Liberty Connect
Liberty Connect, is your monthly B2B conference call with the Liberty Village business community for conversations on immediate interest and concerns.
Hosted by our Executive Director and BIA staff, the platform was launched in response to requests from business and property owners to provide a forum for the LVBIA members to share how they are being affected by COVID-19 and to learn about available support and resources. Please feel free to invite your area contacts and network who you think might benefit from attending.
Call-In Information:
Calls take place on the first Wednesday of each month at 10:00am – 11:00am
Phone Number: 416-479-4406
Conference Room: 321
Participant Pin: 3711
CLICK HERE TO SUBMIT A QUESTION OR TOPIC
Week 25 | October 7th 2020
David Nagler
Head of Community & Stakeholder Relations | TTC
Topic: David will be discussing: Safety and Service on the TTC during COVID-19
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Dan Breault
Program Supervisor | City of Toronto
Topic: Dan will be discussing the encampments in the City of Toronto, the City’s interventions therein, some of the barriers they have come across and specifically Lamport Stadium.
Dan.Breault@toronto.ca
Week 24 | September 16th 2020
Lloyd Rang
President & CEO | Lloyd Rang Communications
Lloyd Rang is the President and CEO of a boutique communications agency called LRC. They serve mainly corporate clients — and their goal is to help them tell stories more effectively.
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John Kiru
Executive Director | TABIA
The Toronto Association of Business Improvement Areas (TABIA) is a non-profit umbrella organization working with the 84 Business Improvement Areas within the City of Toronto, who in turn represent more than 70,000 business and property owners. John will be discussing the history of BIAs, and how the concept came to be one of Toronto’s “best exports”.
Week 23| September 9th 2020
Natalie Tay
Marketing & Partnerships | Digital Main Street
Natalie will be joining us to discuss Digital Main Street offerings–specifically the ShopHERE COVID-19 response program
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Mike Crum
Crum Group advises nonprofits, high net worth individuals, and foundations in the areas of philanthropy and impact investment. I also guide social entrepreneurs and social enterprises to make critical decisions related to organizational structure, quantifying social outcomes, customer growth, and scaling.
Mike will be discussing Nonprofit organizations and the impact of COVID as well as Nonprofit board service.
www.philanthropymenu.com
www.linkedin.com/in/mikecrum/
Week 22| September 2nd 2020
New Business Development | Moveable Inc
Moveable is Liberty Village’s local printing firm, where a staff of 35 people work tirelessly, around-the-clock, to make it easy for their clients to inform, excite, or profit by using printing as part of their communications strategy.
Chris’s primary role at Moveable Inc. as a partner is new business development.
In his presentation, Chris will be talking about:
– Liberty Village’s “One thing”
– How Moveable has built a successful type, proofreading, image enhancement, and printing business in the Toronto Carpet Factory since 1983 and is one of Liberty’s last manufacturing businesses.
– How COVID 19 has affected their printing business and how they’ve responded to this Great Reset.
He also plans to highlight:
– His experience of being the co-founder of the Liberty Village BIA – starting in 1999, and remaining active ever since.
– How “BIA Experience Teaches” over the last 21 years of helping to build the Liberty Village BIA.
– How the area is a great place to “take liberty in Liberty to grow any type of business or organization.”
– How people and companies/organizations working together in Liberty can ensure a great future for the TO West area.
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Executive Search Consultant | Avery Professional Group
Kevin has been recruiting since 1999 in areas such as Technology, Construction, Real Estate and most recently in Healthcare. He helps organizations determine who they need and how to get them onboard.
Kevin will be discussing workforce planning and technology implementation around recruiting processes.
Week 21| August 26th 2020
Kay Matthews
Executive Director | Ontario BIA Association
Kay Matthews, since 2011, is the Executive Director of theOntario BIA Association representing 300+ BIAs in Ontario.She has spent 20+ years in BIA management; 10 years inan Urban BIA and 5 years in a Rural BIA. Having worked inthe Heritage and Arts sectors in Mississauga for 10 years,this brings her total Community Development experience tomore than 30 years.
Kay has overseen three Accessibility Projects for OBIAA,the Investment of BIAs Project and Ontario’s Digital MainStreet Project. Kay speaks at various events, facilitatesStrategic Planning as well as teaches Governance to BIAs.
