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Would you like to audition for Dragon’s Den????

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From the CBC:

On behalf of CBC’s hit television show DRAGONS’ DEN,  I wanted to let you know the show’s producers will be holding virtual auditions looking for the next big ‘thing’ in business.


DRAGONS’ DEN gives aspiring entrepreneurs the opportunity to pitch their businesses to a panel of wealthy Canadian business moguls – the Dragons. Successful pitchers will have a chance to earn real investment – from the Dragons’ own pockets!

This is a fantastic opportunity for entrepreneurs and small business owners to apply and pitch their business concept for the chance to appear on national television. We would love to see as many people apply as we can!

Please visit our website to apply http://www.cbc.ca/dragonsden/auditions. For more information on how to prepare for virtual auditions, reference our Cheat Sheet, https://www.cbc.ca/dragonsden/blog/audition-cheat-sheet.


In helping spread the word to the wide community of entrepreneurs, I’m hopeful you could post this on your website, or send it out to your mailing list to let all aspiring entrepreneurs know about the virtual auditions and their chance to get a national audience and valuable investment! Feel free to use any of the material I’ve provided.

Please let me know if you are able to send out this information to your members and community.

Thank you,

Jane Chupick

CBC Producer, O: (416) 205-3063

Upcoming Digital Classes

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Courtesy of the Small Business Centre…

Who will be hosting a four-part Xcelerate Learning Series, Wednesdays from 10am – 11am, starting on February 17th and ending March 10th.

The series will cover online skills and will be delivered by the Digital Service Squad.

More information and registration is coming soon

Get To Know… Bruce MacGillivray, Instant Imprints (GV48)

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Hello Fellow GV’ers,

I would like to take this opportunity to reintroduce myself to the Grow Vantage family.  I am Bruce MacGillivray and the owner of Instant Imprints here in Barrie.  Many of you will also know me from the Chamber of Commerce, BNI and the Barrie Dragon Boat Festival. Some of you may see me every Wednesday getting the new comics that have come out for the week.

What does Instant Imprints do?  We strive to help bring your brand awareness to the next level. We create that visibility five different ways: Branded Apparel (embroidery), Signs & Banners, Promotional Products, Custom T-Shirts and Print Services.

We will work with you to find the items that will help promote your brand. We have access to thousands of suppliers such as Stormtech, Calloway, Skullcandy, Puma, Nike, New Era, Parkland, Journal Books and Roots just to name a few. We feel that providing exceptional service and quality is the key to our business success. 

Like many businesses we have had to adjust to the changing landscape since opening in May of 2019.  Through these challenging times, our amazing customers were instrumental in us being named the Readers’ Choice Best Print/Imaging Service in Barrie for 2019 and 2020.

What can a business, new or old, do to take their brand and business to the next level?  Invest in branded apparel!  Whether you are looking to add your logo to a company’s custom t-shirt, get customized hats or have a full-blown uniform here are 3 direct benefits investing in branded apparel can have for your business.

  1. Branded apparel will increase your brand recognition and creates a sense of culture in your business. You and your employees can proudly display your business logo and brand. It will act as a form of mobile advertising both during work hours and outside of them. Many businesses we have dealt with have found that their customers like the items so much they want to buy an item to show support for your business. From there it could potentially lead to its own revenue source.
  2. It can foster team spirit within your business. Branded apparel can be a morale booster. It can also help show an elevated level of customer relations. In the recent 2019 PPAI Consumer Study, 72% of respondents believe employees in uniform are easier to identify when needing assistance.
  3. Finally, the most important point in my opinion, is that branded apparel gives your business the impression of higher quality and legitimacy. Customers have more trust in the people they deal with if they are in a form of uniform. In the PPAI Study, 43% surveyed believe employees wearing uniforms are more credible than employees not in uniform.

We would love if you could take a moment and Follow Us on Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn at @InstantImprintsBarrie.

Bruce MacGillivray

222 Mapleview Dr W, Unit 19, Barrie ON

barrie@instantimprints.com

www.instantimprints.com/barrie

705-503-7652

Instant Imprints Barrie

Invest in the right technology to support your business operations (event)

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Presented by BDC Advisory Services. We are pleased to invite you to our virtual event.

The COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated digital transformation for many companies – from remote teams to the surge in e-commerce and virtual business development. Does your business have the right processes, culture and technologies to operate effectively?

Join us for a small group discussion with our BDC experts who will answer your questions about how you can build a digital plan and help your teams create additional value.

In an interactive roundtable, we will delve deeper into the topics covered in BDC’s webinar Scale up! How to use technology to boost your business’s efficiency.

