Successful First Nation business owner imparts advice at First Nations Agriculture & Finance Ontario Conference

By Sam Laskaris

CHIPPEWAS OF RAMA FIRST NATION – Derek Marsden is more than eager to pass on some of his secrets to running a successful business.

Marsden, an Alderville First Nation citizen, runs Marsden Construction, a First Nation-owned company that specializes in building custom homes.

Marsden was also a panellist at the First Nations Agriculture & Finance Ontario Conference, which was held Feb. 3-5 in Chippewas of Rama First Nation.

He spoke on a panel, Growing First Nations Economies, which also included another Alderville First Nation member, Lanny Ferguson, who owns Mukwa Safety Services, and Scott Flamand, a member of Wiikwemkoong Unceded Territory, who is a longtime consultant on First Nations housing and financial management.

Marsden offered his advice to the next generation of Indigenous entrepreneurs.

“I would say to prepare yourself for the grind,” he said. “It’s not going to be overnight. You’re not going to get success right away. You have to be patient. You have to listen to your gut. And you have to be prepared to burn the boats.”

Marsden added not to think negatively and to set a time-frame for the business to succeed.

“If you really love it and you really want to go for it, you’re going to invest a lot of time and money into it,” he said.

Marsden also said it’s normal to have some doubts about whether a business will fail.

“And then, all of a sudden, you start seeing all of your hard work coming to fruition,” he said.

Flamand also provided tips for those starting up a business. He often encounters individuals looking to become entrepreneurs in his own line of work.

Flamand said these would-be First Nations business people need to be aware of what help they can take advantage of.

“They don’t know about this assistance that’s available,” he said. “My advice is always look out there for assistance. There are programs available for you, even if you live off-reserve, there are various programs.”

Flamand also believes it is imperative to persevere.

“Don’t give up,” he said. “If you’re good at something and people know it, they’re going to buy your service or your product because they see the passion that you have for that product or that service that you’re providing. And they’ll want to be a part of that.”

Ferguson is proof of that. He established his company, which mostly provides services in the nuclear power industry, in 2022.

“Those services are coming more in demand now,” he said.

Meanwhile, Marsden said one should never become complacent when running a business, as new developments are frequent due to technology.

“Everything changes so fast,” he added. “You’re constantly educating yourself.”

Marsden also said that as soon as the COVID-19 pandemic hit, he scrambled to ensure his company was involved in different endeavours and not just housing.

“I didn’t know how the housing market was going to go with COVID,” he said. “So, we started landscaping. We started creating new systems and creating new partnerships as well.”

Marsden said it might sound scary to take on additional responsibilities.

“But I would say, don’t be afraid of the risk,” he said. “Maybe run towards it. If you can at least take a leap, you can find out if it was for you or not for you. It’s better than not taking a leap and then not understanding where you could have at least learned something that would help your business grow.”

The panel also included Sam Damm, a member of Chippewas of Nawash Unceded First Nation, who is the president of a pair of companies, and is in charge of CLAW Environmental Services Inc., which specializes in environmental sustainability and FoxWise Technologies Inc., which supports Indigenous businesses and government partners by providing IT and security solutions.