Check out the video “The Challenge Contest: Insider tips for your entry”
‘The Challenge’ is your chance to win a $100,000 small business grant!
Explain the biggest challenge your business faces today and how a $100,000 grant would help you overcome it. A panel of business experts will review every entry, and if the most compelling is yours, you’ll win $100,000 courtesy of TELUS. Plus, your company will be profiled in the pages of the Report on Business. TELUS and CYBF are promoting this exciting contest to inspire and support entrepreneurs across the country.
Contest closes for entries on May 28, 2012. Enter today at www.globeandmail.com/thechallenge
Check out the video “The Challenge Contest: Insider tips for your entry”
Jim Senko (VP, SMB Marketing, TELUS) talks to Angela Quinton (CoFounder, Sandberg Labs) about how her business is doing now.
Their Royal Highnesses Meet Prince’s Operation Entrepreneur Participants at CFB Gagetown
May 21, 2012 – Oromocto, NEW BRUNSWICK – Today, participants and partners in The Prince’s Operation Entrepreneur (POE) met with The Prince of Wales and The Duchess of Cornwall at Canadian Forces Base Gagetown. The POE program provides ex-servicemen and women from the Canadian Forces with the education, financing and mentoring needed to launch and sustain successful businesses. The program combines the strengths of the Canadian Youth Business Foundation’s (CYBF) 15 years of mentoring and financing entrepreneurs with SIFE Memorial’s internationally recognized business boot camp for veterans.
For more information see: http://www.cybf.ca/cybf_press_media/poe_cfbgagetown/
How would $100,000 change YOUR business?
Angela Quinton, Down to Earth Labs (formerly Sandberg Labs), Lethbridge, AB
Last year, our company, Lethbridge, Alberta-based Down to Earth Labs (formerly Sandberg Labs), was selected as the winner of a $100,000 grant through the ‘The Challenge’ contest sponsored by TELUS and the Globe and Mail. Along with the grant came a lot of great publicity and the opportunity to make new connections with lots of great business people. I’d like to tell you about the difference this experience has made to us.
We purchased Sandberg Labs in January 2010. As an agricultural testing lab, we test soil, water, plant tissue, animal feed and compost. We give farmers and agronomists the information they need to maximize their yields and minimize their environmental impact (by not over-fertilizing). Sandberg Labs was 25 years old when we bought it. None of the processes had been upgraded in that time and most of the equipment was older than we were! Modern-day chemistry is quite different than it was 20 or 30 years ago. We purchased this business with the understanding that we needed to upgrade in order to maximize efficiency in the lab and make use of more environmentally-friendly methods. On top of all this, in the three years before we purchased the business, all of our competitors had left town to go service the oil patch. Demand for our services was high and we did not have the means to meet it.
We had basically spent every last dime doing upgrades before we heard about the about ‘The Challenge’ contest, but it still wasn’t enough to push us to the next level with our upgrades. We were somewhat discouraged – we had worked so hard for 18 months but it was not quite enough. When we heard about the contest, we were sceptical, what chance did we have to win? However, we felt that it was worth a try so over a weekend my husband Justin and I hashed out our entry and then turned it over to our 15-year-old to correct the writing and grammar!
The day we were told we had won the contest is one that we’ll never forget. All of a sudden, everything changed for us. We sat down with our staff to come up with an action plan. We wanted to maximize every dollar. Each person felt a renewed sense of energy and excitement. We had so much fun last winter (usually our slow time) trying to get everything in place for this spring, and for the most part, we have succeeded. We purchased several pieces of key equipment and as a result, our results are faster, more accurate and more environmentally-friendly. Staff morale and profits are way up and we are looking forward to an amazing growing season ahead of us. Last week we launched a new name and brand – Down to Earth Labs, Inc. – thing we thought would take us much longer to do.
I am so glad we entered ‘The Challenge’ contest – it has truly changed our lives!
(Contest not available in Quebec.)
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‘The Challenge’ is your chance to win a $100,000 small business grant!
Explain the biggest challenge your business faces today and how a $100,000 grant would help you overcome it. A panel of business experts will review every entry, and if the most compelling is yours, you’ll win $100,000 courtesy of TELUS. Plus, your company will be profiled in the pages of the Report on Business. TELUS and CYBF are promoting this exciting contest to inspire and support entrepreneurs across the country.
Contest closes for entries on May 28, 2012. Enter today at www.globeandmail.com/thechallenge
Driving Entrepreneurship – Creating Canadian Jobs!
CYBF surpasses two significant milestones – supported 5,000 young entrepreneurs and spurring the creation of 20,000 jobs
In its last fiscal quarter, the Canadian Youth Business Foundation (CYBF) has achieved and surpassed two significant milestones: successfully supporting more than 5,000 young entrepreneurs and spurring the creation of more than 20,000 jobs since its inception in 1996. More specifically, as of March 31, 2012, CYBF supported 5,133 entrepreneurs and 20,183 jobs, in 1,414 communities across Canada. This success is the result of CYBF’s strong relationships with its partners, its network of 4,000 dedicated volunteers and its world-class mentoring program.
