Everyone needs electricity and natural gas. Chris Cann saw an opportunity in that everyday necessity to build a business with a greater purpose. As the founder of Q-TILITIES, a Calgary-based energy provider, Cann is transforming ordinary utility bills into a way to support and reinvest in Alberta’s LGBTQ+ community.
“I started Q-TILITIES because I was looking for a way to build a business that supported the queer and trans community in Alberta,” Cann said.
The idea came from Cann’s experience in social services and witnessing the daily challenges these organizations face when supporting marginalized groups, like LGBTQ+. He wanted to find a unique, meaningful way to contribute to the community.
“We’re hearing stories of organizations losing funding and having to close programs or close down entirely,” Cann said. “These programs are essential to the survival and thriving of queer and trans folks in Alberta.”
Profits dedicated to helping others
In Cann’s view, this problem needed a new solution. He didn’t wish to depend only on contributions or grants but rather to establish a company that would provide long-term funding.
“You need your electricity. You need your gas. You have to pay that bill whether you want to or not, so it’s not going away,” Cann said.
Cann said all the company’s operating expenses include licensing, marketing, and accounting. He takes no salary from his work, and he dedicates any profits he makes to helping others.
“When I say 100 per cent of profits, I mean 100 per cent of profits are going back into the community,” Cann said.
Cann hopes Q-TILITIES will contribute at least $100,000 within the next five-years and become a recognizable energy supplier across Alberta. At the same time, he wants growth to be intentional—attracting clients who believe in the mission, not just those looking for cheaper rates.
“It’s easy to give money and just wipe your hands and walk away,” Cann said, “but I don’t think that we create change and build authentic and trusting relationships with the community by just sitting on the sidelines and putting money in.”
A new way for businesses to contribute to the province
The executive director of the Alberta 2SLGBTQI+ Chamber of Commerce, Elli McDine, is among those who see potential in Q-TILITIES. The Chamber is one of the company’s referral partners, connecting it with businesses and people who may be interested in its services. McDine liked the idea of reinvesting the money into programs and initiatives that support the queer community.
“I love their model, the idea of a social enterprise where that money goes into my community to support the very not-for-profits and initiatives that help my people thrive,” McDine said.
She said the company keeps its prices low and has been good to work with, and sees the model as a new way for businesses to contribute to the province.
“I think they’re going to be huge in the province,” McDine said.“That kind of a model is exactly the sort of thing that we need to be thinking about to imagine a different kind of future here in Alberta.”
A different kind of future for queer and trans business owners in Alberta
McDine said queer people in Alberta face what she calls a constant “tax”—the burden of uncertainty, particularly for trans people. While the province’s recent laws are more so directed at transgender youth. McDine notes the political climate weighs on queer and trans entrepreneurs too. She questions how visible they can afford to be and worries whether displaying a pride or transgender pride flag could cost them customers.
“What the province is really saying is, ‘We want to limit what you think is possible in life or what thriving can look like for you here in Alberta,’” McDine said.
“I want my community to thrive.”
Elli McDine
She wants queer and trans people to have the opportunity to build businesses, establish networks and create spaces where they don’t have to change how they present themselves to fit traditional expectations. “I want my community to thrive,” McDine said.
McDine hopes to see a network of 1,000 queer businesses connected through the Chamber, with many collaborating alongside Q-TILITIES. Her vision aims to challenge the stereotype that queer and trans people cannot build successful lives and businesses in Alberta.
‘I think it’s really important that we stick together and support one another’
Parker Johnson, who owns a marketing agency that works primarily with non-profits and social enterprises, wasn’t aware Q-TILITIES existed and relied on one of the bigger, more famous energy providers.
“I just never really thought I had a choice,” Johnson said. The more he learned about the company, Johnson realized he could continue purchasing a necessary service while backing a company that gives back.
“In a province like Alberta that’s more conservative than other provinces, I think it’s really important that we stick together and support one another,” Johnson said.
Johnson also noted the customer care he received from Cann, “Any time I’ve ever had a question, I get Chris himself to respond to me,” he said. “I love having the personal connection,” rather than feeling like another account number at a large company, or “having to wait on a chatbot.”
Community support is necessary when public funding does not meet organizations’ needs
Calgary real estate agent, Jessica Comeau, also switched energy providers to support the business. She has a professional connection to Q-TILITIES, including an arrangement that offers her clients a discount on administrative fees when they sign up.
“Chris is one of my best friends, so it was obviously a no-brainer to support a friend,” Comeau said, while also praising Q-TILITIES for its community outreach..
“Being able to pay very comparable rates when it comes to utilities and knowing that your money’s going to help the community, it’s a win-win situation,” Comeau said, adding that community support is necessary when public funding does not meet organizations’ needs.
A positive initiative within the system that currently exists
Victoria Bucholtz, a community advocate, also sees value in the initiative, particularly because it combines business development with community support. She described Q-TILITIES as a step forward for queer businesses operating in industries where they may not have traditionally been represented. She noted that queer and trans organizations often run on inadequate funding, with community contributions as an essential component.
“I thought that it was an amazing step forward to support the community while also building more queer businesses in our community,” Bucholtz said, adding that she didn’t think “ethical consumption,” was something you could have under the umbrella of capitalism.
Bucholtz does not believe essential services should be privately sold in the first place, arguing that utilities should be publicly owned. Still, she considers Q-TILITIES a positive initiative within the system that currently exists, “ I think that this is a fabulous step forward,” she said.
For Bucholtz, a company’s true value isn’t only in switching providers. She argues that LGBTQ+ organizations operate without the necessary funds, so community support is essential.“Funding sources are significantly drying up as the government is no longer supporting in the way that they once did,” she said.
An attempt to turn an everyday necessity into a lasting investment
For Cann, the answer started with building a business that can contribute consistently while developing genuine relationships with the people. His ambition is not simply to compete in the energy market.
For him, Q-TILITIES is an attempt to turn an everyday necessity into a lasting investment in the people and organizations that help the LGBTQ+ community survive and thrive.
“It was never for me to make myself rich. It was to build a company that can support queer and trans communities in Alberta. That was it. That’s what it’s about. And if I can’t do that, then I don’t see a point in running this business,” said Cann.
Editor’s note: This story originated as part of a Mount Royal University community service learning course with partner Q-TILITIES. The reporter retained complete editorial control over this story.