Mastercard launched its new ‘Secret Sauce’ small business campaign to elevate the visibility of women small business owners in the culinary space and help equip them with the support, funding and resources they need to grow their businesses. The initiative will kick-off with a national ad campaign highlighting three women who have overcome unique challenges to maintain and grow their businesses.
The campaign includes a funding programme, in partnership with Pier Five, to help women small business owners further grow their businesses. It also promotes the use of a Google Maps feature that allows people to identify, shop and support women-owned small businesses as a way to drive meaningful impact in the community.
This campaign builds off Mastercard’s pledge, announced in 2020, of US$250 million in financial, technology, product and insight assets over five years to small businesses across the globe, including Canada. The funds will support the financial security, vitality of businesses and their workers as well as their online expansion.
“In Canada, small businesses serve as the foundation of our economy and are the pillars of communities. However, many Canadian women who start their own business make less than their male counterparts,” said Nishant Raina, Small Business Lead, Mastercard in Canada. “Women-owned small businesses need access to support and resources that will empower them to thrive. This campaign does just that – it gives women-owned small businesses a platform to connect with customers and creates a powerful community of peers and mentors to learn from and inspire the next generation of entrepreneurs.”
From cash flow to operational efficiency, small businesses are often overstretched for resources. This issue is only compounded with the fact that 80% of food service businesses have taken on new debt over the last two years with women-owned small businesses in Canada taking nearly two times as long to recover.
“Being a catalyst for the small businesses community means supporting all of them – especially groups facing a greater set of challenges,” added Raina. “The power of connection is at the core of what can drive change and make small businesses successful. By building a community of entrepreneurs and showcasing their stories, we’re helping create a wealth of knowledge and experiences that owners can analyse, apply key learnings and ultimately prosper from.”