Trailblazer and apparel brand founder Joanna Griffiths of Knix named Canada's EY Entrepreneur Of The Year® 2022
The program recognizes 10 national winners for their unbounded innovation, growth and prosperity
TORONTO, Jan. 27, 2023 /CNW/ - Joanna Griffiths, founder and CEO of Knix— a Toronto-based intimate apparel company best known for their human-centric design and cutting-edge technology – is Canada's EY Entrepreneur Of The Year® 2022. Selected by an independent panel of judges and announced last night, Griffiths is this year's national program winner for her commitment to leading with purpose, working towards greater sustainability and transforming the consumer landscape.
"In a niche industry where innovative technology doesn't typically come top of mind, Griffiths has successfully created a mission-driven brand that champions product innovation and sustainability, all while celebrating body positivity and prioritizing comfort," says Paula Smith, EY Entrepreneur Of The Year Canada Program Director. "As a market disruptor and successful entrepreneur, she is paving the way for the next generation of human-centric brands by shining a light on the real day-to-day challenges faced by their customer base and responding with ground-breaking products."
Knix is connecting with real and diverse people and pushing boundaries in the market through inspiring campaigns featuring matters like fertility and the postpartum experience. By driving conversations around typically stigmatized topics, the brand is successfully creating much-needed awareness and acceptance, while promoting a community-first approach to business. Knix's success recently led the company to expand into new categories with leakproof products that span underwear, swim, lounge, activewear and more.
"We're so grateful at Knix to EY for this incredible honour and to Canada for not only embracing the idea of leak-proof underwear, but to welcome a brand that looked different. We could never have done it without them and our community," shares Griffiths. "We're a company that focuses on impact and one that celebrates people for who they truly were. In a world that profits from society's self-doubt, I believe that the most aspirational thing is to love yourself exactly as you are."
At the virtual award ceremony hosted by Canadian journalist Amanda Lang last night, Griffiths shared the virtual spotlight with nine other entrepreneurs from across Canada who were recognized as EY Entrepreneur Of The Year 2022 National Award Winners for their unstoppable achievements that demonstrate strong leadership, bold innovation and creative industry solutions. Up next, Griffiths will represent Canada on the global stage to compete against 60 other country winners for the title of EY World Entrepreneur Of The Year™ this summer in Monaco.
Roger Babichuk, Sean Penn and Tim Coldwell |
Kyle Braatz |
Brendan Brothers, Jamie King and Raymond Pretty |
Isabelle Côté |
John Nicola |
Tom Madden |
Euan Ramsay and James Taylor |
Anna Sainsbury |
Hamed Shahbazi WELL Health Technologies Corp. TSX.WELL |
The EY Entrepreneurial Winning Women™ North America Class of 2022 and the EY Entrepreneurs Access Network Class of 2022 were also recognized, including nine Canadian entrepreneurs in the latter. The EY Entrepreneurial Winning Women™ program identifies high-potential women entrepreneurs in Canada and the US and provides them with the network access, advisors and resources needed to help scale their companies and help them achieve their full potential as market-leading innovators. The EY Entrepreneurs Access Network aims to support marginalized communities such as Black, Latino and Indigenous entrepreneurs through seven tried-and-tested drivers of growth: people, technology, operations, customer, finance, transactions and risk.
Both these programs coupled with EY Entrepreneur Of The Year are part of the firm's 28-year-long commitment to supporting entrepreneurship for all in Canada at every stage of the growth journey.
EY Entrepreneurial Winning Women™ North America Class of 2022.
Yvonne Chan |
Margaret Coons |
Karen Danudjaja |
Lena Koke |
Dr. Dina Kulik |
Bobbie Racette |
Aisnley Rose |
Hannah Todd |
Joanne Sallay |
EY Entrepreneurs Access Network Class of 2022.
Scott Allen AllRock Consulting Ltd. |
Ralph Francois Reelcruit |
Patrick Hunter Patrick Hunter Art & Design |
Cheryl Kerr Medex Health Services Inc |
Jennifer Ménard-Shand Staff Shop Inc. |
Kishawna Peck Toronto Womxn in Data Science |
Jean-Manassé Théagène 360Medlink Inc. |
Nathanael Williams Legacy Holding Group Fund. |
EY Entrepreneur Of The Year® is the world's most prestigious business awards program for unstoppable entrepreneurs. These visionary leaders deliver innovation, growth and prosperity that transform our world. The program engages entrepreneurs with insights and experiences that foster growth. It connects them with their peers to strengthen entrepreneurship around the world. EY Entrepreneur Of The Year is the first and only truly global awards program of its kind. It celebrates entrepreneurs through regional and national awards programs in more than 145 cities in over 60 countries. Winners go on to compete for the EY World Entrepreneur Of The Year title. Ey.com/eoy
The 2022 independent national judging panel for Canada included: Geoff Chutter, President and CEO, WhiteWater West Industries; Wes Hall, Executive Chairman and Founder, Kingsdale Advisors, The BlackNorth Initiative; Germain Lamonde, Founder and Executive Chairman, EXFO Inc.; Kim Mason, Senior VP and Head of Private Banking, RBC Wealth Management; Linda McCurdy, President and CEO, K-Bro Linen Systems Inc.; Kristi Miller, Managing Partner, Krystal Growth Partners; and Joseph Randell, President and CEO, Chorus Aviation Inc.
This year's program national sponsors are Toronto Stock Exchange and TSX Venture Exchange.
EY exists to build a better working world, helping create long-term value for clients, people and society and build trust in the capital markets. Enabled by data and technology, diverse EY teams in over 150 countries provide trust through assurance and help clients grow, transform and operate. Working across assurance, consulting, law, strategy, tax and transactions, EY teams ask better questions to find new answers for the complex issues facing our world today.
EY refers to the global organization, and may refer to one or more, of the member firms of Ernst & Young Global Limited, each of which is a separate legal entity. Ernst & Young Global Limited, a UK company limited by guarantee, does not provide services to clients. Information about how EY collects and uses personal data and a description of the rights individuals have under data protection legislation are available via ey.com/privacy. EY member firms do not practice law where prohibited by local laws. For more information about our organization, please visit ey.com. Follow us on Twitter @EYCanada.
This news release has been issued by Ernst & Young LLP.
SOURCE EY (Ernst & Young)
Lina Sakkal, [email protected], +1 613 981 1484
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