{"id":9509,"date":"2019-08-13T11:49:25","date_gmt":"2019-08-13T15:49:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blog.brainstation.io\/?p=9509"},"modified":"2020-05-07T12:54:04","modified_gmt":"2020-05-07T16:54:04","slug":"7-great-toronto-startups-to-watch","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/brainstation.io\/blog\/7-great-toronto-startups-to-watch","title":{"rendered":"7 Great Toronto Startups to Watch"},"content":{"rendered":"

As we\u2019ve recently <\/span>covered<\/span><\/a>, Toronto has evolved into one of the world\u2019s premier tech hubs with a growth rate unmatched by any other city in North America.<\/span><\/p>\n

So, which innovative companies are powering that boom? Here are seven of Toronto\u2019s top startups to watch.<\/span><\/p>\n

League<\/b><\/h2>\n

When it comes to upending the health benefits market in a short time, this startup \u2013 founded by serial entrepreneur and Kobo Founder Michael Serbinis \u2013 is truly in a league of its own.<\/span><\/p>\n

League promises to drastically improve the health benefits experience for companies and employees alike, providing flexible, customized plans that allow employees \u2013 and they\u2019re specifically focused on millennials \u2013 to allot coverage to suit their needs. Since launching in 2014, they already have hundreds of corporate clients in North America, <\/span>including<\/span> Facebook, Shopify, and Unilever Canada. They\u2019ve also won over investors \u2013 including a $62 million funding round in July 2018.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cEmployers experiencing the war for talent, skyrocketing healthcare costs, and the mental health epidemic are rapidly recognizing that a new approach to benefits will give them a competitive advantage,\u201d <\/span>said<\/span><\/a> Serbinis. \u201cHealth benefits represent a tremendous opportunity to improve the lives and health outcomes for employees, but they\u2019re not currently driving the business value employers should expect from their investment.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Ritual<\/b><\/h2>\n

Since launching in Toronto in 2014, Ritual has indeed become part of the daily routine for hungry office workers around the world.<\/span><\/p>\n

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The app allows coworkers to smoothly coordinate restaurant orders for pick-up while bypassing lines. Ritual expanded the business to Chicago and Boston in 2017 and by the end of 2019 will operate in 40 cities, including London and Sydney, and also plans to triple its restaurant count. It helps, perhaps, that the company\u2019s fee structure (which it doesn\u2019t disclose publicly) is said to be much more vendor-friendly than delivery apps. The startup raised <\/span>$70 million<\/span><\/a> in funding in June 2018 \u2013 at a valuation of $300 million \u2013 that will be used toward continued expansion.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWe are proud of the progress we have made in such a short period of time,\u201d said co-founder and CEO Ray Reddy. \u201cBecause of our solid business fundamentals, we\u2019re now positioned to rapidly scale our business and move into many more markets this year. We are excited to become a truly global brand.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Top Hat<\/b> <\/span><\/h2>\n

It used to be that smartphones were the enemies of teachers and professors everywhere \u2013 until Top Hat turned that idea on its head.<\/span><\/p>\n

Top Hat is a platform that allows educators to take attendance, administer polls, and share lecture notes through students\u2019 mobile devices, while also delivering online homework and interactive content. Founded in 2009 by Mike Silagadze and Mohsen Shahini in a small apartment near the University of Waterloo, Top Hat is now used at 75 percent of the leading 1,000 colleges and universities in North America, reaching millions of students.<\/span><\/p>\n

Named the top Canadian startup at the 2017 TechVibes Canadian Startup Awards, Top Hat also takes care of its employees: perks and benefits include full medical, health and lifestyle benefits, free lunch, breakfast and snacks, employee stock options, and opportunities for career advancement.<\/span><\/p>\n

To reach 750 post-secondary institutions in only a decade would seem quite the accomplishment, but Silagadze isn\u2019t satisfied.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve actually been bummed out it hasn\u2019t happened faster,\u201d he <\/span>said<\/span><\/a>. \u201cIt\u2019s so much better. It\u2019s just so much better. Top Hat is cheaper and more interactive than anything else. Why isn\u2019t everyone using this yet? We\u2019re growing quickly but I feel like we should be in every classroom by this point.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Wealthsimple<\/b><\/h2>\n

With a mission to reach millennials by simplifying the world of finance \u2013 \u201cinvesting on autopilot\u201d is the company\u2019s catchy promise \u2013 Wealthsimple has already made a lot of people a lot of money.<\/span><\/p>\n

The startup brings clients investments without high fees or account minimums often associated with big banks, along with other services \u2013 automatic rebalancing, dividend reinvestment, and tax loss harvesting \u2013 that were largely reserved for the wealthy. Less than five years after being founded in Toronto by Michael Katchen, Wealthsimple now has 150,000 users and manages $4 billion in assets. The startup also won back-to-back Webby awards for the world\u2019s best financial services website, and it was also included in the Globe and Mail\u2019s roundup of the top 10 <\/span>best places to work in Canada<\/span>. <\/span><\/p>\n

