4 Startup Canada awards go to B.C. winners

Entrepreneur support network recognizes 17 Canadian businesses and organizations

Credit: Adam Blasberg

EY Entrepreneur of the Year winner Manny Padda has now received a Startup Canada award

Entrepreneur support network recognizes 17 Canadian businesses and organizations

The winners of the fourth annual Startup Canada Awards, announced at a ceremony October 19 in Ottawa, include four from B.C.:

• Patrice Mousseau, CEO, Satya Organics  | Indigenous Entrepreneur Award

• Manny Padda, Founder, New Avenue Capital | Entrepreneur Promotion Award

• Startup Kamloops | Startup Canada Community of the Year

• Hootsuite Inc. | Global Entrepreneurship Award

The national winners were evaluated by a committee of leading Canadian entrepreneurship and industry experts. Former winners include the Right Honourable Paul Martin, founder of the Capital for Aboriginal Prosperity and Entrepreneurship (CAPE) Fund; Mike Lazaridis, co-founder of Research in Motion, the maker of BlackBerry; Zita Cobb, founder of Shorefast Foundation, the non-profit behind Newfoundland’s Fogo Island Inn; and Dax Dasilva, founder and CEO of e-commerce software provider Lightspeed POS Inc.

Founded in May 2012, Startup Canada promotes entrepreneurship through online platforms, grassroots Startup communities and cross-sector initiatives. The organization, which has mentored some 20,000 Canadians, represents more than 80,000 entrepreneurs, 400 enterprise support partners, 300 volunteers and 20 Startup communities across the country. Startup Canada has also educated leaders in the U.K., Malaysia, South Korea, South America and the U.S.