Canadian Business Owner Magazine - Summer 2023 Edition

Canadian

ISSN 2817-1926

Founder / Publisher: Rasheed Walizada 647-967-2200

Rasheed@Walizada.com

The contents of this publication may not be reproduced either in part or in whole without prior written consent using the above contact info. The information in this online publication is for general information purposes only. The founder assumes no liability or responsibility for any inaccurate or incomplete information nor for any actions taken in reliance thereon.

Camels Are Real And Resilient. How Resilient Is Your Business?

Rasheed Walizada Founder

A lot is happening and things change fast. How resilient is your business? Sustaining your business with your existing resources to generate results.

When we look at how camels are created, they are resourceful and resilient. They can sustain in some of the hardest conditions for a long time. Strong businesses also run like a camel. Many organizations and businesses are reshifting their focus and business model to build camel-like businesses.

In the Summer 2023 Edition of Canadian Business Owner magazine, we continue to feature Multicultural Entrepreneurs. They are successful Canadian businesses across diverse backgrounds and industries. They offer modern-day solutions for the evolving world's needs.

We also have highlights of some of the outstanding business events and the upcoming Canadian business events in 2023.

With Abdullah Snobar, CEO of DMZ Ventures at The DMZ exhibit. Collision 2023 Toronto.

Selishia Smith

CEO and Founder at iDIG Rentals and Services

Selishia Smith represents the strength, wisdom and endurance of First Nations. Her indigenous roots and lived experience of the foster care system have built her unique knowledge of Canadian government, corporate and social systems.

Holding multiple certifications to serve and support indigenous people and families; Selishia believes deeply in First Nations to rebuild their natural leadership position in Canada.

The influence of her ancestors – including Cumberland House Cree Nation, with British heritage land surveyors – has guided Selishia’s understanding of why and how First Nations are the rightsholders Canada needs to have guiding and participating in fossil fuel and resource extraction projects.

The vision of iDIG actually came to Selishia as something similar to the original trading outposts that her ancestors built and operated to engage with early colonial exploration. In many regards, not much has changed in the North over the past 150 years. Today we see current environmental, social and operational challenges of the fossil fuel industry are impossible to surmount without the involvement of First Nation leadership.

iDIG Software is run and wholly owned by Selishia Smith, a graduate from University of Victoria in the Advancing Indigenous Management Program.

www.linkedin.com/company/idig-rentals-and-services

Efosa KC Obano

Founder at Black Founders Network

Efosa (KC) started and manages the Black Founders Network, which supports Black entrepreneurs with capital, community and capacity building. He also started and leads the African Impact Initiative, which invests in early African innovators.

Black Founders Network is supporting Black founders, creating more Black-led businesses and celebrating Black Excellence.

Black Founders Network is enabling aspiring and active Black founders to launch, fund and scale impactful startups. We provide the right mix of capital, capacity building and community for each stage of their journeys.

The BFN was built and continues to be shaped by the community it serves. Over 100 Black founders and over 50 Black organizations participated in the BFN consulting process. Their lived experiences have informed the design of this initiative.

www.entrepreneurs.utoronto.ca/for-entrepreneurs/black-founders-network

Saud Aziz Ahmed Shafik

Co-Founders at Vault Better Business Banking for Canadians

Vault is building the smartest bank account for Canadian startups and SMBs. Canadian businesses want freedom, trust, and support for their business, especially in the early days. We are fixing this.

Vault is the first all-in-one business account that trusts Canadian business owners and will allow them to get up and running in <5 minutes without ever having to step foot in a branch. We are building a smart bank account that will allow businesses to get back to running their business and not managing their account.

We are revolutionizing business banking for Canadians. Banks aren't designed for SMBs. We are changing this. By combining innovation and removing clunky processes, we are introducing a new way to manage daily finances to help scale your business.

Vault is built for Canadian businesses operating globally involving multiple currencies, FX and transfers.

Streamline your finances, in one place: Supercharge your business. Vault's financial tools help you work smarter, operate faster, and fuel growth. www.tryvault.com

Hudhaifah Zahid

Co-Founder & CEO at econommi

Hudhaifah Zahid Blockchain Engineer turned Co-Founder & CEO of econommi. Transitioning the world from a debt-based economy to an asset-based one - one car at a time!

econommi is a leasing company with a flat-fee, debt-free model. Our mission is to transition the world from interest-bearing debt, to equity-sharing assets. We partner with dealerships to acquire cars and initiate leases. Customers can apply for a lease in under 30 minutes and customize their payments. Investing in econommi via LeaseTokens (a share of the lease contract) earns double digits yields, from a secured asset, every single day.

econommi is working towards its 5th year in business with well over $1 million in total active leases. By avoiding interest-bearing loans, we are able to provide clients with more equitable, cash flow friendly solutions. We believe these attributes translate well into our values, and a mission to transition the world away from endless borrowing. We aim to pioneer the way towards a post-credit economic system by reducing the society's reliance on debt for liquidity needs.

