Access to Capital

Essential to most young companies is the ability to obtain funding to grow. Please join us for a workshop that will explore key options for funding your startup.

Participants will get an opportunity to discuss the benefits of raising capital from angel investors and will learn about the deal terms and venture valuation. Recognizing that working with private investors is not for everyone, the session will also explore the funding option of applying for loans from financial institutions and government programs.

Participant will engage with WECAN Investors, as well as with representatives from Community Futures Essex County, Libro Credit Union and the Small Business & Entrepreneurship Centre.

This interactive session is presented by WECAN Investors (Windsor Essex Capital Angel Network), Community Futures Essex County, Libro Credit Union and Small Business & Entrepreneurship Centre, with funding provided by the Government of Canada under the Women Entrepreneurship Strategy in Windsor-Essex.

Presenters

Deborah Livneh – Executive Director, WECAN Investors (Windsor Essex Capital Angel Network)

Deborah Livneh Eng. MBA connects investors to promising innovative early-stage companies and helps entrepreneurs access capital. Deborah is a mentor of startups. She serves as Mentor-in-Residence at VentureWell Aspire Medtech program USA, as well Entrepreneur-in-Residence at WEtech Alliance. She is also a co-founder of the Detroit-Windsor MedHealth Innovation Cluster. Deborah co-founded a medical technology company. She sold it to a publicly traded US medtech company and had led the Canadian plant of the multinational Olympus Medical Corp. 

Diane Malenfant – General Manager, Community Futures Essex County

Diane Malenfant has a passion for working with entrepreneurs in all stages of business development to help them meet and exceed their goals. In her role at CFDC she works one-on-one with clients to help them gain access to the capital needed to grow and expand their business. As a lifelong resident of Essex County, she understands the challenges rural businesses face and is committed to providing compassionate client-oriented service in a collaborative way.

Lori Atkinson – Regional Manager, Coach, Libro Credit Union

Lori Atkinson is a strategic and collaborative leader with over 25 years of multidisciplinary management experience. She has a proven track record of exceeding stakeholder expectations, improving performance, increasing revenues, reducing operating expenses and creating an engaged team environment to consistently improve results, profitability and customer and employee satisfaction.

Lee McGrath – Program Director, Women Entrepreneurship Strategy, Small Business & Entrepreneurship Centre

A native to Windsor-Essex, Lee McGrath has worked in economic development for the past six years at Invest WindsorEssex and its Small Business & Entrepreneurship Centre, where she’s had the privilege of assisting businesses and industry to grow their footprint in the region. Lee also has business development experience in the pharmaceutical and cosmetic industries.