Why I Created W.I.L.D Women™

There are moments in life when something ends… and you realize it might actually be the beginning of something new.

W.I.L.D Women™ was born out of one of those moments.

It came from a mix of inspiration, disappointment, intuition, and a deep belief that women need spaces where they can gather, share their stories, and support one another in meaningful ways.

And when the space I once helped lead disappeared, I realized something important:

The need for it hadn’t.

The Beginning: Wine, Women & Well-Being

Before W.I.L.D Women™, I was a branch director for Wine, Women & Well-Being, a women’s networking and connection community founded by Lisa Webb.

Through that experience, I saw something powerful happening.

Women weren’t just attending events to exchange business cards or talk about work. They were coming together to connect, to share their stories, and to support one another in ways that extended far beyond the room.

Lisa Webb later hosted large-scale events designed to inspire and empower women, including the Manifest Tour and WILD.

The Manifest Tour featured powerful speakers including Kaitlyn Bristowe, Jess Tetu, and Dr. Jody Carrington, bringing women together for conversations about growth, confidence, and leadership.

The WILD event, which stood for Women, Inspiration, Leadership, and Development, featured speakers including Pattie Mallette, Coach Carey, and Lisa Webb herself.

Those experiences left a lasting impression on me.

They showed me what was possible when women gather not just for networking, but for real connection, inspiration, and meaningful conversations.

When Everything Changed

Eventually, Wine, Women & Well-Being was sold and rebranded as 3WB.

Many of us continued building our local communities under the new brand, but over time something started to feel different.

Trusting my gut, I made the decision to step away before things changed further.

Not long after, the entire network of branches across Canada was unexpectedly dissolved — without warning to many of the directors and women who had spent years building those communities.

For a moment, it felt like something really special had simply vanished.

But what I also realized in that moment was something important.

The need for spaces where women could gather, connect, and grow had not disappeared.

If anything, it had become even clearer how important those spaces truly were.

A Personal Shift

Around the same time, I was also navigating a shift in my own life.

For ten years, I ran my own event planning business. Creating experiences, bringing people together, and planning events was something I poured my heart into.

But due to my health, I had stepped away from that work and taken time to focus on myself.

As my health began to stabilize and I started feeling stronger again, something inside me began pulling me back toward the world of events.

My love of planning runs deep.

My love for my community runs deep.

And my love for bringing women together in a powerful, uplifting, and inspiring way runs even deeper.

I realized that what I missed most wasn’t just the work itself.

It was the impact that happens when people gather in the same room.

The Birth of W.I.L.D Women™

Inspired by the original concept of Women, Inspiration, Leadership, and Development, the idea for W.I.L.D Women™ began to take shape.

But I knew I wanted it to feel different.

I didn’t want it to be just another networking event where women felt like they needed to be business owners or entrepreneurs in order to belong.

W.I.L.D Women was created for every kind of woman.

The working professional.
The stay-at-home mom.
The entrepreneur building something new.
The waitress at your favourite restaurant.
The woman navigating a career change.
Or the young adult still figuring out where she’s going.

Because every woman deserves a place where she feels welcomed, valued, and inspired.

And every woman has a story worth sharing.

More Than Just an Event

Since launching W.I.L.D Women™, I’ve seen something really special unfold.

Women who arrive alone leave with new friendships.

Women who feel uncertain leave feeling encouraged.

Women who thought they were the only ones facing certain struggles realize they’re not alone.

The energy that fills the room during these events is something you can feel the moment you walk through the door.

And that’s when it became clear to me that W.I.L.D Women™ was never meant to be just an event series.

It’s becoming something bigger.

A community.

A Movement That Can Grow

My vision for W.I.L.D Women™ has always been bigger than one room, one event, or even one community.

I believe every community deserves spaces where women can gather to share their stories, learn from one another, and grow together.

Spaces where conversations are honest, encouragement is genuine, and connections feel real.

My hope is that one day W.I.L.D Women™ will exist in communities far beyond where it started — creating opportunities for women everywhere to experience the power of being in a room where they truly belong.

Because when women support women, incredible things happen.

And this is only the beginning.

Join the Movement

W.I.L.D Women™ is a growing community where women gather to grow, lead, and support one another through meaningful conversations and powerful connections.

If you’ve ever felt the energy of being in a room where women genuinely want to see each other succeed, then you already understand why this matters.

And if you haven’t experienced it yet…

I hope you will.

Candisse McCormick
Founder of WILD Women