I call this meeting to order.
Welcome to meeting number 28 of the House of Commons Standing Committee on Veterans Affairs. Pursuant to the Standing Orders and the motion adopted by the committee on Thursday, September 18, 2025, the committee is meeting on its study of barriers to entrepreneurship among veterans.
Today's meeting is taking place in a hybrid format. Pursuant to the Standing Orders, members are attending in person in the room and remotely using the Zoom application.
Before we continue, I would ask all in-person participants to consult the guidelines written on the cards on the table. These measures are in place to help prevent audio and feedback incidents and to protect the health and safety of all participants, including the interpreters.
I would like to make a few comments for the benefit of the witnesses and our members.
Please wait until I recognize you by name before speaking. For those participating by video conference—and I know there are a few of you this morning—click on the microphone icon to activate your mic, and please mute yourself when you are not speaking. For those on Zoom, at the bottom of your screen you can select the appropriate channel for interpretation: floor, English or French. For those in the room, you can use the earpiece and select the desired channel. As a reminder, all comments should be addressed through the chair.
For members in the room, please raise your hand if you wish to speak. For members participating via Zoom, please use the “raise hand” function. The committee clerk and I will manage the speaking order as best we can. We appreciate your patience and understanding in this regard.
I would like to welcome back our members.
It's good to see you again this morning.
I would now like to welcome our first panel of witnesses. From Alberta Recoil Inc., we have Heather Vanderveer, owner. It's a pleasure, ma'am, to see you here. From Corporal4Life Apparel, we have Nicholas Stroesser, founder, by video conference. From Vimy Forge, we have Duncan McSporran, managing director, also by video conference. Thank you all for joining us today.
You will each have five minutes to give your opening remarks. We will then have a series of questions from members of the committee.
For those who are online, please note that after five minutes, I will have to interrupt you, as I will throughout the questions if members extend beyond their allocated time. I am the gatekeeper of our clock, so I apologize in advance if I have to interrupt you. We'll try to stay within those time frames.
I will now invite Mr. Nicholas Stroesser, founder of Corporal4Life Apparel, to take his five minutes.