Featured Entrepreneurs
How cybersecurity entrepreneur Diane Ouandji is showing what’s possible for the next generation of Black entrepreneurs
Before Diane Ouandji became the founder of Stratechno, she had already built a successful career in cybersecurity across three countries. She had the education, the expertise, and the experience. Yet there was still one thing no résumé could guarantee. In rooms where she was often one of the few Black women, francophones, or immigrants present, she still had to decide whether she believed she belonged there.
Putting Saskatchewan on the Map: How CoBSMEs Is Growing a Stronger Black Business Community
When people think about Black entrepreneurship in Canada, their minds often turn to cities like Toronto or Montreal. Saskatchewan rarely enters the conversation. For Yinka Adebule, CEO of the Coalition of Black Small and Medium Enterprises (CoBSMEs), that is exactly why organizations like his matter.
Beyond Borders: How Kasi Insight Is Helping Canada Understand Africa's Growing Markets
One of Canada's most distinctive market intelligence companies isn't focused on Canada. From its headquarters here, Kasi Insight helps organizations understand consumers, markets, and public opinion across Africa, providing research that informs decisions for businesses, governments, and international organizations. For founder and CEO Yannick Lefang, the goal has never simply been to collect data. It is to help build stronger connections between Canada and one of the world's fastest-growing regions.
What Darron Hill’s kelp business reveals about access and opportunity in Atlantic Canada’s ocean economy
Salt water splashes up on shore. For some it is just water, but for others it is a vast blue ocean of opportunity. The smell of salt and seaweed has always been part of Darron Hill’s life. Growing up in Nova Scotia, the ocean was more than scenery. It was livelihood, identity, and healing. That connection became deeply personal when Hill, who had long struggled with environmental sensitivities, found unexpected relief in kelp. What began as a form of self-care soon grew into an experiment, then a small production line, and eventually a vision for Scotia Kelp, a company rooted in natural healing, sustainability, and Atlantic pride.
Bootstrapping without a Boot: How Tia Upshaw Used Her Last $50 to Build Generational Wealth
In 2013, Tia Upshaw checked her bank balance and saw just $50. It was her last $50.
At the time, she was a young single mother of three with a prior conviction and no clear job prospects. She faced a decision that felt impossibly stark: save what remained of her government assistance cheque for her family or spend it immediately on cleaning supplies and start a business. She chose to take the risk. That decision would change the course of her life and her family’s future.
Building The Missing Middle: How Claudius Thomas Is Using Agri-Tech to Connect Small Farms to Big Markets
On weekends and during harvest season, a quiet food economy moves through WhatsApp messages and group chats. Farmers post photos of freshly picked vegetables. Community members respond with short questions. Do you have more. How much. Can I pick up today. Sometimes delivery is possible. Often it is not.
This is how many Black and immigrant farmers in Canada sell their food.
Canadian Black Farmers Association: Growing What Canada Eats Next
When fresh vegetables grown by Black farmers in Canada go on sale, they rarely stay on the table for long.
“If I put out that I have vegetables today,” says Toyin Kayo Ajayi, founder of the Canadian Black Farmers Association, “it will be finished in less than two minutes.”
For Ajayi, that speed is not novelty or hype. It is evidence of a market.
Why Camille Dundas Believes Storytelling is as Vital as Capital for Black Entrepreneurs
Camille Dundas, co-founder and Editor-in-Chief at ByBlacks.com, never set out to be an entrepreneur. “Since I was six years old, I only wanted to be a writer or a journalist,” she recalls. That ambition carried her into Canada’s largest newsrooms—CBC, CTV, and CityTV. But when the 2008 recession triggered mass layoffs, Dundas turned a crisis into an opportunity. She had always been an observer, and what she saw convinced her there was a gap she could fill.
How One Black Entrepreneur is Helping Others Overcome Challenges and Identify Solutions
When Murielle Jassinthe reached out to the Black Entrepreneurship Knowledge Hub (BEKH), she was grateful she’d found an organization willing to work together to have much needed conversations around the opportunities and challenges of being a Black entrepreneur in Canada’s northern region.
Business Advice from an Entrepreneur in the Solar Energy Industry
Michael Yearwood’s company was born following his own personal building project. As he was building his own house, he wanted to keep his costs low. He purchased a small solar system to run all of his power tools, but it was clear there was potential for more.
Black Entrepreneur Leading Innovation in Canada’s Zero Waste Industry
What Anaconda Systems Limited is doing in Vancouver is impossible to find anywhere else in North America. Typically, composting on this scale happens on industrial sites outside of the city where the waste is produced. The company's founder and CEO Russell Zishiri is on a mission to change that.
*“We’re the only commercial composting facility in a North American city that's located downtown,” the company’s founder and CEO says. “Our technology allowed us to get this kind of permitting.”