Special Invitation: Your chance to win a $100,000 small business grant!
The best entrepreneurs thrive on the challenges their businesses bring.
Explain the biggest challenge your business faces today and how a $100,000 grant would help you overcome it. A panel of business experts will review every entry, and if the most compelling is yours, you’ll win $100,000 courtesy of TELUS. Plus, your company will be profiled in the pages of the Report on Business.
Contest closes for entries on May 28, 2012.
Enter today at www.globeandmail.com/thechallenge
TELUS and CYBF are promoting this exciting contest to inspire and support entrepreneurs across the country, and are working together to help launch more CYBF entrepreneurs.
Working with partners to build a business
Working with partners to build a business
Anne Forkutza worked with Tammy Olsson and Blair Kennedy to launch Domo Enterprise, an innovative, Vancouver-based tea company which received support in 2011 through CYBF’s Spin Master Innovation Fund. Anne believes that working with partners to build Domo presents some unique challenges and opportunities. She has this advice for entrepreneurs working with partners to launch and build their businesses:
- Capitalize on each other’s strengths – and make sure your strengths are complementary! Tammy is the tea expert and manages production, new product development and clients. Blair does design, copy and branding. I manage strategy, press, sales and anything that has to do with numbers.
- Hire experts to fill the gaps. I was in charge of doing ALL the bookkeeping and had little experience in it. After many late nights of working on it, we decided I would handle some tasks (e.g. invoicing, pricing, calculating cost of goods) and a bookkeeper would do the rest. This approach gave me back my sanity and freed up my time to focus more on growing our business.
- Have a great mentor to support your team. The mentor we are working with through CYBF’s Spin Master Innovation Fund has been incredibly helpful as we grow our business. He comes from the food and beverage industry so knows exactly what he’s talking about! His advice has been priceless.
Spin Master Ltd. and CYBF Launch Year 2 of the Spin Master Innovation Fund
For the second consecutive year, the Canadian Youth Business Foundation (CYBF) and Spin Master Ltd., Canada’s most innovative toy company, are teaming up to offer financing, mentoring and business workshops to innovative entrepreneurs through the Spin Master Innovation Fund (SMIF). Applications for the Spin Master Innovation Fund opened today and will offer qualified 18-34 year olds the opportunity to kick-start their business start-up with $50,000 in start-up financing, a hand-matched mentor, a paid trip to Toronto to attend an exclusive Innovation Launch Pad Workshop, and the opportunity to participate in an Acceleration Workshop after six months.
Qualified applicants are invited to apply online at www.cybf.ca/innovation.
Build the buzz around GEW Canada!
Were you amazed, moved and inspired by the power of entrepreneurship during Global Entrepreneurship Week Canada 2011? You can keep that momentum going!
As a country host of Global Entrepreneurship Week 2011, the Canadian Youth Business Foundation (CYBF) is vying for the Buzz Builder Award which will be presented at the Global Entrepreneurship Congress in Liverpool, England in March 2012. We need you to help us win the award and share the inspiration of GEW Canada campaign.
The three easy steps to help CYBF win the Buzz Builder Award:
- Visit the blog post From grassroots to rooftops: GEW 2011 makes Canada shine.
- LIKE, TWEET and SHARE it before Thursday, March 1st, 2012! Be sure to use the share buttons on the blog post title to make your participation count.
- Remind others in your network to LIKE, TWEET and SHARE it too to help us create as much buzz as we can.
Corporate social responsibility – it can be a part of your business.
Written by: Mara Hawkins
If you are small business owner and looking for social and/or environmental ways in which to benefit your community, it can be challenging to choose outlets that fit with your company’s goals. With the popularity of socially-minded jargon increasing in everyday conversation, it can be intimidating to establish your corporate social responsibility (CSR) as authentic and align them with your brand.
The basics of CSR can be summed up through the concept of the triple bottom line: people, planet, profit!
You may ask yourself why you need to develop a CSR plan. There are many reasons. A CSP plan encourages companies to be more innovative, productive and competitive, it builds your brand by fostering positive relations with the community and potential customers/ investors, it provides various tax advantages, and enhances employee and community relations to name a few.
The sooner you develop your CSR plan the sooner you are able to align it with your brand and policies. A great example of synchronizing CSR to brand is McDonald’s. Their goal is to make children and parents happy with their happy meals but they are also known for the Ronald McDonald House Charities. If you think that’s all they are doing, think again. They have set goals on nutrition and wellbeing, sustainable supply chain, environmental impact and employee experience; all of which form a comprehensive CSR strategy that encompasses all aspects of their business. In the words of McDonald’s VP of Corporate Social Responsibility, Bob Langert: “CSR is not a program, initiative or function, but a mindset that is incorporated into every aspect of business planning and operations.”
