YSpace Northern Entrepreneurship Hub
Entrepreneurship in East Gwillimbury
YSpace Northern York Region Entrepreneurship Hub offers mentorship, peer networks, and coworking space to support new and existing businesses. With on-demand support and tailored programming in East Gwillimbury and Georgina, both in-person and online, the hub fosters business growth and personal development, adapting to meet the unique needs of each community.
Schedule an Idea Consultation (in-person or virtual) with our entrepreneurship team to get started.
Business Foundations
Full Schedule
- How to Validate a Business Idea | Tues., June 24, from 6 to 8 p.m. | Virtual
- A Practical Approach to a Business Plan | Tues., July 8 from 6 to 8 p.m. | Virtual
- Organizing Your Business from the Inside Out | Tues., July 15 from 6 to 8 p.m. | Virtual
- Identifying Target Audiences | Tues., July 22, from 6 to 8 p.m. | Virtual
- Mastering AI Automation | Tues., July 29, from 6 to 8 p.m. | Virtual
- Building Client Relationships that Last | Tues., August 12, from 6 to 8 p.m. | Virtual
- Converting Leads into Paying Customers | Tues., August 19 from 6 to 8 p.m. | Virtual
- Turn Financial Data into Action | Tues., August 26 from 6 to 8 p.m. | Virtual
- Peer-to-Peer: Fueling What's Next | Thurs., August 28 from 9 to 10:30 a.m. | In-Person
Upcoming Events
Crafting Relevant Messages to Target Audience
Is your message getting lost in the noise? Join Agnes Lan from Change Connect in this seminar to help craft audience-focused communication by leveraging your completed Business Model Canvas to clarify value propositions, define audience segments, and align messaging with brand identity. Through interactive workshops and real-world tools, you'll gain practical strategies to engage the right audience, drive action, and refine your message for lasting impact.
Prerequisite: Participants must complete a Business Model Canvas prior to the seminar.
Date: Tuesday, June 17, 2025 | Time: 9 to 11 a.m.
Location: Town of East Gwillimbury Civic Centre (Holland Landing Room) at 19000 Leslie Street in Sharon
TechConnex Peer-to-Peer
Join TechConnex, local entrepreneurs, and business owners in person for monthly peer-to-peer networking sessions. Each month, we’ll introduce a new topic or facilitator tailored to the group’s needs. These sessions provide a space for business leaders and entrepreneurs to exchange insights, share experiences, and gain valuable knowledge to help grow your business.
Date: Thursday, June 26, 2025 | Time: 9 to 10:30 a.m.
Location: Judah Doane House (2nd Floor Boardroom) at 19040 Leslie Street in Sharon
Coworking Pilot in East Gwillimbury
Date: Thursday, June 26, 2025, Thursday, August 28, 2025, September 23, 2025 and Thursday, October 30, 2025
Time: 12 to 4 p.m.
Location: Judah Doane House (2nd Floor Boardroom) at 19040 Leslie Street in Sharon
Ignite and Connect: Fueling What's Next
Join TechConnex and local entrepreneurs for an in-person peer group session designed to bring together participants from the Business Foundations workshop series. This is a chance to connect face-to-face with the cohort, celebrate your progress, reflect on your entrepreneurial journey, and strategize your next steps in a supportive, collaborative environment. Let’s build momentum - together.
Date: Thursday, August 28, 2025 | Time: 9 to 10:30 a.m.
Location: Queensville Park at 1590 Queensville Sideroad, East Gwillimbury, ON L0G 1R0
Available Programs
Idea Consultations are your entry-point into the YSpace program. This one-on-one consultation connects you with the YSpace entrepreneurship team who will learn about your aspirations and how our programs can support your business growth or bring your ideas to life.
Join TechConnex, local entrepreneurs, and business owners in-person for a monthly peer-to-peer session. Peer-to-peer is where fast-growth business leaders and entrepreneurs can come together to exchange information that will help expand your businesses.
The Entrepreneurs in Residence (EIR) program offers an 8-session, one-on-one mentorship experience. Our industry-leading mentors will work closely with you, providing guidance to accelerate your business growth.
Frequently Asked Questions
| What is YSpace Northern York Region? |
| YSpace is York University’s pan-university entrepreneurship and innovation hub supporting startups and entrepreneurs from a variety of sectors and communities. YSpace programming spans scaling innovative technologies through customer and investor capital to scaling agri-food businesses into mass retail to diversity-focused initiatives like ELLA for women-led businesses and Black Entrepreneurship Alliance (BEA) for Black-led businesses.
YSpace Northern York Region in an entrepreneurship hub in East Gwillimbury and Georgina. YSpace offers an ecosystem of entrepreneurial resources, including mentorship, peer-to-peer networks, and co-working space. It fosters new business opportunities as well as personal and professional development for new and existing entrepreneurs. A combination of on-demand business support and programming is available in East Gwillimbury and Georgina, both in-person and virtually at no cost to your business. |
| Who is eligible to join YSpace Northern York Region? |
| YSpace Northern York Region is open to entrepreneurs 18+ who reside in northern York Region, primarily in East Gwillimbury, Georgina, and the Chippewas of Georgina Island First Nations. |
| Is there a cost to access mentorship or enroll in a program? |
| No, there is no cost to join a YSpace Northern York Region workshop, networking group, or to use the coworking space in Georgina. YSpace Northern York Region is made possible through a partnership and funding between the Town of East Gwillimbury, the Town of Georgina, and York University's YSpace, with additional funding from the Rural Economic Development (RED) program from the Ministry of Agriculture, Food, and Rural Affairs (OMAFRA). As a result of this funding and collaboration, the program is available to businesses at no cost. You can find more details in the full press release. |
| How do I enroll into YSpace Northern York Region? |
| Enrolling in the program starts with an Idea Consultation. During this session, you'll receive one-on-one consultation services connecting you with YSpace's entrepreneurship team. Together, you'll explore how the program and its resources can support the realization of your idea.
Idea Consultations provide:
To schedule your Idea Consultation and embark on your entrepreneurial journey, book a meeting with the entrepreneurship coordinator here. |
| Is there working space available for entrepreneurs? |
| Yes, there is a physical entrepreneurship hub in Georgina (YSpace Georgina) which is open to entrepreneurs from East Gwillimbury and Georgina. YSpace Georgina is located at 1 Market Street, Georgina, ON L0E 1R0. You can find more details about YSpace Georgina on their website.
Study Rooms are available as working space at the East Gwillimbury Public Library. Private study rooms are in the Mount Albert and Holland Landing library branches and are free to use if you are a library card holder. You can find more details about the East Gwillimbury public library and study rooms on their website. |
| How do I become a program mentor or workshop facilitator? |
| YSpace Northern York Region has an ongoing intake process for individuals interested in mentorship or facilitator roles. The specific responsibilities and time commitments can vary depending on the program and the needs of the businesses involved.
If you're interested in becoming involved, please fill out an application form. This will help us understand your background and match you with the appropriate program. Once you've completed the application, a YSpace representative will reach out to schedule an introductory call. |
| Where can I find more information on YSpace? |
| YSpace is York University’s pan-university entrepreneurship and innovation hub supporting startups and entrepreneurs from a variety of sectors and communities. Our programming spans scaling innovative technologies through customer and investor capital to scaling agri-food businesses into mass retail to diversity-focused initiatives like ELLA for women-led businesses and Black Entrepreneurship Alliance (BEA) for Black-led businesses. You can find more details about YSpace on their website. |
Meet with EG's Economic Development team to learn how YSpace can help your business.