Can you make vegan leather out of potatoes? This TMU student is figuring out how
Black History Month celebrates the rich heritage and achievements of the Black community.
Black History Month is an important time to honour the achievements of the Black community, by highlighting the pivotal role of Black individuals in shaping societies worldwide.
TorontoMet Today spoke to three exemplary Black entrepreneurs about their businesses, how the Zone Learning network is helping them thrive, and how they give back.
Vitalis Omambia is committed to leading teams to craft innovative solutions and harness technology to enhance efficiency.
Vitalis Omambia
Country of origin: Kenya
Company: Selstan (external link) , DMZ’s Black Innovation Programs
Tell me about your company and what inspired you to start it.
Selstan Inc. is building a cloud-native platform safeguarding vital aspects of modern enterprises—identity, endpoints, cloud workloads, and data. We ensure clients stay ahead of challenges, thwart breaches, and thrive.
I saw big potential to build a business in the cybersecurity industry as more companies see the value in implementing tools to safeguard their data against potential threats. I have been living in Canada for three and a half years. Before that, I worked in the telecommunications industry for 10 years, where I had the opportunity to build products in the cybersecurity space.
How has Zone Learning helped you in your journey?
I joined DMZ’s Black Innovation Program in 2022 when my company was still brand new. It was an incredible opportunity to learn about running a business, positioning yourself as an entrepreneur and how to attract funding from potential investors.
As a visible minority in Canada, it is sometimes harder to attract the right opportunities and meet the right people. I was lucky enough to participate in DMZ’s program, which helped me create a company and network of collaborators.
I am also an expert in residence at the Biomedical Zone, where I support budding entrepreneurs in their journeys towards launching their businesses. Giving back to the community that has helped me greatly brings me great joy.
Leveraging her experience as an environmental engineer at the Ministry of Health in Jamaica, Syddonna Grizzle is passionate about finding new ways to create sustainable fabrics.
Syddonna Grizzle
Master’s of engineering and entrepreneurship program
Country of origin: Jamaica
Company: Foobric, Innovation Boost Zone
Tell me about your company and what inspired you to start it.
In my first semester in the master’s of engineering and entrepreneurship program, we were tasked with coming up with an innovative idea for a new business.
I have a background in waste management and I am passionate about environmental sustainability so I wanted to come up with a sustainable clothing alternative. After I learned that Canadian farms produce a surplus of potatoes that end up in landfills, I thought the best way to use this extra product was to extract the fibers from potatoes and make them into vegan leather. We are still in the early stages of the company and we are doing market research to understand the viability of the product.
How has Zone Learning helped you in your journey?
I have gotten an incredible amount of support and guidance from the Zone Learning network. I have built a solid foundation to execute my business and continue to get great guidance to come up with a clear business direction.
Kelvin Oben has been an entrepreneur ever since he was a young boy selling packaging plastic bags. Now he is applying his experience to the world of ecommerce.
Kelvin Oben
Country of origin: Cameroon
Company: ShipVista (external link) , DMZ’s Black Innovation Programs
Tell me about your company and what inspired you to start it?
ShipVista.com is a smart shipping tool that helps businesses easily manage orders from different platforms like Shopify, eBay, and others. Small businesses can save up to 89% on shipping costs with carriers like CanPar, Canada Post, and UPS and the tool gives you real-time shipping rates, delivery estimates, and discounted shipping labels.
When I started my journey as an ecommerce entrepreneur, I realized that shipping in ecommerce is a major pain point and ate away at my margins, with over 45% of my total cost incurred on shipping. I realized all small and medium-sized businesses like mine had a similar pain point with order fulfillment meanwhile shipping is only 15 per cent of the total cost for larger businesses.
After further research, I discovered that the main reason was shipping volume and the concept of overhead cost. It became clear to me that the best way to offer low-cost shipping to small businesses was to control the supply chain by becoming a shipping aggregator using a multi-carrier strategy so that every business in the chain could benefit from low shipping costs. This is how Ship Vista was born.
How has Zone Learning helped you in your journey?
Our partnership with the DMZ has been incredible and one of the best things that have happened to us in a long time. It’s challenging coming to a new country as a visible minority because you don’t have the same credibility or funding as other businesses in the market.
The DMZ provided support through mentorship and funding – we were able to secure $100,000 in Google Credits to migrate our platform to another hosting provider so we don't need to worry about hosting fees. The DMZ creates a community around the founder that helps surround entrepreneurs with like-minded peers, founders, and experts.
Related stories: