New Brunswick was originally scoffed at, but a few years later, Fat Kat was employing around 120 people, had $175,000 in expenses, and was billing around $10 million a year.

The success lasted until 2008, when people’s attention shifted from televisions to iPhones.  Big companies started to spend less on traditional advertising, and broadcasters stopped buying content at the same volume.  On top of this, New Brunswick changed their tax credit for film and television producers, which made it much more difficult to compete.  Fat Kat had gotten too big, too quick and the company fell into ruin within a year.  Clients got what they were owed, employees were paid but the shop was closed.  Not to be defeated by failure, Gene picked himself up, walked across town, and opened back up again under the heading Loogaroo.  The new studio is a much smaller, but tighter business.   There are fewer people and projects, but Gene is much happier. 

In this episode

Gene tells us the stories of his past success, failure, and then success again.  He explains how telling this story can be cathartic and helps him move on.  Greg relates with his own business failure, and explains how it really isn’t a fail if you try again or can take something from the experience.  Gene also tells us about his enlightening experiences in Jamaica and how it has influenced his attitude of living everyday like he is already retired.  Dave is impressed by Gene’s attitude toward the past and that he doesn’t shy away from it.  Dave also coaxes Greg to reveal a great achievement.

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Introducing Ibarionex Perello 

Ibarionex Perello is a man who lives the creative life and knows how to parlay his lifestyle into a career.  He is a photographer, writer, educator, and podcast host.  In his previous life, Ibarionex was an editor for some photography magazines including Outdoor Photographer.  During his long Los Angeles commutes, he got into the habit of listening to books on tape and eventually podcasts.  He found that most of the photography podcasts he was listening to revolved around equipment choices and ways to practice photography, but not so much about the creative process.  So, Ibarionex decided to fill the void leveraging the skills he had as both a photographer and editor.

Ibarionex started The Candid Frame in 2006 as a show with conversations with photographers and has since gone on to produce more than 250 episodes.  He has since been able to make podcasting a main component of his income and was able to retire from his editor’s job.  He did this by producing a show that he would want to listen to personally and now has a devoted audience of listeners from amateurs to pros.  The authority the podcast gave him also offered Ibarionex the opportunity to write books on photography including “Chasing the Light: Improving Your Photography Using Available Light”.

Ibarionex is a proponent of living a creative life and believes everyone should find an opportunity everyday to do something creative.   You might think to yourself that you are not a creative person, but you would be wrong; everyone can be creative.  You don’t have to be a photographer, painter, singer, etc.  It can be as simple as creating a moment, or striking up an interesting conversation with someone.  These creative moments will add more than you think to your lifestyle.

In this episode 

Ibarionex tells us about the importance of living the creative life and gives suggestions to how to start.  He fills us in on what he believes to be the best interview style.  Greg is reminded of uncomfortable interviews he has heard in the past.  Dave is encouraged by Ibarionex’s interview style of conversations, and Dave and Greg decide to go skipping arm-in-arm down the street.

Links and References

-  Ibarionex's Email

-  Ibarionex's Website

- Ibarionex's Facebook

-  Ibarionex's Twitter

-  Ibarionex's Google +

- Q Interview with Billy Bob Thornton

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Introducing Dr. Bill Howatt

Dr. Bill Howatt has a goal to improve the lives of people and to improve the productivity of their employers.  Dr. Bill works with our host, Dave Veale, as a coach at Vision Coaching Inc., along with being an author of over 60 books, a columnist with the Globe and Mail, and a number of other things with his bag of tricks.  He has done all of this and achieved a PhD, despite not being able to read or write proficiently until the age of 19.

Dr. Bill credits his success to a number of mentors that have helped him through the years.  Firstly, there was Bill’s mother.  Then there was Mrs. Stewart, his grade five teacher, who knew Bill was having difficulties and asked him what he wanted to be when he grew up.  Being a “Smart Alec”, Bill said he wanted to be a writer, and that was exactly what Mrs. Stewart made him try.  There was also Dr. Bill’s tenth grade teacher who exposed him to the legal world, which led to a fascination for Bill during graduate school.  These people didn’t need to be mentors for Bill, but they were, and so now Dr. Bill pays it forward.

Dr. Bill is now trying to find an all-inclusive equation to reducing stress and increasing wellness for employees, while aiding in productivity and quality for employers.  He is doing this through collaboration with the University of New Brunswick to teach leadership skills, and through a survey being conducted by him and the Globe and Mail called, Your Life at Work.  Stress in the workplace accounts for a $50 billion loss of productivity in Canada today and an expected $300 billion by 2040.  It is estimated that stress causes a $2 trillion loss in productivity worldwide.

