UPDATE: In April 2023, Kevin presented to the BC Economic Development Summit about opportunities in the outdoor recreation sector that go beyond conventional lakes and trailer, and include outdoor gear, performance apparel design and manufacturing, adventure-based media, marketing, film, and program development. He talked about how Kootenay regional associations, communities and companies are working together to contribute to outdoor recreation's economic value.
This coming fall Creative Coast is presenting about opportunities in the Creative Economy to the Vancouver Island Economic Summit.
Want to join our conversations and/or our growing network of ecosystems? Get in touch: info@creativecoast.ca
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KORE is a non-profit in the Kootenays working to create a network of makers and creators in the outdoor recreation manufacturing and design sector. Their roster of creative entrepreneurs is impressive!
So is the level of collaboration they've managed to achieve between regional associations, communities and companies, with everyone working together to contribute to outdoor recreation's economic value.
KORE's co-founder and executive director Kevin Pennock got in touch the other day. He's ready to turn this Interior BC innovation network into an ecosystem, and had heard we had similar ecosystem goals for Vancouver Island's Creative Economy. The timing of our zoom call couldn't have been better.
It turns out KORE and Creative Coast are having synchronistic, simultaneous conversations with Port Alberni and Campbell River, and now we've agreed to keep each other in the loop. KORE is in conversation with these two communities about building up their own outdoor rec-tech sectors.
Creative Coast is writing grants to support Port Alberni's amazing new makerspace - a key asset for rec-tech prototyping and manufacturing. And we're talking with Campbell River's Economic Development Office about business incubation supports for underserved creative entrepreneurs, and dreaming about a large-scale makerspace in that community.
Here's an excerpt from a July 2021 BC Business Magazine article about KORE, written by Andrew Finley:
“We wanted to change the narrative of small Kootenay communities as resource-dependent towns and show that they are places where innovation and entrepreneurship in the outdoor sector is happening,” Pennock says.
Image from: Zapped Outfitters - a member of the KORE network.