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COMING TO CANADA A DUTCH ENTREPRENEUR’S POINT OF VIEW
Based on the presentation of 3 entrepreneurs during CNBPA’s entrepreneurs night CNBPA at Brightlane Toronto 10/03/15
CANADA - WHY DID WE COME HERE?
There are multiple reasons people
migrate to Canada like:
1. Work (send to Canada by company)
2. Family (partner is Canadian)
3. Adventure
(why not? It is a great country eh?)
In the first situation your income is guaranteed.
In the other two it is not. The following is
based on the experience of Dutch
entrepreneurs in Canada.
What to expect in the battle for money?
SOME FACTS
 36 million inhabitants
 16 million inhabitants
 10.000 million square km
 41.530 square km
 GDP 1.9 trillion
 GDP 880 billion
A couple of months each year
Once every 20 years?
Country size and climate lead to logistical challenges. Have a few meetings a day in NL vs take a few days
for a meeting in Canada.
Answers to these challenges for entrepreneurs might be in setting up local reseller networks.
EXPERIENCE
“I realize you have just entered the country, but what is your Canadian experience?”
Foreign experience is heavily undervalued. As a new entry to the country you cannot expect that
your experience abroad will pave the road ahead. Frequently fresh arrivals will have to accept that
they have to take 1 or more steps back in order to get hooked up with an employer.
A commonly heard reason for this is that Canadian company culture is risk aversive. Why hire someone
without experience in the local culture risking that he/she will not fit in.
And yes, this is also true for something like your car insurance:
Euro 800,- vs CAD 3.500 per annum
For entrepreneurs credentials from well known (international) companies can help to start up
MARKETS - OLIGOPOLIES
Canada’s markets are tight knit. Many
companies have a tough time getting in or
getting profitable.
Several sectors have low competition
with high customer pricing as a result.
DECISIONS
 Yes lets do it!
 No, that’s not for us.
A quick and clear answer is common
 That looks interesting (but not for
us)
 No response (likely no, or possibly in
the future)
Canadian response is less direct
Because you often do not know where you stand, perseverance is the key
COLLABORATION
There are many organizations that can help out to get you started in Canada
as well as in the Netherlands (for Canadian organizations). With the upcoming CETA agreements
it should become easier to invest in Canada.
THE ENTREPRENEURS
The CNBPA would like to thank JanWillem Gille, Remco Dolman and Andrew Frei for their contribution
to the entrepreneursnight. Also we would like to think Brightlane where the event was hosted.
INTERESTED?
Are you interested in the CNBPA?
 Become a member
 Join an event
 Become a sponsor
 Speak to an engaged business crowd
Then please visit cnbpa.ca or contact Sebastiaan Postma [email protected]
We also have a LinkedIn group called Canadian Netherlands Business and Professional
Association (CNBPA)
ABOUT THE CNBPA
The Canadian Netherlands Business and Professional Association (CNBPA) provides a
networking forum for business people and professionals with Dutch interests to interact on
a regular basis, discuss common business issues and to promote the economic and social
interests of its members.