It doesn’t matter how much you invest – getting yourself ready and prepared is the hardest step.
The bad news is: You aren’t quite done yet. But there is only a handful of steps left before you are a proud shareholder!
Step 1 – Consult a Professional
We are not financial advisors, and our information should not be taken as advice. You should conduct your own research and due diligence process before making an investing decision.
Many people feel comfortable speaking with a licensed professional before investing, and we think that it’s a great idea!
Once you’ve completed this (or decided that your own knowledge is enough to proceed), you can move on to the next step.
Step 2 – Open a Brokerage Account
“Where do I start?”
This is one of the most common questions that we receive and is often what people are most confused about.
To start investing, you’re going to need a brokerage account, so you’ll need to decide on the best option for you.
Online brokers, aka discount brokers, are the most easily accessible and allow you to manage your money, yourself. You can choose to go with independent brokerages like QTrade, or Questrade, or the DIY services of your bank of choice. Banks often lag behind in their innovations and are less competitive on rates but can be beneficial for those who want all their money in one place and instantaneous money transfers. Independent discount brokers require time to process money transfers, though typically offer the lowest fees of all.
For Canadians, we recommend:
RBC Direct Investing (for RBC customers)
TD Direct Investing (for TD customers)
Questrade (for those looking for reduced fees)
For Americans, we recommend:
TD Ameritrade
Once you’ve decided on a broker, follow their set-up instructions and then move onto the next step.
Step 3 – Find the Company
Now that you’re set up on your broker and have money in your account, you’re ready to invest! Congratulations on getting to this step – the hardest work is done.
1. Follow the on-screen instructions to place an order – we’ll use the RBC Direct Investing dashboard as an example.
2. Select “Stocks & ETFs” for individual companies
3. Type in the Symbol of the company that you’re interested in. We’ll use The Very Good Food Company (Canada: VERY) (U.S.: VRYYF) (Europe: 0SI) as an example. You’ll also have to select the Market that you want to purchase from – if you are Canadian, purchase in Canada; American, America; etc.
Step 4 – Put in your Order
You’ll notice from the screenshot above that there are two options in the “Price” category: market price and limit.
Market price orders are a safe tactic for large companies that have millions of shares traded each day, such as the Googles and Amazons of the world. There are enough people looking to buy and sell shares that the difference (aka, the spread) between the price people want to sell for, and the price that others want to buy for, is almost nonexistent. With small companies – like what we look at – this usually isn’t the case.
Limit price orders are investors’ way of saying “I want to buy/sell these shares for X price”; if you are looking to buy into a company that has a current share price of $7.00 and you’d pay up to $7.10 for it, you would set a limit purchase order for $7.10. This way, your online account will purchase shares priced at or below $7.10 but will not purchase shares if the price goes above $7.10.
After establishing your limit price, you set a date range for how long you would like your order to be “open” before it expires (aka how long you want to extend this offer for). Now, you can sit back, relax, and know that you’re on your way to becoming an owner!
Step 5 – Just in Case
If you’re having problems, reach out to the investor relations team for help.
Looking for The Very Good Food Co. specifically? You can email [email protected] or call the investor line at +1 855-472-9841.