The home you live in, the food you eat and the products you buy may very well be directly, or indirectly, linked to three “titans of business” who are set to discuss their longstanding, vested interest in Richmond at the Richmond Chamber of Commerce’s Sowing Success panel event this Wednesday.
Moderated by Coun. Alexa Loo and organized by the Richmond chamber, Sowing Success: Titans of Business Pillars of the Community will feature: Rick Ilich, founder and president of Townline Group of Companies; Peter Dhillon, chairman of Ocean Spray Cranberries Ltd.; and Darrell Jones, president of Overwaitea Food Group.
“We’ll look at their journeys and explore the synergies of their businesses,” explained the Richmond chamber’s president and CEO, Matt Pitcairn.
A big discussion is sure to ensue about how the city manages its growth and protects its farmland. Ilich builds condominiums essential to housing new residents in a more densified manner that, in turn, allows the very land Dhillon farms to remain productive for food to be sold at Jones’ stores.
“How do you balance food security with housing demand? Experts like them will have fruitful dialogue on what the future holds,” said Pitcairn.
Jones told the Richmond News local producers are a “key part of our business.”
“We sell more local products in our store than any other place in B.C.,” said Jones.
Overwaitea, which operates the likes of Save-on Foods and PriceSmart supermarkets in Richmond, allows Richmond farmers and producers of products to do business directly with local store managers.
“It’s great quality products, but it’s also important for us to be as self-sufficient as we can,” said Jones.
This is why “we think it’s critically important to keep farmland in place.
Dhillon’s company Richberry Group is Canada’s largest cranberry grower and a key supplier to Ocean Spray. Dhillon oversees 238 acres of cranberry fields in east Richmond, with subsidiaries Richberry Farms Ltd. and BK Ranch LP. Richberry, a member of the Ocean Spray Cooperative, also operates Pitt Meadows Farms LP, a 352-acre farm south of the Pitt River.
At Sowing Success, Dhillon will speak to growth and sustainability.
“I’m always looking to increase our position in the cranberry industry,” said Dhillon. “It’s an industry I’ve been in since the age of 10 or 11. So I grew up in it and know it well.”
Dhillon’s products end up on Jones’ shelves, which are tailored to local communities; case in point is the Asian-focused PriceSmart brand at Ackroyd Plaza.
“What we try to do is tailor our stores for the community we are in. We don’t want to build cookie-cutter stores,” said Jones.
Pitcairn said he hopes to learn more about the Overwaitea model.
Jones’ company plans to open a small Save-on-Foods in Steveston in about two years time.
“What I can tell you is we’ll do our best to match the folks in the Steveston community,” said Jones.
Increasingly, Steveston is seeing more and more condos and townhouses built to accommodate growth.
Ilich is a major player in the B.C. development world and he got his start in Richmond, as his father Milan Ilich was a key homebuilder for Richmond’s growing subdivisions decades ago. The Iliches were also the driving development force behind the city’s last true subdivision, Terra Nova.
In Richmond, the City Centre is densifying thanks to builders such as Townline. Ilich said his goal is to maintain a livable environment for new residents.
“I feel strongly about providing value in amenities and making sure we do the best possible job in providing livable spaces as opposed to just a box with no foresight,” said Ilich.
Sowing Success will speak to each panelist about their successes and failures.
Ilich said failures are often easier to reflect on.
“I’d say my best attribute is facing my failures,” said Ilich.
“Failure in any business is not being able to adapt to change quickly. As economies change and marketplaces change, you better have some resiliency in the product you’re delivering,” said Ilich.
Panelists will also explore the role of education in their business success.
While Ilich received hands-on training since being a teenager, he does not downplay the importance of formal education.
“It’s great to be on the job site and understand those facets, but, ultimately, the world is far more competitive, so that education is so important,” he said.
Observing and listening intently to Jones, Dhillon and Ilich will be 100-plus senior secondary students from Richmond School District.
“It’s special to include future leaders from SD38,” said Pitcairn.
Sowing Success will be at the Sheraton Vancouver Airport Hotel on Sept. 20, from 11:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. General admission is $70 or $50 for chamber members.
—with a file from Business in Vancouver
