b'QBiz CONTENTS2SLGBTQIA+ BUSINESS IN CANADA 4THE BUSINESS OF DRAG4Kendall Gender on staying true to yourself and getting ahead By Anna-Liza BadalooRAMPING UP INCLUSION WILL DRIVE LASTING CHANGE10With $22B a year in economic activity, strengthening supplier diversity just makes sense CONTRIBUTING EDITOR By Zachary Pendley, CGLCCAndr Morriseau SIDE HUSTLE12 LGBTQ+ entrepreneurs still facing an uphill battle on the financial front EDITORIAL BOARD By James PetersAndr Morriseau, Sonja Scharf,Kelly Kyle, Christopher Walker,Barbara Smith, Daphne Pogue BILLY NGUYEN14 Catching up with the Top Chef finalistPrinted by: By Matthew Bradford READY FOR TAKEOFF 18 33 South Station StreetLGBTQ+ travel in 2022North York, OntarioM9N 2B2By Matthew BradfordTel. (866) 480-4717531 Marion StreetRAINBOW CONNECT MEMBER SPOTLIGHT22Winnipeg, ManitobaR2J 0J9Creating Culture and Building Community in Red DeerToll Free: (866) 201-3096 Fax: (204) 480-4420CREATING BRAVE SPACES24www.mediaedgepublishing.com B Adair speaks on improving DEI in a rural communitySENIOR EDITOR By Bryan C.K. HansenJustyne EsserySENIOR DESIGN SPECIALIST THE ULTIMATE DEI CHECKLIST26Krista Zimmermann By Luis Augusto Nobre, Pride at Work Canada/Fiert au travail CanadaNATIONAL SALES EXECUTIVES A GOOD READ28 Kristine Dudar, Ashley Huston, Running Down a Dream: A Love Story to My Family Dawn Stokes, David Tetlock The Romance RecipeAll rights reserved. The contents of this publication maynot be reproduced by any means, THE BOTTOM LINE29in whole or in part,without the prior Mental Health Is Mental Wealthwritten consent of the association. By Andr MorriseauPublished November 2022PUBLICATION MAIL AGREEMENT #40787580 PROFESSIONAL SERVICES DIRECTORY30QBiz is printed on 10% post-consumer FSC certified paper using soya based inks. When necessary to mail an issue On the Cover: Kendall Gender, one of the final three contestants in Canadas Drag Race Season 2.in an enclosure, we use an environmentally-friendly,100% oxo-degradable poly-wrap. Issue 22022 | QBiz CANADA |3'