Premier Events for
Practical Growth.
The StrikeUP Signature Series brings women entrepreneurs across Canada together for free virtual mini-conferences featuring expert-led learning, real founder conversations and meaningful networking.
What Is the StrikeUP Signature Series?
The Signature Series is StrikeUP’s year-round approach to supporting women entrepreneurs with focused learning, practical conversations and meaningful connection.
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Each event is built around a specific stage or challenge in business, from getting visible to growing strategically to scaling with intention. You will hear from experts, founders and ecosystem leaders who bring real experience, useful insight and honest conversation to the table.
It is designed to help you leave with ideas you can actually use and connections that feel worth making.
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Trusted by more than 25,000 women entrepreneurs across Canada and beyond, StrikeUP has become one of the country’s most respected free digital platforms for women in business — founded and powered by Nventure.
BUILT FOR WOMEN ENTREPRENEURS WHO ARE:
- Launching a business or turning an idea into action
- Growing an existing business with more strategy and support
- Looking for funding, mentorship, visibility and stronger networks
- Preparing to scale with more confidence and intention
Why Women Entrepreneurs Choose StrikeUP
Connect Across Canada
Build real relationships with women founders, investors and ecosystem leaders from across the country.
Learn from Real Experience
Gain practical insight from experienced entrepreneurs, business leaders and experts through keynotes, panels and conversations built for action.
Practical Tools for Growth
Leave with clear strategies, useful resources and ideas you can use to move your business forward.
Free and Easy to Access
Registration is free for every Signature Series event. Join online from wherever you are, with no membership, travel or added costs required.
Trusted by Women Entrepreneurs Across Canada
Women entrepreneurs need more than inspiration. They need useful insight, meaningful connections and access to support that meets them where they are. That is what the StrikeUP Signature Series is designed to offer.
Janet K.
MELFORT, SASKATCHEWAN
Upcoming Signature Series Sessions
Make Your Mark
- September 24, 2026
- 1:00 PM – 3:00 PM ET
Live Virtual Event
Your brand is your most powerful business tool and you do not need a big budget to use it well. Join us for this StrikeUP Signature Series event where women entrepreneurs share how they built visibility, crafted authentic stories and turned connections into clients.
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Come ready to learn from those who have lived it, connect with others in your shoes and leave with strategies you can use right away.
Click to expand & explore the past agenda, speakers, session content & networking
From Survival to Strategy
- February 25, 2027
- 1:00 PM – 3:00 PM ET
Live Virtual Event
You’ve built something real. Now it’s time to run it with intention. This event is for women entrepreneurs who are ready to move from reactive to strategic — covering growth tactics, financial confidence and the leadership skills that take you further.
Join us for real conversation, practical insight and connection with women who get it.
Click to expand & explore the agenda, speakers, session content & networking
Build for What's Next
- June 17, 2027
- 1:00 PM – 3:00 PM ET
Live Virtual Event
Join us for bold conversation and practical insight designed for entrepreneurs who are ready to go further.
About This Session
Your brand is your most powerful business tool, and you do not need a big budget to use it well.
Join us for this StrikeUP Signature Series event ‘Make Your Mark‘ where women entrepreneurs share how they built visibility, crafted authentic stories, and turned connections into clients.
Come ready to learn, connect, and leave with strategies you can use right away.
Day Schedule
1:00 PM
Welcome
Heather Cannings
StrikeUP Program Lead (Event Emcee)
1:05 PM
Keynote
Build Your Brand Without Breaking the Bank:
The Bootstrap Marketing Playbook
with Vivian Kaye
1:45 PM
Panel
What Made the Difference: The Relationships,
Risks and Realities Behind Early Growth
2:20 PM
Live Networking Breakouts
2:50 PM
Closing Remarks
Meet the Speakers
What’s Inside the Session
Two focused conversations designed to give you real, practical strategies you can apply the very next day.
Keynote Address
Build Your Brand Without Breaking the Bank: The Bootstrap Marketing Playbook
Vivian Kaye
Founder, KinkyCurlyYaki
In this session, Vivian will share the practical playbook she used to scale KinkyCurlyYaki to 7-figures without paid ads and how you can apply these same strategies to build your brand from scratch.
You’ll walk away with
- How to position your brand in a crowded market (niche strategy that actually works)
- Concrete tactics for building visibility without a marketing budget (content, community, partnerships)
- Real examples of what worked, what flopped, and why authenticity is your biggest asset
- Practical frameworks you can implement immediately in your own business
- Direct Q&A time to ask about YOUR specific brand challenges
This isn’t theory; it’s a founder who’s been there, done that and has the receipts!
Featured Conversation
What Made the Difference: The relationships, risks and realities behind early growth
Ina Maria Toncescu, Chantal Lavergne, Dom Mastronardi & Géraldine Jippé
Before the momentum, there was a lot of figuring it out. In this candid conversation, four women entrepreneurs share the honest story behind early growth — the risks, the relationships, and the choices that made the difference.
