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WEtech Alliance announced it has received $1.275 million in funding over four years from the Federal Economic Development Agency for Southern Ontario to establish a new partnership with Kitchener-based Communitech and expand its program scaling accelerator.

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“This further connects us to strong ecosystems with great programming and networks,” said Yvonne Pilon, president and CEO of WEtech Alliance.

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“This strengthens the Windsor-Waterloo corridor.

“This provides us with more funding to extend our existing award-winning Scale-Up program from four months to six months and welcome almost double the number of businesses.

“Next year, the Scale Up Accelerator program will expand to businesses in Waterloo as well as Windsor and Chatham.

The Scale Up program was created in 2019 by Canada’s three largest innovation centers – Invest Ottawa, Communitech and MaRS Discovery District – with nearly $50 million in funding from the federal government. The goal of the program is to develop new businesses into flagship businesses in Ontario’s economy by helping them access capital, talent and customers.

Of the $1.275 million in funding, $400,000 was set aside to support female and non-binary innovators and founders.

“Our goal next year is to support 30 companies and up to 50 women and non-binary founders with expertise and capital,” Pilon said.

Pilon added that as part of the request to receive the $1.275 million, WEtech had to find matching funds from partners. The funding effectively doubles the value of the grant.

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Libro Credit Union is a major partner of the program and recently renewed its sponsorship for four additional years.

“We strive to strengthen people’s financial well-being and we know that Canada’s entrepreneurs deserve the best possible support to achieve sustainable growth,” said Liz Arkinstall, Libro’s Head of Purpose Integration.

“We achieve this through partnerships like this with WEtech Alliance.”

Other partners include Invest WindsorEssex and the City of Windsor, which is sponsoring a new prize worth $2,500.

In its current form, the Scale Up Accelerator welcomes five new companies and offers them access to expertise, mentors and financial support for four months. Businesses then compete in a final pitch day for the opportunity to win $20,000 and continued support for their operations.

The eighth cohort of the program is currently underway and the final presentation day will be February 6.

Aside from the financial benefits for local entrepreneurs, Pilon said the growth of the Windsor-Waterloo corridor is invaluable.

“Our long-standing partnership with Communitech, as part of our role as a regional innovation hub and member of Canada’s technology network, reinforces our commitment to ensuring founders have seamless access to a full range of programs and resources, no matter where they are. » said Pilon.

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“This new collaboration connects Windsor-Essex and Kitchener-Waterloo, fostering a more interconnected ecosystem that enables high-growth and early-stage founders to launch, grow and lead Canada’s leadership in the global innovation economy.

Pilon said startups play a critical role in diversifying and making the economy more agile.

She noted that the 34 companies that have graduated from the local Scale Up program since 2019 have created 191 jobs, generated $31 million in revenue and manufactured 162 products.

Notable graduates include companies such as Optimotive, Cedar Valley, Red Piston, Picsume, Growliv Bilogicals and Resimate.

“Startups are organic farming,” Pilon said. “You start small, but they can be the next unicorn (company valued at over $1 billion).

“They attract investment and create job diversification.”

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Twitter.com/winstarwaddell

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