Kay additionally has organized and executed large scaleevents such as the Bread and Honey Festival,Mississauga’s Carassauga and Santa Claus Parades andthe annual BIA Conference.
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Madison Perdue
Community Engagement Coordinator | St.Felix Centre
St. Felix Centre is a multi-service community centre dedicated to providing compassionate services to every person inclusive of all religious beliefs, genders, cultures, and abilities. We offer a variety of programming to some of the most marginalized individuals in Toronto. These supports include a clothing bank, hot meals, goal-setting for housing and personal health, wellness supports for their pets, and much needed rest spaces. With the current pandemic highlighting more than ever the importance of housing, St. Felix Centre is dedicated to being advocates for our guests and the creation of supportive affordable housing in Toronto.
Madison’s role as Community Engagement Coordinator is to ensure collaboration and communication between the centre and the communities that we operate in because St. Felix Centre firmly believes in caring for our community as well as our guests.
Madison will be discussing the various programs that St. Felix Centre continues to operate for Toronto’s most vulnerable populations throughout COVD-19. She will also be sharing the story of a guest that has gone through our Respite Program and successfully found housing.
Week 20| August 19th 2020
Perry Monaco
Senior Manager, Customer Success | LinkedIn
Perry Monaco leads the Customer Success Organization in North America for the Search and Staffing segment at LinkedIn. His teams work with talent acquisition companies, building social media recruitment strategies while focusing on the end user to manage retention, customer experience, and account growth through customer success planning. Perry was one of the first 4.5 million members of LinkedIn and was previously a recruiter before helping to build the CS practice at LinkedIn. Perry currently resides in the Greater Toronto Area with his wife and three children.
TOPIC:
Perry will discuss authentic and genuine communication strategies during a pad on LinkedIn. He will also give a quick update on how the market has shifted in Canada as a result of COVID-19.
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Andrew Sorlie
President | Stature Films
Along with Emily, Andrew leads Stature Films which was based for 6 years in Liberty Village. Stature Films creates video content for companies and organizations right across the country.
TOPIC:
Andrew will be discussing some quick tips to level up your work from home video, and invites listeners to check out their free wfh course (staturefilms.com/wfh). Andrew will also be talking about what kind of content resonates with people and how to sell using video when it doesn’t feel like it’s the right time to sell.
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/staturefilms/
Week 19| August 12th 2020
Tammy Yiu Coyne
Co-founder & CEO | Partial Gallery
Partial is Canada’s curated artist directory and platform for emerging artists and art-seekers to connect and engage in genuine interactions. Discover your next favourite artist, and thanks to smart try-before-you-buy options and customer support, original work by local artists are just around the corner.
Coming from careers in graphic design, fashion, and entrepreneurship, Tammy is Partial’s as co-founder and Creative + Community manager. She is a fixture in Toronto’s art and design community with her role at Partial Gallery, and also founded Squab Creative graphic design studio in 2009 and continues to collaborate with a range of brands around the world. This lockdown, she’s been using her free time to brew Hong Kong milk tea as a newfound hobby.
Tammy will be speaking about:
- How the arts community came together and reinvented itself during Covid
- The importance of the arts throughout COVID-19 and into a post-pandemic future
- How COVID-19 has impacted Partial Gallery from a startup perspective
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Caitlin Howell
Sales Representative, RE/MAX Realty Enterprises, HOWELL Team
M: 647.986.0369 | W: 905.855.2200 | howellteam.ca
Caitlin Howell is a residential real estate agent with RE/MAX Realty Enterprises focused in the West GTA including Downtown Toronto, Etobicoke, Mississauga, Oakville and Burlington. Caitlin has a passion for helping her clients achieve their real estate goals, whether that is buying their first home, moving into the next stage of home, or purchasing properties for investments. She personally grew up in South Mississauga, went to Wilfrid Laurier for university and currently lives in Liberty Village. Caitlin loves to connect and build new relationships with people wherever she goes!
Caitlin will be speaking about:
- Real Estate Market Update
- Is now a good time to buy?
- Tips for first time home buys & real estate investments
Week 18| August 5th 2020
Nadia Lloyd
Nadia is a Toronto artist (painter) designer and event planner (Toronto Art Crawl). Nadia typically does all three at once, and runs 6-7 art exhibits and lifestyle events per year, however this year, her events were put on hold in March due to the Pandemic. She has since then pivoted to sewing face masks while re-purposing her at printed fabrics, while making weekly donations to front line health care workers. The Mayor of Toronto can be seen sporting her masks on a daily basis.
