Canada, the country is known for a lot of things (maple syrup, gorgeous nature, snow, etc.). Canada also offers some of the world’s most innovative and profitable companies.....
Canadian women are leading nearly every industry you can imagine.
In fact, the Canadian government recently announced that it was starting a CAD $10 million funds to help even more female entrepreneurs get their businesses off the ground.
Kim Cattrall – Actress – Net Worth: CAD$75 million
Everyone’s favorite Sex and the City star is the iconic Canadian actress Kim Cattrall. Though originally born in the UK, Cattrall’s family relocated to Vancouver Island when she was still a baby. She would move to America as a teenager to pursue an acting career.
Cattrall’s career arguably peaked after starring in the acclaimed and revolutionary American series Sex and the City. Cattrall received numerous awards, including a Golden Globe, as the amazing Samantha Jones
Phyllis Lambert – Company: Seagram – Net Worth: CAD$2 billion
She is the daughter of Samuel and Saidye Bronfman, Phyllis was born in 1927 in Montreal. She has won several awards for her business acumen and philanthropy.
Phyllis was awarded the Order of Canada, the Golden Lion from the Venice Biennale of Architecture, and the National Order of Quebec. She is an architect in addition to owning a 22% stake in the Seagram empire, which controls billions in liquor, oil and gas, real estate and chemicals.
Nelly Furtado – Singer-songwriter – Net Worth: CAD$35 million
It’s hard to name a more successful Canadian musician than platinum-selling artist Nelly Furtado. One of the definitive singer-songwriters of the 2000s (and arguably of all time), Furtado was born in Nova Scotia.
She quickly discovered a passion for music, along with her incredible voice, and first started off as a backup singer for a hip hop group. This led to the release of her extremely influential debut album, Whoa, Nelly!
The record’s success led to follow-up hits like Folklore and Loose, the latter of which topped both the Canadian and the American charts. It remains Furtado’s best-selling record, and turned Furtado into one of the all-time great recording artists..
Celine Dion – Company: Feeling, Inc. – Net Worth: CAD$800 million
The world-famous singer and producer was born in Quebec and speaks fluent French. Her first appearance on the music stage was when she released French-language albums when she was a teenager, propelling her career.
Since the 1980s, she has released hit song after hit song, culminating (arguably) with her hit Titanic ballad, “My Heart Will Go On.” But Dion is also a businesswoman. She and her late husband, René, founded Feeling, Inc., a Quebec-based artist management company.
Founding the food chain Nickels and owning Schwartz’s Restaurant. Currently, they live in the United States, but Dion remains one of the wealthiest Canadians ever.
Sherry Brydson – Company: Thomson Reuters Corp. – Net Worth: CAN$7.57 billion
Sherry Brydson is one of the richest, most inspiring self-made businesswomen on this list. She is the head of the powerful Thomson Reuters empire. More specifically, she controls the investment firm Woodbridge, which owns Thomson Reuters. Thomson Reuters is a vast multinational firm that dominates the mass media and information sectors.
This includes Viking Air and Vista Radio, two other media giants. Brydson also had a long history in media before then, as she was the chief editor for the University of Toronto’s student newspaper.
Mirella Saputo – Company: Saputo, Inc. – Net Worth: CAN$5 billion
Mirella Saputo is part of the Saputo family, which owns the huge manufacturing brand Saputo, Inc. Saputo, Inc. has revenues of $11 billion per year and a net income of $731 million. The brand employs more than 12,000 people. Lino Saputo, Mirella’s husband, is the executive chair, while her son, Lino Jr., is vice-chair, president, and CEO.
Saputo is a dairy company that owns a ton of familiar brand names. Lino’s father, Giuseppe, immigrated to Canada from Italy in the 1950s. Lino convinced Giuseppe that he should start a business. They had $500 and a bicycle that they used to make deliveries.
The business was a cheese-making company, and it stayed that way, just expanding to different sectors of the dairy business.
Shania Twain – Company: Singer-songwriter – Net Worth: CAN$400 million
Shania Twain is an acclaimed singer who has sold over 100 million records. Her real name, however, is actually Eileen Regina Edwards. As a struggling artist starting out. it took Twain awhile to get her foot in the door. She signed to a major record label when she was young, but her first album was not a success.
She and Lange married in 1993, but later divorced in 2010. To date Twain has released only four studio albums, the third of which is the best-selling record by a female artist ever.
Sadly, Twain retired back in 2004. She announced that she had Lyme disease and dysphonia, both of which led to her singing voice weakening. But she can certainly coast easy on all those amazing record sales!
Rita Bronfman – Company: Seagram – Net Worth: CAN$2.1 billion
Rita Bronfman is part of the powerful Bronfman family. She and her husband, Charles, have dual American and Canadian citizenship. They are both reputed business people and philanthropists. Charles and Rita were married back in 2012.
Rita and Charles own Seagram, a liquor and beverage company. The two also are major charitable donors.
The Bronfmans also founded Historica, which produces short historical pieces that act like advertisements, except they teach Canadians about their history in short little segments. Bronfman got the idea from watching ads.
Heather Reisman – Company: Indigo Book – Net Worth: CAD $2.93 billion
Heather Reisman is a billionaire business owner and philanthropist. She was born in Montreal. But today she is the CEO of the massive Indigo Books empire. (though she also founded Kobo). Her husband is Gerald, and he is the co-owner of the business with her.
She invested in Borders Group in 1995. Borders failed to crack the Canadian market, so Reisman started her own bookstore, Indigo.
Indigo took off, and it raised a whopping $25 million from investors. The company soon became Canada’s largest book retailer, taking a leadership position in the industry. With those profits she founded Kobo, an e-book seller, a few years ago.
Mandy Rennehan – Company: Freshco – Net Worth: $650 million
Mandy Rennehan is the founder of the massive FreshCo empire. She was born in Nova Scotia, and her father was a lobster fisherman. She and her family often faced poverty, as feeding six kids on a fisherman’s pay was not easy. Mandy’s experience growing up in the seasonal fishing industry impacted her.
She assembled teams that helped build log cabins. She found that she had a talent for building and woodworking, which she found that she could make money from. Her construction empire, Freschco, would rise from these humble beginnings.
Susan Niczowski – Company: Summer Fresh – Net Worth: $2.9 billion
Susan Niczowski is a microbiologist and billionaire business owner. She was born in Toronto, though her family is of Macedonian descent. She received her education from the University of Toronto, where she got her degree in math and chemistry. Niczowski’s first job in microbiology was at Shopsy’s food, a meat plant.
She founded her flagship company, Summer Fresh, after discovering a gap in the market for consumers who wanted fresh foods that they could eat on-the-go. She used her microbiology skills to help develop packaging that would keep vegetables and perishables fresh in the package.
She and her mother started the business, and it has expanded immensely, bringing in nearly $100 million per year. The company was renamed to Summer Fresh Salads, Inc. recently.
Coco Rocha – Company: Model – Net Worth: $185 million
Young Canadian starlet Coco Rocha is one of fashion’s most stunning discoveries in recent years. She first hit mainstream success after appearing on the cover of Vogue Italia in 2006, the same year she opened designer Christian Lacroix’s Paris show.
Rocha transitioned successfully into television as a guest judge on his reality series including America’s Next Top Model and Australia’s Next Top Model. She frequently uses her status to campaign for awareness of eating disorders in the modelling industry.
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