In Her Words- Banyk Chia
January 24, 2022
As part of the "In Her Words" series which features stories of women entrepreneurs across Canada, Leading Lenders is proud to highlight Banyk Chia, owner of ALSF. Alternative Legal Service Firm. We invite you to click on the following link to learn more about Ms. Chia and her business: https://www.alsfi.com/
Ms. Chia generously agreed to share her story with the Leading Lenders' team by answering a few questions:
Can you tell us a bit more about your personal journey as an entrepreneur? For example, what motivated you to become an entrepreneur?
I arrived in Canada in 2014 with a background as a lawyer. At first, I struggled to find my place in the legal system, trying to find work to no avail. I then started volunteering in law firms and in court. After gaining experience in court, I realize that I could sell legal services, but as a legal agent in Alberta. In 2018, still passionate about law and at the time unemployed, I decided to embark on my entrepreneurial journey.
Can you give us a brief overview of your business and the story behind it?
Our company is called ALSF. ALTERNATIVE LEGAL SERVICES FIRM. We incorporated our company in January 2018, so we have been operating for more than three years. We are a bilingual (French and English) firm providing assistance with self-representation, legal drafting, family mediation and commissioning of oaths. We represent as legal agents before the Alberta Provincial Court, the Alberta Human Rights Commission, the Workers' Compensation Board of Alberta and the Appeals Commission for Alberta Workers' Compensation. We are affiliated with Express Lane Immigration, a company owned by Mr. Sorell Sonara, a licensed and professional Canadian Immigration Consultant (R525946). Our immigration consultant serves clients in Alberta and around the world.
You mentioned that your experiences with business financing have been generally negative. Can you tell us a bit more about the barriers you faced during the funding process and how you managed, if so, to overcome them?
At the beginning of the creation of my business, I wanted, like any entrepreneur, to obtain financing but I did not get it. My beginnings as an entrepreneur were very difficult, although I refused to give up.
What could or should have been done by lenders/financial institutions to help make your financing experience more positive?
To consider much more the reliability of my business project. They will generally say that the projects are unreliable or that the entrepreneur does not have a good credit score. But they tend to forget to be less strict on credit score.
Do you have any advice for women entrepreneurs looking to access business financing so that they can have better experiences?
I would tell a women entrepreneur to always reassure herself that she has a good credit score and never give up looking for financing. If it doesn't work with one bank, it will eventually work with another.
Ms. Chia generously agreed to share her story with the Leading Lenders' team by answering a few questions:
Can you tell us a bit more about your personal journey as an entrepreneur? For example, what motivated you to become an entrepreneur?
I arrived in Canada in 2014 with a background as a lawyer. At first, I struggled to find my place in the legal system, trying to find work to no avail. I then started volunteering in law firms and in court. After gaining experience in court, I realize that I could sell legal services, but as a legal agent in Alberta. In 2018, still passionate about law and at the time unemployed, I decided to embark on my entrepreneurial journey.
Can you give us a brief overview of your business and the story behind it?
Our company is called ALSF. ALTERNATIVE LEGAL SERVICES FIRM. We incorporated our company in January 2018, so we have been operating for more than three years. We are a bilingual (French and English) firm providing assistance with self-representation, legal drafting, family mediation and commissioning of oaths. We represent as legal agents before the Alberta Provincial Court, the Alberta Human Rights Commission, the Workers' Compensation Board of Alberta and the Appeals Commission for Alberta Workers' Compensation. We are affiliated with Express Lane Immigration, a company owned by Mr. Sorell Sonara, a licensed and professional Canadian Immigration Consultant (R525946). Our immigration consultant serves clients in Alberta and around the world.
You mentioned that your experiences with business financing have been generally negative. Can you tell us a bit more about the barriers you faced during the funding process and how you managed, if so, to overcome them?
At the beginning of the creation of my business, I wanted, like any entrepreneur, to obtain financing but I did not get it. My beginnings as an entrepreneur were very difficult, although I refused to give up.
What could or should have been done by lenders/financial institutions to help make your financing experience more positive?
To consider much more the reliability of my business project. They will generally say that the projects are unreliable or that the entrepreneur does not have a good credit score. But they tend to forget to be less strict on credit score.
Do you have any advice for women entrepreneurs looking to access business financing so that they can have better experiences?
I would tell a women entrepreneur to always reassure herself that she has a good credit score and never give up looking for financing. If it doesn't work with one bank, it will eventually work with another.
Share:
