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Source verified July 27, 2026
True North
Recognition and cash support for Canadian small businesses
Latest source updateLast Update: April 26, 2026Latest change: The grant content now includes the official contest rules, with clearer eligibility language and updated judging and announcement dates.View change
Latest source update
Last Update: April 26, 2026
Latest change: The grant content now includes the official contest rules, with clearer eligibility language and updated judging and announcement dates.
True North grant rules and dates updated
The True North Small Business Grant content now adds the official 2025 contest rules and expands the program details shown on the page. The updated material clarifies who can enter, how the contest period is structured, and shifts the judging and notification window to later dates, including a public announcement window from March 25 to March 31, 2026. The overall funding amounts remain the same, but the process and eligibility language are more detailed than before.
Funding available
$ 25,000
Deadline
November 5, 2025
Opened September 10, 2025
Location
Canada
Who can apply
Canadian small businesses that are legally licensed or registered to operate in Canada.
See full eligibility
Overview
The Purolator True North Small Business Grant Contest offers five prizes of $25,000 in cash plus $500 in shipping credits to eligible Canadian small businesses. It supports business growth through improved operations, new market opportunities, and greater brand visibility in communities across Canada.
Find open grants for your business
Explore open funding programs that match your business and project.
At a glance
Funding available
Financing goals
- Increase social or community impact
Eligible Funding
- Maximum amount : 25,000 $
- Minimum amount : 25,000 $
Funds Providers
Eligible candidates
Eligible Industries
- All industries
Location
- Canada
Legal structures
- For-profit business
Annual revenue
- All revenue ranges
Organisation size
- 50 employees maximum
Audience
- Canadians
Next Steps
1
Determine your project
2
Validate your eligibility
Activities funded
- Initiatives by Canadian small businesses that strengthen their local communities.
- Projects that demonstrate innovation, entrepreneurship, and support Canadian values.
- Programs or activities that contribute to the well-being of Canadians at local, national, or international levels.
- Efforts that help make a positive impact on teams, customers, or community members.
Official resources
Eligibility
Who is eligible?
- Canadian small businesses that are legally licensed or registered to operate in Canada.
- Small business owners or founders may self-nominate their own business.
- Legal residents of Canada who have reached the age of majority in their Province or Territory of residence may nominate.
- Employees, customers, partners, vendors, Purolator Employees, and other general supporters of an eligible nominated small business may nominate.
Who is not eligible
- Directors or executives of Purolator cannot submit a nomination.
- Employees of Purolator’s advertising, promotion and fulfillment agencies involved in the development or execution of the Contest cannot submit a nomination.
- Persons or entities involved in administering or judging the Contest cannot submit a nomination.
- Persons domiciled with, or immediately related to, the excluded nominator groups cannot submit a nomination.
- A Grant Nominee is ineligible if its employees, or its owners, founders, or main investors, are part of the excluded Sponsor or Contest-administration groups; owners, founders, or main investors are also ineligible if they are domiciled with or immediately related to those groups.
Eligible expenses
- Cash prize of $25,000, which recipients are free to use in any way that legally benefits their business.
- $500 in Purolator shipping credits for Grant Prize recipients.
Eligible geographic areas
- Canada
Selection criteria
- Quality of Content: 35%
- Impact, Business Model and Values: 60%
- Community Support: 5%
- A minimum of thirty-three top-scoring entries advance to Phase 2, and up to twelve top candidates advance to Phase 3.
- In Phase 3, the five candidates with the highest combined scores are selected, with ties decided by judge vote.
How to apply
- Access the Contest Website through a Purolator email invitation, the contest landing page, or a Purolator advertisement or social media link.
- Complete the online nomination with the nominator’s information and a written submission describing the small business.
- Include short written responses on how the small business makes Canada stronger and why the small business should receive a grant.
- Submit a complete and unique nomination entry online; each nomination must be separate and for a different small business.
- Submit no more than five entries per person by 11:59:59 PM ET on November 5, 2025.
Processing and Agreement
- All entries are subject to verification, and Purolator may require proof of identity and/or eligibility within three business days.
- Eligible submissions are evaluated in three phases, starting with Phase 1 pre-screening by AI software, a third party agency team, and the Sponsor.
- A minimum of thirty-three top submissions advance to Phase 2, where nominated businesses are contacted to confirm participation and provide supplementary material.
- Potential winners must confirm eligibility and return a Declaration and Release within five business days of the initial contact date; Nomination Prize winners must also correctly answer a mathematical skill-testing question.
- After all requirements are met, final winners are contacted to arrange prize delivery, and the $25,000 cash and $500 shipping credits are delivered to Grant Prize winners by April 30, 2026.
Additional information
- No purchase is necessary to enter or win.
- Submissions become the property of Purolator.
- Entrants grant Purolator a non-exclusive perpetual license to publish, display, reproduce, modify, edit, or otherwise use submitted materials for promotion or other purposes.
- The contest is governed by the laws of the Province of Ontario and the federal laws of Canada applicable therein.
Contacts
Frequently Asked Questions about the True North Program
What is the True North?
The Purolator True North Small Business Grant Contest offers five prizes of $25,000 in cash plus $500 in shipping credits to eligible Canadian small businesses. It supports business growth through improved operations, new market opportunities, and greater brand visibility in communities across Canada.
How much funding can be received?
True North Funds up to $25,000 of admissible expenses.
What is the deadline to apply?
The application deadline for this grant program was November 5, 2025.
Who is eligible for the True North program?
To be eligible for the True North program, you must:
The small business must be based in Canada and legally licensed or registered to operate in Canada.
The small business must have 50 employees or less.
The small business must remain in good financial standing throughout the Contest Period, including winner announcement.
What expenses are eligible under True North?
Initiatives by Canadian small businesses that strengthen their local communities.
Projects that demonstrate innovation, entrepreneurship, and support Canadian values.
Programs or activities that contribute to the well-being of Canadians at local, national, or international levels.
Efforts that help make a positive impact on teams, customers, or community members.
Who can I contact for more information about the True North?
You can contact Purolator Inc. by email at support@purolator.com or by phone at 1 888 SHIP-123.
Where is the True North available?
The True North program is available across Canada.