b'INDIGENOUS PROCUREMENTThosefirst30dayswereverydicey anddifficult,tryingtokeeprevenue comingin,saysRivers.Wewere very fortunate in being able to pivot in doing a lot of the PPEdisposable masks, hand sanitizers, neck gaitersthat companies needed right away. Switching from value-added, branded goodstosimplyprocuringCOVID-relatedproductswasnotideal,but itkeptthebusinessgoing.Asthe pandemic dragged on, clients started to order branded goods again. Rivers sayshethinkssomeclientswere consciously choosing to buy from an Indigenous-owned business, evidence thatCCABsfocusonAboriginal procurement is showing results when it is most needed.SamDamm,fromtheChippewasof NawashUncededFirstNationnear Wiarton on Georgian Bay, is president of the 21-year-old IT company FoxWise TechnologiesInc.and16-year-old Ontario Power Generation is an example of a business actively seeking to engage IndigenousCLAWEnvironmentalServicesInc., companies in its supply chain. It uses a scorecard system that gives more points to RFP biddersboth based in Ottawa. With FoxWise, using Indigenous supplierswerenotgoingtohaveastandout year, but its going to be a good year. CLAW has had more challenges. We haventhadaccesstothefieldwork that we typically have, he says.Anish Brandings John Chabot and Shawn Rivers altered their product offering to supply hand sanitizers and disposable masks during the COVID pandemic34A CCAB PUBLICATION2021'