chrisarsenault
21p15 comments posted · 0 followers · following 0
13 years ago @ StartupCFO - Canada needs more Ange... · 1 reply · +1 points
13 years ago @ StartupCFO - Canada needs more Ange... · 4 replies · +1 points
I agree with most of your comments with the exception of the "lack" of mentors and Investors for our entrepreneurs part - one feeds on the other. The valley, @theC100, as well as elsewhere where we have a mass of successful Canadians, provide Canadian entrepreneurs with a conduit we need to better leverage, not discard. I'm a strong believer of the Brain Flow, not a Brain Drain believer.
A key element of your post relates to the younger generation of entrepreneurs. Where are they? Where are the 24-25 year old entrepreneurs that want to change the world? Don't tell me it's because there isn't any Investors... Bad excuse. When I was 24' so was Alexandre Taillefer, David Tanguay, Martin Bouchard, Fred Lalonde, Eric Boyko, Austin Hill .... Take a look back at the 1995-1997 time frame, what type of business we were building... Without any knowledge whatsoever of the existence of VC financing....
We need more young entrepreneurs sticking their necks out and wanting to make a difference.
And I want to back them!
14 years ago @ StartupCFO - Angels & VCs · 3 replies · +1 points
Got to jump on a flight now. Hope to read more comments tonight.
14 years ago @ StartupCFO - Angels & VCs · 0 replies · +1 points
14 years ago @ StartupCFO - Angels & VCs · 0 replies · +1 points
14 years ago @ StartupCFO - Angels & VCs · 0 replies · +1 points
14 years ago @ StartupCFO - It\'s not just about S... · 1 reply · +1 points
The message I took out of Venture Hacks is the Boyz Clubbing or the Network per say. Having access the the resources (money, people) is one thing, having real-time interfacing opportunities to bump into people that can make a difference for your business is crucial and somewhat the "X-Factor of the Valley".
Clusters are built through time and I do think Montreal like many other places in Northern Canada are building the next generation of startups. In Canada, we need more visibility around our successes -our stars - we tend to be too reserved when instead we should promote our successes, our entrepreneurs!
We also could truly benefit from our own "PayPal Wars" type of entrepreneurial network!! We saw what the Softimage did to the Montreal economy... over 15 CEO's or co-founders were born through their passage at Softimage, and they created what is now one of the strongest gaming and post-production clusters in North America.
We need MORE of these to compete with the World, not just the Valley!!!
14 years ago @ Bootup Labs Blog - Startup Visa Canada · 0 replies · +1 points
Advice is welcomed, I invite anybody to get in touch with me with ideas, constructive comments or opportunities to sound board. Meanwhile, I applaud initiatives such as Danny’s startup Visa Canada, ACTING instead of sitting back and complaining.
If you want change for the better, then get up and make it happen, you’ll be surprise of how much support you’ll get from the community.
14 years ago @ Bootup Labs Blog - Startup Visa Canada · 1 reply · +1 points
Great initiative, synergies are needed in any environment but most importantly the need for a dynamic an open environment to let innovations flow. I think the visa opportunity/issue is more of a US one than a Canadian one, yet I support the initiative and think it can only help build a stronger web of knowledge, entrepreneurs and investors alike.
The “broken VC model” comment is soooooooooooooooooooo old and out of context that reading “empty comments” about it truly irritates me now. Like any other business or industry, the Venture Capital business model needs to evolve or it will eventually die. It’s not more broken then it was in the bubble years or in the ‘80’s when you could count the number of active privately managed VC funds on one hand!
14 years ago @ Redeye VC - Company Math vs VC Math · 0 replies · +3 points