Tech magnate Google held a series of workshops in St. John’s, N.L. on Friday November 1 to help small businesses improve their digital skills. As the fifth stop of a six-stop Grow with Google tour, the company aimed to help entrepreneurs across Canada advance their economic opportunities by fine-tuning their tech skills. More than 500 local business owners, entrepreneurs and aspiring startups attend the sessions in St. John’s, which ranged from search engine marketing, website analytics and optimizing Google Search and Maps to support business growth.

Saint John supermarket goes global
Freshville Supermarket opened its doors last week at 200 Union Street in Saint John stocked with ingredients from all over the world. The owners hope to cater to the growing number of immigrants and new residents in the area by offering items from Africa, Asia and the Middle East along with the typical staples of a local grocery.

RONA set to close Newfoundland stores
The RONA stores in Newfoundland will be closed as of January 27, 2019. Employees of the O’Leary Avenue location were told over the weekend at a staff meeting they will have to seek employment elsewhere in the new year — there are 260 employees across the province. The move is part of a larger set of closures by parent company LOWE’s who announced the closure of 31 stores in six provinces across the country.

Tourism industry recognizes tourism excellence on P.E.I.
The Tourism Industry Association of P.E.I. (TIAPEI) held their yearly awards gala on October 24 recognizing the island’s leaders in tourism. Carl Nicholson of New Glasgow Lobster Suppers was awarded the Lieutenant Governor’s Tourism Award, while beer brewer Mitch Cobb of Upstreet Craft Brewing took home the Emerging Entrepreneur Award. The Parks Canada Sustainable Tourism Award was given to Perry Gotell of Tranquility Cove Adventures while Faye Brown of Anne’s Windy Poplars Cottage Resort was awarded the Tourism Ambassador Award.

Noble Grape celebrates 25th anniversary with new store
Wine and beer-making supply store the Noble Grape Urban Winery is celebrating its 25th year in business and opened another store to celebrate. The company announced the opening of their tenth location in Windsor, N.S. Noble Grape operates their spirit-making services in Nova Scotia and New Brunswick.

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