In general, employers expect their employees to come to work and work at 80 – 85% of their maximum capability on a daily basis.  However, 27% of the population comes to work and puts forward 30 – 75% of their best effort.  These same employees have higher levels of stress, lower coping skills, higher health issues, lower engagement, and less job fulfillment.  Through his research, Dr. Bill hopes to develop a corporate wellness solution for employees and employers, and allow a happier and more productive work environment.

In this episode 

We learn about Dr. Bill’s survey and how it could change the way workplaces function.  Greg is inspired by Dr. Bill’s story of perseverance and his desire to give back to the community.  Dr. Bill gives us his vision statement and tells us the secret that failure in life and business is part of forward progress.

Links

Your Life at Work Survey

Dr. Bill's Website

Dr. Bill's Twitter

Dr. Bill's LinkedIn

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Introducing Cathy Sweet

Cathy Sweet has had the entrepreneurial spirit since she was a child.  She would collect and trade frogs with the kid up the street.  She came from a family business people in commercial real estate.  Cathy learned a lot of her lessons in business around the kitchen table.  Cathy started in the business in university by managing a few properties and continued to do so even while working for a few Fortune 500 companies.  Eventually, Cathy decided that she was going to focus on her entrepreneurial dreams instead of the corporate route and started Comztar Commercial Properties.

Comztar is a client centric company that finds unique industrial, commercial, and office properties for its customers.  “If you can’t find your Prince Charming, build him,” is Cathy’s motto.   Cathy specializes in creating spec buildings for companies from 4,000 to 60,000 square feet.  She is also a trailblazer for her region as a female in the commercial real estate industry dominated by men. 

Cathy’s business has her bidding on projects, and then constructing massive buildings.  This includes a three building project in 6.3 acres of Moncton, New Brunswick’s industrial Park.  Outside, she has a huge billboard that includes a large picture of her face; this is very untraditional for commercial real estate.  Taking a page out of Jake Palmer’s book, she plans to put a huge top hat and mustache on the face when it’s time for Halloween.  

Cathy says that, “people with integrity let time prove themselves.”  Cathy’s persistence and integrity were recently recognized as she won the Phenomenal Woman of the Year award in Southeast New Brunswick.  The award was based on business growth and impact to her community.

In this episode 

Cathy expels the importance of persistence.  She knows she is going to win sometimes, and lose sometimes, but she has to keep going and looking for opportunities.  Cathy also tells us the importance of having people be real with you and listening to what you NEED to hear.  We discuss the extracurricular activities people have to help focus their business life.  Greg is inspired by what Cathy has to say about integrity.  Dave notes that most times there isn’t such a thing as overnight success.

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Introducing Jake Palmer

Jake Palmer always had a creative and humorous side to him.  As a young man, he even had is own sketch variety show on community television.  When Jake grew up he went toward a career path in IT and worked in the field for a number of years.  He had been interested in a career change to real estate, but a local broker had told him not to start until he had enough cash to float himself for six months.  This would happen soon enough when Jake’s employer came to him with an “opportunity” as Jake calls it. 

“They came to me and gave me and outstanding opportunity to do anything I want, as long as it wasn’t there.”  Jake was laid off, but his six-month’s severance would give him the opportunity to change careers.  Many in this scenario might consider giving real estate a try, but Jake wasn’t just giving it a try, he wanted a new career and success.  He received his real estate license in April 2009 and hasn’t looked back since.

People expect a level of aggressiveness and professionalism when they contract a real estate professional to sell their home, and these were two things that Jake could provide.  However, Jake wanted to be able to express himself with a more natural approach.  How did he do this?  Humor.  Being funny came naturally to Jake, and meant that he could have more fun in the business.  

This came about when Jake had a listing that he had been sitting on for over a year.  There had been an accepted offer at one point, but the deal fell through.  Jake and the sellers felt the listing was getting stale and potentially stigmatized, so they tried something unique.  Jake added a banner to his for sale sign which read, “indoor plumbing”.  This went viral in the community and soon many were taking notice.  Next, Jake changed the banner to say, “not haunted” and the sign went viral again, except this time media, including the Wall Street Journal covered his marketing genius.  The average salesperson in Jake’s region sells 10 listings yearly, and now Jake sells between 50 and 60.  He realizes his approach isn’t for everyone, and some might consider him a goof, but he knows there are plenty of stuffy real estate agents for stuffy people to work with. 