So how do you establish a CSR mindset within your business? You align your CSR goals to the charitable endeavors and social goals that are important to you and any of your company’s stakeholders (employees, customers, etc.) By seeking out and using employee and customer feedback, you are including them in the decision-making process and encouraging their participation in the creation and roll out.
Then the fun begins. You must decide how you would like to implement your CSR strategy. For example, will your organize an employee fundraising or food drive? Match employee donations to a cause? Encouraging volunteerism in the community? The International Organization for Standardization has a great guide for developing your CSR policies.
To learn more about how to become a socially-minded business, look for upcoming CYBF workshops across Alberta in 2012.
Being a socially-minded business and making a difference
Written by: Mara Hawkins
Do you ever wish you could run a business and make a meaningful difference in your community? Have you thought about how to make your business processes more socially or environmentally focused? If you answered yes to either of those questions, you need to think about the Business of Being Socially-Minded!
At CYBF, a socially-minded business is a for-profit business that supports social change through corporate social responsibility, community service and/or by offering a product or service that addresses a social issue.
There are lots of examples of companies that are able to merge business and social awareness. For great examples we can look to our very own CYBF entrepreneurs! Blanc Cosmetics provides teeth whitening services, but for every treatment they donate $2 to Operation Smile to provide children with life-changing cleft lip surgery. Blanc Cosmetics is a great example of a for-profit business that has a heart for solving social issues.
Another example is Delivergood.org – a socially-minded business that is also making a profit. Delivergood.org matches charities and non-profits that need stuff with people and companies that have the stuff they need in order to service their communities. It’s like a wish list site for not-for-profit organizations, and it actually delivers.
The world of doing good and doing business have officially merged and will be a key business trend in the coming years. The time to change your business and your community is now!
To learn more about how to become a socially-minded business, look for upcoming CYBF workshops across Alberta in 2012.
Simona’s mentor is a source of inspiration
Simona Voinic is a mother of two and the founder of Toronto-based Firefly Kids Lighting, an online company providing safe, quality children’s lighting at affordable prices. Simona has only been working with her CYBF mentor Suzanne Letourneau for four months now but already, Suzanne has been a tremendous resource and inspiration. Simona has learned these important lessons from her mentor:
- Network, network, network! It helps you meet other entrepreneurs, exchange ideas and promote your business.
- Be active on social media! Use Facebook, Twitter, Linkedin, and others to get more exposure. Build the buzz about your business by sharing news and press releases.
- Focus! Starting a new business can be overwhelming and it’s important to focus your energy on activities that yield results.
Simona offers this advice to help entrepreneurs get the most out of their relationship with their mentor:
- Be transparent. Early on, the entrepreneur and mentor should discuss their strengths and weaknesses and agree on how they will work together effectively. Plus, if there is something you don’t feel comfortable doing (such as networking or sales) tell your mentor and they will find ways to help you.
- Manage expectations. Ensure your mentor knows what you need help with. Create a list, share it with your mentor and develop an action plan from there. Track your development and reward yourself.
Find out more about Simona Voinic and Firefly Kids Lighting at www.fireflykidslighting.com.
My top 10 mentor wish list (in no particular order)…and the reasons why
Jean Chow, Business Coach & Strategist, www.msbizwiz.com, @MsBizWiz, Toronto, ON, CYBF Mentor
1. Howard Schultz, Founder and CEO, Starbucks – United States
To learn a flair for marketing and the ability to turn business around successfully
2. The Dalai Lama, Spiritual Leader – Tibet
To learn to live and laugh boisterously in life
3. Kim Clijsters, Professional Tennis Player – Belgium
To learn the grace of good gamesmanship, both on and off the court
4. Adrienne Arsenault, News Correspondent – Canada
To learn the art of story-telling that captures the human spirit
5. Steven Covey, Author – United States
To learn the seven habits of highly effective people
6. Thich Nhat Han, Buddhist Monk – Vietnam
To learn to love and be compassionate mindfully
7. Ang Sung Su Kyi, Leader of Opposition – Burma
To learn to have discipline, faith and will through times of crisis and difficult choices
8. Robert F. Boyle, Albert Nozaki, Henry Bumstead, Conrad L. Hall, Harold Michelson, and Haskell Wexler, Six Classic Hollywood Cinema Artists – United States
To learn to love your work beyond the age of 90
9. Frank O’Dea, Second Cup Founder and former street person – Canada
To learn to have courage “when all you have is hope”
10. Maya Kriplani, Good friend – Indonesia
To learn how to teach others to love peacefully, purely, and gently always.
List your top 10 mentors in 10 minutes or less. You’ll be pleasantly surprised at not only who you choose but also the reasons why you chose them.