This alternative to traditional debt financing is not only beneficial to lease customers but to investing clients as well. We offer secured and diversified, double-digit returns hyper-focused on responsible and sustainable growth.

www.econommi.io

Nazia Abdul Sathar

Founder of ChezChefs

Nazia Abdul Sathar is an entrepreneurial, customer- centric ecommerce, logistics and supply chain professional. Passionate about building global ecommerce B2C, B2B and SaaS solutions, bringing people closer through technology and trade.

ChezChefs gives you access to the best homestyle meals prepared by independent food creators in the region. Discover delicious food made without additives, preservatives and using fresh quality ingredients for a tasty and nutritious meal.

Order With Us: Take away the stress of meal prepping and cooking and cleaning with just a few clicks. Choose your dishes and frequency and have them delivered Eat the food you crave and experience it made fresh by our food creators. Be a part of their culinary journey and experiences and influences. New dishes are added constantly to explore your love of food and to bring different cuisines at your fingertips.

Cooking With Us: You shine the brightest in the kitchen and Chezchefs wants to bring your culinary experiences directly to consumers. We want to empower you by bringing your food straight to our customers' homes and not having to worry about high start-up costs Your food creations will be showcased to a larger audience through ChezChefs and have them craving for more of what you have to offer! At ChezChefs we take care of the rest! Marketing, packaging, delivery. We help you realize your vision, share the food you grew up with and the memories formed with it. Share your story and showcase your skills and tastes.

www.chezchefs.com

Ralph Christian Delos Santos, PhD

Founder at Biofect Innovations

Ralph Christian Delos Santos is the CEO and Co-founder of Biofect Innovations, a company at the frontier of synthetic biology, leveraging microbial fermentation to produce high-value molecules. His extensive academic journey, marked by a Ph.D. in Molecular Science, and experience in genetic technology commercialization, has been the foundation of his leadership and innovation at Biofect. Fueled by a deep belief in science as a tool for positive change, Christian is committed to making a significant impact in the food industry and beyond, starting with creating more sustainable ways to produce food ingredients. Passionate, dedicated, and forward-thinking, Christian is driven to translate scientific insights into real-world solutions, steering Biofect Innovations toward scientific breakthroughs for a healthier, more sustainable tomorrow.

Biofect Innovations is a biotech startup on a mission to harness the power of microbes to create a kinder, healthier, and more sustainable food system. Using similar technology used to make beer, wine, and insulin, Biofect combines advanced biotechnology with traditional fermentation technology to create microbes capable of efficiently producing functional molecules that are structurally and functionally equivalent to those found in nature. With their approach, resource-demanding ingredients can be made sustainably, bypassing traditional agricultural constraints. As an initial focus, the company is working on producing functional plant ingredients such as high-intensity protein sweeteners, 2000x sweeter than sugar. Importantly, Biofect's technology platform is adaptable which paves the way for future production of a range of high-value ingredients, broadening their impact on the food & beverage industry and beyond. www.biofectinnovations.com

Arnav Mishra

Founder and CEO at DYNE Technologies Inc.

Arnav Mishra is a serial entrepreneur passionate about technology implementation for societal development. In 2023, Arnav is proud to have won the prestigious BC Business’ 30 Under 30 award for being the Founder and CEO of DYNE.

DYNE is a B2B SaaS company that specializes in providing cutting-edge analytics for the food and beverage industry. Its innovative software utilizes AI and machine learning to help FnBs drive new traffic, optimize their internal operations and expand to new heights.

DYNE helps you to maximize your resources across your entire business by centralizing data on your customers, operations, and competitors to give you cutting-edge insights and automatically save you money + boost your margins!

The food and beverage industry is tough, but help is here.

In one of the most demanding, uncertain industries, DYNE's technology gives restaurants a competitive edge in an everchanging market climate, and provides restaurateurs of all levels the confidence in making data-driven decisions that drive their business’ growth.

Parsa Riahi CTO & Co-founder

Negar Yaghoobi

Co-founder & CEO at Colorful Zone

Negar Yaghoobi A serial entrepreneur, passionate about Behavior Change for Good.

Colorful Zone is a well-being factory for designing products to improve the state of well-being in individuals. We integrate cognitive science with intelligent technologies to create personalized solutions.

