Charlottetown entrepreneur awarded $10,000 small business grant

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CHARLOTTETOWN, P.E.I. — Camren Chamberlain can nonetheless vividly remember the moment he received the information.

The Charlottetown man, who is the operator of The House Fairy Cleaning Expert services, had just concluded his day’s cleansing function when he seen an electronic mail.

It mentioned he won a $10,000 award for younger business owners as element of the third once-a-year Rock My Enterprise Begin-Up Awards.

“It was pretty mad, did not really sink in appropriate away because not only is it, ‘Okay, I received in this competitiveness,’ there was a $10,000 grant connected to it, which is a substantial factor for a person with a little business enterprise,” Chamberlain informed SaltWire in an interview Oct. 5. 

“That’s a significant amount of money that can really make or split the growth prepare that I have set out.”

Chamberlain was a single of 8 recipients from across the place to acquire the grant which supports startup organizations. The annual opposition is offered by Futurpreneur and RBC.

“It is quite competitive. We had about 200 purposes for this year’s award. And to have Camren as just one of our recipients is great,” reported Janis Nixon, who is vice president of programs and partnerships at Futurpreneur.

How it started out

Chamberlain’s journey into the cleaning sector began in the summer months of 2021 when he was functioning at a campground.

Through that time, he was supporting his manager, who experienced gotten injured and needed enable with cleaning responsibilities, which sparked the concept for his cleaning corporation. He initially labored as a cleaner portion-time during the winter and ongoing undertaking so until the subsequent summertime.

“By the conclusion of that summer, I recognized that there would be possible with the cleaning field. And so, I resolved to give that a shot.

“I started off doing work whole-time at The Household Fairy in the tumble of previous year,” he stated. “Since then, the organization has grown rather noticeably.”

The startup has gone from Chamberlain working alone to owning a crew of seven associates. The firm now offers household, professional, and AirBnB cleaning services, mostly in Queens County.

LGBTQ illustration

Chamberlain, who is transgender, said he is proud to have a amount of LGBTQ folks on his staff.

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“Getting (LGBTQ) people today on our group … it gives an inclusive ambiance for not just our personnel, but for our purchasers. And then just remaining out in the workforce – it brings awareness.” – Camren Chamberlain

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“Having (LGBTQ) men and women on our team … it gives an inclusive environment for not just our staff, but for our consumers. And then just being out in the workforce, it’s, it provides recognition,” he mentioned.

“When I have shoppers that might not be properly-versed with or have substantially exposure to the LGBTQ group, if I’m able to openly communicate about, ‘OK, these are my pronouns, and also my personnel that might be cleansing for you, these are their pronouns,’ it just form of starts off the dialogue.”

Chamberlain said he was “pleasantly amazed” when he initially began his enterprise and visited clients’ residences to provide cleaning products and services, and numerous of them asked him about his pronouns.

“That was essential for me to see, Ok, I can be open up, and I can be who I am and be myself, and be in a position to form of pave the way for other business owners to be out and open, as illustration for the neighborhood.”

Likely just after options

Before this 12 months, Chamberlain required to understand far more about how to properly run a small business, primary him to Futurpreneur’s Rock My Small business collection.

Nixon explained the absolutely free instruction workshops provide all the critical company fundamentals, these as making a business program and taking care of hard cash flow. 

“It actually allows establish self confidence and preparedness for people who are looking to go after entrepreneurship as a pathway,” she reported.

Right after completing the sequence, Chamberlain achieved the eligibility criteria to participate in the Rock My Small business Start off-Up Awards. He submitted his software for the level of competition this summer time.

The Charlottetown entrepreneur explained whilst he plans to make great use of the grant, he doesn’t intend to commit it all correct absent.

“The grant to me offers me the skill to go following any opportunities that might arrive up in the upcoming pair of yrs. So acquiring an excess 10,000 in my small business savings, it’ll allow me so there is certainly different strategies to mature businesses, such as buying another business enterprise or working with the funds for advertising of the small business, he mentioned.

“I’m heading to wait and see, and now I have these reserves for every time these alternatives arrive my way.

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Thinh Nguyen is a organization reporter with SaltWire in Prince Edward Island. He can be reached by e mail at [email protected] and followed on X @thinhnguyen4291.