In this episode

We learn from Jake’s comedic brilliance in marketing and making the public take notice.  Jake teaches us that perception is not as important as we think it is.  Greg and Dave are inspired by Jake’s notion of being yourself versus what you think you need to be to succeed.  Jake also shows us how a goofy listing can actually show how professional you really are.

Links

Jake's Website

Jake's Facebook

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Introducing Hal Somers

Hal Somers is the type of guy that takes opportunities in life when they are presented to him.  Hal went to trade school to learn brick laying as a young man and for a short time worked in mining.  However, one day a friend in the used car business called him and told him that he was perfect for the job.  So, Hal decided to take a crack at selling cars.  He asked for two-weeks vacation from the mine to try it out, and after two weeks he put in his resignation at the mine. 

Hal moved through the industry, starting with used cars, then moving to a GM dealership, and then he was offered a general manager’s position at a Toyota store.  When a Mercury dealership in town went out of business, they courted Hal to take it over.  However, there was a major problem, Hal didn’t have the cash to buy in.   Mercury was so interested in him that they set him up with a silent angel investor and soon enough Hal was a business owner.  He did this without a fancy diploma or degree, but with the right work ethic and attitude.  Hal currently owns two dealerships (Ford and Mazda) in Miramichi, New Brunswick and he also is involved with angel investing because that is how he got his own start and he believes in paying it forward in life.

The motto at Towne Ford is, “where customers become friends.”  Hal credits his success in the car retail business to this attitude.  When you walk into one of Hal’s dealerships, there is a different atmosphere then you find with many other dealerships.  Hal believes in treating people, both customers and employees, fairly and with transparency.  Treating people the way he would want to be treated builds loyalty and trust.  In fact, when Hal was shopping around new mottos for the dealership, it became pretty clear that the community wanted him to keep, “where customers become friends.”

In this episode

Greg tells us about his unfortunate experience using a backhoe.  Dave tells us how Hal is the ultimate salesman, and almost sold him a new car just after getting a car.  Hal explains why business people need to solve problems in economically depressed regions and not wait for politicians.  He tells us an anecdote about a rude customer, and another about a broken plow truck window.  Greg loves Hal’s approach to relationships with customers and Dave is inspired by Hal’s transparency and also inspired in general by the region of Miramichi. 

Links

Hal's Linkedin 

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Introducing Levi Lawrence

Levi Lawrence is a trained chef that has cooked in kitchens throughout the world.  As a chef, he knows the importance of fresh, local ingredients.  However, for the longest time if you wanted fresh, local ingredients you had to attend your weekly farmers’ market.   If you weren’t awake early on a weekend morning, you would have to buy your produce from California via your local grocery store.  Having worked in Europe, Levi knew there was a better way to offer local food.  So, he went back to school, received a business degree, borrowed $3,000 and made a website called, Real Food Connections, to connect people with their local farmers seven days a week. 

Soon enough he was building a network of food producers in New Brunswick.  Since then, Levi has expanded three times in four years.  Two years ago, he moved into his very own brick and mortar grocery store in Fredericton, New Brunswick, which also wholesales across the province, caters, and offers a vegetable box program in both Fredericton and Moncton, New Brunswick.  Levi still has bigger plans for the future.  He wants to grow his network of local food producers and make the big grocery chains buy from him.  

Grocery stores, until recently, had very little in terms of locally sourced product.  There was a good reason for this, it is more difficult to source and deal with a number of small distributers and it was far easier for them to deal with a large distributor.  This made sense from their point of view, but it also helped to kill the local food supply.  There was a generation of local producers who could only make money selling directly to consumers at farmers’ markets, online, or at their locations.  This worked okay for small farmers, but didn’t look for much growth in business.  Also, the average age for producers was 65 and the number of producers was dropping.  Young food producers or immigrants found it difficult to break into the market.  The new local food movement has changed this; people are looking to get into the market, and Levi can help. 

In this episode

We hear of Levi’s new 10-year plan.  He tells us how he isn’t involved just to save the planet; he is out to make profit.  We hear how the supply chain in Europe differs from North America.  Levi also tells us why the Atlantic Provinces are the perfect place to set up as a food producer.  Greg is inspired by Levi’s approach of conscious capitalism and Dave appreciates Levi’s ability to educate.

Links

Levi's Blog

Levi's Twitter

Real Food Connections' Twitter

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