Joyi - Our product works like a digital vitamin for mental health and it helps our clients improve their quality of life.

Colorful Zone is the start of a big dream: To help everyone enjoy a healthy and happy life with sustainable happiness!

We design eJOYcational solutions for mental health. Our mission is centered around five pillars: Technology, Behavioral Science, Storytelling, Data, and Positive Experiences.

www.colorful.zone

Rastin Rassoli

Co-Founder & Head of Product

Athena Afsharian Co-founder & Creative Director

Emmanuel

Akindele

Founder and CEO at Blue Guardian

Emmanuel Akindele Young entrepreneur and an experienced soldier with a demonstrated history of working in the military industry.

Blue Guardian developed software that uses Emotional Analysis of kids' social media usage to detect Mental Health Problems before it’s too late.

We work with parents to give them the opportunity to finally take the lead in the online race. A race that no parent can afford to lose.

AI-powered solution uses natural-language processing to detect warning signs in realtime.

Identify changes early on

Our approach uses an early detection Mental Health Keyboard to help support your family.

Understand how they’re feeling

Our platform uses Emotional Analysis to understand and flag potentially harmful language.

Find the right support

When changes happen, we identify the right professionals to support your concerns

www.blueguardian.ca

Leno Zhao Enzo Jia

Co-Founders at Longan Vision

Longan Vision Corp: Helping Firefighters see the unseen.

Our Mission is to help save lives by developing advanced technology to fit the needs of people working in dangerous environments.

Based at McMaster Innovation Park in Hamilton, Ontario, Longan Vision is a provider of design and sales of enhanced vision and communication devices.

Our vision is to build advanced products to face extreme challenges which are part of an ecosystem to enhance communication and efficiency for the wearers. www.longanvision.com

Collision 2023 Toronto Highlights

Collision gathered over 36,000 attendees from 118 countries in Toronto

A record-breaking 30 percent of startups in 2023 were women-founded 41 percent of attendees are women; 36 percent of speakers were women 1,727 startups and partners from 76 countries and ~ 30 industries were exhibiting CA$188 million has been injected into the Toronto economy over the course of the three in-person Collision events since 2019

www.collisionconf.com

The 20th edition of SIAL Canada 2023, the largest food innovation trade show in North America, concluded on a high note in Toronto in May 2023.

The latest edition of SIAL Canada was a resounding success, with more than 800 exhibitors and brands from 44 countries participating. The event achieved a remarkable visitor traffic of 21,000 industry professionals from 77 countries, with representation from all provinces of Canada. SIAL Canada 2023 not only showcased a diverse range of commercial offerings but also attracted a significant flow of visitors similar to what was last seen in 2019, SIAL Canada's last show in Toronto. www.sialcanada.com

The 2023 Canadian Produce Marketing Association Convention and Trade Show was the biggest show with over 4200 people attending the event. 637 exhibitors representing over 300 companies accounted for 63,700 square feet of booth space on the Trade Show floor.

Among those were 158 international exhibitors from 11 countries, 159 Canadian exhibitors, and 50 first-time exhibitors. The 2023 New Product Showcase included 69 products from 49 different companies. www.cpma.ca

How to Build True Rapport

In the Spring Edition of Canadian Business Owner, I referred to the importance of building relationships with various stakeholders to support and sustain business entrepreneurship. I also emphasized the importance of learning soft skills to build such relationships.

In this edition I want to share a few tools for Building True Rapport – a soft skill that is foundational in any relationship. I learned the best tools for this from my Mentor, Teacher, and Friend, James MacNeil, when he trained me as a Master Trainer for his Verbal Aikido. Here are the 3 components. To build True Rapport you need to be:

1. Likable

2. Trustworthy

3. Resonate with the other party

True Rapport is created at the overlap of these three characteristics in a kind of Venn diagram. Each of these characteristics alone is not enough.

People become Likable when they develop Calm Confidence. It is the type of Confidence that is mixed with humility and void of arrogance or aggression.

People become Trustworthy when they demonstrate Safe Strength. Safe Strength means power under control and is a manifestation of Integrity and Intent (Character) coupled with Capabilities and Results (Competence).

People Develop Resonance with each other when they have Pure Motivation, which appears when they are other-centred rather than self-centred.

Develop and utilize these tools in combination with each other as indicated and you become a master at building Rapport. For more information on Verbal Aikido, visit: duranet.ca or contact the Author.

Ahmad-Shah Duranai

Live and Lead by Design Coach, Educator, Speaker

Sheida Shahi

Co-Founder & CEO at Adaptis

Adaptis provides circular and adaptive solutions for the built environment.

