A peer mentoring group is launching this month by Women's Enterprise Centre to help entrepreneurial women in the Comox Valley succeed in business.
From the steep learning curve, to the emotional roller coaster, to finding balance in work and life, the Taking the Leap to Entrepreneurship Mentoring Program is designed to help women in the early stages of business to overcome these challenges. Space still remains for women business owners in the Comox Valley to join the group.
Comox Valley entrepreneur Tracey McGinnis of Blinds, Billiards and Baubles will act as the facilitator and mentor for the peer mentoring group in her community.
She acknowledges the key role that some family members have played in her business growth. She hopes to help other women in business overcome their challenges and succeed at entrepreneurship.
Peer mentoring groups offer new ideas and feedback on entrepreneurs’ business challenges with a solution-based approach. The group of six to eight women will meet six times and will decide the focus of each meeting discussion based on member interest and need (i.e. work/life balance, marketing, networking skills, cash flow management).
The Comox Valley Chamber of Commerce is partnering with Women’s Enterprise Centre to bring the program to the region.
“Our research found a gap in the mentoring programs offered around the province and that’s why our program focuses on women who are in the transition to self employment — the early stages of business,” says Laurel Douglas, CEO of the Women’s Enterprise Centre. ”These are the entrepreneurs who are at high risk of becoming part of the 40 per cent of small B.C. businesses that fail after two years. We want to reverse that trend.”
To read more about the Women’s Enterprise Centre mentoring program or to apply to become a mentor or mentee, visit www.womensenterprise.ca or contact mentoring co-ordinator Lindsay at mentoring@womensenterprise.ca or 1-800-643-7014, ext. 104.
The Women’s Enterprise Centre is the go-to place for B.C. women entrepreneurs for business loans, training, advisory services, mentoring and resources. With business advisors available throughout the province, it provides essential resources and services designed to fuel success.
Visit www.womensenterprise.ca for more information and to learn more about our workshops and events. The mentoring program is financially supported by the BC Ministry of Jobs, Tourism and Innovation and Western Economic Diversification Canada.
— Women’s Enterprise Centre