The Town of Okotoks is working to help local businesses realize their potential in tourism.

In partnership with Travel Alberta, Community Futures Highwood, the Business Development Bank of Canada, and Alberta Culture & Tourism, the Town is providing an informational session called Discover Your Tourism Potential for entrepreneurs involved with tourism, like retail stores and restaurants.

Shane Olson, Manager of Economic Development, says with current economic troubles in the province they want to help businesses grow.

"We really want to be able to, certainly in the economic times we're in today, provide information for both business retention and expansion purposes to help our tourism operators expand and be successful in the economy we're in."

Olson says it's a great way to bring light into current economic worries.

"Many businesses might be surprised that they're a company that's associated with the tourism scene in Okotoks so it's a wide range of businesses that may want to capitalize on tourism," he says. "It's an 8 billion dollar industry in Alberta and with the oil and gas industry taking a downturn as a province they're trying to diversify the economy, so this is one sector that has a lot of potential."

The event takes place Mar. 16 from 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. at the Okotoks Municipal Centre.

Registration for Discover Your Tourism Potential is free and needs to be completed before the event. To register click here.

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