Top 10 Women-Owned Businesses in Canada That Are Rewriting the Rules in 2026

Canada’s startup ecosystem is changing, and women are responsible. 

One the one side, female founders in Canada  in 2025, established themselves as the bulwark for inclusive growth in the Fintech industry. And on the other hand, business owners from the same demographic  are transforming retail and wellness. 

This shift towards more inclusivity in 2025 will continue in 2026, bringing more light on the fact that what could happen when diverse minds converge to create something worthwhile. In this article, you will explore the top women-owned businesses in Canada that are rewriting the rules in 2026.

Why Women-Owned Businesses Are Canada’s Most Exciting Growth Story

Women-led startups in Canada have continued to gain momentum over the last two decades. However, in 2026, the ecosystem will evolve even further.

No longer are women-owned businesses in Canada existing only in the periphery of the Canadian economy. They have become one of its key cores.

According to the Women Entrepreneurship Knowledge Hub, the percentage of small and medium-sized businesses under women-ownership has gone up from 15.6% in 2017 to 17.8% in 2023.

When Statistics Canada is to be considered, this number went up from 17.6% to 19.5% in the first quarter of 2025.

You heard it right. One out of 5 small to medium businesses in Canada are now women-led. This alone makes these businesses Canada’s most exciting growth story.

What Makes a Business “Women-Owned” in Canada?

“If a woman owns a business, it is known as women-led”, that could be one definition of such an enterprise. The official definition, however, is a lot more nuanced than meets the eye.

Official Definition

An article in the Economic Insights by the Government of Canada defined a women-owned business as a business that is 51% or more owned, managed and controlled by one or more women.

The definition itself has gone through multiple iterations due to changing governments and socio-political landscape. The current definition is the fine-tuned version of what Women Business Enterprises Canada put forward shortly after its emergence in 2009.

WBE Canada Certification

Women Business Enterprises Canada emerged in 2009 to represent Canadian women enterprises that are changing supply chains across the globe.

The council offers official certification, unlocking access to women entrepreneur resources in Canada such as corporate supply chains, government contracts and funding programs.

The official WBE highlights that two other purposes that it serves are as follows:

1. Accelerating supply diversity by partnering with private and public organizations to offer training, programs, tools and resources to develop supplier diversity initiatives
2. Developing a WBE database of women-led startups in Canada across multiple industries, purchasing categories, sizes and geographic locations

In order to be eligible for the certification, the businesses must adhere to multiple standards. Succinctly speaking, they include the following:

1. Sole proprietorship should be 100% women-owned, but everything from corporate to LLCs should be 51% women-owned.
2. Women should be part of the company’s governance, operations, and management
3. Women’s role should be indispensable to the business’s potential success

But now the question arises: what difference does it make to the customers? Do they care about the best women-owned businesses in Canada, considering most of them would only be worried about the end-result?

The root of this question lies in an old draconian premise that stats show people are walking away from.

Why It Matters for Consumers

Inclusivity Factor Leading to More Innovation

Now is the time to become inclusive, not for the sake of posterity alone, but to extract maximum human potential. It makes people feel better about themselves, and women feel inclusive. Much insight about the same is visible in Diversity Institute’s report of Toronto Metropolitan University. It showed that women-led companies show a higher overall innovation rate at 38%.

This stat drives another point of why inclusivity matters to customers: it gives them access to more innovative products and services.

Reinvestment Into the Community

The rise of women-led companies in Canada has been a boon for communities, for implementation, and for innovation.

Women entrepreneurs are more willing to invest in local communities, per the article. And they employ thousands of Canadians and are likely to hire more women across all tiers within their enterprise.

Empathy and Human-centric Service

Customers support women-owned businesses in Canada because of how they tend to lean towards empathy and human-centric services. 

As you will notice from most of the stories of the top women-owned companies, most of them focus on empowering each other, a far cry from the traditional capitalist society.

