This article is part of GEN's 2022 Global Entrepreneurship Week thought leadership series, featuring voices from around the world.
This year we are celebrating the 15th annual Global Entrepreneurship Week at a moment when the optimism felt a few months ago as global economies started to recover from pandemic slowdowns is being tempered by economic uncertainty due to steep inflation, rising interest rates, and a hypercompetitive labour market.
It’s a daunting global economic climate by any metric, particularly so for aspiring business owners. That said, there is never an easy time to launch a successful business, and entrepreneurs aren’t daunted by challenges but embrace them as opportunities. It’s exactly these economic uncertainties causing shocks to the financial system and gaps in the market that will inspire young founders to create new businesses rather than working in established companies. Doing so requires a heightened level of conviction during times of full employment – today, in Canada at least, jobs are relatively easy to come by and salaries are increasing as employers vie for scarce talent.
Yet, it’s also times like these when we need entrepreneurs – and the new businesses they create – more than ever. We don’t want to be in a world where the only businesses are those that are deemed “too big to fail” or those whose deep corporate pockets help them weather tough economic times. A robust economy has a diverse mix of businesses – old and new, large and small, and a varied cross-section of industries serving different business and personal needs. The pandemic has left holes on main streets across the globe – where favourite cafés, shops, gyms, and restaurants have been replaced by papered windows. To ensure a vibrant, inclusive economic future, we need these holes to be filled by exciting new businesses reflecting the diversity of the communities they serve.
Inclusive entrepreneur support led by teams with lived experience
Young entrepreneurs have the innovative business ideas and fresh perspectives our communities need. However, far too often they face structural roadblocks in accessing critical early-stage capital and mentorship to guide their journeys. These obstacles to launching a business are exacerbated for entrepreneurs who are Black, Indigenous or People of Colour, as they face disproportionate barriers to accessing credit and business networks.
At Futurpreneur, our teams encounter this in real-time, every day, particularly in our Black Entrepreneur Startup Program (BESP), funded by RBC with additional loan financing from BDC, and our Indigenous Entrepreneur Startup Program (IESP). These tailored programs are led and delivered by teams who have both professional expertise to help entrepreneurs succeed and lived experience to understand where entrepreneurs are coming from.
Since it launched in March 2021, more than 200 Black entrepreneurs have received mentorship and financing support through the BESP and have successfully opened small businesses in sectors that include fashion and beauty, medical services, technology, and food and beverage. Futurpreneur’s IESP has helped more than 110 young Indigenous entrepreneurs receive financing and mentorship to launch businesses spanning traditional territories across the continent. What we hear disproportionately from these and other founders from underestimated and underserved communities, in comparison to other young entrepreneurs in our network, is that they didn’t have any other options: Futurpreneur was the only organization that supported their idea and offered them the loan financing, mentorship, and resources they needed to get started.
Fostering an inclusive entrepreneurship ecosystem to support diverse entrepreneurs
Alone, no organization can meet every entrepreneur’s need and we are privileged to have a strong and supportive ecosystem in Canada, with a wide range of organizations supporting entrepreneurs in different regions, stages, sectors, and demographics. Futurpreneur works closely with more than 350 regional and community partners within this ecosystem to ensure that entrepreneurs are able to connect with the organizations that offer the support they need. Our team takes this further as a member of Youth Business International and the Global Entrepreneurship Network and as the Canadian host of Global Entrepreneurship Week and the G20 Young Entrepreneurs’ Alliance, working with ecosystem partners both at home and abroad to help entrepreneurs start and succeed.
Just a few weeks ago, Holly Atjecoutay, Director of Futurpreneur’s Indigenous Entrepreneur Startup Program, led our delegation at Youth Business International’s Global Summit. She shared our newly created Ohpikiwin Series: Journey to financial empowerment, a program co-designed in collaboration with Indigenous community leaders and entrepreneurs and delivered in partnership with Youth Business International and Accenture to further economic inclusion and resilience of Indigenous communities.
Holly shared the lessons and experience of our Indigenous Entrepreneur Startup Program team so that Indigenous-supporting organizations in other countries could learn from our experience and adapt our model to address their needs. This is just one example of how Futurpreneur is collaborating across local, regional, national, and international startup ecosystems to share best practices and approaches to helping diverse, young entrepreneurs succeed.
Breaking down barriers and shaping the future of the global economy
We believe that entrepreneurship should be accessible to all aspiring business owners who have a dream, the passion, and the courage to take it forward. When we foster inclusive access to entrepreneurship resources, we ensure that more entrepreneurs are equipped to address some of society’s biggest challenges – and opportunities. As we celebrate the 15th annual Global Entrepreneurship Week, we also reaffirm our commitment to help diverse, young entrepreneurs start and succeed, fostering inclusive prosperity around the world.