Vanessa Vakharia is the founder and director of The Math Guru, a boutique math and science tutoring studio in Toronto. She is also the author of Math Hacks, a book that makes math fun, stress-free and relatable for young kids and parents. She appears regularly on national television and news outlets as an expert in […]
Shirin Behzadi is Chief Executive Officer of Home Franchise Concepts (HFC), which recently celebrated its 26th year as the top-selling family of direct-to-consumer brands in the home-related goods and services space. Under Behzadi’s direction, HFC has grown into one of the largest and most respected franchisors in the U.S., on track to reach $700 million […]
Prior to 2014, Eva Wong had never started a business. Today, she is the leading lady of one of Canada’s largest fintech companies. By Kristen Sears Eva Wong doesn’t have the technical background or entrepreneurial experience that one might expect of a fintech startup founder. Before she launched the Toronto-based credit education […]
Allison Dore started her career in the entertainment industry as an actor. It wasn’t until her older brother, renowned comedian Jon Dore, encouraged her to try stand-up that she got introduced to the world of comedy. Eventually she started a podcast, and in six months, after completing 100 episodes, was offered a spot on SiriusXM’s […]
If Mandy Rennehan’s entrepreneurial success story doesn’t inspire you to get up and get moving towards your goals, we suggest you check your pulse. The Blue-Collar CEO of Freshco.ca, a boutique construction firm that dubs itself “The Fun Company,” Mandy is an award-winning entrepreneur who started with nothing on the East Coast of Canada and […]
The Canadian art market contributes to thousands of jobs in creative employment annually, bringing millions of dollars into the economy. At the same time, the industry is fraught with stigma and buying art is seen as a luxury few can afford. However, RBC Canadian Entrepreneur Award-winning entrepreneur Geneviève Lévesque noticed a market: those who appreciate […]
Holly Ransom is the CEO of Emergent, a specialized consulting firm focused on building the capacity of organizations to execute change. At just 28 years old, she is one of the world’s most highly regarded thought leaders, asking the tough questions to reveal the emerging trends and challenges affecting businesses and working professionals today. […]
Gemma Sheehan became the #1 ranked Ontario female MMA fighter at the age of 21, after ten years in the sport, attaining a record of 5 -1 and a Pan Am gold medal in Brazilian jiu jitsu. After a change of values and concerns about brain trauma, Gemma changed gears and quit professional fighting to […]
Taryn Herritt and Angela Osborne’s vision for The Atelier, an inaugural conference that celebrates the best women in business, arose from an unofficial and unintentional brainstorming session in early summer 2017. Friends for years, they’d always admired one another’s business successes, in the corporate world and as entrepreneurs. While catching up over lunch that day, […]
Backed with a PhD in maternal-fetal toxicology, Dionne and her husband, a surgeon, researched the extensive advantages of herbal blends, experimented with fresh fruit combinations and in late 2013, launched DeeBee’s Organics delicious line of frozen treats. Their little homemade venture has grown and evolved and now DeeBee’s line of Organic FruitPops and SuperFruit Freezies […]
Chanèle McFarlane Founder, Do Well Dress Well As the founder of Do Well Dress Well, Chanèle McFarlane believes in bridging the gap between competence and confidence for millennial women. Through content, community and opportunities focused on personal branding, networking, style and professional development, her goal is for every woman to live confidently and […]
Mandy Rennehan Founder & CEO, Freshco Hailing from the tiny fishing town of Yarmouth, Nova Scotia, Mandy Rennehan’s career journey took off when, at 18, she packed her hockey bag and moved to Halifax. Since then, she has self-built her boutique retail construction firm, Freshco, from the ground up, earning millions of dollars […]
Jessica Yamoah & Sarah Juma Co-founders, Innovate Inclusion Jessica Yamoah and Sarah Juma are the founders of Innovate Inclusion, a non-profit that advocates for the entrepreneurial success of underrepresented communities. Their mission is easily summed up in three words: Engage, Advocate, Educate. They foster awareness around the importance of inclusive community engagement; advocate […]
Sage Paul Fashion Designer Based in Toronto, Sage Paul is a woman of Dene descent, and a member of English River First Nation; she is also an artist, designer and innovative leader for Indigenous fashion, craft and textiles. Inspired by her own inability to find a place to showcase her work, in 2018 […]
Jodi Kovitz Chief Executive Officer & Founder, #MoveTheDial For Jodi Kovitz, fostering a more inclusive and diverse STEM ecosystem is less about talking about the problems, and more about action. That’s why her organization, #MoveTheDial, embodies one simple principle: making a measurable impact on women’s participation — and success — in STEM. Built […]
Jana Girdauskas Entrepreneur A teacher by day, Jana Girdauskas started The Period Purse with one idea: one purse filled with menstrual supplies and other hygiene items to give to someone experiencing homelessness. In the spring of 2018, Girdauskas and a teenage volunteer created Menstruation Nation, a high school program to help highlight menstrual […]
Mylene Tu Founder, FEM in STEM This 18–year-old engineering student from the University of Waterloo is helping to bridge the gender gap within STEM (science, technology, engineering, math). In April of 2018, Mylene Tu founded FEM in STEM, a social enterprise that acts as a hub of resources for young girls to engage […]
Melody Adhami COO of Havas Canada At just 27 years old, Melody Adhami made a move that so many of us only dream of: she left her comfortable corporate job for the entrepreneur-life, starting Plastic, a full-service mobile marketing agency. At the time, the app store didn’t even exist, making the idea of […]
Alexandra Waldman Founder, Universal Standard Universal Standard began as a conversation between Alexandra Waldman and her co-founder, Polina. Alexandra was frustrated and disheartened by the lack of access to fashion being a size 20 meant — not only could she not shop at the same stores as her much smaller friends, she could […]
Sage Franch is the Co-Founder and CTO of Crescendo Inclusive Workplaces, and the creator of TrendyTechie.ca. She specializes in emerging technologies including blockchain, augmented reality, and cognitive computing, and is passionate about leveraging new tech to build a better future. Previously, Sage worked as a Technical Evangelist at Microsoft, where she focused on global developer […]
Lalli Marrato began her career in journalism at Publicis Blueprint in London, UK and later worked at a boutique PR firm in Toronto. She then transferred her experience into investor relations and merchant banking, and is now a senior partner & COO at Frontier Flex Marketing in Toronto, helping businesses increase their exposure. Expressing her […]
Janet Zuccarini already welcomes a million customers annually to her seven award-winning restaurants — and there’s plenty more expansion to come. With over twenty years in the food service industry, Janet shares the story of how she got started, and the hard work, grit, and confidence that propelled her to the top. By […]
In efforts to bring a sustainable, eco-friendly, premium denim clothing brand for kids, Aaina Jain-Malik founded Blu & Blue New York in 2015. A marketing executive-turned-entrepreneur, Jain combines her corporate branding experience from Estée Lauder, Jo Malone, La Mer, GAP and Banana Republic with her family’s 35-year heritage in manufacturing premium denim clothing for private […]
Elaine started LadyBossBlogger.com during a particularly trying time in her life to connect with women online. She took her future into her own hands and created this platform to help female entrepreneurs learn how to start, grow and scale their own online businesses and blogs. Since it’s conception, LadyBossBlogger has garnered a massive audience of […]
Sonia is a self-proclaimed media junkie, a champion of improved metrics, an award-winning mentor to the next generation of PR pros, and a results generator who has 20+ years in the PR industry. She founded spPR, an award winning full-service public relations agency, in 2013. Since then, Sonia’s media relations expertise has continued to be […]
Beverly Shwarzer is the President of SureTraxx Cash Management Systems Inc., a fast-growing company of cash management experts. She is the driving force behind operations, strategy, business development, and customer relations. She is a major advocate of applying technology to all aspects of today’s ever-growing business environment – specifically how it can make operations simpler […]
Zem founded the Near Future Summit, a visionary event that seeks to scale solutions to the world’s most pressing problems. It is driven by leading tech founders, investors, inventors, and influencers. Prior to Near Future, she founded ecofabulous.com which became part of Huffington Post in 2015 and remains the reigning authority on stylish sustainability. Zem […]
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