For the third year running, business owners, entrepreneurs, and innovators from around the province are invited to meet under one roof in the rural southeast for a day of networking, inspiration, and learning.
The Ritchot Business Expo, now known as ElevateMB, will feature all the best elements attendees have come to expect from previous years, packed into one full day.
This year’s keynote speaker is Manjit Minhas, co-founder of Minhas Brewery, Distillery and Winery, and panellist on TV’s Dragon’s Den.
“We’re really excited,” says Ritchot mayor Chris Ewen. “We’ve got strong keynote speakers this year and a full day of courses that I think people are really going to find interesting from AI, to tax savings and grant opportunities. We’ve really packed in a full day and I’m expecting a sold-out house.”
Registration for the event is now open. It will take place at the TC Energy Centre in Île-des-Chênes on February 26.
Minhas will be joined by Nicole Dubè, former morning show host turned compelling storyteller, to conduct a fireside chat including a live audience Q&A.
New this year will be a feature called Coach on the Couch, a one-on-one opportunity for attendees to ask questions pertinent to their specific business.
There’ll be breakout sessions, a trade show, and plenty of opportunities to connect with like-minded business owners.
Changes to this year’s event came as a result of the unfortunate passing of John Falk of John Peter Events. Falk was the originator of Ritchot’s Edge Business Expo.
This year, and going forward, the annual event will continue under the name ElevateMB. Staff members of the RM of Ritchot were inspired to develop a simple name that evoked the idea of helping entrepreneurs heighten their success.
“[Our staff] have looked at the last two years and they’ve seen what’s working and what people are really interested in,” Ewen says. “They’ve really dialed in and have gotten some strong sponsorships this year, which has given them the opportunity to make it a really successful event coming up.”
Dialing the event back from two days to one, Ewen says, just makes sense when you’re dealing with business owners who don’t want to be away from their companies for too long.
Instead of a mixer, there’ll be a cocktail hour at the close of the day. Instead of food trucks, a local caterer will ensure that everyone is well-fed.
Learning from the success of past years, Ewen says he hopes Ritchot will continue to promote this long into the future.
“Commercially, Ritchot has grown exponentially over the years,” Ewen says. “We’ve seen businesses start from nothing and go to crazy growth. We’ve also seen businesses leave other municipalities, wanting to come to ours, so we know that we have an opportunity. We have something special in Ritchot.”