Building a brand while remaining true to your values, with Rawcology Founders

Patrizia Librato is the founder and Executive Director of the Toronto Biennial of Art — Canada's first and only international art biennial. What started as a bold idea in 2014 has grown into a free, 90-day contemporary art event that draws audiences from across the country and puts Canadian artists on the world map.In this episode, Patrizia shares what it really took to build cultural infrastructure from scratch — navigating skeptics, securing multi-year funding commitments, and proving herself in rooms that weren't always ready to take her seriously as a female founder. She also gets candid about the state of women in the arts: why visibility alone isn't enough, why museum acquisitions matter, and why she's doubling down on gender parity at the Biennial even as DEI becomes an increasingly fraught conversation in North America.This one is for any founder who's ever been told their idea is too big, too early, or too ambitious — and built it anyway.The Toronto Biennial of Art opens September 26th. Learn more at torontobiennial.org.This season of our podcast is brought to you by TD Canada Women in Enterprise. TD is proud to support women entrepreneurs and help them achieve success and growth through its program of educational workshops, financing and mentorship opportunities! Please find out how you can benefit from their support! Visit: TBIF: thebrandisfemale.com // TD Women in Enterprise: td.com/wie // Follow us on Instagram: instagram.com/thebrandisfemale

In recognition of Women’s Month, Eva Hartling speaks with Chantel Chapman, founder of the Trauma of Money Institute, to explore the deeper forces that shape our relationship with money.After starting her career in finance and working as a financial literacy educator, Chantel realized that knowledge alone doesn’t always translate into healthy financial behaviour. Her work now sits at the intersection of finance, psychology, and trauma-informed practice, helping individuals and institutions better understand the emotional dynamics behind financial decision-making.In this conversation, Eva and Chantel discuss why many women struggle with confidence around money, how patterns like underearning and overgiving take root, and how women entrepreneurs can begin to build a healthier, more empowered relationship with their finances.Order Chantel’s book, “The Trauma of Money: Mapping Compassionate Pathways to Healing Financial Trauma and Disempowering Financial Shame”.This season of our podcast is brought to you by TD Canada Women in Enterprise. TD is proud to support women entrepreneurs and help them achieve success and growth through its program of educational workshops, financing and mentorship opportunities! Please find out how you can benefit from their support! Visit: TBIF: thebrandisfemale.com // TD Women in Enterprise: td.com/ca/en/business-banking/small-business/women-in-business // Follow us on Instagram: instagram.com/thebrandisfemale

What does it really take to scale a food brand when your standards make everything harder?In this episode, Eva sits down with Tara and Megan, the founders behind Canadian functional food company Rawcology. What started in a family kitchen with a dehydrator and a mission to remove inflammatory ingredients from everyday snacks has grown into a nationally distributed brand now carried by retailers including Whole Foods, Bulk Barn and Costco.But growth didn’t follow the typical startup playbook. They chose to self-manufacture instead of co-packing, prioritized ingredient integrity over margins, and navigated fundraising as a women-led company in a category dominated by massive incumbents.They share the realities behind building a CPG business — the economics of distribution, why the system favours cheap food, the bias they encountered raising capital, and how staying close to customers shaped their product strategy.This is a conversation about entrepreneurship, resilience, and defining success on your own terms when your values come first.This season of our podcast is brought to you by TD Canada Women in Enterprise. TD is proud to support women entrepreneurs and help them achieve success and growth through its program of educational workshops, financing and mentorship opportunities! Please find out how you can benefit from their support! Visit: TBIF: thebrandisfemale.com // TD Women in Enterprise: td.com/ca/en/business-banking/small-business/women-in-business // Follow us on Instagram: instagram.com/thebrandisfemale

Canada is facing a women’s health crisis: three in four women over 40 experience menopausal symptoms that disrupt their daily lives — yet access to care is inconsistent, fragmented, and often out of reach.In this episode of The Brand is Female, originally recorded during World Menopause Month, Eva Hartling speaks with Dr. Michelle Jacobson, a leading OBGYN who decided to take her expertise beyond the clinic and into entrepreneurship. As co-founder of Coven Women’s Health, she is transforming how women access hormonal health support in Ontario with a virtual platform offering expert, continuous, and personalized care.Dr. Jacobson is joined by her co-founder and CEO, Jennifer Patterson — a seasoned business builder with experience at Google and TD, who, after her own frustrating experience of feeling unwell, became passionate about making women’s health solutions easier to access.Together, they discuss why hormonal health remains stigmatized and overlooked in Canada, what’s missing from our current system, and how Coven is reshaping the future of women’s healthcare through integrated programs that support women navigating menopause, perimenopause, PCOS, postpartum recovery, PMDD, and more. This season of our podcast is brought to you by TD Canada Women in Enterprise. TD is proud to support women entrepreneurs and help them achieve success and growth through its program of educational workshops, financing and mentorship opportunities! Please find out how you can benefit from their support! Visit: TBIF: thebrandisfemale.com // TD Women in Enterprise: td.com/ca/en/business-banking/small-business/women-in-business // Follow us on Instagram: instagram.com/thebrandisfemale

