Michele Romanow

Getting to Success: How to Build a Business

Today, CBC Dragon Michele Romanow is known as one of Canada’s most successful entrepreneurs. But her entrepreneurial journey, like many who others, is littered with countless nos. An entrepreneur’s first job is to be resilient, then the real work can begin.

In this insightful and practical talk, Michele digs into the mechanics of building a business, while also sharing lessons learned on her journey to the top, including the necessity of embracing change, encouraging disruption, and incentivizing innovation at every stage of the game.

Matt Basile

Reigniting the Fire: Become a Calmer, Smarter, and Happier Entrepreneur

Chef Matt Basile’s multi-year-culinary journey has never been typical. The founder of the widely successful food chain Fidel Gastro’s, Matt is currently the co-founder of Alchemy Grills, a live-fire BBQ company.

Matt shares lessons he’s learned in the trenches as a founder, not only when it comes to creating a successful and sustainable business, but also how to heal from burnout, reignite that innovative spark, and keep that entrepreneurial spirit fueled.

Joanna Griffiths

The Knix Way: Building a Brand with Purpose

Since launching Knix in 2013, Joanna Griffiths has built it into one of the fastest growing intimate apparel brands worldwide. In 2022, she successfully negotiated a $410-million acquisition of her company to global health and hygiene brand Essity — the largest publicly disclosed private sale of a direct-to-consumer company helmed by a female founder in Canada. 

Joanna takes audiences through lessons learned from building one of the most successful and prolific mission-driven brands of the digital era.

Kendal Netmaker

Keep Moving Forward: The Success Principles of an Entrepreneurial Mind

From Sweetgrass First Nation, Kendal Netmaker started his first business at 22. Within a few years, Neechie Gear® grew from a one-bedroom apartment, into several retail stores, wholesale distribution, e-commerce, and one of the most requested Indigenous brands for corporate customization.

One of the most common pitfalls people face are their own limiting self-beliefs, Kendal says. He helps entrepreneurs remove those limiting barriers and realize their true potential. His goal is to inspire audiences to become who they were born to be!

Zahra Al-Harazi

What It Takes: A Story of Purpose, Strength, and Laughter

Today, Zahra Al-Harazi is a successful entrepreneur. Her voice is clear and confident and a powerful tool of commerce and philanthropy, but this was not always the case. Zahra moved to Canada in 1996, where, as a new immigrant with no understanding of the culture or business, she had little confidence in what she had to say. But, through perseverance, she managed to find her voice.

In this inspiring presentation, Zahra shares her journey — the mistakes and milestones, how she channeled frustration into courage, and how a confidence can help anyone can get what they want.

Graham Sherman

Unleashing Your Disruptive Behaviour

The owner of Tool Shed Brewing Company, Graham Sherman’s entrepreneurial journey is a testament to perseverance in the face of overwhelming odds. He has lived through what many business owners fear most: discovering your new business is illegal, a hostile takeover attempt, and the brink of bankruptcy.

Graham’s credits the power of disruptive thinking for his ongoing entrepreneurial success. Through sharing his incredible story, audiences leave inspired and armed with a clear path to unleashing their own disruptive behaviour to transform their business, no matter the challenges in their path.

Erin Bury

The Blank Slate Effect: How to Use an Entrepreneurial Mindset to Win in Business

The mindset of an entrepreneur is a unique set of qualities that positions startups to be more resourceful, take more risks, and view their business and marketing plan as a blank slate, not a set of established rules.

Drawing on her decades of experiences working with startups, Erin Bury defines the entrepreneurial mindset and shows audiences how to action it within their own organization through case studies of successful companies who have leveraged the entrepreneurial mindset.

Swish Goswami

Building and Scaling a Business

At the age of 20, Swish Goswami’s business was valued in the millions. He learned through trial and error not only how to build a product and market it to millions of consumers, but also how to effectively hire/manage a team, fundraise, bring on customers/partners, and eventually sell his business.

Drawing from his bestselling book, The Young Entrepreneur, Swish outlines his entrepreneurial playbook, including how to conceptualize an idea, collect early customer feedback, scale, etc. He also speaks candidly on the importance of entrepreneurs prioritizing their mental health.

Jennifer Ménard-Shand

Entrepreneurship: The Heartbeat of Canada’s Economy

Entrepreneurs are the backbone of Canada’s economy — driving job creation, innovation, and social progress. And Jennifer Ménard-Shand is living proof of what’s possible.

From surviving childhood adversity to building multi-million-dollar ventures, Jennifer’s journey embodies the grit, vision, and resilience it takes to be a business owner. Through sharing her story, she not only explores what it takes to launch, lead, and sustain a business, she also delivers a case for why we must invest in Canadian small business owners.