Atlantic Canadian women entrepreneurs have taken their businesses to new heights thanks to the support they obtained through the Centre’s ADVANCE program.
Bonnie Cook
AbbyShot Clothiers Limited
Clothing That's Cooler Than Real Life!
That’s the marketing slogan of AbbyShot Clothiers, a one-of-a-kind manufacturer of movie clothing and cosplay or “roleplay” costumes.
Think The Matrix, Blade Runner, Kill Bill or Mad Max. That will give you an idea of the film and video-inspired garments that this Mount Pearl, Newfoundland and Labrador business produces.
“We love what we do here,” says AbbyShot Clothier owner and President, Bonnie Cook. “It’s an opportunity to be really creative.”
Indeed, the web-based clothier looks for zealous movie fans and computer gamers in its recruitment efforts. “Our employees all admit to having a bit of the geek in them. It helps us understand exactly who our customers are,” she explains.
Bonnie’s cutting edge, next-generation online venture gives The Matrix movie characters Morpheus, Neo and Trinity wannabes their own online clothier. AbbyShot exports direct-to-consumers from its website (www.abbyshot.com) to almost 30 countries around the globe.
And AbbyShot coats are no off-the-rack Halloween costumes. Their designs are styled after clothing worn in movies, animation series, TV shows and computer games. However, these garments are also completely wearable as high-end, durable, everyday apparel.
Over the past seven years, AbbyShot has grown dramatically, owing to its global reputation for producing some of the best screen-accurate clothing available. The company’s near-obsessive attention to garment accuracy, quality, and durability, as well as superior customer service, has created a cult-like following, with many repeat and very devoted customers.
As the leader of AbbyShot’s multi-talented team of young craftspeople, Bonnie is a 54-year-old mother of two who worked as a seamstress from the basement of her home for 20 years before she took over the reins of this company. “In the beginning, I didn’t even know how to turn on a computer,” she recalls.
Her skills as a costume maker and fashion designer introduced her to Adam Bragg, her original business partner, who combined his work on the Internet and their shared interests in movies to launch this unique web-based enterprise in 2002. Their first creation was inspired by The Matrix, the hit film that made computer geeks look cool again.
Today, Bonnie is the sole proprietor of AbbyShot. Over the past seven years, she has been both the driving and the limiting force behind its success, admitting that fear of the unknown has held her back a bit. Although she ran a home-based business for 20 years, she admits that she lacked experience and expertise in critical areas of business management.
The situation came to a head when AbbyShot was presented with an extraordinary opportunity to sign licensing agreements with the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) and Universal Studios. “This was new territory for the company and a bit overwhelming at the time,” she confesses.
That’s when Bonnie turned to Advance, a training and mentoring program tailored for women entrepreneurs in the advanced stages of their business. “We took in everything we could learn,” she says of the workshops and one-on-one attention the business owners received from various consultants.
Bonnie credits the program and its participants for her business turn-around. “I needed to step through the fear of these licensing agreements. The training and the mentoring of the other women helped me do it,” she says.
AbbyShot’s bottom line continues to improve, thanks largely to the advice and support she still receives from her Advance colleagues who meet regularly. “That group has been phenomenal. We are carrying on and we don’t want to stop.”
Bonnie strongly believes Abbyshot is at the “tipping point” of its success. “I feel more confident having a group of supportive peers that I can consult with,” she adds.
“The Advance program was a success for me as a business owner, and I truly believe that it would be extremely helpful to other women who would take advantage of it.”
Article supplied by Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency
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Gina Tapper
Hampton Holdings Inc.
Twelve years ago Gina Tapper was jobless.
An architectural engineering technology graduate, she had only been in the workplace for a year, when the construction firm that employed her folded.
So what did this unemployed, 23-year-old woman with limited work experience and zero equity do? She started her own company.
“I always wanted to own my own business; I just didn’t think it would happen that quickly,” says Gina.
Today that business posts more than $5 million in annual revenue and employs 34 people.
Based in Mount Pearl, Newfoundland and Labrador (NL), Hampton Holdings Inc. is a commercial construction supplier of steel cladding and steel building systems.
The majority of the company’s work is procured by successfully bidding on public tenders. Right now business is booming thanks to spin-offs from Newfoundland and Labrador’s thriving oil and gas industry and a flurry of provincial infrastructure projects.
If that weren’t enough, this go-getter is also a partner in Access Plus, which provides scaffolding, swing stages and fall arrest systems to the rental and retail market.
