International Women’s Day Business Spotlight: Baking Barn

From inception to execution and every step in between, starting a business is a huge undertaking for even the most determined people. Historically, women have faced greater challenges as entrepreneurs, but recent data shows that more women than ever are overcoming barriers and entering the world of entrepreneurship. According to Women Entrepreneurship Knowledge Hub (WEKH), women entrepreneurs in Canada (defined as self-employed women or women who are the majority owner of a small-to-medium enterprise) have grown by 315% since 1976, making up nearly 17% of SME owners in 2020, and just over 37% of self-employed Canadians.

More and more women are deciding to start a business of their own and are seeing incredible success. In honour of International Women’s Day (#IWD) 2023, we want to shine a spotlight on an amazing women entrepreneur in our community who is a proud business member at 1^st Choice Savings.

Carol Lamb, Founder of Baking Barn, offers handcrafted vanilla products. She says that starting her business came with its own set of challenges, with one of the main hurdles being securing the funds needed to start her business: “No one wants to lend money to something that is not proven,” says Lamb.

Fortunately, after investing some of her own capital to get Baking Barn off the ground, she found 1^st Choice Savings. As a new business owner, Carol says that there were several reasons why she chose to trust 1^st Choice with her business banking: “They invest in the community for things like kids’ little league teams, and focus on supporting other groups that add to our community”. Despite starting up her business in the midst of a global pandemic, Carol has seen major success in Baking Barn thanks to the support she received from 1^st Choice.

Since 2021, Carol has significantly expanded her business in a short amount of time, and her exceptional handcrafted vanilla products can now be found in over 90 retail stores across southern Alberta. Her results and success speak volumes about the dedication and confidence Carol has for her small business.

Carol Lamb demonstrates women’s ability to succeed not only in their business ventures but also economically, culturally, politically, and socially. March 8^th marks #IWD each year and is the perfect opportunity to praise the women in your life and their achievements. These achievements deserve to be recognized and celebrated, and International Women’s Day is the perfect opportunity to do so.

1^st Choice Savings recognizes we still have work to do to achieve gender parity in Canada, and #IWD is a good time to reflect and raise awareness that there is still work yet to be done. Members like Carol Lamb make us proud to play a small part in this journey.