Yukon UpStarts Conference inspires young entrepreneurs

For three days this past weekend, passionate young people interested in entrepreneurship gathered for Yukon UpStarts, the first conference of its kind in the Yukon.

Participants spent three days asking questions of other young entrepreneurs, listening to inspirational stories from guest speakers from across the country, and participating in workshops with mentors. Workshop topics, which covered everything from self-care for entrepreneurs to global entrepreneurship, allowed participants to discover what being an entrepreneur is all about.

 

Conference Coordinator Adria Collins has been planning this conference for the past eight months with BYTE. She says the conference was a huge success.

“I couldn’t believe how engaged the participants were,” says Adria. “They were coming early, staying late, and working really hard. I was really inspired by how much they wanted to be there and wanted to learn.”

Yukon UpStarts wasn’t a conference for the faint of heart: participants were working hard from 8am to 6pm almost every day. Their goal throughout the conference was to develop a business idea – one that would either form a successful micro-business to be run in a morning on Sunday, or one that would impress a panel of judges for the Big Idea competition.

With over $10 000 worth in prizes available, stakes at the competitions were high. In the end, both competitions found worthy winners. For the Big Idea Competition, where participants had to pitch their idea to a panel of judges, the winners were:

First place: Heather Dickson, who designs beautiful beaded headbands with First Nations designs. Heather won the grand prize of $5000 of consulting from Outside the Cube.

Second place: Hannah Gray and Mitch Heynen, who pitched the idea of using aerial drones for exploration, surveying, forestry or infrastructure. They won a day of consulting with Cottongrass Consulting, financial advice from Assante Wealth Management, and a technical review from Anlek, all of which was valued at $2000.

Third place: Sierra Sayer, who proposed developing an organic beef industry in the Yukon, won the third place prize, which was one day’s worth of consulting from Gunta Business Consulting.

Fourth place: Graydon Keenan, who also developed a business idea that used aerial drones for exploration and industry, came in fourth place. He won a business short-course from Dana Naye Ventures.

 

While these participants were bravely standing in front of the judges, other participants were working hard running micro-businesses on the streets of Whitehorse. These micro-businesses offered everything from skin care products to coffee and baked goods. Winners of this category were:

Alligator Catering, which sold gourmet grilled cheese sandwiches to hungry passers-by. This team won the Out There award for the best overall micro-business.

Crispy Northern Treats, a team of participants from Mayo who sold rice crispy squares and coffee, won the All Stars award for best teamwork. They set up a stand with Coffee 2 Go, a team from Beaver Creek who won their own award for overcoming the most obstacles.

 

Felicia Bailey-Cashin, a young graphic designer who has been doing web design and graphic design work for BYTE and the Yukon UpStarts conference, attended the conference as a participant to get ideas as to how she can turn her graphic design skills into a business.

“I learned so much, it’s kind of hard to put it into words,” says Felicia. “I made a lot of great connections, and I even have possible jobs lined up.”

Felicia says she was struggling with how to turn her business idea into a reality, but the conference gave her a clear vision of what she needs to do next. Hearing guest speakers like Erica Daniels, a photographer and videographer who is Peguis First Nations from Manitoba, allowed Felicia to see what was possible.

“[Erica] was the first person I wanted to meet after I saw her speak,” says Felicia. “She is a lot like me. To see a First Nations woman who is super successful was really inspiring.”

Erica has even asked Felicia if she would be interested in designing her website. For Felicia, the conference opened doors to new opportunities.

YukonUpStarts would not have been possible without the Community Development Fund and the Canadian Northern Economic Development Agency. We’re also so grateful to the Westmark Whitehorse, Outside the Cube, Gunta Consulting, Cottongrass Consulting Group, RBC, and the City of Whitehorse for contributing to the project.