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Last Updated: December 30, 2014 Page 1 of 8
Welcome to York Region!
York Region is a great place to build and grow a business. Check out these facts (courtesy of Invest In York, a department within the York Region Economic Development group that actively promotes the region to businesses looking to grow and relocate -‐ http://www.investinyork.ca):
• Of the 45,500 businesses in York Region, more than 4400 of them are focused in ICT (information, communications, telecommunications) industries
• 20 of the 90 gaming companies in the GTA are in York Region, with a combined 100+ million downloads • 16 Fortune-‐100 corporations are headquartered in York Region • The average size of companies in York Region is 15 employees • York Region is home of IBM's largest software development lab outside the US
Not surprisingly, York Region has a plethora of resources to help entrepreneurs evolve their businesses. Some organizations support startups and new businesses specifically; others support businesses at later stages; and some foster peer-‐to-‐peer entrepreneurial connections and relationships. Regardless of which stage your business is at, York Region offers something to help you along. This document frames up some key organizations that operate in the York Region ecosystem and support York Region entrepreneurs, organized by business stage. Obviously they do far more than what is included below, but hopefully this summary will save you some time researching what is available to help your business. Good luck!
“Where can I find help in York Region to start my business?”
The libraries in each municipality offer training and other resources to support small businesses and entrepreneurs. For example:
o The Markham Public Library (http://thecavemarkham.blogspot.ca) operates a maker space focused on creative audio / visual arts. Patrons can borrow or lend recording equipment of various types to help start their performing businesses.
o The Markham Public Library offers a monthly "Entrepreneurs In Residence" speaker series where entrepreneurs share their experiences with community members who may be thinking about starting their own business.
Ontario Centres of Excellence (oce-‐ontario.org) drives the commercialization of cutting-‐edge research across strategic market sectors to build the economy of tomorrow and foster a culture of entrepreneurism through programs that help young entrepreneurs develop business skills and launch new companies. To secure Ontario’s and Canada’s global competitiveness, they focus on areas that will deliver the greatest economic and social benefits across the province. Funded by the Ontario government, OCE is a member of the Ontario Network of Entrepreneurs.
Seneca College (http://www.senecacollege.ca/fulltime/BAS.html) offers a breadth of programs and courses to help entrepreneurs.
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The Small Business Enterprise Centres (SBECs) provide a wealth of business advisory services and training programs, targeted at helping small businesses of all industries start, grow and succeed. The SBECs offer one-‐on-‐one appointments and educational seminars on topics such as: start-‐up regulations, business planning, marketing research and strategy, understanding business financing and taxes and more.
o Markham (http://msbc.markham.ca) o Richmond Hill (http://BusinessRichmondHill.ca) o Vaughan (http://www.vaughan.ca/VBEC) o York Region (http://yorksmallbusiness.ca)
Startup York (http://startupyork.ca) is a non-‐profit, volunteer and entrepreneur-‐led peer-‐to-‐peer network of business owners and "intrapreneurs". Practicing a strict no-‐sales rule, Startup York is focused on building and sustaining an environment for entrepreneurs to share information and best practices with one another.
ventureLAB (http://www.venturelab.ca) is the non-‐profit innovation centre that supports York Region, Simcoe County and Muskoka District. ventureLAB helps technology, health and other creative entrepreneurs bring their innovations to market, by offering an unique combination of mentoring, partnering, and connecting tailored to the unique needs of each startup business. ventureLAB offers the BUILD training program, 1:1 advisory services, clinics, conferences, investor meetings, and other special events. For newer businesses, the Begin course (part of BUILD) helps entrepreneurs develop business plans and articulate value propositions.
York Entrepreneurship Development Institute (http://www.yedinstitute.org) offers a free 12-‐week training program for startups.
York University (http://www.yorku.ca) offers a breadth of programs and courses to help entrepreneurs.
“I need to find funding for my business – where do I begin? What do I include in an investor presentation?”
The Federal government offers a couple of resources to help entrepreneurs navigate through the many programs and financing opportunities at the Federal and Provincial levels:
• Concierge Service: http://concierge.portal.gc.ca, 1-‐855-‐53-‐GUIDE • Database of grant, loan and financing information:
http://www.canadabusiness.ca/eng/program/search/sgc-‐35/
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Futurpreneur Canada (http://futurpreneur.ca/): mentoring and loan financing for entrepreneurs 18-‐39 years old, with loan financing of up to $45000.
National Research Council-‐Industrial Research Assistance Program (NRC-‐IRAP -‐ http://www.nrc-‐cnrc.gc.ca/eng/irap/index.html): the Government of Canada's premier innovation assistance program for small and medium-‐sized enterprises, IRAP offers advisory services, funding opportunities, networking connections and youth employment programs to help its clients.
