What is your business called and what does it do?

Bibbity Bobbity Princess Parties is a leading children’s entertainment company serving families throughout the Greater Toronto Area. We specialize in high-quality princess parties, superhero visits, and themed character entertainment for birthdays, community events, and corporate celebrations. Our performers bring beloved fairytale and pop culture-inspired characters to life through singing, dancing, storytelling, magic and interactive games.

What made you want to do this work?

I founded Bibbity Bobbity Princess Parties because I wanted to combine my background in performing arts with meaningful community impact. What began as a creative side project quickly evolved into a purpose-driven company focused on spreading joy and imagination to families across the GTA. Seeing how deeply children connect to our characters reminds me every day that this is more than entertainment. It is about creating moments that allow children to feel seen and important and magic that will last a lifetime.

What problem did you want to solve with the business?

I wanted to offer parents in Toronto a dependable, magical, and professional option for children’s party entertainment. Families deserve performances that feel immersive and heartwarming, not just someone in a costume. I also wanted to create flexible and rewarding opportunities for local performers who love working with kids and want to use their talents to make a difference.

Who are your clientele and demographics?

Our clients are primarily millennial and Gen X parents in the Greater Toronto Area who value experiences over things and who are looking for entertainment that will leave even the grown-ups saying, “I can’t believe how fun that was!” Our clients want to give their children magical moments on their birthday, filled with wonder and laughter. We also serve schools, shopping centres, and event venues looking for professional children’s entertainment that delights every guest.

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

Families and organizations book their character experiences directly through our website, www.bibbitybobbityprincessparties.com. Our Fairy Godmothers are available by text during office hours but we also have a seamless automated booking system for busy parents that allows them to see real-time availability, book and confirm their character, 24/7.
We offer a variety of customizable princess party packages for birthdays and events of all sizes. Each performer is professionally trained, costumed, and supported by our team to ensure every appearance reflects our high standard of excellence and enchantment.

Where in the city can we find your profession?

Our princess performers and character entertainers travel throughout the Greater Toronto Area, including Toronto, Pickering, Ajax, Mississauga, Brampton, Vaughan, Newmarket, Oakville, Burlington, Oshawa, Whitby and beyond. We bring the magic directly to homes, event venues, and community spaces across the city.

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

“How do you ensure your performers maintain professional quality and magical authenticity?”

We hand-select our performers based on talent, professionalism, and passion for working with children. Every performer is trained in character accuracy, storytelling, and engagement techniques that make every party feel like a real fairytale brought to life. From our park-quality costumes to our attention to detail, we make sure every experience feels unforgettable. We also post photos of our current performers on our website and social media accounts. While some companies hire out 3rd party performers, have very outdated photos or use models for their photoshoots, what you see online from Bibbity Bobbity Princess Parties is what will be showing up at your home or event space. We also suggest that parents check Google reviews for photos from our clients to see our performers in action.

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

The best part is watching the genuine joy on a child’s face when their favourite princess or hero walks into the room and watching their parents’ eyes well up with tears of joy. Those moments are pure magic.

The most challenging part is a toss-up between managing logistics like traffic, weather, and scheduling while keeping everything running smoothly behind the scenes or working through tough conditions because we care so much about delivering the magic anyway. Seeing the joy always makes it worth it.

What is your favourite joke about your own profession?

“We bring fairytales to life, but the real magic is fitting this ball gown into my compact car.”

Where can we follow you?

Instagram | TikTok | Website | Email

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

Glama Gal Kids Spa is a fantastic local business that shares our mission of inspiring confidence, creativity, and kindness in children. Their spa experiences for kids are always positive and empowering, and we love collaborating with them to create unforgettable memories for families in the GTA.

The post Homegrown Business: Victoria Paige of Bibbity Bobbity Princess Parties appeared first on Toronto Guardian.

What is your business called and what does it do?

Our business is called The Bubble – Canada’s first inflatable entertainment complex. The Bubble features a one-of-a-kind, 10,000 square foot inflatable theme park, complete with obstacle courses, giant slides, climbing walls and other air-filled fun attractions. In addition to the inflatable theme park, The Bubble also offers its visitors a super-sized laser tag course, and over 50 arcade games with a prize store.

What made you want to do this work?

The other founders of The Bubble have many years of experience in the entertainment industry, and we wanted to create a totally new attraction that would be the first of its kind in Toronto and in Canada.

What problem did you want to solve with the business?

We are a one-stop destination for the ultimate, fun-packed adventure. Like many other local businesses, we had to delay our opening (that was originally slated for March 2022!), but now we’re very excited for guests to jump right in and experience all of our highly curated activities.

Who are your clientele/demographics?

Everyone! Whether you’re looking for the perfect place to host a kid’s birthday party, date night, or just some pure fun and laughter with your friends, The Bubble has something for everyone.

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

The Bubble is now open for advance bookings and for walk-in guests. We encourage all of our guests to reserve their jump tickets in advance through our website and skip the line at our entertainment centre.

Where in Toronto can we find your location?

We are located at 65 Orfus Road, Unit A (Dufferin Street and Lawrence Avenue in Toronto). We are also located around the corner from Yorkdale Mall.

