As an international student, have you thought about starting your own business in Canada? If you have an interest and can devote your full passion to it, you can transform it into a product or service. Entrepreneurship might not be as hard as you thought. This blog will give you 3 tips about how international students start a business in Canada.
Find like-minded business partners who can leverage your weakness
Why is it recommended to have a business partner?
First, you only have 24 hours per day to finish certain tasks. If you are doing everything on your own, you might burn out quickly. On the other hand, everyone’s having their unique strength and weakness. Therefore, why not find someone who can leverage your weakness to work more effectively as a team? For example, as an engineering student, you might not be familiar with Finance and it would be a barrier for you to write a sound financial forecasting statement. In this case, it would be super beneficial to find a partner who is like-minded and has a solid background in Finance to be your asset.
Ask yourself what you want from the partner?
For international students in BC, you will have to be 19 years old and above to register for the bank account and phone plan. In this way, you might find some difficulties in opening a company bank account or registering for a company phone number. In this case, you would want your partner who is in the legal age who can sign the document without having a guardian.
Don’t be afraid to ask for help
“You will miss 100% of the shots you don’t take”, this is a famous quote from the Canadian hockey player Wayne Gretzky. In the world of entrepreneurship, you would definitely need to speak up for yourself and reach out for help. However, if you ever concern about the privacy of your patent and therefore find it difficult to exchange ideas with peers, your professors could be your go-to place. Here are the three reasons why.
Professors can give you non-judgemental critique
There is usually no conflict of interest between the professor and you. Hence, he/she can provide you with an unbiased critique of your product and service. Also, your professor could have done extensive research in this field, they could share you with their perspective of the industrial trend.
Professors can connect you with more talents
As an international student, you might not have that many local connections. However, your professor could have possibly been living here for 10+ years and have an extensive network. He/She can connect with his/her network. Also, if you do need some volunteers to help you with minor works, your professor could also kindly help you to deliver a public service announcement to his classes.
Business professors could give you insights on writing business proposals
Being an entrepreneur, you will be writing and presenting tons of business proposals to investors. Before you are pitching for an investment, you could reach out to your business writing professor for the formal business writing critiques, you could reach out to your finance professor for critiques on the finance forecasting statement, you could reach out to your business law professor for legal advice.
To register for a Business, visit Business Registration Online for the detailed checklist.
Know the local landscape
Entrepreneurship should be well-planned. Before you start building your business, make sure you have a full understanding of the local landscape, as doing full research on your competitors and target customers.
Know your competitor
If there are already giants in the market, you need to think about your uniqueness and then find a niche, otherwise, it is hard to stand out in the market and will be burned out quickly.
Define customer
Due to cultural recognition, international entrepreneurs have competitive advantages in targeting customers from their home countries. In this way, telling a good story could help you to build brand recognition through emotional attachment. For example, when people can relate your story to their personal experiences, they are more likely to support your business by following you on social media or making a purchase.
If you are currently a full-time student at a Canadian post-secondary institution, you can apply for the Co-op program for your entrepreneurship. Start your career while you are in school! Visit: Hospitality Management with Co-op