Weekly Regional Business Intelligence
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Written by Kieran Delamont, Associate Editor, London Inc.
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Accuride slated to close in early 2025
Despite early hopes that the factory would find a buyer, London’s Accuride Canada Inc. auto parts plant is set to close at the end of January, the union representing its workers said this week. Accuride Corporation filed for Chapter 11 in the U.S. last month, and while the parent company was hoping it would be able to sell the plant ― which has operated in London under a variety of names since 1968 ― no buyer could be found. “The marketing process has concluded without a buyer, and therefore we have begun preparing for a wind-down of the plant,” Accuride spokesperson Grant Hatton told The London Free Press. “The timing of this is still to be determined and will depend, in part, on discussions with customers around final product requirements.” So, it appears that at some point early next year, the final steel tire rim will roll off the production line, and that will be all she wrote for one of the city’s most storied industrial plants.
The upshot: Around 200 workers will lose their jobs as a result, and while the union representing most of the workers are negotiating severance packages, Unifor rep Luis Domingues said that “there will unfortunately be pain for families…this has been in the community for 56 years, and it is not easy knowing your job will go down the drain.” As for wider implications, while some analysts are pointing to grey clouds on the horizon for the regional auto sector (EV growing pains, Trump tariffs, etc.), economic officials in the city are viewing the closure as a bit an anomaly. The regional manufacturing sector is stable ― perhaps in a bit of a hiring lull, but stable ― said Jason Bates of the London Region Manufacturing Council. Above all, it’s just a sad day for the city’s manufacturing community. “There is a lot of history there, a lot of good people,” said Bates. “It has been a long time and has been a big part of the community.”
Read more: London Free Press | CBC News London |
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Michael Gibson Gallery marks 40 years
Happy 40th to Michael Gibson Gallery, which is marking four decades in the commercial art business this month. The gallery, which has lived on Carling Street since 1997, has built a reputation as one of the strongest galleries for contemporary Canadian art ― all the more impressive given that it’s not located in one of Canada’s traditional major art markets. “I have built a business that compliments my peers who are in much bigger cities such as Vancouver, Calgary, Toronto or Montreal,” said the man himself, Michael Gibson. “London has been a great base to work from as the arts community is both vibrant and loyal, and I would like to thank all of them for their many years of support.”
The upshot: To run a gallery that survives in a mid market like London for four decades is no small feat. But to run a flourishing gallery for 40 years is quite something, so hats off to Michael Gibson and the employees behind the scenes who have helped make it all happen. “Somehow, I have remained calm enough to enjoy my journey into the art business for now 40 years,” he wrote in a recent newsletter. “In small business terms, it’s a long time to meet rent and payroll. I’ve been so blessed with five different landlords (the last one sold me the building in 2005) and the many employees who tried their best to help me along in my dream with no end. Along the way I’ve built many lifelong relationships and have had a lot of silly fun. I’ve never been a proponent of acting my age, especially now at 66.” The gallery is marking the milestone with an anniversary party tomorrow, Saturday, November 16, between 2 p.m. and 4 p.m.
Read more: Michael Gibson Gallery |
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Aspire Food Group slashes staff, scales back production
Aspire Food Group, the big cricket farming operation in London, is scaling back production and cutting its staff by two thirds (100 employees have been laid off). According to the company CEO David Rosenberg, it is dialing back production “for about seven months,” while it makes “some improvements to its manufacturing system,” he said. “The company reduced its employee base, mainly in production, while these changes ― an updated design of how the crickets live in their habitat ― are incorporated.” The company opened the factory in 2022, with $8.5 million in federal funding, and while it has landed a few major contracts ― notably a deal to supply crickets to the South Korean candy market ― it’s been tougher to build demand domestically, likely in part because of the high prices charged for cricket protein powder.
The upshot: The layoffs are an unfortunate announcement for a company that was pretty widely celebrated as the kind of advanced manufacturing industry Canada needed just a couple years ago. And the laid off workers are quite unhappy, by the sounds of it. “They told us they had run out of funding and we’re not getting anything,” one worker told The London Free Press. “We were handed termination letters after our shift; that was shocking,” another told AgFunderNews. There is, apparently, talk of legal action among the workers, though Rosenberg said they will ultimately be paid severance. There is still hope that these are just growing pains. The company said it expects to be scaled back up by next July. From some comments Rosenberg made, it seems like things had gotten a little, well, creepy crawly in the plant. “The mechanical systems were challenged, they were overloaded harvesting,” he told the Free Press. “We had crickets everywhere.”
