OUT and ABOUT with Seeker Chick Mai-Liis: Getting great advice from Cornwall Native, Entrepreneur and Millionaire, Marc Lafleur…

So I finally found some time to read a few pages of my new book.

What book? you ask?

Well the one in the header photo titled “True Founder” by Marc Lafleur…and who is Marc Lafleur? I hear you ask – well he is the incredible business person (again photo in the header) whose presentation last Wednesday at the Youth Entrepreneurship Event held in Aultsville Hall at St. Lawrence College, launched the Cornwall Business Enterprise Centre “Summer Company Programme”.

… and what is Summer Company?

Summer Company is funded by the Government of Ontario to support students, aged 15 to 29, with a start-up grant to kick-off a new summer business. Applications are open to students who are now in school and returning to school in the fall and are located in Cornwall, Stormont, Dundas, Glengarry and Akwesasne.

So getting back to Marc Lafleur …. 

He made a great presentation, talking to a theatre full of students in a language that they totally understood and I must say walking from one end of the stage to the other with so much energy that it was hard to get a good pic as he really didn’t stand still for long!

Marc is a Cornwall native who attended Holy Trinity and as he said, almost came close to getting kicked out of the school as he really didn’t take anything seriously at first til one day he looked in the mirror and decided to smarten up. He decided he needed to become popular and started playing Football, a sport which he became obsessed about and worked on his grades so that he could play University Football at the University of Waterloo.

While there, he started a job selling meat door to door and realised that there should be an easier way to make these sales. This was the business model that he created his company truLocal on.

Instead of selling meat door to door, he started selling it online and with no business experience to begin with created a business which he sold for 16 Million Dollars before the age of 30. Marc explained everything in great detail and students in the audience had some great questions for him, most of which are answered in his book, “True Founder” – what no one else has the guts to teach you about starting your first business.

One thing that he really stressed was how to keep motivated because of course once motivation dwindles so do many more things. He kept referring to “Flash Motivation” getting energy from the small things in life to keep you going and talked about Entrepreneurs being Problem Solvers and people who aren’t scared to take chances. “Business is long and hard” he stated ” and you need to find something that you are passionate about and run with that idea”.

For someone whose goal was to start a business and be a Millionaire by the age of 30, Marc Lafleur certainly accomplished this goal Even appearing on Dragon’s Den is a great accomplishment. Now driving racecars and fulfilling this passion, I wonder what his next goal will be?

Here’s some info about the Summer Company Programme:

Eligibility

To be eligible for the Summer Company program, participants must:

• Be in school now, and are returning to school in the fall
• live in Cornwall, S.D.G, or Akwesasne
• be a Canadian citizen or permanent resident
• be between 15-29 years old (by April 30, 2023)
• (if under 18: a parent or guardian must sign the agreement for the applicant)
• are not already running a business
• are not working at another job or going to school for more than 12 hours a week during the program
• You cannot apply again if you have received a Summer Company grant in the past.

Financial Support

Students who are accepted into the Summer Company program will receive up to $1,500 up front to help with startup costs. An additional $1,500 will be available for participants who successfully complete the program requirements by the end of the summer. In total, successful Summer Company participants will receive up to $3,000 in grant awards.

How to Apply

Those interested in applying for the 2023 program must complete their applications by May 15^th, 2023. The Business Enterprise Centre encourages those interested to submit applications as early as possible in order to have the best chance of being accepted as the program is competitive.

Steps to apply are listed below:

Visit www.ontario.ca/summercompany

The Cornwall Business Enterprise Centre staff are available to assist in completing applications and answering questions. Contact the Centre by calling 613-930-2787 ext. 2276 or email Sydney at [email protected]

and here is the interview with Marc Lafleur done by CTV News.

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