FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Saskatoon, SK – Women Entrepreneurs of Saskatchewan (WESK) was pleased to announce the recipients of their six entrepreneur awards at last week’s WESK Summit Gala. The WESK Summit Gala took place during Women Entrepreneurs Week, which, as proclaimed by the Government of Saskatchewan, runs from May 14 through May 20, 2023. In alignment with Women Entrepreneurs Week, the WESK Summit Gala provides an opportunity to not only recognize awards finalists and recipients, but also to applaud and showcase all of Saskatchewan’s women entrepreneurs.
“As we recognize outstanding female entrepreneurs with one of six entrepreneur awards, and it’s important to remember that every woman in this room is a trailblazer, a visionary, and a change-maker,” said WESK CEO, Miriam Johnson. “Their courage, determination, and resilience are what makes Saskatchewan’s business community so vibrant and dynamic.”
Awards were presented in the following categories: Community Involvement, Indigenous Entrepreneur, Innovation, Resilience, Growth & Expansion and Celebration of Achievement.
The 2023 recipients are:
Celebration of Achievement Award Recipient: Natasha Vandenhurk, Three Farmers Foods
Community Involvement Award Recipient: Valerie Sluth, Praxis Consulting
Growth & Expansion Award Recipient: Erin Kinder, Kinder Surprises Antiques
Indigenous Entrepreneur Award Recipient: Christine Marie, Awasis Boutique
Innovation Award Recipient: Melanie Morrison, BetterCart Analytics
Resilience Award Recipient: Serese Selanders, SolusGuard
“Congratulations to our award recipients for this well-deserved recognition. The 2023 WESK Summit Gala Awards Night has been a true celebration of the resilience, creativity, and entrepreneurial spirit of women in business,” said Johnson.
Quick Facts
- Women entrepreneurs are major contributors to economic growth and job creation. In 2019, women entrepreneurs contributed $23.1 billion to the Saskatchewan economy and created 191,836 jobs (Women Entrepreneurs in Saskatchewan Economic Statistics, 2020).
- Women-owned businesses have a greater propensity for job creation. These businesses are contributing 26% of total GDP and employing approximately 33% of the Saskatchewan workforce (Women Entrepreneurs in Saskatchewan Economic Statistics, 2020).
- In 2020, there were 34,200 women who were self-employed in Saskatchewan. This represents 36.2% of the people who were self-employed in total. (Women Entrepreneurs in Saskatchewan Report, November 2021, GoS)
- Women in Saskatchewan are starting businesses at a greater rate than the national average. From 2018 to 2020, Saskatchewan’s growth rate was 1.7% compared to the national average of 1.4% (Women Entrepreneurs in Saskatchewan, 2021).
About WESK
WESK is a non-profit, membership-based organization that provides business advisory; start-up, purchase and expansion lending; mentoring and networking and learning and training opportunities. WESK is supported by Prairies Economic Development Canada.
Contacts:
Michael Betteridge, Brand Manager, WESK
306.477.6286
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