Welcome to the spring edition of the 2013 Black Press Women in Business publication.
Spring is an opportunity for growth and a fresh new outlook, a notion we’ve embraced for this award-winning special section.
Inside, find the favourite features you’ve come to look for in each issue, like this season’s fashion preview with Mayfair Fashion Stylist Bonnie Pollard and our always wonderful Milestone women, representing remarkable women throughout the decades.
But this year you’ll find a few new elements as well, for both this special supplement to your Black Press community newspaper and at today’s gala event at the Oak Bay Beach Hotel.
Thanks to support from premier sponsor Thrifty Foods, and event sponsors Island Savings, Level Ground Trading, Aveda Institute and Purdy’s Chocolates, Black Press will welcome guests to today’s gala, and tell their stories on these pages.
“We are thrilled to bring readers a great variety of informative stories about the issues that matter to them, and the local women making a difference in their community,” says Black Press Group Publisher Penny Sakamoto.
An innovative feature for the gala – “5 for 5” – welcomes five prominent local women in business in a moderator-led panel discussion. Learn more about these high-profile local women in business and the media on page 26.
As the Women in Business feature charity, the David Foster Foundation shares its story with readers on page 5. This home-grown organization marked its 25th anniversary last fall and over the years has grown far beyond Victoria’s borders, helping families whose children are undergoing life-saving organ transplants across Canada. In the United States, the organization actively raises awareness about the need for organ donation.
On page 7, learn how the Community Micro Lending Society and local small business people are encouraging economic growth and fostering a greater sense of community.
Paired with Pollard’s fashion focus, the Aveda Institute’s Roxana Da Costa offers a look at the season’s key makeup trends, while on page 9, dining etiquette expert Terry Cockerline explores some of the most common challenges people experience when dining out with business colleagues.
We also take this opportunity to look ahead to this fall’s annual Black Press Women in Business Awards. With categories of Rising Star, Above and Beyond, Eco-Entrepreneur and Business Owner of the Year, it’s time to start thinking about the women making a difference in business and their community.