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STARTUP SCALE UP
Kayla Isabelle CEO, Startup Canada
It’s about More than Investment: Advocacy for Women Entrepreneurs
Bernice Clarke Founder, Uasau Soap
Startup Canada’s program Startup Gov encourages early-stage female founders to reap the benefits of interacting with government entities on their entrepreneurial journeys. Kayla Isabelle
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Lourdes Still Founder, Masagana Flower Farm & Studio
Sophia Yang Founder & Executive Director, Threading Change
Lesley Quinn Founder, Stellar Somm Wine Experts
omen-owned businesses receive less funding than their male counterparts, with only two per cent of total venture capital dollars going to women in 2021. This disparity is due to multiple factors, including the under-representation of women in financial lending institutions, p er va sive societ a l bia se s, a nd more. These tangible barriers have created negative outcomes, including women-owned ventures making 58 per cent less, on average, than male-owned ventures. Women also take on more risk when starting up, with a PayPal study indicating that 70 per cent of respondents financed their ventures solely via personal credit. The Startup Women Advocacy Network (SWAN) is a group of early-stage womanident i f y i ng ent repreneu r s f rom each province and territory who advo c ate for women fou nder s across Canada. The 2022 cohort has been involved in closed-door government roundtables, in-person entrepreneurial events, webinars, and other direct advocacy. We asked SWAN members about women’s entrepreneurship and collective advocacy networks. Here’s what some of them said:
Why is government advocacy vital? Tell us about the roundtables. “The amount of information I got really simplified things for me. Outside of SWAN, it probably would’ve taken me days, if not weeks, to gather this information. I had a seat at the table,” says Lourdes Still, Founder of Masagana Flower Farm and Studio in Manitoba. “While there’s a lot of support available to entrepreneurs, sometimes it feels like we’re preaching to the choir. We need to ensure we’re being heard and that governments understand that support for founders isn’t one size fits all,” says Sophia Yang, Founder and Executive Director of Threading Change in British Columbia.
Why are women’s advocacy networks vital? “The biggest benefit has been this feeling of community — it’s vital to not feel so alone and to remind yourself that you have resources because being an entrepreneur is hard,” says Lesley Quinn, Founder of Stellar Somm Wine Experts in P.E.I. “The biggest benefit has been increasing my visibility from a national level as a BIPOC woman founder,” says Still. “It’s hard to do business or to be taken seriously as a woman, especially as a minority Inuk woman like myself. We need
support to show us that we matter and that we’re safe,” says Bernice Clarke, Founder of Uasau Soap in Nunavut.
How do you challenge the startup ecosystem to do better for women? “We challenge you — if you’re an investor, invest in women. If you’re a consumer, buy from women. Women-owned businesses outperform total success rates in profitability, social good, and longevity,” says Jessica McNaughton, Founder and CEO of memoryKPR in Saskatchewan. “We challenge investors to put their money where their mouth is and ensure that when there’s access to capital, it’s also for impact-led projects,” says Yang. “I hope we can empower more women entrepreneurs than ever with the mentorship, capital, and resources required to achieve success,” says Nadia Ladak, Co-Founder and CEO of Marlow in Ontario. Investing in women is a wise decision, but we can do more. We need to address the existing multi-level barriers and work collaboratively to restructure systems historically built by and for men. In this, it’s vital we ensure the voices leading the charge are women themselves. The value of advocacy vehicles composed of industry and demographically diverse women can’t be overstated.
Jessica McNaughton Founder & CEO, memoryKPR
Nadia Ladak Co-Founder & CEO, Marlow
Visit startupcan.ca to learn more.
We Can Do Better, Together: Where Government and Women’s Entrepreneurship Intersect Natasha Morano
G Natasha Morano Corporate & Government Affairs Director, Startup Canada, & GR Entrepreneur
overnment relations (GR) is deemed by many an intimidating space — it’s complex and often paved with seemingly closed doors for new players. In my role as a connector in this space, an area of focus has been working to improve the intersections of GR and the startup ecosystem through Startup Canada’s program Startup Gov. Despite the steps we’ve taken, problems persist, including a lack of interaction between early-stage startups and government, minimal awareness of entrepreneurial policies as a whole, and red tape that impedes direct access to government. These problems are only exacerbated for women founders and hinder efforts to improve the circumstances for entrepreneurial success in Canada.
Increasing awareness and GR engagement For early-stage entrepreneurs, GR is typically the last thing on their minds. However, the need for earlier government support is emphasized in the average startup fail rate of 38.8 per cent past five years of operation. This raises the question of how the support ecosystem can train early-stage founders
to interact with their government earlier in their journeys. Through the lens of authentic advocacy by and for entrepreneurs, the Startup Gov program aims to be a 360-degree view of GR for all stages of business, streamlining founder awareness of and engagement with government via the following pillars: • Awareness: What is involved in the GR space? How can it help my business? • Education: How do I best utilize this information to accelerate the development of my business? • Access: Facilitating access to key government offices, departments, and officials. • Advocacy: Recommendations directly to government as a collective. For women, initiatives like the Government of Canada’s Women Entrepreneurship Strategy can be the difference between thriving and seizing operations. The support programs exist, but the problem is twofold: lack of awareness and strict entrance requirements that are often unattainable for early-stage ventures.
Reducing red tape We must reduce barriers to direct access and create new avenues for connection. Founders
have the “asks” and solutions — they need the connections and building blocks. As some GR communication strategies are unknown to founders, entrepreneurial voices are too often left out of important activities like pre-budget consultations. More well-known mechanisms are often underutilized. Knowing your MP and requesting a meeting to relay your value in their riding can be incredibly fruitful in terms of curating information quickly and gaining an ally for your business. Removing the red tape surrounding GR doesn’t need to be difficult. Direct access to parliamentarians and their offices is free and paid for by public tax dollars. If you’re an entrepreneur, where’s your return on this investment? It’s about empowering founders, especially women, to know their voices truly matter. Creating streamlined processes for communication, connection, and advocacy to government should be a top priority for all. Startup Canada is pushing this vision forward through its platforms and connections — but imagine what we could accomplish with increased collective efforts and clear, fully accessible government supports.
Visit the Startup and Scaleup campaign at innovatingcanada.ca to learn more.
Publisher: Annalisa LoMonaco Business Development Manager: Karim Jooma Senior Strategic Account Manager: Anna Sibiga Strategic Account Director: Jessica Golyatov Content Strategist: Nicole Kansakar Country Manager: Nina Theodorlis Content & Production Manager: Raymond Fan Production Lead: Michael Taylor Designer: Giuliana Bandiera Lead Editor: Karthik Talwar All images are from Getty Images unless otherwise credited. This section was created by Mediaplanet and did not involve The National Post or its editorial departments. Send all inquiries to ca.editorial@mediaplanet.com.
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