Made in Canada: How support from CIBC helped a local business manufacture goods

Early on, we were running a design agency and started Province of Canada as a hobby business operating out of our apartment with just our own $1,500 initial investment. For 7 years, we juggled both while Province of Canada slowly grew.

Our vision for the business was special. We wanted to create a lifestyle brand that celebrates Canadian identity and shows people great products, from sweatshirts to socks, could be made right here at home.

In 2019, we had one employee helping with shipping, packing orders, customer service and social media. We needed that so we could keep focusing on the agency. Back then, the Province of Canada was barely breaking even, and most of our employees’ pay came from our design agency. Our plan was to wait one more year and then perhaps open a store.

But it happened more quickly than we thought. We came across a store space for rent and realized it was now or never. We knew we had to go all in if we wanted the business to be more than a side hustle. We felt we couldn’t quit without giving it a real chance, so that’s what we did.

Honestly, our business wouldn’t exist today without CIBC Business Banking. Over the years, we built a relationship with them, managed our day-to-day banking and had a $50,000 line of credit available. We never used it since we weren’t the type to go into debt, but switching to an inventory-based business changed things.

When we decided to open our first Province of Canada store, we knew we needed to do everything we could to get it up and running, including using our line of credit. It was something we were not accustomed to doing, but with a retail location opening, we had to. We thought, “this has to work”.

Looking back, that line of credit was the turning point. Without it, Province of Canada wouldn’t exist. It gave us the breathing room needed to open our first retail store, invest in product and finally stop splitting our time between the design agency and the brand.

When we opened in September, the response was incredible. Those first four months leading up to Christmas were amazing. We hit $100,000 in sales in a single month for the first time ever.

Because we were still running the agency in the back of the shop, we didn’t have to take money out of Province of Canada to pay ourselves. That meant every dollar from the store went to pay off the line of credit and reinvest in the business.

As Province of Canada grew, so did our partnership with CIBC Business Banking. Today, our go-to contact is Anirban, our Relationship Manager, and he has become an essential part of our team providing expert guidance and support at every stage of our business journey.

Back in 2022, we were looking to buy a commercial property. Anirban played a significant role in guiding us on structuring ownership and managing assets — valuable advice that made a massive difference for us.

Over the years, he has helped us with cash management services and made sure we’re set up properly to handle the flow of an inventory-based business. For paying vendors, receiving money and wire transfers, we use CIBC’s digital platform, SmartBanking. It’s so efficient for what we need.

What we really appreciate about Anirban is his proactive approach. He assisted us with getting a personal liability business credit card and went out of his way to get paperwork expedited across different teams to save us time. That kind of support means a lot, especially when you’re juggling everything else involved with running a company.

Anirban isn’t someone we contact just when things go wrong. He is actively involved in ensuring things go smoothly day to day.