What is your business called and what does it do?

My business is Carpooll.com, a platform that connects riders and drivers travelling in the same direction to share rides. We make carpooling safe, affordable, and efficient while helping reduce traffic congestion and carbon emissions. Our platform is available as a mobile app and website, and we are rapidly growing across Canada.

What made you want to do this work?

I saw a huge need for an affordable and community-driven solution to transportation. During my career, I’ve witnessed how important it is to bring people together while making travel more sustainable. Carpooll.com was born out of the idea that carpooling doesn’t just save money—it builds connections and reduces environmental impact. With the increasing cost of travel and traffic congestion, I knew there was a better way to make everyday commuting and long-distance trips easier and more cost-effective.

What problem did you want to solve with the business?

Two problems.

First, we wanted to make travel more affordable and sustainable. People often spend too much on transportation(the average Canadian Spends $1370/month), and 70% of Canadians travel alone in a car, which contributes to pollution and traffic. By connecting riders and drivers going the same way, we help drivers offset costs and riders save money, all while reducing emissions and traffic.

Second, we wanted to create a community-driven experience that emphasises safety and comfort. With features like Pinkpool, which pairs women-only drivers and riders, and in-app messaging to facilitate communication, we put user safety and convenience at the forefront. Our platform also helps reduce isolation by giving people opportunities to meet and interact with fellow travellers.

Who are your clientele/demographics?

Our clientele includes a diverse range of users across Canada—students, professionals, commuters, and travellers looking for cost-effective and convenient rides. We have a growing community of both drivers looking to offset travel expenses and riders seeking affordable transportation. Since our launch, we’ve amassed over 10,000 users and continue to grow as people discover the benefits of carpooling.

Now, we are planning to grow through Government Organisations, Corporates and colleges.

How does your business make money? How does it work?

Carpooll.com makes money through a small commission on each ride. We charge a 20% commission to riders and no commission from the driver. This allows us to maintain the platform, offer new features, and ensure a seamless experience for both parties. Drivers and riders use our app to arrange rides, and payments are processed through the app, providing a secure and hassle-free transaction.

Where in the city can we find your profession?

Our head office is in Kitchener, but Carpooll.com operates nationwide across Canada. We’re actively expanding to cover more routes and cities where public transportation is not available, ensuring that our users have plenty of options when planning their travel.

What is the best question a prospective customer could ask a member of your profession when comparing services? Give the answer as well.

Ask about safety features and user experience. A good carpool platform should prioritise user safety and make ride coordination simple and transparent.

The answer you’re looking for should include advanced safety features like driver verification, ride tracking, and gender-specific options like Pinkpool. Additionally, the platform should offer seamless in-app communication and easy payment processing to build trust and confidence among users.

What is the best part about what you do? What is the worst part?

The best part is seeing how Carpooll.com brings people together while helping them save money and reduce their carbon footprint. It’s incredibly rewarding to know that we’re making a positive impact on the environment and helping communities thrive.

The worst part? Navigating the challenges of educating people about the benefits of carpooling. Sometimes people are hesitant to share rides with strangers, even with our safety measures in place. It takes time to build that trust, but once people try it, they usually see how beneficial it can be as we put money back into Canadians’ pockets.

What is your favourite joke about your own profession?

Carpooling: The only time you actually want strangers in your car.

Where can we follow you?

Instagram | Facebook | LinkedIn | Android App Download | Apple App Download | Website

Stay connected to get the latest updates, tips on carpooling, and community stories!

PAY IT FORWARD: What is another local business that you love?

There are many incredible companies, businesses, and startups, making it tough to pick just one. I’d like to give a special shoutout to SanRemo Bakery for their outstanding work and commitment to the local community.

The post Homegrown Business: Rutvik Babaria & Dhwani Purohit of Carpooll.com appeared first on Toronto Guardian.

What is your business called and what does it do?

Growclass is an award-winning course and community specializing in Growth Marketing, equipping Founders and marketers with the technical skills, professional network, and support needed to grow businesses.

What made you want to do this work?

