Equifruit president honored for leadership, voice for equality
Equifruit President Jennie Coleman has been honored with the prestigious RBC Momentum Award. The award ceremony, a celebration of Canada's most accomplished women entrepreneurs, recognized Coleman's outstanding leadership and driver of Equifruit's success.
The RBC Canadian Women Entrepreneur Awards, a premier national program, has been highlighting the achievements of women driving economic growth and social change for over three decades. In 2023, 11,000 women entrepreneurs were nominated, and Coleman's recognition is a testament to her ability to lead through expanded management, empowered employees, and demonstrated excellence, resulting in a business that has stayed true to its mission of Global Fairtrade Banana Domination since day one.
The Equifruit team has made remarkable progress toward their goals. For the past two years, they have been recognized by The Globe and Mail’s Report on Business Magazine as one of Canada's Top Growing Companies with over 200 percent growth in three years.
Coleman’s acceptance speech was imbued with trademark Equifruit humor: “Last year, I was a finalist for a different award — which fortunately, I didn’t win. Fortunate, because on my way to the event, I rose from my seat in the metro and my dress split right across my #bananabadass. But since then, I’ve had time to reflect on this as a metaphor for entrepreneurship — that often, from the front, we’re all smiles and competence, while behind the scenes, “ça pète de partout” (‘everything is chaos’)! Here’s to carrying on, despite the chaos, to building amazing women-led businesses!”
In addition to the RBC Momentum Award, Coleman was recognized last week with the OPMA's Women's Produce Network Award, celebrating her outstanding contributions to the voice of women in the still heavily male-dominated produce industry.
“As one of the few female business owners in produce, Jennie has emerged as a champion for women in the industry. With an impressive collection of women's awards under her belt, we've introduced a dedicated 'Lady Boss' category on our website," said Kim Chackal, sales and marketing director at Equifruit.
Equifruit celebrates Coleman's achievements and looks forward to continued success under her leadership. The company remains dedicated to its Fairtrade mission and creating a sustainable impact that will fundamentally change our industry's relationship with banana growers.
