CAPITAL IDEAS c apitali d e ase d mont o n .c o m
P R O J E C T L E A D E R : K A R E N U N L A N D , 7 8 0 - 4 2 9 - 5 2 6 0; k a r e n @ c a p i t a l i d e a s e d m o n t o n . c o m
COMMUNITY QUESTION:
UPCOMING:
Has a conversation ever sparked a surprise business idea or career opportunity?
JULY
Social Media 101 for Business
JULY
Connected Business Women Network K-Days Breakfast
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CAPITAL IDEAS “That’s how I started my yo-yo company. Yoyoing was my hobby and I was an avid collector. Then one day during a lunch break a colleague said, ‘why don’t you just design your own?’ I did, and nine years later we’re one of the top highend yo-yo companies in the world.” — Chris Mikulin, owner of Caribou Social — caribousocial.com “Many of my business opportunities have come from random conversations totally unrelated to business. Sometimes you just can’t predict or plan where your next business opportunity is going to come from. Make sure to get outside of your regular circle and start conversations all over the place. You never know where your next opportunity is waiting!” — Stacey Hogbin, owner of Wevive Fitness — wevivefitness.com
PHOTO SUPPLIED BY: NATALIE HARPER
Natalie Harper, managing director of Harper PR (harperpr. com) believes that talking to people sparks creativity. “On days when I have no meetings or interaction with others, my creativity is low. My inspiration comes from conversation, learning about people or their business, and helping them see opportunity they may not be able to see themselves. The challenge is then deciding which idea to put into motion, because they seem endless some days.”
“I got the idea for my editing and proofreading business from conversations with family and colleagues who suggested that it would be a good opportunity for a self-employment project, as there are always people who will need services like mine.” — Cindy Chopoidalo, founder of Expert Editing and Proofreading — expertedit.ca “New product ideas or different directions for an existing product are continually popping into mind based on a conversation. Conversation is so important in business!” — Greg Campbell, CEO of Spieker Point Inc.— spiekerpoint.com
“Absolutely! I was once brainstorming with someone on their business issue, when I realized that with a slight shift of perspective, we had the tools, knowledge base and resources to help, which ended with us developing a new product line.” — Angela Armstrong, president and founder of Prime Capital Group — www.pcclease.com “I was working on a job that had a fixed end date. I happened to be the floor fire warden and was at a fire meeting two days before the project ended. I explained that I would not make any future meetings, and was then told about another project elsewhere. I got a job there! You never know when opportunity may knock.” — Barry Yewchuk, website and marketing coordinator at Business Link — businesslink.ca “While hanging out with entrepreneurs, casual conversations often result in interesting ideas. It’s always fun to kick these ideas around as they are often trying to solve a nagging pain that many are dealing with in their enterprise.” — Pierre Cormier, partner at Clearthink Group — clearthinkinc.com “I find the key questions in networking environments is ‘who is your ideal customer?’ Having a fellow entrepreneur answer this questions sparks great business ideas and opportunities.” — Nadine Litwin, advisor & solutions manager at Integrity Plus Financial Inc.
These answers were in response to a question posed by Joanne Blake, founder of Style for Success (styleforsuccess.com), as part of our Community Question series. Here’s her take: “Several years ago, a friend was sharing a situation that occurs often at professional development luncheons. That afternoon someone had taken her bread plate. She said to me, “You teach business etiquette, have you ever thought of including a dining tutorial as part of your presentation?” It was as if a light bulb went off! Not only did we develop a dining tutorial as part of our seminar offerings, we also produced a dining etiquette DVD and online training so people can learn these skills in the comfort of their own home or office.”
Roundup: Recent posts from Capital Ideas members From “Doing the Family Business Dance” by Puneeta Sandhu McBryan, account executive at Incite Marketing (incitemarketing.ca): “Family business is undoubtedly unique, with huge potential for creating strong connections to a community, building lasting family legacies, and inspiring loyalty among staff and clientele. The catch is that with such unique benefits also come unique challenges, in the form of succession planning, managing the expectations of younger generations, fair treatment of non-family employees alongside family employees, and added complication when it comes to conflict resolution.”
From “3 Critical Roles in Small Business” by Patrick Binns, owner at Abinsi Solutions Group Inc. (abinisi.ca): “You can have as many job titles as you like - President, CEO, CMO, CFO, whatever – but the business still needs three core roles to be successful. These are: the “Entrepreneur”, the “Product Specialist”, and the “Manager”. Staff do the work; the three roles define the business, the product, and the structure to work together. A balance between these lead roles is required.”
From “Entrepreneur Best Advice: Unpack all the Heavy Boxes” by Marissa Loewen, Transformational Business Coach, Motivational Speaker & Creative Mastermind Facilitator at Marissa Loewen Enterprises Inc. (marissaloewen.com): “When we work from where we want to be, decisions become lighter and we don’t struggle as much when growing our business. When we purge and unpack the limiting beliefs and blocks holding us back, more clients come in, more money gets made and more partnerships are built.”
Find the full posts on these members’ LinkedIn profiles or at their website. We’ll curate a selection every Friday on our LinkedIn group, Capital Ideas Alberta. To bring yours to our attention, email it to hello@ capitalideasedmonton. com or post to LinkedIn with the hashtag #capitalideas
Learn the basics of social media for business on four major platforms Where: 10310 Jasper Ave., Unit 301 When: 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Admission: $29. Tickets at awebusiness.com/event
AUG
12
Includes hot breakfast, speakers, networking circles and opportunity to connect with like-minded business women. Where: Chateau Nova Hotel, 159 Airport Road When: 7:30 a.m. to 10:15 a.m. Admission: $44. Tickets at cbwnedmonton.com/events
Savvy Networking with Ease Learn how to boost your internal and external networking Where: Advanced Technology Centre (9650 20 Ave) When: 1:30 p.m. to 3 p.m. Admission: $75. Tickets at styleforsuccess.com/training
For more great events, visit capitalideasedmonton.com/edmontonevents.
“The best ideas come from conversations where the initial outcome was not a business idea or opportunity. One of our current businesses came from a conversation where we were frustrated by the suppliers on a commercial project. We have built a business out of it and are continuing to slowly grow it.” — Aly Virani, President of Hoxton Homes Inc — hoxtonhomes.com “We sometimes joke (a writer, an architect, a photographer, a business guy, and a couple of web & graphic designers walk into a bar...), but I honestly brought my friends and business associates in one by one to offer their expertise on a restaurant and bar project I was working on as a management consultant. We enjoyed the collaborative process so much and knew other clients could benefit from our collectivity.” — Kris Hans, strategist at Market Grade — marketgrade.com “Over lunch with a younger friend who owns a hair salon, I realized that Edmonton needed a group for this new generation of entrepreneurs, offering support with a focus on local, independent businesses, non-profits and charities. I hope to help them market and advertise through our new “Made In YEG” initiative. Getting your name out there can be expensive and difficult, and I hope to change that by offering local businesses free exposure to help them succeed.” — Katie Pearse, founder of Made in YEG — www.madeinyeg.ca
CAPITAL QUESTION: How does your business give back to the community? Doing good is baked into the business model for many entrepreneurs in our community, which is why Wellington Holbrook, executive vicepresident of ATB Business, is curious to hear from you: How does your business give back to the community? You can answer the question in two ways: • Open today’s Capital Ideas email if you’re a member, or • Visit capitalideasedmonton.com We’ll publish the best answers, along with your business name and website address, on July 22. For more on “Doing good in the neighbourhood” you can attend today’s Capital Ideas event at noon. Tickets are free at capitalideasyeg41.eventbrite.com.
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