0:00
It may sound strange and a bit cheesy. But I wrote all of you a letter. I wrote a letter to all of the entrepreneurs who are watching today. So here it goes. [MUSIC PLAYING] I've spent my life admiring entrepreneurs, entrepreneurs who have built massive companies and big businesses, but also entrepreneurs that have built small businesses that had a ton of meaning. My grandfather became an entrepreneur in the 50s as a new immigrant to Canada.
0:26
His reason for doing so was survival. When my grandmother turned 60 years old, she became an entrepreneur for self-reliance. And my moment-- well, that came in 2001 when I started supporting myself as a student. And my reason for becoming an entrepreneur was equal parts passion and necessity. I've always felt that entrepreneurship is this profound way to build something of great value.
0:52
And when things are rough like they are right now, it's a way to survive and maybe even thrive. Some have accused me of being entrepreneur-obsessed, and maybe that's true. It's been about a decade since I joined this scrappy little startup called Shopify, and committed my entire life to helping entrepreneurs and small businesses all over the world. I remember my first few weeks of joining Shopify.
1:17
We only had about a couple of thousand merchants at the time. And I remember thinking, one day we may even help our one millionth merchant. [CROWD CHEERING] Well, a few months ago, that actually happened. Our entire company at Shopify exists for one reason-- to make commerce better for everyone. There are so many wonderful things about starting a business, about becoming an entrepreneur.
1:42
But there is one major downside, and that is that it can be very lonely, and it can be isolating. Enter all of you, all of us. We're each on our own journeys in our own corners of the world, seeking our own versions of success and our own versions of independence. Right now, we may be physically distant, but we are not alone. Together, we are the strongest collective of entrepreneurs on the planet.
2:12
Community over everything. Many of you have heard me say that we want to arm the rebels. We want to make sure that entrepreneurs have everything they need, everything you need to succeed. This was our objective from the start. And it's more important now than ever before. We've been throwing a challenge-- all of us, unlike anything we've ever seen before.
2:36
But we've shown that it won't break us. We are not fragile. We are resilient. And it's time for us to step up, to reach out, to build, and work, and push. This is our moment right now, right fucking now. So to our merchants, to our partners, and to anyone who's ever bought anything from a Shopify store, we say to you, thank you. The future of commerce is here.
3:01
and we are that future together.