I built Growclass because I couldn’t find a space for women and underrepresented people to learn non-fluffy growth marketing skills. All of the offerings in the market weren’t specific to growth, had a lot of jargon and arrogance, or had really outdated digital marketing content. With years of experience in building growth teams and advising companies, I recognized the challenge in sourcing and training new talent. I wanted to build a place where women and underrepresented people could acquire tangible skills, build a real professional network, and accelerate their careers in a space that feels supportive and never intimidating.

What problem did you want to solve with the business?

Tech suffers from a dire inclusion problem. Only 17% of Canadian small and medium-sized businesses are owned by women, and only 2% of VC funding goes to women. The current gender breakdown in high-paying growth marketing roles is also dismal, with 73% of high-paying growth roles going to men.

I wanted to create something to help women and equity-deserving people build technical skills, yes, but also build a real professional network and have a safe place to go for support.

So many of us don’t have well-connected families, generational wealth, or business degrees. We need to learn on the fly, and we deserve the same access to mentorship, education, connections, and capital.

It’s why we built Growclass.

Who are your clientele/demographics?

We work primarily with women and equity-deserving folks who are in marketing roles and want to break into a higher-paying role. We also train a lot of Founders who need to learn how to grow their businesses, find great marketing talent, and connect to a professional network.

How does your business make money? How does it work?

We offer a six-week Growth Marketing certification that folks pay $2000 USD to join. We’re working with Upskill Canada on a 10 million dollar project with The Canadian Marketing Association, and Jelly Academy and the Canadian Federal Government to train 1200 equity-deserving Canadians.

Where in the city can we find your profession?

The term Growth Marketing was coined in San Francisco, but Growth Manager is the fastest-growing job title in Canada. We’re all over the world!

What is the best question a prospective customer could ask a member of your profession when comparing services? Give the answer as well.

There are so many marketing courses, what makes Growclass any different? There are a lot of courses online, but most of them focus on older marketing skill sets. I’ll be honest, most marketing courses are needlessly broad. They give you high-level information without really explaining how to do anything in practice, so you feel like you’re learning something but when you go to actually apply it– you don’t know where to start.

Growclass is focused on teaching you practical growth marketing skills that you can learn and then implement at work. And it works, on average, our students use their new skills and earn $27,600 more within 6 months of taking the course through promotions and securing better, higher-paying roles.

With most courses, the support stops at graduation, but Growclass isn’t really just a course. We’re a big, warm community of marketers and entrepreneurs. We have alumni in our community who are still engaged after taking the first course in 2020. We offer our students access to career coaching, mastermind communities, mentorship, accountability sessions, and ongoing workshops.

Last week we hosted an in-person co-working day just so the community could come out and meet each other, get some work done, and get out of the house. It’s just a seriously lovely group of people.

What is the best part about what you do? What is the worst part?

The people, the people are the best. Our team, our students, our instructors, our community, I get to spend my days talking to smart, kind, creative people who really care about helping each other and I fear that’s rare in 2024. The worst part is that there are a lot of people using courses and community as get-rich-quick schemes, so people who really need education and support can be burned if they look in the wrong places.

We’re constantly looking for ways to cut through the noise and find our people.

What is your favourite joke about your own profession?

Can I use one of my own? San Francisco is like if mansplaining… was a city.

Where can we follow you?

You can find Growclass on Instagram and TikTok at @growclass! We also have a great newsletter you can subscribe to here.

PAY IT FORWARD: What is another local business that you love?

I’m a huge fan of Three Ships (Growclass alumni) and Province of Canada!

The post Homegrown Businesses: Sarah Stockdale of Growclass appeared first on Toronto Guardian.

What is your business called and what does it do?

My business is called Purplesful Snacking. At Purplesful, we believe all children should have the opportunity to reach their potential. We believe in purpose over profit and we’re committed to supporting underprivileged children through the sale of healthy snacking products. We donate 25% of our profits to education, health and nutrition programs benefiting kids in underprivileged communities across Canada. What separates Purplesful from other popcorn on the market is that it’s made with purple kernel corn. Our product, available in Sea Salt and Plant-based Cheddar is Non-GMO, 100% plant-based and gluten-free. An added benefit is that the taste of these non-GMO purple corn kernels is super smooth and creates a snack that is ‘creamier’ than virtually anything else on the market.

