Mastercard recently launched a new “Secret Sauce” small business campaign. To elevate the visibility of women small business owners in the culinary space, it will help equip them with the support, funding and resources they need to grow their businesses. The initiative will kick off with a national ad campaign. They will highlight three women who have overcome unique challenges to maintain and grow their businesses.
The campaign includes a funding program in partnership with Pier Five. It also promotes the use of a Google Maps feature that allows people to identify, shop and support women-owned small businesses.
The Mastercard “Secret Sauce” campaign builds off the organization’s pledge. Announced in 2020, $250 million USD is destined for financial, technology, product and insight assets over five years to small businesses across the globe, including Canada. The funds will support the financial security and vitality of businesses and their workers, as well as their online expansion.
Small businesses in Canada
“In Canada, small businesses serve as the foundation of our economy and are the pillars of communities. But many Canadian women who start their own business make less than their male counterparts” said Nishant Raina, Small Business Lead, Mastercard in Canada. “Women-owned small businesses need access to support and resources that will empower them to thrive. The Mastercard “Secret Sauce” campaign does just that. It gives women-owned small businesses a platform to connect with customers. And creates a powerful community of peers and mentors to learn from and inspire the next generation of entrepreneurs.”
From cash flow to operational efficiency, small businesses are often overstretched for resources. This issue is that 80 percent of food service businesses have taken on new debt over the last two years. Women-owned small businesses in Canada are taking nearly two times as long to recover.
“Being a catalyst for the small businesses community means supporting all small businesses. Especially groups facing a greater set of challenges,” said Raina. “The power of connection is at the core of what can drive change and make small businesses successful. By building a community of entrepreneurs and showcasing their stories, we’re helping create a wealth of knowledge and experiences. Owners can analyze, apply key learnings, and ultimately prosper from it.”
Pier Five x Mastercard Small Business Fund
Mastercard is partnering with Pier Five, a platform that uncovers creative entrepreneurs and helps tell their stories. Pier Five highlights, funds and supports women-owned small businesses in Canada. To help further develop their businesses, Mastercard will provide five women-owned small businesses with $10,000 CAD in funding. From October 11 until the end of the month, Canadian women small business owners across all sectors can apply at Pier-Five.com/SmallBusinessFund.
All five business owners will also be invited to a Priceless Experience for a once-in-a-lifetime community-building event. They will connect and learn from their peers and Mastercard Executives to further develop their businesses.
Shop and support women-owned small businesses
To help communities shop and support locally, Mastercard is encouraging women-owned small businesses to register on Google Maps as “Women-Led”. The tag enables consumers to easily search, discover and shop at women-owned businesses in their community.
Mastercard support for small businesses
Mastercard has a proud history of supporting small businesses in Canada, providing tools, insights and resources to support this critical part of the Canadian economy. Some of these efforts include:
- Easy access to capital and cash flow management tools to ensure small businesses have the funds they need to operate with efficiency
- Free cybersecurity tools to help Canadian small businesses protect their environments from financial and digital threats
- Access to vital tools and resources through partnerships with Digital Main Street, Salesforce, Startup Canada, Canadian Federation of Independent Business (CFIB) and others.
By empowering small businesses with access to capital, digital payment solutions, data insights, cybersecurity solutions and the tools to run their enterprises more efficiently and securely, Mastercard is committed to helping entrepreneurs in Canada. These solutions are readily available and easily deployable to quickly address the pain points and immediate needs of small businesses.
Through Mastercard.ca/SupportSmallBusiness, visitors can learn more about these efforts, as well as where to shop and support women-owned small businesses.
About Mastercard
Mastercard is a global technology company in the payments industry. Our mission is to connect and power an inclusive, digital economy that benefits everyone, everywhere. To make transactions safe, simple, smart and accessible. Using secure data and networks, partnerships and passion, our innovations and solutions help individuals, financial institutions, governments and businesses realize their greatest potential. Our decency quotient, or DQ, drives our culture and everything we do inside and outside of our company. With connections across more than 210 countries and territories, we are building a sustainable world that unlocks priceless possibilities for all.
Interested in entrepreneur stories in the culinary field? Read about the young entrepreneurs who launched their baking business despite the hardships of the pandemic here!
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