Enterpreneurship and Social Enterprise Stream

Open October 1 - 31st

Description

The Entrepreneurship and Social Enterprise Stream will provide grants of $4,500 to youth-led business and social enterprise projects happening in urban, rural, on reserve and remote communities across what is known as Canada. This stream is being offered in partnership with H&M, and focuses on empowering Indigenous youth entrepreneurs to build, scale and enhance their businesses.

Projects must be led by either individual Indigenous youth (ages 15-29) or 2+ Indigenous youth (ages 15-29). Youth leaders (grantees) will receive capacity-building opportunities throughout the project, including opportunities to learn from other Indigenous business-owners and to participate in H&M’s Indigenous Youth Entrepreneurship Accelerator Program.

There is a priority in this stream to support:

New and emerging Indigenous youth-led businesses and social enterprises
Existing small Indigenous youth-led businesses and social enterprises that are looking to scale and/or grow
There is a priority to fund business led by Indigenous youth who also carry Afro-Indigenous and 2SLGBTQ+ identities

Download Entrepreneurship & Social Enterprise Funding Guide

Télécharger Entrepreneurship and Social Enterprise Stream FR

Focus Areas

Projects should focus on building the capacity of an Indigenous youth-led businesses and/or social enterprise. Below are some possible examples of eligible projects. These examples do not include every type of project that we would fund.

Building a business plan or strategic growth plan
Designing and making new products for a business
Developing social media and/or promotional materials
Launching or redeveloping a website or platform
Supporting ongoing operations of your business
Engaging with community to plan initiatives, programs and/or give back events
Hosting a product launch or artist events
Working with a business advisor or taking training/capacity building workshops

Eligibility

Funding in this stream will only fund Indigenous youth-led businesses or social enterprises.

Please note: for the purpose of this program, IYR defines Indigenous as status and non-status First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples in Canada, living both on and off reserve.

Eligible groups and projects include:

Incorporated and unincorporated Indigenous youth-led businesses
Indigenous youth-led social enterprises
Individual projects led by an Indigenous youth

Ineligible groups and projects:

Projects that are not youth-led (or where the majority of leadership is 30+)
Non-Indigenous groups, organizations and/or businesses
Non-youth groups, organizations and/or businesses
Projects taking place outside of Canada

Examples of Funded Projects

Learn about some projects that have been funded in this stream:

@beadbyemily (New Brunswick)

@beadbyemily will focus on website development, marketing, creating a workspace, purchasing essential supplies, accessing vendor opportunities, and developing technical skills.

Shawish Market, Elder and Youth Wisdom (Ontario)

Shawish is a virtual marketplace dedicated to removing barriers for Indigenous entrepreneurs and artists. Shawish will use this funding to evaluate current practices through a holistic (FNMI, 2SLGBTQ and gender-diverse people) feedback model, and will then implement the feedback to improve current marketplace features.

Denessa's Designs Powwow Accessory Club (Saskatchewan)

Denessa’s Designs Powwow Accessory Club is a youth-for-youth powwow regalia capacity-developing project led by two sisters. The project focused on using technology (cricut) to support youth making regalia and accessories.

Mokami Status of Women Council, Thrifty Futures - Rebranding and Meaningful Storytelling Project (NL)

Mokami Status of Women Council will establish a website for their social enterprise, Thrifty Fashions. As part of this process, they will complete a re-branding, and develop their brand story and vision. The revenue generated from the store will directly support future cohorts of the Supportive Employment Program and other vital services they provide for women and gender diverse individuals.

Stream Specific FAQ

See the general FAQ here

My business/social enterprise doesn't exist yet - can I apply to start a business/enterprise?

Yes! We are happy to support small businesses that are just getting started. Please share how you came up with your idea, why you think it will be successful and who you’ve talked to about it. You have a fantastic idea and it’s important to share where you think that it will grow to.

What do we mean when we say business?

We are looking to fund a diverse range of Indigenous youth-led businesses. This could include artist collectives, online marketplaces, product-based businesses (whether clothing, traditional artwork, etc), businesses focused on experiences (I.e. recreation, history tours, etc), businesses focused on skill-building (i.e. facilitation and consultation), etc.

What do we mean when we say social enterprise?

We are also interested in funding social enterprises. A social enterprise is an initiative that markets and sells a product or service (I.e. merchandise, fee-based workshops, etc), and the profits made from those sales are put back into community initiatives. An example of this could include a youth program that makes and sells t-shirts their participants design, and any profits made from the selling of those t-shirts goes back into funding youth programming.

Stream Impact & Reports

IYR has run 13 rounds of the Youth Empowerment Funding Stream. In total $491,650 in funding has been given to 105 projects. Funded projects have reached 9,170 Indigenous youth. What excites us about this stream is that we get to support projects that are just taking off – we love supporting youth who are trying new things, and to see the ways those ideas grow.