OV Boss Babes

For more than a decade, Becky Wright has been helping organizations identify challenges, navigate change, and turn their plans into reality. Two of her favourite words are “challenge” and “change," which are the concepts that drives and fuels her passion for Project Management.

With her career starting out as an administrative assistant CNL and flourishing over the next 15 years of progressive responsibility in project management, training and process improvement, she decided to pursue her dream of running my own business, launching Milestone Scheduling & Consulting in 2016, resigning from her full time job in 2017 and is proud to have Canadian Nuclear Laboratories and Atomic Energy of Canada Ltd. as two of her valued consulting clients.

In this episode, we chat about:

💫 Becky's journey as a dedicated government employee turned entrepreneur as she reflects on important mentors, colleagues and family who supported her dreams

💫 Becky spills how she strategically prepared to leave her government job and successfully work in project management without there being any conflict of interests

💫 We learn about working with corporate customers and teams, mitigating risks, recruitment strategies, late deliverables and more!

💫 We chat about representation of women in project management and leadership, celebrating women in the corporate world

Growing up, Amy Robinson was immersed in her family-owned floral business, Keith's Flowers and Plants. Since early childhood, she accumulated a wealth of creativity and design expertise, finding her passion in the floral profession, but this wildflower realized that the 9-5 work-life just wasn't for her - and so, she opened Fleurish in the heart of Petawawa.

Although this passionate floral entrepreneur boasts that business is typically flowery and fun, as the saying goes, every rose has it thorn, and that means that in this episode, Amy enlightens us with the grits and grind behind the counter... and things get a pit prickly around here! 🌵😉

In this episode, Amy and I chat all about:

💐 Amy's connection to flowers and how they solidified that becoming a florist is iltimately what she wanted to do

🥀 The misrepresentation with online flower delivery companies and why it's a gamble when you order flowers online (and hurts our local florists!)

🌹 We talk about the unspoken floral holiday hustle and stressed out seasons, and how Any and her team persevere and get by during those crazy busy times without burning out

🌺 How negative Google and Facebook reviews can REALLY hurt our local businesses (and Amy sheds some petals on one particular customer experience story)

Dr. Isabelle Gagnon is a highly skilled and experienced chiropractor based in the Pontiac. With a passion for helping others and a commitment to providing personalized care, Dr. Gagnon has built a reputation for delivering exceptional chiropractic services to her patients.

But being a chiropractor and business owner hasn't been an easy road, as Dr. Gagnon reflects back to the beginning of her business and at the importance of offering chiropractic care to patients at her two locations in the Pontiac.

In this episode, Dr. Gagnon talks about:

✨ Why she chose to become a chiropractor, how she unintentionally became an entrepreneur, and the challenges surrounding being the only chiropractor in the Pontiac for the last 20 years

✨ Dr. Gagnon is honest about what her first year of business was like, building her client base and educating her community on this evidence-based practice

✨ We chat about the importance of building lasting relationships and creating a strong community presence

✨We discuss personal and patient boundaries, highlighting how accessible we all are in 2024

Born and raised in Belleville, Dr. Sarah Wilson saw a need for comprehensive women’s healthcare in the area and decided to move closer to home in @city.of.kingston to fill that need and raise her family.

@drsarah_nd is passionate about helping women feel their best, as she herself spent many years with brain fog, fatigue, constant digestive upset, an unpredictable period and unexplainable weight gain. These ‘undiagnosable’ symptoms prevented her from putting herself out there and reaching her full potential. For Dr. Sarah, it was visiting her first Naturopathic Doctor that changed her life, and she is now on a mission to change the lives of other women!

Dr. Sarah knows she isn't alone in experiencing these symptoms, and believes that no one should have to experience the frustration, and isolation, that comes along with not feeling at your best!

In this episode, we chat about....

🩺 How this boss babe helps women feel more energized, more vibrant and at their healthiest, all while juggling a career, family and life.

🩺 Why we have been conditioned to think “common” symptoms” are just normal... and why we should be questioning them.

🩺 What causes unexpected weight gain and and the factors surrounding it that doesn’t have anything to do with calories or exercise.

🩺 How high performing women that operate at a fast speed can find natural ways to slow down - while still getting ALL their shit done!

Julie Savory started out in business as a hairstylist and busy salon owner for 12 years, until one day when she was at the Calabogie Dam when they opened the flood gates, causing two deaths. Julie's doctor strongly advised her to switch careers in order to recover from her injuries effectively. She was stunned and heartbroken, as she had absolutely loved hairstyling and had such a strong client base.

