A free Greyforge program
Summer 2026 at TH3RDSPACE, Toronto
Built By Us
Market
A free five-session program that took Toronto youth ages 15 to 29 from a first idea to market ready, building the skills and confidence to launch something of their own.
Sign-ups are closed. This cohort ran July 5 to August 2, 2026.
The five-Sunday journey
How 20 young entrepreneurs went from a spark of an idea to market ready.
The Idea
Finding a product or business idea and who it's for.
Brand & Marketing
Building a brand and a real plan to reach people.
The Money
Pricing, budgeting, and making the numbers add up.
Soft Skills & Confidence
Leadership, pitching, and showing up as yourself.
Market Ready
Final prep: product, pitch, and pricing, ready for market.
Who we are
Built by us,
for real
Four of us started Built By Us Market with a $17,000 Identify 'N Impact grant from the City of Toronto. We designed and ran every part of it ourselves: recruiting youth through community partners, reviewing proposals one-on-one, connecting participants with local mentors, and putting $500 of seed funding behind each one.
- $17K
- Identify 'N Impact grant
- 20
- youth, through 3 community partners
- $500
- seed funding per participant
Mohamed Ali
Co-Founder & Director
Project lead and operations
Parsa Farrokhian
Co-Founder & Director
Impact and accessibility coordinator
Arian Khademi
Co-facilitator
Finance and trustee coordinator
Arshia Zahmat Baran
Co-facilitator
Community outreach and recruitment
Our core staff supported coordination, outreach, logistics, and partner engagement across the program from February to August 2026.
Everyone
left with
- A developed product or business idea
- Pricing and budgeting they can use
- A brand and marketing plan they built themselves
- Confidence, communication, and leadership skills
- A community of young entrepreneurs
- A product that's ready to take to market
Quick
questions
- Did it cost anything?
- No. The program was completely free, and support was available for transit and accessibility needs.
- Did participants need business experience?
- Not at all. The program was built for beginners and early-stage builders alike.
- Is it running again?
- Not right now. Sign-ups for the summer 2026 cohort are closed. Follow @builtbyusmarket on Instagram or email us, and we'll let you know if a new round opens.
- Where was it held?
- TH3RDSPACE at 26 Soho St, Toronto, ON, near Queen St W and Spadina, steps from the 501 Queen and 510 Spadina streetcars.
Program complete
That's a wrap on
summer 2026
Five Sundays at TH3RDSPACE took 20 young entrepreneurs from a first idea to a final showcase, where they presented what they built. Thank you to everyone who took part, and to the community partners and mentors who showed up for them.
Sign-ups are closed. Follow along for what's next.