Ontario Centres of Excellence (oce-‐ontario.org) drives the commercialization of cutting-‐edge research across strategic market sectors to build the economy of tomorrow and foster a culture of entrepreneurism through programs that help young entrepreneurs develop business skills and launch new companies. To secure Ontario’s and Canada’s global competitiveness, they focus on areas that will deliver the greatest economic and social benefits across the province. Funded by the Ontario government, OCE is a member of the Ontario Network of Entrepreneurs.
Seneca College is the home of Helix (Health Entrepreneurship and Lifestyle Innovation Xchange, http://www.senecacollege.ca/research/HELIX/), an incubator focused on helping health and technology companies start up and grow.
The Small Business Enterprise Centres (SBECs) provide a wealth of business advisory services and training programs, targeted at helping small businesses of all industries start, grow and succeed. The SBECs offer one-‐on-‐one appointments and educational seminars on topics such as: start-‐up regulations, business planning, marketing research and strategy, understanding business financing and taxes and more.
o Markham (http://msbc.markham.ca) o Richmond Hill (http://BusinessRichmondHill.ca) o Vaughan (http://www.vaughan.ca/VBEC) o York Region (http://yorksmallbusiness.ca)
Starter Company (contact your local Small Business Enterprise Centre): grant funding of up to $5000 for entrepreneurs between 18-‐29 who are no longer in school nor working full-‐time elsewhere.
Summer Company (http://www.ontario.ca/summercompany): grant funding of up to $3000 for student entrepreneurs 15-‐29 who are currently in school and returning to school in the fall.
ventureLAB (http://www.venturelab.ca) is the non-‐profit innovation centre that supports York Region, Simcoe County and Muskoka District. ventureLAB helps technology, health and other creative entrepreneurs bring their innovations to market, by offering an unique combination of mentoring, partnering, and connecting tailored to the unique needs of each startup business. ventureLAB
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offers the BUILD training program, 1:1 advisory services, clinics, conferences, and other special events. In addition, the Genesis program works with ventureLAB advisors and team members to help match clients to appropriate funding opportunities.
York Angel Investors (http://www.yorkangels.com) provides a supportive linkage between local entrepreneurs who are seeking early and mid-‐stage capital and investors / mentors with a commitment to the economic development of the Region and to the entrepreneurial spirit of this community.
Innovation York (http://www.innovationyork.ca), the commercialization and industry unit for York University, has recently launched a new entrepreneurship program, LaunchYU (http://www.launchyu.ca) to support entrepreneurs across campus and in the community, as well as providing accelerator space at the Markham Convergence Centre to early stage York-‐related companies.
“We're just months away from launching our product.”
Ontario Centres of Excellence (oce-‐ontario.org) drives the commercialization of cutting-‐edge research across strategic market sectors to build the economy of tomorrow and foster a culture of entrepreneurism through programs that help young entrepreneurs develop business skills and launch new companies. To secure Ontario’s and Canada’s global competitiveness, they focus on areas that will deliver the greatest economic and social benefits across the province. Funded by the Ontario government, OCE is a member of the Ontario Network of Entrepreneurs.
Seneca’s incubator Helix (Health Entrepreneurship and Lifestyle Innovation Xchange, http://www.senecacollege.ca/research/HELIX/) helps health and technology companies start up and grow.
ventureLAB (http://www.venturelab.ca) is the non-‐profit innovation centre that supports York Region, Simcoe County and Muskoka District. ventureLAB helps technology, health and other creative entrepreneurs bring their innovations to market, by offering an unique combination of mentoring, partnering, and connecting tailored to the unique needs of each startup business. ventureLAB offers the BUILD training program, 1:1 advisory services, clinics, conferences, investor meetings, and other special events. The Launch program (part of BUILD) helps companies prepare to launch their business.
Innovation York (http://www.innovationyork.ca), the commercialization and industry unit for York University has recently launched a new entrepreneurship program, LaunchYU (http://www.launchyu.ca) to support entrepreneurs across campus and in the community, as well as providing accelerator space at the Markham Convergence Centre to early stage York-‐related companies.
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“I need help to grow my business.”
Concierge Service is a program offered by the Federal government (http://concierge.portal.gc.ca, 1-‐855-‐53-‐GUIDE) to help growing companies navigate through the programs offered at the Federal level.
The chambers and boards offer a variety of programs and events to help businesses network, learn new business skills and manage their costs (e.g., special member benefits). The chambers and boards also typically have a Young Professionals group that focus on offering events and programs unique to younger professionals and entrepreneurs.
o Aurora Chamber of Commerce (http://www.aurorachamber.on.ca) o Markham Board of Trade (http://www.markhamboard.com) o Newmarket Chamber of Commerce
(http://www.newmarketchamber.ca) o Richmond Hill Chamber of Commerce (http://www.rhcoc.com) o Vaughan Board of Trade (http://vaughanchamber.ca)
The Province of Ontario's Business Advisory Services (http://ONEbusiness.ca) focuses on helping high-‐growth firms focused on exporting, product development and staffing, grow their businesses in Canada and internationally.
