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The Analog Kids
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BUSINESS
cameras now. They’re just wanting these analog approaches,” Boyd says. “A lot of people over the pandemic spent way too much time online and I think the negative effects of that has them wanting to go out and gain real experiences ... and having something in hand goes part and parcel with that.”
That desire for IRL over online is changing the approach that people like Boyd are taking when it comes to ap- pealing to a new generation of concert- goers. He says sluggish engagement with online promotions has prompted his venues to focus their efforts towards more street-oriented methods, like the postering the kids do.
“We’re finding handbills and posters to be more effective once again,” he says. “Whatever is happening — whether people are tuning out or whether it’s the algorithms that are making [marketing] a bit more restrictive — we’re kind of returning to a more grass- roots approach in general.” — JESSE COLE
Tape Heads
→ So, analog is making a comeback? You bet.
Chances are, if you’re over 35, you remember the mixtape — taking a fresh Maxell or TDK cassette, mixing some of your favourite songs, and then playing it back in your Walkman, in your car’s cassette player or in the boom box.
It was also the way that you declared your crush for someone — you made that person
a “mixtape.” It was like baring your soul, each song filled with some sort of secret message that you hoped would be well received. Making a mixtape was way more powerful than roses, more personal than jewels.
And is it making a comeback? We can only hope. If, years ago, you tossed out old Maxell or TDK tapes that were still in the wrapper, you might want to put down the magazine.
Here are some eBay auction numbers:
Five-pack of TDK SA-XG 90 Type II cassettes: $574 CDN
Single Maxell MX 60 Metaxial Metal Bias Type IV cassette: $67 CDN
Single BASF TPII Reference Maxima Position High 20: $105 CDN
→ Doug Griffiths’s appointment as the new CEO of the Edmonton Chamber of Commerce might have come eight years after he stepped down as the MLA for Battle River-Wainwright, but, as far as he’s concerned, it happened right on time.
“It probably sounds strange, but about every seven or eight years, it feels like it’s time to do something different,” Griffiths says, reflecting on the repeating septet of his life as a community builder. “For eight years, I ran my own company and we did incredibly well. Five years before that, I decided to run for the leadership of the [Progressive Con- servative] party and lost to Alison Redford. Eight years before that,
I entered politics.”
That company is 13 Ways Inc,
a consulting agency named after Griffiths’ 2010 book 13 Ways to
Kill Your Community (he wrote
a second edition in 2016). The tongue-in-cheek “user manual” was inspired by the lessons Griffiths learned working as an MLA and community builder in rural Alberta, which ranged from simple things like painting infrastructure to more expansive ideas like welcoming outsiders. Now as the head of Edmonton’s largest commercial advocacy group, Griffiths hopes
to push for some of those same reforms here in the capital region. But first, he wants to see changes in the Chamber’s approach.
“Because technology is chang- ing so quickly, one way that the Chamber needs to — and is going to — step up is by facilitating better education to help small business owners understand and interpret the way the economy is changing, the impact it has on their busi-
ness and how they can utilize those changes to become more successful.”
Beyond the Chamber, Griffiths is also hoping to see the city embrace an identity rooted in what it is, rather than what it isn’t.
“Edmonton spends too much time trying to compete with Calgary and trying to become Calgary. And this province doesn’t need two Calgarys,” he says. “What Alberta needs and what Canada needs is a really strong Edmonton to step up to the plate.
“When you look at opportunities for economic success around North America, it’s places that have a regional focus and where they have greater diversity in the types of communities, populations, and job centres. And that is Edmonton.
“I want the Chamber to be an expression and reflection of that diversity that we have around the region and around the city.”
And while it’s too early for Griffiths to say how long he plans to be at the helm of the Chamber — if his previous trajectory is any indica- tion, somewhere around seven years might be a safe bet — he’s certain about where he hopes to leave it.
“When I do leave, I want the Chamber to be the most valued membership that any business owner in the Edmonton region could ever have,” Griffiths says. “Ultimately, when we’re done,
the Chamber will be incredibly effective, very influential, a key resource for businesses, and this city will have taken its rightful place as one of the greatest cities in North America.
“It’s an ambitious goal, but you’ve got to start somewhere.“
— TOM NDEKEZI
Single BASF 90 Metal IV cassette:
$192 CDN
16 EDify. JANUARY•FEBRUARY.24
SAVING THE DAY
PHOTOGRAPHY COOPER & O’HARA