Wes Hall of CBC's Dragons' Den releasing memoir, No Bootstraps When You're Barefoot, in fall 2022
Jessica Singer | | Posted: December 13, 2021 7:36 PM | Last Updated: December 16, 2021
The new memoir documents the Canadian businessman's journey climbing the corporate ladder
Canadian businessman and new Dragon on CBC's Dragons' Den Wes Hall is publishing a memoir.
The book, which is titled No Bootstraps When You're Barefoot, documents Hall's life, from his humble and challenging beginnings to how he made his way up the corporate ladder to become one of Canada's most influential business people.
"It is a pleasure to publish this powerful book of determination and grit, which is both inspiring and motivating," said Sue Kuruvilla, vice-president for publisher Penguin Random House Canada, in a press release.
"Wes Hall is such an astounding force for change in Canada."
No Bootstraps When You're Barefoot will delve into Hall's childhood, where he was raised by his grandmother in a tin shack in rural Jamaica, along with his 13 siblings. Hall says he learned the values of hard work and entrepreneurship from his grandmother, who worked multiple jobs all his life.
Hall moved to Canada in his teens and worked a string of jobs through university, including as a security guard and chicken catcher, that would set himself on track to become one of the most influential business people in Canada.
"Growing up in poverty in rural Jamaica, I didn't think my life would turn out this way," Hall said in a press release.
"This book is about inspiring people to dream without limits."
WATCH | Wes Hall on CBC's Dragons' Den:
Hall is the founder of public companies advisor Kingsdale Advisors and BlackNorth Initiative, a non-profit organization that challenges companies to remove anti-Black systemic barriers.
He currently sits at #16 on Maclean's Power List, a ranking of 50 influential Canadians.
No Bootstraps When You're Barefoot will be available in the fall of 2022.
For more stories about the experiences of Black Canadians — from anti-Black racism to success stories within the Black community — check out Being Black in Canada, a CBC project Black Canadians can be proud of. You can read more stories here.