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

At the present time, many customers are requesting additional information regarding our health and safety protocols. The Bubble has implemented a variety of additional safety measures including enhanced cleaning procedures, limited guest capacity, physical distancing markers, and more. Face coverings are mandatory at all times, except during the consumption of food and drinks while inside of the entertainment complex. For information on all of our safety protocols, guests can visit our website.

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

The best part about what we do right now is being able to give back to front-line healthcare workers for all of their efforts over the past 18 months. From now until September 16, 2021, front-line healthcare workers can enjoy complimentary passes and experience everything The Bubble has to offer.

Where can we follow you?

Instagram | Website

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

We love The Gratitude Hair Gallery located on Dufferin Street. Many of our team members have visited this studio in anticipation of our opening. Junior does a fantastic job at making everyone’s hair look top-notch!

The post Homegrown Business: Canada’s first inflatable entertainment complex, The Bubble appeared first on Toronto Guardian.

Sole Power has worked with the Much Music awards, YTV Awards, Molson Indy, Grey Cup, T.I.F.F, Chin Picnic, Caribana, Pride, Fashion week, Rogers Cup, and many more.

What is your business called and what does it do?

Sole Power Productions is an entertainment and production company. We supply entertainment and/or production needs for the biggest and best events across Canada.

What made you want to do this work?

I started DJing at age 15. I fell in love with entertaining people and working with music. This company is ultimately an extension of that same passion long since my days of being a DJ. I enjoy seeing events come to life and work alongside talented likeminded individuals.

What problem does this solve?

Luckily for me, there are many fantastic charities and organizations that plan events throughout the year. We have made a significant impact with several organizations helping them better execute these events. One of our goals is to maximize the charity work we can get involved with. Better run events typically equates to more funds raised. This is one of the most important aspects of my work.

Who are your clientele/demographics?

Our demographic is both corporate and social clients looking to execute high level events. That spans across many genres and event types. We have a wide range of services that we offer to many different clients and types of events such as entertainment, lifestyle, activation, dancers, DJs, event producers and a full scope of audio/visual production and tech services. Our clients include Canada Goose, BMW, Porsche, Lexus, Honda, Toronto Blue Jays, MLSE, Deloitte, Scotiabank, BMO, Facebook, Google, Uber, and many more. Sole Power facilitates 2500 events annually.

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

Our model is simple. We provide a service over and above the talent or AV that clients book from us. It’s our mandate to make sure the pieces of the puzzle that we facilitate are used in the best possible manor to ensure each and every event is successful. We make money by putting important facets of an event puzzle together. This allows our clients to reach their event goals. We place high quality people, product, and production items at events. Every client wants their event to be amazing, so we ensure our services are just that. We can book acts multiple times annually, thus getting a great return on said person, product, service, etc.

Where in Toronto can we find your profession?

Our head office and production facility are both located in downtown Toronto. However, our services stretch across every corner of the city and the GTA. We go to where our clients need us. You will find Sole Power at hotels, events spaces, night clubs, neighbourhoods, restaurants, and everywhere in between.

What is the best question a prospective customer could ask a member of your profession when comparing services?

Great question. There are so many companies that claim to do what we do when in fact they do not. I would definitely want to know the following:

– Do you own the equipment you rent or do you cross rent it?
– Are your acts exclusive to your company or can I get them elsewhere as well?
– How large is your operation and team? Should the person I book get sick, are you able to replace them? If my equipment breaks down, do you have back-ups in place?

And most importantly I would ask the rest of the industry what they think. I find myself constantly telling my clients to ask the other event professionals they hired about us. Ask them who they would choose to handle their event needs. I’m confident that our peers would say we are the best at what we do so I challenge my potential clients to ask around.

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

The best part is the ability to continually create. I love to create new concepts and showcase new ideas. This is an easy business to use those skills as our clients always want new and cutting edge. Our clients don’t want to do what was popular a year ago. They want very current, and in some cases, they want things people couldn’t even imagine would ever happen at an event. Those are the best!

The worst part may very well be the same thing. It’s a gift and a curse. With the volume of clients we have and the pressure of knowing how important each event is, trying to stay creative can be our greatest challenge. Our clients expect the best from us and we continuously strive to provide top results.

What is your favourite joke about your own profession?

The joke is often on us (the professionals in this field). I find we often get lost in our events, and from time to time we take it way too seriously. I often think that the events people care more about the event than their clients. Sometimes we lose perspective on it all. It’s important to remember what really matters, what our clients really care about, and what makes an event truly a success. Don’t get caught up in your own work and think it’s bigger than the event as a whole.

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

Forme Fitness at Broadview and Queen. I workout there and it’s a great release from work, stress, life, etc. I waited my whole adult life to enjoy going to a gym. This is the one. A truly warm and encouraging energy fills this place. Not to mention that like me, their business was built from the ground up, with hard work and as a labor of love. They also enjoy giving back to charity, and to the community. I highly recommend checking them out.

Social Media

Website
Instagram: @solepower
Twitter: @Solepower
Facebook: Sole Power
email: info@solepowerproductions.com

The post Abby Tobias of entertainment production company Sole Power Productions appeared first on Toronto Guardian.