A recent recipient of the Newfoundland and Labrador Organization of Women Entrepreneurs’ (NLOWE) 2009 Entrepreneurial Excellence Award, this successful contractor had no background in the male-dominated construction industry when she arrived on the scene in 1995. Gina’s parents were teachers and her father’s only attempt at construction was to build their house in Torbay, NL.
Like any entrepreneur, Gina overcame a lot of obstacles to get where she is today, starting with the financing of her business. “I just did it the hard way,” she confesses. “I self-financed, basically, and sub-contracted everything so I wouldn’t have a payroll.” Initially, there was some reluctance to support her venture, not because she was a woman, but because of her young age. “Certainly, I had to prove myself,” she adds.
Hampton Holdings originated as Cabot Metals, which Gina formed with a former co-worker from her first job in 1997. She bought her partner out in 1999 and in 2003 merged Cabot Metals with its competitor, Hampton Enterprises, to form Hampton Holdings, which operates under her sole direction. Gina admitts that much of what she learned about running a business was through trial and error.
Among the projects that have been undertaken by these firms, with Gina at the helm, in Newfoundland and Labrador are the Discovery Centre in Gros Morne, the Canada Games Centre annex in Corner Brook, the Port Administration building in St. John’s and the airport in Deer Lake. Outside the province, projects have ranged from Irving’s pulp and paper mill in Saint John to a school in Bathurst, New Brunswick.
Recently elected first female chair of the Newfoundland and Labrador Construction Association in its 40-year history, Gina believes women entrepreneurs have competitive advantages over their male peers. “We’re good at multi-tasking; we’re good at reading people and we’re good at building relationships,” she says.
A recipient of NLOWE’s 2003 Youth Entrepreneur of the Year Award, Gina told a NLOWE luncheon audience that “to be an entrepreneur you can’t just work in your business, but you must work on your business.”
She acted on her own advice when she enrolled in Advance, a skills development and mentoring program aimed at helping women entrepreneurs move their businesses to the next level of growth.
“It’s not often that established entrepreneurs are afforded this opportunity for advanced training, rather than the business basics,” she explains. “I both enjoyed and benefited from this program model, particularly the peer mentoring. I now have a group of colleagues I can go to for counsel and support.”
Article supplied by Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency
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Christie Chaplin-Saunders
Artifacts in Clay
As a successful artist and business owner, Christie Chaplin-Saunders looked to the Centre for Women in Business’ ADVANCE program to help her develop the business savvy she needed.
Christie is the owner of Artifacts in Clay, a pottery production business located in Chester, Nova Scotia. “The pottery is hand-crafted and sold on a retail and wholesale basis throughout Atlantic Canada and New England,” explains Christie.
Christie was immediately intrigued when she read an email about the ADVANCE program. “The program seemed very attractive to me. The topics were relevant for business development. They looked comprehensive and balanced.”
Originally trained as an artist, Christie lacked business management skills and experience. “My training was not in business—I was trained as a technician and designer.”
Needing to create job descriptions and employment contracts for her employees, Christie quickly recognized that the ADVANCE program could help her learn how to manage the human resource aspect of her business.
Christie sees a number of positive features of the ADVANCE program. Although she was looking for specific training in human resources, through the workshops she also gained knowledge and skills in a variety of business management areas. “The facilitators were dedicated and skilful presenters,” she states. “We worked on specific problems while also addressing a range of concerns. It was comprehensive—that’s what made it effective.”
Working one-to-one with a consultant Christie gained tangible results from the individualized attention. Her specific HR goals were met and she was able to develop the job descriptions and employment contracts she’d set as her goal.
Christie also enjoyed being able to interact with the other participants. “It was a very special opportunity to have focused time and access to people with considerable experience. In the general population there are not many self-started small businesses. The women in the group have depth of knowledge,” says Christie.
Christie continues to praise the program, “It was a high-calibre, rewarding program. The ADVANCE program can definitely help women in the growth stages of their businesses.”
Christie was already a talented and skilled artist, but now, with help from the ADVANCE program, she is also a talented and skilled business woman. “I now have advanced business knowledge and skills that I didn’t originally bring to my business.”
Article by Daniella Sorenti
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Faith Drinnan
the Oyster Group
A business plan is an important tool for successfully growing a business. Faith Drinnan recognized this and looked to the Centre for Women in Business’ ADVANCE program to help her develop her business’ growth plan.
