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PROSPECTUS
Forty Under 40 never ceases to impress and inspire
Given the state of the world, we all need a boost. For me, that’s exactly what Forty Under 40 delivers.
For almost 30 years, recipients have impressed and inspired me. Their business achievements, their expertise and community involvement are truly worth celebrating. As Sueling Ching, the president and CEO of the Ottawa Board of Trade, says, what gets recognized gets repeated.
Let’s hope that really is the case when it comes to the Forty Under 40. The city seems to be at an inflection point. Young business leaders can play a big role in determining our economic and social future.
Despite the optimism, I’m often stumped when asked to describe the current recipients. It’s a tough question given the range in gender, background and industry.
But there was something that struck me this year. Almost 20 per cent of recipients hail from the health and wellness sector.
Tala Al-Atassi is a good example. He is a surgeon at the University of Ottawa Heart Institute and an associate professor at the University of Ottawa. Check out his response when asked about his most significant achievement: “More than doubling the volume of heart valve interventions in the Ottawa region, providing the most efficient access to heart valve care in Canada, then emulating the Ottawa model across more than a dozen other centres across Canada with similar results.”
Our city and country face many daunting challenges. When you read about these young leaders, it goes way beyond the need for a boost. They give us hope.
WHILE WE’RE TALKING ABOUT THE FUTURE
There are many once-in-ageneration projects underway in Ottawa, including the refurbishment of Parliament, the development of LeBreton Flats, the new Civic Hospital campus and even the much-maligned LRT system.
Let me add another project: Lansdowne Park. For 150 years, Lansdowne has been at the centre of commercial and cultural activities. From agricultural fairs to wartime training grounds and Grey Cups to rock concerts, it all happened at Lansdowne.
In the 1990s, Lansdowne was permitted to fall into disrepair. Fortunately, community-minded business leaders stepped forward to redevelop the site, transforming Lansdowne back into a dynamic destination, hosting hundreds of annual events with millions of visits.
The work isn’t done. Lansdowne 2.0 will take the facility to the next level, upgrading 58-yearold amenities and adding more residential units. This goes beyond real estate. It’s a vision of a vibrant city with modern amenities to attract sports and cultural events that bring talent and investment.
Lansdowne 2.0 is a vote for a better future.
Michael Curran Publisher
Every success comes with challenge and even adversity
Every year, I’m impressed — and a bit intimidated — by our Forty Under 40 recipients. It’s amazing to think about how much these businesspeople have achieved before the age of 40.
Of course, a lot of that success is on the business side. Founding a company, securing financing, growing a business, navigating a competitive landscape and shepherding new products to market. It’s always a good read.
But I also love to hear about the personal side. For example, women and other minority groups breaking through dominant traditions and cultures. This from Sarah Vandenbelt: “It meant long hours, time away from my young family and pushing through an industry where being young and female still raises eyebrows.”
Also, many recipients have had to learn how to carve out time for work and family — sometimes how to work alongside family. This from Sébastien Lavoie: “... thoughtful decisions and better structure are helping me move toward more time and presence with my wife and two children.”
There are businesspeople and entrepreneurs who have overcome a mental or physical challenge to succeed in the workplace. This from Erin Hennessy: “Embracing my neurodivergence as a strength to enhance operational efficiency at CVE and more effectively support our objectives.”
And then there’s the occasional story of personal tragedy and how it added even more inspiration
and meaning to professional goals. This from Rumi Prince: “Losing my eight-year-old son Rudhro to a severe asthma attack was the greatest personal tragedy I’ve faced. Transforming that grief into purpose, I co-founded a business, launched a national foundation in his honour and pursued my EMBA.”
We’ve all had our struggles, large and small. As a woman business editor, I also have had to cope with traditional views and practices. And I’ve been laid off more times than I care to count, once before I’d even started the job. However, looking back, I realize it’s those hard blows that shaped me, that pushed me in different directions, and that presented opportunities. I’m sure it’s the same for others. It’s up to the individual to look through the hardship and see the possibilities. It’s not easy.
So a heartfelt congratulations to this year’s Forty Under 40 recipients and to those who’ve come before them. Whatever comes your way, either personally or professionally, you’ve already proven that you have the ability to not only overcome, but to shine.
Anne Howland Editor in Chief
‘Big groups’ kicking the tires downtown, one realtor says
BY DAVID SALI david@obj.ca
While the gap between the haves and the have-nots among Ottawa’s downtown office landlords is showing few signs of narrowing, Cushman & Wakefield’s newest senior local executive says leasing activity in the core is picking up as building owners work to attract new tenants.
“I’m seeing people excited to get back to the office,” Jessica Whiting, who joined C&W as a vice-president in May, told OBJ. “There’s definitely been a resurgence in office space and people wanting to get back to their … teams.”
Whiting, who represents both landlords and tenants in office leasing negotiations, spent the past decade as a broker at Colliers. She described moving to C&W as a “great opportunity” to work with an office leasing team that includes industry veterans Kimberley Hall and Alain Desmarais.
Whiting said she’s hoping to help the company grow its leasing portfolio. She sees plenty of potential for new business in the downtown core, which appears to be gaining momentum as more tenants solidify their return-to-office strategies after the pandemic hollowed out buildings across the city.
Ottawa’s downtown vacancy rate fell nearly eight-tenths of a percentage point to 12.3 per cent in the first quarter of 2025, Colliers said, driven by more than 136,000 square feet of positive net absorption.
Most of that activity was focused on toptier properties such as One60 Elgin, where owner Groupe Mach has inked several new occupiers to what Colliers described as “significant leases” in the past months.
Among the tenants signing deals to move into the building were the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada, which took over more than 62,000 square feet of space in the class-A highrise.
While the downtown vacancy rate remains higher than the percentage
of empty office space in suburban neighbourhoods, Whiting says downtown landlords have been aggressively trying to revamp their properties with amenities such as gyms, remodelled common areas and more modern meeting spaces.
The result, she says, is a “big flight to quality” that has seen high-profile organizations such as the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada that previously rented office space farther from downtown relocate closer to the core.
Whiting thinks more such moves are coming down the pipeline, noting that “big groups” are checking out vacant space in marquee properties such as Minto Place.
She cited the example of a “big accounting firm” that is currently headquartered outside of the core but is actively touring properties downtown with an eye to a potential change of venues.
“I think big groups that may have passed on the core in the past are reconsidering their business objectives and perhaps looking at (locating) downtown again, where they may not have a couple of years ago,” Whiting said.
“We are seeing some bigger tenants in bigger industries that may not have ever considered downtown looking at
50,000-square-foot pockets. Landlords are incentivizing a lot downtown because of that, and I think there’s just as much opportunity now in the core as there is in the suburban markets.”
Owners of downtown office complexes are being “very proactive” when it comes to reimagining their properties, she added.
As an example, Whiting pointed to LaSalle Investment Management, which recently built three new model suites in its 20-storey office tower at 275 Slater St. The fully furnished “plug-and-play” units were occupied within six months, she said.
“We’ve seen a lot of success within the Ottawa market with model suites, and we’re seeing a lot of landlords being proactive with model suites because they see the success,” Whiting noted.
Meanwhile, she said, more and more landlords of lower-tier properties are realizing they need to shake things up if they want their buildings to remain viable. Some aging office towers are now being converted into residential complexes, for example, while Live Nation is turning the former Chapters building on Rideau Street into a 2,000-seat entertainment hall.
“We’re seeing some landlords get creative with different niches other than office space,” Whiting said.
The veteran broker says she believes it all adds up to a bright future for the downtown office market.
“We spend a lot of time at our office space and people want to be in top-tier complexes that have great amenities … and lots of things to offer other than just brick and mortar,” Whiting said. “It’s making people excited. If you walk downtown these days, it’s definitely a lot busier than it was a couple of years ago.”
Ottawa Airport officials are eyeing a longterm plan to expand YOW’s footprint as the terminal becomes “more of a hub” for connecting passengers, the airport’s new president and CEO says.
Susan Margles said in May she’s “confident” passenger volumes at YOW will continue to grow as carriers such as Porter and Air Canada add more routes to destinations in the U.S., Canada and elsewhere.
While acknowledging that a decline in business travel since the pandemic “will continue to have a negative impact on passenger volumes,” Margles told the audience at the airport authority’s annual general meeting the drop in the number of business travellers “has been partially offset by an increase in connecting passengers, primarily driven by a number of new Porter flights.”
In its annual report, the Ottawa International Airport Authority said
connecting passengers accounted for 12 per cent of all traffic last year, up from just three per cent in 2023, thanks largely to the expansion of Porter’s network of flights from Ottawa to destinations throughout Canada and the U.S.
In an interview after the meeting, Margles told OBJ Ottawa’s current terminal wasn’t designed to funnel such a large number of passengers connecting through YOW.
But as Porter continues to expand its presence at the airport with the aim of making Ottawa a major hub, that will have to change, she added.
“You need to have that smooth connection experience,” Margles said. “We will need more gates, we will need more capacity in our security area, in our (customs clearance) area. We’re looking at all of it at once and trying to have that foresight into the future.
“Over the medium to long term, we are definitely looking at expanding the terminal itself.”
YOW will “take a phased approach that makes sense” when it comes to expansion,
passengers, fuelled by the addition of several new flights from Porter Airlines.
Meanwhile, Air France’s new non-stop route to Paris helped push the number of passengers flying to and from Europe to 400,000, a 37 per cent increase over the previous year.
The airport authority is predicting about 5.2 million passengers will pass through YOW in 2025, slightly more than in the last pre-pandemic year of 2019. Traffic volumes are projected to rise to 7.3 million passengers by 2030 and 8.2 million passengers by 2035 as Ottawa’s importance as a regional hub grows.
Despite concerns that the ongoing trade war with the U.S. could dampen demand for travel to destinations south of the border, Margles said it’s a “good sign” that airlines haven’t made any major cuts to U.S. routes so far.
Asked about the possibility of adding more flights to European destinations such as a return of Lufthansa’s Ottawa-toFrankfurt route, Margles said it’s not at the top of her priority list.
Travellers already have ready access to Europe and other parts of the world through Air France’s Paris flight and Air Canada’s recently relaunched direct flights to London’s Heathrow Airport, she noted, adding it’s too early to consider bringing more European carriers into the fold.
she explained.
The initial changes will likely involve “more of a reconfiguration” of the existing terminal to accommodate connecting passengers, Margles said.
Officials are “looking at a number of different scenarios and predictions of passenger growth” in the hope of coming up with a long-term expansion blueprint that has “off-ramps” in case the plan needs to be scaled back or reassessed, she explained.
“What we’re trying to do is take a longterm view on this,” Margles said, adding it will likely be at least five years before any expansion of the terminal building gets under way.
The new CEO’s remarks followed an upbeat meeting at which YOW officials touted a strong 2024 that saw passenger volumes rise 13 per cent year-over-year to 4.6 million.
Much of that growth came from passengers travelling to and from the United States and Europe.
Transborder traffic to and from the U.S. jumped 29 per cent from 2023 to 800,000
“I think it’s important that we show the airlines that we have (enough) population who wants to use those (existing) flights before we go and seek competition to that,” she said.
“I wouldn’t want to jeopardize what we’ve created with Air Canada and Air France right now when it comes to Europe. It doesn’t feel like there’s much missing at this point in time.”
As passenger volumes continue to rise, so do YOW’s revenues. The airport brought in $162 million last year, up 11 per cent from $146 million in 2023. YOW posted net income of $16 million in 2024, a 48 per cent rise from a profit of $10.8 million the previous year.
In other news, the airport said the 178-room Alt Hotel that is connected to the terminal building is on track for completion by the end of this year.
On the concession front, Margles said Starbucks will reopen this year. Meanwhile, the existing D’Arcy McGee’s Irish Pub, located across from Starbucks, will be demolished to make way for a new Zak’s Diner location.
LOCAL BUSINESS
Sixty years and 40,000 pools later, how Mermaid Pools has stayed afloat in choppy waters
BY VANESSA CHIASSON news@obj.ca
Of all the extracurricular activities offered in Las Vegas, education probably isn’t the first one that comes to mind. But if you’re Dave McNaughton, Sin City is synonymous with software seminars. This would make sense if he were a computer programmer, but McNaughton sells swimming pools.
Yes, swimming pools. As the owner and president of Mermaid Pools, McNaughton can attest that water is just the beginning of his business. And so when he had the chance to learn more about sophisticated pool design software in the entertainment capital of the world, he didn’t hesitate.
This year marks Mermaid’s 60th anniversary and the company owes a lot to being willing to adapt, learn and grow.
“We have a legacy in Ottawa of changing people’s lives,” McNaughton said. “We’ve got more than 40,000 pools out there.”
However, success was by no means
guaranteed when Art Methot founded the company in 1965. Back then, backyard pools were a rarity. It was an era when swimming pools were associated with Hollywood glamour and fancy hotels. But in the backyard of the average suburbanite?
Forget it. However, Methot had vision and know-how and his background in welding and fabricating truck boxes gave him a competitive advantage and an intimate knowledge of materials.
As Methot’s business took off, his sons Paul and Don soon joined and Mermaid has been making waves ever since. Along the way, the company has seen endless changes in the industry. For instance, the materials used for swimming pools have evolved rapidly. Today, the versatility and durability of materials like high-end polymers have come to dominate the market, something that was unthinkable in the 1960s. Microscopic mineral ions have replaced old chemical-based technology (and freed customers from hauling home heavy bags of supplies each spring). How
people actually use their pools has also changed significantly.
A swimming pool was once seen as a status symbol. It didn’t really matter what it looked like. Just having one was enough. That’s changed over time. Since joining the company, McNaughton has seen swimming pools interpreted in many ways.
“I would say on the initial days of when I started selling pools, 20-something years ago, there was a lot more talk about, ‘I want to get a pool for exercise,’” he said. “It’s transitioned towards, ‘I want something for the kids for the summer’ to now, ‘I want something for the family.’ Backyards are really being done … It’s an extension of the house now.”
McNaughton isn’t just Mermaid’s owner. He’s a customer, too. He first came to the company in 2003 when his wife, Meredith, had had enough of his long hours and told him that if he was going to be working so much, the family needed a pool. McNaughton obliged and, three months later, he started working at the company.
“The process was exciting. I was offered this opportunity and I grew into this family business. In 2007, they asked me to become the general manager of their head office and it wasn’t long after that that we started talking about succession planning for Don and Paul. It had always been a family business and they didn’t have any children, so their vision was for me to take it over. So in 2011 I started the process of buying into the company and finalized it in 2021.”
That family business model may continue with his daughter, Kingsley, who is the face of much of Mermaid’s advertising.
Working with swimming pools sounds like a lot of fun and, based on the warmth with which McNaughton speaks about Mermaid’s 60-plus employees, it probably is.
“It’s the best industry to be in. It’s so easy to be proud of the people involved, that I work with on a daily basis. I love it.”
However, no business is without its challenges. During the early years of the pandemic, Mermaid found itself in a unique position. Demand for home swimming pools, hot tubs and other leisure pursuits soared as people who were stuck at home redirected their vacation savings. Demand was high, but the supply chain was under strain. What exactly did that look like?
McNaughton gives an example of how just one component of the product was affected.
“Picture a pool liner, if you can,” he said. “That’s not one piece of vinyl. Pool liners are welded together. That’s how the seams are done. The machine to do that requires
PHOTOS: Pools designed and built in the 1970s and 1980s by Mermaid Pools. PHOTOS SUBMITTED
“It’s the best industry to be in. It’s so easy to be proud of the people involved, that I work with on a daily basis. I love it.”
DAVE MCNAUGHTON, OWNER AND PRESIDENT OF MERMAID POOLS
two people to stand at it. A lot of the liners were made in upstate New York. They had lockdowns and social distancing — to make liners was a nightmare for them.”
It’s a period he describes as scary and stressful but noted, “Fortunately, it wasn’t a time where people said, ‘I don’t want a pool or hot tub.’”
Today, another threat looms on the horizon with the uncertainty of
tariffs. McNaughton said that, while the swimming pool business has a strong seasonal element, Mermaid keeps busy all year, which helps offset the unknowns.
“We have a significant warehouse and we buy our product in advance. It’s actually in possession of a lot of this year’s above-ground pools, so we already have them before (possible) tariffs take place. So we’re able to weather the short-term storm quite well.”
ENTREPRENEURS
Ottawa cop makes big noise selling LoudCups around the globe
BYMIA JENSEN mia@obj.ca
What does a police officer do with too much free time? For Jay Conohan, the answer was to design a bestselling beverage container.
Conohan is the founder and CEO of The LoudCup Company, which creates a hot/ cold beverage tumbler that doubles as a
various stages of R&D right now.”
Entrepreneurship is not Conohan’s fulltime gig. By day, he’s a police officer with the City of Ottawa, a role he’s held since 2004. But his drive to create something of his own has always lingered.
“My father was an RCMP officer and ended up starting his own business on the side, way back in ’97,” said Conohan. “I was young, probably 14 years old, when he started, but I was able to watch him do both. I learned from my parents and was able to see the opportunities and struggles that came with it. And I just followed in my dad’s footsteps.”
Like many great ideas, Conohan said LoudCup was born out of boredom. It was the height of the COVID-19 pandemic and he, like most people, was spending the majority of his time locked down at home. Then a toy he’d created for his kids caught his eye.
“I made a horn out of a piece of PVC pipe and a bicycle tube for my kids, for something kind of fun,” he said. “The way it was sitting on my desk, it looked like a cup.”
It wasn’t the first time that Conohan had tried to design and manufacture a product. When his now 13-year-old son was less than a year old, a fall in the bath led Conohan to design a tub that would allow babies to safely stand up and move around during bathtime.
But the idea, he said, was a bust.
“It was too big, too expensive to manufacture,” he said. “It would have been too expensive for retail. The e-commerce space wasn’t as built out as it is now. But I took all those pieces I learned along the way and applied it to the LoudCup.”
With LoudCup, he wanted to make a simple, clear-cut design. So he taught himself 3-D modelling with Tinkercad, a free web app mostly used by kids.
Despite the simplicity of the concept, he said it took a few tries to get the design right.
was just as enthusiastic.
“It was hilarious,” said Conohan. “My wife was laughing, the kids loved it and the neighbours came over and thought it was funny. My wife was like, ‘You’re laughing, the neighbours are laughing, the kids are laughing. Why don’t you make a business out of it?’”
With the green light from his wife, Conohan got to work.
His failed foray into product development once again came in handy during his search for a manufacturer.
A former contact had bought a plastics factory in Mexico and offered to partner with him to get LoudCup off the ground.
While he didn’t realize it at the time, he said it’s a decision that’s paying dividends now and has saved him from the tariffs currently facing many drinkware companies.
He also decided to use Amazon Business to sell his product. “Amazon represents 30 per cent of the online marketplace and you get trademark and IP protections. The LoudCup is in the final stage of the patent process now,” said Conohan.
“What’s absolutely fascinating is when you combine Amazon and Shopify and, with a click of a button, you can test the market in Australia.”
Since the product officially launched, he said he’s sold hundreds of thousands of the cups in countries across the world. In Canada, LoudCup is in the top 10 bestselling tumblers, alongside brands like Stanley, Yeti and Simply Modern.
His company has also garnered support from professional sports teams, including partnerships with five CFL teams. Conohan said LoudCup was even hosted at an event by the L.A. Clippers.
horn. It’s a quirky product that has quickly gained popularity among sports fans, tailgaters and parents of young athletes.
“It’s really just exploded,” Conohan told OBJ. “We had a remarkable year in 2024 and now we’ve taken all the feedback from our original design and created a new version with a better construction, better lid and better sound.
“We’ve also got five new products in
“It would look like a horn or it would sound like a horn, but it wouldn’t look like a cup or function like a cup,” he said. “Then one day I had a eureka moment. I went to the basement, logged onto Tinkercad and within 12 hours I had a prototype built and actually working.”