Top 10 Women-Owned Businesses in Canada

Given below are the top 10 women-owned businesses in Canada, each with their unique stories that showcase the founders’ abilities to grab opportunities quickly and sustain a momentum of profitability while still being concerned about the human condition.

437 – Hyla Nayeri & Adrien Bettio

Founding Year: 2017

City: Toronto

Industry: Swimwear

2017 saw the emergence of a new company known as 437 in the city of Toronto, Ontario. The name itself has a storied history, as the founders of the company, Hyla Nayeri and Adrien Bettio, derived it from their university house address: 437 Johnson Ave., while completing their final years at Queen’s University.

The idea behind the company emerged when the friends realized that they weren’t interested in being bossed around. They saw a gap in the European swimwear market and decided to take action.

This idea started to evolve after materializing, as it was completely self-funded.

In an interview with Women of Influence in 2021, Hyla Nayeri said, “We weren’t passionate about the career options business school showcased, so we decided we wanted to do something we are passionate about. We saw a gap in the industry and decided to take a chance.”

The gamble paid off, as by 2021, 437’s name got featured on Forbes 30 Under 30. In 2022, the best friends sold an 80% majority stake to Essity, which surged 437’s valuation to $400M USD, breaking the Canadian record for the largest publicly disclosed sale of a private company by a solo female founder.

It is the journey itself that makes it remarkable. As one of the fastest growing women-led companies in Canada that came from literal nothing to a multi-million dollar brand, it has gained massive celebrity interest, with the likes of Kylie Jenner, Megan Thee Stallion, and Jennifer Lopez.

Cheekbone Beauty – Jenn Harper

Founding Year: 2016

City: Toronto

Industry: Beauty products

Founded in 2016 by Jenn Harper (Anishinaabe woman from Northwest Angle 33), Cheekbone Beauty is located in St. Catharines, Ontario.

The story of this company’s founding is as spiritual as the community the founder belongs to.

Jenn had a vivid dream. She saw Indigenous little girls covered in colorful lip glosses. The dream pushed her to seek her roots.

After reconnecting and learning about residential schools from her grandmother, Jenn’s goal became clear. She would create representation in the beauty industry.

Soon after establishing itself as the first Indigenous cosmetics company in Canada and gaining B Corp certification, Cheekbone Beauty set a benchmark. Not in products, but in community impact.

To date, the company has donated over $250,000 to Indigenous causes.

Each lipstick shade is named after an Indigenous woman working to better their community. Representation isn’t just a tagline. It’s embedded in every product.

The company sticks to Indigenous teachings and the Two-Eyed Seeing approach. For such efforts, Cheekbone Beauty was named Independent Retail Ambassador of the Year 2025 by Retail Council of Canada.

When asked how she sustains these values, Jenn simply replied: “Representation saves lives. This is the core of Cheekbone Beauty.”

Mejuri – Noura Sakkijha

Founding Year: 2015

City: Toronto

Industry: Jewelry

When Noura Sakkijha founded Mejuri in Toronto in 2015, she wasn’t just launching another jewelry brand.

As a third-generation jeweler from Jordan who had spent years working in finance, she had spotted something the entire industry seemed blind to.

The jewelry world still treated men as the primary buyers. It completely ignored the growing number of working women with disposable income who wanted to buy pieces for themselves.

This observation became the foundation for what Noura would call the “Buy yourself the damn diamond” movement.

What makes Mejuri remarkable isn’t just the business model. It’s the conviction behind it.

In a move that demonstrated her commitment to values over capital, Noura returned her first investment check. The investor didn’t align with what she was building.

When asked about breaking into such a traditional industry, she said, “The first yes is a domino. The rest starts to fall into place.”

That first yes has led to significant impact.

To date, Mejuri has expanded to 56 stores globally, including expansion into the Middle East. The company launched a $5M Empowerment Fund to support women and non-binary folks. It also became the first Canadian jewelry brand to sign the UN Global Compact.

