Alberta commits $2.8 million to small- and medium-sized businesses
A $2.8-million investment in the Trade Accelerator Program aims to help Alberta-made companies and businesses expand their reach to markets around the world.
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In an announcement on Wednesday, the Minister of Jobs, Economy, Trade, and Immigration Joseph Schow announced the province's commitment to help Alberta's small- and medium-sized businesses and companies expand their reach into international markets.
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TAP was established nationally in 2017, with Calgary Economic Development administering the program within Alberta in 2018.
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Over the last seven years, 550 Alberta-based businesses were provided with knowledge, mentorship and resources to help their ventures grow and reach international markets.
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'This means bigger revenues, and more jobs for Albertans across the province,' Schow said. 'And of course, we get to showcase Alberta's economic success to the rest of the world.'
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Schow said the province values small businesses and wants to see them succeed beyond Alberta's borders.
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'Our government is fulfilling a gap to fund the Trade Accelerator Program by providing Calgary Economic Development with $2.8 million,' he said.
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The investment will continue to support TAP for the next five years. Over this period, the program is expected to assist 650 more companies, while expanding services and resources for businesses looking to grow.
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'Increasing trade is a priority for our government, which is why we are helping small- and medium-sized businesses grow,' Schow said. 'More than ever, we need to diversify our global trade and give businesses the tools they need to succeed.'
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In return, Schow said Alberta will see more jobs, investments, and a stronger economy through programs like TAP.
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'Those are businesses that supply families with good, mortgage-paying, grocery-buying, sport fee-paying jobs,' Schow said. 'Those are supporting families right here in Calgary, right here in Alberta.'
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By doing their part to empower small businesses, Schow said the province sees great things happening from their success.
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President and CEO of Calgary Economic Development, Brad Parry, said this is an important step forward in helping local Alberta and Calgary businesses grow, scale and compete on a national and global scale.
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Sign up for daily National newsletter Sign Up By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy 'Before any court application is brought forward, typically the company will test that out with them,' Lee said. 'They're not going to just sort of fly in blind and hope for the best.' The second aspect for the court to mull is whether the proposed new tenant is suitable. Lee said that's determined by looking at whether they can perform the duties of the tenant and pay rent. Liu, who made her money in Chinese real estate, appears to have deep pockets, but her experience comes from being a landlord rather than a tenant. Story continues below advertisement 1:47 Nostalgic Vancouver shoppers flock to 'The Bay' on its final day The final aspect the court will consider is whether a transfer of a lease to Liu is 'appropriate.' 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While the disagreement could serve as a roadblock to the Bay closing on its agreement with Liu, lawyers not involved in the case say the retailer has another route it can take to get a deal done. That route lies in changes to the Companies' Creditors Arrangement Act — Canada's main insolvency law — made in 2009, said Jeff Lee, a Saskatoon-based partner at MLT Aikins LLP. The changes laid out three criteria courts must consider when asked to assign leases to a new tenant. The first is whether or not the sale has the support of the monitor, a court-appointed, independent third party which helps guide businesses through creditor protection. In the Bay's case, the monitor is Alvarez & Marsal. It has yet to reveal whether it supports the Liu deal and did not respond to requests for comment. 'Before any court application is brought forward, typically the company will test that out with them,' Lee said. 'They're not going to just sort of fly in blind and hope for the best.' 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The Bay has a 26-page list of creditors, with some lenders owed more than $100 million each. Liquidation sales and a deal to sell the Bay trademarks to Canadian Tire for $30 million have put a dent in what's owed but selling leases to Liu would also help. Anyone who made an offer for leases had to make a deposit of 10 per cent of their estimated purchase price. Court documents show Liu made a deposit of $9.4 million, in addition to $6 million for the three approved leases, which would equate to a purchase price of $100 million for 28 leases. When a deal like this is reached, Dabbs said a company typically seeks landlord consent because commercial leases tend to have provisions stopping anyone from transferring a lease without a property owner agreeing. It's not uncommon for landlords to object because any leases that can't be sold and aren't assigned get turned back over to property owners who can choose how to fill them and under what terms. 'Remember, these are anchor leases, so they're probably very favourable to the Bay or to the tenant in a lot of respects,' said Tolensky, alluding to the fact that anchor tenants are often given attractive rents or terms. Monday Mornings The latest local business news and a lookahead to the coming week. Thus, it's more advantageous for landlords to get their properties back, said Monica Beffa, founder of an Oakville, Ont., law firm. If they do, they can then charge higher rents, develop them for entirely new uses such as residential units or break them up into smaller parcels that can be rented by a wide array of tenants. If they don't and a court assigns the leases to Liu, landlords will likely be watching her closely to ensure she doesn't violate any terms of the agreement. 'The landlord may be cranky, if the tenant breaches, but put it this way, they don't want to rely on that,' Dabbs said. 'If they don't want this lease being assigned, they will fight it right up front.' This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 28, 2025.