The product was the ticket he needed to finally realize his dream of building a business of his own. Fortunately, his family
In Ottawa, LoudCup recently won an award for marketing at the annual Bootstrap Awards, which highlights founders and businesses that have demonstrated innovation and creativity in growing self-funded startups.
Now, the plan is to continue growing, with Vietnam as a potential future manufacturing hub.
“The exciting thing is we’ve ticked off all the boxes, from logistics to supply chain to marketing,” Conohan said. “It’s been an absolute rocket ship and it’s been really fun.”
Jay Conohan with a display of LoudCup products at the L.A. Clippers arena. PHOTO SUPPLIED.
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Legal tips for making workplace changes during a period of economic uncertainty
Emond Harnden LLP can help your organization navigate the impacts of a trade war
With the ongoing threat of severe trade disruptions and economic uncertainty in the air, business owners who have been economically impacted by the tariffs might be contemplating changes to their workforce.
But according to the lawyers at Emond Harnden LLP, measures such as layoffs, dismissals, or other workplace changes can be complex and come with certain risks if not handled appropriately and with care.
“The primary risk is claims of constructive dismissal by the individual employee or employees,” said Veronica Blanco Sanchez, an associate with the Ottawa-based labour and employment law firm.
“If you’re reducing hours or duties, you will want to make sure you handle those situations appropriately to avoid a complaint or potential Ministry investigation under the Employment Standards Act,” she explains. Changes to terms and conditions of employment or the provisions of an employment contract could also bring about constructive dismissal claims.
“Short-term thinking can result in long-term impacts, including financial impacts.”
The federal Work-Sharing Program may be an option Blanco Sanchez highlighted Service Canada’s Work-Sharing Program, designed to help employers avoid layoffs during a
temporary period of decreased business activity outside the employer’s control — a potentially welcome relief for both employers and their staff.
The program provides income support to employees eligible for employment insurance benefits and who agree to temporarily reduce their hours and share available work.
The Work-Sharing Program was recently expanded to include special measures, effective until March 6, 2026, to address the impact of tariffs. These include expanded employer and employee eligibility, a waiver of the coolingoff period usually required between work-sharing agreements, and doubling of the maximum length of work-sharing agreements to 76 weeks.
Understand
your
risks
if making workforce
changes
If employers have to consider other measures, Blanco Sanchez said it’s important that business owners understand the associated risks and obligations.
Under the Employment Standards Act (ESA), “a temporary layoff must be a maximum of 13 weeks, which is approximately three months, in a period of 20 consecutive weeks,” said Blanco Sanchez. While the maximum
period could be up to 35 weeks in a year, employers who wish to take advantage of that extended temporary period must meet one of several conditions.
“The most common of those is you must continue payments on employee benefits, whether that’s a retirement pension or insurance plan.”
But even then, Blanco Sanchez noted that layoffs may carry additional risk for employees also covered by the common law. Since the common law can be more restrictive, a temporary layoff that meets the requirements of the ESA could still be considered constructive dismissal.
Similarly, employers considering termination should also keep in mind that employees subject to the common law may have entitlements that exceed the minimum notice and severance requirements outlined in the ESA. Additionally, employers who may be eliminating 50 or more employees at an establishment (as defined under the ESA) in a four-week period should be aware of the ESA’s provisions on mass termination.
Blanco Sanchez noted that workforce adjustments in unionized workplaces must adhere to relevant collective agreements (Emond Harnden works with both unionized and non-unionized workplaces).
And if your organization embraced remote work during the COVID pandemic and is now paring back on virtual hires, there are provincial or territorial rules to
be aware of that may apply when making these kinds of workforce changes.
Unsure how to proceed? Seek legal advice
Developments like the special tariff-related measures under the Work-Sharing Program, or nuances around temporary layoffs and employee entitlements upon termination, highlight the value in working with firms specialized in the practice of labour and employment law such as Emond Harnden.
The firm keeps clients up-todate on relevant developments regarding the ever-changing economic situation and its impact on employers, and advises on ways clients can protect their businesses and employees.
“We can walk you through some of your options and help you arrive at the least disruptive, least costly, and least risky way to make the change you need to make,” Blanco Sanchez said. She recommended that business owners looking to make workforce changes seek advice from a lawyer before taking action.
To receive regular updates on labour and employment law, subscribe to Emond Harnden’s complimentary Focus Alerts.
We’re incredibly grateful to BMO for their generous support as Presenting Sponsor of our 2025 Gala. Your belief in our mission and unwavering commitmen t played a vital role in the event’s success. Thanks to your partnership, we’ve been able to crea te meaningful change in the lives of youth in our community — and we truly couldn’t have done it with out you.
A heartfelt thank you also goes out to all our amaz ing sponsors and volunteers. Your generosity, time, and dedication helped us not only reach but exceed our 2025 goals. Here’s to continuing this important work, together. Thank you all for your support. To learn more about PTBM visit our website at
Why the Ottawa Jazz Festival’s location is key to its success
– and to revitalizing the downtown core
Festival generated nearly $40 million in economic activity last year from multiple downtown stages, including Confederation Park and Marion Dewar Plaza
This year marks the 45th anniversary of the Ottawa Jazz Festival, one of the city’s premier live music events and Canada’s second oldest jazz festival. Despite the ever-changing (and expanding) nature of the festival, however, one thing has remained the same since its inaugural season in 1980: A prime downtown location.
Officials say the event’s central location – perfect for tourists and others who want to come downtown and see multiple shows in one night – has been crucial for securing sponsorships and driving attendance.
“It’s incredibly important,” explains Executive Director Petr Cancura. “Jazz is an urban music and to be in the middle of downtown, the whole downtown becomes so vibrant. It’s really one of the few festivals where you can come in from out of town and see multiple shows in one centralized area.”
The downtown core: A crucial venue for sponsorships and attendance
Held at Major’s Hill Park in its first year, the Ottawa Jazz Festival’s Main Stage has called Confederation Park – in the heart of Ottawa’s downtown core – home for nearly four decades. The park is walking distance from the festival’s other venues, enabling concertgoers to attend multiple shows a night.
“Confederation Park feels intimate,” Cancura explains. “You can sit under the trees and enjoy the music. It allows us to put on music on different stages at the same time without having any noise bleed between venues.”
It’s also close to hotels, restaurants, pubs, and clubs, providing accessible accommodation and varied dining and entertainment options, along with popular landmarks such as Parliament Hill and the ByWard Market.
Festival organizers and sponsors alike say its location adds to the vibrancy of the downtown core, along with providing a boost to Ottawa’s nightlife.
“You can come out of your hotel room and be directly at the venue, and then, before you go, you can walk around ByWard Market,” adds Cancura. “The whole experience is really important for Ottawa. And it’s a very unique experience compared to other festivals.”
An economic impact of nearly $40 million in 2024
Nearly 200,000 people attended the festival last year, including more than 20,000 tourists – an increase of 10% over the year earlier. Its economic impact was $37 million in 2024, including $21 million from locals and $16 million from tourists.
Those numbers haven’t gone unnoticed by sponsors, who say the location is supremely important.
“The downtown location of the venues has been vital to its success. The festival brings people from diverse backgrounds to experience live music in Ottawa, adding liveliness to the downtown,” says Maria Papadakos, director of sales and marketing at the Lord Elgin Hotel.
A sponsor since 1998, the hotel also benefits from increased room reservations during the festival. The hotel’s Forty One restaurant hosts late-night jam sessions featuring local artists playing alongside visiting and international musicians.
The CAA North & East Ontario, also a sponsor, agrees that the downtown venue is crucial. “The festival offers an intimate, community vibe. I’ve seen the festival grow in popularity over the years, and its potential is unlimited,” says President and CEO Jeff Walker.
The festival partners with several other venues in and around downtown Ottawa such as Irene’s pub, Minotaure, the Brookstreet Hotel, and Beyond the Pale Brewing Co.
A mutually
beneficial relationship with downtown businesses
Cancura says he’s focused on further developing year-round programming to promote jazz in the capital, such as the Ottawa Winter Jazz Festival. But he says funding is always a challenge.
“Although we are grateful for all the funding and sponsorships we receive, it hasn’t kept up with rising inflation,” says Cancura. “Postpandemic, it’s been really hard to attract big sponsors, as everyone has become more cost-conscious.”
Beyond sponsorships, however, Cancura says the success of the festival is about the people behind it – along with its convenient urban location, which has helped foster a mutually beneficial relationship with downtown businesses of all stripes.
“We’re still working hard to rejuvenate the downtown core postCOVID,” explains Cancura. “It’s important for local businesses and for the vibrancy of the downtown core.
“Having deep roots across the entire community, when you consider the easily accessible location by public transportation, and the number of local venues, it would make it possible for us to present music year-round – given the fiscal opportunity.”
This year’s event will feature a slew of new additions, including an expanded space at Marion Dewar Plaza, a revamped VIP Jazz Lounge at Confederation Park, and an artist Q&A series at the National Arts Centre. Set for June 20-29, the festival will feature more than 100 popular international and Canadian artists.
Attracting audiences both young and old, Icelandic vocalist, cellist, multiinstrumentalist and Grammy winner Laufey took the 2024 Ottawa Jazz Festival by storm, captivating a packed crowd with her genre-blending sound and magnetic stage presence.
Renowned saxophonist and bandleader Trombone Shorty kicked off the 2024 Ottawa Jazz Festival with a high-energy performance that brought a packed crowd to its feet, setting the tone for an unforgettable opening night.
Vocalist Veronica wrapped up the 2024 Ottawa Jazz Festival with a captivating closing performance, leaving the audience spellbound and bringing the ten-day celebration culminating in the perfect heartfelt finale.
Members of the Lemon Bucket Orkestra mingled and performed among the audience in 2024 at the OLG Stage, turning the crowd into part of the show with their infectious energy and spontaneous spirit.
Ottawa’s waterways could be the next frontier: expert
BY MIA JENSEN mia@obj.ca
Amorning dip in Dow’s Lake? A rock band touring on a barge on the Rideau Canal?
Germany’s Thomas Scheele says European cities are experimenting with ways to bring community activities to the water and Ottawa has the opportunity to do the same.
“More and more cities are redefining their relationship with the water,” Scheele said during his talk at the recent Canada After Dark conference, a two-day summit exploring the future of nighttime economies. The event was co-presented by the City of Ottawa’s Nightlife Office and the Ottawa Music Industry Coalition.
Ottawa isn’t a complete stranger to using
the water as a cultural space the Rideau Canal Skateway is one of the city’s most popular tourist destinations in winter. But the rest of the year poses a different challenge.
Scheele, who is based in Berlin, is the senior project manager for international research and advocacy agency Vibelab, which supports the development and preservation of nightlife culture. He said his visit to Ottawa for the nightlife conference at the National Arts Centre was his first time presenting the organization’s waterways research outside of Europe.
“Nightlife, for me, means we need to break the codes and I feel there’s a hunger for this in the city,” said Scheele during his presentation. “If people ask me, do you think we can become a cool city? I say yes, of
“If we can turn liquid highways into liquid cultural spaces or public spaces, a lot can be won.”
— THOMAS SCHEELE
course. You can do it, but you need to want it. You need to want that for your city.”
While the use of waterways might look different in the Canadian context, Scheele pointed out that waterways — including rivers and canals — make up nine per cent of Ottawa’s urban surface, representing a significant “untapped spatial resource” for community and cultural development.
The relationship of cities to their waterways is constantly changing, Scheele said.
“Ottawa wouldn’t exist if it wasn’t for the river — it’s a natural resource that allowed a settlement,” he said. “And then, with the Industrial Revolution, rivers became a kind of dumping ground for cities, where all the sewage was thrown away. With the post-Industrial age, a lot of factories were
re-thought as residential buildings and cultural centres and cities rediscovered their waterfront.”
Nowadays, he said waterways are viewed primarily as transit routes. “They’re public spaces, but they’re usually used like liquid highways,” he said. “In most cities, they are traffic routes for commercial or touristic shipping. They’re not leisure spaces.”
Scheele said part of the problem is that innovation stopped at the shore. Cities developed parks, housing and community centres next to rivers, but left the water alone. With climate change expected to raise temperatures, Scheele expects more people will seek proximity to cooler spaces.
That means the water itself, he said, is the next frontier. “If we can turn liquid highways into liquid cultural spaces or public spaces, a lot can be won,” he said.
One example he used was the Fluctuations Festival, where a 40-metre barge was transformed into a floating stage that travelled along various European rivers, docking in different cities for events. Festivalgoers would gather on the riverbanks for music performances, art displays, workshops and talks.
Scheele called it a wild and complicated
endeavour, but its success from city to city was eye-opening.
“I realized we need to look at the much wider phenomenon across Europe,” he said. “Who’s starting stuff on the water and how do they do it? There’s no guide. There’s no playbook or formal system. No city in the world has a creative river strategy or policies.”
As part of Vibelab’s subsequent research, Scheele said 36 vessels of various shapes and sizes were identified across the continent, all of which had found different ways to provide cultural experiences on the water.
One was a former deep-sea fishing vessel that had become an award-winning nightclub. Others were smaller motorboats that would gather in packs for guerilla concerts, he said.
“It’s such a huge diversity,” said Scheele. “Each of these ships is a strategy to stage culture on water, to bring creativity to the water. There is no one-size-fits-all strategy.”
Scheele said some cities are starting to put considerable funds behind waterway revitalization. Paris, France is a recent example. Ahead of the 2024 Summer Olympics, Scheele said the city invested 1.4 billion euros ($2.1 billion) to clean up the Seine, which was then used in the opening
ceremony and multiple aquatic events.
But months after the athletes left the city, Scheele said the Seine is still teeming with activity as a result of the investment, which included building infrastructure in and around the waterways.
Ottawa has already started its own experiments. In addition to boat tours that are popular among tourists, the National Arts Centre got creative last summer offering free boat concerts along the Rideau Canal. This year, the National Capital Commission opened a recreational dock on Dow’s Lake as a pilot project to encourage more people to connect with the water and, perhaps eventually, go for a swim.
With so much water available, Scheele said Ottawa has plenty of opportunity to experiment.
“You have a great diversity, with the Ottawa River, the Rideau River and the Rideau Canal,” he said. “There are natural waterscapes, there are bays, there are lakes, there’s built canals and there’s natural shorelines … We should zoom in on particular places and think, how can we be more nuanced in the way we think about rivers and start prototyping new ideas in certain pockets.”
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Get more at home in Weavers Way, Almonte, by Minto
Weavers Way, Almonte, is Minto’s newest community, offering homebuyers a charming small-town lifestyle with big-city convenience. Stroll through historic made-for-the-movies downtown lined with boutiques and cafés, or explore scenic trails and waterfront pathways along the Mississippi River. Here, nature and community come together in a way that feels refreshingly different yet comfortably familiar.
Minto has helped homeowners find their forever home for 70 years and earned five GOHBA Home Builder of the Year awards for quality craftsmanship and sustainable design.
Best yet, homeownership becomes a reality in Weavers Way, with prices starting in the $400s. Choose from attainable Townhomes, spacious Single Family Homes, and newly released Bungalows—all with modern layouts, deeper lots and new home incentives.
Simply put, you get more home, more space and more connection in this thoughtfully designed community.
Small-town charm. Big-city convenience. Almonte has everything you expect from a small town—museums, heritage buildings and cute stores. It also has the amenities of an urban centre, including parks, schools and services. And city life is always within reach, since Downtown Ottawa is an easy 45-minute drive away.
Weavers Way is a 15-minute walk from the lively core of Almonte, putting you close to year-round festivals and the town’s rich arts and culture scene. Plus, you’re always welcome wherever you go in this vibrant community.
View the neighbourhood and discover what’s nearby.
Modern and attainable. Spacious and flexible. New homes in Weavers Way often sit on generous 100’ deep lots and come with premium features, such as quartz kitchen countertops and hardwood flooring in select spaces. Whether you’re a first-time homebuyer, upgrading for more space or seeking the convenience of a Bungalow, you’ll find a home that fits your life now and for years to come.
“Not only can homeowners expect the same quality, innovative designs Minto is known for, they can expect them at comparatively attractive prices.”
— Anthony Minchella, VP of Sales.
Executive Townhomes
• 11 two-storey designs with versatile layouts
• Three to four bedrooms and up to 1,829 square feet—flex plans add up to six bedrooms on select floorplans
• A great choice for growing families
Starting from the $400s.
Single Family Homes
Weavers Way offers 24 Single Family Home designs with work-from-home spaces and alternative layout options:
• 36-ft and 43-ft collections
• Up to 3,410 square feet with three–seven bedrooms
• Select layouts include main-floor guest suites —ideal for multi-generational living
• Balance style and space for families and move-up buyers
Starting from the $600s
Bungalows
All-new Bungalow designs offer modern exteriors, open-concept layouts and flexible spaces designed for convenience and connection.
• Two to three bedrooms across seven unique designs—optional layouts with up to six bedrooms available
• Optional basement bedrooms, home offices and dens
• Ideal for retirees, downsizers or multigenerational families
Starting from the $600s.
New homes now on sale in Weavers Way
Ready for more? Take the first step toward finding your dream home in Weavers Way by visiting the Kanata Sales Centre at 380 Huntmar Drive. Learn about available home designs, current incentives and financing options with Minto’s banking partners. For exclusive offers, community updates and future lot releases, sign up at MintoWeaversWay.com.
This story was provided by Minto for commercial purposes. Prices, sizes and specifications are subject to change without notice. E. & O.E.
Community Rendering of Weavers Way, Almonte
Killarney | 36 Single Family Home in Weavers Way, Almonte
Regional Roadtrips is an editorial feature focused on things to see and do in Eastern Ontario. The column is supported by Star Motors, Ottawa’s original Mercedes-Benz, Mercedes-AMG and Mercedes Van dealer.
REGIONAL ROADTRIPS
Have a hankering for Friends days? Head to Central Perth for sitcom nostalgia
LAURA BYRNE PAQUET news@obj.ca
When you build a smoothie and coffee bar that celebrates the beloved TV sitcom Friends, people will come. Boy, will they ever.
Mj Laidlaw opened her tiny Central Perth café in downtown Perth on April 26. The place hadn’t even been open a month when it welcomed visitors all the way from Timmins, who had driven eight hours just to see it. As Friends character Chandler Bing might have said, “Could that BE any more impressive?”
“Response has been amazing,” says Laidlaw, 26, who promotes Central Perth primarily on social media. She posts about five times a day on Facebook and is also active on Instagram and TikTok.
Online, she showcases happy visitors sipping on smoothies with Friends-inspired names like the “Phoebe and J” (strawberries, bananas, cinnamon and vanilla frozen
yogurt) and the “Rachel Greens” (spinach, bananas, cucumbers, ginger and mango).
The coffee is, of course, known as a “cup of Joey” — found on the menu under the heading “How you brewin’?”
Clearly, Laidlaw is a superfan.
“It’s the best sitcom ever,” says the young entrepreneur, who started watching the show when she was 13 and became captivated by the coffee shop where the friends met. “It’s always been my dream to have a cool spot for people just to come hang out,” she explains.
“I saw Central Perk in Friends and I just got this idea in my head that it would be kind of cool to call it Central Perth.”
This is her first foray into the hospitality business after six years as the manager of an Urban Planet store in Kingston and a stint as an account executive at myFM radio in Perth. The café is completely self-financed, with fixtures such as the coffeemaker and front counter sourced from Facebook Marketplace. And Laidlaw
is currently the sole employee, working seven days a week. “I’ve never had this much fun before in my life,” she says. “I come here every day and it doesn’t even feel like I’m at work.”
