Lowering Canada’s interprovincial trade barriers won’t unlock growth unless we invest in the people behind the businesses.

By Elizabeth Shechtman

Canada’s economic ambitions are often framed in terms of global trade, exports, and competitiveness. But in a time of disruption, when global supply chains remain fragile and cross-border tensions continue to rise, there’s renewed interest in strengthening the country from within. Interprovincial trade reform is in the spotlight, with calls to remove internal barriers that prevent businesses from expanding across provinces.

It’s a logical step forward—but not enough on its own.

Policy change alone won’t unlock Canada’s entrepreneurial and small business potential. The most stubborn barriers to growth aren’t legislative or regulatory. They’re human: the entrepreneur’s mindset, knowledge gaps, and career journeys.

To understand what’s holding small- to medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) back from scaling, we spoke with business owners and entrepreneurs across Canada. While regulations can be frustrating, many of them aren’t only daunted by red tape. They’re stalled by a lack of confidence, clarity, and connection, often without realizing it.

This article examines the human side of economic growth. If Canada wants a more integrated, resilient, and competitive economy, the conversation needs to shift. The future of interprovincial trade isn’t only about logistics. It’s also about developing entrepreneurial mindsets, strengthening leadership, and treating business ownership as a career that evolves over time.

Lasting, meaningful growth starts with supporting entrepreneurs, not just rewriting the policies that surround them.

The mindset barrier: Risk, identity, and the limits we set ourselves

In 2023, an estimated $532 billion in goods and services moved across provincial and territorial borders, representing 18.1% of Canada’s GDP. Interprovincial trade is a cornerstone of our national economy and an incredible source of untapped growth.

Yet many Canadian entrepreneurs hesitate to scale because they see themselves and their businesses as “local by default.” That identity may feel safe, but it can also limit what’s possible.

Lisa Taylor, Founder and CEO of Challenge Factory, explains how risk tolerance connects to business design: “I have strong risk tolerance. But I’ve also structured our business to support a certain amount of risk and experimentation. That means risks others might not take are manageable, because I’ve built ways to mitigate them in advance.”

This kind of intentionality is rare. Most entrepreneurs default to caution, particularly in a country like Canada where risk aversion runs deep. A KPMG study found Canadians rank among the lowest globally in trust and training in AI. Though that finding is tech-specific, it reflects broader hesitancy to explore the unknown, including new markets and models.

Even when growth occurs, many entrepreneurs don’t recognize it. Janine Harris, who runs a Toronto-based video production company, realized her company was operating nationally, yet she still thought of it as local. “I was thinking we’re a Toronto company, but we’re not. I don’t have the provincial boundaries I used to have, but I’m not taking advantage of it.” Harris had previously expanded by seizing opportunities as they arose, rather than setting an intentional growth strategy.

Janine’s story shows that when growth goes unrecognized, it’s often underused. Without aligning mindset with operations and strategy, opportunities slip away.

Others face external perception barriers. Nancy De Santis, who leads a Montreal-based global IT recruitment firm, finds clients assume she only understands the Quebec market. To counter this, she considered opening a second office in Ontario to signal legitimacy.

This highlights another dimension of mindset: how entrepreneurs think they are perceived. Assumptions based on geography, size, or sector can be as limiting as internal doubt. The result is that entrepreneurs spend time and money proving their capacity instead of building on it.

Mindset also shapes how success is defined. Monica Chang, a B.C.-based executive coach, chooses not to scale in the traditional sense. She works as a solopreneur, collaborating with contractors as needed. This choice is strategic and ambitious, prioritizing impact and autonomy over headcount.

Different business models require different supports and contribute uniquely to the economy. Recognizing this diversity is key to designing better policies and programs.

The knowledge gap: When growth feels out of reach

Even when entrepreneurs are ready to grow, the next challenge is deceptively simple: where to start.

The most common question we heard wasn’t about confusion over trade agreements or tax rules. It was: “How do I take the first step?”

