2026
Goodfish Lake Business Corporation
In 1976, Chief Sam Bull and the Whitefish Lake First Nation #128’s Economic Development Committee realized they could benefit from oil sands development and created the company now known as Goodfish Lake Business Corporation (GFLBC).
Starting with a small dry-cleaning facility and a local sewing club, GFLBC worked with Syncrude, and through their valuable support the business grew to the point that it began to manufacture coveralls and other industrial garments on the Nation, in addition to cleaning them.
From this humble beginning, GFLBC continued to grow and now has a 10,000-square-foot manufacturing facility and an 11,000-square-foot industrial dry-cleaning facility on the Nation plus wet and dry-cleaning plants in Fort McMurray and Lac La Biche, and a store in Edmonton.
In addition to ongoing profits from the business going back into the community, a significant opportunity for the Nation was to create the ability to provide meaningful employment for Whitefish Lake First Nation #128’s band members.
Over the last 50 years of operation, over two generations of band members have worked at GFLBC. There is virtually no family in the community that hasn’t had a family member work for the company.
As of June 2026, GFLBC employs 140 permanent employees over four locations (Whitefish Lake, Lac La Biche, Fort McMurray and Edmonton), plus part time employees as required.
Almost three-quarters are Indigenous employees with 88 band members of the Whitefish Lake First Nation #128 permanently employed.
We provide a full benefits package and matching pension to our employees.
Seasonal employment through GFLBC’s firefighting division adds about another 80 employees, virtually all Indigenous employees, primarily from Whitefish Lake First Nation #128.
Despite being out of the way, with no paved roads, GFLBC’s daily semi-trailer runs 364 days a year to Fort McMurray, bringing the cleaned garments and picking up dirty garments to be cleaned. A fleet of trucks also service the Lakeland and Heartland three to five times per week.
GFLBC is wholly owned by Whitefish Lake First Nation #128 and has grown with several key expansions since its inception, and 2026 marks the 50th anniversary of GFLBC operations.
In 2012, the leadership of the Nation moved to create an independent board of directors to improve internal GFLBC governance to formally separate GFLBC’s business from the politics of the Nation. Since that action was taken, the company has shown continuing profitable growth. Dividends from the profits of GFLBC are paid to the Nation which help support infrastructure, education, and other Nation needs.