Discussion topics :

  • Understand where you need to invest and how to prioritize your digital investments
  • Create a digital roadmap that integrates more than technology and reaches far beyond IT
  • Understand your customer’s journey
  • Identify and focus on key processes to improve on first
  • Manage change and build a culture that embraces it
  • Your challenges and perspectives

Event details: Please join us for a one hour session with a BDC expert and your peers. Available times :

Thursday, February 11 at 1:00 p.m. EST – Mid-market companies
Thursday, February 11 at 3:00 p.m. EST – Small business
Wednesday, February 17 at 1:00 p.m. EST – Mid-market companies
Wednesday, February 17 at 3:00 p.m. EST – Small business
Thursday, February 18 at 1:00 p.m. EST – Small business

Register: https://events.eply.com/3361142

*To register for a French session, click on this link.

Entrepreneurs in Action: Looking to The Future – Planning For What’s Next

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DETAILS

Date: February 10Time:1:00 pm – 2:30 pmCost:FreeWebsite:https://www.eventbrite.ca/e/entrepreneurs-in-action-looking-to-the-future-planning-for-whats-next-tickets-138634372139

Wed, Feb 10, 2021 1:00 PM – 2:30 PM EST

ABOUT THE SPEAKERS:

Pierre Cleroux, Vice President, Research and Chief Economist, Business Development Bank of Canada (BDC): Pierre Cléroux was appointed Vice President, Research and Chief Economist at BDC in 2012. Pierre leads a team of experts who analyze economic data to identify business and sector trends impacting Canadian entrepreneurs.

Laura Gibbons, BA, CHRP , Senior Consultant, Human Resources Consulting, BDO Canada: Outgoing and forward-thinking, Laura got into HR because of her interest in health and safety but soon discovered strengths in employee relations.

Janice Mumberson, Senior Associate, Barriston Law

Janice is a Senior Associate at Barriston Law, practicing in the areas of Business Law, Wills and Estates, and Real Estate. 

Denise Sindle-Tucker, Owner, Olive Oil Co.

Denise Sindle Tucker: is the Owner/Operator of Olive Oil Co. with three permanent locations in Barrie and Newmarket as well as a very successful online store. 

Get to Know… Katherine Parent, GV 25

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10 Years in Business! Barrie’s Favourite Nutritionist! Readers Choice Award winner 7 years in a row!  Please visit www.makegoodchoices.ca for more information
 

Hi GV’ers

My name is Katherine Parent and I, like you have been making the most of the situation before us. This pandemic has certainly brought to light how important our health is. That’s my thing!

I am a Registered and Certified Nutritional Practitioner and owner of Make Good Choices. 2020 marked my 10th year in business and I’m still working.  It’s been a whirlwind of life’s events and having to make some important decisions for the health of my business, the health of me and the health of my loved ones.

I assist women particularly who find themselves in a transition of some sort. They may be experiencing health challenges and not eating well, not sleeping well, caring for a loved one, being there for their grown children and grandchildren. It’s a real energy zapper and a time of looking in the mirror and not knowing where their health and vitality has gone. Learning how to “Make Good Choices” for themselves is a priority and I meet them where they are and assist them with tackling their food first, one bite at a time, and one day at a time. My packages reflect various levels of support however, they all have these elements. Reset, Recharge, Revitalize. 

As a business owner, wife, mother, grandmother, daughter & sister I know all too well the various responsibilities that come along with such important facets of my life.  If you’re interested in signing up for a program please contact me through my email; katherine@makegoodchoices.ca.

You may also wish to join my FB Business page www.Facebook.com/MakeGoodChoicesCA and

I, along with some others began a support and resource community for those in the “Sandwich Generation.” We have a group FB page www.Facebook.com/BarrieSandwichGeneration. If you are caring for a loved one and would like support and some resources please join the group.

My ideal clients have followed me to the world of Zoom and Skype and phone and my corporate wellness programs and lunch and learns have taken on a world of their own. I’m visiting companies and organizations on FB Live and Zoom to bring health into their environments. Whether it’s nutrition for business or personal the goal is to assist clients in wading through the influx of information and really “Make Good Choices” right then and there.

Here’s a post I made at the beginning of the year that includes some tips around nutrition & wellness. Enjoy and hope to see you all sooner than later in person.

Be well, be safe, and Make Good Choices for a Healthier, Happier You.  Katherine.

