Brampton City’s Innovation District welcomes Founder Institute to support startups

BRAMPTON, ON: At its last meeting, Brampton Council unanimously approved a partnership with the Founder Institute (FI), a global accelerator firm providing support to high-potential, early stage companies. The partnership includes funding of an amount up to $30,000 per year, for three years, to the Founder Institute.

The addition of the FI is another step towards building Brampton’s downtown Innovation District that will provide supports for entrepreneurs and businesses through every stage of their journey. Expanding the City’s Innovation District is a key goal in the City’s Economic Recovery Strategy.

FI provides support to companies through specialized programming, training courses, access to funding and introductions to a world-class mentor network. FI has graduated over 4,300 companies that have raised in excess of $950M, and has helped create approximately 25,000 jobs globally.

Other benefits of the partnership include:

• Program expansion bringing tech entrepreneurs from Waterloo, Toronto and the surrounding regions into Brampton
• Scholarships for Brampton Entrepreneurs participating in the program
• Lead generation of international startups and investors
• Supporting the City’s Foreign Direct Investment efforts through international FI chapters
• Helping profile Brampton through the Global FI network
• Developing a dedicated Cybersecurity Stream and programming for cybersecurity startup founders
• Creating a mentor network composed of investors, entrepreneurs and executives

Other partners in Brampton’s Innovation District include the Brampton Entrepreneur Centre; the Catalyst Cyber Accelerator (led by Rogers Cybersecure Catalyst and Ryerson DMZ); the Research Innovation Commercialization or RIC Centre; Ryerson Venture Zone; the Brampton Board of Trade and the Downtown Brampton BIA.

Quotes

“As we emerge from this pandemic and restart our local economy, we welcome entrepreneurs and potential investors to locate in our city and join our growing Innovation District. The Founder Institute will help us attract international startups to Brampton, which will contribute to our economy and create jobs. We are thrilled to welcome the Founder Institute as we work towards providing supports to businesses at every stage of their journey.”  – Patrick Brown, Mayor, City of Brampton

“The continued development of our Innovation District is a key action in our Economic Recovery Strategy, and the Founder Institute will play an integral role in its success. As we move our City forward out of the pandemic, we are committed to providing our entrepreneurs and business community with a suite of supports to help enable their full recovery and future growth.”- Paul Vicente, Regional Councillor, Wards 1 & 5; Vice-Chair, Economic Development and Culture; Co-Chair, Mayor’s COVID-19 Economic Support Task Force, City of Brampton

“With our prime location in the middle of Canada’s Innovation Corridor, Brampton is growing its ecosystem with the goal of becoming a global leader in innovation. Our staff are committed to building partnerships, like this one with the Founder Institute, and putting the necessary conditions in place to make Brampton an optimal location for entrepreneurs and businesses.”- David Barrick, Chief Administrative Officer, City of Brampton

“I can see a future where Brampton becomes home to a huge number of tech startups. Tech startups are often fuelled by immigrants.  Brampton is home to a high percentage of immigrants and has one of the youngest populations in the country who live in between the globally-renown tech hubs of Toronto and Waterloo. With the affordability advantages over nearby cities and a population base that supersedes tech hubs to the west, Brampton has potential to quickly grow as a startup hub.”- Sunil Sharma, Managing Director, Techstars Toronto; Co-Director, Founder Institute, Toronto and Waterloo Chapters

“The Founder Institute is excited to partner with the City of Brampton to help develop its thriving tech startup ecosystem. The Toronto Tech Corridor is one of the best regions in the world to launch a company, and we are grateful for the opportunity to bring Brampton to the forefront of it.”- Ryan Micheletti, Head of Global Operations, the Founder Institute

“As a recent graduate of FI and a Brampton resident, I’ve seen firsthand what opportunities FI brings. With a partnership of FI and Brampton, I believe Brampton will have an opportunity to empower entrepreneurs by expanding their networks, offering weekly pitching and group sessions, and providing access to mentors who also have their own startups and can share their firsthand experiences. As one of the largest cities in Canada, Brampton will be positioned as true hub for innovation and entrepreneurial success.”- Daniel Yeboah General Manager, Ellerca Health Co