She is deliberately starting small, offering a short menu of smoothies, slushies, coffees, teas and other beverages — including nutfree, dairy-free and vegan options. Visitors can also pick up Friends merch, such as socks, greeting cards and t-shirts. Baby onesies emblazoned with Joey’s catchphrase “How you doin’?” hang on the wall behind the counter near an exposed brick wall and chalkboard menu that evoke the sitcom set.
For now, Central Perth is located in a compact space at the back of a nostalgia and collectibles shop called Kernel Mustard’s Emporium (22 Gore St. E.), but Laidlaw dreams of expanding.
“Eventually, I want it to look just like Central Perk,” she explains. She already has an orange couch similar to the one that
held pride of place on the show’s set (it’s currently in Kernel Mustard’s window) and she plans to set up a photo booth so that customers can recreate the show’s famous coffee shop scenes.
Laidlaw’s mentor Steve Darling, owner of Kernel Mustard’s, says it’s been a pleasure to coach her as she has planned and opened her business.
“She asks some interesting questions,” he explains, adding that she often acts on advice immediately. “She listens to the things that you went through and she already knows how to navigate through those rocky terrains.”
He’s confident, too, that her planned expansion will go well. “There is no ceiling for somebody like Mj.”
Award-winning Ottawa travel writer Laura Byrne Paquet shares her sightseeing tips for eastern Ontario and beyond on her website, Ottawa Road Trips.
The decor of Central Perth, a new café in Perth, is an homage to the coffee shop in the classic TV sitcom Friends. PHOTO BY LAURA BYRNE PAQUET
2025 DEFENCE AND SECURITY REPORT
BUY CANADIAN
What was once urgent is now a five-alarm emergency
BY CHRISTYN CIANFARANI
The word “unprecedented” seems to be cropping up with alarming regularity lately — and not in good places. Unprecedented tariffs. Unprecedented challenges. Unprecedented threats.
I’ve been saying the word a lot myself in public since the pandemic hit in early 2020 and the first half of 2025 has seen me use it so many times that it risks veering into cliché. But to describe the current reality for Canada’s defence industry and our broader nation as unprecedented is also accurate.
Never have we faced such unpredictability from our closest ally and largest trading partner. Never have national defence and issues of Canadian sovereignty occupied so much space in the public conversation. And never have we needed a course correction more than we do right now.
For the more than 700 defence, security and emerging technology businesses that my association represents, the trade war with the United States and its various knock-on effects have been existential.
Our two countries share a tightly integrated defence industrial base (40 per cent of the Canadian defence sector by sales is composed of subsidiaries of U.S.headquartered companies) and a unique security relationship dating back to the Second World War. Both have been dealt enormous shocks since January.
Companies here in Ottawa, a selection of whom you’ll hear from directly in this section, are weathering the storm with the same resilience they displayed during the pandemic. Flexibility and innovation are in their DNA, so this comes as no surprise. But this challenge is also very different and with no end in sight companies need clear and informed direction from the very top if they are to grow and seek new opportunities in what is, by nature, a
Simply put: Unprecedented times call for unprecedented measures. It’s time to get to work.
highly managed global defence market.
When I wrote this column last year, I called on the Canadian government to start “picking winners” as it seeks to boost our country’s lagging productivity.
Rather than scattershot investments and programs, I argued, government must zero in on sectors (yes, like defence) that can deliver big returns on investment, basing its choices on metrics like strong
R&D and export intensity. The Business Council of Canada backed up those arguments with an excellent report titled “Security and Prosperity” last fall.
If our plea was urgent then, it’s a fivealarm emergency now.
Canada’s leaders must start by investing in national defence and, for the first time in decades, they have the political cover to do so. The public has woken up to the global realities we face. According to recent polling, 78 per cent of Canadians now say that defence should be a top priority for the government. That’s 20 points higher than it was during our darkest days in Afghanistan.
But money alone isn’t going to be enough. The government must go beyond what was outlined in its recent election platform and translate it into the next federal budget.
It must also detail how Canadian companies can support that plan, in consultation with industry, and push through reforms to a procurement system that was built for a world that no longer exists.
Industry, in turn, must be more ambitious, resisting the ever-present lure of foreign acquisition and opting to scaleup and invest in Canada, for Canada.
None of this will be easy. But if we make the right choices now, we will see dividends paid not only in economic productivity, but in national sovereignty and in a resurgence of the global influence that we once cultivated and leveraged among our closest allies.
Simply put: Unprecedented times call for unprecedented measures. It’s time to get to work.
Christyn Cianfarani has served as president and CEO of the Canadian Association of Defence and Security Industries (CADSI) since 2014. The association represents more than 700 defence, security and emerging technology companies across Canada.
Clear ‘buy Canadian’ procurement policies critical to success
The Canadian and American defence industrial bases are highly integrated, an arrangement that stretches back to the Second World War. With this relationship now in a period of unprecedented uncertainty, the Canadian government has committed to sourcing more defence goods and services domestically, while diversifying how and where it buys equipment abroad.
The Canadian defence sector will need to adjust in tandem, taking its cues from government in what remains a highly managed market. In this article, three local defence firms share how they are adjusting and preparing for what may come next.
Q:How has the trade war affected your business and how are you planning for the next few years?
The trade war has catalyzed strategic shifts at CCX Technologies, not disrupted our operations. Anticipating a Canadian government shift toward prioritizing domestic technology and capabilities, we’re increasing investment and effort in R&D initiatives to position ourselves as a key partner for the government’s future technology needs.
We’re also strengthening our U.S. market position by strategically partnering with established U.S. companies to ensure sustained growth within this complex market and facilitating reciprocal market access by leveraging our Canadian presence to enable our U.S. partners’ entry into the Canadian marketplace.
Finally, we’ve accelerated European expansion and are actively pursuing government-supported initiatives to establish a strong market presence.
Our strategy for the coming years involves a calculated expansion into new international markets, building upon the momentum gained in Europe, while reinforcing our core business through strategic partnerships and a heightened focus on Canadian innovation.
Q: What can all levels of government do to support businesses like yours in the short and medium term?
To bolster 100 per cent Canadian SMEs like CCX Technologies, governments should implement a definitive strategy focused
Calian worked with the Royal Canadian Navy to deliver this mixed reality training solution for replenishment at sea, allowing sailors to learn the process on land in a low-risk setting. PHOTO SUPPLIED BY CALIAN.
on prioritizing and investing in domestic technological capabilities — beyond standard procurement reforms. Specifically, that will mean procurement policies that actively favour Canadian-owned enterprises with unique
technologies and expertise, ensuring domestic capabilities are the primary consideration.
Canada also needs dedicated investment funds aimed at scaling and expanding Canadian capabilities. This
Q: How has the trade war affected your business and how are you planning for the next few years?
We are fortunate in that only about five per cent of our business involves crossborder flows of equipment and material. Our Canadian operations deliver mostly for customers in Canada and likewise our operations in the U.S., U.K. and in Europe. Our approach of delivering for global customers with teams embedded in those markets has reduced the impact across the organization.
We have been paying very close attention to our supply chains and each new announcement to identify any new affected areas and are seeking to minimize our risk profile.
funding should prioritize Canadian-owned entities to ensure IP and economic benefits remain within Canada. In tandem, we should develop incentives and frameworks to galvanize a robust domestic investment community focused on Canadian innovation.
Q:Over a longer timeline, defence spending and investment in Canada’s defence industry look poised to increase. What might those new investments mean for your business?
Increased Canadian defence spending presents a significant opportunity for CCX Technologies and Canada’s defence sector. As a 100 per cent Canadian-owned SME in platform security, we offer sovereign solutions that keep critical data and IP within Canada.
Anticipating defence priorities outlined in initiatives such as “Our North, Strong and Free,” CCX Technologies is strategically advancing Canadian technologies in secure RF, networking and communications. This proactive development positions us as a key domestic partner ready to meet Canada’s evolving defence needs and we urge Canada to prioritize Canadian solutions.
Planning for the future is about understanding the market forces and trends as best we can and making investment decisions based on those trends. The uncertainty in the CanadaU.S. relationship is making anticipating that trend very difficult and we have been looking at where Canada is seeking to sustain relationships, especially in Europe. NATO members, Canada and partners in the Indo-Pacific are all increasing their defence and national security spending, so we certainly see opportunity in those spaces to invest, identify potential M&A opportunities and expand existing delivery.
Q: What can all levels of government do to support businesses like yours in the short and medium term?
The biggest thing that all orders of government can do is to prioritize buying Canadian. The governments of Ontario and New Brunswick are taking clear action to prioritize Canadian suppliers for all their needs, which is encouraging. Where there is no Canadian supplier, governments will need to make trade-offs. Where a Canadian solution is ready, governments should absolutely be buying from Canadian companies and strengthening domestic suppliers and supply chains. Buying Canadian delivers benefits to communities across the country, strengthens our
Nortac Defence’s booth at CANSEC 2024. PHOTOS COURTESY OF CADSI
CCX Technologies president Chris Bartlett speaks at the Cyber and Digital Outlooks event in Ottawa. PHOTOS COURTESY OF CADSI
domestic industry and helps sustain innovation and commercialization to make Canadian companies competitive internationally.
Q:Over a longer timeline, defence spending and investment in Canada’s defence industry look poised to increase. What might those new investments mean for your business?
Prioritizing buying Canadian is clearly something we hope to see from the incoming government as it seeks to increase defence spending. Canada should be buying in Canada wherever it can on defence, especially as it is poised to spend tens of billions in new investment between now and 2030.
As a Canadian company, Calian stands ready to mission-critical solutions for any upcoming capital defence program. Canada has clear ambitions: Arctic sovereignty and space programs; addressing personnel shortages; and buying a series of generational platforms. Calian is ideally suited to deliver for the people part though training and health services and for capital programs through systems integration, advanced
manufacturing and IT, data, cybersecurity and emissions security solutions.
Q:How has the trade war affected your business and how are you planning for the next few years?
The trade war has deepened our commitment to manufacture domestically within Canada. Our current international and domestic business, led by services, will be largely unaffected since the tariffs only target goods. Some hardware may be subject to increased U.S. tariffs. For example, certain component prices within our manufactured Nortac Wave product may increase due to tariffs imposed by Canada on U.S.-made parts.
We will continue with our core strategy in global and domestic markets. Nortac’s established international relationships and domestic government contracts underpin the company’s resilience and we expect
VERSATILITY IS A STRATEGIC ADVANTAGE
growth to be strong over the next few years. The utility of Nortac Defence’s developed product portfolio in the current security and defence environment is increasingly apparent. The products are dual-use and the company is pushing into non-military markets worldwide under the Nortac brand name, adding additional resilience to the business model.
Q:What can all levels of government do to support businesses like yours in the short and medium term?
The Canadian government supports Nortac Defence very well in its international growth initiatives through its trade commissioners and defence attachés in its embassies worldwide. The Canadian Commercial Corporation (CCC) is proving invaluable to support larger transactions with government-to-government initiatives. Clearly, technology development is an expensive business with investment frontloaded in advance of sales.
An observation is that Canada has a strong SME sector for defence technology but these companies operate, in the main, in isolation. To leverage the innovation, cost effectiveness and utility of these
SMEs to satisfy government defence requirements and increased collaboration between them would be beneficial, as well as the government making the defence procurement process quicker, cheaper and simpler.
Future competitive advantage at the national security level will be leveraged by those countries who prioritize engaging their SMEs. Canada is poised to take the lead in its interactions with smaller defence technology firms.
Q: Over a longer timeline, defence spending and investment in Canada’s defence industry look poised to increase. What might those new investments mean for your business?
Increased defence spending is clearly positive for Nortac Defence so long as its products have a market fit. As for all tech companies, retaining relevance and remaining at the leading edge of product development and innovation is an expensive challenge. So long as SMEs are embraced in the procurement structures for increased defence spending, then this will be a huge opportunity for innovation and growth of SMEs in the defence sector in Canada.
Proudly supporting the Royal Canadian Air Force and Canadian Armed Forces, the Airbus A330 MRTT – the world’s most advanced multirole tanker – delivers more fuel, cargo, and passengers to enhance North American Aerospace Defence Command (NORAD) and NATO operations.
BAE Systems’ talent, innovation generating Canadian growth and security
From surface warships to surveillance aircraft, BAE Systems Canada’s operations expanding nation’s combat power — and economy
BAE Systems has played a vital role in the Canadian defence and security industrial base for more than a century. Since 1911, it has worked with the Canadian Armed Forces to contribute to the country’s security, while also delivering world-class innovations and employing thousands of Canadians.
BAE Systems’ heritage companies include Hawker Siddeley, Avro Canada which produced the Avro Arrow aircraft, and de Havilland Canada, which left our business in 1980 and became its own entity. From these beginnings through to today, they have worked alongside the military and fellow Canadian companies to deliver both protection and economic prosperity.
DELIVERING MILITARY CAPABILITIES ON LAND, SEA AND AIR
“From world-leading defence platforms to a range of services, our strengths and core capabilities include providing design, manufacture, integration, and support services for the Canadian Armed Forces across land, sea, air, space and digital domains,” says Anne Healey, Director, BAE Systems Canada.
The company’s Hawk jet trainer has provided training for thousands of Royal Canadian Air Force pilots, she notes. The company is also responsible for the design of a fleet of 15 River Class Destroyer warships for the Royal Canadian Navy, to be built in partnership with Irving Shipbuilding and Lockheed Martin Canada.
“We worked with another Canadian company, Cellula Robotics, on the autonomous, uncrewed submarine, Herne. Trials off the south coast of England late last year saw the craft conduct a pre-programmed intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance mission powered by Nautomate, our platform agnostic, highspecification autonomous military control system,” says Healey.
BAE Systems’ Swedish businesses, Hägglunds and Bofors, offer globally proven and world-renowned capabilities for personnel transport through snow and other tough terrain conditions and mobile firepower with the Beowulf tracked vehicle and ARCHER wheeled howitzer.
Recent enhancements in munitions production also offers Canada the opportunity to build up its stockpiles to boost its defence capabilities, and following donations to Ukraine.
BAE Systems also has the T-series of hybrid and electric uncrewed aerial systems capable of lifting payloads between 68 and 300 kilograms over short- to medium-range missions, providing logistics support for troops, including delivering ship-to-ship on the current deployment of the UK’s aircraft carrier, HMS Prince of Wales. The Royal Canadian Navy frigate HMCS Ville de Québec is also playing a key role in this carrier strike group deployment.
In terms of innovation, the company’s new PHASA-35 solar-powered aircraft, is capable of flying more than 20,000 metres (66,000 feet) high, well above commercial air traffic. “It delivers persistent and cost-effective imagery and communications by utilizing a range of world-leading technologies including advanced composites, energy management, solar electric cells, and photo-voltaic arrays, not currently available from existing air and space platforms,” explains Healey. “It could be very valuable in border patrol operations,” she adds.
Furthermore, BAE Systems makes valuable contributions to sustainable transportation. “Our hybrid and electric drivetrain powers more than three thousand buses in Canada, delivering sustainable municipal transport in several cities, including Ottawa and Halifax, where most of our employees are based,” says Healey.
BAE Systems’ energy and infrastructure strategies reduce greenhouse gas emissions across its operations, while supporting business growth. “We’re working with our customers to deliver products and services that support their operational performance, whilst developing energy-efficient plans, embedding environmental considerations within the overall platform or capability,” Healey explains.
MEETING FUTURE SECURITY AND ECONOMIC GROWTH NEEDS
Healey says the company will continue to expand, employing more Canadians in high-value jobs.
“We have more than 150 suppliers in Canada and last year we spent more than $300 million with them,” says Healey, who stresses that the economic impact of BAE Systems supports an estimated 8,000 jobs in Canada.
“We aim to grow that significantly in the years ahead. We often talk of a century of commitment, and a partnership with purpose because that is the legacy we continue today, with a bright future of growth ahead of us in, and with, Canada.”
Hailing from Sweden, the BAE Systems Hägglunds Beowulf is the ideal platform for defence applications, humanitarian aid and disaster relief, fire-fighting and rescue operations thanks its built-in flexibility
Anne Healey, Director, BAE Systems Canada
A BAE Systems heritage company de Havilland DH100 Vampire serving with the Royal Canadian Air Force
The BAE Systems Hawk has trained pilots for more than 50 years, including for the Royal Canadian Air Force
‘It brought me right back’: Babcock Immersive Training Experience (BITE) set to launch in Canada
Adaptable training module can replicate virtually any military or first responder scenario, providing significant training benefits — and cost savings
Retired Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) veteran and Babcock Canada’s Senior Business Development Manager – Land, Rob Marois, says he never thought he’d get back into a combat situation in Afghanistan. But that was before trying the Babcock Immersive Training Experience (BITE), a technology-driven training platform offering a new way of learning for military and emergency personnel.
“It gave me goosebumps,” says the former Royal Dragoons Commanding Officer and Chief of Operations with Task Force Kandahar during NATO’s International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) engagement in the country.
“And I say this as someone who was skeptical going in,” adds Marois. “It brought me right back to an abandoned building we had used as a command post” in Afghanistan’s southern Panjwayi district.
“It had the guns going off, the helicopters coming in, all the different smells and aromas that go with that, the shaking of the building, the lights dimming. It was all the same.”
Launched in the U.K. in 2024, BITE has been used to support innovation and trial events for multiple end users and is now set to launch in Canada at CANSEC 2025 in Ottawa. Following its event debut, BITE will be available for demonstration at Invest Ottawa’s research and development complex Area X.0.
Complete the contact form in the training section of Babcock Canada’s website if you would like to experience BITE for yourself.
Seismic simulation, generated aromas, and visual stimuli
Ensuring real-time training exercises are as similar as possible to front-line combat or other emergencies are the whole point of BITE, which provides a suite of realistic land, sea, and air simulations; dynamic controls; full data capture; and adaptable design.
The module can replicate virtually any scenario
in a “safe-to-try” environment — from a command post in a ground war situation, to a ship at sea, to a helicopter medevac or civilian emergency.
“It’s only limited by the imagination of the training audience and what they want to do,” says Marois, adding that BITE can be tailored completely to a client’s requirements. “This hyper-realistic system is adaptable to both current and future theatre-specific mission training requirements. It can be deployed anywhere in Canada or even overseas, supporting missions like Operation REASSURANCE with the Canadian-led NATO Multinational Brigade in Latvia.”
Realism is achieved through tailored soundscapes, seismic simulation, climate control, generated aromas, and visual stimuli piped into the training module by unseen training supervisors. As the exercise takes place, the team in the control room is able to measure trainee performance in real-time
through observation and the recording of biometric data, enabling them to critically assess and problem solve before repeating the exercise.
It’s all part of a realistic training offering designed to prepare users for the physical and cognitive stresses of real-life operations.
“It’s extreme pressure,” explains Marois. “The cognitive load is through the roof.”
BITE: The benefits for military and first responders
Marois says BITE’s main benefit for trainees and their organizations is the realistic “bridge” it provides between traditional classroom-based learning and actual deployment. But there are other benefits:
• Typical field training exercises are timeconsuming and often rushed — BITE doesn’t have these same time pressures, because it doesn’t require an actual command post to be set up or a ship put to sea, allowing trainees to get in more “sets and reps.”
• Building greater confidence in trainees’ decision-making capability, thanks to this continuous high-level training.
• Cost savings by not having to deploy expensive military equipment for training (along with less wear-and-tear on military gear).
“In the army, we often say ‘train as you fight’ or ‘train as you operate.’ That’s because your hardest day should be in training, not in real operations,” Marois explains. “BITE provides that level of training by bridging the gap between traditional classroom learning and live operations.”
Customers can buy a BITE module outright, lease it, or use it as a pay-as-you-go service.
“BITE is also a hit with the general public,” Marois says, recalling a demonstration Babcock recently delivered at an event in Florida.
“One military member, who hadn’t experienced a live active operation, felt so immersed in her BITE demonstration, she immediately wanted a second one.”
