BEACHBURG — Heliconia is wasting no time in using money it received for job creation through the Eastern Ontario Development Program.
Last week, Renfrew-Nipissing-Pembroke MP Cheryl Gallant was at Heliconia in Beachburg to announced it had been awarded a $100,000 grant from the EODP.
The money will be used over the next four years for job creation, noted Brendan Mark, marking director of Heliconia.
This Beachburg company has five full time and one-part-time employees, he said. With the funding, another employee has already been hired, with hopes of hiring three more, Mr. Mark said.
“We are looking to grow,” he said. “This money will help with employer costs.”
Heliconia is a media company that focuses on television production, online video production and distribution, and social marketing.
“We create, film, edit and produce adventure television shows,” Mr. Mark said.
To ensure the company continues to grow, employees to be hired will be skilled in various jobs, including editing, videographing and sales marketing, he said. He expects another employee will be hired by mid-summer.
It currently has three different television shows with 44 new episodes produced each year. There is The Kayak Fishing Show, Kayak Bassin Show and Facing Waves. While there is lots of filming in this area, Mr. Mark said since 85 per cent of the business is in the United States, the shows are on America television stations. If you happen to get World Fishing Network on your television, you can watch the shows, he added. It’s also on NBC Sports and Outdoor Sports television.
With the world kayak championships being held near Beachburg on the Ottawa River, Mr. Mark said an episode will feature the event and it will be shown in 44 countries. That episode of Facing Waves will be televised in this area through on Cogeco.
