Jeff Colbourne
Northern News Services

NNSL (Aug 17/98) - It began in 1977 as a small supply company owned and operated by Max Braden and Rick Burry based in Yellowknife's Old Town.

Twenty years later Gord Stewart heads up Braden/Burry Expediting with partners and projects scattered across the North.

BBE is even listed on the stock market with two million shares trading on the Alberta exchange.

"Since 1988 the exploration business has obviously been good. There's been all kinds of competitors who have entered the field since we bought Braden/Burry in `88," said Gord Stewart, BBE's president, leaning back in his chair in his spacious office near Yellowknife's airport.

"It's probably been a good thing that there have been other people enter the business just because during the diamond rush it would have been impossible for one or two companies to do all the work, and do it well."

Presently, BBE has projects in the High Arctic, Baker Lake in the Keewatin, the Arctic Coast and at BHP Diamonds' Ekati mine site.

One of BBE's more noticeable and successful business ventures has been in Baker Lake.

In 1986, BBE did a joint venture with Peter Tapatai and Frank Tootoo of Baker Lake to form Peter's Expediting which has paid dividends to both companies.

"Since that time Peter's has accomplished several things. In the last 18-20 months, every one of their employees are Inuk and they've worked for most of the major mining companies in the area. Cumberland, Apex Geoscience and Cogema," said Stewart.

In addition to expediting, Peter's and BBE handle all of Skyward Aviation's shipping needs and do the local cartage for the Northern Store in Baker Lake.

The partnership Braden/Burry has with Peter's Expediting will ensure that both businesses are ready when a couple of mines that are now in the exploration stages go into production, which Stewart believes will happen soon.

"The idea is that when something gets going over there we will be able to lend some support to them. What Peter's is doing is the basic grassroots expediting but if they do require assistance, we're here to help."

Peter's Expediting also falls under Article 24 which makes it a preferred company when Nunavut Construction projects come up in the region.

Another BBE community partner is Cambridge Bay's Umingmak Supply Ltd. It too has done very well, he said.

Stewart said there are two other companies they are working on to form partnerships.

"We're not at liberty to say which communities right now but I think there will probably be some announcements before very long," he said.

To assure the company grows, it is important that BBE expands into the communities which is one of the reasons why BBE went public and placed itself on the Alberta Stock Exchange July 2.

"If you don't grow you're probably going backwards," said Stewart. "There are a number of ways to grow. You can reach into your pocket and write a cheque, but I can't do that, or go onto the public markets."

BBE started with an initial public offering (IPO) of 25 cents. Since July 2 their shares have been as high as 58 cents each. Last Wednesday shares closed at 40 cents.

Going public was a huge decision for the five shareholders at BBE. Each had to give up 20 per cent of their shares to their broker and have him place it on the exchange. A financial risk that required a lot of soul searching, he said.

The decision also meant public exposure of the company's dealings and revenues.

"The biggest difference I found was when we did the prospectus. The prospectus basically outlines what you did, what you're going to do, what your plans are and your last five year's financial statements," he said.

"Most businesses, the first thing they do is lock up their financial information in the bottom drawer and nobody gets to see it. For the last 15 years I've been keeping my information tight to my chest. But pretty soon everybody in town will have a copy of my prospectus. It's almost like running around naked. It was a big shock in the beginning."

The stock market is a big motivator for the company, he said. It motivates staff and forces him to look for other deals to help the company grow. Which was the idea all along, he said.