Kongsberg Geospatial expands Kanata office as defence software firm taps new markets
BY DAVID SALI
The Canadian arm of a Norway-based multinational company is expanding its Kanata office and plans to hire dozens of workers in a bid to capitalize on a growing push for more homegrown defence and security solutions.
Founded in Ottawa in 1992 as Gallium Visual Systems, Kongsberg Geospatial was acquired by Norwegian defence giant Kongsberg Gruppen in 2006.
The firm’s flagship product is TerraLens, geospatial visualization software that helps clients such as the U.S. Navy create 2D and 3D models of combat environments. The company has been expanding its products and services in recent years, adding offerings such as software that helps pilots of drones used in mission-critical operations like fire rescues and organ delivery navigate beyond their visual line of sight, as well as training software that simulates realworld conditions for clients such as the Canadian Armed Forces.
President and managing director
Jordan Freed says it’s a booming business, and it’s about to get even bigger thanks to a new contract with NAV Canada, the nonprofit private organization that owns and operates the country’s civil air navigation system.
The “multi-decade” deal will see Kongsberg Geospatial work with Kongsberg Defence and Aerospace, a business unit of its Norwegian parent, to build software that will help airports provide remote air traffic control service.
The system is being tested at Kingston Airport with the aim of getting the green light from Transport Canada for use in terminals across the country. Freed says
the past seven years.
The new space comes decked out with cutting-edge laboratory facilities and a product demonstration room as well as room for an additional 30 employees.
Freed says he expects the company will have no trouble filling its new digs. He says Kongsberg Geospatial is perfectly positioned to win contracts from a new Liberal government that has pledged to boost defence spending and implement a “made-in-Canada” procurement policy for military equipment amid rising trade tensions with the United States.
“We have a major opportunity,” Freed said in a recent interview. “We have a government that’s just come in with a requirement … to radically increase defence spending. We have a geopolitical situation that means industry needs to step up and provide our government with solutions that are developed in Canada or developed with international partners to provide options that are not U.S.-based. Kongsberg is uniquely situated for that.”
Three years ago, Kongsberg Geospatial unveiled a long-term strategic blueprint that projected the company would double its revenues within five years. It actually hit that mark two years earlier than expected, prompting management to draw up a new five-year plan that sets a target of 50 per cent revenue growth by 2030.
the software could eventually be installed at up to 80 Canadian airports over the next 15 years.
“It’s really been about not just capacity growth but capability growth,” he explains.
Fuelled by growing service offerings, Kongsberg Geospatial has been on an expansion tear of late. The firm now has about 90 employees, up from around 40 when Freed joined the firm three years ago.
At the beginning of May, the company took over 10,000 square feet of space on the first floor of 411 Legget Dr. in Kanata north, the same building where Kongsberg Geospatial has occupied 19,000 square feet on the fourth floor for
Freed is confident the company will reach that goal. While he concedes the “race for talent” is fierce in the Kanata tech hub and Kongsberg Geospatial doesn’t have the name recognition of some of its bigger competitors, he believes the best is yet to come for the upstart firm.
Still, Freed also admits nothing is guaranteed in today’s volatile political and economic landscape.
“The geopolitical situation is incredibly uncertain,” he said. “As much as we believe it is a huge opportunity for the international companies that have subsidiaries here in Canada, that can change on a dime.”
“It’s really been about not just capacity growth but capability growth.”
JORDAN FREED, PRESIDENT AND MANAGING DIRECTOR, KONGSBERG GEOSPATIAL
Kongsberg Geospatial recently expanded into new office space on the first floor at 411 Legget Dr. in Kanata north. FILE PHOTO
Ottawa-based defence VC fund One9 acquired by Kensington Capital Partners
BY DAVID SALI
An Ottawa-based organization that specializes in funding defence and security startups hopes to ramp up its investments after its venture capital arm was acquired by Toronto-based VC giant Kensington Capital Partners.
Kensington has purchased One9’s investment team led by founder and managing partner Glenn Cowan, the companies announced recently.
As part of the deal, all of One9’s future investment activities will take place under the Kensington umbrella. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.
The transaction cements a relationship between the two organizations that began five years ago when Kensington, a private equity and VC firm that manages more than $2.6 billion in assets, and One9 partnered to create special purpose vehicles to fund up-and-coming defencetech ventures.
In short order, Kensington became the lead investor in One9’s inaugural $10-million fund. With Kensington’s backing, One9 has since invested a total of about $23 million in six startups.
Cowan, a former Canadian special forces commander, founded One9 after being discharged from the military following a training accident. He says there was a “logical synergy” between his group and Kensington, which has been boosting its investments in the defence sector over the past few years.
“Kensington was really the first institutional investor in Canada that really said, ‘Hey, you know what? Investing in this sector is not scary,’” Cowan said.
Kensington senior managing director Rick Nathan, who was introduced to Cowan in 2019, credits the ex-military officer for helping open his eyes to the industry’s true potential.
“Glenn was awesome at identifying and getting access to really strong investment opportunities in this sector and not just the access, but then working with the companies to help build them
and grow them for success,” Nathan said.
The veteran venture capitalist says the defence and security sector is suddenly in the spotlight as governments across the globe try to navigate a rapidly evolving geopolitical landscape.
“When you have both major parties in Canada talking about how much they’re going to be increasing defence spending, you know something has changed,” Nathan said.
“Looking around the world, we see all major countries increasing their spending on this sector. We also see growing threats in cybersecurity. No companies are decreasing their budgets for cyber. You kind of put that all together, and you say, ‘This is a really interesting growth idea.’ So we decided to combine forces.”
While the defence-tech sector has traditionally been dominated by huge multinationals, Cowan said that’s changing.
“We’re seeing a seismic shift away from (major defence contractors) and (original equipment manufacturers) owning the market to emerging, disruptive, venturebacked startup companies carving out a really competitive piece of the wider
national security-defence ecosystem,” he explained.
One9’s portfolio includes a company that has already made a successful exit, Florida-based Tomahawk Robotics.
Founded by a former U.S. Navy SEAL, Tomahawk makes hardware and software that controls drones, robots and other unmanned vehicles. Less than two years after One9 invested in the fledgling firm, it was sold in 2023 for US$120 million.
“It represented a great return for us,” Cowan said. “That was a hugely validating deal.”
The organization’s lone Canadian investment so far is Ottawa-based Ventus Respiratory Technologies. The startup has developed a respirator that Cowan describes as “body armour for the lungs” designed to protect military personnel, police officers and first responders from breathing in carcinogens and heavy metals.
He says the system is now evolving into a piece of wearable equipment that allows users to communicate with radios, drones, virtual reality systems and other technology.
Cowan says that while many Canadian venture capital firms have traditionally
been “skittish” about putting money into defence startups, he believes the national investment community’s perception of the industry is changing.
“I say it’s so much more than guns, bombs and bullets,” he explained.
“Canada is waking up now to the (realization) of how important this sector is going to play in our economic security, our national security, our climate security, our energy security, our sovereignty, our Arctic security.”
Nathan agrees, saying the Canadian tech ecosystem has “all the building blocks” to build a vibrant defence-tech sector.
“We have the AI talent, we have the robotics and autonomous vehicles, we have space-tech, cybersecurity,” he said. “These are huge categories where Canada does have the talent. There is a very significant overlap between what we’re focusing on together in this national security thesis and what are already the leading subsectors of tech.”
Kensington is also acquiring a minority stake in One9 Capability Labs. Based in a 7,000-square-foot facility near Hintonburg, the One9-owned entity is an “innovation hub” that provides support services to the Ottawa firm’s portfolio companies and other private defence organizations.
Cowan says the lab is a place where tech founders, members of the Canadian Armed Forces, academics and others with a stake in the defence sector can gather under one roof to brainstorm ideas and help incubate world-leading technologies.
“We want to be that one-stop shop for all national security end users,” he said.
Still, Cowan noted that securing Canadian military contracts is a “painfully slow” process for small domestic firms. Cowan worries that Canada is “going to lose an incredible amount of Canadian companies to the Americans that can just move that much faster” if federal procurement policies aren’t streamlined.
“For Canada to be successful in this sector, we need Canadian customers,” he says. “We need the Canadian Armed Forces to buy Canadian.”
Glenn Cowan, founder and managing partner, One9. FILE PHOTO
From Coast-to-Coast-to-Coast: PCL’s Defence Construction Experience Helps Keep Canada First
With a defence portfolio that began between the First and Second World Wars, PCL Construction has a proud history of supporting Canada’s focus on security, defence, and sovereignty.
PCL Construction is Canada’s largest – and one of North America’s largest –construction companies, operating in the buildings, solar, heavy industrial and civil infrastructure sectors. We partner with clients to transform city skylines and build communities.
Our long history of building in Canada includes everything from expanding healthcare and educational infrastructure, mass transit projects, a broad range of civil infrastructure (like bridges, water and wastewater treatment), social spaces like professional sports arenas, to a variety of federal government projects including heritage rehabilitation plus defence and security infrastructure.
Founded in 1906 in Stoughton, Saskatchewan, PCL opened our Canadian and corporate headquarters in Edmonton in the 1930’s where it remains today. PCL has solid presence from coast to coast to coast and at present is working on projects in every province and territory.
PCL is 100 per cent employee owned across all levels of the organization, meaning that from field coordinator to CEO, every PCLer can invest in the health and success of our company. Our culture of ownership models the highest standards of corporate social responsibility with an uncompromising commitment to safety, diversity, inclusion, sustainability and innovation.
Privileged to deliver defence and security projects across Canada since the end of the First World War, PCL has more recently delivered a diverse portfolio of defence and security projects such as the Syncrolift Upgrade and Submarine Shed project in CFB Halifax, and the Communications Security Establishment Long Term Accommodations Project (new HQ and operational facilities) in Ottawa.
At present, PCL is under contract to build facilities across Canada at more than 10 Canadian Forces Bases for National Defence through Defence Construction Canada, all in support of the Canadian Armed Forces. Some of these projects support the Royal Canadian Navy’s River Class Destroyer program, the Royal Canadian Air Force’s Strategic Tanker Transport Capability project, the Canadian Army Ground Based Air Defence System project, and new Joint Task Force (North) facilities in Yellowknife for the 1st Canadian Rangers Patrol Group.
As Canada’s responsibilities and challenges at home and around the globe change and expand, PCL is committed to supporting Canada’s efforts to modernize our defence and security capabilities from coast to coast to coast.
Being part of the delivery of Canada’s defence and security infrastructure is important to PCL, and we will continue to work hard to remain a valued member of the team as Canada invests in the Canadian Armed Forces.
For more information on PCL Construction, visit PCL.com
SYNCHROLIFT UPGRADE AND SUBMARINE SHED PROJECT
Alberto Aguilar
28, FOUNDER AND CEO, PLANTAFORM
Talal Al-Atassi
39, CARDIAC SURGEON AND ASSISTANT DEAN, UNIVERSITY OF OTTAWA HEART INSTITUTE
Jenniffer Alvarenga
39, REAL ESTATE BROKER AND CO-FOUNDER, GOODSTORY
Ghina Annan
36, PRINCIPAL AND DECARBONIZATION BUSINESS LEAD, STANTEC
Nadine Atkinson
37, PARTNER, BDO CANADA LLP
Maximillian Bailey
37, CEO, SPOONITY
Jennifer Beckert
39, DIRECTOR OF FINANCE TRANSFORMATION, SHOPIFY
Kyle Biggar
38, CHIEF SCIENCE OFFICER AND SCIENTIFIC CO-FOUNDER, NUVOBIO CORP.
Diana Birsan
36, CO-FOUNDER AND CEO, DOWNPAY
Julien Bourgeois
36, PARTNER, DENTONS CANADA LLP
Matthew Brown
33, VICE-PRESIDENT OF CUSTOMER SUCCESS, SOLINK CORP.
Mary Anne Carter
37, PRINCIPAL AND PARTNER, EARNSCLIFFE STRATEGIES
We’re pleased to showcase this year’s recipients of our annual Forty Under 40 award.
Sébastien Lavoie
33, OWNER, LA VIE EN BOIS
Brett Merriman
39, CEO, TRYCYCLE DATA SYSTEMS INC.
Andrew Montague-Reinholdt
35, PARTNER, NELLIGAN LAW
Liam Mooney
37, CEO, JACKPINE
Ryma Nasrallah
Alexander Caudarella
39, CEO, CANADIAN CENTRE ON SUBSTANCE USE AND ADDICTION
Varsha Chaugai
38, CEO, EVOKE HEALTH
Kyle Crawford
39, VICE-PRESIDENT SALES AND RENTALS, HANSLER INDUSTRIES/VENTURIS CAPITAL CORP.
Evan Dudley
34, DIRECTOR SALES NORTH AMERICA, GIATEC SCIENTIFIC INC.
Marry Gunaratnam
37, SENIOR VICE-PRESIDENT, NORTHERN CREDIT UNION
Erin Hennessy
39, DIRECTOR OF OPERATIONS, CVE INC.
Christian Jennings
39, PRESIDENT, JENNINGS REAL ESTATE CORP.
Tessa Kampman
39, SENIOR PROJECT DIRECTOR, BBB ARCHITECTS OTTAWA INC.
Joel Kowalski
36, RIVER OPERATIONS MANAGER, WILDERNESS TOURS
Pamela Lai
38, MEDICAL DIRECTOR, EXECHEALTH
Michael Lalonde
39, CO-OWNER AND FOUNDER, PURECOLO INC.
Marty Landry
36, VICE-PRESIDENT OF SALES, FIELD EFFECT
39, PARTNER, BLG
Rose Caddy Nwaha
39, OWNER, ROCADERM CLINIC LTD.
Emma Pollon-MacLeod
36, CEO, NUTRICHEM
Rumi Prince
39, GENERAL MANAGER, PRINCE MORTGAGE TEAM
Liam Remillard
37, SENIOR MANAGER AND CHIEF STATISTICAL ADVISER, ABBOTT POINT OF CARE
Idan Scher
37, RABBI, CONGREGATION MACHZIKEI HADAS
Dedrick Sterling
39, OWNER, MERAKEY CONSTRUCTION AND MANAGEMENT
Sarah Vandenbelt
38, BROKER OF RECORD AND FOUNDER, PARADIGM
COMMERCIAL REAL ESTATE & BROKERAGE INC.
Patrick George Vice
33, VICE-PRESIDENT OF ENGINEERING, PRODUCT AND PLATFORM, FULLSCRIPT
Tori Waugh
38, FOUNDER AND CEO, CONSERVATION AG
Kody Wilson
39, PARTNER, GGFL LLP
George Zahalan
36, OWNER AND CEO, PHARMACIST VALLEY
HEALTH PHARMACIES
Alberto Aguilar 28, FOUNDER AND CEO, PLANTAFORM
What is your biggest business achievement? Winning the 2025 CES Best of Innovation Award, putting Plantaform on the global map as a leader in food and agtech.
What is the biggest obstacle that you’ve overcome?
Overcame the challenge of reviving fogponics — a long-abandoned NASA technology — by spending three-plus years proving it could reliably grow real food without any existing blueprint.
What Ottawa business person, past or present, do you most admire and why? I admire Olivier Benloulou for his relentless work ethic, resilience and sacrifice — and for how he gives back by championing young entrepreneurs who drive real change in the world.
If you weren’t in your current profession, what would be your dream job?
Professional food-taster for Michelin-starred restaurants.
Talal Al-Atassi
39, CARDIAC SURGEON AND ASSISTANT DEAN, UNIVERSITY OF OTTAWA HEART INSTITUTE
What is your biggest business achievement?
More than doubling the volume of heart-valve interventions in the Ottawa region, providing the most efficient access to heart-valve care in Canada, then emulating the Ottawa model across more than a dozen other centres across Canada with similar results.
What is the biggest obstacle that you’ve overcome?
Achieving the above in a tight fiscal environment and with significant HR stresses on the health-care system and public institutions.
If you weren’t in your current profession, what would be your dream job?
I have wanted to be a cardiac surgeon since I was five years old!
Jenniffer Alvarenga
39, REAL ESTATE BROKER AND CO-FOUNDER, GOODSTORY
What is your biggest business achievement? Earning the trust of our clients, including one who’s worked with us over 50 times and several who’ve purchased million-dollar homes sight unseen.
What is the biggest obstacle that you’ve overcome? Unable to obtain permanent residency after my post-graduate work permit expired in 2015, I returned to school full-time under a study permit to remain in Canada, all while balancing my studies, growing my team and starting a family.
What Ottawa business person, past or present, do you most admire and why? I have a lot of admiration for Hugh Gorman, CEO of Colonnade BridgePort, as a heart-led business leader; his integrity, passion and pursuit of excellence set a powerful example for all of us. Beyond that, he’s simply a great human being who uplifts those around him.
Ghina Annan
36, PRINCIPAL AND DECARBONIZATION BUSINESS LEAD, STANTEC
What is your biggest business achievement? I’ve developed transformative strategies that are actively reshaping how buildings across Canada are planned, constructed, and operated.
What is the biggest obstacle that you’ve overcome? Working in a traditionally conservative and highly technical industry, one of my greatest challenges has been pushing against the mindset of “we’ve always done it this way.”
In a space where policy shifts slowly and innovation can be seen as risk, I had to earn trust while introducing transformative ideas that centred on climate, equity and community health.
What Ottawa business person, past or present, do you most admire and why? I have deep respect for business leaders who take meaningful action for the land and communities they serve.
Working in a traditionally conservative and highly technical industry, one of my greatest challenges has been pushing against the mindset of “we’ve always done it this way."
Maximillian Bailey 37, CEO, SPOONITY
What is your biggest business achievement? Our team of 25 helps support hundreds of brands in over 30 countries and four different languages and is growing at more than 50 per cent year over year.
What is the biggest obstacle that you’ve overcome? With minimal investment, we largely bootstrapped the company over the past 10 years.
What Ottawa business person, past or present, do you most admire and why? I admire Tracey Clark. She took a chance on us when Bridgehead became our first customer. It’s people like her that make a startup possible.
If you weren’t in your current profession, what would be your dream job? Prime minister.
Nadine Atkinson 37, PARTNER, BDO CANADA LLP
What is your biggest business achievement? Helping to lead the recruiting, new hire training and development of our team, which has more than doubled in size since I joined the BDO management team.
What is the biggest obstacle that you’ve overcome? Taking maternity leave as a partner and trying to balance a young family while still growing my practice.
What Ottawa business person, past or present, do you most admire and why?
Robert Rhéaume. He is an amazing leader who has made a lasting impact on the team that he built and is so dedicated to the Ottawa community. I aspire to be like him, although maybe with a couple less board positions!
If you weren’t in your current profession, what would be your dream job? An artist.
Jennifer Beckert 39, DIRECTOR OF FINANCE TRANSFORMATION, SHOPIFY
What is your biggest business achievement? Founded the Shopify finance transformation team, who are collectively responsible for the implementation of best-in-class financial technologies and process automation to streamline workflows, improve accuracy and reduce the amount of time spent on manual tasks.
What is the biggest obstacle that you’ve overcome? I faced mental health struggles in early motherhood and had a hard time reintegrating into a fast-paced work environment after maternity leave. Two years later COVID hit and I ended up on stress leave for several months. I am really proud to have come back to be where I am today.
What Ottawa business person, past or present, do you most admire and why? A great friend of mine and partner at Deloitte Amy DeRidder, who has shown me that you can have a family and work within your boundaries to accomplish great things.
Janice Siddons
EMBA 2020
2013 Forty Under 40 recipient
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Telfer’s Executive MBA offers a transformational educational experience
University of Ottawa program yields professional and personal dividends
The University of Ottawa’s Telfer Executive Master of Business Administration (EMBA) program is renowned for developing high performance leaders that are sought-after globally. Graduates Rumi Prince and Dr. Liam Rémillard have recently been honoured as two of Ottawa’s Top 40 Under 40 recipients and both confirm their experiences in the EMBA program are already playing a big role in helping shape their future.
Liam Rémillard is the Senior Manager, Statistics and Analytics at Abbot Point of Care. With a background in epidemiology, Rémillard wanted to supplement his business acumen by pursuing an MBA, to grasp the bigger picture of how organizations operate and thrive. The Telfer EMBA program was especially appealing thanks to its competency-based focus, including six consulting projects. “I was eager to gain expertise in new areas, and to engage with companies at various stages in their trajectories,” he explains.
Rémillard cites the diversity of exposures as being among the most impactful experiences during the 20-month program, particularly international trips to meet with global key players. He also found the introspective elements led to personal growth. “Of course we talked stats, data analytics, HR, etc. But the big takeaway for me was learning about emotional
intelligence, my traits and my personality –really understanding who I am and how I work. This has reshaped the way I interact with both my direct reports and management. I’ve gained a refreshed mindset and I believe I can think more critically and contribute more effectively.”
Rumi Prince is the General Manager, PRINCE Mortgage Team with Dominion Lending Centres National, a brokerage she co-founded in 2022. She felt obtaining an MBA would strengthen her ability to lead strategically and with vision.
Prince chose the Telfer EMBA as she wanted something immersive, strategic, and purpose driven. “Telfer teaches values-based leadership,” she notes. “It attracts people who want to make a difference, who lead with both strategy and heart. I wasn’t just looking for a degree—I was looking for transformation, and that’s exactly what I found at Telfer.”
“On a personal level, I was deeply motivated by the loss of my 8-year-old son, Rudhro, who passed away from a severe asthma attack. That
life-altering experience gave me a renewed sense of purpose. Through the Rudhro Prince Hope Foundation, we now advocate for asthma awareness and youth empowerment. The EMBA provided me with the leadership, policy, and organizational tools needed to elevate my impact at work and in the community.”
Prince and Rémillard are quick to recommend the Telfer EMBA. “It offers a way to fast track your experience to improve your toolkit plus you get to build a network of solid relationships to leverage in the future,” says Rémillard.
“It is an investment in your ability to lead with vision, navigate complex challenges and drive meaningful change in both business and society. Telfer equips you with the mindset, network, and tools to lead boldly and with purpose,” adds Prince.
To learn more about the Telfer Executive MBA program, visit www.telfer.uottawa.ca/ en/emba/.
Dr. Liam Rémillard, Senior Manager, Statistics and Analytics at Abbot Point of Care
Rumi Prince, General Manager, PRINCE Mortgage Team with Dominion Lending Centres National
ExecHealth brings Canada’s leading advanced longevity program to National Capital Region
Ottawa’s ExecHealth was one of the first private clinics in Canada to provide personalized, ongoing primary care, having opened its doors 20 years ago this year.
Now the pioneering local clinic has gone a step further by launching a data-driven longevity program designed to help people live longer, stay active, and be fully engaged in their life, bridging the gap between lifespan and healthspan. Led by a physician and supported with advanced diagnostic imaging and biomarker testing, ExecHealth’s comprehensive longevity program is the first of its kind in Ottawa.
The program’s focus, explains ExecHealth CEO Sanjay Shah, is on keeping clients healthy, active, and mentally sharp for as many years as possible.
“The goal is to slow biological aging to optimize health and target the aging process,” he says of the clinically-driven program, adding that WELL Longevity+ is the only longevity program in the country that owns and operates its own MRI and CT scanning equipment.
PHYSICIAN-LED PROGRAM HAS SEEN ‘TREMENDOUS INTEREST’
Billed as Canada’s leading advanced longevity program, ExecHealth — which was acquired in May 2021 by WELL Health Technologies — is the latest clinic in the WELL Health Medical & Longevity Network to introduce the program, which successfully launched in Vancouver and Calgary last year.
The local iteration of the program is the next phase of ExecHealth’s innovative track record and is developed, directed and led by clinician Dr. Arti Parbhakar, a practising physician for the past two decades with expertise in nutrition, family medicine, preventive medicine, and executive health. The program’s national director is Vancouver-based Dr. Grant Meek.
Dr. Parbhakar says she’s already working with clients of various ages under ExecHealth’s Longevity Program, and that the response has been outstanding.
“We’ve seen a remarkable surge in interest from individuals invested in optimizing their health, and who care about living longer, healthier lives,” she says. “They’re actively seeking cutting-edge, science backed tools like genomic profiling and advanced imaging to get ahead of potential health risks and take control of their future well-being.”
EARLY IDENTIFICATION OF HEALTH RISKS BEFORE SYMPTOMS ARISE
The program provides a range of benefits for highperforming professionals, health-conscious adults, and individuals serious about long-term health and vitality.
Benefits include early identification of health risks before symptoms arise, improved quality of life through evidence-based lifestyle interventions, a personalized roadmap to optimize physical and cognitive performance, and long-term tracking of key health metrics for sustained wellbeing.
ExecHealth delivers these benefits through the Longevity Program’s advanced features, including:
• Advanced imaging: Advanced imaging for early detection and risk assessment.
• Comprehensive bloodwork: Deep molecular, genetic, and biomarker profiling beyond standard panels.
• Precision health assessments: Tailored evaluations to identify aging risk factors and intervene early.
• Lifestyle optimization: Focus on nutrition, movement, stress management, and recovery.
• Personalized longevity plans: Actionable insights and follow-ups based on individual data.
The program’s targeted assessments provide both early detection and risk assessment of potential (or acute) ailments based on a client’s biomarkers, medical images, and other data.
Shah and Parbhakar say interest in the program spans multiple age groups, from those in their 30s and beyond.
WHAT MAKES EXECHEALTH’S LONGEVITY PROGRAM DIFFERENT?
Shah says one of the biggest differences between ExecHealth’s program and those of other clinics is the physician-run nature of the service, as opposed to a program delivered by non-physician healthcare workers such as chiropractors, naturopaths, or massage therapists.
It’s also scientifically grounded and built on proven medical and wellness principles, not passing trends. Focused on proactive, personalized health optimization, the Longevity Program integrates the latest in preventive medicine, advanced diagnostics, wellness strategies, and utilizes the power of AI to provide deeper analysis and recommendations.
But there are other differences, including ExecHealth’s focus on providing implementation of actionable information through its full-service personal physician service. That means clients aren’t left hanging: There’s a seamless transition from the Longevity Program to implementation and ongoing management with an ExecHealth physician.
“Our program is designed to ensure that patients not only receive thorough assessments but also benefit from integrated follow-up care, facilitating the implementation of findings within our ongoing care framework should patients desire.” Dr. Parbhakar says.
ExecHealth can use the program’s targeted health assessments to create individual health plans that take into account each client’s stress levels, sleep quality, and other factors.
A TRANSFORMATIVE HEALTH JOURNEY POWERED BY TARGETED ASSESSMENTS
Dr. Parbhakar says ExecHealth’s Longevity Program isn’t just a medical program — it’s a transformative health journey positioned at the intersection of science, technology, and human potential.
However, she adds that a big focus of the program is to provide only the targeted assessments that are necessary for an individual.
“Part of my job is to actually talk people out of some of this testing,” Dr. Parbhakar says, adding that the goal of any client engagement is to enable informed consent, to select the tests that make medical sense, and provide actionable, personalized information for each client.
“We always do what’s in the best interest of the individual, and we’ll decline to do some testing if it’s not in their best interest.”
I faced mental health struggles in early motherhood and had a hard time reintegrating into a fast-paced work environment after maternity leave.
Diana Birsan 36, CO-FOUNDER AND CEO, DOWNPAY
What is your biggest business achievement? I co-founded Downpay, a Shopify app that lets merchants take deposits for high-ticket products, an idea backed by three patents. Within a year of launch, Downpay processed more than $50 million in GMV, with 60-70 per cent of buyers opting for deposits and merchants seeing over 30 per cent sales lifts on custom-made products.
What is the biggest obstacle that you’ve overcome? Downpay has carved out a niche by helping custom furniture merchants boost conversions by 47 per cent and establishing it as a leading partial payment solution.
What Ottawa business person, past or present, do you most admire and why?
Sonya Shorey has been a driving force behind Ottawa’s tech and innovation ecosystem, championing founders through her strategic leadership at Invest Ottawa.
Successfully spun out transformational academic research into NuvoBio, securing over $1 million in non-dilutive funding to launch our AI-driven peptide therapeutics platform into pre-clinical asset development.
What Ottawa business person, past or present, do you most admire and why? I admire Michael Cowpland, whose leadership in founding Corel and guiding NuvoBio demonstrates how to turn deep technical innovation into impactful businesses.
Julien
Bourgeois 36, PARTNER, DENTONS CANADA LLP
What is your biggest business achievement?
Working with first time fund managers to form their venture capital funds and helping them as well as other angel, strategic and institutional investors invest in and support the Ottawa and Canadian early-stage ecosystem.
What is the biggest obstacle that you’ve overcome? Advising company clients and investors through the COVID pandemic and the uncertainty of the markets over the last few years to help them survive, thrive and continue to grow.
Celebrating Leadership with Purpose—In Business and in Community
At Prince Mortgage Team, we help families across Canada achieve their financial goals through personalized mortgage solutions, trusted advice, and a commitment to client care.
As a Forty Under 40 recipient, Rumi Prince is honoured to be recognized for her leadership in both business and community. In addition to growing a national mortgage brokerage, she is the founder of the Rudhro Prince Hope Foundation, created in memory of her 8-year-old son Rudhro, who passed away from a severe asthma attack in 2018.
Through the foundation, Rumi advocates for asthma awareness, youth empowerment, and systemic change, raising over $100,000 and partnering with organizations like Asthma Canada and CHEO. The foundation’s Rudhro Prince Friendship Award is now presented at over 70 Ottawa schools, encouraging compassion and community spirit in young students.
Whether in finance or advocacy, Rumi leads with purpose— building a legacy of hope, impact, and meaningful change.
Rumi Prince
“Inspiring financial success and creating community impact—one family at a time.”
General Manager, Prince Mortgage Team Forty Under 40 | Executive MBA, Board Director,
Rudhro Prince Hope Foundation rumi@princemortgage.ca www.princemortgageteam.ca 613-793-5489
About the Rudhro Prince Hope Foundation
Founded in memory of Rumi Prince’s beloved son, Rudhro, who tragically passed away from a severe asthma attack at the age of eight May 11th 2018, the Rudhro Prince Hope Foundation is a national, grassroots initiative dedicated to raising awareness about asthma, empowering youth, and creating meaningful change in the community.
Since its inception, the foundation has raised over $100,000 to support organizations such as Asthma Canada, CHEO, and local school boards, funding research, education, and family support programs. Through strategic advocacy, Rumi and the foundation have worked closely with Asthma Canada to influence policy, promote access to Certified Respiratory Educators (CREs), and increase government attention to asthma as a critical health issue.
Each year, the foundation hosts the Rudhro Prince Memorial Walk, an emotional and inspiring event that brings together families, healthcare professionals, educators, and supporters to raise awareness and funds in Rudhro’s honour. The walk fosters both healing and community connection, reminding participants of the importance of preventative care and education.
To further amplify its impact, the foundation established two meaningful youth initiatives:
The Rudhro Prince Hope Award:
A school-based recognition program now adopted by over 72 Catholic schools in Ottawa, this award celebrates students who exemplify kindness, leadership, and compassion, values Rudhro was known for. Recipients are also empowered to donate $100 to a charity of their choice, encouraging them to lead with generosity.
Rudhro was awarded as a Honorary Police officer with Ottawa police , he always wanted to become a police officer , as “he wanted to fight the bad guys”: In partnership with the Ottawa Police Service, Rudhro was posthumously awarded the title of Honorary Police Officer, recognizing his bravery and kind-hearted spirit. This legacy continues to inspire the foundation’s community outreach and public safety partnerships.
Rumi’s work through the foundation has been a powerful example of turning grief into action. The Rudhro Prince Hope Foundation stands as a symbol of hope, resilience, and advocacy, creating ripples of impact in every life it touches.
The pain and tragedy of the past years has left people hurt, cynical and fearful to work together.
Mary Anne Carter
37,
PRINCIPAL AND PARTNER, EARNSCLIFFE STRATEGIES
What is your biggest business achievement? Leading highimpact government relations strategies during a period of rising tariffs and renewed Canada-U.S. trade discussions.
What is the biggest obstacle that you’ve overcome? I established myself as a young woman in Ottawa’s political and business circles — a space that, at the time, was still largely male-dominated. Building credibility took persistence, grit and a willingness to take up space, even when it felt uncomfortable.
What Ottawa business person, past or present, do you most admire and why?
Velma McColl. As a principal at Earnscliffe Strategies, she has masterfully bridged the worlds of business, government and policy, working on issues ranging from innovation and energy transition to Indigenous reconciliation and emerging technologies.
Matthew
Brown 33, VICE-PRESIDENT OF CUSTOMER SUCCESS, SOLINK CORP.
What is your biggest business achievement? Rising from an early employee at Solink to an executive, scaling the customer success department to over 50 individuals globally, managing 3,000-plus accounts and driving more than 75 per cent of annual revenue.
What is the biggest obstacle that you’ve overcome? Leading customer success to deliver 85 per cent of total revenue from expansion while maintaining a low churn rate, implementing a pilot framework that reduced sales cycle time by 30 per cent and a revamped QBR process to emphasize customer value.
What Ottawa business person, past or present, do you most admire and why? Terry Matthews. I’m fortunate enough to see firsthand the impact he has made in our community.
Alexander Caudarella
39, CEO, CANADIAN CENTRE ON SUBSTANCE USE AND ADDICTION
What is your biggest business achievement? Leading a wholeof-society expansion of how we tackle the overdose crisis and harms from drugs and alcohol. Bringing in new players, from mayors in small towns to policy-makers, business leaders and the education sector.
What is the biggest obstacle that you’ve overcome? The pain and tragedy of the past years has left people hurt, cynical and fearful to work together. It has been challenging but rewarding to bring people together who want to transform community health and safety both locally, nationally and internationally.
What Ottawa business person, past or present, do you most admire and why? Dave Smith. An Ottawa legend who used his business and influence to bring addiction treatment to young people and improve his home community.
Varsha Chaugai 38, CEO, EVOKE HEALTH
What is your biggest business achievement? Founded a healthtech startup while raising two young children, becoming the first in Canada to transform how long-term care homes communicate and build trust with families.
What is the biggest obstacle that you’ve overcome?
We were not sure if we would make it as a bootstrapped, two-founder company who are also husband and wife. Our product is ahead of its time and health care is slow to adopt high tech.
What Ottawa business person, past or present, do you most admire and why? I love that we have world-class children’s health care in our city. Back in the late 1960s, Roger Guindon and Bruce MacDonald were pioneers in bringing CHEO to Ottawa. As a mother of small children, I appreciate them every time one of my children gets sick.
Evan Dudley
34, DIRECTOR SALES NORTH AMERICA, GIATEC SCIENTIFIC INC.
What is your biggest business achievement? Helping hundreds of the top construction firms across North America build faster and safer. Successfully launching several new and innovative products into the global marketplace.
What is the biggest obstacle that you’ve overcome? Transitioning from a career in finance to one in construction technology was a leap of faith. I’m glad I was able to trust my gut and make the move because every day I wake up excited to be working with an amazing team and for a company that is changing the world.
What Ottawa business person, past or present, do you most admire and why? Giatec’s co-founders Pouria Ghods and Aali R. Alizadeh as they are great examples of the business leaders we need to see more of in Ottawa.
Kyle Crawford
39, VICE-PRESIDENT SALES AND RENTALS, HANSLER INDUSTRIES/VENTURIS CAPITAL CORP.
What is your biggest business achievement? My greatest achievement has been helping rebuild the sales teams across Hansler and our acquired companies, but what stands out most is seeing the colleagues I’ve managed grow into successful, capable professionals.
What is the biggest obstacle that you’ve overcome? One of my biggest challenges was leading three major business integrations over 20 months: first Hansler into our group, then Ross Industries and Capital Industrial into Hansler, while aligning teams, systems and cultures across Ontario and western Canada.
What Ottawa business person, past or present, do you most admire and why? Korey Kealey of the Kealey Group at Re/Max stands out for her ability to blend entrepreneurial drive with a deep commitment to community building, all while remaining warm, generous and genuinely kind.
Marry Gunaratnam
37, SENIOR VICE-PRESIDENT, NORTHERN CREDIT UNION
What is your biggest business achievement? Launched Northern’s first major digital transformation in over a decade, modernizing banking systems and enhancing services for over 90,000 members.
What is the biggest obstacle that you’ve overcome? Navigated rapid industry changes and rising member expectations by embracing innovation, building internal capabilities and executing complex technology upgrades under tight timelines.
What Ottawa business person, past or present, do you most admire and why? I admire Kevin Ford, CEO of Calian Group, for his visionary leadership in diversifying a local company into a global leader while staying deeply committed to community impact.
Erin Hennessy 39, DIRECTOR OF OPERATIONS, CVE INC.
What is your biggest business achievement? Embracing my neurodivergence as a strength to enhance operational efficiency at CVE and more effectively support our objectives, helping to remove barriers for persons with disabilities in the communities we serve through provincial expansion.
What is the biggest obstacle that you’ve overcome? Led CVE and our team through the uncertainties of a global pandemic, strategically pivoting to maintain financial stability, ensure the safety of clients and staff, and emerge stronger on the other side.
What Ottawa business person, past or present, do you most admire and why? Amber Stratton, co-owner of the Pure Yoga brand (among others), is a powerful and brilliant businesswoman who has paved the way for other women —all without seeming to skip a beat.
Christian Jennings 39, PRESIDENT, JENNINGS REAL ESTATE CORP.
What is your biggest business achievement? Overseeing the continued growth of Jennings Real Estate, which my brother/business partner and I started in 2018.
What Ottawa business person, past or present, do you most admire and why? My father, who has shown me the value of hard work, integrity and relationship-building.
Tessa Kampman
39, SENIOR PROJECT DIRECTOR, BBB ARCHITECTS OTTAWA INC.
What is your biggest business achievement? Led and managed the design of buildings that form part of the largest infrastructure projects in the city of Ottawa including the Confederation Phase 1 and Trillium Line LRT stations, four district energy plants for PSPC’s ESAP program, and New Main Hospital as part of the New Campus Development for The Ottawa Hospital.
What is the biggest obstacle that you’ve overcome? Large infrastructure projects are full of design challenges and obstacles that require a dedicated team to work together to achieve the best design for the client, users and the community. I am passionate about finding creative solutions and inspiring the team to work collaboratively and produce the best outcomes possible by fostering a positive and encouraging environment.
Joel Kowalski
36, RIVER OPERATIONS MANAGER, WILDERNESS TOURS
What is your biggest business achievement? Developed Lazy River Tubing tour at Wilderness Tours, which in its first summer saw nearly 5,000 participants adding $500,000 in revenue.
What is the biggest obstacle that you’ve overcome?
Took over managing our Ottawa City Rafting tour and reduced labour to revenue ratio from 65 per cent to 33 per cent.
What Ottawa business person, past or present, do you most admire and why?
Seth Richards president of Westview Projects. He’s an ex-rafting guide who has achieved a lot and is also a previous Forty Under 40 honouree.
If you weren’t in your current profession, what would be your dream job? Professional athlete in surfing or skiing. President of Destination Canada or of a major ski resort.
We were not sure if we would make it as a bootstrapped, two-founder company who are also husband and wife.
Pamela Lai 38, MEDICAL DIRECTOR, EXECHEALTH
What is your biggest business achievement? Led the clinical integration of ExecHealth with Well Health Technologies following its acquisition in 2021.