Harris put it bluntly, “Once I think, ‘Okay, I can do this’, then it’s ‘Where the hell do I start?’” Tax rates and billing in Canadian dollars are manageable, she notes. The hurdle is finding and connecting with clients in new regions.

The issue spans sectors. Chang’s growth strategy follows her network, which is why she’s expanding in the U.S., where her relationships are strongest. Her approach is relational, not regional.

This exposes a blind spot in most support systems. Many programs focus on compliance, but entrepreneurs need help with outreach, trust-building, and marketing. They need guidance that covers the “what,” “who,” and “how.”

Support systems exist, but access and impact vary widely. Entrepreneurs like Eden Spodek of Spodek & Co. credit WBE Canada and The Forum as critical growth drivers. Charmaine Hammond, a seasoned corporate trainer, leans on associations and networks for referrals and market insights.

Many business owners are unaware that Canada is the only G7 country with free trade agreements with all other G7 members, or that supports like the Trade Accelerator Program (TAP) and CanExport can help them enter new markets abroad. If international barriers have been lowered and companies still aren’t looking overseas, will eliminating interprovincial barriers at home have the intended effect?

Moreover, business owners say that support programs are often competitive and difficult to navigate. As Chang notes, mentorship programs are so competitive they feel like winning the lottery.

These gaps erode strategy and confidence. Without clear pathways, capable entrepreneurs delay or abandon expansion plans because the process feels overwhelming or inaccessible.

The entrepreneur’s career: Investing in the person behind the business

Entrepreneurship is a career. Like any career, it requires planning and support. Yet most programs focus on operations or financing, overlooking leadership and career development.

Hammond models a long-term entrepreneurial approach. Over nearly 30 years, she’s built systems, partnerships, and leadership practices that allow her business to grow with intention. She uses a “bullseye” framework to align new ideas with goals and turns each client engagement into future opportunity. She treats every interaction as a learning moment, maintaining connections through job changes, attending conferences, and collaborating with other SMEs on contracts.

Such maturity doesn’t happen by accident. It comes from investing in yourself. Entrepreneurs at every stage need tailored support:

• Early-stage founders benefit from coaching, networking, and confidence-building.
• Growth-stage entrepreneurs may need to reinvent their business models, engage in long-term planning, or develop staff.
• Mature-stage business owners may focus on succession planning, systematizing operations, or redefining purpose.

Support also means acknowledging the emotional demands of entrepreneurship. Many business owners lack formal reviews, peer feedback, or professional development planning. Creating space for reflection, mentorship, and skill-building isn’t a luxury—it’s essential.

What unites all these stories is the need to treat entrepreneurship as a career journey, not a fixed or temporary state. To grow businesses, we need to grow the people who lead them.

A more sustainable path to growth

Interprovincial trade reform is a smart move, but investments in international trade have shown it won’t be enough. Sustainable growth requires investing in something less visible: the entrepreneurs and small business owners driving the economy.

What holds them back isn’t paperwork. It’s uncertainty, isolation, and mindset. Real growth accelerates when we stop treating entrepreneurship as purely economic and start treating it as deeply human:

• Address the mindset gap by helping entrepreneurs recognize their potential.
• Close the knowledge gap with clear, accessible support tailored to career stage.
• Invest in entrepreneurial careers as seriously as in other sectors and professions.

As Lisa Taylor observes, capacity for risk and innovation doesn’t just appear. It’s built through strategic planning, continuous learning, and a willingness to grow as a leader. This is how experimentation becomes possible, and how calculated risks turn into competitive advantage.

If we want Canada’s economy to thrive within and beyond our borders, we need to support the people doing the work to build it. Equipped with the mindset, tools, and confidence to lead through uncertainty, entrepreneurs don’t just expand. They transform.

Let’s stop only asking what policies should change, and start asking: What are we doing to invest in the careers of Canada’s entrepreneurs?