Amplify Your Business

Amplify Your Business Hydrasurvey

For Episode 195 of Amplify Your Business, we’re joined by Andrew Ambrocichuk, the CEO of Hydrasurvey. Hydrasurvey provides hydrographic sludge surveys, wastewater project monitoring, and thermal tank surveys to companies undertaking wastewater projects that include lagoons and ponds to help their clients prepare for remediation. Wastewater ponds and lagoons are designed to hold a certain amount of sludge and sediment, but eventually, these ponds and lagoons need to be remediated. When that time comes, Hydrasense surveys the sludge to tell their clients how much sludge they have and what it’s made of. This allows their clients to know where the sludge can go in terms of landfills or land applications. They also act as quality control throughout the remediation project.To learn more, visit their website at https://www.hydrasurvey.ca/ 
 
00:00 - Intro
01:08 - What are three things that you think every entrepreneur should know?
04:47 - As someone with an engineering background coming into a sales position, did you struggle with learning how to sell the product as a whole rather than just the features?
08:21 - What is Hydrasurvey? What problems are you trying to solve?
09:50 - What does your client base look like? Who are your clients?
11:03 - How did you decide that there was a business opportunity in sludge surveying?
13:45 - What are some of the biggest surprises that you had when you were transitioning from working for someone else to entrepreneurship?
15:12 - How do you stay resilient through those challenges, the naysaying, and self-doubt?
18:02 - Where do you find your inspiration?
19:41 - What is your definition of freedom?
21:27 - Can you talk a little bit about Hydrasurvey’s future growth and why the US is a target market for you? What are some of the unique challenges you’re facing in doing so?
24:51 - Does your professional insurance cover you for working in the US as well as it does for work you do in Canada?
26:57 - What have you identified as being some of the biggest risks to achieving your business vision and how to you plan to overcome those risks?
31:05 - How are you keeping an eye on the cashflow aspect while still enabling the growth you want to have?
33:07 - If you could write your pre-entrepreneurial self a letter, what would it say?
35:43 - [Andrew asking Lance] What do you do to not feel overwhelmed as an entrepreneur? Is there something specific that you do?
38:13 - Outro

Amplify Your Business OSP Microcheck

For Episode 194 of Amplify Your Business, we’re joined by Virginia Wornstaff, the CEO of OSP Microcheck. OSP Microcheck is a company that specializes in microbial identification, surveillance, and mitigation in the oil and gas sector. OSP Microcheck works with the global oil and gas industry to develop solutions for the effects of water and its use, and through data-driven analysis, they help companies in the oil and gas sector decide which biocides are the right ones for their particular application.To learn more, visit the OSP Microcheck website at https://ospmicrocheck.com/ 
 
00:00 - Intro
01:06 - What do you think are three things every entrepreneur needs to know?
03:08 - What is OSP Microcheck all about?
05:22 - Do you operate globally?
08:07 - What role does your background in entrepreneurship play in regard to your work with OSP?
10:47 -Do you find your entrepreneurial mind and scientific mind are at odds at times throughout your work with OSP?
 14:59 - Are there unique challenges to coming in as an employee, then an investor, and now leading the company versus starting your own company?
20:56 - What is easier at this stage of the company’s journey to be able to allow you the opportunity to evolve and change the business?
24:52 - If you could bring another entrepreneur along on this part of your journey right now, whether someone famous or someone you know personally, who would that be and why?
26:45 - If you could write a letter to your younger self, what would it say?
28:12 - If someone in our audience wanted to contact you, how could they do that?
28:44 - Outro

Amplify Your Business Cherry Blossom CBD

For Episode 193 of Amplify Your Business, we’re joined by Derek Spruill, co-founder and director of sales for Cherry Blossom Hemp. This is the second iteration of the Cherry Blossom brand. Originally called Cherry Blossom Confections, they dealt in the edibles and marijuana candy market. The second iteration then became Cherry Blossom Hemp, and finally, after meeting with a CBD manufacturer out in Oakland, they became Cherry Blossom CBD.
 
Today, Cherry Blossom CBD delivers high-quality full-spectrum vape-able and dab-able CBD products, such as live resin, extracts, and concentrates.To learn more, visit their website https://www.cherryblossomhemp.com/ 
 
00:00 - Intro
01:07 - What are three things that you think every entrepreneur needs to know?
04:21 - Can you tell us a little bit about Cherry Blossom CBD?
10:52 - When it comes to the legalization of Cannabis across the US, has that fuelled a bigger understanding of CBD or does it distract away from it?
13:16 - What have been some of the challenges that you’ve had to overcome?
14:59 - Do you have a physical location?
15:40 - What things are easier for you now than when you started?
18:19 - At this stage, what are you doing right that’s really helping you find success?
20:42 - It sounds like you do a lot of education as part of your sales process. Is that correct?
21:48 - If an angel investor dropped $1M into your lap, what would you be doing to maximize your growth with that?
23:01 - What inspires you, as an entrepreneur?
25:33 -  How do you define success as an entrepreneur?
27:57 - If you could write your past self a letter, what would it say?
32:57 - If someone wanted to get in contact with you, how could they do that?
34:34 - Outro