Topics of Discussion
- Creating and working in Liberty Village the last 10 years!
- How Nadia reinvented her work to stay relevant and help front line workers
- Thinking outside the box
- Rolling with the punches
- How Nadia’s mask making journey began, and how liberty helped her launch it
Links & Contact Info
@nadialloydTO on all platforms
www.nadialloyd.com
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Duncan So
Executive Director & Head of Empowerment | The Burnout Clinic
The Burnout Clinic helps leaders who are exhausted, burned out and overworked, and who have tried everything to recovery but realize it’s not enough. At The Burnout Clinic we combined a mental emotional release process with tropical vacations to stop the burnout at the source. People return to work happy, productive and in control of their work and lives.
Topics:
– Mental Health, Burnout and effects of COVID19
– 5 Paths of Burnout
– COVID19 Recovery and what to expect
Links & Contact Info:
Website: www.theburnoutclinic.com
IG: @theburnoutclinic
LI: https://www.linkedin.com/company/theburnoutclinic
Week 17| July 29th 2020
Tawny Dhaliwal
Freelance Business Operations & Marketing Specialist
Tawny is a freelance communication and marketing professional who has a passion for business operations. She has been specializing in Social Media marketing for almost a decade. For the past 3 years, one of her main roles has been Event Manager for Social Media Week Toronto – the perfect marrying of her two passions – operations and social media.
As a communications and marketing professional Tawny helps her clients with everything from managing their marketing and social media efforts, to content creation and writing, blogging, and general operational tasks. Her goal is to help her clients get to where they want to be quickly and efficiently.
When Tawny is not working hard working for her clients and running her business you can find her discovering Ontario – hiking, biking and camping (pre-covid this would’ve also included travelling the world!)
Topic of Discussion
COVID-19 has hit the event market pretty hard, with Social Media Week Toronto being one of Tawny’s main projects, which has now been postponed, she has had to pivot during this time in multiple ways. She has had to be creative with how she fills her time and continues to pay herself a livable salary, while working with the Social Media Week Toronto team to figure out the best way to pivot their event, still providing their attendees and sponsors with a high-value and quality experience. Tawny will discuss how COVID-19 and current events have affected her as a freelancer, event manager, and Liberty Village local.
Links & Contact Info
LinkedIn | https://www.linkedin.com/in/tawnydhaliwal/
Email | tawny@connectwithtawny.com
Week 16| July 22nd 2020
Marcello Cabezas
Marcello Cabezas is a multi-dimensional, award winning, ‘been there done that’ expert and thought leader in marketing, events, hospitality, content, communications and place making.
Marcello is known for leading and working on projects that have realized the theme of bringing the world to Toronto and Toronto to the world. These have included theatre productions with Woody Harrelson, bringing the Jimmy Kimmel Live Show to Toronto with three levels of government, leading programming efforts at various stages for properties like the Drake Hotel, Stackt container market, and The Paradise Theatre. Currently working with the city on the Yonge Street Revitalization file.
Marcello is also the Executive Producer of Project Float Together. This will be a one of a kind family friendly community building fundraiser for the Toronto Arts Foundation and MusiCounts which is the charity arm of The Junos. This is slated to happen outdoors one weekend in late September or the first weekend of October in Liberty Village. The wish of course to have many Liberty Village local businesses involved to amplify the efforts to create a win-win scenario. The purpose of his discussion on Wednesday is to explore the ways this can happen.
https://www.unfoldbrics.art/news/reimagining-the-role-of-places-to-save-the-world
Week 15 | July 15th 2020
John Cowan
President, CEO | JMC Security & Investigations Inc.
JMC Security and Investigations Inc (JMC) is a smaller security firm (less than 100 employees), entering its 20th year of business, servicing several major hotels, various condominiums/apartments, multiple retail locations across Toronto and the GTA. Owner John Cowan takes a hands-on approach to his business and is well connected with various police services across Ontario, with over 35 years of experience in the private and public sectors. JMC also conducts private investigations, CCTV sales/service, and a provides the training necessary to obtain a security and private investigator licenses.
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Judy McCarten
McCarton Infection Prevention Consulting
Since retiring at the end of May 2020, Judy has been busy with helping people and businesses adjust to the ever changing landscape of Infection Control guidelines, rules and general “what is happening” daily Covid-19 concerns! Judy will give you a brief overview of viruses (are they even “alive”)?, how this virus is transmitted, best practices around masks, face coverings, hand hygiene and why PPE is actually our LAST line of defense!
Week 14 | July 8th 2020
Ben Hahn
Coach House Law is holistic law firm focussed on providing high-quality legal counsel to help our clients grow and success. We practice real estate law, dispute resolution, business law, family law, and wills and estates.
Instagram @coachhouselaw
Ainsley Moir
Branding and Business Advisor | Engineer Your Brand
Ainsley is back for her second Liberty Connect and will be discussing Community Connections for your Brand
- Defining what your business stands for so you know what consumers think of it right now
- Figuring out what exactly your audience needs right now
- Ways to build online and offline communities to meet the needs of your audience, while also staying true to what your business stands for
- Using your communities to drive sales and long term brand connection with consumers
David Essig
Area Sales Team Lead | IWGPLAC
David Essig is an Area Sales Manager with International Workplace Group (IWG), formerly known as Regus. IWG is a multinational provider of serviced offices, coworking spaces, business lounges, virtual offices, meeting rooms, and video teleconference services, employing over 10,000 people at more than 3,340 locations in more than 120 countries, and providing services to over 2.5 million individual clients. The discussion will centre around functional back-to-work strategies during the Covid-19 climate and how service providers such as IWG can provide for a variety of workplace scenarios and better office portfolio management.
Week 12 | June 24th 2020
Brian G. Bachand
Topic: “Um, are you listening…really? This is where leadership begins.”
Brian is originally from the United States having moved to Canada in 2012 from New York City. He became a Canadian citizen in May 2019. As a former professional fundraiser his last role in NYC was as Executive Director at New York University Langone Health. In Canada, he was the Executive Director for the Faculty of Medicine at the University of Toronto to be part of their $2Billion Campaign. In 2015, Brian became a Partner at an executive search firm in Toronto to leverage his global network to grow international recruitment for senior executives. Brian has lived experience in leading large diverse teams to high performance. His expertise in recruiting leaders lays the foundation for Brian’s insights on work culture, communication, dealing with conflict and defining a professional career path. In November 2019, Brian founded evolution evolution, a global company that works with individuals and organizations to engage their own evolution. Brian’s evolution: from clergy to founding his own company reflects a life of authenticity. Brian is proud to serve the local community as Vice-Chair of the Board for ACCES Employment and Board of Director at the Gardiner Museum.
Adam Meery
Brand Strategist and Chief Creative Officer | We Make Things
Topic: Adam will be discussing our recovery initiative: LOVE, LIBERTY
About WMT
WMT is a Brand Strategy Consultancy.
We imagine a world in which companies and brands are led by purpose, inspire stakeholders, and create a better world.
Week 11 | June 17th 2020
Sarah Stewart
New Business Development Director | JAZZ.FM91
JAZZ.FM91 is a not-for-profit radio station in Liberty Village that broadcasts Jazz music 24/7. Sarah will be speaking about JAZZ.FM91’s $10,000 Advertising Giveaway to a GTA-based small business – the Shine a Light Concert.
Cody Macpherson
Commercial Account Executive | Kase Insurance
Cody will be discussing Commercial Insurance & Risk Management- Before and After COVID-19. KASE Insurance is an award-winning specialty commercial insurance brokerage, and the reputable partner of choice for clients ranging from a sole trader or small professional firm, to manufacturers and contractors with revenues in excess of $50m. They cover all your needs, including Commercial General Liability, Surety & Bonding, Group Benefits, and Corporate Financial Services. We work with newly formed enterprises to publicly listed companies, and our experience crosses many industries including Construction & Bonding, Tech & Media, Professional Services, and Manufacturing.
Libby Garg
Franchise Owner | Freshii
Co-Founder | Work Solute
In early 2016, Libby Garg left the practice of law to start a “Freshii” franchised restaurant. She opened her first location in the iconic Liberty Village area of Toronto. Her motivation was to honour a dream she and her late sister, Carley, shared in making healthy food more accessible. Libby co-founded WorkSolute later the same year to be the complete work solution to hire and manage teams in industries marked by wage-based pay, and consistent turnover. WorkSolute is trusted by brands such as Burger King, Domino’s, PetValu, Trade Secret’s, Panago Pizza, and yes… Freshii too. WorkSolute allows employers to find what truly matters to their “most” important positions. The matching algorithm distills verified work experience and availability to find the best-suited front-line workers to represent their brands. WorkSolute also supports work seekers by connecting them with work that is close to their home, and fits their schedule.
