This alleged wrongful dismissal is notable for how high the figures are. An ex-employee is suing Ideon Technologies for what he claims is $641,000 in unpaid commissions from $33 million in contract revenue. #lawsuits #AI #sales

Good news for B.C.'s General Fusion as shareholders in it and its acquisition target voted to approve the merger, paving the way for its Nasdaq listing and access to up to US$338 million. #GFUZ #GeneralFusion

West Vancouver residents allege they returned from a trip abroad to find their cherished 60-foot back yard ancient cedar reduced to a stump. The tree was on a property line with a neighbour, and they claim that he was responsible. #lawsuits #neighbours

B.C.'s General Fusion is readying to go public via a reverse takeover and gain access about US$338 million in new capital. This comes as strong stock markets are enticing more public offerings. #IPOs #reversetakeovers

The FIFA World Cup has brought Vancouver new and improved large venues for live music while investments by entrepreneurs are improving the state of smaller ones. Some say governments still need to step up to improve venues such as Malkin Bowl. #WorldCup #venues

Here's how the FIFA World Cup is impacting Vancouver festivals this summer #VIJF #VFMF #PNE #VFF #BardOnTheBeach

Massive biotechnology deal today. Vancouver's Zymeworks is spending US$929M in cash to buy California's Theravance BioPharma. The pact diversifies Zymeworks from oncology drugs to also having one for respiratory disease. Other drugs are in the pipeline. #biotech #lifesciences

Here's my latest on restaurant associations' efforts to help Canadian restaurant owners get millions of dollars returned to them after a payment processor allegedly took money from bank accounts without authorization and is now in CCRA. #restaurants #fintech #CCRA

Fun to catch up with RBC's B.C. regional president, Martin Thibodeau, to discuss how his bank has evolved since buying Vancouver-based HSBC Bank Canada in 2024. And its new B.C.-based tech-banking hub. He also slammed the B.C. government's most recent budget. #BCpoli #Cdnpoli #banking #technology

Found this lawsuit that focuses on an issue central to restaurant operations. Plaintiff alleges she told a restaurant server she was allergic to nuts. She then was allegedly served a nutty dessert. Hospital visits allegedly followed. #lawsuits #restaurants #hospitality www.biv.com/news/hospita...

Check out my look at how the World Cup is helping some Vancouver retailers, while hurting others. #FIFAWorldCup #retail

Spent some time with the United States' top official in B.C.: consul general for B.C. and Yukon Shawn Crowley. We discussed many cross-border issues, including ICE agents in Vancouver for the World Cup, as well as his globetrotting life. #diplomacy #InternationalRelations

Fresh from opening a store at the new Oakridge Park, Vancouver's Purdys is set to expand to Canada's east coast. Here's why they're for now skipping Quebec, and what prompted them to launch their first stores east of Ontario. #retail #marketing #realestate www.biv.com/news/retail-...

I looked into the business case for the Canadian Premier League to not fully be on hiatus during the FIFA World Cup. The Vancouver FC/Pacific FC owner is excited as he believes the tournament will spur interest in the game. #VancouverFC #PacificFC #FIFAWorldCup

New hotel rooms, more short-term rental units and actions by FIFA have meant that visitors to Vancouver are likely to find last-minute accommodations during the #WorldCup #hotels #hospitality #FIFAWorldCup

Vancouver restaurant owners are excited as they ready for the FIFA WorldCup. This is despite the tournament bringing uncertainty over street access, licensing rules and how much city bylaw officers will enforce those rules and levy $1,000 fines. #vanpoli #WorldCup #restaurants

Curious that Vancouver ranks last among FIFA World Cup host cities for airline-seat growth on routes between host hubs. The two Canadian cities were only ones with fewer seats added May-July on routes to other hosts. Check out my look into different sets of new data #FIFAWorldCup #aviation #tourism

Cool to see SFU snag the largest-ever donation in its history: $40 million from Arran and Ratana Stephens and their family. Chatted with Arran today about his rationale, and how it is a "vast percentage" of his savings. He and his wife, both in their 80s, remain healthy. #philanthropy #healthcare

Vancouver General Hospital has been expanding its use of robots, and robotic arms. Robot use in health care is part of a larger shift in society toward using robots. #robots #technology

Found at court: a man is suing Birks and luxury watchmaker Richemont for allegedly losing his $80,000 watch that he took in for servicing. He claims they at first tried to give him a discontinued timepiece to resolve the issue. #retail #luxury #lawsuits www.biv.com/news/retail-...

Found this at court: former MLA and former Mission mayor Randy Hawes sued for allegedly defaming a company in a Facebook post. #lawsuits #BCpoli

Great news for the hospitality sector as restaurant, bar and pub owners can now buy alcohol directly from private alcohol retailers. It is a change long sought. This is only for a three-year trial period, however. #retail #alcohol #BCpoli

Oakridge Park launched today and is set to shake up Vancouver's retail/culinary scenes. Its Time Out Market food hall concept is a first for the region: high-end chefs with 18 distinctive kiosks and three bars for 1,000 diners at common tables. #retail #restaurants

BCLDB gets new interim general manager, CEO: Erin McEwan. This follows a retirement. Unclear whether an extensive search will take place for a permanent top executive. "Longer-term plans for the role are being determined," BCLDB says. #alcohol #retail

Vancouver has a strong market for venture capital, with many companies landing funding from local and international sources. #startups #angelinvesting #venturecapital

Data shows an 11.3 per cent jump in short-term rental listings in Metro Vancouver (Airbnb and Vrbo) in the 10 months up to April. No doubt they have continued to rise as peak tourist season, and the FIFA World Cup near. #tourism #hospitality

Hotel bookings for June in Vancouver are down, but not by the 20 per cent figure widely reported. Data show bookings down 6.7 percentage points from where they were last year at this time for June 2025. Lack of #conventions is mostly why. #FIFAWorldCup #hospitality

Lululemon, Chip Wilson continue sparring ahead of annual general meeting #retail #Lululemon #$LULU

Check out my look into the shift toward businesses accepting digital payments only. It's a continuation of the evolution toward efficiency that was taking place when fiat currencies replaced beaver pelts and other items that people traded long ago. #retail #technology

Check out my look into legal cannabis sector. Sales are down overall, although some product categories still see growth. Alcohol still dominates, with 5X more sales. #retail #cannabis #alcohol

Great news for start-up ventures at Simon Fraser University. The province's InBC Investment Corp. and SFU are launching a venture fund set to have $20M to provide to SFU-related companies. www.biv.com/news/technol...

Huge venture capital raise today for Coquitlam-based #quantum company Photonic: $275M. The announcement comes as some execs attend #WebSummitVancouver #technology #WebSummit #quantum

B.C.'s ban on new U.S. alcohol imports has not helped sales for B.C. wineries. BCLDB stats show that wholesales for #BCwine were flat earlier this year. Wholesales for wines from France (+24%), New Zealand (+18%) and Argentina (+13%) were far more popular. Overall alcohol sales continued to decline.

Travel on flights between YVR and U.S. destinations was down for the 15th month in a row in March. Big declines were in travel to Las Vegas (29.9%), Palm Springs (23.5%) and Honolulu (12.4%). #travel

With plenty of Metro Vancouver hotel projects in the pipeline, some are just completed or nearing completion as #FIFAWorldCup nears. #hotels #hospitality #BCecon

Vancouver city council just passed a motion to direct staff to craft a six-month pilot project for food-delivery robots to use sidewalks in downtown / Kitsilano. Many details are to be worked out by staff. The province must also issue regulations. #robots #technology www.biv.com/news/technol...

Exciting news for downtown Vancouver as Simons confirms what had been long speculated: it will lease 92,000 square feet at CF Pacific Centre. Chatted with some analysts about that this morning. #retail #BCecon www.biv.com/news/retail-...

Hard to believe Expo 86 opened 40 years ago later this week. Check out my look into the World's Fair that provided plenty of infrastructure and shaped how Vancouver developed. #Expo86 #citybuilding

Vancouver used to regularly top rankings for most expensive average hotel rates among major Canadian cities. No more. Toronto has been No. 1 for the past six months, despite lower occupancy. I look into why this is happening. #tourism #hospitality #hotels

Finally Lululemon appoints new CEO. Challenges abound for Heidi O’Neill, who has plenty of experience at Nike and on corporate boards. One similarity between Lulu and Nike? Dismal investments in recent years. I wish her well. #retail #$LULU www.biv.com/news/retail-...

Vancouverites are increasingly renting out their vehicles via peer-to-peer networks. I looked into this phenomenon in the lead-up to the 2026 FIFA World Cup, when one platform told me it expects Vancouver vehicle owners to reap about $600,000. #technology

Most B.C. businesses to feel effects of the province’s planned PST expansion to professional services, including accounting and security. #BCpoli #BCecon www.biv.com/news/pst-exp...

End of an era at London Drugs with president and COO Clint Mahlman readying to retire in May. Nick Curalli will have big shoes to fill. Thanks Clint for the many interviews through the years. All the best in retirement! #retail #retirement

SFU and Queen's University plan to bid for what could be $900M to build out supercomputing infrastructure. It's about time the feds allocate all of the $2.4 billion for AI capacity that former PM Justin Trudeau promised almost two years ago. #BCtech

Plenty of new grocery stores set to open in Metro Vancouver. The 10-store Sungiven Foods Canada having the most ambitious target: 15 more Metro Vancouver stores by 2029. That includes "at least" two more this year. Check out my look at that and others: #grocery #retail #BCecon

Good news for Vancouver ag-tech Miraterra, which today said it closed a $16M financing round to scale work analyzing soil to empower farmers to make better decisions. #BCtech #agriculture

B.C. grocery prices to surge as Iran war drives up energy costs #food #inflation #oil #grocery

Vancouver's hospitality sector is excited about the World Cup but some win or lose based on how fans must exit BC Place to the east. #FIFAWorldCup #hospitality www.biv.com/small-busine...

In news that might have been expected, Moody's downgrades B.C.'s credit rating. #BCecon www.biv.com/news/economy...

Great news for Vancouver International Airport as it was voted by millions of passengers as being among the top 10 airports in the world. It also ranks as the best airport in North America. #Aviation #travel #tourism www.biv.com/news/transpo...