Julie then faced financial challenges while starting her new business, Red Brick Emporium, but she persevered by focusing on improving her credit and taking control of her financial situation.

This downtown Perth biz owner has quite the success story, despite all of the curveballs thrown her way, and we dive into all areas of business, including:

😵 The first time someone stole from Red Brick Emporium, how Julie faced that situation, and if this customer decided to show her face in Julie's store again

🫶🏼 Coping with "failure," embracing change and accepting help

📑✏️ The importance of having a business plan and how Small Business Centre's Starter Company Plus grant helped contribute to inventory purchases!

In 1997, Cheryl Jordan combined her skill for crafting and her passion for decorative painting and established her successful business, The Country Cupboard, on Petawawa Blvd.

Inspired by the home-style business shops she had seen in her hometown in Nova Scotia, Cheryl found the perfect location for her business in a charming yellow cottage. Over time, The Country Cupboard has evolved from creating décor pieces to offering a variety of products sourced from local Canadian suppliers. Today, the boutique cottage is filled with a wide range of treasures including seasonal décor, homewares, giftware, and accessories.

But what did business look like when Cheryl first started out and how did she make the seamless transition to becoming a home decor and gift store?

In this episode....

⭐️ Listeners find out how Cheryl has managed to keep The Country Cupboard in business for 27+ years, learning the ropes of various marketing and advertising strategies, outsourcing and asking for help, and what "trending" items have worked and which ones she still has hidden away in storage

⭐️ We discover when Cheryl started doing Facebook lives, how she became comfortable behind the camera and why they are integral to the success of her biz

⭐️ Cheryl discusses the significance of the military community and how Country Cupboard provides support for military spouses in particular

⭐️ We get raw and real as Cheryl and I chat about business hardships and struggles in today’s economy, as well as in her industry

Heather Jobe, the Community Development Coordinator for the Renfrew County OSPCA and Humane Society meets hundreds of animals every month, and to Heather - these animals that are in need become more than just pets. They truly become family!

In this episode, we get to learn all about Heather Jobe, her role at the Renfrew County OSPCA and why it's so much more than being around the sweetest fur animals all day, while also learning about the OSPCA's annual Cupcake Day, a fundraising initiative that helps to change lives for the better and supports the most vulnerable animals in our community!🐾🧁

In this episode:

🫶🏼 Heather shares how her role includes community engagement, volunteer coordination, hosting fundraising initiatives and events, and building more community awareness

🐾 We chat about animal adoption, fostering, and all the animals that have wandered into the Renfrew County OSPCA (and Heather’s own experience with a BEAR!) 🐻

🧁 We get to learn all about Heather’s favourite day: the OSPCA's annual Cupcake Day and how YOU can donate, get involved, and how cupcakes help pets in need!

Renfrew County Community Futures Development Corporation is a non profit organization funded by the Government of Ontario that offers free business counselling, financial loans for start-ups and businesses looking to expand, strategic planning on local projects and community economic development in our rural community.

This organization has been fostering economic growth in Renfrew County since 1986 and have helped numerous entrepreneurs level up their business through various financial investment resources.

In this episode, I meet with Executive Director Cyndy Phillips and Community Development Officer Kelley Lemenchick, where we:

💕 Discover how RCCFDC offers community economic development services, financing opportunities, business coaching and more!

🤍 Learn how RCCFDC fosters economic growth and community development, taking the concerns our biz owners are facing and implement action where they can

🫱🏼‍🫲🏻Find out how RCCFDC has partnered with Algonquin College Pembroke to help business graduates develop or expand their businesses

Sarah Trafford and Kim McPherson are a dynamic "Pink Panther" duo offering medical aesthetics services at Uplifted Medical, where they are all about empowering women ti regain their self confidence and self love! This medical beauty spa includes cosmetic injections, radiofrequency microneedling, skin peels and medical-grade skin care products.

These babes wanted to bring high-quality medical aesthetics services to the Smiths Falls area, at reasonable prices, while also providing fun education around radiant skin, rejuvenating therapies, and the importance of self-care.

In this episode....

👩🏼‍⚕️ We find out what led these two licensed medical professionals to transition from their previous scopes of practice to enter the field of medical aesthetics

💉 These babes debunk common medical beauty stigmas, normalize getting medical injectable's and discuss why it's becoming more mainstream!

🧖‍♀️ We talk about the importance of skin health and how skincare regimens have positioned the skincare category in a new light

😍 There is something new on the medical beauty list of services and it's called the ORGASM shot - and its putting women’s sexual pleasure FIRST!