Newsletter
A Note from Our Team
2025 was a strong year for Summerside—new investment, new jobs, new people, and a downtown with real energy for the first time in a long time. Across every sector of our economy, the story was growth. We head into 2026 with that momentum and a clear focus: keep building on it.
This issue covers where we see the biggest opportunity ahead—for investors, for businesses looking to grow or change hands, and for people considering making Summerside the place they build their career. There is something here for all three.
Our office exists to make investment and growth happen in this city. We know the market, we know the opportunities, and we work hard to connect the right people with the right ones. If anything here sparks an idea, visit us at bigpossibilities.ca, sign up for our monthly newsletter, and stay connected as we share new investment wins, growth stories, and opportunities throughout the year. We publish every month, and there is always something worth knowing.
Michael Thususka,
Director of Economic Development
This issue covers where we see the biggest opportunity ahead—for investors, for businesses looking to grow or change hands, and for people considering making Summerside the place they build their career. There is something here for all three.
Our office exists to make investment and growth happen in this city. We know the market, we know the opportunities, and we work hard to connect the right people with the right ones. If anything here sparks an idea, visit us at bigpossibilities.ca, sign up for our monthly newsletter, and stay connected as we share new investment wins, growth stories, and opportunities throughout the year. We publish every month, and there is always something worth knowing.
Michael Thususka,
Director of Economic Development
AEROSPACE & ADVANCED MANUFACTURING
World-Class Aerospace—Operating in Summerside
World-Class Aerospace—Operating in Summerside
For nearly 30 years, MDS Coating has supplied advanced durability coatings for jet engines around the world. But MDS Coating is just one example of what Summerside and Slemon Park offer to aerospace and advanced manufacturing investors.
When Jon Cheverie says MDS is a global leader in its field, he’s not overstating it. Since 1997, the company has specialized in applying advanced metallic-ceramic coatings to jet engine compressor components used across the global aviation industry. Today, its coatings are on millions of engine components in active service—improving fuel efficiency, extending engine life, and delivering value to airlines, maintenance providers, and engine OEMs worldwide.
This is high-precision, high-value, export-driven manufacturing, carried out by a team of approximately 100 employees, including 30 engineers, based in Slemon Park. Using Physical Vapour Deposition technology, MDS builds coatings atom by atom in controlled vacuum environments. Its proprietary MEERER coating—developed in-house—delivers proven aerodynamic performance gains.
This is not assembly work. This is advanced engineering at a world-class level. And it’s happening in Summerside for a reason: access to a skilled workforce, specialized infrastructure at Slemon Park, and a collaborative, business-friendly environment that supports innovation and growth.
Refer to the original bar, as this below is just a cut and paste:
When Jon Cheverie says MDS is a global leader in its field, he’s not overstating it. Since 1997, the company has specialized in applying advanced metallic-ceramic coatings to jet engine compressor components used across the global aviation industry. Today, its coatings are on millions of engine components in active service—improving fuel efficiency, extending engine life, and delivering value to airlines, maintenance providers, and engine OEMs worldwide.
This is high-precision, high-value, export-driven manufacturing, carried out by a team of approximately 100 employees, including 30 engineers, based in Slemon Park. Using Physical Vapour Deposition technology, MDS builds coatings atom by atom in controlled vacuum environments. Its proprietary MEERER coating—developed in-house—delivers proven aerodynamic performance gains.
This is not assembly work. This is advanced engineering at a world-class level. And it’s happening in Summerside for a reason: access to a skilled workforce, specialized infrastructure at Slemon Park, and a collaborative, business-friendly environment that supports innovation and growth.
Refer to the original bar, as this below is just a cut and paste:
“MDS Coating has thrived here in Summerside, and it’s all because of our incredible team. We’re world leaders in our industry from this small city.”— Jon Cheverie, President & COO, MDS Coating.
