The first took place during her position as general manager of a construction company. Sandi had risen quickly up the corporate ladder by helping a series of companies develop their businesses from the ground up. In her latest job, she was in the final year of a 5-year plan when it occurred to her that she’d spent so many years helping others develop their businesses, maybe it was time to develop her own.

Then a chance meeting with a new neighbour unexpectedly brought an invitation to take a wine & cooking class together. When she mentioned it at dinner that evening, her 10-year old daughter was skeptical: “Mom, you have no friends, you never go out and have fun.”

Out of the mouths of babes … Sandi says she was struck by how accurately that described her life. During all of her years as a successful executive, she’d never made any personal relationships beyond her family and people she worked with. She felt as if she’d just had blinders removed from her eyes.

You might think her next move was a bit frivolous, but it was a necessary step in her personal development – Sandi spent the next 3 months learning how to have fun.

She’d left her general manager position by that point but had no clear idea of what type of business she wanted to start. During those 3 months she thought about all the people who’d helped her in her career and found that there was a common thread: she met them all through golf.

Sandi’s first experience with the sport wasn’t pleasant. Her VP at the time expected her to have a golf game with a big sales rep that was considering displaying some of his company’s products in their showroom. The idea terrified her – she had never picked up a club and knew nothing about the game, its rules or its etiquette. With only 3 days’ notice, she didn’t even have the time to do any advance prep. She feared looking ridiculous and unprofessional in front of the three men she was expected to partner with, and in fact that game quickly became “the worst day of my life!”

That early encounter would resonate through the ensuing years. She persevered, continuing to play golf in various business-related events, and discovered that once you’d learned the rules and the somewhat finicky etiquette, other players would welcome you into the game regardless of your skill level. She learned to value the ability of the game to break through barriers and make connections in a more relaxed environment than the office.

And so, GoGirlGolf was born. Sandi decided that her business would involve helping other women feel comfortable with corporate golf in the same way that she had found support when she most needed it. She entered the Ontario Self-Employment Benefit Program through the Niagara College Business Development Centre in March of 2007, and spent much of her first year talking to women to see what types of golf-related services they’d be interested in. She kicked off her business the following spring.

All of her services are aimed at helping women find confidence and view the game with a sense of fun instead of dread. The GoGirlGolf look was designed around the colours and style of her favourite golf glove. Her marketing materials incorporate the spirit and freshness that she brings to her entire business.

Sandi credits Cathy Sherk, who she met at a ladies’ golf event at Niagara College, with teaching her that golf should be fun above all else, and with being a great supporter. Her other major supporter has been Geoff Law at the Legends on the Niagara golf complex, who's helped her start her own ladies’ league.

GoGirlGolf offers workshops that cover everything the astute woman golfer needs to know: etiquette on the course, how to pack a golf bag for a full-day tournament, the finer points of playing the game, and how to take your game from the lessons out onto the course.

Understanding that helping women to feel well-dressed on the links gives them a shot of confidence even if they’re novice players, Sandi has become a distributor for several lines of golf equipment and accessories whose products she uses and endorses herself.

Her focus changed from running a fun part-time business to having to bring in a steady income. She credits both her family and her work with her clients with helping her through the tough times, and is grateful that she had her own business because it gave her more flexibility to work through her difficulties. Her only regret is for the ground she lost in growing the business during that time.

Now that the skies have cleared, Rhegan is enjoying her enterprise and looking at where she’d like to take it in the future. She feels strongly about giving back to the community whenever she gets the opportunity. Some of her activities have been doing warm-up sessions at events like the Rankin Run and the CIBC Run for the Cure, participating in the Mother & Daughter Walk for the Heart & Stroke Foundation, and collecting donations for Sick Kids Hospital through her Musigo dance parties.

In addition, she partners with a number of businesses and groups to add value for her client base and theirs, including: Fitness Alive, where she runs her fitness classes, Minds Wide Open, Musigo and the Prenatal Network of Niagara.