Amplify Your Business NXT-GEN

For Episode 192 of Amplify Your Business, we’re joined by Colin Tran, the founder, and president of NXT-GEN at the University of Alberta. At a high level, NXT-GEN was originally founded to bring entrepreneurship to the high school level. It has since evolved into an organization that connects those students - that next generation of Edmonton entrepreneurs - with our city’s rapidly developing entrepreneurial ecosystem. This program was developed with the dream of helping to launch the next generation of young entrepreneurs into that ecosystem and get them started on their entrepreneurial journeys.To learn more, visit the NXT-GEN website at https://www.nxt-gen.biz/ 
 
00:00 - Intro
00:58 - Can you give us a rundown as to what you’re trying to do with NXT-GEN?
02:22 - Did NXT-GEN start with high schoolers because you were once a high schooler wishing for this kind of program to help you get into the entrepreneurial ecosystem?
05:06 - What are some of the gaps you’re trying to fill in terms of university courses for entrepreneurship?
07:00 - What are you finding in terms of the background of the students who are interested in NXT-GEN?
09:01 - Is NXT-GEN also focused on bridging the gap between students and industry as well?
10:58 - Are most of these students coming into NXT-GEN with a business idea or a business already started?
13:14 - Do you come from a family of entrepreneurs? Where does this passion for entrepreneurship come from?
16:57 - With the students you’re working with, do you find that there’s this extra excitement because they can take those risks right now when they’re young?
22:22 - How can our audience support NXT-GEN?
24:06 - Outro

Amplify Your Business The Public Food Hub Co.

For Episode 191 of Amplify Your Business, we’re joined by Ken Bautista, the co-founder of the Public Food Hub, and founder and co-partner of Makespace. The Public combines the community of farmer’s markets with the innovation of drop-shipping to bring delicious food makers and mixologists into industrial kitchens where they can make their wares and food lovers can come to get their favourite dishes or brands. It’s a small food hub for those who want their favourites but don’t want to have to trek all the way downtown to a restaurant. 
 
In short, The Public is a Facebook marketplace or Etsy for makers. Through a combination of physical retail spaces, neighbourhood pickups, and popup markets, The Public is helping more than 400 brands reach a growing community of customers.To learn more, visit https://publicfoodhub.com/ or https://www.makespacegroup.com/ 
 
00:00 - Intro 
01:18 - What are three things that every entrepreneur needs to know?
05:20 - Do you have any advice for new entrepreneurs about how they can balance having hope but also understanding the math of entrepreneurship?
07:21 - Can you tell us a bit about the problem that the Public Food Hub is trying to solve?
10:22 - What is the makeup of these food hubs?
13:31 - Is all of this done through a centralized ordering application?
16:25 - This seems like a way for these makers to move into new locations and consumer demographics without having to physically open new locations.
20:42 - How does the Public Food Hub fit into the broader Makespace initiative that you have?
24:23 - Where do you find this limitless energy to constantly be boosting the entrepreneurial community, and where do you get your inspiration?
28:34 - With all of the experience you have, what’s easier for you now than it would have been in the earlier days of your entrepreneurial journey?
31:27 - Do you get bored easily? Or is it just that you have this curiosity and desire to learn?
34:04 - What does success look like to you?
36:59 - If your wife were to describe you as an entrepreneur, how would her description of you be different than that of one of your co-founders or collaborators?
40:59 - If you had the ability to send a letter back in time to your pre-entrepreneurial self, what would it say?
44:41 - If any of our audience wanted to connect with you, how could they go about doing that?
45:27 - Outro

Amplify Your Business Bladeflex

For Episode 190 of Amplify Your Business, we’re joined by Derek Nolt, the founder, and CEO of Bladeflex. Bladeflex is an upper-body rehabilitation device. Muscles can adapt to the direction in which the force is applied, which is why the resistance on the Bladeflex divide is built right in. Bladeflex helps the shoulders, back, and neck area adapts to better form. The beauty of Bladeflex comes from its ability to be used wherever and whenever you need it, whether that’s at home, in the office, or anywhere you might need that extra support.To learn more, visit Bladeflex’s website at https://bladeflex.com/ 
 