Faith is the owner of the Oyster Group, located in Dartmouth with a branch office in Portland, Maine. “My business provides marketing services for smaller circulation magazines; we help them find subscribers,” explains Faith. Finding subscribers for magazines is a difficult and complicated process. “We do the work for them so that they can focus on other aspects of their business.”
Faith was initially attracted to the ADVANCE program because it is geared for women entrepreneurs in the growth stages of their businesses. “I needed help to get to the next level—I needed a plan,” emphasizes Faith.
Right away, she saw that her plan would involve several steps. “I knew that in order to get more clients, I needed to increase the capacity for my business to handle this growth. This would involve hiring more people—I needed to develop ways to finance that expansion.”
Faith benefited from the various sessions that made up the program. She highlights the impact that Toni Newman, the presenter of “Why Not?” had.
“Toni gave us permission to do anything—to shoot for the moon, follow our gut, and think outside the box. She taught us that just because other people don’t do something doesn’t mean we can’t. With her help, I developed a more innovative approach to problem solving.”
Faith also noted the session on the importance of proper financial management systems and processes and the impact that they can have on improving business results as giving her the financial knowledge she really needed.
Faith worked with a personal consultant to develop her growth action plan. “I got the plan out of my head. The consultant helped me put the plan on paper and make it happen.”
Developing a network with the other ADVANCE participants will also benefit Faith in the long-run. “We hold each other accountable. The women are always available—we can call or email each other for help whenever we need it.”
Faith sees the benefits of the ADVANCE program in her everyday life. Developing a business plan helped Faith focus on her priorities and eased the strain she felt. “I’m a lot less stressed,” she emphasizes. “I also signed two new clients. There is no direct link, but I believe the ADVANCE program helped.”
Faith knew she needed a plan to move her business to the next level of success. Taking time out from the everyday work world to focus on her business’ growth gave Faith the energy and focus she needed to develop her plan. If the results to date are any indication, the time invested is clearly working.
Article by Daniella Sorenti
Michele Stevens Sailloft
Business owners all recognize the importance of learning and continuing education in growing and developing a business. Michele Stevens enrolled in the Centre for Women in Business’ ADVANCE program to expand her knowledge-base.
Michele owns Michele Stevens Sailloft, located on Second Peninsula just outside of Lunenburg, Nova Scotia. “My company manufactures and sells sails which are constructed from scratch. We also sell sail accessories and almost anything else you might need for your boat,” explains Michele.
Michele saw how the program would offer breadth and depth for participants. “I was attracted to the program because of its variety of workshops that focused on broad aspects of business. Also, the material was intense and advanced enough—I knew I could learn from it,” emphasizes Michele.
She desired to build upon the business knowledge she already had. She had two specific goals in mind: “I wanted to increase manufacturing and increase awareness of my business in the market place.”
As a long-time, successful business owner, Michele already had strong business skills. “I had a basic understanding of all the concepts touched on in the program, yet this program went deeper than other workshops I’ve attended. It enhanced information previously known.”
Michele also benefitted from the individualized, personal attention she received. “It gave me confidence in what I was doing,” she says.
She found common ground and support from the other women entrepreneurs. “It was nice to know that other women have similar issues. We could speak candidly with each other and ask for feedback on our challenges. It’s great to have them as a resource.”
Michele benefitted from all of the workshops but she particularly liked the HR and financial workshops. “The workshops covered more in-depth material, because they were for the whole day. We could really bite off a chunk of information. The opportunity for more personal attention on our businesses was invaluable.” she explains.
Michele gained more than enhanced business skills from the ADVANCE program. In fact, her biggest gains were intangible. “My biggest benefits from the program are having increased confidence in my business skills and the realization that I am not alone—many challenges just come with the job.”
Story published courtesy of ACOA
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Dawna Tibbetts
Tibbetts Electrical Contracting Inc.
Dawna Tibbetts took a huge leap of faith in 1992. She incorporated her own company. Nearly 20 years later, the business is still going strong.
Based in Kentville, Nova Scotia, Tibbetts Electrical Contracting Inc. specializes in the design, installation and service of electrical products and its associated wiring, which includes new construction, renovations, maintenance and major appliance repairs.
Dawna and her husband Eric, who is the company’s President, have been partners in life for 30 years. “We really work well together. He has confidence in my abilities and I have confidence in his,” Dawna says. Eric handles the service side of the business, while Dawna focuses on financial strategic planning and labour management. “When you have a great team of owners and employees, you can provide a quality of service second to none,” she adds.
