GEW: On the Road – Aurélie’s Highlights from Ottawa

For Global Entrepreneurship Week (GEW) this week, we have sent three ambassadors across the country to report live from the road as they visit Canadian entrepreneurs, small business, community partners in the entrepreneurial ecosystem, and attend GEW events. On Thursday, Aurélie was on the road in Ottawa, Ontario for the day. Here is a recap of her day on the road and some of the ah-ha moments she had along the way.

Aurélie started her day with a guided tour of Invest Ottawa with Jason, where she was blown away on how big it was.

Following her Invest Ottawa tour, she headed to Makerspace North, a collaborative working space for artists. “This place was so cool and the people there really seemed laidback.”

Aurélie’s Highlight: I found TWO paddles today! One while visiting the Makerspace North, and the other at Sketch’s Ink. The first one was made of wood, and created by the Ottawa wood company, and the second one had the coolest paint design on it.

For lunch, Aurélie and the Futurpreneur team stopped at a Futurpreneur’s business, Bowman’s Bar & Grill where Aurélie claims to have had the best pickle chips ever!

Aurélie’s Highlight: It was really nice to chat with Peter, the owner of Bowman’s about the challenges we have as young entrepreneurs. Sometimes it feels good to see that you’re not alone experiencing the same thing!

After lunch, it was time to raise the GEW flag at Ottawa’s city hall.

Once the flag was flying high in Ottawa, Aurélie visited Strawberry Blonde Bakery, where she had the best gluten free cupcakes ever!

Next Aurélie headed to Bread By Us. “The owner, Jessica, was really inspiring and telling us about all the hard work she was putting into her business.”

Aurélie’s Highlight: I had the “coup de coeur” from Bread By Us, right downtown Ottawa. You could see that the owner, Jessica, was working so hard so that her business can grow!

Aurélie’s next stop was to The Collab Space, where she met the owner and some inspiring entrepreneurs.

As the end of the day neared, Aurélie met with Albert Wong, from the JA Ottawa, an organization that teaches kids and teenagers how to build their own business in primary and high schools. “I found the concept so interesting and I’ll probably try to do some volunteer work with the organization we have in Quebec.”

Last but not least, Aurélie ended her day at Sketch’s Ink, a local business owned by Brandon. “I didn’t know that this printing method existed and it was so interesting to see how it works.”

Aurélie’s Highlight: It was so nice to just sit down in the train, on my way to Montreal, and to recap what just happened during the last three days. Everything went by so fast. It feels good to see how much I’ve learned in the last few days. It was a perfect experience, and I’m so glad I had the chance to meet so many members of the Futurpreneur team.

Three days went by in a flash, and Aurélie took away some big lessons and new connections, one of her biggest lessons from her time in Ottawa was: I learned that it is so important to surround yourself with good people and keeping a good life balance is one of the most important things. Having people around you with a beautiful and positive mind is crucial. It will help you and every one of your tasks. I think that sometimes, entrepreneurs lose themselves in their business. That’s why having good friends around you is important, so they can catch you when you fall!