As Alberta’s largest city, and the third largest in Canada, you’d expect Calgary to be a thriving metropolitan area – and it is. There is reportedly a higher density of millionaires in the city than in anywhere else in the country and the population is steadily growing thanks to the influx of newcomers seeking employment opportunities.
While most industries thrive others like leisure and entertainment, including a growing online casino sector, show even more exceptional growth potential. So it’s this area that many are expecting to see the most significant gains in future.
This momentum will certainly pose some challenges, not least the demand for more homebuilding to accommodate the expanding population.
There is also set to be a $1 billion investment in improving the city’s infrastructure including rebuilding the Victoria Park/Stampede Station as well as the Sixth Street SE Underpass. This is projected to further improve the city’s connectivity to the rest of the country and beyond.
So let’s take a look at five key sectors that are booming and which promise to continue to grow.
Entertainment
Calgary has already fully embraced the digital age, and it’s set to do even more in the future. The prediction is that the entertainment and creative industries sector will have invested over $560 million in digital transformation between 2022 and 2024, something that will touch on everything from eSports to animation and visual effects to immersive technologies like virtual reality.
Alberta in general is also set to become the country’s centre for the production of sophisticated special effects for film and television as well as for animation, assisted by the Government’s official Growth Strategy.
A similar strategy is also in place for eSports which is seen to present a billion dollar opportunity by attracting events to the city.
Energy
Calgary has long led the way in Canada for oil and gas production. Indeed, Alberta is where around 75% of the country’s production takes place. It also has the world’s third largest reserves of crude oil.
But, as we gradually moves away from fossil fuels, the city is prepared for this major step change. The region is fortunate to have a wind resource that is suitable for the generation of electricity. covering around 35% of the land It’s also Canada’s sunniest city with over 330 days of sun each year.
Already the province of Alberta has the second-highest solar energy capacity in Canada and comes third in terms of wind capacity. Under development right now is what will be the country’s biggest solar farm, set to power 100,000 homes.
Aerospace
Calgary is one of the country’s busiest airports, as well as the base for two of Canada’s biggest airlines, WestJet and Adlair Aviation. This has helped to confirm the city’s position as an aerospace hub.
Subsectors include geospatial data analysis, the manufacture of navigation and communication technology and flight software. There is also a growing reliance on manufacturing, maintenance repair and overhaul services for all kinds of aircraft.
The airport itself is also a major cargo hub for the country as well as one of the fastest growing. This, naturally, has a strong knock-on effect for other sectors including logistics and warehousing in the region.
Agribusiness
Alberta is Canada’s third-largest province when it comes to the export of agricultural food products including cereals, protein crops and livestock. Its relatively warm climate, plentiful supplies of water and good quality soil create highly favourable growing conditions.
Around a third of the province is given over to farmland with a particular concentration around Calgary and Southern Alberta.
The nature of the land, combined with good irrigation, means that wheat, oats and even some fruits thrive. In 2020 the region produced $12.4 billion worth of the country’s total agrifood exports
The air, road and rail connections mean it’s ideally placed to serve North American markets and millions of potential consumers.
Financial services
Calgary is one of the top 30 Fintech hubs in North America with 80% of the province’s financial services companies based in the city. As well as having many long-established firms, it’s also a fertile area for enterprise with over 150 recent startups continuing to thrive.
Much of this is down to the talent that is drawn to the city with expertise in many fields including blockchain, financial software development as well as personal and corporate finance expertise.
It all makes for a very positive economic outlook for the city and the region generally.
The main challenge is set to be having a large enough pool of suitably qualified candidates to fill the positions being created. But good support is provided by the universities and other educational establishments in the region and beyond.
So even in the face of what may prove to be stormy economic waters ahead, Calgary is set to maintain a steady course.