Best Youth Entrepreneur
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Youth Entrepreneurs are playing a rapidly growing role in our provincial economy. Those aged 35 and under now own over 11 per cent of our small businesses, demonstrating their innovation, resourcefulness and strong entrepreneurial drive.
We created our Best Youth Entrepreneur Award to inspire and encourage entrepreneurial ambition in youth, connecting them to BC’s community of entrepreneurs. These individuals navigate a business landscape where their relative inexperience, lack of credit history and modest asset base all serve to increase the challenges they face on a daily basis.
To win our Best Youth Entrepreneur Award, nominees will be assessed on three qualities:
- Clear Vision:Demonstrates a clear idea for the future of the business in the areas of business growth, corporate responsibility and financial data.
- Track Record:Growth beyond the conceptual stage to become an active business with at least twelve months of financial data.
- Impact: How has the business made a difference? The ideal business will demonstrate social, environmental or economic impact.
To win our Best Youth Entrepreneur Award, nominees will be assessed on three qualities:
Clear Vision
Demonstrates a clear idea for the future of the business in the areas of business growth, corporate responsibility and financial data.
Track Record
Growth beyond the conceptual stage to become an active business with at least twelve months of financial data.
Impact
How has the business made a difference? The ideal business will demonstrate social, environmental or economic impact.
Eligibility
To be considered eligible for our Best Youth Entrepreneur Award, nominees must be 35 years of age or younger on December 31, 2020. If the business is owned by more than one individual, at least 50 per cent of ownership must be 35 years of age or younger. All nominees must have less than 50 employees.
Criteria
What Our Judges are Looking For:
When assessing the winner of Best Youth Entrepreneur, our judges will consider the following criteria:
- Nominee must be 35 years or younger on December 31, 2020
- Track record up to this point
- Plans for future expansion/growth
- Challenges that have been overcome
- Proof of the individual’s leadership qualities
Preparing Your Nomination
We understand taking part in competitions like ours requires a time commitment. That’s why we want you to maximize the impact you receive from entering. Here are five tips to consider when submitting your nomination for a Small Business BC Award.
Establish Your Objectives
A great place to start is to decide upon your goals for entering the Small Business BC Awards. Maybe you want to help boost your staff recruitment, raise your profile within your industry, or improve your marketing? Our Awards program can be a powerful tool to achieve your goals. You just need to clearly define what those goals are before you begin.
Designate an ‘Awards Champion’
Throughout the years, we’ve seen businesses pass the task of administering their awards application from one staff member to the next. This results in inconsistent entries where no one person took ownership and drove the task forward. Instead, we recommend designating yourself, or a staff member, as an ‘Awards Champion’ with responsibility for handling the nomination from start to finish.
Match Your Content to the Criteria
Each of our award categories has detailed criteria you can refer to when submitting a nomination. Our judges will refer to the criteria when assessing which businesses will proceed to the next phase of the competition. It’s crucial to understand the criteria for your category and deliver an application that meets the criteria. These simple instructions provide the recipe for success. Don’t ignore them!
Speak to Previous Nominees
Each year, over 600 businesses are nominated in the Small Business BC Awards. Across the several month process, these businesses learn so much about the process, developing invaluable takeaways, experience and knowledge. Why not consider asking their advice? They’ll be able to share some of the benefits of taking part, how to prepare to present to our judges, and how to approach your community to gather votes.
Get Your Entry Proofread
Before you submit your nomination, task a friend or family member to read over it and provide their feedback. Try to find someone who will provide impartial feedback. They may notice an important element you’ve forgot to mention, or typos that have slipped under the radar. Your entry will sparkle if it’s error-free and provides a compelling case as to why you should win.
Prize
Winner
- $1,500 cash prize from Province of BC
- All access pass to SBBC Education and TTAE services for 1 year
- Professional media shareables
- 1 interview & article featured on the SBBC website
- Social Media spotlight throughout the winning year
Top 5 Finalists:
- All access pass to SBBC Education and TTAE services for 1 year
- Professional media shareables
Key Dates
Awards Timeline
- January 18, 2021: Nominations and Voting open
- March 7, 2021 (11:59pm): Nominations and Voting close
- March 22, 2021: Top 5s announced
- April 6-8, 2021: Judging Period (Top 5 pitches)
- May 4-6, 2021: Small Business BC Awards presentations
Are you ready to nominate?
This Year's Nominees
Check out some of the businesses that were already nominated

Topsoil Innovative Urban Agriculture
Nominated for:
2 categories

HiChant Communications
Nominated for:
3 categories

Brittney’s B2B Beast 2 Beauty Bar
Nominated for:
3 categories

Formula Debs Artwork
Nominated for:
Best Youth Entrepreneur

Goodacre Market
Nominated for:
3 categories

Just Cakes Bakeshop
Nominated for:
4 categories

Isha Esthetics & Nails
Nominated for:
Best Youth Entrepreneur

God The Father Apparel
Nominated for:
2 categories

ThyForLife Health Inc.
Nominated for:
2 categories

VIN VAN
Nominated for:
2 categories

Recloseted
Nominated for:
2 categories

Enviro
Nominated for:
2 categories