The cluster around MDS Coating is equally compelling. Slemon Park—spanning 1,400 acres on the former CFB Summerside—is home to StandardAero, Honeywell, Tronosjet, Fibre Connections, and more than 25 commercial tenants. Together, these operations generate over $305 million in exports annually and account for more than a quarter of Prince Edward Island’s international exports, which reached a record $2.6 billion in 2024.
PEI’s Aerospace Tax Rebate—Canada’s only aviation-specific provincial tax program—offers a full annual rebate on corporate income tax and real property tax for qualifying operations at Slemon Park. Combined with lower operating costs and established infrastructure, this creates a highly competitive environment. Internal cost modelling consistently shows that aerospace operations in PEI outperform comparable North American locations in net profit after tax.
The Opportunity Is Bigger Than One Company
MDS Coating is the headline, but Slemon Park’s 2024–2027 strategic plan is explicitly focused on expanding its aerospace centre of excellence and diversifying into adjacent advanced manufacturing. There is currently over 150,000 square feet of move-in-ready manufacturing space available at competitive lease rates. Turnkey facilities mean a new tenant can be operational and generating revenue far faster than any greenfield build would allow. The 8,000-foot paved runway at Summerside Airport is a full-service FBO handling private, corporate, charter, and military clients. With over 300 VFR days per year, it's operationally reliable for aviation-dependent businesses.
And we are not passive about attracting investment. All levels of government—federal, provincial, and municipal—have a strong track record of backing the right businesses here with real support: direct contributions, incentive packages, workforce programs, and development partnerships. We helped MDS grow. We helped StandardAero expand. We are ready to have the same conversation with the next company.
The cluster around MDS Coating is equally compelling. Slemon Park—spanning 1,400 acres on the former CFB Summerside—is home to StandardAero, Honeywell, Tronosjet, Fibre Connections, and more than 25 commercial tenants. Together, these operations generate over $305 million in exports annually and account for more than a quarter of Prince Edward Island’s international exports, which reached a record $2.6 billion in 2024.
PEI’s Aerospace Tax Rebate—Canada’s only aviation-specific provincial tax program—offers a full annual rebate on corporate income tax and real property tax for qualifying operations at Slemon Park. Combined with lower operating costs and established infrastructure, this creates a highly competitive environment. Internal cost modelling consistently shows that aerospace operations in PEI outperform comparable North American locations in net profit after tax.
The Opportunity Is Bigger Than One Company
MDS Coating is the headline, but Slemon Park’s 2024–2027 strategic plan is explicitly focused on expanding its aerospace centre of excellence and diversifying into adjacent advanced manufacturing. There is currently over 150,000 square feet of move-in-ready manufacturing space available at competitive lease rates. Turnkey facilities mean a new tenant can be operational and generating revenue far faster than any greenfield build would allow. The 8,000-foot paved runway at Summerside Airport is a full-service FBO handling private, corporate, charter, and military clients. With over 300 VFR days per year, it's operationally reliable for aviation-dependent businesses.
And we are not passive about attracting investment. All levels of government—federal, provincial, and municipal—have a strong track record of backing the right businesses here with real support: direct contributions, incentive packages, workforce programs, and development partnerships. We helped MDS grow. We helped StandardAero expand. We are ready to have the same conversation with the next company.
WHERE WE ARE ACTIVELY LOOKING FOR INVESTMENT AND PARTNERS AT SLEMON PARK
• Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul (MRO)—fixed-wing, rotor-wing, engines, accessories, avionics
• Tier 2 & Tier 3 precision manufacturing for aerospace supply chains
• Advanced coatings, surface treatment, and specialty materials
• Composites, additive manufacturing, and next-generation aerospace processes
• Defence and public safety training operations
• Specialty manufacturing that benefits from existing infrastructure, workforce, and export access
• Tier 2 & Tier 3 precision manufacturing for aerospace supply chains
• Advanced coatings, surface treatment, and specialty materials
• Composites, additive manufacturing, and next-generation aerospace processes
• Defence and public safety training operations
• Specialty manufacturing that benefits from existing infrastructure, workforce, and export access
MDS is also part of our New Life New Heights campaign—profiling Summerside’s high-growth employers to connect them with talent and investors across Canada and internationally. If your business is in aerospace, MRO, or specialty manufacturing, there is a real home for you here.
