An incredible opportunity came to Opaskwayak Cree Nation (OCN) last week that gave youth a chance to come up with a way to do business and pitch it in front of an audience. Bears’ Lair Youth Camp made its first stop in Manitoba to offer a free youth entrepreneurship camp for Indigenous youth ages 11 to 18. The concept of Bears’ Lair started out with a vision to encourage entrepreneurs.
“I was the Economic Development Officer for the Squamish Nation in British Columbia, for 13 years and provided grants for entrepreneurs of the nation through a trust grant,” said Bears’ Lair Creator and Executive Producer Geena Jackson. “I started teaching classes on how to be an entrepreneur at night and provided a catered dinner and daycare for youth from toddlers to young teens, so the parents could learn, while the youth played in the gym, played video games and were entertained outside the classroom. After two out of six classes, the youth started sitting beside their parents, participating in the class and answering questions faster than their parents. A light bulb went off in my head. “These youth are absorbing the information faster than the adults, they are more technical savvy, and they do not have the barriers or triggers of being an entrepreneur like adults. They don’t know the hard work it takes yet; they are a sponge of positivity and possibility for the future. It is amazing. “I held the first Entrepreneur Youth camp in 2015, for the Squamish Nation and it was a huge success,” Jackson. “Now that TV show Bears' Lair is a huge success and up lifts Indigenous Entrepreneurs, it was a natural progression to educate, elevate and inspire Indigenous youth all over Canada. They are the future leaders and decision makers.” Bears’ Lair facilitated their camp at Oscar Lathlin Collegiate (OLC) and had several activities to enhance the students’ knowledge and experience in entrepreneurship. “There were 22 OCN youth that participated, all 11-19 years of age,” said Jackson. “We created five teams and they gathered at the high school, OLC, from February 2 to 5, to learn about business. The youth learned about team building, social confidence, financial literacy, public speaking, media training, constructive comments, feedback and stepping out of their com fort zone. We also played icebreaker and team building games, and the youth developed strong relation ships with each other and new friends. “Goals for the youth are set throughout the camp using our curriculum of five team challenges. Those consist of building a brand, which involves choosing a busi 24023gm0 ness type, creating a name, motto, design a logo and determine core values. Then there is the target market component where youth create products and services to solve a problem and determine who their audience and market is. “With the marketing strategy, youth decide how to advertise and reach customers, and from that create a marketing plan,” said Jackson. “Then they work on a budget and financial plan and youth have to determine their start up and operational costs, and how they will use their budget and any revenue for the future. Finally, the youth pitch their business by using the business model created. The youth film and deliver a five-minute business pitch that is premiered at the graduation and community celebration event. They work together in their teams with the guidance of a coach to create their business, and learn each factor of entrepreneurship.” The youth were mentored by local mentors in the community, each one had diverse background that brought forward different learning perspectives. “The mentors and coaches for the camp were Bears’ Lair team members, as well as OCN leadership and local business owners,” said Jackson. “This included Holly Chartrand, who is a local entrepreneur and award winning author; Savanna Sayese, who is a teacher with OCN; Dean Montgomery, the executive Producer of Bears’ Lair TV and president of Indigenous Initiatives; Jay Falkus, the director of operations for Bears’ Lair Dream Camps and head videographer and myself. “The judges for the graduation and celebration event were also an inspiration for the youth, as they were community and business leaders themselves. The judges were OCN Chief Maureen Brown; Darryl Bauer, OCN Eco nomic Development Officer; Courtney Hester, OCN Councillor and Dan Quesnel, who is the Scotiabank Manager. They were all excellent judges.” Several incredible entrepreneurial ideas were born as a result of the Bears’ Lair camp. Al though all presentations were solid, only one winner was chosen. “There were five groups who came up with amazing ideas,” said Jack son. “Bannock to go was the concept of a bannock cafe. Spirit Outdoors was a facility for youth that has programming for after school to encourage kids to do something active and away from video games and spending more time with each other. Maskwa Café was a proposal to set up a cafe that serves coffee, bannock, treats and a bookstore. OCN Attracts was an outdoor play ground for summer, fall and winter with activities for families and youth to be entertained. Dancing Raven Event Planning was a party event planning business for weddings, graduations, etc. “The team that created Dancing Raven Event Planning won. The judges were so impressed by all of the youth, but Dancing Raven had a small team of two people and the judges liked that they took on all of the roles of the business. The two-team members, Layne Nabess and Alzena Lajambe, persevered. They had a really good business idea and presented it very well. The winning team won $250 each and all other participants received $100 for at tending. All of the students also received matching hoodies and backpacks. “The kids came out of their shell, developed new friendships, all improved with public speaking and social confidence and most importantly everyone showed up and supported their team members,” said Jackson. “ It’s been said that 95 per cent of success in anything is showing up and the 22 youth did. They were in credible and our team can not wait to come back again.