Experts often posit that a country’s economic growth heavily hinges on the number of new startups it is able to generate for sound economic growth and expansion. With more youth gravitating toward financial independence and prosperity, the Great White North is on a path of financial prosperity like never before. One of the top reasons behind this success is the number of opportunities available and an environment conducive to entrepreneurial growth. However, this does not imply that efforts and planning from the entrepreneur’s end don’t play a crucial role. In fact, a vast majority of these successful startups have one open secret, which is diligent hard work coupled with strategic planning.
In light of these facts, CanadianSME Small Business Magazine presents three outliers of the Canadian entrepreneurial panorama who have proven their worth through sheer labour and perseverance. These entrepreneurs are Katie Gamble, Founder of Nature Bee; Kaylee Astle, Founder & CEO Blanka; and last but not least, Ania Wysocka, founder of Rootd. We are going to discuss briefly their entrepreneurial journeys and how these three strong women business owners made it to the list of successful businesses. Join us on this quest to delve into these business owners’ stories and what makes their businesses resounding triumph.
Katie Gamble, Founder of Nature Bee
Katie Gamble, also known as the “Queen Bee” or owner of the small business called Nature Bee, is a dynamic and one of the most thriving women entrepreneurs in Canada— she’s a fierce advocate of sustainability, environment preservation, and women empowerment. Based in Saanichton, BC. Nature Bee has been able to present alternatives for plastic waste successfully. Katie is a UVic grad, and this small business was a school project of her final year which she raised from her basement. Today, her business is home to sustainable products like cleaning tablets, beeswax wraps, hand-wash items, and Swedish clothes.
Katie is also passionate about supporting young female students by employing women-only staff, who are a total of 12 in number, and distributing to more than 360 stores throughout the United States and Canada. It is no wonder that she has been featured in BCBusiness’s 30 Under 30 magazine and several other media platforms. With a foundation standing on core values like sustainability, education, community and impact, Katie envisions a bright future where issues like climate change and wasteful consumption will shape our society.
Browse Nature Bee’s official website to learn more about this business venture’s products and how you can support or partner with them. Log onto https://www.naturebeewraps.ca/.
Kaylee Astle, Founder & CEO of Blanka
Kaylee Astle is a versatile and accomplished entrepreneur with a wide-ranging professional background that spans various industries. From her early career as an Audit Intern at KPMG Canada to her expertise in capital fundraising, financial management, and large-scale product management, Kaylee has demonstrated exceptional skills in diverse areas. Her entrepreneurial prowess has been recognized with accolades such as the BC 30 Under 30 award.
In 2021, Kaylee founded Blanka, a groundbreaking technology platform that facilitates business creation at scale. This brainchild revolutionizes the cosmetics industry, allowing anyone to start their makeup or skincare line in under 5 minutes. With a vast selection of cruelty-free beauty and skincare products, personalized branding options, and dropshipping services, Blanka empowers entrepreneurs to launch their brands with ease and confidence.
To learn more about this platform and its services or offerings, plus how you can build a successful enterprise using it, visit https://blankabrand.com/.
Ania Wysocka, founder of Rootd
For someone who has dealt first-hand with panic attacks and similar mental health issues in her final year of graduation, Ania Wysocka knew she needed to do something about it. Rootd, a mobile application designed to help relieve stress and panic attacks, was what Ania came up with, in 2017. The logic behind this ideation was simple, support people through their difficulties by lowering their anxiety levels. This revolutionary business venture uses modern tech and psychotherapy expertise to mitigate the time of panic attacks and provide relief in just a few minutes.
An interesting fact about Ania Wysocka is that she’s a self-taught graphic designer and animator, so it is evident where her inspiration to help so many people comes from. The app’s freemium model offers core services for free, alongside monthly, annual, and group subscriptions. With nearly 305,000 downloads across 153 countries, Rootd holds the No. 1 rank for “anxiety and panic attack relief” on App Store and Google Play. Ania’s goal is to reach 1 million users this year, and during the COVID-19 pandemic, she has been offering free subscriptions. Ania’s journey was recently shared at the 2023 Cartier Women’s Initiative, where she aims to expand her mission and collaborate with companies to offer free/full subscriptions to Rootd to their employees.
So if you’re looking for relief from your panic attack or anxiety for free, Rootd can be your saviour. For more information, visit https://www.rootd.io/.
The female entrepreneurs discussed above are torchbearers of innovation and positive change in the Canadian society and the larger world community. The Canadian business ecosystem is fortified by the contributions of such leaders to help make this world a better place for all. They inspire motivation and courage to follow our dreams and the right amount of perseverance to achieve our goals. We pay the highest regards and honours to these front liners and wish them the best in their future endeavours.
CanadianSME, a magazine catering to small and medium-sized businesses, is an excellent resource for companies that value innovation. By subscribing to our magazine, readers can gain access to an array of information and remain apprised of market trends. Stay connected with the CanadianSME community, which values business and entrepreneurship, by following @Canadian_sme on Twitter. For real-time news on business trends, subscribe to CanadianSME’s magazine by visiting their website at https://bit.ly/3QslxlH.