Investors are believers in the company too; a $100 million funding round in May brought total funding to $266.9 million.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cOur vision is to build a crazy, successful, huge company, and really change the lives of millions of people,\u201d Katchen <\/span>said<\/span><\/a> in announcing the funding. \u201cI see it as an innovation fund \u2013 to make more and better products, to do what we do better and more efficiently, to bring powerful financial products to people who\u2019ve never had them before.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Flipp<\/b><\/h2>\n

The days of cutting coupons from flyers are over for most shoppers, but everyone still wants to save money \u2013 enter Flipp. Now the No. 1 provider of digital circulars in North America with 50 million-plus downloads, Flipp uses a proprietary platform to transform print circulars into an interactive experience.<\/span><\/p>\n

Certainly, Flipp\u2019s client roster is impressive \u2013 the startup says it works with 90 percent of the largest retailers in North America, including Walmart, Ikea, and Home Depot.<\/span><\/p>\n

Another startup singled out by the Globe\u2019s best places to work in Canada roundup, Flipp offers extensive perks \u2013 and in fact, the startup\u2019s leadership views those benefits as a crucial part of its culture.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWe take a people-first approach to our benefits and perks, which means we look at what\u2019s important to our specific teams based on their life-stage, priorities, and preferences,\u201d <\/span>said<\/span><\/a> David Au-Yeung, Flipp\u2019s Co-Founder and Chief People Officer. \u201cWe want our team members to enjoy all aspects of their life.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWhat\u2019s most important is the freedom and responsibility that we give our team members. That means unlimited vacation (minimum three weeks), the option to work from home, and flex hours. We also promote a healthy lifestyle with a complimentary Goodlife membership as an example. Our team members enjoy family-style Friday lunches, a leading benefits package, including a competitive parental leave top-up, complimentary transportation, whether it\u2019s TTC passes or parking, and much more.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Flow<\/b><\/h2>\n

When Nicholas Reichenbach was leaving Burning Man a few years ago, he looked with dismay at the mountain of plastic water bottles being hauled out at the end of the festival and an idea came to him: Couldn\u2019t something more sustainable be produced? From that observation came Flow, which packs its alkaline spring water in a 68 percent renewable and 100 percent recyclable paperboard pack (it also helps that Reichenbach\u2019s family has owned an artesian spring in South Bruce County, Ont., for five generations).<\/span><\/p>\n

Clearly, he was onto something. As of the end of 2018, Flow was sold in 15,000 locations across North America and the startup expected to sell 100 million packs by 2020. Flow also has powerful celebrity allies in Gwyneth Paltrow and Shawn Mendes and remains committed to its environmentally responsible roots \u2013 in fact, the startup\u2019s goal is to produce a 100 percent sustainable pack by 2024.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWhen I asked my dad for permission, he told me that I could develop the spring on the basis of two things: one, you never take more than what is given to you and two, that you never build a factory on top of the spring,\u201d Reichenbach <\/span>said<\/span><\/a>. \u201cHis grandfather kept it that way. His father kept it that way, and I will keep it that way. We have to be sustainable.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Tulip<\/b><\/h2>\n

A mobile app that helps retail workers to look up products, manage customer information, and check out shoppers, Tulip is suddenly a fixture at stores around the world.<\/span><\/p>\n

The app \u2013 which ultimately aims to elevate the shopping experience, boost sales, and improve customer service \u2013 is now used by six of the top 10 luxury brands in North America and counts clients including Chanel, De Beers Jewelers, Coach, Saks Fifth Avenue, Kate Spade, and Michael Kors.<\/span><\/p>\n

The startup is special for another reason. Tulip\u2019s CEO and founder, Ali Asaria, announced at a company Christmas party that he was going to donate, through a binding pledge, 80 percent of his shares in his firm to a charitable trust controlled by employees \u2013 so if the startup gets sold or goes public, 80 percent of those proceeds would go to charity.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re really passionate about using this as a story of why you should join Tulip,\u201d Asaria <\/span>said<\/span><\/a>. \u201cI think it will be interesting for us to be able to tell new candidates, \u2018Hey you can go and work for a traditional startup and make the Founder very wealthy. Or you can work at Tulip, and we can jointly try to build a multibillion-dollar charity that could transform the world, and we\u2019ll all have a piece in that.\u2019<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI think that means a lot, especially to a next-generation worker who is looking for more in their job than salary and perks.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Toronto has evolved into one of the world\u2019s premier tech hubs, with an unmatched growth rate. Here are seven of the city’s top startups to keep an eye on.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":9512,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[685],"tags":[127,1028,537],"yoast_head":"\n7 Great Toronto Startups to Watch | BrainStation\u00ae Blog<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Toronto has evolved into one of the world\u2019s premier tech hubs, with an unmatched growth rate. 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