Grants/Contests/Awards 

April 26 deadline - Innoweave (expression of interest only)

April 30 deadline - FedEx #BackingSmall Business Contest

April open - Purolator Small Business Grant

May 6 - June deadline – Starter Company Plus

May open - August deadline - Talent Opportunities Program (wage subsidy of up to $7,000 per student) 

June 21 deadline - Innoweave (Request for Support)

Open:

100 Women Who Care (Bancroft)

Aboriginal Entrepreneurship Program: Access to Capital

Applied Research and Development Grant
Alliance Grant (R&D partnerships with educational institutions and businesses)

Benefits and Grant Finder (search tool)

Black Entrepreneurship Loan Fund (FACE)

Black Opportunity Fund (contact for current funding availability)

BITS Bucks (Up to $5,000 grant/loan for youth 18-34)

Canada-Ontario Jobs Grant (Up to $10,000 for training)

Canadian Digital Adoption Program (Up to $15,000)

CIP Programs (Signage and façade) – Marmora and Lake, Tweed, Centre Hastings (2024 closed)

Community Futures Local Initiatives Program (L.I.P.) (Up to $3,500 for incorporated not-for-profits)

Digital Main Street (Up to $2,500)

Eastern Ontario Development Fund (up to 15% funding to a maximum of $5 million)

First Nations Women’s Entrepreneurship program (FNWE) (Loans and grants up to $15,000)

Funding for WMCO wood manufacturing members (expenses up to $100,000 at 45% funding)

Grow Your Business Online Grant ($2,400)

Honey Bee Health Initiative (cost-sharing up to $25,000)

Mitacs Entrepreneur International (up to $5,000 travel grant)

ODSP Start Up Benefit (Up to $500 for training and business costs)

Ontario Cultural Attractions Fund (partial funding)

PEFIP (Poultry and Egg On-Farm Investment Program)

R.A.I.S.E (Racialized and Indigenous Supports for Entrepreneurs, up to $10,000)

Sustainable Canadian Agricultural Partnership (various programs)

Venture-Capital Ready (investment training for women entrepreneurs)

See Training and Workforce section for recruitment funding support

Loans
BDC (Business Development Bank of Canada) 
BITS Bucks (Business In The Streets) - Up to $5,000 grant/loan for youth 18-34

Black Opportunity Fund 

Business Scale-up and Productivity - FedDev Ontario

Community Economic Development Diversification - FedDev Ontario 

Community Futures 

DELIA - Microloans for underserved women

FACE (Federation of African Canadian Economics)
FCC Women Entrepreneur Program

Futurpreneur - Ages 18-39

IAPO First Nations Farm & Business Financing
PARO - Women
WEOC (Women’s Enterprise Organizations of Canada)

Workshops, Events, Education

April 23 - Ontario Craft Wine Conference (Niagara Falls)

April 25, 10am - The Co-op Model 101 (Ontario Co-operative Association)
April 26, 6pm - Harvest Hastings "Let's Eat" Dinner (Eldorado)
April 30, 10am - Optimizing for Search Engines - Understanding SEO Basics (Digital Service Squad)

April 30 - Shoulder Season Experience Development (Hastings County)

May 1, 10am - Insurance for Small Business (Insurance Bureau of Canada in Ontario)

May 5-7 - IMPACT Tourism Conference (Kingston)

May 7, 12pm-1pm - Lunch N Learn (Madoc & District Chamber of Commerce)

May 8 - LeaderCast G.H.O.A.T (Batawa Ski Hill)

May 10, 1pm-7pm - Bancroft Spring Fling Shopping Event

May 18, 10am-2pm - Young Entrepreneur Business Fair (Madoc & District Chamber of Commerce)

May 22 - 1pm - B-Corp 101 (BDC)

May 27-28 - Taste of Place Conference (Montreal)

May 29, 8am - Chamber Breakfast (Madoc & District Chamber of Commerce)

June 8-9 - The Outdoor Show (Madoc & District Chamber of Commerce)

July 10-12 - Startupfest Conference (Montreal)

June 12-14 - DEFY Supplier Diversity Conference (Montreal)

June 15, 10am-2pm - Tweed & Area Chamber of Commerce Car Show + Vendors (Tweed Fairgrounds, 617 Louisa Street)

August 1-4 - Rockhound Gemboree (Bancroft)

September 12-13 - SEe ON Summit (Kingston) 

October 22-23 - Ontario Tourism Summit (Hamilton)

November - Heart of Hastings Christmas Tour

November 13-14 - SaaS North Conference (Ottawa) - PARO has organized a delegation of women-owned companies 

 
Open/On Demand:

BDC Learning Centre

OBCT (Ontario Building Trades and Construction) Newsletter

Ontario Chamber of Commerce Webinars

Start Now Incubator for Women Entrepreneurs

StrikeUp - Digital conference for women entrepreneurs

Teeny Tiny Summits

Women Entrepreneurship Knowledge Hub  (WEKH)
Product Testing at Loyalist College - Contact Loyalist Industry Partnership Officer Laurie Caouette LCaouette@loyalistcollege.com

Reports

Our Economic and Tourism Development Staff collect and analyze statistics, conduct research and review reports regularly. This helps inform our plans and programming, and should also serve to help you with your business planning.