Read more: London Free Press | AgFunderNews |
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TechAlliance to deliver rural accelerator program
TechAlliance of Southwestern Ontario is receiving more than $115,000 in provincial funding to help it launch the Rural GROW Accelerator, a new 12-week incubator program focused on rural startups, the province announced last weekend. “Unlocking the potential of rural-founded companies, while driving economic vitality is essential,” said TechAlliance CEO Christina Fox. “This accelerator is a critical investment for made-in-Ontario startups and scaling tech companies, and for the future of competitive and diverse rural economies and the broader Canadian innovation ecosystem.” The 12-week program will focus primarily on early-stage startups from communities like St. Thomas, Woodstock, Sarnia, Strathroy and surrounding areas.
The upshot: There is a lot of untapped innovation potential in Canada’s rural communities ― a 2024 OECD report noted that the rate of patents coming from rural communities in Canada is around half of the OECD average. At the same time, there is plenty of evidence of green shoots in the region ― look at private equity firm RHA Ventures and its ongoing investments in agri-tech and food innovators in the SWO region, for example. “This type of program is going to be so valuable to those entrepreneurs because it will give them the coaching and mentorship from people that are known experts in those areas,” TechAlliance board member Kim Parker told CTV News London. With ongoing challenges impacting rural areas particularly ― things like demographic shifts, climate change, food security and so on ― it’s smart business to focus resources on supporting these green shoots.
Read more: TechAlliance | CTV News London |
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Beringer Capital announces strategic investment in Northern Commerce
Toronto-based private equity firm Beringer Capital is investing in London’s Northern Commerce. “Partnering with Beringer Capital represents an exciting opportunity for us to continue to elevate the Northern brand,” said Northern’s president Michael DeLorenzi. “It was clear that we share a vision for the future of our market, and their commitment to partnership and value creation aligns perfectly with our own culture. We are enthusiastic about collaborating with Beringer’s team and believe we can unlock tremendous value and explore new innovative opportunities that will drive Northern forward.” Beringer’s managing partner, Perry Miele, added that the partnership “aligns seamlessly with our mission to invest in companies driving digital transformation in North America and we look forward to being part of Northern’s journey.”
The upshot: Terms of the deal were not disclosed, so it’s not clear how much capital Beringer is injecting into Northern. Nor is it really all that clear what they are hoping to use the investment for. “Deploy[ing] a co-developed value creation strategy, capitalizing on organic growth opportunities and adding new capabilities to help take Northern to the next level,” is about as much detail as statements revealed. Gil Ozir, managing partner at Beringer, did add that “the core issue we see in the market is that due to a multitude of factors, brands are not providing the personalized experience their customers are demanding,” and that they “believe Northern possesses a unique blend of strategic business advisory, content management, customer data analytics and marketing operations capabilities that in turn make it the next generation end-to-end digital transformation consultancy that the industry needs.” Interpret that how you will.
Read more: Northern Commerce |
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Protein Candy lands $1M Dragons’ Den deal
In other Michael DeLorenzi news, one of his additional interests, London-based Protein Candy, recently landed a $1 million Dragons’ Den investment to help fuel growth. A low-sugar, high-protein candy, one package of Protein Candy has around the same amount of protein as half a scoop of Biosteel protein powder. That formula has been a hit so far, and the product has been selling well after landing shelving deals at retailers such as Sobeys supermarkets and Circle K convenience stores. “This is a very unique, very special product. The market seems to like it. This is an exciting time for sure,” said DeLorenzi (pictured, on left, with retail Protein Candy VP Devin Powell). “Retailers are eager. The demand for protein products is expected to rise and we are seeing confectionary grow as well.”
The upshot: Having established some success domestically, the company is at that point where it is preparing scale. It scored a $1 million investment from Arlene Dickinson and Michele Romanow of Dragons’ Den, and DeLorenzi said they are eyeing sales expansion into the U.S. market next year ― convenient, since the product is manufactured in Wisconsin. “We are working with Michele and Arlene, finalizing the deal we negotiated,” DeLorenzi said. “We are tapping into their networks and vast experience.” In the meantime, the candy has been building buzz on its own ― including partnering with a number of fitness influencers and running brand activation campaigns in Toronto. (Anecdotally, they were also attracting a good amount of interest at the recent Toronto Waterfront Marathon Expo ― it seems hungry runners love their candy, even more so if you can cram some nutrition in there.)
Read more: Strategy Online | London Free Press |
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Dispatch: November 15, 2024
A summary of recent business appointments and announcements, plus event listings for the upcoming week.
View listings here
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