What is the biggest obstacle that you’ve overcome? Navigated the continuation of medical services safely for staff and patients during a pandemic.
What Ottawa business person, past or present, do you most admire and why? Liz Mok, owner of Moo Shu Ice Cream, for running an incredible business that is living wage certified, sustainability-focused, community-oriented and, of course, sells the tastiest ice cream.
If you weren’t in your current profession, what would be your dream job? Cafe owner.
Michael Lalonde 39, CO-OWNER AND FOUNDER, PURECOLO INC.
What is your biggest business achievement? Helped bootstrap and grow my company from nothing to over $2 million in ARR in eight years. In my spare time, I recorded an album with a goldrecord-holding band I grew up listening to.
What is the biggest obstacle that you’ve overcome?
Overcoming doubt of success from the start in a trust-essential business and getting big businesses to believe in the vision.
What Ottawa business person, past or present, do you most admire and why? I’ve always admired Eli Fathi for his story of coming from very little to where he is today as I very much relate to his rags-to-riches story.
If you weren’t in your current profession, what would be your dream job? Full-time touring musician.
Sébastien Lavoie 33, OWNER, LA VIE EN BOIS
What is your biggest business achievement? I built and scaled La Vie en Bois from my parents’ garage to a 7,000-square-foot facility in Limoges, now expanding again. I’m proud to have created a solid foundation rooted in hard work and craftsmanship that continues to support our growth.
What is the biggest obstacle that you’ve overcome? Finding balance between growing the business and being truly present for my family. While I’m not fully there yet, thoughtful decisions and better structure are helping me move toward more time with my wife and two children.
What Ottawa business person, past or present, do you most admire and why? Benoit Desforges of Benam
Construction is someone I truly admire for his passion for business and growth. He left a stable job to build his company from the ground
Marty Landry
36, VICE-PRESIDENT OF SALES, FIELD EFFECT
What is your biggest business achievement? One of my biggest achievements has been shaping and building Field Effect’s channel go-tomarket strategy from the ground up. This route to market now drives over 90 per cent of the company’s revenue and supports a customer base of more than 3,000 organizations.
What is the biggest obstacle that you’ve overcome? I had to overcome the challenge of positioning Field Effect — a relatively unknown, pre-Series A Canadian company — in the highly competitive U.S. cybersecurity market dominated by well-established, well-funded vendors.
What Ottawa business person, past or present, do you most admire and why? I most admire Matt Holland, CEO of Field Effect, for his visionary leadership, relentless drive and deep technical expertise to bring the best product to market. His dedication to innovation and growth has positioned Field Effect (and prior ventures) as a leader.
Empowering Communities Through Innovation and Care: The Entrepreneurial Journey of Rose Caddy Nwaha
In Canada’s evolving healthcare and wellness landscape, Rose Caddy Nwaha stands out as a visionary leader, serial entrepreneur, and registered nurse with a passion for transforming lives. Based in Ottawa, Ontario, Rose is the Founder and CEO of Rocaderm Clinic, Rocaderm Beauty Academy, and Rocan Home Health Care Agency—three purpose-driven ventures that blend healthcare, education, and empowerment.
With over 15 years of experience in nursing and public health, Rose combines her clinical expertise with an entrepreneurial mindset to address real community needs. Her businesses reflect a holistic and inclusive vision: one that prioritizes wellness, education, and accessible care.
Rocaderm Clinic: Where Beauty Meets Wellness
Launched in January 2022, Rocaderm Clinic is the cornerstone of Rose’s mission to help clients look and feel their best. Grounded in the philosophy that “Looking gorgeous feels good!”, the clinic integrates aesthetic medicine with wellness therapies, offering treatments that go beyond surface-level beauty to promote lasting confidence and well-being.
The clinic provides a wide range of advanced services—from cosmetic injectables and varied laser treatments to advanced facials, weight loss management, and intravenous therapy. Under Rose’s leadership as CEO and Clinical Director, Rocaderm has built a reputation for safety, effectiveness, and personalized care.
What sets Rocaderm apart is its expert team of professionals, including a Medical Director, Cosmetic Nurses, Medical Aestheticians, and Beauticians. Together, they create a warm and welcoming environment where science and beauty intersect.
Rocaderm Beauty Academy: Shaping the Future
Recognizing a growing demand for skilled professionals in aesthetics, Rose established Rocaderm Beauty Academy to provide hands-on training and mentorship. The academy equips students with the knowledge, certifications, and business acumen needed to succeed in the beauty and wellness industries.
Rocan Home Health Care Agency: Care with Compassion
Rose’s commitment to healthcare extends to Rocan Home Health Care Agency, where she oversees bilingual, culturally sensitive care across Ottawa. The agency offers nursing, personal support, and companion care, bringing dignity and medical attention directly to clients’ homes and long-term care institutions.
A Legacy of Empowerment
Through her ventures, Rose Caddy Nwaha exemplifies what it means to lead with purpose. She continues to inspire by proving that when compassion and innovation converge, communities thrive—and confidence, dignity, and beauty follow.
Rose’s entrepreneurial journey has not gone unnoticed. She has received numerous accolades celebrating her leadership and vision. Most notably, in 2025, she was honored as one of the recipients of the Forty Under 40 Award by the Ottawa Board of Trade—a prestigious recognition that highlights young leaders who are shaping the future of business and community impact in the region.
Forty under 40 recipient
Rose Caddy Nwaha, RN, BScN, MSc (cand.)
CEO & Founder – Rocaderm Clinic | Rocaderm Beauty Academy | Rocan Home Health Care
Cosmetic Nurse & Clinical Director
Rocaderm Clinic
2500 Saint-Laurent Boulevard, Ottawa, ON (613) 298 5612
www.rocadermclinic.ca info@rocadermclinic.ca
Looking gorgeous feels good!
Brett Merriman 39, CEO, TRYCYCLE DATA SYSTEMS INC.
What is your biggest business achievement? Stabilizing financial and operations while still growing TryCycle — something that was supported by the board, which handed the CEO reins to me. We’ve repositioned our offering to something that is now more repeatable and scalable and less reliant on political and personal connections.
What is the biggest obstacle that you’ve overcome? The COVID pandemic. There was so much uncertainty and imperfect information out there that you had to make some decisions as an executive that impacted people’s lives and livelihoods.
What Ottawa business person, past or present, do you most admire and why? It would be David Alexander, current CFO at Nanometrics, and formerly of ProSlide. David was an early mentor of mine post-CA designation and he showed me that you could have a personality at the office and that humour had a place even (or more so!) in high-pressure times.
Liam Mooney 37, CEO, JACKPINE
What is your biggest business achievement? Founded a multidisciplinary design firm doing millions in annual revenue that solves challenging spatial and place-based problems for business.
What is the biggest obstacle that you’ve overcome? Bootstrapped the company, self-taught businesses management and overcame disability.
What Ottawa business person, past or present, do you most admire and why? Neil Malhotra. Took a chance on my firm early on in my business career and has taught me a lot about business, money and people.
If you weren’t in your current profession, what would be your dream job? San Francisco 49ers football coach.
Andrew Montague-Reinholdt 35, PARTNER, NELLIGAN LAW
What is your biggest business achievement? Worked to build our firm’s labour group from approximately three lawyers to now a team of 12 lawyers (and growing), helping unions with both representing their members as well as their own internal corporate governance and business issues.
What Ottawa business person, past or present, do you most admire and why?
I have had the fortune of working with and being mentored by Janice Payne, the GOAT of employment law in Ottawa. Beyond being a fierce advocate, she is incredibly loyal to and caring toward everyone who works on her team.
If you weren’t in your current profession, what would be your dream job? Screenwriter.
Ryma Nasrallah 39, PARTNER, BLG
What is your biggest business achievement? Becoming a tax partner at a national law firm at the age 34.
What is the biggest obstacle that you’ve overcome? Ensuring continued revenue generation during a global pandemic. The charities and not-for-profit sector was significantly affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.
What Ottawa business person, past or present, do you most admire and why? Gordon Reid, the founder of Giant Tiger, who established the first Giant Tiger store in Ottawa in 1961. Under his leadership, this familyowned business became the leading Canadianowned discount store company it is today.
If you weren’t in your current profession, what would be your dream job? Owning a restaurant.
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Rose Caddy Nwaha 39, OWNER, ROCADERM CLINIC LTD.
What is your biggest business achievement? Built a thriving medical aesthetics clinic serving thousands of clients from Ottawa and surrounding areas, employing a skilled team including a medical director, cosmetic nurses and medical aestheticians, while expanding services.
What is the biggest obstacle that you’ve overcome?
Overcame the challenge of launching the clinic in the post-COVID era, during a time of economic uncertainty, increased competition and staffing shortages in health care.
What Ottawa business person, past or present, do you most admire and why?
Harley Finkelstein, president of Shopify, for his visionary leadership in transforming Ottawa into a global tech hub and his dedication to empowering entrepreneurs through innovation and community support.
Rumi Prince 39, GENERAL MANAGER, PRINCE MORTGAGE TEAM
What is your biggest business achievement? Launched Prince Mortgage Team in 2022, built a national lender network and grew it into a trusted, award-winning brokerage while championing asthma awareness and completing my EMBA.
What is the biggest obstacle that you’ve overcome?
Losing my eight-year-old son Rudhro to a severe asthma attack was the greatest personal tragedy I’ve faced. Transforming that grief into purpose, I co-founded a business, launched a national foundation in his honour and pursued my EMBA.
If you weren’t in your current profession, what would be your dream job? My dream job would be leading a national non-profit focused on asthma awareness, education and family support — creating systemic change so no parent ever has to lose a child to a preventable condition. Helping others breathe easier would be my life’s mission.
Emma Pollon-MacLeod 36, CEO, NUTRICHEM
What is your biggest business achievement? Growing the NutriChem supplement line by over 37 per cent in two years to surpass $1 million annually, while prioritizing quality, innovation and proven clinical outcomes.
What is the biggest obstacle that you’ve overcome?
Leading a second-generation transition in our family business. I had to create clarity around a new vision and direction while honouring and preserving the culture, passion and legacy built over the past 40 years.
What Ottawa business person, past or present, do you most admire and why? Glen Luckman, co-founder of Dymon. He offered mentorship at a critical time and the business books he recommended became game-changers for my knowledge and passion for leadership.
Liam Remillard
37, SENIOR MANAGER AND CHIEF STATISTICAL ADVISER, ABBOTT POINT OF CARE
What is your biggest business achievement? Our team achieved a world first by developing the i-STAT TBI cartridge, a rapid diagnostic test for mild traumatic brain injury, providing lab-quality results in just 15 minutes.
What is the biggest obstacle that you’ve overcome? During my time as an epidemiologist with the Public Health Agency of Canada over the COVID-19 pandemic, our challenge was collecting and harmonizing data from all provinces and territories to make timely and accurate predictions that informed national public health guidance.
What Ottawa business person, past or present, do you most admire and why? Alex Munter for the legacy that he has left as the former president and CEO of CHEO.
What is your biggest business achievement? Revitalized an organization facing declining membership and engagement by implementing strategies that led to consistent year-over-year growth in both areas. This progress was supported by establishing a sustainable financial model to ensure long-term stability.
What is the biggest obstacle that you’ve overcome? My biggest obstacle was that no education could have prepared me for the scope of this role. I had to quickly grow far beyond my formal training to meet the complex demands of leadership.
What Ottawa business person, past or present, do you most admire and why? Rabbi Reuven Bulka was the most impactful communitybuilder I’ve ever encountered. His relentless drive and authentic connections across Ottawa transformed our city, uniting diverse individuals to create something magnificent.
Dedrick Sterling 39, OWNER, MERAKEY CONSTRUCTION AND MANAGEMENT
What is the biggest obstacle that you’ve overcome?
As the company’s founder and owner, one of the most formidable challenges was scaling the business to match its rapid success, all while strategically leveraging personal financial resources to fuel growth and sustain momentum.
What Ottawa business person, past or present, do you most admire and why? I have gained valuable experience and knowledge while working alongside Jeff Walker and Franco D’Angelo. Their unique approaches to construction have significantly contributed to my personal and professional growth.
If you weren’t in your current profession, what would be your dream job? I would be a travel agent.
My biggest obstacle was that no education could have prepared me for the scope of this role.
Sarah Vandenbelt 38, BROKER OF RECORD AND FOUNDER, PARADIGM COMMERCIAL REAL ESTATE & BROKERAGE INC.
What is your biggest business achievement? We launched our brokerage just as interest rates began to climb and within two years have strategically grown into a five-agent firm.
What is the biggest obstacle that you’ve overcome? Launched the brokerage in one of the toughest interest rate environments in recent history while juggling life with a toddler, a second pregnancy and building a business from the ground up with my husband. It meant long hours, time away from my young family and pushing through an industry where being young and female still raises eyebrows.
What Ottawa business person, past or present, do you most admire and why?
Shirley Westeinde is a trailblazer whose leadership in construction and commercial real estate opened doors for women.
Patrick Vice
33,
VICE-PRESIDENT OF ENGINEERING, PRODUCT AND PLATFORM, FULLSCRIPT
What is your biggest business achievement? Rose from intern to VP of engineering, helping scale the company from $1.8 million to over $1 billion in revenue and growing from one engineering team to leading over 20 teams currently.
What is the biggest obstacle that you’ve overcome? Evolving from a hands-on builder to a strategic leader while scaling the engineering team from six to over 100 people. That meant learning how to build great teams, not just great software; scaling culture, leadership and technology in lockstep to support Fullscript’s rapid growth.
What Ottawa business person, past or present, do you most admire and why? I admire Jenna Ladd, founder of Iron North Studio, for her resilience, kindness and leadership in building not just a gym but a great community space.
Kody Wilson
39, PARTNER, GGFL LLP
What is your biggest business achievement? Helped the firm grow revenues by almost 35 per cent, despite five senior partners retiring.
What is the biggest obstacle that you’ve overcome?
Running a professional services firm during the onset of COVID to ensure job security and safety for staff as well as continuing to deliver exceptional client service in unprecedented times.
What Ottawa business person, past or present, do you most admire and why? So many amazing options in the city but Tobi Lutke really stands out for his incredible impact on the city.
If you weren’t in your current profession, what would be your dream job? Batman.
Tori Waugh
38, FOUNDER AND CEO, CONSERVATION AG
What is your biggest business achievement?
I accelerated client organizations to triple in size, securing $2.5 million in funding and $9.5 million in contracts within four years.
What is the biggest obstacle that you’ve overcome?
When we took on the Innovative Farmers Association as a client, we forecasted a path to insolvency without the proper interventions. I subsequently led a merger, formulating strategy, deal structuring and negotiation, conducting due diligence and post-merger transition planning and implementation.
What Ottawa business person, past or present, do you most admire and why?
Rachel Weldon, founder of Debaser (2013) and Pique (2021). Rachel has led the development of the organization from a volunteer-run ad-hoc collective producing DIY events into a leading non-profit music presenter with five employees.
George Zahalan
36, OWNER AND CEO, PHARMACIST VALLEY HEALTH PHARMACIES
What is your biggest business achievement? Founded and developed Valley Health Pharmacies into a company that generates over $20 million in annual revenue and that employs over 70 passionate health-care professionals across eastern and central-eastern Ontario. We are able to better service retirement and nursing homes and clients across all locations using a team-based (“strength-in-numbers”) approach.
What is the biggest obstacle that you’ve overcome? Breaking through a competitive market to provide better service offerings to improve the lives of thousands of clients.
What Ottawa business person, past or present, do you most admire and why? Ian McNeil. He is a mentor to me and someone that I admire because he shares a similar mentality to myself: do whatever is needed to get the job done and achieve new heights.
THE 2025 EASTERN ONTARIO
Vacation gems close to home await your discovery
BY PAULA ROY
Welcome to our vacation guide. We eagerly put this special section of the paper together for you each year, to showcase some of our region’s most appealing vacation and staycation options. This year, we’ve intentionally focused on local consumers’ increased desire for authentic, homegrown experiences that celebrate the best that Canada has to offer.
THE ALLURE OF TRAVELLING IN CANADA
There has been a lot of talk lately about maximizing one’s time and travel dollars by staying in Canada, due in part to enhanced patriotism and general economic uncertainty. It’s more than just anecdotal; according to Statistics Canada, the number of return trips among Canadians
travelling by car to the United States declined significantly in February, down 23 per cent year over year.
Similarly, Canada’s largest travel agency, the Flight Centre Travel Group, reported that pleasure travel bookings for American destinations in February were 40 per cent lower compared with the same month last year. Abacus Data found that 56 per cent of surveyed Canadians who initially planned to travel to the U.S. this year had since scaled back or cancelled those plans, with 78 per cent of those surveyed aged 60+ indicating that U.S. travel has become less appealing.
attractions means it’s not necessary to travel far to enjoy world-class experiences. In fact, it’s easier than ever to make great memories close to home, whether you’re travelling solo, as a couple or in a group with friends or family.
As this vacation guide demonstrates, our region is replete with charming places to visit, ranging from small communities to thriving cities. Each destination offers a range of appealing, quintessentially Canadian experiences, whether you prefer to explore waterways, visit historic sites, indulge in local food and drink or immerse yourself in a vibrant arts and culture scene.
CLOSE TO HOME HOLDS GREAT APPEAL
As the data suggests, travel preferences are shifting, indicating a broader trend of Canadians opting for local destinations and that’s great news for those looking at Eastern Ontario and the Outaouais. The convergence of natural beauty, convenient amenities and interesting
OUTDOOR OPPORTUNITIES
Boating enthusiasts are drawn to the region’s numerous lakes and rivers, many of which are easily accessed for kayaking, canoeing, stand up paddleboarding and fishing; at some, pristine beaches also beckon. If camping’s your thing, a wide range of options exist – many waterside – including provincial and national parks plus private campgrounds, but rest assured that those who prefer hotels or cozy inns will also find no shortage of possibilities. Here are two handy links to book at provincial or Parks Canada campsites.
FARM FRESH EXPERIENCES
While the concept is not a new one, it is only recently that the agritourism sector has finally garnered the limelight it deserves. Whether you choose to visit farm gate stands and u-pick operations, stroll through farmers’ markets brimming with locally produced goods or enjoy an overnight stay on a welcoming farm, it can be an ideal way to connect with people, the land and our nation’s proud agricultural history. As an added bonus, the region’s hundreds of local farms ensure the many pubs, cafés, bakeries, restaurants and breweries are supplied with the finest, freshest ingredients for you to savour. Learn more at Savour East Ontario.
Cornwall’s DEV Hotel & Conference Centre a premier destination for work or play
Friendly, flexible facility offers all the ingredients for a great stay
The city of Cornwall – located less than an hour from Ottawa – is quickly becoming one of Ontario’s most appealing getaway destinations. For your next visit, the DEV Hotel & Conference Centre is the perfect home base from which to enjoy the area’s many attractions and recreational opportunities. Set on 75 scenic acres along the St. Lawrence River, the DEV Centre is an ideal spot for gatherings from small to large, such as family reunions, special events, sports team training and tournaments, exhibitions, conventions and more.
Spacious and accessible
The DEV Centre is one of the largest event venues in Eastern Ontario, boasting 70,000 square feet of flexible customizable meeting spaces, making the facility perfect for groups of all sizes. Easily accessed by car, rail, bus, plane or helicopter, the
centre includes 529 guest rooms which are in the process of being refreshed and equipped with the latest in smart room technologies.
The tranquil atmosphere inside the DEV Centre is achieved thanks to its numerous windows, an abundance of plants and a central open-air courtyard, perfect for special events and ceremonies. “Our event guests find it very reassuring that there are ample indoor spaces should planned outdoor activities need to be relocated in the event of inclement weather,” notes General Manager Ian Bentley.
