Brendan Ho, an aspiring young Mississauga website designer, decided to turn his hobby for web design into a full-time business. Going into his final year at Sheridan College, Brendan took his learning, and his passion for entrepreneurship to apply for the 2018 Summer Company Program in Mississauga, which helped him launch Behold Agency, a web and mobile design company.

Brendan’s Story

Brendan’s journey as an entrepreneur started at an early age, selling e-books online while still in elementary school. Unknown to Brendan at the time, but his youthful venture as an entrepreneur was setting the stage for his future career goals.

After two years in the Wilfrid Laurier University’s business program and taking a 9-5 job working for a tech start-up, Brendan decided he wanted to instead set his career goals on being an entrepreneur. Aspiring to be the boss of his own company he desired to take his vision, passion and skills to lead a team and build his own business.

The next step was to develop the skills he needed to start and grow his business. In addition to getting the design skills he needed studying Interaction Design at Sheridan College, Brendan participated in the Summer Company Program, delivered by the Mississauga Business Enterprise Centre (MBEC), where he received free mentorship and training on essential business skills and a grant to help him start his summer business.

“The MBEC Summer Company Program gave me the extra kick needed to launch my business… the Summer Company Program kept me accountable (with the strict due dates) and put me in a constant state of motivation. Being surrounded by other ambitious peers was also helpful and inspired me with new ideas and energy.” – Brendan Ho

Brendan offers some advice to other young entrepreneurs.

• Your plan doesn’t have to be perfect before putting it into action. Remember to review and revise your plan as needed. Always consider “what’s the next step I can take today that will move me forward?”
• Priority should be on how much value you can provide to your clients rather than how much money you can make.
• Work hard; Be smart; Stay humble; Be practical

Brendan has established himself in the growing field of user experience design and plans to continue running his business throughout the school year and well after graduation. Brendan’s goals are to continue to scale up the company and grow his current team of three remote workers.

The Summer Company Program is funded by the Government of Ontario and delivered in Mississauga by the Mississauga Business Enterprise Centre (MBEC). For information about the Summer Company program, visit ontario.ca/summercompany

MBEC is your central source for business information, resources and guidance. For information and guidance from business professionals, visit MBEC on the fourth floor of the Mississauga Central Library or by phone or email.