Dawna came to the business with a background in accounting and marketing and quickly moved from part-time to full-time administration of Tibbetts. Under her leadership, the firm has evolved into a round-the-clock service provider to customers in the Annapolis Valley, Halifax and South Shore of Nova Scotia, with 14 full-time employees.
Tibbetts’ team of service representatives gives clients access to the best people in the industry. Staff are hand-selected and then entered into the company’s apprenticeship training program, which combines years of post-graduate study, work experience and in-house education.
That’s why Tibbetts provides the highest level of electrical services. The company not only offers wiring services to its commercial, residential, industrial, agricultural and government customers, it also offers electrical design, trouble-shooting and installation services. Its fleet of fully equipped service vehicles is available for any project size, offering 24-hour customer service and emergency support.
Tibbetts has been providing electrical support and solutions since 1989, with projects ranging from a micro-brewery and a fish hatchery, to potato and pork farms, windmill and solar power installations, as well as shopping centres, banks and golf courses, just to name a few.
This is a tribute to Dawna’s continuous focus on growth. As she recognizes, “If you don’t take the time to work on your business, you will just work in it.” It’s this commitment that led Dawna to enrol in Advance, a skills-building initiative for established women entrepreneurs in Atlantic Canada.
Tibbetts has several projects on the horizon that will draw on the ideas, resources and contacts Dawna made through her participation in the training and mentoring program.
She liked that Advance was designed to help women with a minimum of five years in business move their businesses to the next level of growth.
Consequently, Dawna benefitted as much from the exchange of information among her fellow participants, as she did with the workshop instructors and consultants. “I came away with new knowledge, new concepts and a new group of supportive colleagues,” Dawna says. “The whole program was great.”
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Cora Lee Dunbar
ABI Business Services Inc.
Cora Lee Dunbar is in the business of helping other businesses. Her company, ABI (an acronym for Accounting, Bookkeeping, Income Tax Preparation), offers a complete package of office services, from record keeping to estate and succession planning, to helping businesses meet their short-term needs and realize their long-term goals.
Those roles were reversed when Cora Lee signed up for the Advance mentoring and training program for women entrepreneurs.
“It felt very awkward to say ‘I need help’,” Cora Lee admits. Even her business plan was outdated. She was, by her own admission, “like the plumber with a leaky faucet”.
However, it didn’t take Cora Lee long to get used to having the tables turned and focussed on achieving her own business objectives. “The timing was perfect. It allowed me to step out of the crazy world of taxes and come back feeling so much more empowered,” she says.
As a result of Cora Lee’s participation in Advance, ABI has a clearly defined set of values, which is applied to all aspects of the business, from taking on new clients to hiring new employees.
Located in Summerside, Prince Edward Island, ABI presently has a full-time staff of seven, including Cora Lee, a part-time staff member, professional associates and temporary workers, who together serve over 750 clients (both individuals and businesses).
ABI has come a long way since opening in 2000 with a full-time staff of two. Its beginnings can be traced back to 1994 when Cora Lee joined W.J. MacGillivray Enterprises Ltd. (WJM) at the start of its first tax season as a recent commerce graduate, with a major in marketing.
Consequently, she learned the business from the ground up, taking a direct role in its growth from three clients to three hundred in only five years.
In 1999, WJM’s owner, Waldon J. MacGillivray, FCA, presented her with an option to buy the company, where she was an active shareholder.
Cora Lee recognized its potential and was eager to expand the business even further. However, shortly after she received the offer, she learned she was expecting her first child and the purchase was delayed while she was on maternity leave. Cora Lee returned when her son was eight months old to take over the reins of WJM, which she soon renamed ABI BUSINESS SERVICES.
ABI incorporated in January 2005, at the same time it moved to a larger location to accommodate its increase in clientele.
Cora Lee’s natural business acumen was evident as far back as her childhood when her games, in her words, always involved “making a buck”, be it a lemonade stand or a candy store. Even when she landed her first babysitting job at 12, she made sure she had a ledger to record all of her earnings.
The winner of a Greater Summerside Chamber of Commerce award for business excellence, Cora Lee credits the value added service ABI clients receive to its success. “We provide that personal touch because we care about our clients and each other and work as a family. Our staff members are accountable to each other and to our clients,” she explains.
“Advance has opened the door to a lot of possibilities,” adds Cora Lee. “The information, advice and training I gained through the program’s workshops and consulting allowed me to concentrate on the needs of my business. It gave me insight and empowered me to move ahead.”
Story published courtesy of ACOA
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