Mentorship and One-on-One Support
Business Link is Alberta’s small business hub and is a non-profit organization that helps people navigate the steps toward starting their own businesses. One-on-one support and guidance, market research, access to experts, training, networking opportunities, and specialized support for Indigenous entrepreneurs is available through Business Link.
Futurpreneur Mentorship + Financing program offers start up small business owners ages 18-39 the opportunity to recieve funding and mentorship. Please note mentorship is only availble through financing.
Business Plan Development
- Business Development Bank of Canada (BDC) free business plan template.
- Business Link free interactive Business Plan Builder
- Futurpreneur free interactive business plan creator.
- Scotiabank free business plan template.
Financial Support
Community Futures provides training, counseling, and consulting to support small businesses. They offer rural business loans with a difference.
The Business Development Bank of Canada (BDC) offers business loans and advisory services to help Canadian businesses grow, both at home and abroad. Through their subsidiary—BDC Capital, they also offer a full spectrum of specialized financing, including venture capital, equity well as growth and business transition capital.
Futurpreneur offers aspiring business owners aged 18-39 financing and mentorship to launch successful businesses across Canada.
Alberta Women Entrepreneurs (AWE) AWE offers loans for women-owned businesses in Alberta. AWE can help provide the financing you need to start or grow your business and has a community to support you along the way.
Canada Small Business Financing Program makes it easier for small businesses to get loans from financial institutions by sharing the risk with lenders.
Government of Canada Business Grants and Financing offers loans and grants to businesses. Visit the site to see what financial avenues are available.
Government of Canada Business Benefits Finder provides a detailed list of available benefits for your business, based off information you provide.
Venture Capital
Crowd Funding
For information on Crowd Funding and how it works check out the National Crowd Funding Association of Canada.
Crowd Funding Sources are:
Free Resources, Research, Guides and Tools
- Alberta Small Business Resources is a directory of business resources for new and established entrepreneurs in Alberta.
- Business Link has a multitude of guides, resources and research for all stages of business, including guides for small businesses related to start up, marketing, and financing, research and analysis, and more.
- Canada Digital Adoption Program offers small and medium sized business the opportunity to grow their business through launching e-commerce website and boosting your business technology, for free. Experts will assist you through the process, the only commitment you need to make is to dedicate the time.
- Futurpreneur offers a library of resources for entrepreneurs and those who have a business idea.
- Start Up Canada Business Owners Toolbox is a central hub that provides a comprehensive package of foundational knowledge, access points, and resources required to start and scale a business in Canada.
- Government of Canada Research and Business Intelligence offers industry sector data, financial benchmarks, labour trends, and business statistics.
General Information
For more information regarding economic development in The County of Northern Lights, please visit the business page of our website.