LEAVE A LEGACY The Legacy Conference

Today we sat down with Mike Smith, a skater and entrepreneur, or as he describes himself, the CEO of impact. He is the co-founder of Rabblemill and founder of its programs such as The Bay High School and Skate for Change. Mike talks about starting a non-profit, creating an impact on the community and maintaining an integrated role in the programs he started. We go into detail about persisting through the challenges of your startup and how a skate park in a mall evolved into so much more, including a social community and a high school for creators. 

Check out Bay High here.

Today we sat down with Adham El Khadem, a student at Ryerson University studying Engineering, Innovation and Entrepreneurship. Adham runs us through his startup BuzzFood, a search engine comparison for all food delivery providers. We talk about how to balance running a business while being in school, taking advantage of opportunities targeted at students, and navigating regular business problems such as funding and investors. 

Today we sat down with Kelly Hoey, an author, speaker and networking expert. Kelly offers young professionals advice on how to connect in the age of social media, which can be heard through the Build Your Dream Network podcast, or read in her book Build Your Dream Network: Forging Powerful Relationships in a Hyper-Connected World. In this episode, we talk about how to look at networking in a different light in a socially connected world, ditching the traditional view of networking and rethinking the equation towards networking, while optimizing your own skills.

Today, we sat down with Ashley Freeborn, CEO and founder of Smash + Tess, a clothing brand that specializes in making rompers and leisure wear. After 10 years of being in the teaching industry, Ashley decided to take the leap with her clothing business idea. In this episode we talked about what it took to take the product into market, along with the kind of work it took and still takes to stay committed. We also spoke about remembering the purpose behind your brand and how to keep your morals in check.

Today we sat down with Janet Bannister, Managing Partner for Real Ventures, one of Canada's largest early-stage venture capital firms. Janet has been in the start-up industry for a very long time, and in this episode we go over topics such as what a venture capital firm does, what a tech startup needs to receive early stage funding and key indicators to identify the growing potential of your business. Plus, Janet gives information about an incredible program for students looking to kickoff their start-up. 

Today we sat down with Alex Kinsella, a freelance writer and content marketer. Alex writes for Waterloo's events newsletter, while having previous experience at some of Canada’s most well known tech companies in roles such as product management, public relations, and social media marketing. With Alex's great expertise, we focused on what freelancing entails and how to get there, what good leaders will do for you and copywriting 101.