Rhegan is proud to have been a runner-up for the Woman in Business Award in 2006, and in 2007 she was nominated for the Niagara Entrepreneur of the Year Awards. She draws her inspiration from her children and her family, and her mentorship from Kathy Rive of Fitness Alive, who gave her a chance and allowed Rhegan to try out her own ideas.

While Talia’s life may sound like a dream job ― weekly research and buying trips to the North American fashion centres (Toronto, Montreal, New York, Miami) ― in reality it’s a lot of hard work. She puts in a lot of time keeping up on trends, making sure that her stock is unique and fresh, deciding what will sell two to three seasons in advance, accommodating a variety of tastes, and providing great customer service.

She credits her success to the support she received from a number of people: Rena Posteraro, her mentor at the Business Development Centre; Christine and Michael Pascoe, who owned the Ugly Model Agency in Niagara Falls; Jason Parasuco, one of her suppliers; Dwayne Hunter, a Toronto casting director whom she’s worked with; and her dad, who not only helps her out in the store but also wears a lot of her stock himself.

Talia works hard to promote her business in creative ways. Recently she held a Model Search in conjunction with a photo shoot that she was planning. The contestants were all from among her customers, and Jason Parasuco and Dwayne Hunter agreed to be the judges. More than 100 preliminary entries were narrowed down to ten finalists, all photographed in a selection of the clothing in her spring and summer campaigns.

Talia kicked off her anniversary celebration on May 12^th with a week-long sale and the announcement of the top female and top male model winners. Along with the exposure and contacts garnered from the contest, the winners also received a great prize package provided by several of the area businesses, including Elio’s Shoes, Grandma Rose’s (a new French café on Albert St.), Willan Studios (who also shot the photos for the model search), and Tammy’s Hair Boutique. The winners are also featured in two billboards on Thorold Stone Road near the tunnel and on Highway 20 near the Allanburg bridge. The Model Search was such a success that Talia plans to make it an annual event.

If you’re wondering what this year’s hot trends are, think bright candy colours and metallics, although Talia emphasizes that this is a great time for fashion because anything goes. Some of her future plans include branching out into children’s clothing and a boutique for a niche that’s very challenging to merchandise in Canada: women who aren’t model-thin (in other words, the majority of us).

If you’re in need of a new outfit, check out the funky boutique on Front street ― you may find that it’s right up your alley!

Rachel Hill Campbell - 2008 BDC Niagara Entrepreneur of the Year Award Winner
Personal Optical eyewear store Rachel Hill Campbell, Owner & Licensed Optician New location: 2F Tremont Dr. 1a, St. Catharines ON Ph: 905-227-9937 www.personaloptical.com eyewear@personaloptical.com

“You’ve been Rachel’d!”

If you don’t know what those words mean, you haven’t done it ― you haven’t had your look revamped by one of Personal Optical’s jazzy pairs of eyeglasses. Her customers are often greeted by that exclamation, a sign that her rep is spreading.

Rachel Hill-Campbell, owner of Personal Optical in Thorold, isn’t satisfied with the same old styles C she wants hers to have that certain “wow factor” that will make her clients feel fabulous. Even seniors love her products, and she’s had many a client’s spouse call her up and thank her for steering his/her loved one away from the same old thing.

Rachel is a licensed optician with over 10 years of optical experience in the Niagara Region. She’s big on service, and it was that desire that gave her the impetus to start her own business. While she was still with her last employer, one of the customers, a senior with mobility issues, asked Rachel if she would be able to deliver her glasses. Rachel recognized a need, and started doing research into demographics while she was off work on maternity leave. She eventually decided to venture out on her own.

Rachel signed up for the Self-Employment Benefit Program here at the Business Development Centre in 2005 and opened Personal Optical for business in July of that year. She began her business as a mobile eye care service, bringing her glasses to other customers with mobility concerns or just those with busy lives. Personal Optical quickly became the optician of choice for retirement homes in the area. Rachel, with the assistance of two optometrists, currently provides eye care to eight seniors’ homes, which she visits monthly and as otherwise needed.

