Introducing Parkerview Brews Kombucha, one of the five recipients of the Mastercard x Pier Five Small Business Fund 2022! Who:  Amy Kaban Where:  Saskatoon, SK Instagram / Website In 2017, only a handful of kombucha brands were available in grocery stores. After trying all the kombucha Amy could get her hands on with little satisfaction, her natural inclination was to create her own! The goal was to brew kombucha that tasted better than existing ones - less tangy (vinegary), lightly sweetened, bubbly - and to incorporate local ingredients from Saskatchewan growers. Together with her husband, she began experimenting and created a kombucha that was better than any other brand she had tried previously. Today, Parkerview Brews Kombucha is the largest commercial kombucha brewery in Saskatchewan and can be found in 200+ stores across the province. The brand also has their own cafes and e-commerce making them a go-to destination for all things kombucha. Parkerview Brews is known for making kombucha that simply tastes great - it's sparkling, balanced in flavour and uses unique Saskatchewan ingredients like Saskatoon berries, sour cherries and chaga mushrooms. The business also supports local charities that help provide at-risk youth and families with food throughout the year. How has the Mastercard x Pier Five Small Business fund helped you? Being a recipient of the Mastercard x Pier Five Small Business Fund has been a game change for our business. The $10,000 injection has allowed us to scale and get into canning, which has been a huge goal of ours.  Having the opportunity to meet other women entrepreneurs has been amazing and also to get to meet with experts in their fields, providing us with advice and motivation and connecting us with resources is just the cherry on top. "When we support other small businesses, we are supporting our local economy. When customers support me, I'm able to then put my kids into another program or course that is being run by a small business owner, which is a beautiful thing." Learn more about the Mastercard & Pier Five Small Business Fund, and discover the other 2022 recipients here .

Introducing Aaniin, one of the five recipients of the Mastercard x Pier Five Small Business Fund 2022! Who:  Chelsee Pettit Where:  Toronto, ON Instagram / Website Aaniin, which means hello in Ojibwe/anishinaabemowin, started as a streetwear brand that uses syllabics as the design focus to raise awareness for Indigenous culture. Each garment, made by Chelsee herself, includes a tagged QR code which allows the wearer to start the conversation about indigenous languages as well as pass on the information to others. Most recently, the business has developed into a full-time pop-up at Toronto's Stackt Market which houses products from Aaniin as well as other local Indigenous artists and designers. The main goal of the brand is to serve as a platform that can help create opportunities for other Indigenous creators and spread awareness around the beauty of Indigenous culture. Why was mentorship from Mastercard so important for you? As first time founders, many of us are getting into positions where we can pave paths for others but it's first very important for us to be able to learn from others who have already been out there themselves and done that. Being able to take their insights and established practices and find ways to turn that into opportunity for marginalized communities has been really important for me as a small business owner. "The fund has allowed me to hire staff for my store and give me the time and freedom to fundraise further, while keeping control with indigenous minds and allow me to build economic prosperity within the indigenous communities." "We think the future of small business in Canada is Indigenous." Learn more about the Mastercard & Pier Five Small Business Fund, and discover the other 2022 recipients here .

Introducing Colour The Trails, one of the ten recipients of the Mastercard x Pier Five Small Business Fund 2023! Who:  Judith Kasiama Where:  Vancouver, BC Instagram / Website Colour the Trails was launched in 2017 to improve access to outdoor activities for BIPoC (including those who lay within the intersection of BIPoC and 2SLGBTQAI+ community)  adventurers after seeing a severe lack of representation of racialized individuals in the outdoors space. With chapters across Canada, CTT has reached over two thousand individuals through various intro clinics and mentorship programs to equip folks with the knowledge and skills to feel confident, safe in the outdoors, while working alongside Indigenous outdoor organizations to stand in solidarity and further ongoing reconciliation. How will you use the $10,000 CAD for your business? The $10,000 will be used to help launch or Wellness in Colour programming across Canada. Wellness in Colour is a Colour the Trails initiative that aims to cultivate and promote wellness for Black Indigenous and racialized folks. Our well-being encompasses not only our physical health but also our mental, emotional, and social well-being. Creating a safe space to amplify and support the community of Colour is essential for healing and promoting well-being. Each event will be tied to a specific healing modality such as meditation, yoga, therapy, art therapy, mindfulness practices, or traditional cultural healing techniques. What is your big goal for the future of the business? Within three to five years, we hope and believe that participation and interest in the programming will have grown to enable us to move from single event programming and into a mentorship program for Wellness in Colour. Mentorship enables us to support community members by offering workshops or training opportunities based on interest and focused on personal growth, professional skills, and community advocacy. We would also then pair individuals in the community with experienced mentors who can provide guidance, support, and encouragement on a more ongoing basis. Ultimately, we would operate this with a “pay it forward” approach and expectation for participants to reinvest in the community using their newfound skills. Learn more about the Mastercard & Pier Five Small Business Fund, and discover the other 2023 recipients here .

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Celebrating Creativity and Community at the OOAK Show '24 PIER FIVE COMMUNITY DINNERS LEARN MORE Latest Posts Catch up with our latest conversations and events. Nov 26 5-Tips On Brand Building From Kuwalla Tee's Founder Yaniv Abecassis Oct 21 Toronto Community Court Day Recap: A Slam Dunk Success Sep 25 Pier Five Community Canvas For Kuwalla Tee Sep 22 Community Court Day MTL: Pier Five x PUMA x Ball Her Way x Double Dribble Jul 31 Pier Five Community Dinner: Volume 1 Apr 24 Your Number One Resource With Nishal Kumar of No Days Wasted Mar 11 Playing the Game Better With Drew Stevens of Margin Skincare Feb 7 Doing It Yourself With Carol Pak of Makku Jan 9 Creating Your Identity With Jun Arnaiz of Neutria Nov 21, 2023 Ready For Anything With Bimma Williams Nov 8, 2023 Building Your Own Spaces With Monday Girl Oct 9, 2023 Protecting Your Brand With Zak Kurtz of Sneaker Legal Explore All Guests

Events Recaps of the latest Pier Five events designed to bring creatives and entrepreneurs closer together. Celebrating Creativity and Community at the OOAK Show '24 Pier Five Community Dinner Vol. 2 - Financial Foundations Toronto Community Court Day Recap: A Slam Dunk Success Community Court Day MTL: Pier Five x PUMA x Ball Her Way x Double Dribble Pier Five Community Dinner: Volume 1 Pier Five x PUMA: Mental Health Strength Day - A Triumph of Community and Wellness Pier Five’s 2023 Food Drive: Supporting Community and Fighting Food Insecurity Pier Five x PUMA: Community Court Day 2023