You’ll walk away with
- The real story behind how these founders got noticed when no one knew who they were yet
- What early relationships actually look like and how to find the people who will help move you forward
- How to build trust with customers, partners, and your community before you have proof points
- Honest lessons about what flopped, what worked, and why showing up authentically matters more than a big budget
- A behind-the-scenes look at the pivots, risks, and decisions that turned early ideas into growing businesses
This is not a highlight reel. This is the conversation behind it.
Networking Breakouts
After the keynote and panel, attendees self-select into one of four themed Zoom breakout rooms for 30 minutes of structured peer conversation.
Rooms are attendee-led with prompts broadcast throughout.
Come ready to connect and leave with real relationships.
Room 1
Brand voice & visibility
Talk about how you show up, what you say and how you get noticed. Share what is working and what you are still figuring out.
Room 2
First sales & early clients
Share where you are at with clients right now and what is actually working to bring them in. Every stage welcome.
Room 3
Tools & Resource Share
Exchange the apps, programs, funding sources and hidden gems that are making your business easier to run and grow.
Room 4
Open networking
No agenda, just connection. Meet people, share your LinkedIn and see what happens. Every conversation is a good one.
About This Session
Running a business is hard. Running it strategically, while also wearing every hat, is even harder. But there is a point where the hustle alone stops working, and intention has to take over.
This StrikeUP Signature Series event is built for women entrepreneurs who are ready to make that shift. We will dig into business growth tactics, pricing and financial management, and the leadership decisions that define whether a business plateaus or scales.
Our panel features women entrepreneurs who have navigated these exact crossroads and found their footing, sharing what actually worked and what they would do differently. Real stories, real strategies.
Leave with tools to build a more intentional business, a clearer sense of where capital and support can play a role, and a room full of women who are right there with you.
Day Schedule
1:00 PM
Welcome
Heather Cannings & Chris McMartin from Scotiabank
Event Overview & Introductions
1:05 PM
Keynote
with Sarah Stockdale, Founder & CEO of Growclass
1:45 PM
Panel
When Hustle Stops Working
A candid conversation about letting go of hustle culture and building a business that can grow beyond the founder.
2:20 PM
Live Speed Networking Breakouts
2:50 PM
Closing Remarks
Meet the Speakers
What’s Inside the Session
Two focused conversations designed to give you real, practical strategies you can apply the very next day.
Keynote Address
A Special Keynote with Sarah Stockdale: Title Coming Soon
Sarah Stockdale
Founder & CEO of Growclass
You’ll walk away with
- How to identify what is actually driving growth in your business
- Practical strategies for making smarter decisions with limited resource
- Ways to focus your time and energy where they will have the greatest impact
- Lessons from real-world startup successes, failures, and pivots
- Greater clarity on the next strategic move for your business
Featured Conversation
When Hustle Stops Working: The Shift from Founder Mode to Intentional Leadership
Robyn Flynn, Mia Fiona Kut & Katrina Ramdath
There comes a point in every entrepreneur’s journey when working harder is no longer the answer. In this honest conversation, women business owners share the moments that forced them to rethink how they lead, grow, and sustain their businesses.
From hiring and delegation to systems, boundaries, and mindset shifts, they’ll discuss what it really took to move beyond survival mode and build businesses designed for long-term success.
You’ll walk away with
- How to recognize when hustle is holding your business back
- Practical ways to delegate, streamline operations, and focus on higher-value work
- Lessons learned from growth challenges, setbacks, and leadership transitions
- Strategies for building systems and support that reduce founder dependency
- Honest insights on balancing ambition, sustainability, and personal well-being
Speed Networking
Following the keynote and featured conversation, attendees will take part in a series of small-group networking sessions designed to help you make meaningful connections with fellow entrepreneurs from across Canada.
Over 30 minutes, you’ll be randomly matched into three different breakout groups of approximately six participants, giving you the opportunity to expand your network, exchange ideas and learn from a diverse range of business experiences.
There are no formal facilitators or presentations. Just authentic conversations, new perspectives and valuable connections.
Come ready to introduce yourself, share what you’re working on, and connect with other women entrepreneurs.
SMALL GROUPS
THREE ROUNDS
Meet 3 different groups during the networking session to maximize connections.
PEER NETWORKING
Share experiences, exchange ideas, ask questions, and learn from fellow business owners.
NEW CONNECTIONS
Connect on LinkedIn, exchange contact information, and continue conversations after the event.
Speak at a StrikeUP Event
Have practical insights, real-world experience or a fresh perspective to share with women entrepreneurs across Canada?
StrikeUP welcomes applications from engaging speakers for keynotes, panels and webinars.
Premier Events for Practical Growth.
The StrikeUP Signature Series brings women entrepreneurs across Canada together for free virtual mini-conferences featuring expert-led learning, real founder conversations and meaningful networking.