Having doubled her client base from the time she started her business, Rachel has opened an office and showroom to supplement her mobile service. The showroom is bright and welcoming with over 200 different styles of glasses that she’s personally selected. She specializes in helping customers choose a frame that not only highlights their features, but also works with their lifestyle and what they need the glasses for.

One of the benefits of being an independent business is that she can choose to sell products that meet her standards of quality and style, and she establishes long-term relationships with her clients to make sure that they “feel like a million bucks” when they wear her glasses. Some of her product lines include Versace, Roots, Vera Wang, Guess, and Soho, a line from Montreal. She’s also the supplier of an exclusive line called Pro-design, which features interchangeable arms that allow clients to mix and match frames as it suits them.

  Rachel will be exhibiting her wares at the Small Business Club Niagara Trade show later this month, on February 20^th, so take a
  look and see if you’d like to be Rachel’d!

Jackie Lynch
Friends of Nature organic nursery and garden design Jackie Lynch, Owner New location opening spring 2010: St. Davids ON Ph: 905-357-0522 friendsofnature@cogeco.ca

Jackie Lynch wants to help you overcome your fear of ornamental grasses! Her business, Friends of Nature, specializes in these striking plants that are rapidly becoming landscaping fixtures for their beauty and versatility. Jackie also grows cannas and a wide variety of other garden plants, which she sells directly to customers. In her diverse business, she retails organically grown plants, provides gardening/landscaping services, hosts garden tours, delivers talks on gardening and ornamental grasses for various groups, is actively involved with Project Share, sells winter arrangements & living wreaths, and in 2006 was on the panel of judges for the annual Trillium Horticultural Awards contest.

Jackie comes by her talent and love of gardening from her grandmother, who farmed produce extensively for the family pantry. After working for Heritage Perennials in Niagara-on-the-Lake for almost 10 years, Jackie felt that it was time to spread her wings. She completed the Business Development Centre’s Business Basics and SEB programs, which she feels contributed greatly to her success. In December, 2004 she got her feet wet with her first Winter Garden Walk, opening up her business to the public shortly afterwards. From there, her business has grown right along with some of her towering Northern Pampas Grass.

Jackie’s own property is a testament to her skill. A greenhouse capable of holding up to 1,000 plants sits at the back of her 97.5 metre long lot, and between the greenhouse and the main house her gardens meander through ‘rooms’ that lead the viewer through different moods. Visitors are particularly attracted to the peaceful Butterfly Garden, and often sit on the bench to enjoy the beautiful foliage and wildlife. Clumps of her signature ornamental grasses provide texture in the summer and a sculptural quality in the frosty winter sun. Jackie loves the grasses for their movements in the breeze, the gentle rustling sounds that they make, and the way their forms catch the light.

Her community also benefits from Jackie’s love of plants. For 2 years she worked on giving a barren stretch of Victoria Avenue in Niagara Falls some vitality and beauty: the Niagara Falls Horticultural Society, of which she is a member and past vice-president, planted gardens at the front of the Niagara Falls Armoury, which will be celebrating the upcoming bicentennial of the War of 1812.

Recently she became involved with Project Share in Niagara Falls. She felt a kinship with the Project’s Community Garden, which empowers the less fortunate in the community by enabling them to grow their own fresh fruits and vegetables, and she began to work with the Project in a variety of ways. This year Jackie’s annual Winter in the Garden Walk on December 17^th will also collect donations for the Project’s food drive. She feels strongly that no one should be hungry, especially at Christmas. For the night-time walking tour through her gardens, she strings her property with special holiday lighting and serves hot cider as participants enjoy the winter foliage.

Friends of Nature is open during the warmer months from Wednesdays to Saturdays. Visitors can view the plants the way they might look in their own gardens, as Jackie arranges them in pots throughout the property. There are arches and sculptures tucked into interesting spots, and customers may be accompanied by some of the Silkie Chickens that Jackie raises as a sideline. The chickens, a breed from Asia, are covered from crown to claws in a distinctive fluffy cloud of feathers. Jackie was introduced to them by a contact who was purchasing them for her daughters, and she fell in love with the cuddly birds. They not only clean out grubs in the garden, they also make great pets, have edible eggs, and their manure makes a excellent fertilizer.