Noura disrupted the traditional jewelry model by marketing directly to women buying for themselves. A radical shift in an industry built on engagement rings and anniversary gifts.

Knix – Joanna Griffiths

Founding Year: 2013

City: Toronto

Industry: Apparel

A conversation with her mother changed everything for Joanna Griffiths.

In 2013, they were discussing the changes women’s bodies undergo and the glaring lack of products addressing light leaks. That gap in the market became the spark for Knix, a Toronto-based company that would go on to help invent an entirely new category: leak-proof underwear.

Joanna launched the company via a Kickstarter campaign. The product felt almost revolutionary in its simplicity.

When asked about why she pursued this idea, she said, “I felt like somebody had to do it. There was this huge opportunity to change the way that women feel about themselves.”

The impact has been staggering.

Knix was named the 6th fastest growing company in Canada. In 2022, Joanna sold an 80% stake to Essity for US$320 million. This marked the largest publicly disclosed sale by a female founder in Canadian history.

What makes this even more remarkable is the context. She raised $53 million just three days before giving birth to twin girls.

But perhaps what defines Joanna’s journey most is her refusal to compromise. She turned away investment from anyone who questioned her ability to run a company while pregnant.

Beyond building a business, she launched the Knix Fund. The fund commits $1M in giving over three years.

In 2023, Joanna was named EY Canada Entrepreneur of the Year. Recognition for not just building a successful company, but for changing an entire industry’s approach to women’s bodies.

Encircled – Kristi Soomer

Founding Year: 2012

City: Toronto

Industry: Apparel

Sometimes the best business ideas come from the most frustrating moments.

For Kristi Soomer, that moment arrived in 2012 when her suitcase broke while packing for a yoga retreat. As a former management consultant who traveled over 100,000 miles a year, she had reached a breaking point with her wardrobe.

The realization was simple but profound. She needed more versatile clothing.

This led to the founding of Encircled in Toronto, a sustainable fashion company built on the idea that less could be more.

Kristi’s first product set the tone for everything that followed. The Chrysalis Cardi could be worn 8 different ways. This design philosophy would become central to the brand.

“Everything is figureoutable,” she says. A motto that seems to guide both her design process and her business approach.

The company achieved profitability within its second year. No small feat in the fashion industry.

Today, Encircled is a multi-million dollar business with 92% of sales coming through e-commerce. But what makes the company truly remarkable is its commitment to sustainability at every level.

Encircled is a Certified B Corporation. One of only 4 female-founded and majority female-owned B Corps in Canadian apparel.

The company uses only sustainable, locally-knit fabrics. It keeps its factories within an hour’s bike ride from the Toronto office.

For these efforts, Kristi has been recognized as a Clean50 sustainability leader. Proof that fashion can be both profitable and responsible.

Aisle (formerly Lunapads) – Madeleine Shaw & Suzanne Siemens

Founding Year: 1993

City: Vancouver

Industry: Feminine Hygiene Products

In 1993, Madeleine Shaw discovered she was allergic to disposable tampons.

Rather than accept the limited options available, she created her own solution: washable, reusable cotton pads. This personal need became the foundation for what would eventually be known as Aisle, originally called Lunapads, based in Vancouver, British Columbia.

Suzanne Siemens joined the company in 2000. Together they built something far bigger than a product line.

The impact speaks for itself.

Through the Pads4Girls program, the company has supplied over 100,000 reusable products to more than 17,000 people across 18 countries.

When asked about the environmental impact, Suzanne said, “One of our favourite statistics is thanks to customers using our products over 20 million pads and tampons are diverted from landfills.”

But Aisle’s reach extended beyond products.

In 2002, Madeleine created the first period underwear. Years before it became a mainstream category. The company helped end Canada’s “Tampon Tax” in 2015. It also mentored the Uganda-based AFRIpads startup. Impact rippling across borders.

As one of Canada’s founding B Corps, certified in 2012, Aisle has been named Best for the World B Corp four times.

The company’s commitment to sustainability and social impact remained unwavering even through its transition. In 2024, it was acquired by Lux Perry, founder of somedays. The women-led legacy continues.

What makes Aisle remarkable is how it transformed a personal health crisis into a decades-long movement. One that changed how millions of people think about menstrual products.

Venture Communications / District Ventures Capital – Arlene Dickinson

Founding Year: 2012

City: Calgary

Industry: Venture Capital

Arlene Dickinson’s journey to becoming one of Canada’s most influential business leaders wasn’t a straight line.

She immigrated to Canada from South Africa at age 3. By 31, she found herself divorced with four children to raise.

In 1988, she joined Venture Communications, a Calgary-based marketing firm. Ten years later, in 1998, she took sole ownership.

What followed was the building of one of Canada’s largest independent marketing firms.

But Arlene didn’t stop there. In 2012, she launched District Ventures Capital with a $100M fund focused on food and health consumer packaged goods.

Her investment philosophy is distinct. Speaking about one of her investments, Tentree, she explained, “For us, Tentree was never an apparel business that planted trees. It was a tree-planting company that sold apparel.”

The impact of her work extends far beyond balance sheets.

Arlene has spent over 15 seasons on Dragons’ Den, making her the longest-running female Dragon in the show’s history. She has been inducted into Canada’s Most Powerful Women Top 100 Hall of Fame. She is a three-time bestselling author.

What makes Arlene remarkable is the breadth of her influence.

She served as Honorary Captain of the Royal Canadian Navy for over 10 years. She has received both the Queen Elizabeth Diamond and Platinum Jubilee Awards.

Through Venture Communications and District Ventures Capital, Arlene has built not just businesses, but pathways for others to follow.

MAGUIRE Shoes – Myriam and Romy Belzile-Maguire

Founding Year: 2017 

City: Montreal

Industry: Women’s Footwear/Fashion Retail

In 2017, sisters Myriam and Romy Belzile-Maguire had $15,000 to their names and a single product.

It was enough to launch MAGUIRE Shoes in Montreal, a company that would go on to challenge how people think about footwear pricing and manufacturing.

The sisters brought complementary skills to the table.

Myriam had technical expertise from London’s prestigious Cordwainer College. Romy’s background in communication and non-profit work shaped the brand’s human-centered approach and global outlook.

Their vision was straightforward: make European-quality footwear more accessible.

What started as a single product has grown into a company operating stores in Montreal, Toronto, New York, and Brooklyn.

MAGUIRE has gained recognition from Vogue, Forbes, WWD, ELLE, and Harper’s Magazine. The sisters were awarded the Canadian Arts and Fashion Awards for Emerging Talent in Accessories in 2022. They followed this with Accessory Designer of the Year in 2024.

But what makes MAGUIRE remarkable is its refusal to compromise on principles.

The company maintains a “no mass manufacturing” approach, staying authentic to what the brand represents. More striking is their commitment to complete transparency.

In an interview with Fashion Magazine, Myriam explained: “It’s an educational thing so customers know the actual cost of the product. We’re working on clearer graphics to explain the difference between our business model and traditional wholesale. The reason we don’t do wholesale is because if we added the margin for a third-party seller, our shoes would almost double in price.”

MAGUIRE brought quality footwear to the masses while keeping a design-centric approach. Proof that accessibility and craftsmanship don’t have to be at odds.

Madahoki Farms -Trina Mather-Simard

Founding Year: 2021

City: Ottawa

Industry: Indigenous Cultural Agritourism/Education

Twenty years ago, Trina Mather-Simard started Mādahòkì Farm in Ottawa with a singular goal: to make people intimate with Indigenous experiences.

She wanted to share stories and food from an Indigenous perspective. To educate people about nature and culture in a way that felt authentic and lived.

The vision took time to materialize.

It wasn’t until the National Capital Commission approved a 25-year lease on a 164-acre property on Ottawa’s greenbelt that the farm could truly take shape. Later, support from the Tourism Relief Fund became critical.

