The Brampton Board of Trade has created a truly special event called inspiHER to celebrate International Women’s Day. This day and event is a global celebration of the social, economic, cultural and political achievements of women. inspiHER also marks a call to action for accelerating gender parity. In Brampton, we celebrate International Women’s Day by coming together to be inspired and encouraged while hearing the stories of female leaders in our community.
The highlight of the event is the awarding of the Naseem Somani Memorial Award for Leadership Excellence. This years event will also feature a keynote from the founders of Marlow, followed by an engaging conversation between a diverse group of business leaders, where they’ll share their challenges and successes over the course of their careers.
Members also shared how they Inspire Inclusion in their workplaces and their responses were shared at the event:
Save the Date for March 5th, 2025
Thank you 2024 sponsors:
Keynote Speaker: Harit Sohal, Co-Founder, Marlow
Marlow co-founder, Harit Sohal, shared her story of how four best friends came together to revolutionize menstrual health. What started out as a conversation among friends about how annoying periods were, turned into a mission to positively transform the way we experience our cycles. They’re empowering the community to move, play, and be free, no matter what time of the month it is. They bring refreshing, shame-free, and inclusive conversations and period care.
Couch Conversations
Guests were inspired panelists Monifa Brooks of Garabyte Consulting, Fiona D’silva-Coelho, or ErinoakKids, and the Hon. Charmaine Williams, Associate Minister of Women’s Social and Economic Opportunity as they shared their stories of success and how they have overcome professional and personal challenges along the way.
Naseem Somani Memorial Award for Leadership Excellence
In 2019, we lost an important member of our business community. A giant in corporate Canada. Naseem Somani, former CEO of Dynacare was an outstanding business leader who was known for both her competitive and collaborative spirit. In growing her business, she demonstrated that by working with other businesses, we can grow our community, our province, our nation and beyond.
In recognition of her outstanding leadership, The Brampton Board of Trade has established a special excellence award in Naseem Somani’s honour: The Naseem Somani Memorial Award for Leadership Excellence.
The award recognizes Naseem’s profound impact on the lives of many, particularly women business leaders.
The Naseem Somani Memorial Award for Leadership Excellence is designed to recognize, inspire, develop and encourage women’s personal and professional leadership. It is exactly these traits, among many other virtues, that Naseem Somani was known for and for which she has left a lasting legacy. Beginning in 2020, the award will be presented to a deserving woman that demonstrates leadership, innovation, service and overall contribution to women.
RegisterThe Brampton Board of Trade is pleased to announce Chantal Carter, Founder of Love & Nudes, as the 2024 recipient of the Naseem Somani Memorial Leadership Excellence Award.
Chantal Carter, a fashion industry veteran of 20+ years, served as a Wardrobe Stylist, Image Consultant, and magazine Style Director. As a marketing professor and member of Centennial College’s Fashion Business and Management Program Advisory Committee since 2020, she actively shapes the curriculum to align with industry trends.
Recognized by Brampton Mayor Patrick Brown, former MP Celina Ceasar-Chavannes, and the Brampton Board of Trade, Chantal is acknowledged for her impactful business contributions.
Driven by a passion for uplifting women of color, she founded Love & Nudes—a diverse skin tone intimates line that transcends fashion, fostering a social movement celebrating diversity. Chantal advocates for accessible apparel, cosmetics, and wellness products, emphasizing representation in health and education.
Featured in media outlets such as The Toronto Star, CBC, City Line, CTV News, Buzzfeed, and Elle Magazine, Chantal amplifies her voice on inclusivity and empowerment.
For the second year in a row, guests were invited to bring feminine hygiene products to donate to Help A Girl Out (HAGO).
HAGO is an anti-poverty organization based in Brampton that aims to eliminate period poverty in Canada and developing countries. They have distributed hundreds of thousands of menstrual products since we incorporated in 2018, under the Canada Not-for-profit act. Their efforts have served individuals and centres across Canada, the Caribbean and a few African countries.
HAGO:
1. Provides free access to reusable & disposable period products
2. Provides workshops to educate all ages about menstruation, uterine health and anatomy.
3. Empowers women & girls with year-round anti-stigma campaigns to build self-esteem, and eliminate period stigma.
Learn More About Help A Girl Out