Hi! Eva here.This episode is a little different.In the first part, I take you behind the scenes of my work and share what has always driven me — an obsession with precision when it comes to messaging, thought leadership, and reputation. I talk about why I’m launching Hartling Communications as a sister agency to The Brand is Female, and why this isn’t a pivot, but a clarification.I reflect on the experiences that shaped how I think about communication — from my time as Chief Marketing Officer, to working alongside founders, executives, and institutions. I also spend time on a topic that comes up constantly in my work and in this community: imposter syndrome — how it shows up, why it persists, and how clarity in communication can be a powerful tool for confidence and credibility.In the second part of the episode, you’ll hear a live conversation recorded at The Brand is Female Conversation Series in Vancouver with Carlyn Loncaric, founder and CEO of AquaEye / VodaSafe. Carlyn shares her journey from lifeguard and engineer to building a life-saving technology company, and we talk candidly about fear, resilience, leadership, and what it takes to scale a business in spaces where women are still underrepresented.This episode is about clarity — of message, of purpose, and of direction — and about the conversations that shape how we lead.This season of our podcast is brought to you by our sponsor, TD Canada Women in Enterprise. TD is proud to support women entrepreneurs and help them achieve success and growth through its program of educational workshops, financing and mentorship opportunities! Find out how you can benefit from their support! Visit: TBIF: thebrandisfemale.com // TD Women in Enterprise: td.com/wie // Follow us on Instagram: instagram.com/thebrandisfemale

This conversation originally aired on Women Are Players Too, where it quickly became our most popular episode of the season. Recorded at the end of the Northern Super League’s inaugural season, this episode captures a defining moment for women’s professional sports in Canada, when the scale of what had been built was coming clearly into focus.This episode features a conversation with Lara Murphy, CEO and co-owner of Calgary Wild FC, Alberta’s first professional women’s soccer team, and the co-founder of Calgary’s only female-run commercial construction company. Long before stepping into professional sport, Lara had already established herself as a respected business leader, board member, and community builder in Calgary, known for her hands-on leadership and commitment to creating opportunity.In this conversation, Lara reflects on a path shaped by sport, construction, and entrepreneurship, and on the journey from volunteer to CEO at a pivotal moment for women’s sports. She shares what it means to build something that didn’t exist for the generation before her, the responsibility that comes with being first, and the influence of visibility on the next generation of girls who can now see a future in professional sport.This episode is about leadership, community, and legacy, and why women-led movements in sport are reshaping not just the game, but culture itself.This season of our podcast is brought to you by our sponsor, TD Canada Women in Enterprise. TD is proud to support women entrepreneurs and help them achieve success and growth through its program of educational workshops, financing and mentorship opportunities! Find out how you can benefit from their support! Visit: TBIF: thebrandisfemale.com // TD Women in Enterprise: td.com/wie // Follow us on Instagram: instagram.com/thebrandisfemale

This is part 2 of last week’s conversation. To kick off the year, host Eva Hartling sits down with Sophie Boulanger — founder and former CEO of BonLook; advisor and investor — for a season-opening conversation about what retail transformation really means in 2026.Because this is not the year for surface-level change. Brands will either evolve at the core… or fall behind.In this episode, Sophie shares the lessons behind building one of Canada’s rare modern retail success stories — and what she believes today’s brands need to understand about changing consumer expectations, experience design, and the return to proximity and independent retail.Eva and Sophie also zoom out to unpack what legacy retail can teach us right now: what the Hudson’s Bay fallout reveals about adding digital to a broken model, why Simons continues to win, and how smart operators are building resilience in a shifting market.And finally, they look ahead — to what AI and technology integration can genuinely unlock for modern companies, and why the opportunity isn’t about gimmicks, but about becoming faster, smarter, and more connected to the customer.A must-listen for founders, marketers, and business leaders navigating the next era of retail.This season of our podcast is brought to you by our sponsor, TD Canada Women in Enterprise. TD is proud to support women entrepreneurs and help them achieve success and growth through its program of educational workshops, financing and mentorship opportunities! Find out how you can benefit from their support! Visit: TBIF: thebrandisfemale.com // TD Women in Enterprise: td.com/wie // Follow us on Instagram: instagram.com/thebrandisfemale

