Women in Business a sold-out event

The Women in Business event, held at the Centennial Civic Centre Tuesday morning, was a sellout that attracted about 144 women to learn from other women in business listed as speakers. Geoff Lee Meridian Source

The inaugural Women in Business seminar got off to a great start as a sold-out event.

The event, held Tuesday at the Centennial Civic Centre Auditorium, is the brainchild of Jill Kelly, owner and brand strategist of Red Bicycle Communications.

It was billed as an opportunity to celebrate, inspire and empower women in business.

“We sold out already and we re-released tickets and we have a couple left, but we have about 144 women in the room,” said Kelly as attendees were filing in.

“We are really honoured that this many women, not only in business, but interested in business, have come out to give support.”

Kelly says the purpose of it is to encourage women to become entrepreneurs and start their own businesses and build a network of support for the people who are in business so they can continue to be in business.

One of the eager businesswomen in the room was Michelle Benning, property manager and accountant at Fort Pitt Developments and a Rotary member.

“I hope to learn a lot from the ladies in the room about how they’ve succeeded and progressed in their business experience in Lloydminster,” said Benning.

She also liked everything she saw on the agenda from the get-go

“To be honest, I’ll find something beneficial out of everyone who’s here today. There’s always something to learn,” added Benning.

“This is a table of Rotarians who are all very successful in their own right in businesses.”

The agenda included a panel discussion on the work/life balance with finalists and winners of the Business Excellence Awards from the Lloydminster Chamber of Commerce.

The panelists included Dr. Christy Mushtaler and Dr. Danielle Guenet who co-own Violet Eyes Optometry and shared the Business Woman of the Year and Business of the Year awards in 2023.

“I think we’re going to be talking about what it takes to be a business owner and specifically a woman who is a business owner, how family plays into that, how to juggle everything and how to be brave when oftentimes it feels like the opposite of that,” explained Mushtaler.

Guenet noted they were also prepared to talk about how they got to where they are today, what they see going forward and share their struggles and triumphs as business owners.

“It’s amazing. The event is all sold out so we’re really excited,” she added.

Kelly said the agenda also featured three mini-presentations, led off by Corrine McGirr from Startup Lloydminster on getting started in business.

Kara Johnston from Alberta Innovates came to talk about eco-systems of support and how people can build a strong network and community of support for business success.

The third presentation was on stress management by Michelle Hamilton from Beyond Balance, to learn about the healthy ways to cope with the enormous stress that comes with running a business.

“We also have a keynote from Mindy Hawthorne from Brixton Shoes who will be talking about the journey to where she is today,” said Kelly.

The agenda included a talk from Lloydminster Interval Home Society CEO Angela Rooks-Trotzuk on running a non-profit organization.