What’s in this Issue
News
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Entrepreneur Spotlight: Styawat Leigh Joseph, Founder of Sḵwálwen Botanicals
Business Tools & Resources
November 2022
Hello and welcome to the Innovators & Entrepreneurs Foundation (IEF) November Newsletter! Check out the exciting news, events, and resources made available to inspire you and support your business!
Announcing the 2022 CANIE AWARD Winners
On November 16, 2022, we announced the talented winners of the 40th Annual CANIE Awards, presented in partnership with UPS Canada. Many Canadians tuned in during the live airing of our much anticipated 2022 CANIE Awards Virtual Grand Finale Gala to cheer on all the semi-finalists and winners as they were revealed. Did you miss the gala? Tune in here!
Check out our seven incredible 2022 CANIE Award winners. Each are exemplars of our nation’s social innovation, resilience, and entrepreneurial success!
ENTREPRENEUR OF THE YEAR AWARD, SPONSORED BY OWNR
WINNER: NATASHA DHAYAGUDE, CEO & CO-FOUNDER, CHINOVA BIOWORKS
GLOBAL IMPACT BUSINESS OWNER OF THE YEAR AWARD, SPONSORED BY UPS
WINNER: ANIA WYSOCKA, FOUNDER, SIMPLY ROOTED MEDIA
BLACK ENTREPRENEUR OF THE YEAR AWARD, SONSORED BY INNOVATORS & ENTREPRENEURS FOUNDATION
WINNER: AGUNBIADE SEUN RICHARDS, FOUNDER, DOOR2DOOR PICK UP COURIERS
VETERAN ENTREPRENEUR OF THE YEAR AWARD, PRESENTED BY PRINCE’S TRUST CANADA
WINNER: KEVIN LEBOEUF, CO-FOUNDER & CO-CEO, EDUCATED BEARDS
SENIORPRENEUR AWARD FOR LEADERSHIP & INNOVATION, SPONSORED BY ARTHUR J.E. CHILD FOUNDATION
WINNER: MARCIA NOZICK, FOUNDER OF EMBERS
INDIGENOUS ENTREPRENEUR OF THE YEAR, SPONSORED BY INTUIT CANADA
WINNER: MALLORY YAWNGHWE, FOUNDER AND CEO, INDIGENOUS BOX INC.
CLIMATE-RELATED PRODUCT INNOVATION OF THE YEAR AWARD, SPONSORED BY UPS
WINNER: ANDY STRAISFELD, CO-FOUNDER, MEA HEALTH CORPORATION
Innovators & Entrepreneurs Foundation 2022/23 Micro-grants
Presented in partnership with UPS Canada, we are thrilled to announce the details of our 2022/23 Micro-grants!
The IEF micro-grants exist to support Canadian entrepreneurs and small business owners belonging to racialized and equity-deserving groups as they overcome and recover from the various global and regional business disruptions and impacts of recent years.
During this round of micro-grants, we have four categories and six $5000 cash grants. Micro-grant recipients will receive a $5000 cash grant to inject into their business, and a marketing and story-telling campaign from the charity.
Thank you to our 2022/23 IEF micro-grant sponsors, UPS Canada, TD #TDWomenInEnterprise, and Meta.
Check out our micro-grant categories here.
Entrepreneur Spotlight
Styawat Leigh Joseph, founder of Sḵwálwen Botanicals
From the Skwxwú7mesh First Nation (Squamish, British Columbia) Leigh is an ethnobotanist, researcher, community activist, and founder of Sḵwálwen Botanicals. Sḵwálwen (skwall-win) translates to “heart” or “essence of being” in the Squamish language. This name honors the inspiration behind Leigh’s brand and products: building connections to the land through working with plants in a way that feeds one’s heart and spirit.
Skwálwen Botanicals is a luxury Indigenous skincare brand that honours cultural plant knowledge, Indigenous science and self-care rituals. Skwálwen Botanicals incorporates sustainably harvested and sourced plants and organic, high-quality ingredients into all its products. Each product has a Squamish name to honour the place where this plant knowledge comes from.
Each batch of Sḵwálwen Botanicals products is made with care and intention, delivering luxurious skincare products free from harsh chemicals, phthalates, synthetic fragrances, synthetic colours, and parabens. Sḵwálwen Botanical’s formulations feature sustainably harvested ingredients and draw from the cultural and ceremonial aspects of plants. Every product has a Squamish name to honor the place where this plant knowledge comes from.
Just in time for Holiday shopping and Small Business Saturday, Skwálwen Botanicals is available for purchase in stores across Canada, and online from the Skwálwen Botanicals website.
Small Business Saturday
November 26, 2022, is Small Business Saturday. With holidays upcoming this is the perfect opportunity to help your community thrive by shopping at your neighbouring small businesses.
Small businesses are at the core of each community and neighbourhood. Small (under 100 employees) and medium businesses make up approximately 98.1% of all Canadian businesses, account for almost 64% of our nation’s workforce, and contribute to more than 40% of Canada’s Gross Domestic Product.
If you own a small business and are looking for resources to promote Small Business Saturday, our friends at CFIB have a free Small Business Saturday marketing toolkit with ecommerce, social media, and in-store promotional materials for you to immediately use to inspire your community to shop local.
Canada Business Talks: Resilient Entrepreneur
Check out Canada Business Talks December episode, Up Close & Personal with Darian Kovacs, as he shares what it takes to be a resilient entrepreneur in today’s current business climate.
Join Darian, founder of Jelly Marketing & PR as he shares practical information and learnings on entrepreneurship during challenging times, how to make your business resilient for the pandemic and beyond, and strategies to manage your small business. Reserve your free ticket here.
IEF Micro-grant Applications Open
December 13, 2022, at 10am ET
Check out Canada Business Talks December episode, Up Close & Personal with Darian Kovacs, as he shares what it takes to be a resilient entrepreneur in today’s current business climate.
Join Darian, founder of Jelly Marketing & PR as he shares practical information and learnings on entrepreneurship during challenging times, how to make your business resilient for the pandemic and beyond, and strategies to manage your small business. Reserve your free ticket here.
Business Tools & Resources
Mitacs: Inspiring Innovation and Driving Creative Solutions
Mitacs is a national non-profit research organization that empowers Canadian innovation through effective partnerships that deliver solutions to our most pressing problems. For over 20 years, Mitacs has assisted organizations in reaching their goals, has funded cutting-edge innovation, and has created job opportunities for students and postdocs. Mitacs is committed to driving economic growth and productivity and to creating meaningful change to improve quality of life for all Canadians.
Mictacs’ mission is to build a world-class, diverse community of innovators through our collaborative model, attracting and deploying top talent to industry, and matching need with expertise to create ambitious solutions to real-world challenges.
Mitacs believes that increasing Canada’s productivity and prosperity will be driven by successful innovation and are passionate about developing the next generation of researchers who will work to fuel Canada’s knowledge-based economy.
Thank you to our Partners & Sponsors
Thank you to our sponsors and partners whose support and investments make our work possible!
Presented in Partnership with UPS
Presented & Sponsored by Air Canada | Prince’s Trust Canada | Ownr | Intuit | Arthur J. E. Child Foundation
Community Sponsors TD | Mitacs | Meta | Giant Tiger
We want to hear from you!
Are you a business owner from an underrepresent or racialized group? Please share your stories and experiences with us.
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