How Can Canadian Small Businesses Reach Their Growth Potential?
Futurpreneur Canada launches Action Entrepreneurship 2015 presented by Meridian to address the issue of small business growth in Canada
Cross-country roundtables to be held in 12 Canadian cities, beginning Wednesday January 21
TORONTO – (January 20, 2015) – Canada has a lot to be proud of when it comes to the state of entrepreneurship in the country: the birth rate of new businesses is high, and about half survive their first five years. But Canada generates a lower proportion of fast-growing companies than other developed countries, and relatively few small businesses sell outside their local markets or export internationally. To tackle this problem head on, Futurpreneur Canada is launching Action Entrepreneurship 2015 presented by Meridian, kicking off with a series of roundtable discussions across Canada with young entrepreneurs and the stakeholders who support them, with a specific focus on business growth.
“Business growth is critical to Canada’s future, and we risk falling behind other developed countries if we don’t take action to grow more,” said Julia Deans, CEO of Futurpreneur Canada. “Small and medium sized businesses contribute more than all other businesses to innovation and job creation, so reducing the barriers to their growth is essential for Canada to realize the considerable economic and social benefits of entrepreneurship.”
The 2015 initiative grows out of Futurpreneur Canada’s success in 2014 with the inaugural Action Entrepreneurship, which saw over 1000 young entrepreneurs, business leaders and other stakeholders come together in roundtable discussions, a national survey and a national summit to discuss the key challenges facing young entrepreneurs. The resulting action plan identified over 80 concrete ways to help expand youth entrepreneurship in Canada.
“We were encouraged after the roundtables to see that one of the most common pieces of feedback we received were calls to continue the Action Entrepreneurship conversation. By focussing our discussion on such an important topic -growth – we’re anticipating the 2015 initiative to be even more powerful,” said Deans.
Action Entrepreneurship 2015 kicks off on Wednesday, January 21 with the first of 12 cross-country roundtables, and culminates in May with a national summit in Toronto. At the roundtables, participants will discuss key topics surrounding business growth, including:
– Why is it important for young entrepreneurs to grow their businesses?
– What are the biggest challenges young entrepreneurs encounter when pursuing business growth?
– What needs to change to make it easier for young entrepreneurs to grow their business successfully?
Each roundtable session also includes a panel with local entrepreneurs discussing their personal stories of growth and sharing challenges and aspirations as part of a larger discussion about how Canada’s young entrepreneurs can reach their full potential.
Roundtables are being held in the following cities:
| Location | Date |
| Toronto | Wednesday, January 21 |
| Ottawa | Tuesday, January 27 |
| Calgary | Tuesday, February 3 |
| Vancouver | Wednesday, February 4 |
| Winnipeg | Wednesday, February 25 |
| Saskatoon | Thursday, February 26 |
| Edmonton | Friday, February 27 |
| St. John’s | Wednesday, March 11 |
| Montreal | Tuesday, March 17 |
| Quebec City | Wednesday, March 18 |
| Prince Rupert | Friday, March 27 |
| Iqaluit | Wednesday, April 17 |
More information about the Action Entrepreneurship: Growing Young Entrepreneurs initiative and the 2015 roundtables can be found at: www.actionentrepreneurship.ca.
To join the Action Entrepreneurship conversation online, like Futurpreneur on Facebook, follow @Futurpreneur on Twitter, and tweet with the hashtag #AECanada.
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About Futurpreneur Canada
Futurpreneur Canada (formerly the Canadian Youth Business Foundation, or CYBF) has been fueling the entrepreneurial passions of Canada’s young enterprise for nearly two decades. We are the only national, non-profit organization that provides financing, mentoring and support tools to aspiring business owners aged 18-39. Our internationally recognized mentoring program hand matches young entrepreneurs with a business expert from a network of more than 2,800 volunteer mentors. Futurpreneur Canada is a founding member of the G20 Young Entrepreneurs’ Alliance, the Canadian member of The Prince’s Youth Business International, and the Canadian host of Global Entrepreneurship Week. staging.futurpreneur.ca. Facebook: Futurpreneur Twitter: @Futurpreneur
For interview opportunities and media inquiries, please contact:
Meghan Paton
Futurpreneur Canada
416-408-2923 x 2207
mpaton@futurpreneur.ca
