See Luis Alves article named: Local Food= The Right Ingredient For Superior Success at the link listed below: https://fednor.gc.ca/eic/site/fednor-fednor.nsf/eng/fn04538.html
Client Testimonials
James Foulds
Cirro by AirSuite is Canada’s preferred flight operations management system and a trusted and secure Electronic Flight Bag on the North American market. Established in 2015 in Thunder Bay, Cirro was developed by commercial helicopter pilots Michael Kleywegt, CEO, and Doug Carlson, COO, to meet the needs of operations managers, owners, and administrative teams. Cirro software is fully compliant with Transport Canada and international regulations and is in continuous, next-generation development backed by a team of professional Canadian developers and support staff with a strong focus on cybersecurity.
“Thunder Bay Ventures was instrumental in getting us started. It was incredible to have the backing of these community members who are accomplished and skilled at providing business support. AirSuite would not exist today without Thunder Bay Ventures. Thunder Bay Ventures remains authentically interested in the business today and continues to provide practical guidance. They know the importance of community growth and investment. If you’re an entrepreneur in the city who is considering applying to Thunder Bay Ventures, don’t hesitate. Their support is a true game changer.”
“We are immensely grateful to Thunder Bay Ventures for their unwavering support in bringing our skatepark project to fruition. The Bridge Loan we received has been crucial in creating a safe, year-round space for youth to gather and engage in healthy, active lifestyles. Our goal has been to break the cycles of poverty and addiction while promoting positive change in the community. We are already seeing the impact that this project is having on the community, as evidenced by the joy it brings to our youth volunteers and the excitement it generates for future programming. Thank you, Thunder Bay Ventures, for helping us make a difference in the lives of our youth and in our community.”
Vanessa Bowles
“Global Genetic Health is a biotech company that specializes in highly degraded and low copy DNA. We have been in Thunder bay since 2014 and continue to grow. Thunder Bay Ventures was a great fit for financing as they really understand and support entrepreneurial enterprises especially in new ventures and non traditional financing ventures where traditional banks may not be available. The funds provided by Thunder Bay Ventures allowed us to not only whether tight revenue conditions as a consequence of the pandemic lockdowns but allowed us to preserve our staff and actually grow market share as we emerged from pandemic and were able to quickly ramp back up. Thunder Bay Ventures was able to provide liquidity quickly without delay which gave us some breathing room to come up with a strategy to whether the shutdowns. Without that financing we would probably not had the chance to implement cost cutting and pivoting strategies that allowed us to get through the shutdowns and actually emerge leaner and more profitable. I would definitely recommend Thunder Bay Ventures for a business in Thunder Bay. They are focused on the local economy and can provide a wide variety of support not just financing but networking and advice.”
Ryan Lehto
“My name is Maheen Cassim and I am Registered Dental Hygienist since 2009. Upon graduating from Confederation College, I had a vision to work as an independent dental hygienist and own a practice that catered to clients who had past dental phobias and fears and focused on dental needs for individual clients. I opened the doors to Natural Smiles The Dental Hygiene Boutique in December of 2011. The moment you walk in, the sound of the soothing waterfall and vibrant art work from a local artist makes one forget where they are. The dental hygiene treatment room has dim lighting, massage chair along with a hand paraffin treatment creating a spa like environment. Over the years I have volunteered in the community with Special Olympics Ontario, Shelter house and specially dedicated my time to the advancement of the Profession. I have been the President of the local Thunder Bay Dental Hygienists’ Society, Ontario Dental Hygiene Association and currently on the Council of College of Dental Hygienist of Ontario. I am currently a part time faculty member at Confederation College, Dept. of Dental Hygiene, always trying to encourage new grads to purse their goals as a dental hygienist. Recently I certified as a Myofunctional Therapist, adding an other treatment option for my clients. During the Pandemic, when all dental clinics were asked to close, for the fear of the unknown, I too had a period of lock down with pending bills of rent, utilities and rising cost of daily infection control and prevention items. I heard about TBay Ventures through CEDC and the support for small businesses they provide. When approached they were very sympathetic and understood the strain on small businesses that the Pandemic bought. For the safety of our clients all dental hygiene clinics had to make sure the air exchange circulating through the clinic was safe and met the new standards of practice as set by CDHO. I used my loan to help pay for clinic improvement, better suction for aerosol control and disposals that had almost doubled or maybe tripled in cost. TBV made the paper work extremely easy and walked me through the entire process to make the loan accessible. Periodically they checked in to see if I was doing ok or needed any additional help to stay afloat in my business. I highly recommend them and would reach out again if needed!”