What made you want to do this work?

Purplesful Snacking is a project I’ve been working on since 2020 and was brought to the market in February 2022. My venture with Purplesful was focused on creating a product that wasn’t simply going to satiate cravings but would actually make a difference in the lives of others. The venture with Purplesful continues to inspire and motivate me and my team to create purpose-driven products. I also wanted to apply my knowledge from previous work in the natural food industry. Prior to Purplesful, I was the founder of Spore Wellness, GreenSpace brands, and Life Choices, among others.

What problem did you want to solve with the business?

Child inequalities are prevalent in many communities across Canada, and I wanted to create a high-volume CPG that could flow profits to the less privileged. We solidified how we wanted it to be structured (25% of profits to be given back) and who we wanted to give back to (started with inner city children) and I’m proud to say we have now grown a roster of different children’s organizations that we support on an ongoing basis.

Who are your clientele/demographics?

Our primary demographic consists of consumers who believe in buying from socially conscious brands. Like us, they care about social issues ranging from the environment and global warming to ethical sourcing and supporting the less privileged.

How does your business make money? How does it work?

Purplesful is currently sold at major grocery stores across the country for the suggested retail price of $4.49 per package. We invest 25% of all our profits from each city or region into unprivileged communities through local organizations. Some organizations we support are the Hockey Diversity Alliance, Breakfast Club of Canada and Backpack Buddies.

Where in the city can we find your profession?

My office is located in downtown Toronto, and you can find Purplesful at a variety of major grocery and natural food stores locally, including Longo’s, Loblaws, Whole Foods, Metro or Shoppers Drugmart.

What is the best question a prospective customer could ask a member of your profession when comparing services? Give the answer as well.

Question: What is the secret to your success of starting companies, successfully launching them and in some cases taking them public?

Answer: The secret to success in the CPG world is in making sure your product not only tastes great (a must) but also has a social conscience. New brands nowadays need to separate themselves in a very competitive field, and a great way to do that is to be about more than profit, but to truly get behind a societal or environmental need that is near and dear to your heart. That social conscience will separate the product from the rest of the products on shelf.

What is the best part about what you do? What is the worst part?

The best part is, of course, being able to help underprivileged children in communities across the country. Working closely with our community partners, we’re able to see the direct impact these organizations have in making a difference in children’s lives. The worst part is not being able to support every Canadian organization that is doing amazing things for underserved communities – but as the company grows so can our support!

What is your favourite joke about your own profession?

Mom – You keep dropping popcorn honey, please stop.

Sorry, butter fingers!

Where can we follow you?

Website | Instagram | Facebook | LinkedIn | Matthew von Teichman

PAY IT FORWARD: What is another local business that you love?

I love Made Good. They’re a great local manufacturer of bars and cookies.

The post Homegrown Business: Matthew von Teichman of Purplesful Snacking appeared first on Toronto Guardian.

What is your business called and what does it do?

VTMN Packs launched in December 2019 as Canada’s first monthly vitamin subscription service. It’s an easy and convenient way to purchase and receive premium quality vitamins and helps customers take the trouble and guesswork out of choosing the right supplements.

With an order you will receive a monthly supply of vitamins and supplements in daily dose packets to help you stay on track and get the most out of your wellness regimen. Your packs come pre-loaded in one of our stylish and convenient dispenser boxes. Inside each box, you will find a personalized supplement chart that outlines all the important information you need to know about each product inside the pack.

There are a few ways to place an order. You can take a brief online Health Assessment (created by pharmacists, nutritionists and holistic nutritionists) that guides you and confirms the best products for you. If you already have a regimen you love or have been working with a healthcare professional, you can build your own pack as well. For those looking to get a quick start, we’ve recently bundled our bestselling premium vitamins into easy and affordable starter packs in our Essentials Collection.

