Richmond Hill Celebrates Young Entrepreneurs

Larry Li Receives 2022 William F. Bell Young Entrepreneur Award

RICHMOND HILL – At today’s Richmond Hill Council meeting, Mayor and Members of Council were joined by the family of former Mayor William Bell to present this year’s William F. Bell Young Entrepreneur Award to Larry Li. 

The 16-year-old Richmond Hill resident is the successful owner of a lawn mowing company fittingly called “Larry’s Lawn Mowing Service”. Li wanted to provide service to his community while getting other students involved with the company. He decided to launch a cost-effective and customer-focused lawn mowing service for homeowners. He initially ran into operational hurdles, but with support from Richmond Hill’s Small Business Enterprise Centre and his own determination and perseverance, he managed to grow and hire 11 student service agents. Together, they performed 30 lawn-mowing jobs in Richmond Hill and other parts of the GTA. 

The William F. Bell Young Entrepreneur Award recognizes successful young entrepreneurs like Li who take part in Summer Company, a program helping students ages 15-29 learn how to run their own business. Li was one of 10 young Richmond Hill entrepreneurs who grew their business by participating in this year’s program. Other participants included: 

• Joanna Cui (16) – Meilee Jewelry produces and sells hand-make themed beaded jewelry (k-pop and anime themed).
• Serena Hao (16) – Shop Cryptid Clothing is an apparel store selling hand-painted designs, focusing on graphic tees and tank tops. It runs mainly online with small popups at local/regional flea markets.
• Raman Hosseini (20) – Spotless Cars is a mobile car detailing service offering full interior detail and paint correction.
• Derek Hu (20) – Valor Six Studios is an online art/entertainment business working with clients to create 3d art.
• Ian Korovinsky (17) – Floato serves the real estate market by taking drone photos and videos.
• Lily Li (18) – Coffee’s Crochets sells handmade crochet goods directed toward figure skaters, including headbands, skating soft guards and leg warmers.
• Fahim Uddin (23) – Dolphin Auto Detailing offers remote auto detailing, cleaning the exterior and interior of vehicles.
• Simon Yu (17) – Epic Bikes helps convert regular bikes into affordable e-bikes. The company orders kits, battery cells and frames and assembles them for clients.
• Samuel Zhang (16) – iCodeTutor provides computer science tutoring services to students online via Zoom or in-person at the student’s home.

Congratulations to this year’s Summer Company participants who demonstrated how to turn individual talents into creative and innovative businesses. 

Quotes

“It never fails to amaze me the number of young aspiring entrepreneurs we have in our city! Over just a few months, we have watched this dedicated group develop their businesses and gain important life skills, all the while giving back to their community. This year’s award recipient, Larry Li, showed us how passion and hard work could bring a dream of running his own business to reality. Congratulations to all participants on your success!”
- David West, Mayor

“The Summer Company program provided me with an amazing platform to explore entrepreneurship and running a small business. Not only did I learn important skills such as communication, advertising and consistency in running a business, I also had a chance to meet great customers and help benefit local communities and youth; I hope to apply these beneficial and useful skills in the future."
- Larry Li, Richmond Hill’s 2022 Young Entrepreneur award recipient

Quick Facts

• The William F. Bell Young Entrepreneur Award is named in honour of Mayor Bell who served Richmond Hill for 26 years, including six terms as Mayor.
• In 2006, the City introduced the William F. Bell Young Entrepreneur Award to recognize successful young entrepreneurs taking part in the Ontario Summer Company program.
• Funded through the Ontario government’s Summer Company program, students receive up to $3,000 each in start-up funding along with comprehensive online business training and mentoring coordinated through Richmond Hill’s Small Business Enterprise Centre.
• Since launching in 2004, Richmond Hill’s Summer Company program has provided more than 160 local young entrepreneurs with foundational support to start and grow a business.  

Additional Links

• RichmondHill.ca/SBEC
• RichmondHill.ca/HelpforBusinesses