New APTN show spotlights Indigenous businesses
Reality TV fans have a new opportunity to get their fix of business shows, as a new series features Indigenous businesspeople from across Canada.
Airing on Sunday nights on APTN, Bear’s Lair is similar to Shark Tank and Dragon’s Den, but instead of pitching their ideas and giving up ownership of their companies, contestants are trying to make it back to the final episode and win the $100,000 grand prize.
Six episodes are grouped into categories, and contestants try to impress the judges with their business ideas.
Show creator, judge, and Indigenous business mentor, Geena Jackson said the series can’t be called a competition, but something close.
“We’re calling it a ‘co-op’etition because I think people that watch the series are going to see that about how we uplift each other, how we support each other,” Jackson told CTV News.
One of the contestants is 3R Innovative Imaging, a business made up of high school students from One Arrow First Nation.
Phoenix Willier, Andy Daniels and Ruby Daniels take recycled materials and create unique Indigenous youth artwork.
Business Club Coordinator, Joe Taylor said it started as a school project, but the students have been taking and fulfilling orders throughout the pandemic. Now, their artwork is carried in 14 stores.
Business Club Coordinator Joe Taylor, Phoenix Willier, Andy Daniels and Ruby Daniels of 3R Innovative Imaging. (John Flatters/CTV News)“We used business as a way of finding out about things they knew nothing about, and meeting people they would not otherwise have a chance to,” Taylor said. “They’ve met the movers and shakers of the corporate world, and everywhere they go, they become the centre of attention in a heartbeat.”
Self-taught Indigenous baker, Alicia Hrbachek of Ally’s Cake Creeations said showcasing her business to the Bears was a great experience, but the connections she made are even more rewarding.
“It was a super supportive environment,” Hrbachek told CTV News.
“And then to be surrounded by so many Indigenous entrepreneurs, some just starting up and some way up there with buildings and staff, it just made me feel like where I was in my life was where I was supposed to be.”
The final episode of season one airs October 16th, but Jackson said plans for season two are already in motion.
“I’m just so excited for the nation to see who we are as people,” she said.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Health Canada to change sperm donor screening rules for men who have sex with men
Health Canada will change its longstanding policy restricting gay and bisexual men from donating to sperm banks in Canada, CTV News has learned. The federal health agency has adopted a revised directive removing the ban on gay, bisexual and other men who have sex with men, effective May 8.
American millionaire Jonathan Lehrer denied bail after being charged with killing Canadian couple
American millionaire Jonathan Lehrer, one of two men charged in the killings of a Canadian couple in Dominica, has been denied bail.
LeBlanc says he plans to run in next election, under Trudeau's leadership
Cabinet minister Dominic LeBlanc says he plans to run in the next election as a candidate under Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's leadership, amid questions about his rumoured interest in succeeding his longtime friend for the top job.
U.S. vetoes a widely supported UN resolution backing full membership for Palestine
The United States has vetoed a widely backed UN resolution that would have paved the way for full United Nations membership for the state of Palestine.
Sports columnist apologizes for 'oafish' comments directed at Caitlin Clark. The controversy isn’t over
A male columnist has apologized for a cringeworthy moment during former University of Iowa superstar and college basketball’s highest scorer Caitlin Clark’s first news conference as an Indiana Fever player.
Bayer recalls hydraSense baby product over 'potential contamination'
Bayer announced Thursday it is recalling two lots of its hydraSense Baby Nasal Care Easydose due to a potential contamination.
N.L. gardening store revives 19th century seed-packing machine
Technology from the 19th century has been brought out of retirement at a Newfoundland gardening store, as staff look for all the help they can get to fill orders during a busy season.
Cat found on Toronto Pearson airport runway 3 days after going missing
Kevin the cat has been reunited with his family after enduring a harrowing three-day ordeal while lost at Toronto Pearson International Airport earlier this week.
Grandparent scam suspects had ties to Italian organized crime, police allege
A group of suspects that allegedly defrauded seniors across Ontario and other parts of Canada using a so-called emergency grandparent scam appear to have ties to 'Italian traditional organized crime,' according to an investigator involved in the OPP-led probe.