Our subscription and direct-to-door delivery service is exactly what people are looking for right now, especially as we see a greater focus on health, shopping local and supporting small businesses. Ultimately, we make staying on top of your regimen easy with convenient daily packs and eliminate the hassle of buying and sorting vitamins by ensuring your packs arrive at your door every month so you can get back to living your best life!

What made you want to do this work?

I began my professional career as a licensed pharmacist where I noticed there were shortcomings in the vitamin industry surrounding quality, adherence and convenience. I would often forget to take my own daily vitamins and felt that I wasn’t the only one finding themselves going weeks with untouched containers. With my pharmaceutical experience and determination to simplify the experience for consumers, my mission became to educate Canadians about taking their health into their own hands. Now, our continued vision is to increase accessibility to high-quality vitamins and supplements for Canadians, with our ongoing goal of creating an easy and convenient way to stay on top of what can be a daunting routine.

What problem did you want to solve with the business?

When it comes to taking vitamins, people have the best intentions, but today’s market makes purchasing supplements and maintaining a consistent program very difficult. Many try and then give up. Ultimately, consumers are overwhelmed by choice when searching for specific supplements, with the inability to compare “apples to apples” due to hard to understand labelling. The supplement market is also saturated with poor quality, misleading and often ineffective products backed by flashy marketing or trendy influencers further perpetuating the misconception that vitamins don’t work.

Consumers looking for high-quality, professional-grade supplements often find them difficult to access as they are not widely available at mass market or retail pharmacy locations. And once you do find supplements that work for you, it can be very difficult to stay on top of a routine. The hassle of opening a number of bottles every morning/night is often enough to discourage people from continuing on their regimen. Enter VTMN Packs! We are a personalized service that takes the trouble and guesswork out of staying healthy and have created the easiest, most convenient way to purchase and manage your daily vitamin intake.

Who are your clientele/demographics?

As a brand, we strongly believe in a food-first approach to health, but in reality, no one eats perfectly 100% of the time, and even if they do, the nutrient density of fresh foods is declining. As a population, we are busier and more stressed than ever before which all takes a toll on our bodies and its ability to properly store and use nutrients effectively. Furthermore, now more than ever, people are interested in improving and maintaining their immune health.

VTMN Packs are for any and every adult who wants to focus on improving their health but doesn’t know where to get started. For those who are already actively taking vitamins, we simply provide a smarter way to supplement. And for those who aren’t, it’s a great way to give it a try without having to commit to full bottles. Generally, almost everyone can benefit from supplements, and our Health Assessment is designed to figure out exactly which ones you may need.

Whether you are a pregnant woman who needs an easy way to take her vitamins, a busy professional who has no time to focus on their self-care, an individual who enjoys the convenience of a set-it-and-forget-it subscription service, we have the perfect solution, made just for you!

How does your business make money? How does it work?

VTMN Packs is a subscription service. Based on your order the prices vary as each supplement is priced individually for the month. Our flexible subscription model provides customers with the peace of mind knowing that their vitamins will show up at their door every month while providing the option to delay or pause your delivery at any time.

A very unique aspect about our business is that we work with reputable Canadian supplement brands that people already know and love and we work hard with our vendors to secure the best possible prices and pass those along to our consumers.

Our customers enjoy being able to try out different supplements for a month at a time without having to commit to purchasing a whole bottle which may just end up sitting unused.

Where in the city can we find your profession?

We are a direct-to-customer e-commerce business based out of Toronto and offer shipping across Canada.

What is the best question a prospective customer could ask a member of your profession when comparing services? Give the answer as well.

Q: How do I know what vitamins are good?

A: The most important advice about supplements is that they should be considered an extension to an already healthy diet. When choosing a supplement, the most important thing is to focus on quality. It’s essential to always read the label! Look for supplements in their activated and most absorbable forms, choose products that are free from artificial dyes and fillers, where possible, choose capsules over tablets and look for products that are non-GMO and that are third party tested for quality and purity. If you don’t know what you’re looking for, reach out to someone that does!

