Is the black community of Gatineau experiencing a strong moment? A “momentum”, some will say? The first declared candidate for mayor of the city, Olive Kamanyana, is in the running. Politics aside, the economy of the greater federal capital region is also riding a new wave of Afro-descendant entrepreneurs who are not afraid to cross borders.
Gatineau municipal councilor Bettyna Bélizaire does not wish to comment on her colleague’s ambitions. “I just hope it’s not a moment, a trend. I can’t wait until we don’t have to talk about it [de la candidature d’un membre de la communauté noire à la mairie]because their place is normal,” she nevertheless indicates in an interview with Duty.
After Toronto and Montreal, the greater Ottawa-Gatineau region is home to the largest Afro-descendant community in Canada. It is also the one that is growing the fastest: it increased from 78,225 to 114,225 people between 2016 and 2021, according to Statistics Canada. And this growth of 30% in five years is 745% if we go back 20 years.
Just like Bettyna Bélizaire, Gatineau native Luc Thermonvil saw the population transform around him. “Before, we were civil servants. Now, the new generation is entrepreneurs,” says the founder of the Ottawa Black Business Alliance. Its incubator supports all those who want to go into business, both in Ottawa and Gatineau. And the requests are piling up, he notes. “On the Ottawa side, we are at 400 [accompagnements]. We opened an office two years ago in Gatineau and we already support 140 black entrepreneurs. »
There is no doubt, “there is a “momentum””.
All these initiatives have been coming together for three years at a major fair. This year, this black entrepreneurship fair will be held for the first time at the Shaw Center, the largest convention center in the federal capital.
Black business is no longer the prerogative of barbers or restaurants of the past. Second or third generation immigrants build consulting engineering firms, law firms, and performance halls. Refugees are founding businesses, reports Gatineau municipal councilor Bettyna Bélizaire. “There are 1.5 million black people across Canada. It’s a huge weight. That’s a huge amount of skills. »
Conquering Canada… French
In its Ottawa offices, Catia Céméus manages large-scale events for both sides of the border. His “niche” is French. “From the start, we decided to go in French. » If the skin sometimes matters, so does the tongue. “We often had the idea that business was done in English. It can be done in French. »
The entrepreneur, like others, takes advantage of the city’s position to open her markets in the rest of Canada. As many as 28% of all African-Canadians speak French at home, compared to 23% of the country’s total population. “There is room for everyone. You just need to have the right business model. »
Access to financing still remains complicated. Many immigrants juggle credit poorly when they arrive in Canada, and certain blunders ruin businesses long after the blunder, observes Luc Thermonvil. He says he is currently negotiating with banks to make them aware of these mistakes made by newcomers.
Otherwise, his team will launch an online kit this month to catalog start-up resources; the community demands it. “It took a while, but now it’s an explosion. »
There are three pieces of advice for future entrepreneurs: “Stay away from the police. Pay your taxes. Maintain a good credit score. After, sky is the limit. »
This report is supported by the Local Journalism Initiative, funded by the Government of Canada.