The Headland « Build A New Life in Prince Edward County

Return of a County Kid Part II

Trevor Crowe (right) concentrating. The lookalike beside him is Troy Crowe.

this blog is contributed by Janet Davies

In Part I of The Tale of Trevor Crowe, we told how getting laid off by Big Industry spurred TC to start a video production company. Here’s why he brought that company home to the County.

“When I came down to the County again, I was amazed at what’s happened since I left. Seriously! Maybe everybody else knew but I didn’t. At the EDO’s Creative Minds meetings I met lots of young entrepreneurs who understood that a lot of County business is website-driven. People shop, plan trips and look for services online. County businesspeople get that. I saw opportunity here.”

He moved Crowe Productions from Belleville to The Headland in Picton – a sort of creative incubation space where TV producers Dave & Stacy Hatch rent out space and share facilities. Trevor incubated fast and moved to bigger space at SparkBox, owned by young entrepreneurs Chrissie Poitras and Kyle Topping. “Then we almost bought the Ideal Bike condo property, (outgrown by yet another young biz growing fast) but we realized we’re going to need even more space. So we’ll wait a bit and see what develops.”

“I wish I had more time in the day. I have lots of ideas, and there’s so much opportunity here.” Really? “Oh yes. There’s a huge transition in industry, and Transition = Opportunity. I know the manufacturing world. Small firms handle a lot of the R&D today, and they could easily be based here. Manufacturing goes overseas, which is too bad, but design and prototypes can be done anywhere. I don’t think people realize how easy it is to connect with the rest of the world.” He’s busy, optimistic, raising a young family in a beautiful place where “everybody knows your name” – and talking global. Stay tuned for Part III of Return of a County Kid. Meanwhile, Trevor tells it himself in a 5-minute film he made soon after coming home. Rural Renaissance

Tags: Creative, Creative Economy, Creative Industries, Creative Rural Economy, Creative Workers, Economic Development, manufacturing in prince edward county, Picton, Prince Edward County, Small Business, Sparkbox, The Headland, Trevor Crowe, video production
Comments (1) | Posted over two years ago by Jan Davies

When Dreams Come True!

Contributed by Dan Taylor, Economic Development Office.

I love it when dreams come true. I have been working with Dave and Stacey Hatch on and off for many years to help them grow their business and business in the county. We finally hit on a winner about a year ago and now their dream is coming true.

With the help of some funding from PELA CFDC and some strategic guidance from our office, The Headland a new creative enterprise space is open and starting to fulfill it’s mission. As a bonus this new space has helped the Hatch’s more than double up their staff and output.

On Monday June the 14th we are co-hosting an open house with the Hatch’s to introduce the community to The Headland, meet tenants, learn how they are already working together to grow their collective businesses and to see if the space might be right for other small business owners in the community.

What is also exiting about this project is it illustrates that new economy, global export oriented, year around, well paying jobs are possible in this community and made possible by people like the Hatch’s and entrepreneurs who set up shop in The Headland. It’s happening one job at a time and that’s o.k., because it keeps happening over and over again!

I hope to meet our local entrepreneurs at the open house and see you on Monday June 14th, 2010 at 5:00 p.m. at 6 Ross Street. If you are looking for high speed internet and a turnkey creative office space, this may just be the ticket for you!

Tags: Creative, Picton, Prince Edward County, Shared Space, The Headland
Comments (1) | Posted over two years ago by Dan Taylor

The Headland: A Sneak Peek

The Headland is a former municipal building in downtown Picton that will soon open as a creative hub for workers in the field of digital media. Dave and Stacey Hatch of WhistleStop Productions recently bought the building at 6 Ross Street, formed a non-profit corporation called The Headland and will soon be renting space there to themselves as well as up to eight other tenants.

WhistleStop plans to start operating from The Headland in early April. On Friday, March 19, we got a sneak peek.

The County’s economic development officer, Dan Taylor, says he thinks of The Headland as an idea factory. “It used to be that we thought of factories as turning out widgets,” he says. “This factory will be turning out ideas.”

I might add that The Headland is an outstanding symbol of what we’re hearing them call Prince Edward County’s creative rural economy.

On Friday, I learned three important things about The Headland. Number one: WhistleStop Productions, which has operated with minimal staff for the decade or so they’ve been based in a repurposed church in Bloomfield, will now be able to move into The Headland and double its workforce to eight people. Number two: the sneak peak showed me it’s an inspiring space that just begs to be filled with producers, editors, cameras and sound booths. Number three: there’s an anonymous investor who’ll directly bring up to 40 new full time digital media jobs to the County if they move into The Headland as a tenant. I’ll keep my ear to the ground on that front.

The Headland is still accepting applications from interested parties. To apply, contact Dave or Stacey at WhistleStop Productions via phone at 613-393-5357 or email at whistle@intranet.ca.