Superb service and cuisine
Adding to the ambiance is the DEV Centre’s super friendly staff – many of whom have been with the facility for decades – who are excited to get back to their traditional hospitality roots stemming from
the centre’s history as a training centre. “We pride ourselves on running a very smooth and efficient operation which allows all our guests to truly relax and enjoy their time with us,” says Bentley.
Top notch food offerings play an important role as well, showcasing the freshest local ingredients including honey harvested from the DEV Centre’s soon-to-be installed rooftop hive. Indulge in sumptuous buffet-style meals for breakfast, lunch, and dinner at the 350-seat Propeller Restaurant, or unwind with a drink and casual fare at Jet Set Pub. If you’re looking for a customized event menu or meals adapted to meet dietary restrictions or special nutritional requirements for athletic training, the DEV Centre’s Executive Chef Jeff Bradfield looks forward to working with you.
An abundance of amenities
Take advantage of a full suite of amenities, including two fully equipped fitness centres, double gymnasium, sauna, 25 metre indoor pool and spa services by appointment. Other perks include free high-speed Internet throughout the entire facility, plus ample parking for large groups, EV charging stations, an outdoor fire pit and patios as well as volleyball and tennis courts.
The DEV Centre is proud to continue the facility’s tradition of being an integral part of the community, sponsoring and hosting events. Special pricing is offered to military guests, seniors and CAA/AAA members. For more information, please contact info@devcentre.ca , visit www.devhotelandconferencecentre.com or call 613-936-5800.
Flexible spaces designed for seamless events
Newly Renovated Rooms
Scenic venue overlooking the St. Lawrence River
City of Cornwall serves up natural beauty, rich history and modern amenities
An appealing, accessible destination for all
A beautiful riverside city steeped in history, Cornwall offers visitors a chance to embrace modern experiences, connect with nature and immerse themselves in the past. Strategically located on the banks of the St. Lawrence River, just an hour from Ottawa, Cornwall’s is an appealing, accessible destination.
Where the past comes to life
As one of the oldest settlements in Canada, Cornwall’s storied past includes an historic visit from Thomas Edison over 140 years ago. He came to switch on the Canada Cotton Manufacturing Company’s lights, making it Canada’s first electrified industrial facility. This celebrated event and many others can be discovered at the Cornwall Community Museum while the history of hydroelectric power can be explored at the Saunders Hydro Dam Visitor Centre.
Land and water-based activities abound
Known for its world-class waters, boaters love Cornwall’s waterfront. Bring your own gear or
check out the kayak and paddleboard rentals available at Guindon Park. The city is also known as an angler’s haven; public boat launches are available at Guindon and Lamoureux Parks. Whether you want to cycle, stroll, inline skate or scooter along the popular Riverside Trail, you’ll find 18 kilometres of it in Cornwall, with bike rentals available at Marina 200. Those who prefer to get their steps in on a golf course will be equally satisfied at Summerheights Golf Links. For the adventuresome, mountain biking trails and one of Ontario’s top-ranked BMX tracks can be found in Guindon Park.
Cultural connections
Art galleries and studios plus several renowned theatres are key components of Cornwall’s thriving cultural scene. Explore the region’s rich indigenous history with a visit to the Native North American Travelling College (tours can be pre-booked). The festival scene in Cornwall is a particularly lively one, with events running from spring through fall, including such perennial favourites as Ribfest, Apples and Art, and Culture Fest.
Appealing accommodations
Cornwall boasts a handful of comfortable, convenient hotels as well as vacation rental properties. From solo travellers to families to large groups, Cornwall has room for everyone!
Eat, drink and be a merry shopper
Cornwall’s tantalizing culinary and beverage purveyors offer something for every taste and budget, with an emphasis on fresh and flavorful fare. Choose from dozens of options, many with patios, and be sure to check out Rurban Brewing’s tap room and retail store. Once you’re fuelled up, cruise downtown to visit Cornwall’s many one-of-a-kind shops.
Looking for help planning your next visit to Cornwall? Call or text Cornwall Tourism anytime at 613-938-4748 to request the 2025 visitor guide or visit cornwalltourism.com
HISTORY AND CULTURE AWAIT
Home to some of Canada’s earliest settlements, prior British and French influences have shaped the character of this region in many ways. Discover the area’s rich past through museums, historic buildings, live action re-enactments, longstanding fairs and more. History really does come to life here. Check out this comprehensive list of Ontario museums and heritage sites for more information. When it comes to arts and culture, the entire region offers a vibrant palette of entertainment. Art tours, galleries and studio visits will help you connect with the work of talented artists and artisans. Whether you’re a fan of live music or theatre (or both), small regional playhouses and larger venues consistently present impressive lineups, enjoyed in some of the most appealing settings. Find your muse easily thanks to this arts and culture site.
SPORTS AND RECREATION FOR ALL
Sports enthusiasts will find plenty to capture their fancy, from playing golf to zooming around BMX parks or go-kart tracks. The area is also a hiker’s paradise,
with trails appealing to all ages and levels of difficulty. Cycling routes both on and off-road present another great way to explore the region. Ontario By
Bike offers great resources.
The Business Development Bank of Canada (BDC) recently noted that while foreign visitors are important contributors to the tourism industry in Canada, Canadians represent the biggest share of tourists at over 75 per cent. Eastern Ontario and the Outaouais are
Discover Brockville, the City of the 1000 Islands! Explore historic sites like Canada’s first railway tunnel, enjoy a 1000 Islands Cruise, or stroll downtown filled with shops and cafes. Family fun, history, and adventures await!
more than ready to show everyone just how much there is to discover in this beautiful, interesting part of our country. Local tourism organizations have all the resources you need to find an abundance of unique opportunities as you plan your next vacation in a region considered by many to be one of Canada’s finest.
SOUTHEASTERN ONTARIO
Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Ottawa: The Place to Be
Opening July 3, 2025, Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Ottawa officially ignites the capital. The first fully integrated Hard Rock resort in Canada, this landmark destination combines high-voltage entertainment, iconic design, bold flavours, and immersive experiences — all wrapped in unmistakable Hard Rock style.
Whether you’re booking a suite, catching a show, or just chasing the vibe — this is The Place to Be
The Place to Play
Step into over 150,000 square feet of highenergy gaming and entertainment. The new floor features 1,500 slot machines, up to 40 table games, and a dedicated high-limit area that blends luxury and adrenaline.
Whether you’re a first-timer or a seasoned player, Unity™ by Hard Rock Ottawa makes every visit more rewarding — with perks that extend across gaming, dining, and hotel stays. Sign up now and prepare to go global later this year.
The Place to Dig In
Bring your appetite — and your expectations. From legendary bites to premium cuts, Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Ottawa will serve up a
world of flavour with 10 dining and beverage destinations to explore.
The iconic Hard Rock Cafe returns to the city with its signature blend of rock history and bold comfort food. For an elevated experience, reserve a table at Council Oak Steaks & Seafood, known for its dry-aged perfection and curated wine list.
Whether it’s a date night, girls’ night, or post-show celebration, this is where Ottawa eats differently.
The Place to Kick Back
Unwind your way. With 150 contemporary guest rooms, including 22 luxury suites, the hotel experience fuses Hard Rock’s music-first DNA with comfort, style, and curated design.
Guests enjoy elevated amenities, spa-inspired bathrooms, and even pet-friendly rooms via the Unleashed™ program. Whether you’re staying for the weekend or recharging after a night on the floor — this is the escape you didn’t know you needed.
Want In?
You don’t just visit a place like this. You experience it, and with momentum building the minute the doors will open, the smart move is to book now.
The Place to Get Amped
The city’s newest stage is ready. The Hard Rock Live Ottawa venue with a capacity of up to 2,200 fans that will showcase world-class entertainment acts year-round — from global icons to breakthrough stars.
Kicking off with a powerhouse grand opening lineup, the venue promises more than concerts. It’s a full-sensory, full-throttle experience. And with authentic music memorabilia lining the property, even a stroll through the halls feels like a backstage pass.
You’re just three to five songs away from stepping into something unforgettable. Whether it’s a drive across town or a detour from downtown, Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Ottawa is always within reach — and always worth the trip.
This is where the city changes tempo. Where nightlife, culture, and connection come together in a space that looks as good as it feels. From the Rock Shop™ to the journey through the amazing music memorabilia collection next to a jumping Hard Rock Center Bar and stage showcasing live entertainment — this isn’t just a place to go. It’s a place to arrive.
Visit hardrockottawa.com or call 1 (833) 486-7625 to reserve your stay, your table, your night out.
A taste of the countryside
YOUR GUIDE TO REGIONAL SUMMER FARM ADVENTURES
BY PAULA ROY
Want to escape the hustle and bustle of city life to connect with the natural world? One of the best ways to do this is by enjoying an immersive experience at a working farm. Whether you’re looking to pick your own fruit or vegetables, interact with friendly animals, take some photos, or simply enjoy the peaceful countryside, Eastern Ontario and the Outaouais offer a wide variety of farm experiences. Pack your rubber boots and sunscreen then get ready to explore the charm and beauty of these wonderful rural retreats, where you can feel in tune with the land, savour fresh food, and make unforgettable memories with family and friends.
FOR ANIMAL ENTHUSIASTS
Foymount Farm in Cormac, near Eganville, is a peaceful, 50-hectare farm and forest. Two comfortable, private, kid and pet-friendly farm-stay cottages are available for rent. Also on offer are horse lessons during which you’ll learn how to forge connections and communicate with these majestic animals.
Goat Ridge Farm in Seeley’s Bay comprises 300 rolling acres of the Frontenac Arch Biosphere, where the family cultivates the land plus raises llamas, Nubian goats, poultry and pigs.
Sign up for a goat walk to lead these curious, friendly creatures around then pop into the farm shop for pastured meats, vegetables and handcrafted ceramics made at the farm’s pottery studio.
Maple Hill Urban Farm in Ottawa is beloved for its animal tours; visitors can choose either an alpaca, pony or goat to handle and guide. Other barn animals to meet include cows, pigs, chickens and ducks. Eggs and seasonal fresh produce are available for purchase, and a fun corn maze is open in the fall.
FOR FRUIT FANS
Les Fruits de Poirier in St-Eugène, near Vankleek Hill, is a family-run permaculture farm offering berry picking, picnic facilities and guided tours. Select favourite seasonal fruits like blackberries,
GOAT RIDGE FARM
GREEN CORNERS
apples and plums or new-to-you varieties such as haskap and Nordic kiwi. A campground for RVs is available and the farm store features a wide variety of unique local goods.
Miller’s Farm and Market, just south of Manotick, is well known for its garden centre plus a pumpkin extravaganza each fall, but they also grow a wide range of other produce and offer farm-fresh eggs too. Seasonal u-pick offerings include strawberries, raspberries and currants. Delectable baked goods, wagon rides and play structures make this a very familyfriendly spot.
FOR FLOWER LOVERS
Green Corners in Edwards is the Ottawa area’s largest u-pick flower farm offering tulips, marigolds, sunflowers, snapdragons and much more. Build your own bouquet or purchase premade ones. Alternatively, for a small fee, you can visit and take photos with the most vibrant natural backdrops imaginable; professional photographers can also book photo shoots on location.
Wynn Farms in Adolphustown serves up u-pick strawberries, apples and pumpkins plus a corn maze but what’s particularly popular are their flower offerings. These
include bouquet-making workshops, a multi-day sunflower festival and flower frenzy events. Their family-friendly teddy bear picnic is another highlight.
FOR OVERNIGHTERS
Ottawa Valley Farm to Fork in Douglas is a heritage family farm that allows you to sample farm life via peaceful farmhouse accommodations, farm-fresh food and a variety of hands-on experiences including farm tours, picnics in the pasture, cycling tours and more.
Berry Homestead Farm in Lyndhurst is an off-grid farm with kayak rentals, campsites and an accessible tiny house for overnight stays. Expect a warm welcome from the farm’s donkeys, chickens and geese. Their farm shop features a nice assortment of farm-made products incorporating donkey milk, honey and elderberries.
FOR INSPIRATION AND EDUCATION
Mādahòkì Farm in Kanata offers a full suite of Indigenous-inspired experiences and special events for all ages. Feed the small animals or watch the endangered Ojibwe Spirit Horses playing and grazing in the fields. Walk the legacy trail and leave a message of reconciliation. Be sure to visit the store, filled with arts, crafts and foods from over 40 Indigenous artists and makers.
Whichever farms you choose to check out, be sure to familiarize yourself with Agritourism Ontario’s helpful farm visit etiquette. For more fun opportunities, be sure to check out the region’s many farmers’ markets and agricultural fairs. Quebec Agrotourism and Savour East Ontario also have lots of helpful resources on their sites.
• Minutes from downtown Kingston
• Conference facilities for up to 200 people
• lslandview banquet and dining facilities
• Smuggler’s Glen championship golf course
• Area attractions - including boat tours, casino, pickleball, canoeing, kayaking, hiking and more!
MA _ DAHÒKI FARM
GREEN CORNERS
Your next memorable getaway awaits in Whitewater Region
So many possibilities in Ontario's Adventure Playground
If you’re eager to immerse yourself in some quintessentially Canadian experiences, look no further than Whitewater Region in the County of Renfrew, in the Upper Ottawa Valley. It’s a four-season playground that offers an especially extensive array of options during warm weather, making it perfect for an unforgettable weekend getaway. As Ontario’s largest county, Renfrew County has so much to offer including legendary small-town charm and hospitality.
Whitewater Region beckons
Planning the ideal escape is easy, thanks to the variety of options in Whitewater Region. As the name implies, this picturesque area along the Ottawa River is renowned for its
world-class whitewater rapids, making it a prime destination for kayaking, canoeing and rafting enthusiasts, as well as those who enjoy fishing. Encompassing quaint communities such as Cobden, Beachburg, Foresters Falls and Westmeath, this portion of the Ottawa Valley also delivers stunning scenery, diverse wildlife, cultural and culinary possibilities, plus a range of accommodations. Whether your taste in activities leans towards the adventuresome or the relaxing, you’re sure to fill your itinerary with ease. Rafting on the Ottawa River, for example, can be enjoyed in a variety of ways, ranging from lazy river tubing to gentle family floats to high adventure trips including multiday excursions.
An array of accommodations
Stay and play options abound at Wilderness Tours and OWL Rafting, both of which have camping, glamping and cabin accommodations. In addition to its waterpark, Splash Valley Waterpark and Resort also offers camping and cabin rentals. Other popular destinations include private and provincial campgrounds as well as the Whitewater Inn, an elegant bed and breakfast with an onsite thermal cycle featuring a sauna and cold plunge circuit. For more land-based activities, trail and road cycling, mountain biking and hiking are all popular pastimes in Whitewater Region, as is exploring the network of ATV trails. Attending seasonal fairs and festivals, visiting local farmers' markets, and enjoying some retail therapy in Cobden and Beachburg are a must-do for any visitor.
Refreshing options
If delicious meals and tasty beverages are on your bucket list, be sure to check out The River Barn Pub with its spacious patio or farm-to-table events at the Whitewater Inn. Cobden’s famed Sconed Bakeshop and Sour Jo’s Sourdough Bakery are must-visit spots, dishing up an ever-changing array of sweet and savoury options sure to tempt every palate. For more great local flavours, pop into the award-winning Whitewater Brewery to sample its original and seasonal brews or the WhiteWater O'Brien Winery tasting patio.
And if that isn’t a complete enough itinerary for you, Whitewater Region also offers golfing, museums, historic sites and more. Whether looking for adrenaline thrills, to slow the pace or a little in between, let your sense of adventure guide you to the Ottawa Valley.
How can you maximize AI value while minimizing AI risk?
From mitigating risk to enabling confidence, AI adoption requires careful human oversight at ever step.
continued. “That might not be your normal day. With human factors, we’re not consistent.”
That’s where Celestra’s platform comes in. A doctor can then see the patient’s gait over a prolonged period of time, leading to more informed decisions.
“You charge (the insoles) up, like you would your iPhone,” explained Shadbolt. “And they just feed into an app in the cloud and your doctor is getting reliable data.”
Celestra Health helps MS patient bike across Canada to raise $1M
BY NATHAN DRESCHER news@obj.ca
Dominic Shadbolt is pedalling 8,000 kilometres across Canada with a mission: raise $1 million for research into multiple sclerosis. He’s doing it with the support of several donors, including Ottawa’s Celestra Health.
The 55-year-old British cyclist, who has roots in Vancouver, set off from Halifax on May 1 and expects to reach the Pacific coast by the end of August. He’s travelling solo on a recumbent trike and carrying all his gear with him. He is camping along the way and eating dried food. He was diagnosed with MS more than 30 years ago.
“We’re trying to raise a million dollars,” Shadbolt told OBJ during his stop in Ottawa. “And the thing with Canada is, it’s big and it’s difficult. There’s something vaguely heroic about doing it with all your luggage and tent and stuff.”
Ottawa-based healthtech firm Celestra Health is helping to power Shadbolt’s ride, including by donating US$5,000 to support his cross-country campaign. But the relationship goes deeper. Celestra develops AI-powered gait analysis tools for neurological conditions and invited Shadbolt to serve on its patient advisory board after meeting him through a clinical trial connection in the U.K.
“Dominic’s journey across Canada, cycling by himself with no support, rain or shine, and staying in campgrounds along the way is nothing short of courageous,” said Celestra CEO Bruce Ford. “We were all-in as soon as we heard about it.”
The sponsorship reflects Celestra’s
broader commitment to patient-led development and its aim to improve long-term outcomes for people living with chronic neurological diseases such as MS and Parkinson’s disease.
Celestra’s flagship platform uses smart insoles to collect data about a patient’s gait as the person moves around during daily life. A patient wears the insoles a few times a week. Since they’re inside the shoes there’s no stigma attached or bulky gear to put on. The insoles collect hundreds of data points per second and an AI-powered algorithm is
able to parse it all.
“So when you’re a patient you get your MS assessment once a year,” Shadbolt explained. “They give you a 25-foot walk assessment and the doctor is supposed to spot things like ataxia, muscle cramping, all this stuff.”
Walking quality is a key indicator of disease progression in conditions like MS but can be difficult for a physician to properly assess as there are too many variables at play, including human error.
“What if you’re having a bad day? What if you’re having a great day?” Shadbolt
He said the doctor can tell how much weight is being put on one foot, the way each foot rolls, and other important details that help decide which drugs and other courses of treatment are best.
The system has received FDA Class II medical device designation and is now being piloted in neurology clinics across North America and Europe. Shadbolt was one of the earliest patient testers and helped shape the product.
Ford said the company tested everything from smart belts to wristbands early on, but patients preferred something invisible and low hassle. “Our smart insole approach came directly from patient feedback,” he said.
Celestra is now running clinical trials in four countries and has signed contracts with major pharmaceutical companies to assess treatment outcomes.
Shadbolt, however, is not wearing the insoles on this ride. He reached Ottawa in the last days of May, stopping for a few days rest before continuing west. He’s following a rough schedule of riding six days a week and averages 60 kilometres a day. He remembers leaving Halifax with a 10-car police escort and officers shutting down intersections as he set out, but there were no warm greetings when he pulled into Ottawa. However, he marvelled at the architecture.
“It is so nice to see brick buildings,” he said jokingly. “What incredible Gothic architecture for the government buildings. I saw the Citadel in Quebec, but it wasn’t quite the same. I’m not just blowing smoke up people’s skirts. It’s decent.”
He travels with a custom trike loaded with camping gear and water, relying on donated or discounted equipment from outdoor brands. His ride is entirely self-supported. There’s no team car, no handlers. There’s only him, although he admits his sister is handling his social media back home in England.
The campaign, #RideCanada4MS, has so far raised tens of thousands of dollars toward its $1-million target. Shadbolt is encouraging Canadians to follow his journey online on YouTube and on the ride’s official website rc4ms.org.
