Alex Reid

I do many things and I have many interests.

I run an art agency representing painters & photographers and for over a decade I’ve been managing a successful web site hosting company with 500+ clients.

So far, I’m the youngest person to ever run for Mayor of Winnipeg (1998) and what seemed at first like a dare quickly turned into an intense learning experience about civic politics, guerrilla marketing and networking on a shoestring budget.

Thanks to $50, a lot of time and a couple dedicated friends, I experienced the strangest five months of my life; seeing civic politics from the inside out.

It was a blast, but I will never do that again.

Admittedly I did do it again. The next year, I was asked by the then-newly-formed Green Party of Manitoba to be one of their first slate of candidates in Manitoba. So I ran for MLA in Fort Rouge, gaining 2% of the vote.

Soon after, I was offered a position as Executive Assistant to a City Councillor. My duties included constituency communication, community dispute resolution, policy research and media management.

I was heavily involved during the most contentious issue debates at the time, such as the smoking ban, the garbage/waste user fees and upon my departure from City Hall, the last issue I worked on was the Animal testing ban bylaw (canceling the practice that saw lost animals sold to the University of Manitoba for animal testing). In Fall 2002, after assisting in a successful re-election campaign, I resigned to focus more on other ventures.

In 2001, I established the Skateboarding Association of Winnipeg to lobby the three levels of government and the private sector for a world-class skate park to be built in Winnipeg. From this experience, I learned about public relations, media management, and financial lobbying.

Thanks to the support from a lot of local retailers and hitting the streets with clipboards in hand, we gathered over 9,000 signatures. While raising positive awareness in the media, letters to the editors began to be printed in our favour, which further snowballed popular opinion. Within the year, I received public support from the Mayor of Winnipeg, a majority of City Council, several provincial cabinet ministers and a prominent local MP, which led to Winnipeg City Council officially endorsing our group and our mission in 2002 to build a massive skate park in downtown Winnipeg.

Suddenly the idea was so popular, everyone started proposing community skate parks and for the first time, “skateboarding” in Winnipeg was finally recognized by the City of Winnipeg via the 2004 Public Use Facility Study; adding skate parks to the official city list of recreational priorities. In 2005, Winnipeg got the multi-million dollar 44,000 square foot skate park built at the Forks.

After years of making contacts, I started the Reid Art Agency in 2007. I represent a dozen photographers and painters, with presence in both Winnipeg and Vancouver. I also offer web development, web design services and search engine optimization services.

I also produce and co-host art.tech.culture – a weekly video show and I am involved with Burningman’s Media Mecca.

Why does this web site exist?

I use this web site as a blog; a place where I write about the things that interest me.

There are probably thousands of individuals named “Alex Reid” on this planet, and certainly a hundred or so of the same just in Canada. I may be the Alex Reid you’re looking for, or you may be confusing me with another Alex Reid. Feel free to contact me if you’re unsure, and I’ll try my best to help!

Thanks for visiting my web site and taking the time to care.

alexATalexreid.ca