TISDALE — The new owner of Tisdale Florists has won a business video contest.
Vanessa Savage won the start-up category of the Community Futures Entrepreneurs with Disabilities Program’s Just Watch Me content after she submitted a video about her business.
The contest was open to businesses in this province and Manitoba.
Savage said she was excited to receive the award. She took ownership of the flower shop on March 31, 2018 after her grandfather’s death.
“What really inspired me was reading my grandfather’s obituary at his funeral,” Savage said. “He started Four Seasons Greenhouse, so I grew up with flowers and really loved flowers. Reading his obituary and seeing all the things he did with his life was inspiration for me to start something I really wanted to do.”
She was going to just go into the cut flower business and grow her flowers from home.
“I went from growing to the end product, and I knew I needed a place to sell them.”
The biggest challenge Savage found was to balance family and work, but this wasn’t something new for her.
“It’s always a struggle to try to take the time to be able to be there for your family,” Savage said. “When I first started my business with photography I found I was working non-stop and wasn’t spending as much time with my family as needed. That was good. It broke me in and kind of forced me to have balance.”
Another challenge for her was structure.
“I’m not an overly structured person so having to have structure and having to follow rigid rules and having to put those rules on myself as been a big lesson learned for me.”
Her highlight was getting to see her creativity and her creations bloom.
“That is basically what owning your own business is. You’re creating your own entity and watching it come to life and that’s so exciting,” Savage said. “It’s exhilarating. It’s scary, it’s actually quite terrifying at times because you don’t know if it’s going to crumble or fall or if it’s going to keep growing. But usually things work out.”
Susan Wehage, small business specialist with Sagehill Community Futures, said Savage’s video did a good job in meeting the contest’s requirements. Savage had to explain what her business did, why being her own boss worked for her, give advice to people with disabilities interested in starting their own business, why running a business in a rural community was a good fit for her and Which programs or services contributed to herbusiness success.
Savage said the rewards she received for winning the contest, which includes coaching sessions, a Saskatchewan Chamber of Commerce membership, some office supplies and a cheque for $250, will be applied to her business.
“It gives them some coaching, some marketing help assistance, which is always important for a small business,” Wehage said.
Savage said running her business has been a lot of fun.
"I like seeing people walk through the door and meet people every day. Being out in the public and I really enjoy being part of this community and doing things that I love.”
