YES Program Honours Young Bosses

Four young Nova Scotians who do more than just talk about being their own boss were recognized today for their entrepreneurial successes.

The four -- owners of a custom woodworking shop, a snack stand, a landscaping company and a rickshaw service -- were selected as regional winners for their achievements in operating student-run businesses started or expanded under Nova Scotia Economic Development's Youth Entrepreneurial Skills (YES) program. They are:

Southwestern Region

• Matthew Holleman, 18, of Grafton parlayed his carpentry skills and a YES loan into a custom woodworking business to produce screen doors, tables, stools, jewelry boxes, cradles, toy boxes and other custom-ordered items. Holleman, who singlehandedly built a room-size log cabin when he was 13 years old, currently studies architectural technology at Charlottetown's Holland College.

Northeastern Region

• Chris MacIsaac, 17, of Isaacs Harbour opened his ice cream and candy stand for a fourth summer last year. He has been one of the many enterprises in Guysborough County to take advantage of the economic boost from the emerging offshore industry. Even Sable gas workers must indulge in cold ice cream on a hot day, he had reasoned. This is the second year in a row that MacIsaac has won the award.

Cape Breton

• Michael McMullen, 23, of Dutch Brook has shifted the focus of his business toward landscaping and away from lawn maintenance. He's operated the summer business for several years with the help of YES business counselling and interest-free loans, and figures the change is necessary if his company is to grow. McMullen, named YES Entrepreneur of the Year in 1997, is currently studying landscaping technology at Kentville's Kingstec Campus, Nova Scotia Community College.

Halifax Regional Municipality

• Jake MacKinnon, 22, of Halifax expanded his Roadrunner Rickshaw Services with the help of a YES loan and saw business boom as a record number of cruise ships visited the capital during the summer. He's now thinking of adding two rickshaws to rent out next season, expanding his fleet to 10 vehicles. MacKinnon is currently studying for his bachelor of commerce degree at Saint Mary's University.

The winners are selected on the basis of entrepreneurial qualities, loan repayment, and reviews by consultants and regional development officers.

"Today's award winners, and other young entrepreneurial thinkers like them, play a vital role in the developing this province's economy," said Economic Development Minister Gordon Balser, who presented the awards at a luncheon in Halifax. "Their drive, their willingness to take a chance and shape their own future, is what will create jobs and opportunities for Nova Scotians."

The YES program provides business counselling and training to full-time students who are looking to set up and run their own enterprise. The program also offers interest-free loans through a partnership with the Royal Bank.

Last year, 53 students took part in the program and $125,000 in loans were approved. Since YES began in 1984, more than 1,400 students have benefited from the program, and more than $3.3 million in loans have been administered. A 1996 survey indicated one-third of YES participants to that date subsequently started their own full-time businesses.

PROFILES OF REGIONAL AWARD WINNERS

Southwestern Region: Matthew Holleman, Grafton

The belaboured products of shop class are rarely the foundation of thriving businesses. Not so the wooden creations of Matthew Holleman.

In Grade 9, he built a wooden screen door for his mother. A teacher saw it, liked it, and ordered one for herself. Four years later, Holleman has a thriving summer custom woodworking business in the family's back shed. And he now crafts not only screen doors, but tables, stools, jewelry boxes, cradles, toy boxes and other custom items. A YES loan helped out with supplies, and orders kept him busy from 13 to 15 hours a day last summer.

"All of my advertising has been done through word of mouth," says Holleman, now 18 and a graduate of Central Kings Rural High School. "A lot of the words have come from family members, but I've also had a lot of my customers pass the word on about my work."

It's work that won him a gold award in Nova Scotia Skills Competition in Carpentry, and earned him the honour of representing the province at a national competition in Toronto last June. It's also quality and skill that have translated to orders already on the books for this summer and two job offers from master carpenters.

Holleman, who singlehandedly built a room-size log cabin when he was 13 years old, currently studies architectural technology at Charlottetown's Holland College on several scholarships. His goal is to specialize in framework carpentry and design.

Northeastern Region: Christopher MacIsaac, Isaacs Harbour

Even Sable gas workers must indulge in cold ice cream on a hot day. Or so Chris MacIsaac reasoned when he set up Chris' Little Stop for its fourth summer of operations last year.

MacIsaac, now 17, opened the business in front of his home after Isaacs Harbour's general store closed in 1996 and he found himself searching for a place to buy a cold sweet treat. But he didn't stop at just ice cream; over the years, pop, chips and chocolate bars have appeared on his menu.

This is the second year in a row MacIsaac has won the YES award for the northeastern region. The Grade 11 student at Sherbrooke's St. Mary's Academy says one of the program's strengths is that it goes into schools to link with potential participants -- an important element in rural areas where business programs and development centres can be difficult to get to.

MacIsaac enjoys the challenge of running his own business and keeps his eyes out for training courses. He sums up his long-term goal with a familiar entrepreneur's declaration: "I'd rather work for myself."

As for those Sable workers, let's just say MacIsaac is one of the thousands of Nova Scotians taking advantage of the economic boost resulting from the offshore.

Cape Breton: Michael McMullen, Dutch Brook

Mike McMullen is no longer satisfied with merely puttering around the yard. He's now out to design and build them.

The 23-year-old has run his lawn-care business every summer for several years now. But knowing that businesses rarely grow by standing still, McMullen has shifted focus from yard maintenance to landscaping.

He's taken a break from business degree courses at the University College of Cape Breton to study landscaping technology this year at Kentville's Kingstec Campus of the Nova Scotia Community College. Water gardens, retaining walls and paved walkways are now part of the stock in trade of McMullen's Landscaping. The company employed as many as six people last summer.

"What I like most about landscaping is the pride you have when you look at a job when it's all done," he says. Dirt and gravel are transformed into eye-pleasing lawns and gardens for property owners returning home at the end of the day. "It's a pretty good feeling when you can see the changes."

Quality and hard work are keys to his success, says McMullen, who was named YES Entrepreneur of the Year in 1997. He's also quick to give credit to the YES program: loans have helped him at the start of each season, and the always available advice and guidance have proved valuable to his business's success.

Halifax Regional Municipality: Jake MacKinnon, Halifax

Forget beach lifeguarding. Jake MacKinnon will tell you the ultimate summer job is rickshaw-running along Halifax's waterfront.

"There are so many things to love about it: you're always out, you're meeting lots of people, you're always with your friends," says the owner of Roadrunner Rickshaw Services. "Even when there aren't customers, you're laughing and joking. It's a great summer job."

So it's with just a little regret that after several summers of rickshaw-running, he had decided not to do so again this past year -- especially as cruise ships brought in a record number of potential customers for rickshaws and big earnings for their runners. Instead, MacKinnon gave up running in front of a rickshaw to concentrate on running his business, taking care of advertising and vehicle rentals and maintenance.

MacKinnon had bought the business the previous summer, and last year decided it was time to expand. With the help of a YES loan, he built two more rickshaws and his fleet grew to eight, which he rented out to runners.

Roadrunner Rickshaw Services is MacKinnon's first business, and the 22-year-old Saint Mary's commerce student expects it won't be his last. He says it's a great summer enterprise while he's in school full time, but he's keeping his entrepreneurial eyes open for a year-round opportunity after graduation.