Businesses: Develop your plan, marketing strategy and budget
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Application period open for the City of Vaughan’s Starter Company Plus program!
Small business remains the backbone of Vaughan’s economy – and the City of Vaughan continues to offer support services to help local business owners succeed. This includes Starter Company Plus, a program designed to help brick-and-mortar companies and startup entrepreneurs grow.
As part of the program, Starter Company Plus will provide entrepreneurs with training to help develop their business plans, marketing strategies and budgeting and financial forecasts. Through a competitive selection process, participants who complete their business plan by Monday, May 30 will have the opportunity to apply for up to $5,000 in grant funding to execute their plan. To begin the application process, Vaughan businesses interested in participating in the Starter Company Plus program can complete the eligibility survey at vaughanbusiness.ca/Starter-Company-Plus.
Businesses registered for the program will receive tailored training and consultations focused on supporting the development of their new business plan. Training components will be delivered virtually, with options for in-person support.
Applicants will be divided into one of the following two streams:
- Existing brick-and-mortar businesses with physical storefronts, offices or
- industrial locations.
- New startup and home-based businesses that may be looking to start or expand.
Register for one of the following virtual information sessions to learn more about the Starter Company Plus program:
- Tuesday, April 26 at 11 a.m.
- Tuesday, May 3 at 6 p.m.
- Tuesday, May 10 at 1 p.m.
- Tuesday, May 17 at 11 a.m.
The City of Vaughan’s Economic Development team provides other services to the business community, including the following:
Advisory consultations
The team continues to offer advisory consultations to entrepreneurs and businesses of all stages and sizes via tele- or video-conference, email and phone. Starting Monday, May 2, in-person consultations also will be available at Vaughan City Hall. For information, additional resources or to book a consultation, visit vaughanbusiness.ca.
Training and education
Businesses and entrepreneurs can use the City as a resource to find ongoing training and education to move their business online, pivot their strategy or start anew. The Economic Development department also promotes virtual webinars, seminars and classes from different organizations. There is something for everyone. To learn more about upcoming events, visit vaughanbusiness.ca/events.
Summer Company
The Summer Company program, in association with the Ministry of Economic Development, Job Creation and Trade, prepares young entrepreneurs with a pipeline of tools, skills, connections and resources required to succeed in their business ventures. Applications for this year’s Summer Company program are open at vaughanbusiness.ca/Summer-Company and will close on Tuesday, May 31. This annual program provides students aged 15 to 29 years old with mentorship from Vaughan’s business community and access to business advisory services and workshops to help them develop important skills. Participants also have the opportunity to receive up to $3,000 in provincial grant funding to start their own businesses.
Interested participants can join the last information session hosted in partnership with Vaughan Public Libraries to learn more:
For more information, visit vaughanbusiness.ca/Summer-Company.
Talent City Vaughan
Community and social service organizations are invited to apply for Talent City Vaughan – the City’s latest economic development program created to offer financial support to external organizations that provide opportunities for residents to enhance their skillsets. Micro-grants of up to $10,000 will be available to regional not-for-profit community and social service organizations delivering training to Vaughan talent. Applications will be accepted until Friday, April 29. For more information or to complete a registration form, visit vaughanbusiness.ca/TalentCityVaughan.
Advantage Vaughan
On Feb. 15, 2022, Mayor Maurizio Bevilacqua and Members of Council took the next step in supporting the business community by endorsing Advantage Vaughan, Phase 3 of the City’s economic development response to COVID-19.
Advantage Vaughan proposes a series of programs to support four strategic pillars of the economy, including:
- local small business owners and entrepreneurs.
- Vaughan’s residents who make up the city’s talent base.
- Vaughan’s local organizations that animate the community and foster local destination development opportunities.
- community branding and marketing to demonstrate the advantages of doing business in Vaughan.
Advantage Vaughan fosters economic prosperity, investment and social capital through funding opportunities for the business community and training opportunities for local talent development – key priorities outlined in the City’s 2018-2022 Term of Council Service Excellence Strategic Plan. The plan builds off the momentum of the Vaughan Business Action Plan, approved in March 2020 as the first phase in the response efforts, and the Vaughan Business Resilience Plan, which began in June 2020.
To keep up with the City’s newest business resources and initiatives, sign up for the Economic Development department’s eNewsletter at vaughanbusiness.ca/enewsletters. For City of Vaughan updates and news as they happen, subscribe to Vaughan News and follow the official corporate channels on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn.