​August and summer are coming to an end, and it was such a fantastic month for us at Choice Communication!

Over the past weekend, Vancouver's Chinatown was filled with vibrant celebrations, community spirit, and delicious food during the fourth annual Light Up Chinatown! Festival. Thanks to the Vancouver Chinatown Foundation for bringing us this fantastic event!

Folklore has it that the festival honours the love story of Niulang (牛郎, pronunciation: ngau4 long4), a cowherd, and Zhinü (織女, pronunciation: zik1 neoi5-2), a weaver girl. The Queen Mother of Heaven tore apart their forbidden love, but magpies form a bridge across the stars (the Milky Way) once a year to reunite them.

As Canada celebrates its 157th anniversary of the Canadian Confederation which occurred on July 1, 1867, people from coast to coast to coast have their own ways of celebration.

To many, Canada Day is a statutory holiday. But to immigrants like me, Canada Day should be a day to reflect on what it means to be Canadian, to share what makes us proud, to celebrate, and to give back.
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My family moved to Canada in 1993. We picked Vancouver due to the considerably mild weather and its proximity to the Asia Pacific. It was then a sleepy little town. But that was why we appreciate more what Vancouver has to offer. People are friendly and embrace multiculturalism. Food is always a good entry point – we can find all kinds of cuisines here – Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Indian, just to name a few. 

​​For the past 20 years, UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) has put in tremendous efforts to preserve and protect intangible cultural heritage worldwide. Food is considered an important part of intangible cultural heritage; and it is hoped that it will be passed down from generation to generation.

​At Vancouver Chinatown, we have a strong passion for food. Memories are weaved around families and friends gather around a table to celebrate important occasions, such as birthdays, festivals, anniversaries, or just because.

​​This week is Small Business Week ( October 15 - 21, 2023 )

According to the Government of British Columbia, there are over 500,000 small businesses, constituting 98% of the total businesses in the province, meaning roughly one in 10 British Columbians are small business owners or entrepreneurs. In 2022, small businesses contributed 34% to B.C.’s GDP, the highest in Canada.

We've noticed that the past few years have been challenging for small business owners, not only due to global inflation but also because of rising interest rates and other factors.

So, how can we support these entrepreneurs, store owners, and restaurants through our small actions?

Here are five ways to support small businesses in the service industry:

​Media roundtable is a personalized approach to build a relationship with the media, to engage, and to create a two-way dialogue. While a media Q&A or scrum happens at the end of a news conference is often one-directional, it is through a roundtable setting when the host has a chance to learn and listen to the journalists since they are basically “your eyes and ears on the ground”. ​

As we usher in the Lunar New Year which is celebrated by the Chinese, Vietnamese, and Korean communities, it is important to remember how a company conducts its business in a culturally sensitive way goes a long way. In Canada, not only do we observe the official languages English and French, many businesses are using other languages as a way to tell their customers that they value their business.

With the biggest immigrant population speaking Chinese, Punjabi, and Tagalog, we certainly see businesses and stores putting up festive signs and decorations during Lunar New year or Diwali, for example. Like in our previous blog, we talked about the importance to speak to your audience in their language of choice.