Ready to explore what Summerside and Slemon Park can offer your business?
Call or email Mike directly at 902.432.0103.
We would love to show you around!
DOWNTOWN INVESTMENT · RETAIL, SERVICE & LIVING
Downtown Summerside Is Open for Business—and the Momentum Is Real
Downtown commercial vacancy sits at around 5%—healthy, competitive, and well below what most Canadian cities are managing right now. According to our Summerside Business Directory, downtown employment holds steady at approximately 1,500 positions. That is the year-round customer base that makes a business work. And Summerside serves a trading area of approximately 45,000 people, with the city projected to exceed 20,000 residents by 2031.
The businesses that are going to do well here are the ones that create a reason to come downtown—independent retail, food and beverage with personality, personal services, professional offices, and creative studios. We are not competing with the strip mall on the highway. We are building something different: a place people choose to go because there is something worth going for.
Developer Paul Jenkins, who had built mostly in Charlottetown, chose Summerside for The Regent because our team showed up and worked with him to make it happen. That is not unusual here. It is how we operate. We are a city that cares about business, and we back that up.
Across Canada, an estimated 70–75% of small businesses will change hands in the next decade. In Summerside—a growing city with $100M+ in annual construction, a 45,000-person trading area, and real momentum—these are established businesses in the middle of a growth story.
Take a drive along Water Street or through Summerside’s commercial areas and you are looking at something that is not immediately obvious: a quiet but very real generational transition. Many of the businesses built here over the last 30 years are owned by people now in their 60s and 70s. Most do not have a formal succession plan. Many of them would rather pass their business to someone who will carry it forward than simply close the doors on decades of work.
Economists call what is happening nationally the “Silver Tsunami.” In a city like Summerside—growing population, record investment, a downtown coming back to life—that wave is not a problem. It is an opportunity. These are not struggling businesses in a declining market. They are profitable, established operations in a city that is moving forward.
A Note for Sellers
If you are thinking about retirement in the next few years, starting that process early consistently produces better outcomes. Two to three years of preparation gives you time to strengthen your financials, reduce how dependent the business is on you personally, and find the right buyer rather than settling for the first one who shows up. Early planning may also allow you to make full use of the Lifetime Capital Gains Exemption—up to $1.25 million in tax-advantaged treatment on the sale. Owners who work with qualified advisors and prepare properly do better, across the board.
Resources in Summerside and PEI
You do not need a technology background or a big budget to get real value from AI. You need one specific problem and the willingness to try. Here is what is actually working for small businesses in Summerside right now.
The businesses in our community that are getting the most out of AI are not the most technical ones. They are the most practical. A contractor who used to lose Sunday nights to quote emails now gets them done in under an hour. A retailer who could never keep up with social media is now posting consistently for the first time. A professional services firm that struggled to document its own procedures now has a living reference guide that actually gets used.
None of that required a consultant or a software budget. It required picking one problem and testing whether AI could help. That is the right way to start.
The real opportunity here is time. Most small businesses lose meaningful hours every week to routine writing, communication, and administrative tasks. AI handles those tasks faster and at very low cost. Saving one hour a week adds up to more than a full work week over the course of a year. In a competitive market like Summerside, that accumulates into a real advantage—faster responses, more consistent communication, lower overhead.
Where Small Businesses Are Seeing Results
Call or email Mike directly at 902.432.0103.
We would love to show you around!
DOWNTOWN INVESTMENT · RETAIL, SERVICE & LIVING
Downtown Summerside Is Open for Business—and the Momentum Is Real
New buildings, new residents, a formal 10-year revitalization plan, and a city that has already proven it will put land, money, and effort behind the right investments. Retail, service, food and beverage, residential, and mixed-use opportunities are here now.
