Finding Our “Pathways to Growth” at the 2025 Bridges to Better Business Event

October 20th to 24th is Small Business Week and on Wednesday. October 22nd The Seeker Team attended a very informative event, which was hosted by the Cornwall SDG Business Enterprise Centre and the Cornwall and Area Chamber of Commerce and held at the Ramada by Windham Cornwall.

After being treated to a delicious Breakfast Buffet prepared in Ramada’s kitchen, words of welcome from were delivered by Angela Bero of the Cornwall and Area Chamber of Commerce, Mireille Lemire of Cornwall SDG Business Enterprise Centre, MP Eric Duncan, MPP Nolan Quinn and Cornwall’s Mayor, Justin Towndale.

The theme for this year was “Pathways to Growth” and it was wonderful to be in a room filled with small (and not so small) business owners where we not only had a chance to network but also listen to four speakers who gave great advice and information. I believe that we need to be continuously learning so when an opportunity arises to learn from likeminded individuals – count me in! We heard many things that we already knew but reminders are so important and boy did the Keynote Speaker, Andrew Patricio, Founder and CEO of BizLaunch give us lots of important reminders.

The Seeker is 15 years old this year and when Julia and I began this publication in 2010, it was Andrew Patricio’s presentation that we attended at the Ramada for a Small Business Week event hosted by the Cornwall Chamber.

I remember that he talked about how attending events and making a lasting impression is so important. We all had to introduce ourselves and at that time Julia and I had a spiel that went like this:

I am Julia and I am Mai-Liis and “We are the Seeker Chicks, the ones you’ve heard about. Customers will flock to you whenever we come out. We report the arts, we report events and some of the news too, we are the Seeker Chicks and we’re here to spread Positive News to you!

I have to say that we did get a round of applause after that and after everyone in the room had introduced themselves, Andrew did say that there were 3 people in the room who he remembered from their introductions and the Seeker was one of them.

So when I saw who the Keynote Speaker at this event was I knew that we were in for a great presentation and I definitely wasn’t disappointed. Yes, a lot of what Andrew said happened to be things we knew but we definitely were due for these important reminders.

Andrew, who is an internationally recognized business expert, entrepreneur and author, mentors and supports entrepreneurs through BizLaunch, his global training company, began by saying “Remember back to when you created a business that you love and you had lots of motivation but now that motivation seemed to have disappeared?” …

I’m sure that many of us in the room could relate to that comment and the following is what I got from the rest of his presentation which was easy to follow and quite entertaining with the additions of his extra personal comments such as “and my sons (quite good looking I have to say):

You need to make changes in order to continue to succeed and you should focus on the future, not just the present. You made a Business Plan when you first started but you need to continually revise your vision. Where do you want to be in 2030? What are your goals? Make them and commit to them. You have to make things happen by setting clear, smart, realistic, measurable and achievable goals and revisit your goals every 90 days. Then if you have a reason to wake up every morning, you will be a better business owner. Adjust your marketing every year to wow your customers and give them a great experience. Don’t try to be everything to everybody – specialize, focus, become an expert! Stay in touch with your clients – Never stop learning and “Evolve not to Dissolve”.

After Andrew’s presentation there was a question and answer period, a short networking break and then 3 Workshops followed.

The first workshop was a “Roadmap to Building Brand” by Cristian Urroz of Urroz who explained that a brand is not just a logo but the perception of your business. Branding is a form of storytelling and people tend to align with a brand that they can relate to. He reminded us that your brand should be memorable and adventurous and “Consistency is key.”

The second workshop was by Francois Bruyere, a Connercial Acount Manager with Desjardins and he talked about “Buying for Growth: Mastering the Business Acquisition Journey” and the third workshop was by Nel-Kevin Junior Dubois, founder of Lifet Media who talked about “Automating Engagement; From First Contact to Client in Minutes” using AI. He had us do some exercises that showed how fast an automated system can reply to a client, ask all the important questions and make the client feel seen right away because if a client has to wait too long for a response they will move on to someone who helps them faster.

Each session brought fresh ideas and practical tools — a perfect blend of inspiration and action.

By the end of the morning, we all left with new knowledge, valuable contacts, and renewed motivation to grow our businesses — proof that events like these truly build bridges to better business.

A big thank you to the organizers and the following sponsors — SDG Counties, ChooseCornwall.ca, Desjardins, Cornwall City Press and Sign Factory, Wing House, and Aero Concept Systems — for making it all possible.

Fifteen years later, The Seeker is still learning, growing, and celebrating the spirit of entrepreneurship right here in our community.

And just like Andrew reminded us… we’ll continue to Evolve — not Dissolve!