According to Cody Mazerolle, the key to success is going to class, working hard, networking and, most of all, not being afraid to take a calculated risk. That’s how he turned his side hustle and passion project into a successful, award-winning business.

Mazerolle, born and raised in Lloydminster, is the driving force behind Maz Entertainment - winner of both the Lloydminster Chamber of Commerce’s 2024 Small Business of the Year and Business of The Year Business Excellence awards. He’s a member of the Class of 2012 in Lakeland’s university transfer program (UT) and holds a bachelor of commerce from the University of Saskatchewan. He employs four full-time staff members and another 10 part-time.

And it all started as a series of DJing gigs he did while attending school.

“It was a passion,” Mazerolle says. “I really liked music and would come back every summer. I kept doing it the entire time I was in school. I would come home for the summers and DJ, or do tech work on the weekends, all while working a full-time job during the week and going to school.”

After he graduated from the University of Saskatchewan in 2015, Mazerolle kept up with his side gigs while working full-time. In 2017, he decided to take a risk.

“I was working two jobs but it was too much to try to juggle them both,” he says. “So I made a leap of faith and put all my eggs in one basket. It was tough for two or three years, making very little and putting everything I had back into the company, but it worked out.”

Now, Maz Entertainment is a full-scale production company. They do everything from event production, live audio for performing bands, video production, livestreaming, rentals, sales and still employ almost 10 part-time DJs.

“In a smaller place like Lloydminster, it is hard to make it on just one specialty,” he explains. “You have to be diverse.”

That diversity is what appeals to him about the business.

“It never gets mundane,” Mazerolle says. “Every single day is different. One day you’re out at a rodeo, the next you’re at a concert, then you’re doing a livestream the next week. Having something new and different every day is exciting for me. We’ve been traveling across Canada and meeting people from all over which is a lot of fun.”

There is a creativity inherent in the business, one he saw especially during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“How do you make it in the entertainment world where you can’t have events? How do you keep going?” he recalls. “We bought a video wall and started doing outdoor events for local schools and things, like Christmas concerts, drive-in movie style. It was so cool to see the unique ways people found to gather.”

Three years ago, Maz Entertainment got involved with the Professional Bull Riders (PBR), a job which has taken them across the country and elevated the business to new heights. Locally, Mazerolle’s highlights include doing the production for the Canadian Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) women’s basketball finals, hosted at Lakeland’s Lloydminster campus in 2024, and for Band in the Sand, an annual student-run event on Lakeland’s Vermilion campus since 2016.

In demand and on the road with work meant Mazerolle was unable to collect his awards at the last Lloydminster Chamber of Commerce’s Business Excellence Awards. In fact, his wife collected his hardware instead.

Mazerolle is both shocked and grateful for the recognition. He credits the amazing team of men and women who make up the Maz Entertainment team for all the success, noting that without them none of it would be possible.

“I never thought 10 years ago when we first started this company that anything like that would be possible. It started off as just a side hustle. It’s a great lesson. Don’t just stay still, you never know what could turn into something that’ll change your life. Take advantage of the opportunities that come your way.”