Holistic pharmacists, naturopaths, dieticians and nutritionists all have specialized training in this field and can help guide you in the right direction.

With so many choices out there when it comes to supplements, Canadians need a voice they can trust and rely on and VTMN Packs is here to be that support for them.

What is the best part about what you do? What is the worst part?

There are so many great things about what we do, but if we had to narrow it down, it would have to be the incredible feedback we get from our customers. It’s always so rewarding to hear that we’ve been able to solve real health problems for so many individuals by helping them stick to their wellness routines, they now have more energy, are sleeping better and overall feel like themselves again.

The most challenging part is that there are a lot of skeptics out there who believe that vitamins are ineffective and don’t see the value in premium quality vitamins. Unfortunately, this misconception comes from the fact that most people are simply not taking the right one. The form, dose and ingredients of a supplement makes a huge difference and I am so thankful that I now have a platform to be able to educate and inform these consumers.

What is your favourite joke about your own profession?

I have two, but they are pretty cheesy!

What’s the best vitamin for friendship? B1

What’s a Canadian’s favourite vitamin? Eh

Where can we follow you?

Instagram | Facebook | TikTok

PAY IT FORWARD: What is another local business that you love?

There are so many amazing local Canadian businesses, it’s hard to name just one! I’ll give a shout-out to InspiredGo though as share a similar mission – to simplify healthy eating by delivering delicious salads right to your door!

The post Homegrown Business: Laurie Cook, Founder of VTMN Packs appeared first on Toronto Guardian.

What is your business called and what does it do?

Proprlifestyle started as an online Korean Skincare business in November 2017; a retail space was added in 2020 after a series of successful popups in the Ossington/Queen St. West area.

What made you want to do this work?

In South Korea, I discovered result-oriented techniques and products to help alleviate issues with my sensitive skin and reduce my eczema and acne breakouts.

What problem did you want to solve with the business?

I started this business to share my experience and growing knowledge with those who have similar skin issues and want to learn more about how Korean skincare can improve their skin’s appearance. I believe that a personalized beauty skincare routine can lead to glowing skin that retains elasticity.

Who are your clientele/demographics?

My customers range in age from 16-80 years of age. It used to be 90% female and 10% male but my male clients have increased by 60% in this last year alone. I feel honoured that my male customers are comfortable enough to ask for advice on their skin.

The ideal customer is someone who wants to learn more about taking care of their skin while building a customized skincare routine. They may have sensitive skin, acne, or other issues they would like to improve.

How does your business make money? How does it work?

We have an online store and retail space offering the flexibility of pickup, delivery, or in-store shopping.

Where in Toronto can we find your profession?

Our location is 458 Ossington Avenue in Little Italy. Our retail space has evolved into a skincare hub attracting customers from near and far. We have also become a favourite tourist, attracting skin enthusiasts from all over Canada and the US.

What is the best question a prospective customer could ask a member of your profession when comparing services? Give the answer as well.

It is always great when a prospective customer says that they are curious about Korean Skincare, and asks me to advise them on a basic routine to start? After assessing their skin type, current skincare routine and skin goals; I customize a specific skin regime which would include a cleanser, hydrating toner, serum and moisturizer.

What is the best part about what you do? What is the worst part?

The best part of this business is when customers come back and tell me how much they loved the product I recommended for them or when they leave a 5-star review on google about their experience in our store. This gives me pure joy. The worst part was launching the store 9 days before the original COVID 19 lockdown.

What is your favourite joke about your own profession?

I can’t really think of a joke about my profession but there is an ongoing inside joke with my family about what I do. They call me the Dorian Gray of skincare; being able to still look so young while they continue to age around me.

What are your social media channels?

Instagram | Facebook | Website

PAY IT FORWARD: What is another Toronto business that you love?

I am really liking the newly opened Madras Kaapi Café at the moment as I had never had Indian coffee before. Their interior décor is lovely and makes a great hang-out spot.

The post Homegrown Business: Althea Johnson, the owner of Proprlifestyle Korean Skincare & Accessories appeared first on Toronto Guardian.