Wendy Matthews
Happy Being Me Happy clothing and accessories Wendy Matthews, Owner 84 Elma St., St. Catharines ON Ph: 905-935-2082 www.happybeingme.com inspire@happybeingme.com

Inspiration comes from many different places. Jeff Bezos, founder and CEO of Amazon, one of the most successful online businesses to date, saw early statistics about the phenomenal growth of the Internet back in 1994 and decided to create a business for that platform. Steve Case, co-founder of America Online, turned a fascination with interactive media and an idea that consumers would want to start actively choosing the information they received (instead of letting traditional media dictate it) into the first hugely successful Internet service provider.

Wendy Matthews got her inspiration from a place that most of us don't even want to think about, much less go: a mental illness. She suffers from bipolar schizoaffective disorder, a journey that began when she was only 12 years old.

In the beginning she just thought that everyone felt the way she did. Eventually she began to understand that things were different for her. She was officially diagnosed about 14 years ago and spent many years trying to cope with her illness while maintaining the outward appearance of a normal life. She found working for others a challenge on many levels and always wanted to have her own business, but didn't have a concept in mind.

In 2007 Wendy had her epiphany. She would accept her illness as a part of her life but not let it rule her life. She took an enormously courageous step and started publicly talking about her illness at two Annual General Meetings for the Canadian Mental Health Association, as well as participating in a feature article in the Standard to kick off Mental Health Week.

One morning Wendy woke up with the words "Happy being me" running repeatedly through her head, and thought that she should turn that philosophy into a business. She wanted to build her business around something fun -- a light and lively product that would make other people feel happy too, whatever issues they were dealing with. A line of clothing featuring that compelling phrase fit the bill.

While she was off on sick leave from a position that she would eventually leave, she heard about the Ontario Self-Employment Benefit (OSEB) program to help people start a business. Wendy applied to the program here at the Business Development Centre and was accepted in December, 2007.

She worked with her mentor, John Young, to lay out her business plan. There was a lot of research involved in creating a clothing line -- making contacts, finding good sources, and all of the other components of starting a viable business. Wendy says that she dreaded writing her plan at the time, but now feels that it was the best thing she could have done for her business because it made her focus on all the necessary steps.

Wendy's niece, a graphic design graduate, helped her create her signature look: a complete family of friendly stick people. There are special figures for different jobs and activities, e.g Police Gal, Rower Gal, Shopping Gal (wide appeal guaranteed), Fishing Guy, Golf Guy, Lil Baseball Girl, Bottoms Up Baby Boy/Girl.

In 2008 Wendy launched her product successfully at the Small Business Club Niagara Trade Show, and has never looked back. Along the way she's had great support from family and friends along with the financial support and mentoring provided by the OSEB program.

Wendy has also embarked on a series of speaking engagements. Her aim is to inspire others to move forward no matter what their challenges and find happiness. She talks candidly about coping with her condition, but emphasizes that a challenging life can also be a fulfilling life. To meet her is to understand -- Wendy is a bubbly, upbeat and passionate person who epitomizes a successful entrepreneur. She puts her experience to great use on the board of Start Me Up Niagara, an organization that helps people with mental illnesses become self-employed, including Wendy herself.

Her business is doing so well that Wendy enlisted the help of the Workplace Development Service here at the College, which provides Human Resources consulting for small & medium-sized businesses who need help with hiring/maintaining employees. Their support was instrumental in Wendy hiring a salesperson to promote her business.

She's about to expand on her original line of eco-friendly clothing and accessories made from bamboo fibre to include lines of cotton and of plus-sized clothing. Her lines of clothing and accessories fit everyone from adults down to babies and the family pet.

Looking ahead further, Wendy hopes to open a store as well as selling her products online, and hiring staff to allow her more family time. She'd also like to begin holding special events that promote her philosophy, like 'Happy Being Me' days.

Oprah Winfrey said that "It doesn't matter who you are, where you come from. The ability to triumph begins with you. Always." Wendy Matthews is living proof.