A group of Saskatoon entrepreneurs have received a big surprise.
Each of them thought they were finalists to win a tech trip, organized by the Saskatoon Regional Economic Development Authority (SREDA) and California’s Co.Labs.
On Thursday, they learned they were all winners.
They will now travel to San Francisco to meet with mentors, investors and community players. The goal, said SREDA president and CEO Alex Fallon, is to help local tech companies succeed through expansion.
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“There’s no better place to do that than San Francisco,” Fallon said.
“Silicon Valley is the hub for tech entrepreneurs and if we can get our entrepreneurs to learn from San Francisco, make contacts there, pitch to investors, that will help them grow the company.”
The five companies that won are:
- Curbie: uses technology to transform the experience of buying and selling used vehicles.
- Offstreet: a tool to reduce enforcement costs for parking lot owners.
- SalonScale: software to measure the cost of hair colour bowls for a more consistent bottom line at salons.
- SkillShark.net: a platform to evaluate athletes in various sports and get information on players.
- Skylitelabs: a platform that unifies all smart home devices.
SREDA hopes to make their new business expansion program an annual opportunity.