Insuring Your Success

In this episode of Insuring Your Success, host Bram Bains sits down with Michael Vickers — Executive Director of Brampton Arts Organization (BAO) and accomplished artist with a career that has spanned New York's most prestigious galleries, international exhibitions, and in a film that premiered at Sundance. Michael grew up across three countries — the United States, the UK, and Canada — and always knew he was an artist. At seventeen he received his first grant. He went on to work at Pace Gallery, MoMA PS1, and Deitch Projects in New York before eventually making his way to Brampton — where he's spent the last five years building one of the city's most important cultural institutions. In this conversation, Bram and Michael talk about: Michael's upbringing as a creative across the US, UK, and Canada The high school art teacher who told him there was no money in art — and what he did with that advice Working inside New York's most elite art spaces and what he learned from the other side of the desk Why every dollar invested in arts and culture generates $29 of economic impact Why the average arts and culture visitor spends three times more than a sports tourist The Brampton Film Showcase — from 30 people at the BEC to 800 at the Rose Theatre What BAO offers artists in Brampton — all completely free How to think about creativity as a CEO mindset, not just a passion What it means to be a painter becoming a sculptor — and what that says about all the roles we play in life About Brampton Arts Organization (BAO): BAO is Brampton's arts development organization — supporting artists at every level through funding, professional development, mentorship, exhibition opportunities, open studios, and sector building. Everything is free and open to everyone. Instagram: @baobrampton Website: bramptonartsorg.ca Open Studios: Last Wednesday of every month — free art supplies, food, networking Power Hour: Monthly lunch and learn for artists Brampton Film Showcase: Annual event growing every year Guest: Michael Vickers — Executive Director, Brampton Arts Organization Host: Bram Bains — Maverick Insurance Brokers | Maverick Communications | @insuringyoursuccess 🦁 About Insuring Your Success Insuring Your Success is a platform created to spotlight real success stories and share wisdom that plants seeds — helping elevate the entrepreneurs, creators, and professionals who make our communities stronger. 🤝 Partner With Us We're actively seeking partners and sponsors who believe in the power of storytelling to inspire growth and impact. If you'd like to collaborate, sponsor an episode, or explore creative partnerships — we'd love to hear from you. 📩 Contact:  [email protected]

In this episode of Insuring Your Success, host Bram Bains sits down with Prince Khan — Supervisor at the Brampton Entrepreneur Centre (BEC) and entrepreneurship lecturer at Guelph-Humber College and Algonquin College. Bram walked into the BEC unannounced one afternoon, introduced himself to the front desk team, got handed a business card, and a few weeks later was sitting across from Prince for this conversation. After the recording, Prince gave Bram a tour of Brampton's innovation district — and what he saw confirmed it: this city is committed to the entrepreneurs of tomorrow. In this conversation, Bram and Prince talk about: Prince's personal story — immigrating to Canada in 97 with his family and ten thousand dollars, and finding his calling in entrepreneurship Brampton's explosive business growth — 124,000 businesses and counting, with 10,000 new businesses added every single year The top industries driving Brampton's economy — transportation, professional services, construction, and retail Leadership philosophy — inspired by Simon Sinek and the idea of being the captain of your ship What separates entrepreneurs who succeed from those who don't — adaptability, consistency, and the ability to fail well AI and automation — is it leveling the playing field or creating new barriers for small business? Necessity-driven vs passion-driven entrepreneurship — and how the support looks different for each The four pillars of feasibility analysis every entrepreneur needs to understand Blush Me Up — a success story born inside the BEC The BEC's vision for the next five years and what Brampton looks like at its full potential as an innovation district Guest: Prince Khan — Supervisor, Brampton Entrepreneur Centre | Lecturer, Guelph-Humber College & Algonquin College Host: Bram Bains | Maverick Insurance Brokers | Maverick Communications | @insuringyoursuccess  🏢 About the Brampton Entrepreneur Centre (BEC) The BEC is a free resource for entrepreneurs at every stage — from idea to launch to growth. They offer one-on-one business advisory sessions, workshops, mentorship, networking events, and programming designed for entrepreneurs at every level. Walk in. Introduce yourself. That's literally what Bram did. 🦁 About Insuring Your Success Insuring Your Success is a platform created to spotlight real success stories and share wisdom that plants seeds — helping elevate the entrepreneurs, creators, and professionals who make our communities stronger. 🤝 Partner With Us We're actively seeking partners and sponsors who believe in the power of storytelling to inspire growth and impact. If you'd like to collaborate, sponsor an episode, or explore creative partnerships that align with your brand — we'd love to hear from you. 📩 Contact: [email protected]

In this episode of Insuring Your Success, host Bram Bains takes you to the Toronto East Fitness & Wellness Expo at the Canada Event Centre in Whitby — hosted by Cameron Ward and Ricky Lee, with a vision to bring everything fitness and wellness under one roof. Bram was there alongside The Gratitude Company, with a wall activation in the lobby asking one simple question: what are you grateful for? Before hitting the floor, Bram caught part of a talk on the main stage from Little T Fitness — a content creator with over two million followers — sharing mindset tips and social media wisdom. From there, Bram went raw and unfiltered on the floor with some of the brands and vendors in attendance. In this episode you'll hear from: Little T Fitness — 2M+ follower content creator speaking on mindset and social media Heart of a Champ — Rajan shares the story behind his mental health clothing brand, inspired by DeMar DeRozan's tweet that saved his life Bio X Protein — a Canadian brand with decades in the market, available at Popeye's across Canada Stretch Healer — Rhonda, a 62-year-old model teaching people to listen to their bodies and reverse the aging process Vanguard / Hybrid Training Gym — Josh, running a 10,000 sq ft facility in East York and Ajax, ranked number one in the city Fitness & Wellness Travel — helping individuals and communities create customized wellness experiences worldwide Power Yoga Canada Durham — Kayla on building a studio that is a true home for healing and community Bare Protein — a Canadian-founded, clean protein with just three ingredients. One theme came up in every conversation on that floor: community. Every single person, when asked what they were grateful for, led with health, family, and community. Note: This episode was recorded live at the Toronto East Fitness & Wellness Expo in February 2026. Audio reflects the live show environment — the conversations are real and unfiltered. 🦁 Insuring Your Success is a platform created to spotlight real success stories and share wisdom that plants seeds — helping elevate the entrepreneurs, creators, and professionals who make our communities stronger. 🤝 Partner With Us We're actively seeking partners and sponsors who believe in the power of storytelling to inspire growth and impact. If you'd like to collaborate, sponsor an episode, or explore creative partnerships that align with your brand — we'd love to hear from you. 📩 Contact: [email protected]