Cseking In

In this episode of Cseking In, Shandi Schwartz, the owner of Strut Footwear & Apperal Inc., shares how she found her footing as a businesswoman.

Throughout the discussion, the former teacher tells the tale of how following the advice she'd give to students, "leap and the net will appear," became the first step towards opening a business in the Misson Park Shopping Centre.

In this episode of Cseking In, Angie Lohr, President of H.O.P.E Outreach, a local organization that provides nighttime outreach for the women of Kelowna and Vernon who are homeless, living in addiction, exploited, and working in sex work, shares an intimate look into what this epidemic truly is.

Meet Blair Wilson, a retired Chartered Accountant who dared to turn a 20-acre apple orchard into one of the smoothest and superior craft vodka producers on the market - Rebel Vodka.

Among his many roles and daring ventures, Blair is the founder and CEO of Forbidden Spirits Distilling Co., is also a former member of parliament and had a chain of pizza restaurants in Poland, as well.

From Kelowna's not-for-profit sector, Ester Pike of Kelowna Women's Shelter shares an enriching and powerfully personal story of how a non-profit saved her in a moment of crisis when her family became homeless after a natural disaster.

Through guidance, perseverance, and a passion for volunteering, Ester learned compassion, life skills and a Master's Degree that put her on an admirable path towards serving others and supporting the community that took care of her when she faced unexpected adversity and challenges.

We ask that you listen to Ester's story and hope that you share the same sense of appreciation as our host Nikki Csek does throughout this empowering episode of Cseking In.

In this episode of Cseking In, the brothers share stories such as how on take your kids to work day, Chris and Jason would join their father along Gastown and meet the tenants that he put in there. They also share a great story on the very moment they decided to branch out on their own and create their vision of what a Commercial Real Estate Company can be.

These brothers are always propelling each other forwards and constantly encourage each other to be better. Through support and a little friendly competition, they have built a commercial real estate company that prides itself on putting people first and in this episode, share many of their insights and how to obtain, service and retain customers.

How do you go from living under a bridge to a successful CEO & mom?

Jamela Van Steinburg has such an amazing story that will inspire so many to learn your what and find your how. Some of her first memories included living under the Lions Gate Bridge in Vancouver, to growing up off the grid in Beaverdell on a $1.00 down lots. Yes, lots for a $1.00 down.

Jamela Van Steinburg owns multiple rental properties, is the CEO of her own development company VLS Developments, but lists MOM as her number one occupation.

New beginnings can be full of blessings.

A real-life Brady Bunch brought together through tragedy, Treena Carson-Piva and Aaron Piva met in a support group as they were going through their individual family crisis.

Treena, the Saskatchewan-born Rider’s fan ventured out to Vancouver to meet Aaron, the Vancouver-born-and-raised man and they started a new life together here in Kelowna as a family.

They purchased the Real Property Management franchise in Kelowna and have put themselves in a place they never thought possible, both personally and professionally. You will have to listen to hear the story.

Steve and Diane Geddes arrived in Kelowna two years ago and purchased a Fibrenew franchise that specializes in repairing leather, plastic and vinyl, surfaces.

Servicing from the Bennett Bridge to Salmon Arm, Steve and Diane Geddes are literally the furniture whisperers. They're breathing new life into family furniture that has an emotional attachment with the added benefit of keeping furniture out of landfills.

"If the bones are still good, we can fix the covering of well-worn furniture," said Steve Geddes.

This is the story of Bliss, the little village bakery that could

At one point, everyone who has travelled through the Okanagan stops to appreciate the view. When Darcy Yeo, one of the two owners of Bliss Bakery arrived in Peachland with her husband, Barry, one of 18 Red Seal Master Bakers in the Province, they overlooked the water and knew this was it.

The story below accentuates the Bliss Experience, battling MS, growing a business for 15 years with multiple locations and constantly feeding a 15-year-old sourdough, named Darwin.

When many children are playing games like house or dreaming of their future, Cassidy deVeer was learning how to build a home.

At a young age, she was spending time on job sites and hanging out in hardware stores with her father, who previously owned the Windsor Plywood in Kelowna.

Now, Cassidy is the first female President of the Canadian Home Builders Association and owner/operator of 3rd Generation Homes.

Recently, this amazing woman joined the CEO and co-founder of the NowMedia Group, Nikki Csek, to humbly share the story of how she earned these titles while providing insight into how housing affordability is a huge issue and it's not getting better, it's only getting worse.

Spectacular achievements and inspiration come naturally to the hard-working Cassidy deVeer and therefore, we hope you enjoy this episode of Cseking In.