Top Self Care Tips to start your year:

  1. Nutrition- start your day off right and drink water, water, and water. I love a combination of hot water, lemon, turmeric, grated ginger & a tiny bit of pure honey. You may opt to add in garlic too if you’re feeling run down. Include good proteins, low GL carbs and good essential fats for every meal and snack. I can assist you with this.
  2. Exercise- nothing like a good walk everyday as often or as long as you can. Aim for at least 30 minutes of some form of exercise daily. My saving grace is walking every single day no matter what the weather.
  3. Sleep- It is true what they say about sleep being the one thing that can rejuvenate your stressed adrenals. Aim for 8 hours if you can. Self-care includes sleep. See my self-care monthly planner.
  4. Attitude- A good attitude is half the battle. Looking at the glass half full rather than half empty helps. Seize each day as a new opportunity for possibilities and smile Get dressed for whatever may come your way and remember you attract what you put out.
  5. Supplements- As much as we’d like to think we eat healthy, it’s often not enough nutrient absorption that occurs. With consumption of processed foods or intake of caffeine, alcohol and more acidic foods versus alkaline we may be lacking. To support digestion, assimilation and detoxification it’s great to have vitamin and mineral support along with a good probiotic and digestive enzyme. See my dispensary to set up an account for yourself. https://ca.fullscript.com/welcome/kparent
 
Katherine xo

Health and Happiness, 

Katherine Parent

owner of

MAKE GOOD CHOICES
Nutritional Consulting Practitioner
 Office: 705-828-0802

Tourism business help announced

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Eligibility requirements

https://www.bdc.ca/en/special-support/hascap

Your primary financial institution will determine whether you qualify for this program, based on the eligibility criteria established by the Government of Canada.

Neither BDC nor your financial institution has the authority to grant exceptions to eligibility criteria.

  • Your business is Canadian based.
  • Your business must have been financially stable and viable prior to the current economic situation.
  • You must have received payments either from the Canada Emergency Subsidy (CEWS) or the Canada Emergency Rent Subsidy (CERS) by having demonstrated a minimum 50% revenue decline for at least three months (not necessarily consecutive) within the eight-month period prior to the date of the HASCAP Guarantee application.If your business does not qualify for CEWS and CERS, but otherwise meets all HASCAP eligibility criteria, you must provide financial statements that reflect three months (not necessarily consecutive) in which monthly year-over-year revenue decreased by at least 50% within the eight-month period prior to the date of the HASCAP Guarantee application.
  • The loan will be used to continue or resume operations.
  • The loan cannot be used to pay or refinance existing.
  • You can apply for a loan under the HASCAP Guarantee for each legal entity you own, up to a maximum combined amount of $6.25 million (all legal entities combined).
  • Other conditions may also apply.
One-page HASCAP Guarantee reference sheet

Ontario Business Grant Info

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Here is the link to an information PowerPoint from a Townhall held with MP representatives: https://drive.google.com/file/d/15LGWOdT9iV0ZC6JdgIleJZfgDqSd5Kl9/view?usp=sharing

You can apply for the grant at this COVID-19 page from the Ontario government. The grant will end on March 31st. Other relief, including PPE and energy and property tax will end when the lockdown ends – so don’t delay your application: https://covid-19.ontario.ca/covid-19-help-businesses-ontario

Thanks to Rob Newman, GV 49 for sharing!

Amazing New E-Commerce Landing page template from Aweber

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As you probably know – training and exploring new ideas is part of my DNA (wish I could do it while sleeping to save time, but hey!). And you may also know that Aweber is my Email Service Provider. I just went through a training that occurs frequently with Aweber. This one features:

An E-Commerce Landing page (with templates)

They added landing page templates last year to make setting up email capture easier. Now they are adding an ecommerce feature to their landing pages that works with Stripe to allow people to sign up for free and/or paid services.

Why use it? For those of us who are reluctant to set up a whole e-commerce site – this can be an easy solution (and they aren’t charging a fee on their monthly subscriptions (although as you can imagine there is the usual fee for using a payment gateway (for the pro account .6% to Stripe once payment is collected, and for the free account 1% + Stripe fees.)

Seriously – if you are looking for ecommerce – check this YouTube video out: https://youtu.be/pzoybbiavyA

Patricia

Cash flow… hugely important. Here is a replay of a BDC webinar

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I try to monitor several information sources and to bring you those I find most valuable.  Here is a cash flow webinar from BDC that I found helpful. Not a sexy topic – but really important. That’s why we added a Cash Flow class to Grow Vantage. Here is the link

What’s next? Managing your business’s finances in 2021
BDC BDC
Hello,

We’re glad you were able to attend our What’s next? Managing your business’s finances in 2021 webinar.

We hope that you gained some solid takeaways on how to optimize your cash flow and how to effectively control costs to cope with high uncertainty.

You can view the webinar again at your convenience. A PDF version of the presentation is also available through the same link.
Interested in learning more? You can download a free copy of our study, Monitoring Your Business Performance. This eBook will help you accurately monitor trends and analyze the results to keep your business on track.

Download our guide to smart financial management 

bdc.ca
events@bdc.ca

Business Development Bank of Canada
5 Place Ville Marie, Ground floor
Montreal, Quebec H3B 5E7
Toll-free number: 1-877-232-2269
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