Marketing with Meaning: For the people who'd rather build relationships than funnels

Join us for our third gathering of the Saskatoon Social Purpose Network!

You got into purpose-driven work because something mattered to you. And then someone told you to build a content calendar.

For social purpose businesses, marketing and sales can feel like a constant tension between values and oppressive systems. Don’t engage, and no one finds you. Market, and it starts to feel performative. And somewhere underneath all of it is the harder question: how do you sell anything when the world feels like it's on fire?

At our April 28 event, we're sitting with the questions most marketing advice skips. What does it actually look like to build relationships with clients and collaborators without being transactional? How do you talk about your values, your impact, and your story publicly? And how do you keep showing up and selling things you believe in when the global picture feels so much bigger?

This isn't a night to learn tactics, but to listen and learn through real conversation with folks who've had to figure this out for themselves, about what honest, relational, purpose-led marketing actually looks like in practice. 

Join us for a facilitated panel, small group conversation, and networking with like-minded leaders.

Meet the Panelists

Ashley Breland | Breland Counselling & Support
Ashley is a Red River Métis social worker and owner of Breland Counselling & Support, a group practice rooted in care, connection, and community. Her work is guided by an anti-oppressive, anti-colonial lens, exploring how systems shape our relationships, boundaries, and sense of self. She supports people in building more honest, respectful connections — with themselves and with others.

Launne Kolla | Reroute
Launne Kolla is a sustainability advocate and the CEO and co-founder of Reroute, a hassle-free pickup service that collects recycling, hazardous waste, and donations. In its first 18 months, Reroute has diverted over 100,000 pounds from the landfill while supporting 40+ community organizations and helping more than 300 individuals and families access essential goods. A former wildlife and marine biologist with 13 years of field experience, Launne brings a science-driven perspective to practical, everyday sustainability. Through her platform Do More Good, she shares accessible tips that empower people to reduce waste and live more lightly on the planet. She lives in Saskatoon with her husband and three young daughters, where family life is rooted in nature and community.

Peter Garden | Turning the Tide Bookstore
Peter is a settler of British and Scottish descent, born in Regina and rooted in Saskatoon for most of his life. He cut his teeth in the Saskatoon punk community in the early 1990s, where exposure to social and environmental justice issues inspired him to start Turning the Tide Bookstore. He is a father of two, and a triathlon and disc golf enthusiast.

Program

• Reflections from SSPN since our last event

• Spotlight on a community organization (TBC)

• Panel conversation with Launne Kolla, Ashley Breland, and Peter Garden

• Q&A

• Facilitated networking activity

• Updates on opportunities through the network

• Mingle with new and old friends!

Admission by donation, going directly to the community organization spotlighted in our program.

Thanks to Two Twenty / The Common for hosting us, and to Green Tree Beauty / Jennilee Cardinal-Schultz for sponsoring speaker gifts.

Questions? hello@purposenetwork.ca

A note on accessibility and care: This is a mask-friendly event, and some folks attending may be immunocompromised. If you're experiencing any symptoms on the day, we kindly ask that you rest up at home. We'd love to see you at the next one!