Prince Rupert based CityWest opens new storefront in Smithers

The eastward expansion of Prince Rupert based CityWest has now set up storefront operation in the Smithers area, with the official opening of CityWests new office at 3767 2nd Avenue West in the Bulkley Valley city.

CityWest CEO Don Holkestad was on hand  this week, joining  Smithers Mayor Taylor Bacharach in cutting the ribbon to officially open the facility and to introduce the range of services that CityWest has to offer.

"We're coming to Smithers with some great new Internet, TV and home phone products and want to make sure we had a solid presence in the community" -- CityWest CEO Don Holkestad at the opening of the company's latest storefront operation in Smithers.

The storefront operation will be open from Noon to 2 PM for the short term, gradually expanding their hours of operation to 10 to 4 PM as Bulkley Valley customers sign up for service.

"We're doing a gradual opening so customers can have a chance to see the store, meet our staff and demo our products." -- Tina Lussier Manger of Customer Service for CityWest explaining the launch period for the new office in Smithers.

Mr. Holkestad recently made a presentation to the Smithers Chamber of Commerce outlining the CityWest plans for the community. A service plan that will provide Fibre-to-home technology to Bulkley Valley residences and businesses, allowing for a larger capacity of Internet bandwidth into the community.

CityWest CEO Don Holkestad and Smithers Mayor
Taylor Bacharach at the Opening of CityWest's Smithers office

The opening of the Smithers office marks the third such operation for the City of Prince Rupert owned communications company over the last few years.

Though launching storefronts has at times provided for setbacks for the company. A Kitimat storefront closed in late 2013 with the company explaining that the location had not met with expectations when it came to foot traffic and brand exposure.

With CityWest relatively new to the Bulkley Valley, it's hoped that the storefront presence will provide an opportunity for residents of the region to learn more about what CityWest has to offer.

CFTK TV was on hand for the Grand opening, they outlined the event with an item on the TV 7 news earlier this week, you can review that report here.

You can learn more about the new office from this media release from the CityWest website.

For more items related to CityWest developments see our archive page here.