According to the farm, this support “allowed us to repair the barn and paddocks for the Ojibwe Spirit Horses as well as adding a new year-round riding arena, repair and expand parking lots as well as improve our tourism infrastructure like heated outdoor washrooms and re-build a talented team of Indigenous cultural and culinary ambassadors.”

The impact has been transformative.

In less than two years, Mādahòkì Farm has grown to welcome up to 40,000 visitors per year. Local residents, school groups, corporate visitors, and tourists from around the world.

What makes Mādahòkì Farm remarkable is its complete focus on the conservation of Indigenous culture.

That sharp focus has opened minds and created experiences that stay with people long after they leave.

In 2025, Kimberly Breen-Johnson spoke about her experience with the spirit horses: “He drummed us in, in ceremony, and then he taught us. It was very interactive because our group was asking him questions and he was very open to our questions.”

Trina has built more than a farm. She has built a bridge between cultures, one experience at a time.

Industries Where Canadian Women Are Dominating

Here is the table that highlights the industries in which Canadian women have taken the lead. The female-led dominance of these industries has made them successful, creating a strong growth trend.

Industry	Top Cities	Growth Trend
Sustainable fashion	Toronto, Vancouver	🔼 Very high
Natural skincare	Montreal, Calgary	🔼 Very high
Home décor & lifestyle	Ontario, BC	🔼 High
Wellness & supplements	BC, Alberta	🔼 High
Food & beverage	Toronto, Montreal	🔼 Steady

The table tells a story. While there is a growth trend in industries that are already assumed to have a woman as the backbone, new, tech-centric industries, such as software as a service (SaaS), are also gaining momentum with women being the leaders.

Challenges Women Entrepreneurs Still Face in Canada

It feels good to talk about how successful women business owners in Canada are becoming. But beneath the glamor of stats, there is a glaring reality of sociopolitical issues.

Set aside the strides that women have made as entrepreneurs and the reality on social media is completely different.

“What’s the deal with businesses highlighting they are woman owned,” one Reddit post said, while another questioned on r/Entrepreneur, “Why is it such a big deal to be a female entrepreneur?”

Posts like these often highlight that positivity around women in eCommerce in Canada (or anywhere else) is often limited to publications, giving rise to three major glaring issues.

Access to Funding

“Not taken seriously” continues to be one of the biggest challenges for women entrepreneurs. And there are stats to prove it.

WeBC research recently showed the gender lending gap has continued to slow the economic growth of Canada.

“We know women are building strong businesses and contributing to local economies, yet every day we speak to women who face barriers when trying to access financing from traditional lenders,” said Shauna Harper, CEO of WeBC.

Shauna continues to say that this continues to be an untrackable statistic which harms the economy and still stymies the growth of women in certain sectors.

Eleanor Beaton of Safi Media weighed in on the issue, highlighting the difficulty in securing venture capital.

Logistics & Scaling

The same funding gaps forced top female entrepreneurs in Canada to resort to the “self-funding” approach, creating another challenge: logistics.

Getting shelf space at major retailers becomes an issue since it requires capital for slotting fees and marketing support. Friction emerges as even these retailers often require women to prove themselves. And desperation often makes the balance between wholesale and retail disjointed.

Cashflow chokes, margins erode, creating difficulties scaling the business.

Visibility & Discovery

The foundation of business expansion is getting more customers, which requires networking. But the old guard of “boys-only club” in networking has not made things easier for women.

Women have a hard time getting into these spaces to ensure visibility. Failure to establish decision-maker relationships derails the business, regardless of the quality of product or service.

The primary driver behind this gap is lack of informal ways to network that women are generally excluded from.

Bridgit’s Mallorie Brodie & Lauren Lake said that they had to go “crane hunting” and hustle to build connections in a male-dominated industry. In the case of Eleanor Beaton, being paid half became a norm during the initial days.

Beyond lack of proper networking, lack of proper market education is also another challenge to establishing visibility and discovery.

