TAP Testimonials

Tap into Global Opportunities

“There's a rapidly growing interest in curling, so it was the perfect time to think about our export plan. The TAP program forced us to really look at resources within our network, a new network that TAP brought us - services that we weren’t aware of. We graduated from TAP with a much more holistic understanding of the resources available to us as a Canadian small business.”
– Andrew Brett, Director of Customer Relations, Goldline Curling

Erin Flowers: I have this luxury of working with some of the best part of humanity, which I think are curlers.

Andrew Brett: We graduated from TAP with a much more holistic understanding of the resources available to us as a Canadian small business.

Erin Flowers: We manufacture product specific to the sport of curling. My dad's run the company since I was young. My grandfather actually started the company in 1967 and two years ago, the opportunity came up [00:00:30] for myself and Andrew and Pete to purchase the business.

Peter Townshend: We've got so much passion for what we're doing.

Andrew Brett: We had a lot of faith in ourselves and in each other.

Erin Flowers: We all really felt that we would take the company to the next level.

Andrew Brett: There's a rapidly growing interest in curling.

Peter Townshend: There's curling starting in Brazil right now.

Andrew Brett: So it was perfect timing to think about our export plan.

Peter Townshend: TAP was just a no-brainer.

Andrew Brett: The TAP Program forced us to really look at resources within our network and especially [00:01:00] a new network that TAP brought us, services that we weren't aware of.

Peter Townshend: We saw 20% year over year growth, like right out of the TAP Program.

Erin Flowers: We have grown substantially in terms of personnel, retail stores, more business in countries like Norway, Scotland, Japan. Not only would my father be proud of how we're going to take this company, but my grandfather would be extra proud to see where this has grown.

Planning for International Growth

“The Trade Accelerator program helped us to put pen to paper on our export plan. I came out of there with a more enriched understanding of different kinds of government resources. I made great contacts as well which allowed us to grow our business on an international basis.”
– David Dickson, VP of Finance, Signifi Solutions Inc.

Shamira Jaffer: The early years were really tough. Being an entrepreneur is not an easy thing to do. Signifi is a technology company.

David Dickson: We bring technology solutions in three areas, automated retail, ITS of management and loss prevention. We knew to get to that next revenue level, we were going to have to look abroad. The Trade Accelerator Program put pen to paper on our expert plan. I came out of there with a more enriched [00:00:30] understanding of different kinds of government resources. I made great contacts as well. That allowed us to grow our business on an international basis. Revenue has grown three times. Our employee count has increased four times. The current fiscal is expected to double to triple as well.

Shamira Jaffer: As a company, we grew up a lot. We're everywhere from Europe to the Middle East to the far east. We came up with something, believed in it, built it, and people really saw what we saw. It's been quite an amazing ride.

Take the Next Step with Confidence

“As a small business, it was amazing to find how many resources we could gain through TAP. It has provided a targeted plan with a trajectory for five years down the road; it changed everything. Having TAP in our corner has opened up what the world has to offer.”
– Joanne Torrance, Co-Founder/President, La Dee Da Gourmet Sauces

Joanne Torrance: When we first started, we thought, oh, we're going to trade into other countries, bada bing bada boom, so fast. And we didn't really realize until after we took Tap that this is a process. We started with our children, friends and family, peeling vegetables, cutting up, chopping up. We've really had a lot of support to grow us. And now, the exciting part is taking that next step and becoming a larger global company. [00:00:30] As a small business, it was amazing to find how many resources we could gain through Tap. It has provided a targeted plan to give yourself trajectory into five years down the road. It changed everything.

They were able to help us gain a grant to go to market in France, Germany, and the UK. And we are planning on exporting outside of Canada by the end of 2020. It allowed me to really gain confidence to be able to go out and speak to trade commissioners, understanding better [00:01:00] what it takes to trade outside of Canada. Every single one of those sauces represents our hard work, our innovations. Having Tap in our corner now has opened up what the world has to offer.

Get the Guidance You Need

“The TAP program provided an excellent mentor list, connections, and helped us structure our export plan. Since graduating, our sales in the US markets have increased, accounting for roughly 80% of Corl’s current annual revenue. Definitely, we are a lot more sophisticated and I would say less start-up.”
– Ben Ames, Business Development, Corl Financial Technologies

Ben Ames (00:06):

Corl is a fintech company that provides funding to early stage technology companies. Prior to the TAP program, we were a lean team and doing things mostly on an ad hoc basis. The TAP program provided an excellent mentor list, connections and helped us structure our export plan.

Ben Ames (00:22):

Since graduating our sales in the US markets have increased to account for roughly 80% of Corl's current annual revenue. Definitely, we are a lot more sophisticated. I would say less startup. We've kind of made it now.