Here is the simplest way to understand what is happening in downtown Summerside. Ten years ago, the population was essentially flat. Then, between 2016 and 2021, it grew by nearly 28%—adding roughly 250 people to the core in five years. More people living downtown means more demand for places to eat, shop, work out, get a haircut, buy a book, and grab coffee. That demand is looking for businesses to meet it. We need more of those businesses, and we want to help make it happen.
Here is the simplest way to understand what is happening in downtown Summerside. Ten years ago, the population was essentially flat. Then, between 2016 and 2021, it grew by nearly 28%—adding roughly 250 people to the core in five years. More people living downtown means more demand for places to eat, shop, work out, get a haircut, buy a book, and grab coffee. That demand is looking for businesses to meet it. We need more of those businesses, and we want to help make it happen.
What Is Being Built Right Now
This is not a planning document—it is active construction. The Regent, a five-storey $20M mixed-use development at Water and Summer Streets, is bringing 40 new residential units and 10,000 square feet of commercial space directly into the heart of downtown. The Boardwalk, a new luxury residential and mixed-use development at 68 Water Street, is underway. The Summerside Shipyard on the waterfront is being converted to a year-round restaurant. The Summerside Curling & Marina Complex—waterfront, curling, marina—is city-owned and opened for business. These are not renderings. They are under construction.
The city is backing all of it. Summerside surpassed $100 million in building permit values over the last number of years, showing stable investment returns. The 2025–26 municipal budget commits $29.1 million to community investment. We also secured $5.8 million through the federal Housing Accelerator Fund. The city owns land and has active relationships with owners in the downtown core and always looking for the right opportunity to collaborate, we have done it consistently over the years and we will do it again.
The city is backing all of it. Summerside surpassed $100 million in building permit values over the last number of years, showing stable investment returns. The 2025–26 municipal budget commits $29.1 million to community investment. We also secured $5.8 million through the federal Housing Accelerator Fund. The city owns land and has active relationships with owners in the downtown core and always looking for the right opportunity to collaborate, we have done it consistently over the years and we will do it again.
What This Means for Investors and Business Owners
Downtown commercial vacancy sits at around 5%—healthy, competitive, and well below what most Canadian cities are managing right now. According to our Summerside Business Directory, downtown employment holds steady at approximately 1,500 positions. That is the year-round customer base that makes a business work. And Summerside serves a trading area of approximately 45,000 people, with the city projected to exceed 20,000 residents by 2031.
The businesses that are going to do well here are the ones that create a reason to come downtown—independent retail, food and beverage with personality, personal services, professional offices, and creative studios. We are not competing with the strip mall on the highway. We are building something different: a place people choose to go because there is something worth going for.
Developer Paul Jenkins, who had built mostly in Charlottetown, chose Summerside for The Regent because our team showed up and worked with him to make it happen. That is not unusual here. It is how we operate. We are a city that cares about business, and we back that up.
WE ARE ACTIVELY LOOKING FOR INVESTMENT IN THESE AREAS
• Retail — independent, experiential, and destination-worthy
• Food, beverage, and hospitality — year-round, not seasonal
• Residential development — rental, ownership, and mixed-use
• Professional and creative services that generate daily foot traffic
• Heritage building and mixed-use redevelopment
• Waterfront and event-focused uses that draw visitors and extend the season
• Food, beverage, and hospitality — year-round, not seasonal
• Residential development — rental, ownership, and mixed-use
• Professional and creative services that generate daily foot traffic
• Heritage building and mixed-use redevelopment
• Waterfront and event-focused uses that draw visitors and extend the season
If you are considering retail, service, residential, or mixed-use investment in downtown Summerside, we want to hear from you!
Our team works directly with investors from the first conversation to opening day.
Our team works directly with investors from the first conversation to opening day.
BUSINESS ACQUISITION · SUCCESSION & OWNERSHIP TRANSITION
One of the Best Acquisition Opportunities in a Generation
One of the Best Acquisition Opportunities in a Generation
Across Canada, an estimated 70–75% of small businesses will change hands in the next decade. In Summerside—a growing city with $100M+ in annual construction, a 45,000-person trading area, and real momentum—these are established businesses in the middle of a growth story.
