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More than a third plan to work into seventies, 14% will never retire,  Investors Group poll finds

More than a third – 39 per cent – of Canadian small business owners plan to stay on the job until they are in their seventies, 27 per cent will hang in until they are 65 to 69 – and 14 per cent say they will never retire, according to a new survey from Investors Group Inc.

More than half – 53 per cent – do not have a succession plan in place. The main reason? For 66 per cent, it's because they are not ready to retire, found the survey of 745 owners of businesses with fewer than 500 employees.

And even after they retire, 60 per cent still want to be involved in their company, the survey found, either as a financial adviser or mentor, for 30 per cent; as a consultant, for 22 per cent; or on the board of directors, for 7 per cent.

When they go, most will be selling out, rather than passing on the business, the survey found. Eighty-five per cent said family members were not interested in taking on the business. Who would they sell out to? For 24 per cent, it would be the highest bidder, followed by family, at 18 per cent, and business partners, at 17 per cent.

As for what will fund their retirement, 41 per cent said the proceeds of selling out would be the most important source of retirement income. That was less than the 56 per cent who cited RRSPs and 54 per cent who looked to investments, the survey found.

The survey also found that just 14 per cent of the respondents had a written succession plan.

Mobile grocery delivery app launches

Toronto-based supermarket chain Longo Brothers Fruit Markets Inc. and Toronto-based digital shopper marketing company Unata Inc. have teamed up to launch a mobile application to shop for groceries.

The new app will allow shoppers to order grocery deliveries on their iPhone or mobile web app from online grocery delivery service GroceryGateway.com, which is owned by Longo's. Users will be able to create orders, view previously purchased items, pick a delivery time, and securely check out with any credit card, according to the release. It claims to be the first Canadian mobile app for grocery delivery.

Ten ways to get the most out of mentoring

How to get the most out of mentoring? This Business Insider piece offers 10 keys for mentors and mentees to make the relationship work best.

EVENTS AND KEY DATES

Mentor Madness

With Global Entrepreneurship Week running from Nov. 12 to Nov. 18, Invest Ottawa will kick off the week with a mentorship event it's calling Mentor Madness that will offer speed mentoring sessions to 30 entrepreneurs. They will get one-on-one face time with eight mentors for seven minutes apiece. Entrepreneurs who want to be involved must be early-stage or growing businesses based, owned and operating in Ontario. For more information, click here.

Silicon Halton Pitch Night

Silicon Halton – a grassroots group of high-techers in the Halton region – is holding a speed mentoring and pitch night meetup in Oakville, Ont. on Nov. 13. It's a chance to practice pitches, spread the word about your business and make new connections. For further details, click here.

EDITOR'S PICKS FROM REPORT ON SMALL BUSINESS

What never to say to clients – if you want to keep them

It goes without saying that courteous service is important to customers. Nearly a third of respondents to a research report from American Express said they were most likely to switch brands because of rude or unresponsive customer service reps. So what should you never say to a client you want to keep? Have a read of what clients never want to hear.

FROM THE ROSB ARCHIVES

Turn customer complaint into loyalty opportunity

Another customer service issue is how you handle complaints. Back in July, columnist Chris Griffiths shared his wisdom on how to turn a customer complaint into an opportunity to create a loyal customer.

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Study and track financial data on any traded entity: click to open the full quote page. Data updated as of 27/03/24 6:40pm EDT.

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