From My POV

Paralympic bronze medalist - Marissa Papaconstantinou has overcome many obstacles in her life thus far. Being born without a right foot, she’s had to learn things differently. Growing up playing all kinds of sports, Marissa never envisioned herself as a professional athlete, not knowing that going pro was even an option for her. Falling in love with track and field, Marissa has made her way all over the world competing in various c...

Got that entrepreneurial itch? From residential cleaning to finding love in yoga, Founder of athletic apparel brand ‘AZUR Fit’ -  Erin Ward-Williams has the entrepreneurial eye to make a business success no matter what it may be. Originally starting AZUR with her older sister, their first product was actually tank tops - inspired by the fit fashion influencers in Los Angeles. Now, selling full sweat suits, yoga sets & more… AZU...

Do you live a balanced lifestyle? Barry’s bootcamp instructor - Karina V, has had several monumental moments that have changed her life. From taking an interest in yoga, to travelling to Bali and ultimately ending up at Barry’s in Toronto, she’s reflected on the opportunities she has been given in the fitness industry. Teaching herself how to train with weights through a men’s fitness magazine, Karina has come a long way on her fit...

Do you believe music lives on forever? Stefan Calabrese, who goes by the stage name JET SET FOREVR - actually found his love for music as a Producer in high school making beats for a classmate. It wasn’t until a few years back that he stepped out of his comfort zone, found his own voice and decided to pursue music on his own terms. Being a singer is 1 thing, but being a songwriter is another. Luckily for Stefan he’s always loved wr...

What is YOUR true passion? For Shea-Lynne Noyes, basketball was always that. Growing up playing the game but ultimately thinking that going to school for Architecture would help her find a successful career - Shea realized that being an architect wasn’t really her true calling. A degree and a pandemic later, Shea decided to find out HOW she would ultimately find that dream job of working in basketball to some capacity. With that, s...

Got hops? Professional basketball player Phil Jalalpoor knew he wanted to do something in his life with basketball by the age of 5 years old. After watching Space Jam over and over on his television, looking up to Michael Jordan and asking his Mom for a hoop outside to practice - Phil was set on making his dream a reality. Growing up in Germany and travelling across Europe and North America to play - he ended his last season in Ger...

Roses or Tulips? Founder and Creator of Ivory Cole Designs - Nicole Haslam started her business on a whim. After being laid off during the COVID-19 pandemic and bored as ever, she decided to buckle up, do some research and find a hobby that interested her. Little did she know that her “hobby” was going to be her passion and livelihood for years to come. For Nicole, she just wants to make people happy. Working with resin and putting...

Ever thought of a brand idea, using your last name? Growing up in Windsor ON, to moving to Downtown Toronto for school - Jenna Labiak didn’t think she would end up where she is now. As everyone knows, being a university or college student is no joke. With little money to spend, Jenna wound up in Sephora one day looking at their hair products, specifically scrunchies. Upon looking at the prices, she knew she could make these, better...

How important is a connection? Dental Hygienist turned Entrepreneur - Brooke Huston has always dreamed of launching a swimwear line. Working as not only a hygienist, but also as an influencer for many swimwear brands - Brooke thought, “why can’t I do this? why can’t I be the person behind it and create this?” So with that, she alongside her business partner Kat Landry, launched '6 Degrees Swim' - based off of the 6 degree...

Do you wish you were born in a different generation? My baby sister, Juliana came onto the pod this week to discuss her experience growing up in the 2000’s, what she loves about her generation and what she wished she could change. Growing up in the age of social media, Jules thinks the importance of having a good support system, and treating people how you want to be treated is what will help get anyone through those tough high-sch...

Do YOU have a niche? As a content creator, finding a niche can be extremely difficult… or, it can happen by total accident! For Tik Tok Creator Tyson Smith, being creative was easy the part… finding out what kind of content Tik Tok consumers liked best, was the struggle. After *lots* of trial and error, it was his goofy humour and silly persona that really shined through. Uploading a video interrogating a sock (yes, you read that r...

Ever wondered what it’s like to be an actor? As some people may not know, the film industry is an interesting place. From auditioning, to booking roles… parts can be few and far between. Joelle Farrow - an actress from Toronto, has experienced the highs and lows of the film industry from being accepted by her acting agent at 14 years old, to having her scene cut in a major tv series. But, despite the struggles that come along with ...

‘Home is ____ ?’ Whether you were born and raised in Toronto or moved to the city at one point or another - odds are, you’ve heard of Toronto’s apparel brand Peace Collective. Their mission - to give back to their community. From CAMH, to food banks, to refugee aid, Peace Collective looks to make a difference, one piece of clothing at a time. Head of Operations - Lisa Diep, came onto the podcast this week to give us the BTS of the ...

Do you bet on yourself? Offensive Lineman for the Seattle Seahawks - Dakoda Shepley, didn’t start his athletic career playing football, he actually started out playing hockey - as Canadian as it gets! He even went to a training camp at Michigan State and told the football coach he wanted to play “defence” because he “thought defence defended the quarterback”… After starting to play in high school, he was then recruited to UBC where...

What has changed YOUR life? Jason Pagaduan, aka ‘905 Shooter’ to fans of the ‘NELK Boys’ - found himself working for some of YouTube’s powerhouse pranksters in the early stages of his career.  But, after leaving California and returning back to his hometown of Mississauga, Ontario - he quickly realized that his love for photography and videography was something he wanted to pursue on his own full-time. After dealing with a quick ri...

Feeling uninspired by beauty products these days? Professional Makeup Artist - Samantha Marchione has always loved makeup. From doing dance as a kid and putting her own makeup on before recitals, she loves feeling beautiful. From there she took her passion for makeup and turned it into a career. However working for big beauty brands, Samantha was left feeling uninspired and bored by the makeup industry and its products. With that, ...

Anxious AF?? CEO and Founder of 'Going Mental' - Paige Lyrette has always struggled with mental health.  However, it wasn’t until her Mom noticed a change in her mindset - that Paige started seeking therapy for her mental illness. Now for some reason, therapy is still a very taboo subject amongst people, with many admitting that they don’t like to talk about their mental health. Taking this into consideration and also cha...

Ever wanted to take a brand YOU created… full-time? Toronto born and raised, Stefanie Furgiuele - Founder of Original Genes TO, knew she loved 2 things: fashion and painting. After working for a fashion agency in Toronto, she also knew that working for a big box company - wasn’t for her. So with that, she took her love for painting and mixed it with clothing, starting her brand - ‘Original Genes TO’, painting designs onto jean jack...

Out for a brew are ya bud? Jordan and Josh Goure - also known as the Brew Brothers in Windsor, Ontario tell me all about how they knew they wanted to open a micro-brewery just outside their hometown. From working in the bar and service industry as bartenders, bar-backs, etc. they both knew they didn’t want to work for just anyone, they wanted to work for themselves. Thus, ‘Brew’ was born. With a signature ‘Maple’ Beer, and hosting ...