EVENT: Asian-owned e-commerce business leaders in Greater Vancouver

Join Cold Tea Collective and Asian Canadian e-commerce leaders in Vancouver for an informal happy hour and networking at ECOMsquare on October 24th. 

If you are a product-driven Asian-owned/led e-commerce business leaders in the Greater Vancouver Area (products do not need to be Asian-related) selling in Canada and/or the U.S. or  interested and invested in strengthening the Asian business community in Vancouver, this event is for you! 

You will connect with fellow entrepreneurs and business leaders whose cultural heritage and values inspire and inform how they lead and grow their businesses. 

Why are we doing this?

When you think of your favourite Vancouver-based e-commerce brands, who comes to mind? How many of them are led or owned by Asian Canadians?

A Statistics Canada report from 2021 shares that over half of Metro Vancouver’s population identifies as a visible minority and that 46.5% of that group identify as Asian.

While there is yet to be research that provides a breakdown of the region’s entrepreneurs that identify as part of the Asian diaspora, it is hard to ignore the erasure or omission of Asian Canadian business stories in mainstream media and its downstream effects on understanding what entrepreneurship is and introducing that as a viable career path for Asian youth or folks looking for a career pivot more aligned with their values and goals.

Having seen the success of widely-celebrated Asian-owned brands in our neighbouring U.S., there is an opportunity to grow this space in Canada by leaning into our cultural heritage.

Intended outcomes for this event:

• See and celebrate Asian e-commerce business leaders in Vancouver.
• Connect to identify and understand the challenges, opportunities and gaps there are when it comes to leaning into our identities as Asian-led businesses.
• Start to explore solutions for amplifying and elevating Asian-owned brands in Vancouver by leaning into our heritage and speaking directly to Asian Canadian audiences.
• To understand how Cold Tea Collective can use its storytelling and media capabilities to support Asian-owned ecommerce businesses grow.
• Have follow up conversations to determine what kind of programming participants would find valuable for 2024 (eg: panels, workshops, etc).

Special thanks

Thank you to our venue sponsor ECOMsquare for generously opening their space to us.

ECOMsquare is a co-working facility and collaborative community of 2,000+ e-commerce creators, operators, and owners who are dedicated to growing the ecommerce industry in British Columbia. Their focus is on sharing knowledge, building community, and establishing lasting relationships to help entrepreneurs build successful, profitable, and sustainable ecommerce businesses. Learn more at ecomsquare.co.

Also, thank you to our community marketing partners, Asian Founded, powering Asian and Pacific Islander excellence in business and  beyond and Asian Hustle Network, a powerful global network for Asian entrepreneurs and creatives.

Who is Cold Tea Collective?

Cold Tea Collective is a digital media publication sharing stories for and by the next generation of the Asian diaspora in North America. Our approach to storytelling is to focus on human-centered stories that foster empathy, understanding and empowerment of folks who identify as Asian. Read our latest stories at coldteacollective.com

We are also a creative partner for brands to connect directly to Asian audiences in North America through our editorial, video and podcast content in addition to our extended network and offering of community events and unique experiences. Some of our clients include U.S. Bank, Dove, American Express, Boeing, Penguin Random House and more.

See some of our previous stories and projects related to celebrating Asian-owned businesses below.

• Uncovering inspiration from Asian Canadian entrepreneurs at Vancouver Startup Week 2023
• ‘Paths to Prosperity’ campaign with U.S. Bank
• ‘Making It’ docu-series celebrating young Asian Canadians, featured on TELUS STORYHIVE
• Introducing The Entrepreneur Series by Cold Tea Collective
• The Entrepreneur Series: Event Recap

For more information on how Cold Tea Collective works with businesses to celebrate, amplify and elevate their brands, contact us at info[at]coldteacollective[dot]com.