City of Vaughan

Application Updates

The program will provide entrepreneurs with training to help develop their business plan, marketing strategies, budget and financial forecasts. Eligible applicants will be supported under one of the following four streams:

1. Existing brick and mortar businesses with physical storefronts or office or industrial locations
2. New start-up and home-based businesses who may be looking to start or expand their businesses
3. Food and Beverage businesses will have a market-ready product in the food & beverage industry, you may be already selling in some stores, markets and/or events and want to gain the industry knowledge to successfully scale and grow your food business.
4. Technology businesses who are building and looking to bring a tech product into the market. If you are an early-stage tech entrepreneur developing or refining your prototype and looking to find early traction, this opportunity will help you get launched.

Training

For existing brick and mortar businesses, training will be targeted and focused on:

• Supporting business owners in developing digital skills and improving their online presence.
• Adopting new business strategies, such as e-commerce, and identifying alternative revenue streams amidst economic uncertainty.

For new start-up and home-based businesses, training will cover creating a comprehensive business plan, marketing strategy, budget and financial forecasts through 4 parts of Business Planning Launchpad series. This will include training focused on:

• Conducting market research and trends analyses
• Marketing, value proposition, advertising, promotional strategies, including digital and online
• Operations (Legal, HR, risk and insurance)
• Budgeting and financial forecasting

For food and beverage businesses, the Launch & Grow Your Food Venture series will be delivered in partnership with York University’s YSpace – Food Accelerator program. Training series will offer specialized office-hour venture consultations and workshops in May to June 2025 to support early-stage food and beverage entrepreneurs in Vaughan, and to help grow this industry locally.

For technology businesses, the Launch & Grow Your Tech Venture series will be delivered in partnership with York University’s YSpace – Venture Catalyst program, which is designed to validate start-up ideas and bring a proof-of-concept to life. Training series will offer specialized office-hour venture consultations and workshops in May to June 2025 to support early-stage technology entrepreneurs in Vaughan.

Start Your Starter Company Plus Eligibility Survey

To receive further information about the program, please complete the Starter Company Plus Eligibility Survey. All eligible participants will be invited to attend training sessions on an ongoing basis.

Information Sessions

Please join us for our virtual information session to learn more about the Starter Company Plus program, eligibility requirements to receive funding and how we support applicants through training opportunities.

Date: Tuesday, April 22, 2025

Time: 1:00-2:00 p.m.

Location: Online via Zoom

Click here to register.

Date: Monday, May 5, 2025

Time: 7:00- 8:00 p.m.

Location: Online via Zoom

Click here to register.

Important: The opportunity to apply for a provincial grant funding through Starter Company Plus is competitive. Not all program participants will receive a provincial grant, but all are eligible to participate in training. Priority for grant funding decisions will be based on the quality and viability of the application in terms of the level of demonstrated traction (i.e., minimum viable product, sales, subscribers/users, pilot projects underway) and realistic prospects from immediate local impact (i.e., job creation, use of commercial property, business expansion). Final approval for a Provincial Grant lies with a Regional Grant Administration (RGA) made up of economic development professionals from across the York Region. The City of Vaughan’s Small Business and Entrepreneurship team will help applicants prepare their grant applications for the RGA through training and mentorship programs.

Eligibility Criteria 

To be eligible for grant funding, participants must:

• Be at least 18 years old at time of application;
• Not be attending school full time;
• Be a resident of Ontario;
• Be a Canadian citizen or permanent resident;
• Not currently be enrolled in other self-employment or entrepreneurship training/financing initiatives financed by government-funded organizations;
• Not have previously received a Starter Company or Starter Company Plus grant

In addition, for businesses to be eligible under the existing brick and mortar businesses stream, businesses must:

• Be located in and operate in Vaughan
• Have operated out of a commercial storefront or office/industrial space at a Location other than the applicant’s principal residence
• Have access to at least 3 months working capital (either cash savings or access to credit)
• Be an independent business and operate at arm’s length from family business ventures

• Have less than 10 full-time employees (25 if a restaurant) (or equivalent)

Businesses not eligible to receive funding include:

• Distributorships
• Franchises
• Incorporated businesses that are controlled directly or indirectly by a person who would not be eligible for a Starter Company Plus Award
• Commissioned sales
• Not-for-profit or charitable enterprises
• Multi-level marketing ventures

Dates and Deadlines

For those participants interested in applying for the grant, the first deadline to for this years’ cohort is Monday, June 16, 2025, at 11:59 PM. We encourage participants to submit their completed business plan and budget early, as spots are limited and may fill before the deadline dates. Possible deadline extensions for additional intake will be announced monthly until funding is fully disbursed.

Training sessions and mentorship consultations will be delivered from May to November to help applcants complete their business plan and budget/financial forecast.

Interested participants are encouraged to complete the Starter Company Plus Eligibility Survey.