Making lasting connections

Times Reporter   

 

Celebrating 10 years of connections, entrepreneurial leadership and skills within the community are a couple of the reasons for the Wheatland Business Women’s (WBW) event on Oct. 6. 

WBW is in a time of celebration and change. When it began 10 years ago the goal was to support women business owners in the area. Every month for 10 years it has accomplished this through speakers, networking, special events and other forms of support, something that chairperson Marcy Field said hasn’t been accomplished by any other organization in the surrounding municipalities. 

“On Oct. 6 it’s time to celebrate 10 years of Wheatland Business Women and 10 years of women business owners who have and continue to contribute to the local economy,” said Field. 

“We’re very excited to have Tonia Jahshan as our keynote speaker.”

WBW looked for a successful businessperson to provide inspiration and motivation to business owners whether contemplating a startup or already well established. 

“The woman and the story behind Steeped Tea seemed to fit our objectives,” said Field. 

“Jahshan began by holding tea parties in her home and is now president of the #17 fastest growing company in Canada according to Profit 500. WBW hopes the evening draws together business people from within Wheatland County, Strathmore and surrounding communities.”

The fact that Jahshan is coming as the guest speaker can be attributed to the value of social media in today’s world. After the WBW Leadership team discussed potential speakers Field reached out to Jahshan on Twitter and later connected via LinkedIn. 

“Further connection was made through emails and phone conversations and Jahshan graciously accepted our invitation to speak. We are looking forward to her visit to Strathmore and hearing her keynote, ‘The Direct Approach for a Winning Business’,” said Field. 

Over WBW’s 10 years approximately 50 per cent of the members have been Strathmore residents representing a wide variety of businesses and career sets. As time goes on, though, the scope of what the members need is changing. 

“We also recognize that it is a time for a new era of business support in the area. WBW recently made the decision to dissolve their operation, but the good news is that this creates an exciting opportunity for a conversation to take place regarding what are the current needs of the business community, a conversation that will engage both men and women entrepreneurs,” said Darliss Collinge, secretary for WBW.

Field said the dissolution of WBW has been an ongoing conversation for about three years, and as with many organizations there is the challenge of finding people to take the leadership roles. 

A lot of the leadership team has served for a long time and are at a place of wanting to move forward, but they are also at a strong place right now.

10 years ago there weren’t a lot of opportunities for people to connect and get business education in a networking environment. 

“A lot of that is available online now, so the network that we had isn’t perhaps as relevant today as it was when it came together. That’s what we’re excited about, is now what is that opportunity that lies ahead, what do the businesses want that will really meet their needs, and we want to have that in that dissolution,” said Field. 

Tickets are still available for the Celebrating 10 years of Connexions event. They’re selling at $40 per person and can be purchased by going to www.businesswomen.ca. The evening will include a standup dinner, with wine and beer service. Ticket sales will close on Sept. 29 at 5 p.m.