A slew of tech leaders were among the regional winners of the 2024 EY Entrepreneur Of The Year awards.
Tobyn Sowden, founder and CEO of Victoria-based software portfolio company Redbrick, is this year’s Pacific region winner; Clive Kinross, founder and CEO of Toronto-based FinTech firm Propel Holdings is Ontario’s winner; and Ken Harris, founder and CEO of Montréal-headquartered travel upselling company Plusgrade, was recognized as Québec’s winner.
EY said Sowden was recognized for empowering digital entrepreneurs with innovative solutions. Redbrick’s partnership with the University of Victoria’s “INSPIRE: STEM for Social Impact” program works on advancing the shift toward carbon neutrality.
While software portfolio companies aren’t a novel concept in Canada, Redbrick positions itself as focused on acquiring digital solutions that help entrepreneurs, such as marketing automation, no-code website-builders, and lead-generation platforms. The strategy led to $100 million in annualized revenues last year, according to EY.
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Propel CEO Kinross was recognized by EY for advancing financial access through innovative solutions. The firm’s “graduation program,” which allows customers who pay off loans to access larger amounts at lower rates, has positively impacted over 750,000 underserved individuals over the past 12 years.
Propel offers lending-as-a-service products and a variety of FinTech solutions through its brands Fora Credit, CreditFresh, and MoneyKey. The company, which trades on the Toronto Stock Exchange under the symbol PRL, entered a partnership with Koho Financial last month and acquired United Kingdom-based FinTech lender QuidMarket for $95.9 million CAD ($71 million USD).
Plusgrade CEO Harris was recognized as Québec’s entrepreneur of the year for pioneering customer-centric innovation in the travel industry. Harris has been an active community leader through his role on the Jewish General Hospital Foundation’s board of directors, the Montréal Children’s Hospital, and the CURE Foundation, which supports low-income Canadian women undergoing breast cancer treatment.
Plusgrade is a white-label travel perks platform that helps firms upsell items in the travel industry, such as priority check-ins and boarding, and pre-paid experiences. The firm reportedly changed hands earlier this year after New York-based private equity firm General Atlantic made a more than $1 billion investment in the company.
RELATED: PLATO’s Keith McIntosh among EY’s Entrepreneur Of The Year 2023 regional winners
Other regional winners include Dr. Denis Jones, president, CEO, and chairperson of Calgary-based real estate development organization Deveraux Group of Companies, and Hakan Uluer, CEO of Halifax-based restaurant holding company The Bertossi Group.
Last year’s regional winners included the CEO of Fredericton-based software testing and technology services startup PLATO, Keith McIntosh, who was recognized for his work in advancing inclusiveness in tech.
This year’s regional winners will compete with each other for the title of Canada’s EY Entrepreneur Of The Year, which will be presented on Nov. 26, 2024. In June 2025, the national winner will move on to compete with more than 50 other country recipients for the title of EY World Entrepreneur Of The Year, hosted in Monaco.
Feature image courtesy EY.
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