Take a drive along Water Street or through Summerside’s commercial areas and you are looking at something that is not immediately obvious: a quiet but very real generational transition. Many of the businesses built here over the last 30 years are owned by people now in their 60s and 70s. Most do not have a formal succession plan. Many of them would rather pass their business to someone who will carry it forward than simply close the doors on decades of work.
Economists call what is happening nationally the “Silver Tsunami.” In a city like Summerside—growing population, record investment, a downtown coming back to life—that wave is not a problem. It is an opportunity. These are not struggling businesses in a declining market. They are profitable, established operations in a city that is moving forward.
“The best businesses often aren’t listed—they’re found by buyers who show up early.”
Buying an existing business lets you skip the hardest startup years. Customers, staff, cash flow, and a reputation may already be in place. But a good acquisition takes preparation. Here is a practical framework for getting it right:
A Practical Roadmap for Buyers
Buying an existing business lets you skip the hardest startup years. Customers, staff, cash flow, and a reputation may already be in place. But a good acquisition takes preparation. Here is a practical framework for getting it right:
A Practical Roadmap for Buyers
- Know what you are looking for. Define the industries, size, and location that match your skills and financing capacity. Serious buyers usually put together a one-page acquisition brief—it sharpens your search and signals credibility to sellers.
- Find deals before they are listed. In a market like Summerside, the best opportunities surface through accountants, lawyers, business brokers, and direct outreach—not online platforms. Show up early.
- Read the financials properly. Three years of statements and tax returns minimum. Focus on true earnings (SDE or EBITDA), how concentrated the customer base is, and how dependent the business is on its current owner.
- Understand what you are paying. Most small businesses trade at 2x–5x seller’s discretionary earnings, depending on business type, recurring revenue, and owner dependency. A lower multiple is not always the safer buy.
- Get your financing in order early. The Canada Small Business Financing Program, CBDC PEI, and BDC all support acquisitions. Seller financing is common in smaller markets and reduces upfront capital needs.
- Do real due diligence. Verify the financials, check contracts and leases, and confirm CRA and HST compliance. The goal is not to kill the deal—it is to enter it with your eyes open.
- Negotiate more than the price. Transition support, non-competes, earnouts, and tax structure all affect the real value of the deal. Canada’s Lifetime Capital Gains Exemption (up to $1.25M) can also shape how a transaction is structured.
- Plan for day one. Many businesses run on owner relationships. A clear 90-day transition plan covering staff and customers makes a real difference to what happens after the keys change hands.
A Note for Sellers
If you are thinking about retirement in the next few years, starting that process early consistently produces better outcomes. Two to three years of preparation gives you time to strengthen your financials, reduce how dependent the business is on you personally, and find the right buyer rather than settling for the first one who shows up. Early planning may also allow you to make full use of the Lifetime Capital Gains Exemption—up to $1.25 million in tax-advantaged treatment on the sale. Owners who work with qualified advisors and prepare properly do better, across the board.
Resources in Summerside and PEI
- Greater Summerside Chamber of Commerce — business connections and peer networks
- City of Summerside Economic Development — market intelligence, introductions, investor support
- CBDC PEI — acquisition financing and advisory
- BDC — loan programs and strategic advisory for acquisitions
- Innovation PEI and ACOA — provincial and federal programs
Whether you are looking to buy or getting ready to sell, we can connect you with the right advisors, introductions, and market data.
Reach out before you think you need to. The best conversations happen early.
Reach out before you think you need to. The best conversations happen early.
TOOLS FOR BUSINESS GROWTH
AI Is Already Helping Summerside Businesses Save Time and Pull Ahead. Here’s Where to Start.
AI Is Already Helping Summerside Businesses Save Time and Pull Ahead. Here’s Where to Start.
You do not need a technology background or a big budget to get real value from AI. You need one specific problem and the willingness to try. Here is what is actually working for small businesses in Summerside right now.
