Game changers
Speakers at local event tell crowd how entrepreneurship can combine with making positive social change
The key phrase at Game Changers: The Social Bottom Line, at the deCoste Performing Arts Centre, was “social enterprise” — the mingling of economic and community interests in the creation of business.
Three game changers in the business world spoke Thursday evening about creating something of true value to enrich communities through entrepreneurial work.
Mark Brand, Tareq Hadhad and Barbara Stegemann, three entrepreneurs who have successfully created social enterprises in their communities, spoke to guests about their experiences and what they have learned. A main focus was bucking negativity, stereotypes and limiting thinking.
Hadhad, the general manager of Peace by Chocolate in Antigonish, described the importance of giving back to the community, relating it back to his experiences in helping to rebuild his family’s chocolatemaking business from the ground up, after it was destroyed in the civil war in his homeland Syria.
Hadhad described the tremendous gratitude he felt toward the people of Nova Scotia and Antigonish in how accepting they were to him as he transitioned from life in Syria to Canada.
“Going down the stairs at the airport, the people from Antigonish came to the airport that night, with flowers and signs. They didn’t know me, they didn’t ask about my religion or ethnicity. The thing that was cared about was that I was a human being seeking safety and peace with my family. I knew I was coming to a special community,” said Hadhad.
Hadhad emphasized peace as the “noblest value on Earth” — something that inspired the name of the successful business he manages, which has put Nova Scotia on the map for chocolatiers. Hadhad said his business carries out social enterprising by hiring locals.
Stegemann — one of the Top 100 Most Powerful Women in Canada, a winner of numerous entrepreneurial awards and the first Atlantic Canadian woman to land a deal on Dragons Den — shared her positive, feminist perspective on building a business. She emphasized the healthy, joyful mindset necessary in social enterprises — and in any personal endeavour. Social enterprises can help fight corruption in society.
Stegemann’s desire to be a game changer started when her friend was severely wounded in Afghanistan. She saw the importance of supporting an economy like Afghanistan’s, to help its people fight the corruption of the opium industry by supporting farmers who grew other, healthier crops.
Stegemann created The 7 Virtues of Beauty, which sources organic oils from countries experiencing turmoil, such as Afghanistan, to create perfumes.
Stegemann described how she didn’t let any trifling negative opinions slow her down or discourage her. Her response to naysayers who claimed “You won’t get your perfume into a store” was “So when is the last time you made a perfume and tried to sell it?”
After initial “cold calls” she eventually got a business deal with The Bay that led to continual growth of her perfume company.
Brand is owner of 11 businesses and shared his story of creating social enterprises that helped struggling and marginalized communities.
Many of the experiences he shared related to his work helping struggling people dealing with mental illness, drug addictions, homelessness and other barriers to prosperity in downtown Eastside Vancouver. The meeting point was his butcher shop and diner, Save on Meats.
Brand said one of his motivating factors was the need to feed people to keep them healthy in a place where many don’t get sufficient nutrition. That led to him integrating his businesses with community groups to form a network of partnerships.
Brand said an important part is being willing to listen to people. He told a story about Mike, a man who fell on hard times and eventually started working for Brand following a conversation after Brand discovered him sleeping in the street. Mike remains a valued employee.
In a gentrifying downtown Vancouver neighbourhood, “where it was quickly becoming a place where if you wanted to eat, it was a $20 halibut meal ... or a bag of chips,” Brand took it upon himself to find opportunities to feed people and help wherever he could.
Brand built connections with local food producers, sourcing the best possible quality ingredients and meats. He started the Token Program in 2013 — people can buy tokens that can be redeemed for a sandwich, helping many homeless people get a much-needed meal.
In addition, Brand worked to create programs to allow people with barriers in life find a job that fits them, giving them a sense of purpose and belonging, which translates into motivated workers.