Swell Teams Up with Square

Swell Advantage, which makes software for marinas and waterfronts, has struck a partnership with merchant services giant Square, which will offer more efficient point-of-sales transactions at boating facilities.

Swell and Square announced the partnership on Thursday, under which they will provide POS services at marinas and other boating facilities so boaters will have an easier time paying for

Continue Reading

Job of the Week: Aycoutay’s VP IT

Halifax-based wearable technologies company Aycoutay is looking for a Vice-President of Information Technology.

The posting – which is our Job of the Week – comes from a young company that is developing hardware and software to help users achieve better health through nutrition, exercise and lifestyle. The hardware is a wearable device that captures data on the user’s body and the software

Continue Reading

11 Pitchers At Propel Demo Day

Eleven companies from the Propel Incite Phase 2 program presented their business plans at the regional accelerator’s demo day on Thursday.

Incite is a virtual program that startup founders can take for up to a year, regardless of where they are in Atlantic Canada. Phase 1 began in September with the goal of helping companies validate their products. Then in January, 15 companies entered Phase 2

Continue Reading

Side Door Wins Gerry Pond Award

Laura Simpson, CEO of Halifax-based startup Side Door, is the first winner of the Gerry Pond Sales Award, which was presented by the regional accelerator Propel at an event in Saint John on Thursday.

Side Door has developed a platform that entertainers can use to stage concerts in people’s homes or other intimate settings. CEO Laura Simpson said its bookings have increased 500 percent since

Continue Reading

TIS Launches with $5k and Adopter

When Gavin Andrews, CEO of Sydney-based Tracker Inventory Systems, pitched at the Volta Cohort event last week, one thing that was overlooked was the fascinating story of how the company was formed.

Tracker Inventory, which has produced an Android app to help companies track their inventory, is just six months old. But it already has one customer and is moving into a new market with two more

Continue Reading

Mitacs Recognizes Huq, Hanafi

Two Atlantic Canadian entrepreneurs received Mitacs Entrepreneur Awards at a reception Tuesday for the winners of the national awards in Halifax.

Tanzina Huq, Co-Founder and CTO of Chinova Bioworks of Fredericton, received the Outstanding Entrepreneur award, and Hamed Hanafi, Founder and President of Halifax’s Novaresp Technologies, was named the Global Impact Entrepreneur.

Mitacs is a national

Continue Reading

Kraken Sees Sales Doubling in 2019

After doubling its revenue last year, marine technology company Kraken Robotics is expecting to deliver a repeat performance in 2019.

Despite posting a loss of just under $3 million in 2018–the latest in a series of annual deficits—Kraken’s share price has more than tripled since May 2018.

The St. John’s-based company, which trades on the TSX Venture exchange, manufactures sonar equipment and

Continue Reading

Social Media Day Halifax in June

 A one-day social media conference for the small business community will be held in Halifax on June 21.

Social Media Day Halifax will see Atlantic Canadian experts and business owners come together to share strategies that have worked for them. Speakers will share their knowledge, case studies, and best practices. Sessions are focused on providing real life examples, with actionable information

Continue Reading

Region’s VC Funding Sagged in Q1

Venture Capital funding hit a lull in Atlantic Canada in the first quarter of 2019, according to the Canadian Venture Capital and Private Equity Association.

The association, known as the CVCA, issued its quarterly data report on Tuesday, showing that Atlantic Canada raised a total of $22.4 million in the three months to March 31. It was a decline from the rabid funding witnessed in 2018, when

Continue Reading

Nodalblock Hires Leetzow as CEO

Halifax-based blockchain cybersecurity company Nodalblock Canada Holdings has named Joel Leetzow its new President and Chief Executive Officer, taking over from Daniel Faria, who is remaining with the company.

Leetzow, who is also joining the board of directors, comes to Halifax from Calgary, where he has spent 25 years in the tech industry.  He was most recently President and CEO of Cortex

Continue Reading