The businesses in our community that are getting the most out of AI are not the most technical ones. They are the most practical. A contractor who used to lose Sunday nights to quote emails now gets them done in under an hour. A retailer who could never keep up with social media is now posting consistently for the first time. A professional services firm that struggled to document its own procedures now has a living reference guide that actually gets used.
None of that required a consultant or a software budget. It required picking one problem and testing whether AI could help. That is the right way to start.
The real opportunity here is time. Most small businesses lose meaningful hours every week to routine writing, communication, and administrative tasks. AI handles those tasks faster and at very low cost. Saving one hour a week adds up to more than a full work week over the course of a year. In a competitive market like Summerside, that accumulates into a real advantage—faster responses, more consistent communication, lower overhead.
Where Small Businesses Are Seeing Results
- Customer communication — responses to common inquiries, follow-up emails, quote and proposal templates
- Marketing content — social posts, seasonal promotions, job postings, website copy
- Internal documentation — process guides, onboarding checklists, how-to references
- Research and summarizing — condensing supplier specs, reports, and meeting notes into usable formats
The quality of what you get out depends heavily on how well you ask. A vague prompt gives you something generic. A specific prompt—one that includes context, audience, and a clear goal—gives you something you can use. “Write a Facebook post” is vague. “Write a short, friendly post promoting our spring landscaping services to homeowners in Summerside, with a call to book before May 1” is specific. The difference in the result is significant. Think of AI as a first-draft engine—it handles the blank page fast. Your judgment, your local knowledge, and your understanding of your customers are still what make it useful.
A Simple Four-Week Start
Week 1: Use AI to write one thing — a customer email, a social post, a job posting.
Week 2: Try summarizing a document, a set of notes, or a supplier spec sheet.
Week 3: Create one internal document — a checklist, a process guide, a staff FAQ.
Week 4: Identify the use that saved you the most time. Repeat it. Build from there.
Avoid three common mistakes: trying to change everything at once rather than proving value on one use first; expecting perfect output immediately when better results come from refining how you ask; and entering sensitive financial or customer data into public platforms.
The biggest risk is not using AI badly. It is watching competitors quietly become more efficient while you wait for a reason to start. Businesses in Summerside that communicate more consistently, respond faster, and operate more efficiently are the ones that stand out. AI is a practical way to get there.
A Simple Four-Week Start
Week 1: Use AI to write one thing — a customer email, a social post, a job posting.
Week 2: Try summarizing a document, a set of notes, or a supplier spec sheet.
Week 3: Create one internal document — a checklist, a process guide, a staff FAQ.
Week 4: Identify the use that saved you the most time. Repeat it. Build from there.
Avoid three common mistakes: trying to change everything at once rather than proving value on one use first; expecting perfect output immediately when better results come from refining how you ask; and entering sensitive financial or customer data into public platforms.
The biggest risk is not using AI badly. It is watching competitors quietly become more efficient while you wait for a reason to start. Businesses in Summerside that communicate more consistently, respond faster, and operate more efficiently are the ones that stand out. AI is a practical way to get there.
We can connect you with AI adoption workshops, peer networks, and practical resources tailored to Summerside businesses.
Call or email our office to find out what is available for your business.
Summerside Quick Facts
Call or email our office to find out what is available for your business.
Summerside Quick Facts
If interested in learning more about investment opportunities, economic development support or opportunities for growth, please call our Economic Development Professionals.
We would love to chat.
Alternatively, you can email us at mike@summerside.ca.
It could be the most profitable email you have ever sent.
Michael Thususka
Director of Economic Development, City of Summerside
275 Fitzroy Street, Summerside PE C1N 1H9
M: 902.432.0103, E: mike@summerside.ca
LET’S BUILD THE FUTURE TOGETHER!
We would love to chat.
Alternatively, you can email us at mike@summerside.ca.
It could be the most profitable email you have ever sent.
Michael Thususka
Director of Economic Development, City of Summerside
275 Fitzroy Street, Summerside PE C1N 1H9
M: 902.432.0103, E: mike@summerside.ca
LET’S BUILD THE FUTURE TOGETHER!