Innovate Manitoba hosted Pitch Day this week.

• One MTA client participated: Callia Flowers (calliaflowers.com)
• The winner of the event? Callia Flowers (http://www.winnipegfreepress.com/business/top-pitches-awarded-for-making-life-easier-in-digital-age-403096806.html)

Conclusions:

MTA continues to work with the most compelling technology companies that are creating jobs and wealth for our region.  That’s why we have doubled our KPIs of jobs growth, revenue growth and capital investment each year for the past three years.  That’s why reporters like those from the Globe and Mail, Winnipeg Free Press and TechCrunch are now writing about MTA / MTA clients and Winnipeg’s rising position as a start-up capital.

To provide some personal editorial to this story, the founder of Callia Flowers (Catherine Metrycki) left her big shot marketing job with a big shot international brand in NYC to come back home to Winnipeg and build her company.  MTA provides an option for our best and brightest to come home, as well as attracting some of the best from other cities to grow their businesses here (SkiptheDishes, Sightline Innovation).  Please consider how different this story is than the dialogue of 5 years back.

Please join me in congratulating Catherine on her victory at Pitch Day where Callia’s business model of applying technology, supply chain management and efficient use of capital to disrupt the floral business carried her to a victory.  As an added thought, why not order some flowers and send them to someone who shares the vision of making Winnipeg the Start-Up capital of Canada!