Thankfully, multiple support structures, both governmental and non-governmental, have emerged to give a wide berth for female entrepreneurs to grow.

Resources & Support for Women-Owned Businesses in Canada

• Women’s Enterprise Centre: It is BC-based non-profit providing loans up to $150,000, business training, and one-on-one mentorship for women entrepreneurs. The organization also provides low-interest financing and expert advisory services to help women start and scale businesses across British Columbia.
• WBE Canada: It is a national certification program connecting women-owned businesses with corporate procurement opportunities. Certified WBEs gain access to supplier diversity programs at major corporations, increasing visibility and contract potential across Canada.
• BDC Women Entrepreneur Programs: Business Development Bank of Canada offers dedicated financing and advisory services for women-led businesses. Provides loans, venture capital, and tailored coaching to help women entrepreneurs grow and scale sustainably.
• Women Entrepreneurship Strategy: It is a federal program offering grants up to $100,000 for women-led businesses through the Women Entrepreneurship Fund. Includes access to financing, mentorship networks, and business training to double women-owned businesses by 2025.
• Fierce Founders: It is a Canadian accelerator program specifically designed for women-led tech startups. Provides funding, mentorship, pitch coaching, and investor connections to help female founders scale their technology companies.

FAQ

How many women-owned businesses are there in Canada?

As of 2026, women own roughly 19% of all SMEs in Canada, contributing over $150 billion annually and employing nearly 1.5 million Canadians. Women entrepreneurs face unique challenges including access to capital, receiving only 2-4% of venture capital funding. However, certification programs like WBE Canada and provincial support through organizations like Women’s Enterprise Centre in BC are helping close these gaps.

What industries do women-owned businesses dominate in Canada?

Women-owned businesses in Canada are increasingly dominating fashion and apparel (Knix, Mejuri, Encircled), sustainable consumer goods, and beauty/personal care (Cheekbone Beauty, Aisle). Women entrepreneurs are making major strides in technology, particularly construction tech (Bridgit), fintech, and SaaS platforms. Business coaching and education (Safi Media), sustainable agriculture, and Indigenous-led enterprises are also seeing substantial growth, with Toronto, Vancouver, and Montreal leading as hubs for women-led innovation.

What support is available for women-owned businesses in Canada?

The Women Entrepreneurship Strategy offers grants up to $100,000, while BDC provides dedicated loans and venture capital for women-led businesses. Provincial programs like Women’s Enterprise Centre in BC offer financing up to $150,000 plus mentorship. WBE Canada certification connects women-owned businesses with corporate procurement opportunities at major Canadian corporations.

How do women-owned eCommerce businesses compete with larger brands in Canada?

Canadian women-owned eCommerce businesses compete by leveraging authentic storytelling and mission-driven values. Companies like Mejuri, Knix, and Cheekbone Beauty build fiercely loyal communities that prioritize values over price. Women entrepreneurs excel at creating category-defining products that address unmet needs, using direct-to-consumer models to eliminate retail markups while maintaining competitive pricing and healthy margins.

What are the fastest growing women-owned businesses in Canada in 2026?

Bridgit, the Kitchener-Waterloo construction tech company, serves 40% of ENR 400 contractors after raising $43.5M. Knix and 437 achieved record exits to Essity ($320M and $400M USD), while Mejuri expanded to 56 global stores. Safi Media scaled to serve thousands internationally, and Indigenous-led businesses like Cheekbone Beauty are experiencing exponential growth with B Corp certifications.

How can women-owned businesses in Canada reduce shipping costs?

Canadian women-owned businesses can reduce shipping costs by leveraging regional fulfillment strategies and negotiating carrier rates through collective buying power. Programs like EDC’s Trade Accelerator help access better international shipping rates. Local manufacturing, like Encircled’s Toronto-based production, eliminates cross-border fees. Strategic inventory placement closer to major markets minimizes last-mile delivery costs while improving customer experience.