Solopreneurship

Turn your skills into a business people will pay for.

A six-week hybrid program that helps you turn your expertise into a business. Build your offer, identify your ideal customer, price your services, and leave with a practical 90-day action plan, alongside a community of builders who keep you moving forward.

Opportunity

Stop thinking about your business. Start building it.

You already have the skills.

Maybe you’ve been freelancing. Maybe you’ve been thinking about starting something for years. Maybe you know exactly what you want to do, but you’re not sure how to turn it into a business.

That’s the gap the Solopreneurship Program is designed to close.

Over six weeks, you’ll build the foundations of a real solo business, from defining your offer and identifying your customers to pricing your services, creating a revenue plan, and building the systems that help you grow with confidence.

You’ll leave with more than ideas. You’ll leave with a roadmap for your first 90 days, and the confidence to put it into action.

A 6-week hybrid program where you’ll walk away with:

Build an Offer People Understand

Create a Revenue Plan

Build With AI, Responsibly

Join a Community of Builders

Key details

Solopreneurship | A 6-week hybrid business-building program

Dates

October 3 – November 14, 2026

6 Weeks
Format

In-person launch weekend + virtual weekly sessions + in-person graduation showcase
Location

Toronto (Startwell)
Investment

$499 (introductory cohort pricing)
Who should attend

You’re ready to turn your skills, experience, or business idea into a sustainable solo business and you’re looking for a practical roadmap to make it happen.

Dates

October 3 – November 14, 2026

6 Weeks
Format

In-person launch weekend + virtual weekly sessions + in-person graduation showcase
Location

Toronto (Startwell)
Investment

$499 (introductory cohort pricing)
Who should attend

You’re ready to turn your skills, experience, or business idea into a sustainable solo business and you’re looking for a practical roadmap to make it happen.

Indicate your interest See requirements

What you’ll gain

Build the foundations of a business that's ready to grow

Hear directly from people who hire for these roles — what they look for, and what separates candidates who contribute from day one.

Topics & Skills & Certifications

Offer Positioning

Customer Discovery

Value Proposition

Pricing Strategies

Revenue Models
Finding Your First Customers

Marketing Fundamentals

AI for Solopreneurs

Sales Conversations

Building Repeatable Systems
Decision Making

Productivity

Confidence Through Action

Managing Uncertainty

Working Independently
Practical Business Toolkit

National Community

Continued Learning Opportunities

Hybrid learning experience

Start your business-building journey alongside your cohort. Clarify your business idea, challenge assumptions, meet experienced entrepreneurs, and leave with a clear direction for the next six weeks.

Sessions could include:

Designing Your Solo Business

From Expertise to Offer

Finding Problems Worth Solving

Customer Discovery

AI for Solopreneurs

Community Building
Six Weeks. One Business.

Each session helps you move from idea to execution.

Topics

Offer Positioning

Customer Interviews

Pricing Your Services

Marketing Your Business

Building Your Revenue System

AI Workflows

Sales Fundamentals

Business Systems

Mentor and Peer Feedback Sessions

90-Day Planning

Graduate at a Live Showcase

Your program culminates in a celebratory graduation showcase, where you’ll present your offer and portfolio to an audience of peers, mentors, VFC community members, and potential customers. It’s a real stage, in front of real people, with real opportunities on the other side.
By graduation you’ll have:

Offer Positioning Kit

Customer & Revenue Blueprint

Business Validation Report

Digital Presence Kit

Pricing Strategy

Solopreneurship Operating Blueprint

AI Code of Conduct

Reflection Journal

90-Day Action Plan
Building a business is easier when you’re not building alone.

The Solopreneurship Program connects you with ambitious Canadians who are building businesses of their own.

Ask questions. Share wins. Work through challenges. Stay accountable.

Because entrepreneurship doesn’t have to be a solo journey.

Community

Join a national community shaping the future of Canadian business

Broad, diverse, established, and wired for connection.  Read their perspectives.

Alumni now work at 150+ companies like these

Are you a fit?

This program is for you if:

You already have a business idea, skill, or service you want to turn into a business.
You’re unsure how to package, price, or sell what you do.
You want a practical roadmap instead of another course full of theory.
You’re ready to take action alongside a community of ambitious builders.
You want to use AI to work smarter and more ethically, not replace your judgment.

Ideal participant experience:

Recent graduates looking to break into sales or growth roles
Customer success or service professionals transitioning into sales
1–3 years of experience at a growing or tech-forward company, looking to upskill

Who should attend:

Want to build job-ready skills using AI, business tools, and hands-on projects rather than theory
Feel ready to move into sales or growth roles and want practical experience that proves your capability
Want to understand how fast-moving teams actually operate — how they sell, how they use AI, how they make decisions
Value learning alongside a driven peer community while developing the judgment, adaptability, and initiative employers look for

Indicate your interest More Programs

Canadians who have a skill, service, or business idea they want to turn into a sustainable solo business. You don’t need existing business experience, just a willingness to build.
The program runs six weeks, October 3 to November 14, 2026. It kicks off with a full-day, in-person launch weekend in Toronto, followed by about 4 hours of virtual sessions each week (workshops and practice labs), plus roughly 8-10 hours of independent work between sessions to apply what you’re learning to your own business. The program wraps with a full day in-person for the graduation showcase.
Not necessarily. You do need a skill, passion, or area of expertise you’d like to turn into a business, and this program will help you shape that into a real offer. If you’re still exploring a few directions, the early sessions are designed to help you clarify your focus and choose one path.
The inaugural cohort has a price of $499 that is possible thanks to our sponsors and funders.
Both. The launch weekend and graduation showcase are in-person in Toronto, with virtual sessions running weekly in between.
A complete business toolkit, including your Offer and Positioning Kit, Customer and Revenue Blueprint, AI Code of Conduct, and a 90-day action plan, plus a certificate from Venture for Canada and ongoing access to the alumni community.
AI is woven throughout as a practical tool, for research, drafting, and workflow systems, building to a dedicated focus in Week 5. You’ll also build your own AI Code of Conduct, so you leave knowing how to use these tools quickly and responsibly.
You’ll leave with a 90-day action plan and stay connected to a national community of fellow builders and VFC alumni for ongoing support, mentorship, and opportunities.
The Fellowship Academy is a heavily subsidized program. While the actual delivery price of the program is $949 CAD, all accepted participants in this inaugural Solopreneurship Edition will automatically receive a $450 CAD subsidized scholarship, bringing the final cost down to $499 CAD.

A limited number of full program and travel scholarships are available for participants residing in the Atlantic provinces, British Columbia, and Alberta. Additionally, limited travel scholarships are available for participants residing in Quebec and Saskatchewan. Please submit your application here and wait for notice regarding the decision before completing your final program enrollment.
Approximately 50 fellows per cohort.