Maheen Cassim
“RegenMed is a Thunder Bay/home grown human tissue bank serving Ontario’s Tissue System under the leadership of The Trillium Gift of Life. For the past 14 years we’ve processed and distributed musculoskeletal (MS) tissues for transplant procedures in hospitals across Canada. We also process MS tissue for a tissue bank in Texas and will soon launch an advanced regenerative tissue matrix that will maximize the precious gift of life. In our early days, Thunder Bay Ventures provided a loan that helped RegenMed establish a distribution network and build a value proposition within Ontario’s health network. Without this support, we’d simply not be here today. We highly recommend reaching out to the good people at Thunder Bay Ventures to explore how they can help you grow.”
David Stezenko
“I cannot even imagine where I would be without the support and financial assistance of Thunder Bay Ventures. I am an Indigenous woman working in the areas of Canadian Reconciliation and Indigenous empowerment. Before lockdown, my entire revenue base was generated by live events across the country, including seminars, workshops, and keynote speeches. When lockdown was announced, my uncertain future was illustrated clearly in the $48,000 of revenue I lost in the first 24 hours. But thanks to support from Thunder Bay Ventures, who financed the purchase of a microphone, lighting, a new website specifically for non-Indigenous Canadians (to compliment my existing one), and a new Mac computer, I was able to shift my business online for the remainder of lockdown. Now I offer both options, meaning my business is actually stronger now than before lockdown, thanks to some fast thinking and the amazing support of Thunder Bay Ventures!”
Sandi Boucher
“BioNorth Solutions, located in Thunder Bay, ON, specializes in environmental remediation. We have been operating since 2014 and are proud to be an innovative and growing business in Northwestern Ontario. BioNorth Solutions is focused on soil health. We utilize microbes to perform environmental reclamation of contaminated lands, converting contaminants to neutral by-products which render the land and water decontaminated. We also have created products to enhance plant growth, simultaneously regenerating the soil and improving the microbial ecosystem. Our technologies are green and cost-effective. Our first interaction with Thunder Bay Ventures was to utilize the RRRF loan program offered during the greatest impacts of Covid-19. We have engaged with them since to secure additional funds. The RRRF loan allowed BioNorth Solutions to continue operations during the Covid-19 shutdown. The additional loan has assisted in allowing us to fund our expansion to new facilities. Thunder Bay Ventures not only assisted us with financial needs, but also utilized our hand sanitizer in packages for companies and featured BioNorth Solutions in promotional materials. The Thunder Bay Ventures team is exceptional to work with. They are always very responsive, and genuinely care about business in our community. I would recommend their services wholeheartedly.”
Amber Kivisto President, BioNorth Solutions
Hello, my name is Nicole Kowal and I created Streak of Green Hair Salon over 14 years ago. I always wanted to work in a healthier environment but still successfully run a full-service salon. When I decided to open my eco friendly, organic, and less toxic salon many told me it wouldn’t succeed. Luckily for me my community told me otherwise. I have grown into the salon you go to when you have allergies, sensitivities and deeply care for the environment. Even if you don’t fit these criteria, you are more than welcome to enjoy the calm, relaxing and less toxic environment here at the salon. “Creating harmony between earth and hair!” has become my slogan and its perfect. Start your clean beauty journey with me today whether you are 1 year old or 100 years old, we will become friends.
I chose Thunder Bay Ventures because in the time of COVID, owning a hair salon and the building I work in, I didn’t qualify for any financial assistance for the first shutdown. This was frightening and very concerning. Desperate to hold on to my dream, I contacted thunder bay ventures after a client recommended I should.
The funding I received not only kept my business from complete failure, but it also gave me the freedom to run my business the way I needed to with the constant changes, demands and cost of products. It gave me a little piece of mind. At the end of the day, I had some money in the bank for emergencies.
During the shutdown I had to face too many challenges to write about. What I can say that the stress of being forced to shutdown your life dream and take away your livelihood was something a small business owner shouldn’t of had to face. Crying, pleading to the government, multiple phone calls daily, loss of clients, loss of products and the unknown what will come around the corner was unbearable the most days.
I highly recommend Thunder Bay Ventures to help assist any local business who needs a company to help support the needs of their individual business financially. It was a very easy and painless process to receive the funding to keep your business moving forward.
