Photo: "We are very proud entrepreneurs and proud of our ecosystem here," said Josh Wright, co-founder of Blitzen.
Startup Canada has selected Kitchener-based Blitzen to represent Canada during this year’s Startup Nations Summit in Seoul, South Korea.
The three-day summit, part of Global Entrepreneurship Week, starts on Nov. 23 and brings together leaders from 45 different countries.
Josh Wright, co-founder of Blitzen, is pitching the company’s software against more than 40 companies – each from a different country – in the semi-finals. Blitzen integrates online forms and web-based applications.
“The opportunity to go and represent not only Waterloo Region, which we’re incredibly proud to be a part of, but Canada as well, is a huge win for us,” Wright said.
Companies are partially rated by the number of online votes they gather by Nov. 14, as they pitch their way to the finals and the $100,000 grand prize.
Eager to advance to the finals, Wright and his team are hoping to have voting support from the region and country they proudly represent.
“$100,000 would be an amazing thing to add to our cash flow, as we are going through our seed financing,” Wright said. “It’s an opportunity to bring in part of that round without having to dilute our company.”
It’s been quite the year for Blitzen, which now has a full-time staff of nine, since it graduated from the University of Waterloo’s Velocity program and moved to the Vidyard greenhouse a block from the Tannery.
“The greenhouse really gives you that opportunity, as it always leaves you wanting more, because it is a stripped house – there’s no insulation – it’s a real motivator to grow the business,” said Wright, who is thankful to landlords Michael Litt and Devon Galloway, co-founders of Vidyard.
After Vidyard left the Velocity Garage, Litt and Galloway moved the company into the house, but outgrew it in just a few months. Vidyard then moved to a much larger space in downtown Kitchener, but Litt and Galloway have maintained ownership of the house as a way to help other startups grow.
Earlier this year, motivation and a bit of luck landed Blitzen in AngelPad, a U.S accelerator program based in New York and San Francisco. It was the first Canadian startup to do so.
Heading for Seoul on Nov. 21, Wright is excited about his trip to “a faraway land”.
“I think it’s all about the experience and the exposure for us . . . representing not only Blitzen, but Waterloo Region and Canada, against 43 other countries is just an opportunity to get the word out about Blitzen and how we can help our customers.”