Ontario Centres of Excellence (oce-‐ontario.org) drives the commercialization of cutting-‐edge research across strategic market sectors to build the economy of tomorrow and foster a culture of entrepreneurism through programs that help young entrepreneurs develop business skills and launch new companies. To secure Ontario’s and Canada’s global competitiveness, they focus on areas that will deliver the greatest economic and social benefits across the province. Funded by the Ontario government, OCE is a member of the Ontario Network of Entrepreneurs.
The Small Business Enterprise Centres (SBECs) provide a wealth of business advisory services and training programs, targeted at helping small businesses of all industries start, grow and succeed. The SBECs offer one-‐on-‐one appointments and educational seminars on topics such as: start-‐up regulations, business planning, marketing research and strategy, understanding business financing and taxes and more.
o Markham (http://msbc.markham.ca) o Richmond Hill (http://BusinessRichmondHill.ca) o Vaughan (http://www.vaughan.ca/VBEC)
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o York Region (http://yorksmallbusiness.ca)
Startup York (http://startupyork.ca) is a non-‐profit, volunteer and entrepreneur-‐led peer-‐to-‐peer network of business owners and "intrapreneurs". Practicing a strict no-‐sales rule, Startup York is focused on building and sustaining an environment for entrepreneurs to share information and best practices with one another.
TechConnex (http://www.techconnex.ca) is the only member-‐directed industry association in the GTA entirely focused on the growth of small and mid-‐size tech businesses and their people through the sharing of best practices, business insights and bright ideas. To its members, TechConnex offers:
• Networking • Peer Groups • Learning Labs • Speaker events
ventureLAB (http://www.venturelab.ca) is the non-‐profit innovation centre that supports York Region, Simcoe County and Muskoka District. ventureLAB helps technology, health and other creative entrepreneurs bring their innovations to market, by offering an unique combination of mentoring, partnering, and connecting tailored to the unique needs of each startup business. ventureLAB offers the BUILD training program, 1:1 advisory services, clinics, conferences, investor meetings, and other special events.
The York Region Business Series (http://www.yrbizseries.ca) presents events throughout the year that are focused on providing businesses access to new ideas, insight and resources to help them adapt and succeed in a fast-‐changing marketplace.
Other Events In addition to these organizations, York Region is the home of several entrepreneur-‐focused events throughout the year. Here are two of them:
Startup Weekends are weekend-‐long, hands-‐on experiences where entrepreneurs and aspiring entrepreneurs develop startup ideas from concept to pitch. Along the way, concepts are validated for viability, feasibility and profitability. On average, half of Startup Weekend’s attendees have technical or design backgrounds, the other half have business backgrounds. Beginning with open mic pitches on Friday, attendees bring their best ideas and inspire others to join their team. Over Saturday and Sunday, teams focus on customer development, validating their ideas, practicing LEAN Startup Methodologies and building a minimal viable product. On Sunday evening, teams present their startup to a panel of entrepreneur judges, covering a product / prototype demo, business model, customer experience and
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profitability model. The next Startup Weekend York Region is on January 23-‐25, 2015 at the Seneca College Markham campus.
Global Impact Competitions (http://global.singularityu.org/gic/) are annual competitions held in partnership with sponsor organizations worldwide and organized by geography and theme. These competitions act as a platform to identify outstanding entrepreneurs, leaders, scientists and engineers with the most innovative social enterprise ideas for positively impacting millions of lives locally and globally within the next 3-‐5 years. The winner of each competition is invited to attend the Graduate Studies Program (GSP) at Singularity University free of charge (or receive reduced fees). ventureLAB is sponsoring the next Global Impact Competition in York Region, on April 2, 2015.
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“Where can I find
help in York Region to start my
business?”
“I need to find funding for my
business – where do I begin? What do I include in an
investor presentation?”
"We're just months away from launching our product."
"I need help to grow my business."
Canadian federal government X X Chambers of Commerce and Boards of Trade
X
Futurpreneur Canada X Municipal libraries X National Research Council-‐Industrial Research Assistance Program (IRAP)
X
Ontario Centres of Excellence (OCE)
X X X X
Province of Ontario's Business Advisory Services
X
Seneca College (including HELIX)
X X X
Small Business Enterprise Centres (SBECs)
X X X
Starter Company X Startup York X X Summer Company X TechConnex X ventureLAB X X X X York Angel Investors X York Entrepreneurship Development Institute
X
York Region Business Series X York University (including Innovation York and LaunchYU)
X X X