I'm Mandy Gilbert, the company's founder & CEO, a mother of two young boys, wife, sister to six siblings and 'boss' to 14 professionals. I was born in Canada, raised in the U.S. and have resided in Toronto for 17 years.  

I'm the type of person that takes risks (and gets a lot of energy from it), enjoys life and is supportive, loving, determined and stubborn – in no particular order.  My top aspirations for life include: raising loving, compassionate, confident, and well-rounded children that contribute and touch lives; having a healthy and loving relationship with my husband, family and friends; laughing a lot; writing a screenplay; and continuing to do what I love, being an entrepreneur.

Facing such realities as being raised by a single mother in a new city and country, and being moved around from school to school with a limited household income, I was a bit of a misfit.  While I was living it, I didn't particularly think it was a positive experience. In retrospect, it just ended up being the best thing that happened to me.  I was taught how to win people over, cherish relationships, make lemonade out of lemons, stand proud, work hard and embrace the idea that opportunities and happiness will not knock on your door. You're in the driver's seat, success is your responsibility. 

Having worked with two international staffing companies and been responsible for a multimillion-dollar start-up—all over a four-year period—I decided to take a risk and go out on my own.  I was 27 years old and without an established credit history, I managed to convince my bank manager to loan me $8,000 so I could “upgrade my furniture”.  The very next week, I walked into my 150 SQ FT office in the heart of the advertising community in downtown Toronto with my 100 pieces of letterhead, business cards and an iMac. Needless to say, my life has never been the same.  

Today, Creative Niche is Canada's largest recruitment firm that specializes in marketing communications, advertising, social media, creative and digital placements on a freelance, contract and full-time basis.  We have worked with more than 400 Canadian businesses and represent more than 5,000 professionals.  Today, we employ 14 professionals and have two offices, Toronto (HQ) and Ottawa. In the second quarter of 2011, we'll be expanding into Europe with an office in Amsterdam.

As an active member of Entrepreneurs' Organization, Women's Presidents Organization and The Strategic Coach—coupled with my eight years of experience as an entrepreneur—I thought blogging would provide a great platform to share my thoughts and experiences with you.  I hope you find my posts valuable. I'll be covering a range of topics, starting with leadership. Stay tuned for my next post, outlining reasons why I recently worked to transform my leadership style. 

Thanks for your interest in my story and Creative Niche,

Mandy