Glooscap First Nation in Nova Scotia launches new security company

A generic image of a security guard. (Source: Kluskap Security)

HANTSPORT — A First Nation in Nova Scotia has established a new commercial security company, a move its chief says is another example of the First Nation’s commitment to securing financial independence.

The recent expansion into the security sector “highlights the innovation Indigenous people bring to vital industries, such as safety and security,” Glooscap First Nation Chief Sidney Peters said in a statement.

The announcement Monday follows the band’s bold move last year to purchase two Nova Scotia shipyards as part of a larger strategy aimed at becoming a defence contractor.

Michael Peters, CEO of the First Nation’s investment arm, Glooscap Ventures, said Monday the latest business venture will offer surveillance, threat assessment, loss prevention and security guard services.

Glooscap Ventures is the community-owned economic development arm of the First Nation, which has investments in renewable energy, seafood and fisheries, retail and entertainment, and safety and security businesses.

Michael Peters said hiring for Kluskap Security has just begun, and it is his hope they will have a staff of 100 by the end of this year. The company will focus on hiring Mi’kmaq and other Indigenous candidates.

“Our goal here is to provide employment opportunities for our community members, but also generate our own source of revenue,” Michael Peters said in an interview.

He said that last year, Glooscap Ventures was able to inject nearly $1.4 million in profit back into the community. The First Nation used that money to support scholarships, infrastructure, training programs and other needs.

“Be it infrastructure, education, training, community programming ... these programs in our communities are underfunded by the government, so this allows us to be able to fill the gaps with the profits from these businesses,” he said.

“So the profits truly are staying here in Nova Scotia.”

In June 2024, the First Nation announced it had reached an agreement to acquire a majority stake in the B. Boutilier Group of Companies, which at the time owned the historic Lunenburg Shipyard and the nearby East River Shipyard.

It was after this acquisition that the Mi’kmaq band established a subsidiary called Glooscap Defence, which was created with the goal of becoming the largest Indigenous defence contractor in Canada.

At the time, Glooscap Ventures said the acquisition was in support Canada’s defence procurement strategy, which requires that at least five per cent of all procurement is handled by an Indigenous partner.

The new Kluskap Security company will operate under the Glooscap Defence portfolio, Peters said.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 27, 2025.

-- By Lyndsay Armstrong in Halifax.