Week 10 | June 10th 2020
Chris Glover
MPP | Spadina-Fort York
Chris Glover was elected to the Legislative Assembly of Ontario in 2018 representing the riding of Spadina-Fort York. He is the Official Opposition Critic for Colleges and Universities. Chris is a community advocate and is working hard to be a strong voice for Spadina-Fort York at Queen’s Park. He will be joining us to provide an update on current government actions, programs for businesses and to provide advice for re-opening and recovery!
Riley Welch
Owner | 92 Social
Riley Welch, is the owner of 92 Social, located in our very own Liberty Village. 92 Social is a full social media agency with a simple mission: creating a community for Canadian businesses. His agency offers a variety of services, including: website development, branding marketing, social media management, content creation, SEO and a lot more! Riley will be joining us to discuss marketing strategies for businesses reopening.
Week 9 | June 3rd 2020
Lara Samuel
Manager, Facilities and Visitor Experience | The Bentway
Lara will be discussing The Bentway’s thought process around how to safely re-open their facility to the general public and how it led to the creation of a phased Business Reinstatement plan for The Bentway.
Pete Bombaci
Chief Connection Officer and Founder | The Genwell Project
Pete is the founder of The GenWell Project and is proud to be leading a campaign that he truly believes can make the world a happier and healthier place. The campaign idea, in the making for over a decade, was inspired by the events that Pete witnessed during blackout back in 2003. Kindness, generosity, empathy and connection. We live in a fast paced and distracted world and sometimes we just need a reminder or an excuse to take the time to do the thing that will make us and those around us happier and healthier.
Week 8 | May 27th 2020
Ainsley Moir
Branding and Business Advisor | Engineer Your Brand
Ainsley Moir is an author, speaker, podcast host, and business owner who helps companies build brands and businesses that stand out, sell more, and turn their customers into raving fans. Ainsley is a firm believer that great brands lead to great business results and that your brand is an important part of everything your business does.
Week 7 | May 20th 2020
Troy Jalovec
Manager, Partnershops | Bank of Montreal
Troy Jalovec has been with Bank of Montreal for 12 years and in his previous role was a Branch Manager in the Toronto Downtown Market. Now supporting a Financial Wellness Program at BMO called Bank at Work he serves as your key contact for any banking related matters. Troy will be discussing a variety of topics related to financial relief programs and looking ahead to tomorrow. This includes: an overview of BMO’s Relief Programs and Digital Banking Options, an Overview of Canadian Federal Relief Programs, Community and Personal Well-Being and more!
Week 6 | May 13th 2020
Marian Staresinic
Partner | Branding and Buzzing
Marian has spent 25+ years in the food and foodservice industries as a chef, an instructor and an in-house marketing manager. She’s worked with brands, distributors, regional sales teams, producers and marketing teams on the consumer and foodservice sides, and continues to do so while also wrangling her wonderful team at Branding & Buzzing. Marian will be chatting about how they conceptualized Canada Takeout; they “reacted” by creating a campaign that supports and continue to supports the restaurant industry across Canada.
Week 5 | May 6th 2020
Week 4 | April 29th 2020
Week 3 | April 22nd 2020
Bashar Saqr
Digital Squad | Digital Main Street
Bashar Saqr from Digital Main Street will be discussing how the Digital Service Squad can help businesses gain a basic web presence or enhance their existing web presence by helping activate easy-to-use tools. They will also provide some guidance, resources and recommendations on how businesses can progress digitally. This is a FREE service which is available to all our Liberty Village Businesses! If you do wish to partake in this program, we will connect you with Bashar to get started immediately!
Week 2 | April 15th 2020
Bashar Saqr
Digital Squad | Digital Main Street
Bashar, from Digital Main Street, will be present on this week’s call to introduce their program, and answer any questions you may have regarding the FREE service they provide to our Liberty Village BIA members!
Week 1 | April 8th 2020
Liberty Connect Launch
