Courtesy The Chilliwack Progress
- By Jennifer Feinberg - staff writer

... Shelley Mohammed, director of Log Homes Canada ® / Chilliwack Mountain Log Homes, was one of 260 Canadian business people who joined Prime Minister Jean Chretien's trade mission from February 12 to February 22. "It went very well and we were all kept very busy. We got some good leads in Russia and a few new ones from Germany too," she says. "Amazingly enough, I even made some Canadian connections, with freight and value-added companies from right across the country."

People's reactions to the company's hand-crafted log homes made from Western red cedar, are always the same, she says. "People just love them. The Russian market over there is very high-end and it could lead to some lucrative contracts for us," Ms. Mohammed says. "They just don't have the same type of wood we have here."

The three-year-old company has been growing since its 1999 launch and it was the first Canadian company to ship a log home, piece-by-piece in a container, to Israel last year. "I actually managed to get some very serious sales leads on the trip and not just those of the 'Can I have a brochure?' variety," Ms. Mohammed adds. "Now that I'm back, I'll be working on the new leads. My impression is there's lots of opportunities in Russia for Canadians to do business. There's an ongoing effort to legitimize operations and some Russian companies see the solid potential of networking with Canadian companies." A resident of Germany contacted Chilliwack Mountain Log Homes over the Internet (www.loghomescanada.com) about a year ago. "This gentleman actually sought me out during the trade mission, and that's really what the trip was all about, getting exposure and the best kind of exposure. This really cements our existing business relationship with Germany," she says. "I think when the Prime Minister of your country endorses your company (with a trade mission selection), people recognize it as a company that's really going somewhere."

The prime minister's previous seven trade mission efforts have netted some really good results through increased export revenues, she says ... "I didn't find anyone disappointed. It was incredibly well-organized and everything was first rate. The business we're going to generate from this trip will more than cover our expenses, so it was definitely worth every penny."

Chilliwack Mountain Log Homes Ltd. is a joint venture started by Ms. Mohammed, her husband Keith Ollenberger, and partners, Colin Ollenberger and his wife Andrea Ollenberger. Keith and Colin are a father-and-son team of builders who together have a combined total of more than 35 years experience. Today the company employs 17 people and is projecting $2 million in gross sales this year.