The world is committing to decarbonization. We help deliver the net-zero promise, one building at a time.

1. Reduce Waste: Understand the value of your existing materials and optimize reuse and deconstruction planning.

2. Optimize Design: Evaluate optimized adaptation design option generation and analysis, for energy, carbon and cost reduction.

3. Offset Carbon: Generate carbon offset credits based on optimized waste management and building adaptation planning.

www.adaptis.ai

Ahmer Rafiq

CEO at Souqh

Ahmer Rafiq is building Canada’s real estate + home services marketplace.

Souqh is Canada's real estate + home services marketplace - we're on a mission to simplify every step of your home buying and ownership journey. Simply search, connect, and transact with trusted service providers across your entire home journey as a buyer, owner, or seller - all in one digital platform.

We are a team of tech-savvy realtors, mortgage brokers, lawyers and real estate professionals - on a mission to simplify the home buying and ownership journey by building an end-to-end, digital real estate services marketplace in Canada.

Home journey, simplified: The complete home buying and ownership journey is right at your fingertips, anywhere, anytime.

Explore Service Providers: Simply search, compare, and connect with trusted service providers - all in one platform.

Find Realtors: Simply search, compare, chat and connect with realtors based on their profiles, locations, reviews and areas of specialization.

Secure Financing: Getting your mortgage approval just got easier. Use our platform to search and transact with independent mortgage brokers. Upload documents, e-sign contracts and fast-track your mortgage approval process.

Grace Du Martyna Gatkiewicz

Co-Founders at Lotly

Lotly is Canada's first win-win platform for homebuyers & real estate investors. Lotly is a housing finance company on a mission to make homeownership more accessible to Canadians. Earlier access to home ownership helps our customers build wealth for themselves and their families, and we are here to make that happen.

How do we do it? By helping home buyers with their down payment. In exchange for our down payment contribution, we take a piece of the home's future appreciation.

Buy a home with only 5% down

We invest with you to reach a 20% down payment

You don’t pay any interest on our investment

You decide when to buy us out

You always keep a majority of home equity

Invest in the homes of real homeowners

Co-own prime GTA real estate

Don’t take on a mortgage or extra expenses

Start investing from $1,000

Approximately 15% projected annual return

www.lotly.com

Ahmad-Shah Duranai in conjunction with ULI's Spring Meeting was at Daniels Spectrum in Toronto. This exclusive event with over 300 atendees brought together leaders in the fields of real estate and resilience to share practical solutions to protect communities and investment from climate risk. Some of the key topics discussed were:

Places for people: Shifting markets and the social drivers behind them

Creating Social Value: Co-benefits of climate resilience

Risk Assessment for a Changing Climate Learning from Locals: Community engagement for mutual benefit

The Power of Retrofits: Creating climate ready buildings

Safe, Affordable, Attainable: Policies and strategies to address the housing and climate crises

www.uli.org

Urban Land Institute - ULI Spring Meeting 2023 Toronto had over 4,500 attendees in 3 days of events, networking and programming. Some of the highlights were:

Edge City Urbanism: Suburban Urbanism

Cities that once were considered on the edge of the vast Toronto metropolitan region are now experiencing explosive population growth. The dramatic rise of these nowformer suburbs into truly urbanizing hubs presents a new model for North America. The driver of this transformation is progressive municipal leadership. The panel of mayors of three of Canada’s fastest-growing centers, Mississauga, Brampton, and Markham, talked about the bridges and barriers to this astounding transformation.

Urban Living Rooms in the 15-Minute Smart City

The pandemic has accelerated the transition to a 15-minute city urban planning model. With proximity, diversity, density, and ubiquity at the center, this new framework for development offers opportunities to transform the urban fabric into a landscape of walkable/bikeable enclaves networked by sustainable transportation.

Emerging from a confluence of conditions unique to the pandemic the demand for outdoor communal space, the takeover of street surfaces for alternative uses, and the need to jump-start economic growth urban living rooms have found success in a wide variety of urban and suburban contexts.

www.uli.org

Municipal leaders from across Canada gathered in Toronto, Ontario this week for Local Action, National Results: FCM’s 2023 Annual Conference and Trade Show. More than 1,500 municipal elected officials gathered to engage national party leaders and representatives, to shape FCM’s policy priorities, and to discuss the challenges and the opportunities that come with a rapidly growing Canada.

President’s Forum: Building welcoming communities for a growing Canada. municipal leaders discussed the challenges and opportunities facing municipalities as they seek to build communities that are healthy, safe, inclusive, and focused on providing the best possible quality of life for a fastgrowing Canadian population.

Network of Industry Partnerships for Small-Scale Projects