How Nanette is Breaking New Ground as a Black Woman in MedTech
As a Black woman in the medical tech space, Nanette Sene knows what it's like when both you – and the product you’ve created – are truly unique. While her journey as a Black female founder has been lonely at times, she says there’s also been lots of opportunity.
How the BEKH is Supporting Black Students Choosing Entrepreneurship as a Career Path in Quebec
For 20 years, Dwight Best has been helping Black students in Montreal overcome so they can thrive. As chief executive director of the African and Caribbean Synergic inter-organizational Network of Canada – ACSioN Canada for short – Dwight says over the years, he’s seen entrepreneurship emerge as a path more new graduates are considering, an outflow of the organization's work around leadership and professional development.
How One Black Optometrist Is Finding Her Niche in Calgary
Dr. Danielle Gordon never saw herself opening up her own private practice. The Calgary eye doctor thought she’d buy into a local practice, something already in existence, and follow a more traditional route for practitioners in her field. However, curiosity won her over and, in May 2019, she opened the doors to her own clinic in Calgary, Sphere Optometry. The doctor and mom – turned entrepreneur – says what seemed at first like an unlikely path now feels more like a perfect fit.
The One Strategy Tobias Brown of Tommie's Jerk Uses to Help Him Secure Work With the Government
If there’s one thing Tobias Brown has learned about securing work with the government it’s that networking can help to make the process not just smoother, but even more accessible for Black entrepreneurs. Tobias is the brains behind the Jamaican food experience known as Tommie’s Jerk, 2021 Nominee in the Canadian SME National Business Awards. He says some of the opportunities he’s landed have come through making connections at events for BIPOC entrepreneurs. “You have to be the proactive one. You’ve got to reach out. A bunch of my stuff has come from the relationship that I had with either BIPOC Foundation or with the Black Business Association of BC (BBABC),” Tobias says.
King Shadrock: The Beginnings of an Empire
The story of Howard Johnson, crowned ‘King Shadrock’ after a performance in South Africa left the audience in awe of his talent, is a tale that provides insight into the strife and triumphs of being an artist and a small business owner trying to navigate the entrepreneurial ecosystem in Canada where Black business have traditionally struggled to get off the ground. Fortunate enough to have endured through the pandemic as a stage performer and chef, his story is a testament to the power of his creative strategic thinking and epitomizes the essence of entrepreneurship driven by passion, resilience, and the unwavering pursuit of a lasting legacy.
Giovanni Smith: A Beacon of Change in the Utility Sector
In the utilities sector, few accounts highlight the challenges and successes of Black individuals. Giovanni Smith, originally from Mandeville, Jamaica, sets himself apart in this context. In spite of attaining a Bachelor of Architectural Studies, he was compelled to switch his focus to the utilities sector due to systemic barriers. His journey, transitioning from an aspiring architect to ultimately a business owner, showcases his adaptability and impact in the sector. His story is not just about personal achievements; it reflects the entrepreneurial spirit of an individual who, despite numerous obstacles, managed to carve out a unique space for himself in an exceedingly specialized industry.
Chantel Ross Francois: A Beacon for Black Canadian Women Entrepreneurs and Catalyst for US-Canada Partnerships
Chantel Ross Francois, President of the East Point Convention & Visitors Bureau (EPCVB) in Metro Atlanta, is a Black Canadian woman with a Caribbean heritage leading the EPCVB delegation of business, cultural, and political leaders from East Point, Georgia. She is a sponsor of Jamaal Magloire’s Toronto Revellers in the 2023 Toronto Caribbean Carnival. She has always appreciated the cultural value of the parade and carnival celebrations as well as the value and economic impact on the travel and tourism industry that benefits Toronto, the province of Ontario, Canada, and beyond. In her new role, she will tap into the experience economy connecting the United States and Canada.
Carla Beauvais: Empowering Black Canadian Entrepreneurship Through Culture and Communication
Carla Beauvais, Executive Director and co-founder of Fondation Dynastie, promotes diversity and inclusion in the sector of arts, culture, and media. She also co-founded Orijin Village, providing businesses in Black communities with technological solutions that allow them to reach new market sectors and bridge the digital divide.
From Banking to Building: Ian Tolliver's Work in Breaking Ground and Barriers
Ian Tolliver has a dream. He wants to see his name displayed proudly across a building he constructs. It wasn't a sudden decision; it was a dream that began as a humble cornerstone in his childhood and has been under construction for decades. “It was a dream that I had when I was like four or five or something like that. When I saw my name on a building, I didn't know what it was, but I could remember it, as if I had the dream last year. So, I just thought the construction was going to be the final thing, but I just had to go through a number of steps to get there.”