Dominic Shadbolt is cycling across Canada to raise $1 million for MS research with the support of many donors, including Celestra Health. PHOTO BY NATHAN DRESCHER.
MindBridge CEO fired up about AI firm’s future
BY DAVID SALI david@obj.ca
In a tech career spanning four decades, Stephen DeWitt has seen a lot of “next big things.”
But the CEO of MindBridge Analytics says he’s never witnessed anything that can equal AI’s potential to fundamentally alter how businesses operate — and his company is at the forefront of that revolution.
MindBridge, which uses artificial intelligence to help auditors detect irregularities and errors in accounting documents, is perhaps the brightest star in Ottawa’s growing AI firmament.
Founded in 2015 by serial entrepreneur Solon Angel, the firm immediately staked its claim as a company to watch in the AI-foraccountants space, raising more than $40 million in venture capital and establishing a foothold across the Atlantic with its 2020 acquisition of U.K.-based fintech startup Brevis. In 2023, MindBridge signed a deal with KPMG to integrate its software into the global professional services giant’s accounting platform, ensuring the Ottawa firm’s AI would become entrenched in more than 140 countries. The company also secured an additional US$60 million in funding in a round led by PSG Equity LLC.
Since then, MindBridge has aggressively courted customers in verticals beyond its sweet spot in the financial services sector. Its growing roster of enterprise clients now includes Chevron and other Fortune 1000-level organizations.
MindBridge, which has about 150 employees, has seen its revenues grow 500 per cent in the past five years. Recently, the company added veteran fintech executive Thierry Truche to its leadership team as senior vice-president and general manager of its enterprise business unit with the aim of landing even more global customers.
DeWitt, the man in charge of navigating MindBridge’s ascent, recently sat down with OBJ to discuss the new addition to his firm’s brain trust as well as the challenges
and opportunities that lie ahead. This is an edited transcript of that conversation.
OBJ: What really excites you about MindBridge’s potential?
SD: This is a little Ottawa company that could … founded in the golden era of data science and then had to endure all the slings and arrows of things like COVID and market downturns and being on the cutting edge of AI. Given all the heritage there, I think the hiring of Thierry really is a bells-and-whistles signal of a company that is now in the lobbies of really big customers that matter. When you hear us talk about our customer base, you hear us talk about firms like KPMG and Chevron — (businesses) that are in your mutual funds or your RRSPs. These are companies that are big, they’re gnarly, they’re changing dramatically as a result of AI. In big companies — I ran a big chunk of Hewlett-Packard (financial anomalies) are common stuff. And when you think about software being able to find it, mitigate it and orchestrate a control system around it, we haven’t been here before. The products that we’re delivering to our customers have never been built before … just like the first time you went into ChatGPT and went, ‘Holy s—.’”
OBJ: What does Thierry Truche bring to the company?
SD: He knows the global enterprise
markets as well as anybody you’re going to find, knows the discipline of finance as well as anybody. We’re in a big growth mode right now. We’re dealing with a very sophisticated evolution of our company right now. We’re a little company based in Ottawa that’s trying to meet the requirements of global companies at a moment of critical transformation. This is the proving ground. Growing up our processes, growing up how we build software to the highest quality possible and then delivering innovation. All those internal processes, he’s an expert at. He’s just a great leader.
OBJ: What are the biggest challenges MindBridge is facing right now?
SD: A typical large business like a HewlettPackard will have thousands of controls across their financial world — how you pay people, how you create invoices, how you reconcile your books, how you do your financial reporting, everything. Across that, there are thousands of controls, and those controls span multiple systems. The control system of the past doesn’t cut it. It’s not all perfect yet. We’re not quite at continuous (analysis of data) yet. A typical big bank has billions and billions of transactions on a given day. So it’s hard. But GPUs, parallel computing, the stacks that we’re building nowadays, how we separate analytics into chunks, we’ve learned how to do this. We’re now right on the verge of continuous (data analysis). My comparison of the impact of continuous analysis is roughly the tipping point for when everyone went to the cloud. Once this capability reaches main street, you’ll be non-competitive without it.
OBJ: How do you grow that enterprise customer base?
SD: That’s something we talk about every week. Chevron led to Shell, Mars led to Colgate, Howard Hughes (Holdings) led to JLL. These are companies that are in effectively the identical industry with one another and the identical moment of transformation. While competitors are fiercely competitive, they tend to flock together because the disruption is pretty clear. That’s really important for a company like us. We’re a really powerful engine that needs to be pointed somewhere. We have probably a dozen use cases that are our bread and butter right now. We’re at a point in our maturation where those use cases are attracting customers that are looking for
exactly those use cases. Birds of a feather flock together.
Not to get into politics – because I think it will make us all throw up in our mouths — but the reality is it’s a boomtown for us (in the U.S.). We have a lot of (customers) trying to look at a lot of things with very few people. As soon as they do that, we usually get a phone call. The state of Georgia, if you can imagine auditing all of a state’s educational institutions. KPMG has about 100,000 auditors. If you added their workforce and all of the existing auditors on Earth, it would take them about half a billion years to do the analysis that we do. So this is the moment where technology is (permeating) this industry, and it’s going to transform everything.
OBJ: What’s keeping you up at night as you look to really scale?
SD: Politics. There are all sorts of concerns there. From a practical perspective, if I’m talking to one of our investors — because I’m up all night thinking about our investors — geopolitical risk equates to enterprise risk immediately. There is an immediate correlation. If I’m going to be facing 30 per cent tariffs on my dolls, then I’m probably going to cut back on expenditures of things like (MindBridge’s software).
Above and beyond geopolitical stuff … I think we’re underestimating the amount of change that is coming our way (due to AI). As CEO of a company like this, I worry that even as an innovator (we need to hold) ourselves to an even higher bar. Because (change) is coming really fast. And that requires strategy and that requires (looking at what) you do from a capital perspective.
I’ve been a strategist for my entire career. The strategy (that’s required) here is more sophisticated than in any moment in my professional history.
The ability to play it all at the right time, to bring the right capabilities to our customers, that’s tricky.
On the flip side … Chevron laid off 40 per cent of their finance department. If I walked into your office tomorrow and laid off 40 per cent of the people and asked you to do more (and spend less), what would you do? You’d start looking to AI and other things that are out there.
Name a company that isn’t going through some degree of that reality. Again, that’s usually when the phone rings.
Stephen DeWitt is the CEO of Ottawa-based MindBridge Analytics. PHOTO SUPPLIED.
Mitel partnership marks shift in L-Spark’s trajectory
BY DAVID SALI david@obj.ca
L-Spark’s leader believes the Kanatabased tech startup accelerator’s new partnership with Mitel will trigger a wave of collaborations with other Canadian corporations that want to work with emerging companies to bring innovative products to market.
Mitel, which is also headquartered in the west-end tech hub, announced in late April it was joining forces with L-Spark to help up-and-coming tech companies brainstorm applications that can be integrated into the unified communications giant’s products.
The new unified communications accelerator program is a bit of a departure for L-Spark, which over the past 12 years has mentored more than 130 startups that have collectively raised in excess of $200 million in follow-on funding.
The organization has traditionally accepted software companies from a wide range of verticals into its programs, pairing founders with experienced tech executives who provide advice on everything from product development to go-to-market strategies.
But L-Spark executive managing director Leo Lax says the collaboration with Mitel marks a fundamental shift in the organization’s trajectory. Rather than cast a wide net when searching for the next software-as-a-service stars, L-Spark has decided to narrow its focus to companies in specific verticals, he explains.
The organization is hoping to partner with two corporations a year to help its
the world … that this is really … the best way to help our innovation ecosystem become global and be able to grow and become a major player in the market.”
Funded largely by Terry Matthews’ Wesley Clover investment firm, L-Spark has eight full-time employees as well as a network of about 40 serial entrepreneurs, established CEOs and other experienced tech leaders who advise startups on a contract-by-contract basis.
Still, the Mitel partnership is not an entirely new way of doing business for L-Spark. The organization has worked with other well-known tech and telecom firms in the past, including BlackBerry, Telus and Solace, to help startups commercialize
like network troubleshooting software maker Martello Technologies and online bug detection platform Noibu.
Lax says L-Spark began altering its business model early this year with a plan to operate “two parallel activities” — its traditional SaaS program and a new, more targeted accelerator it would run in conjunction with corporate partners in one of four specific industries: retail, utilities, mining and energy.
However, former executive director Patrick White’s decision to leave L-Spark for an executive job at software firm Solink prompted the organization to shift gears and focus solely on the corporate collaboration model instead.
“We said, OK, let’s focus on what we see as a major opportunity, which we were hoping to migrate to later on anyway,” Lax explains. “We just accelerated that migration.”
Lax says L-Spark has received about 400 applications for the new program, which is slated to run from September to next January.
Lax and his team will whittle that down to about 14 contenders, from which Mitel will choose eight companies to participate.
Tech Leaders,
CEO, Calian Group Ltd. Co-chair, Campaign to Create Tomorrow
Public-private collaboration is Canada’s innovation engine — but it needs fuel
Global economic headwinds can be counteracted by a greater focus on commercializing innovation, says Fidus CEO
Fidus Systems Inc.’s selection last year as AMD Adaptive Compute Partner of the Year is a reflection of the world-class talent the company has assembled in Ottawa. As the first Canadian company to win the award, Fidus represents a made-in-Canada engineering success story and a highimpact example of Canadian design leadership.
“We are a hardware embedded systems company with our designs in the guts of a car, in the middle of a data center, in a satellite, in a drone, or in medical systems,” explains chief executive officer Alan Coady.
Fidus’ work in field-programmable gate array (FPGA) design for configurable integrated circuit (IC) chips, and other designs, is proof that Canadian engineering firms are more than capable of competing on the global stage when supported and connected to the right ecosystem.
But that excellence in Canadian innovation is being tested by a series of global economic and geopolitical headwinds.
Tariffs, geopolitical threats add urgency to local innovation Coady says the CHIPS and Science Act, a 2022 U.S. law, was designed to accelerate research and development within the U.S. in the face of global concerns — especially the threat of a Chinese military takeover of Taiwan. The Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) manufactures about 60 per cent of all computer chips in the world, and 90 per cent of high-end chips.
Without access to TSMC, production across the globe could “grind to a halt,” says Coady. “Computer chips are in everything today. Cars nowadays have upwards of 5,000 computer chips inside.”
Along with global supply chain instability, tariff threats and other protectionist policies under the Trump administration risk limiting Canadian access to key technologies and markets.
These issues — and more — have made Canadian intellectual property (IP) and the expansion of local innovation capacity even more critical.
Building on public-private collaborations to compete globally
There is, however, a silver lining to these gathering clouds. The situation provides a significant national and regional opportunity for Canada and Ottawa to build on existing publicprivate collaborations that have provided tangible ways for Fidus, and other Canadian companies, to grow and compete globally.
Coady cites the federal government’s Scientific Research and Experimental Development (SR&ED) program, and the Industrial Research Assistance Program (IRAP), as “great incentivizing vehicles to create IP and to have technical jobs in Canada. They really matter and are very important.”
The SR&ED program helped put Fidus in a position to employ more than 100 people locally (and growing), he explains. And Canada has excellent institutions that
Computer chips are in everything today. Cars nowadays have upwards of 5,000 computer chips inside.
produce very qualified workers, including uOttawa, Carleton University, and Algonquin College locally.
But he also says Canada hasn’t always commercialized the IP we produce as well as we should — and that public commercialization advancement programs, similar to the SR&ED and IRAP R&D initiatives, can do even more to help Canadian businesses compete globally.
“We’re in a highly competitive society. Canada has been wellknown for great R&D innovation. But we tend to create the R&D, then sell that, often to U.S. companies who build around it, market it, and sell a product. So there’s a lot of money to be made that they make, and we don’t,” says Coady.
‘The blueprint is there — now it’s time to scale’
Coady says he wants this kind of public-private collaboration to go even deeper, with programs like SR&ED and IRAP and others putting the same effort into commercializing and taking to market the IP that’s generated.
He also suggests that the Canadian tax system, along with governmentrun entrepreneurial funding agencies such as the Business Development Bank of Canada (BDC), “should be willing and mandated to support Canadian companies going from IP to commercialization, and be willing to take a risk.
“The blueprint is there — now it’s time to scale it and make it work for entrepreneurs at all stages.”
Ranovus CEO focused on building made-inOttawa powerhouse
BY DAVID SALI david@obj.ca
Fresh off a major expansion, Ranovus has set its sights on a lofty goal: becoming a cornerstone of what company founder and CEO Hamid Arabzadeh hopes will be a thriving homegrown ecosystem that helps power the next generation of AI.
The Kanata-based photonics firm is ramping up production at its manufacturing facility on Hines Road, which has just doubled in size from 15,000 to 30,000 square feet.
“It’s a big step for us,” says Arabzadeh, an engineer by trade who launched Ranovus 13 years ago.
Backed by US$170 million in funding from venture capitalists, customers, suppliers and various levels of government, Arabzadeh’s company is one of a handful of firms that are making waves in a still-nascent technology called co-packaged optics.
Ranovus’s devices use lasers to move data between chips on the processors that run AI models. It’s a much more efficient way of moving information at high speeds than the copper cables that have traditionally been the roadways for data, and it’s a field that many companies are only just starting to dip their toes into.
But from Arabzadeh’s perspective, being on the cutting edge is a bit of a doubleedged sword.
Ranovus already stands out in a not-so-crowded field after landing deals with a number of international partners that include chip maker AMD, a rival to California-based semiconductor powerhouse Nvidia.
But trying to carve out a niche in a market that’s still young also means walking a path that few others have travelled. While Ottawa has a wealth of firms like Ciena, Ericsson and Nokia that specialize in more traditional networking technology, Arabzadeh says it’s tough to find engineers who know the ins and outs of co-packed optics.
“There’s not that many companies that work in our space,” he explains. “The skillset is very different. There are a lot of elements of it which don’t exist here in Ottawa, so you can’t really recruit those people.”
Arabzadeh knows he needs to find them if Ranovus is to stay at the forefront of its field.
The data centres and other infrastructure that form the backbone of AI are notorious energy hogs, some burning as much energy in a year as hundreds of thousands of homes.
Ranovus says the latest generation of its patented quarter-sized chips, called Odin, consume half as much power as current technology. And as the use of AI explodes, demand for products like the Kanata firm has pioneered is rising fast.
Besides expanding its own facility in the west-end tech hub, Ranovus has also partnered with photonics powerhouse Jabil to build a $20-million, 16,000-square-foot clean room in Kanata to help package its chips.
The company, which has grown from 88 employees two years ago to nearly 130 today, is continuing its hiring spree with the aim of producing 100,000 Odin chips annually. Arabzadeh says he expects the firm’s head count to hit 200 in the not-toodistant future.
But where to find those people?
Arabzadeh is hoping a new generation of engineering grads from universities such as uOttawa and Carleton will be lured by the chance to get in on the ground floor of a new tech revolution.
“We’re trying to retool Ottawa for this new era of miniaturized technology,” he says. “It takes time, but you have to take measured steps to do this.”
So far, Ranovus seems to be on the right track.
In addition to its deal with AMD, the firm also has a partnership with Taiwanese semiconductor company MediaTek, which now integrates Odin chips into its custom AI chips. And this spring, Ranovus landed a major contract to install its technology in a new high-performance AI computing platform designed by California-based Cerebras Systems for the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, which develops emerging technologies for the U.S. military.
“It sort of puts us on the road map of the U.S. government,” Arabzadeh says of the deal with Cerebras.
After bringing in about $5 million last year, Ranovus expects to hit $25 million in revenues in 2025. The company has turned a profit in both of the last two quarters, and Arabzadeh says it’s on pace to finish the year in the black.
While Ranovus’s chips are fabricated in a foundry in Malta, N.Y., and the company has key customers south of the border, the firm is taking steps to lessen its dependence on the United States market.
The firm has inked partnerships with several European firms and maintains an R&D facility in Nuremberg, Germany, where Arabzadeh previously ran optical technology firm CoreOptics.
He hopes cross-licensing agreements with partners across the Atlantic will help make up for the lack of next-generation photonics expertise in Ottawa.
Hamid Arabzadeh, CEO of Ranovus. PHOTO SUPPLIED.
uOttawa grows Kanata North’s presence to meet rising innovation demands
New campus space at 350 Legget anchors research, innovation, and talent where the industry needs it most
When the University of Ottawa first opened its Kanata North Campus in the heart of Canada’s largest tech park, the goal was clear: To bring researchers, students, and industry closer together to drive impact in the region and beyond. That vision is now accelerating with the university’s move to an even larger space at 350 Legget Drive, where uOttawa is doubling down on its role as a local anchor institution for innovation and talent.
“The expansion of our Kanata North Campus reflects uOttawa’s deep commitment to supporting innovation where it happens – in place, with industry,” says Dr. Muralee Murugesu, Associate Vice-President, Innovation, Partnerships, and Entrepreneurship at the University of Ottawa. “As research intensity at our
The expansion of our Kanata North Campus reflects uOttawa’s deep commitment to supporting innovation where it happens.
Canada for research intensity — and builds on a track record of university-wide large-scale innovation initiatives, such as the uOttawa-IBM Cyber Range, quantumfocused research and training programs, and the recently launched uOttawa-led BrainHeart Interconnectome research program.
Telfer joins the Kanata North campus
A key new addition to the space is the Telfer School of Management’s Digital Enterprise Center (formerly the Centre for Business Analytics and Performance), which now operates within the Kanata North Campus instead of at uOttawa’s main campus downtown Ottawa.
“There are a lot of projects where the company is just trying to explore something a little bit new,” explains Gregory Richards, interim director of the Telfer School’s EMBA Program and Vice-Dean of Graduate Professional Programs. “And the research we do de-risks it a little bit, because they could spend an awful lot of time and money on something that’s so new and may not actually work.”
institution grows, so does our responsibility to serve as a local anchor in the country’s largest tech park – providing companies, researchers, and students with the proximity, resources, and collaborative environment they need to co-create the future together.”
Accelerating research in the city’s west end
uOttawa’s move into a new, expanded space at 350 Legget Dr. is more than a real estate upgrade — it’s a response to the growing demand for applied research, talent, and proximity in Canada’s largest tech park.
The new campus will provide more local support, host more researchers and students, and strengthen industry partnerships. It supports uOttawa’s growing research profile — now ranked fourth in
“So our students can go in and do some work, and it doesn’t cost the companies a lot – it’s a win-win for everybody.”
The Centre offers a “sandbox” environment for companies to test digital strategies alongside academic experts – a model that helps companies move faster and smarter.
“We’re trying to fit better with the pace and the rhythm of companies who might need something done within a couple of months,” Richards explains. “Startups move at light speed, and so do early-scale SMEs looking to scale up.”
Benefits for students and companies
The new space for the Kanata North Campus will significantly benefit both students and partner companies. With the
L-SPARK accelerator, RBCx financial quarter, the KNBA and Hub350 all in the same building, and companies such as Wesley Clover, Edge Signal, thinkRF, Solink, and Marvell just down a corridor, students will be significantly closer to the companies they work with and other technology industry players and events.
For local companies the benefits are threefold: The de-risking of exploratory research mentioned earlier, along with access to top-tier student talent and professors with deep knowledge and connections in their field.
A successful track record of collaboration
The Kanata North Campus builds on uOttawa’s growing reputation for applied, cross-disciplinary research. It is facilitating and supporting:
• Over 45 active collaborative research projects with industry
• Over 140 research internships placements in 2024 alone
• Experiential learning opportunities and student internships through programs such as CO-OP
• A growing number of industry-focused events and networking programs
“Businesses don’t operate on a single discipline – they’re multi-functional by nature,” says Richards.
“All those functions need to connect if we’re going to truly understand how companies are going to operate 5 to 10 years from now.”