To kick off the first episode of the year, host Eva Hartling sits down with Sophie Boulanger — founder and former CEO of BonLook; advisor and investor — for a season-opening conversation about what retail transformation really means in 2026.Because this is not the year for surface-level change. Brands will either evolve at the core… or fall behind.In this episode, Sophie shares the lessons behind building one of Canada’s rare modern retail success stories — and what she believes today’s brands need to understand about changing consumer expectations, experience design, and the return to proximity and independent retail.Eva and Sophie also zoom out to unpack what legacy retail can teach us right now: what the Hudson’s Bay fallout reveals about adding digital to a broken model, why Simons continues to win, and how smart operators are building resilience in a shifting market.And finally, they look ahead — to what AI and technology integration can genuinely unlock for modern companies, and why the opportunity isn’t about gimmicks, but about becoming faster, smarter, and more connected to the customer.A must-listen for founders, marketers, and business leaders navigating the next era of retail.This is part one of this conversation, to be continued next week.This season of our podcast is brought to you by our sponsor, TD Canada Women in Enterprise. TD is proud to support women entrepreneurs and help them achieve success and growth through its program of educational workshops, financing and mentorship opportunities! Find out how you can benefit from their support! Visit: TBIF: thebrandisfemale.com // TD Women in Enterprise: td.com/wie // Follow us on Instagram: instagram.com/thebrandisfemale

What does it really take to help women entrepreneurs scale in Canada — and where are we still falling short?In this episode, Eva Hartling sits down with Julie Dimitri, National Manager, Women in Enterprise at TD, for an in-depth conversation on the realities women founders face when navigating financing, growth, and long-term sustainability.Drawing on TD’s recent research with the Women Entrepreneurship Knowledge Hub, Julie unpacks why access to capital remains a persistent barrier, why Canada has a scale-up problem — not a start-up problem, and how confidence, timing, and banking relationships can make or break a business’s growth trajectory.Together, Eva and Julie explore:Why women entrepreneurs tend to wait too long to seek funding — and the cost of that delayWhat women actually want from their banking relationshipsHow bias and confidence gaps still show up in financial decision-makingThe importance of relationship-based banking and integrated financial supportWhy ecosystems, mentorship, and intentional connections matter as much as capitalThis episode offers practical insights for women founders at every stage, as well as a candid look at what financial institutions must do differently to truly support women-led businesses.A must-listen for entrepreneurs, advisors, and anyone committed to unlocking the full economic potential of women in Canada.This season of our podcast is brought to you by TD Canada Women in Enterprise. TD is proud to support women entrepreneurs and help them achieve success and growth through its program of educational workshops, financing and mentorship opportunities! Find out how you can benefit from their support! Visit: TBIF: thebrandisfemale.com // TD Women in Enterprise: td.com/ca/en/business-banking/small-business/women-in-business // Follow us on Instagram: instagram.com/thebrandisfemale

In this special live episode recorded at the Poppy Barley boutique in Calgary, host Eva Hartling sits down with co-founder Kendall Barber for an unfiltered conversation about building — and sustaining — one of Canada’s most beloved women-founded footwear brands.Kendall shares the real story behind Poppy Barley’s 13-year journey, from the early days of selling custom boots and dreaming in wildly optimistic spreadsheets, to becoming a B Corp–certified brand rooted in purpose, craftsmanship, and comfort.Together, we explore what it really takes to scale a retail business in Canada: balancing purpose with profit, navigating volatility in fashion and supply chains, building community-driven design, and learning how to take care of yourself while you take care of the business. Kendall also opens up about co-founding with her sister Justine, the evolution of their leadership, and the realities of risk, financing, and longevity for women entrepreneurs.Recorded live as part of The Brand is Female Conversation Series — presented in partnership with TD Women in Enterprise — this episode brings you honest insights, hard-earned lessons, and a thoughtful look at what it means to build something meaningful that can truly last.A must-listen for founders, creatives, and anyone building a brand with heart and staying powerThis season of our podcast is brought to you by TD Canada Women in Enterprise. TD is proud to support women entrepreneurs and help them achieve success and growth through its program of educational workshops, financing and mentorship opportunities! Find out how you can benefit from their support! Visit: TBIF: thebrandisfemale.com // TD Women in Enterprise: td.com/ca/en/business-banking/small-business/women-in-business // Follow us on Instagram: instagram.com/thebrandisfemale