00:00 - Intro
00:50 - What are three things that you think every entrepreneur should know?
03:37 - Tell me a little bit about Bladeflex. What are you guys doing over there?
04:33 - Did the development of this device come from problems that you, yourself, were having with your shoulders and neck?
06:24 - Who is your target audience?
08:56 - How long have you been in development and commercializing the product?
09:50 - What is your go-to-market strategy?
11:09 - What are some of the challenges you see going forward with the growth of Bladeflex?
12:26 - From a manufacturing standpoint, is this product manufactured offshore and then imported, or is it manufactured here?
13:20 - How have you been handling the supply chain management issues that many companies have been facing recently?
14:27 - What percentage of your sales would be direct to consumers vs through retail from physiotherapists, massage therapists, or other distributors?
15:21 - When you were making the decision of selling through retail outlets vs direct to consumer, why did you choose to go more into direct to consumer vs traditional distribution channels?
16:35 - Have you been in any of the accelerators within the startup community? What kind of support have you received through the community?
18:20 - If you could write a letter to your past self, from before you started Bladeflex, what would that letter say?
19:46 - How do you know when to add another product to the SKU?
22:01 - What inspired you to take the leap of faith and create this product and business?
23:45 - Outro

Amplify Your Business Project Forest

For Episode 189 of Amplify Your Business, we’re joined by Mike Toffan, the founder and executive director of Project Forest. Project Forest is a non-profit organization that helps other companies solve their ESG (Environmental, Social, and Corporate Governance), CSR (Corporate Social Responsiblity), and carbon reduction challenges. To do this, they identify non-productive agricultural land that’s found within Indigenous community land or with conservation groups. Once the land has been identified, Project Forest’s financial partners then fund the rewilding work to restore and protect the natural processes and wilderness areas of that land.
 
Project Forest has developed a platform where companies small and large, whose core values include the importance of sustainability, can partner with them to help provide meaningful, tangible, on-the-ground impact. To learn more, visit Project Forest’s website.
 
00:00 - Intro
01:03 - In your opinion, what are three things every entrepreneur should know?
02:39 - Is Project Forest a non-profit or a for-profit organization?
02:48 - Can you tell us a little bit about what you do at Project Forest?
06:49 - What’s your background? How did you get into doing this?
08:44 - Why did you start Project Forest in the midst of a pandemic?
10:09 - What are some of the challenges that you’ve had to overcome since starting Project Forest?
11:51 - You work with both huge corporations as well as solopreneurs. Do you find that you’re chasing after the big ones because they’re easier to land? Tell us about the mix of your customer base.
16:28 - When you were setting up the company and making the decision to be a not-for-profit vs a for-profit, can you walk me through that decision?
18:05 - Is there anything unique or different about managing a non-profit vs a for-profit?
20:30 - What are some of the things that you think are going to be most challenging going forward?
23:39 - If you could write your younger self a letter, what would it say?
25:57 - What keeps you up at night right now?
27:46 - If people wanted to reach out to you, what’s the best way to do that?
30:26 - Outro

Amplify Your Business Kidney-Chek

For Episode 188 of Amplify Your Business, we’re joined by Hillary Sweet, the co-founder, and CEO of Kidney-Chek. Anyone who’s ever owned a pet knows that they are very good at hiding when they’re not feeling well. As pets age, vets start to offer regular bloodwork and wellness checks and tests to ensure that everything is still functioning normally. The problem is, many pet owners find these tests too expensive or unnecessary, as their pet has shown no sign of illness, so they opt not to have them done. Kidney disease is one of the most undiagnosed health problems animals face. One in three cats and 1 in 10 dogs will have kidney disease that goes undiagnosed or undetected.
 
Kidney-Chek wanted to come up with a solution to combat this often deadly health issue, so they invented a quick, affordable screening tool that uses your pet’s saliva to test for kidney disease.To learn more, visit their website and check out their products at https://kidneychek.com/ 
 
00:00 - Intro
00:47 - What are three things that you think every entrepreneur should know?
03:51 - What is it that Kidney-Chek does?
04:59 - Why did you decide to focus on pets versus humans?
06:14 - Is kidney disease in animals a problem that you discovered first and then built on it from there, or were you searching for a problem that needed to be solved first?
07:26 - What made you decide that you wanted to be an entrepreneur?
09:26 - Despite having a Ph.D., you had no intention of staying within academia?
10:41 - What have been some of the biggest challenges that you’ve had to overcome as you transitioned from academia into starting, running, and growing a business?
12:33 - Can you tell me a bit about the last three and a half years?
15:45 - Can you walk us through the competitive landscape that you’re facing right now?
16:19 - With no direct competitors, how do you address pricing? What methodology did you use?
19:28 - Is your long-term plan to continue to sell online and in retail stores or do you plan to skew towards one or the other?
22:48 - When you talked earlier about wishing you had done more customer validation earlier on, was that beyond the pricing? Was it in the messaging? Can you expand upon that a bit?
28:29 - What’s easier now for your business at this stage than it was before?
30:09 - What are the biggest hurdles or challenges that you’re going to have to overcome to get Kidney-Chek to its next level?
33:00 - If you were to write a letter to your pre-entrepreneurial self, what would that letter say?
36:50 - If our listeners wanted to reach out to you, how could they do that?
37:27 - Outro