Whether you're from Quebec or moved here from elsewhere, you'd know its reputation as a great place to start a business. Some of the world's most well-known companies started here — many of them as side hustles — and this culture continues to inspire young entrepreneurs across the province.
Futurpreneur is Canada's only national non-profit dedicated to empowering entrepreneurs ages 18-39, and according to them, aspiring business owners in Quebec are having a harder time leaving their nine-to-fives to pursue their businesses. Given the current economic climate, this makes total sense. But there is a way to start your business without quitting your day job: Grow it as a side hustle.
It might sound daunting, but there's more support available than you might think. Futurpreneur's Side Hustle Program offers aspiring entrepreneurs access to mentorship, resources and financial support through collateral-free loans so they don't have to wait to make their dreams a reality.
For inspiration, here are six young entrepreneurs from across Quebec who've turned their passions into side hustles with the help of Futurpreneur.
Fenceless Travel — Samuel Plante | Quebec City, Quebec
Samuel Plante. Right: Camille Boucher in Sri Lanka.
@samp_flower | Instagram, @fencelesstravel | Instagram
Your side hustle doesn't have to keep you in one place. Just take Samuel Plante, founder of Fenceless Travel, who has transformed his passion for adventure into an online community and resource to help fellow Canadian and Quebecois backpackers hit the road.
"In the Side Hustle program, I gained invaluable insights into effective community building and user engagement," Sam told MTL Blog. "One key takeaway was the importance of fostering a sense of belonging within a community."
Sam's goal is to have Fenceless Travel bring in additional income alongside his nine-to-five so he can continue to travel. For would-be side hustlers, Sam's advice is to find what you love and go for it.
"Ensure that your side hustle aligns with your passions and interests. Building a business requires dedication, and having a genuine enthusiasm for what you're doing can be a powerful motivator."
Kisina Deco — Prima Mabonzo | Montreal, Quebec
Prima Mabonzo (right) was inspired to brighten Canadian homes.
Courtesy of Kisina Deco, @kisinadeco | Instagram
Originally from the Republic of the Congo, Prima Mabonzo created her business, Kisina Deco, to bring the vibrancy of African style into Canadian homes.
"I wanted to bring the warmth and colours of Africa into my new world where the settings often seemed grey to me," Prima told MTL Blog. "I also wanted to share African beauty and culture with the rest of the world."
However, Prima had trouble getting funding from organizations that didn't understand her desire to turn her love of Senegalese handcrafting into a side hustle while keeping her nine-to-five IT job. The Futurpreneur Side Hustle Program was different. It provided Prima with a collateral-free loan to get started and a mentor to help her along the way.
"To me, a side hustle is a good way 'to take risk intelligently,'" she said, quoting LinkedIn co-founder Reid Hoffman. She added that she thinks more entrepreneurs should consider starting with a side hustle.
"I strongly recommend the Side Hustle program to all the full-time workers who would like to start their business in parallel. The program fits the reality of the new generation of entrepreneurs and the support provided makes all the difference."
Les Piments de Nic — Nicolas Coulombe-Côté | L'Islet, Quebec
Nicolas Coulombe-Côté. Right: Les Piments de Nic sauces and spice rubs.
@lespimentsdenic | Instagram, @lespimentsdenic | Instagram
Spicy-food fan Nicolas Coulombe-Côté has to thank an abundant crop of chillies he happened upon three years ago for inspiring him to create his company, Les Piments de Nic.
"We had to find a creative way to use up the extra hot peppers we had," Nic told MTL Blog. Since then, he has launched a whole range of mouthwatering (and eye-watering) hot sauces, BBQ sauces, rubs and spicy peanuts using Quebec-grown hot chilli peppers.
For Nic, Futurpreneur's Side Hustle Program was key in getting his business up and running. The financial support helped him buy the equipment he needed to scale up production, and the mentorship and resources showed him possibilities that he had yet to consider.
"Initially, I didn't even think of having production equipment like I have now, let alone having my products in points of sale all over Quebec," he said. "It’s quite encouraging when I look at how far I’ve come in such a short time."
CréaSouvenirs Inc. — Marie-Claude Chartier & Michelle Lemay | Boisbriand, Quebec
The CréaSouvenirs team show off their games. Right: "Nous" is a game designed to bring couples closer together.
Like many people, Michelle Lemay faced career uncertainty during the COVID-19 pandemic. As a professional party host, she suddenly had nothing to do. Michelle's passion for helping people connect and have fun inspired her to start CréaSouvenirs with her business partner, Marie-Claude Chartier. Together, they launched the games Edition Couple and Nous.
"We aim to assist couples in nurturing their love life to maintain the flame of their early days together," the pair explained to MTL Blog. Edition Couple includes 90 activities to enjoy with your partner, while Nous offers 50 questions to inspire magical conversations and bring you closer together.
While their goal is to have at least one person work full-time for CréaSouvenirs, Michelle and Marie-Claude are grateful to have started as a side hustle with Futurpreneur. The collateral-free loan helped them bring their games to life, and their mentor helped them better align with their target audience, polish their website and market their games.
"Without the support of the program, we would not have been able to launch our product as quickly," Michelle and Marie-Claude told MTL Blog.
Éditions Lux&Nox — Maïlys Pailhous | Montreal, Quebec
Maïlys Pailhous started her side hustle, Éditions Lux&Nox, to help publish local authors.
Courtesy of Maïlys Pailhous
Author, editor and lover of fantasy and science fiction, Maïlys Pailhous created a boutique publishing house for Quebecois and Canadian authors called Éditions Lux&Nox. "I want to help people discover books that match their tastes — books they'll love," she told MTL Blog.
Fueled by Maïlys' passion for storytelling, Éditions Lux&Nox was already well underway when she came across the Futurpreneur Side Hustle Program. Nevertheless, she found their support to be a game changer.
"They helped me build my business plan, which allowed me to better understand my path forward," she explained. "When I started my business, I did it out of passion and the monetary side was secondary to me. However, it is essential and Futurpreneur helped me achieve it."
While she works towards making her publishing house her full-time job, Maïlys has been able to grow Éditions Lux&Nox with the help of the Futurpreneur Side Hustle Program, and she has helped authors across the country get published.
Whether you want to create the next big thing in hot sauce, help fellow creatives see their work published, enrich relationships, turn your passion for travel into income or something else entirely, launching your big idea as a side hustle is an exciting way to bring it to life sooner.
Futurpreneur's Side Hustle Program gives you all the help you need, from access to mentors who can guide you every step of the way to free resources and even collateral-free loans of up to $15,000 to get things up and running.
The goal for your side hustle can be anything you want: a little extra income, a future full-time gig or a passion project. Whatever your dream is, you don't have to wait to make it happen with the help of the Futurpreneur Side Hustle Program.
To learn more about Futurpreneur's support and resources for side hustlers, check out their website or follow them on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, X or YouTube.