Manitoba entrepreneurs just getting their start have a new resource to turn to.
Launch Coworking Space and ProductStak announced on Monday the launch of Ignition, a venture studio based in Winnipeg designed to support early-stage startups.
Whereas an incubator or accelerator gives startups strategic advice and guidance and mentorship, Ignition will work closely with founders to provide hands-on execution support, strategic guidance and structured accountability.
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‘Entrepreneurship is not for the faint of heart. You’re going to be faced with challenges,’ says Jason Abbott, co-founder and CEO of Launch Coworking, at its work space in Winnipeg on Wednesday.
Ignition was created to address a gap Launch Coworking and ProductStak leaders see in the Winnipeg and Manitoba startup ecosystem, said Jason Abbott, founder and CEO of Launch Coworking.
“(We’re) trying to offer a service and another place to find support for those early-stage entrepreneurs,” he said. “(Maybe) they’ve got a problem, they’ve got a challenge, they’re looking to refine their go-to-market strategy … or maybe they need help identifying a new market or maybe they need help with the actual technical part of their application.”
Ignition will deliver its services through three streams, allowing founders to engage based on their needs.
Breakpoint, a small cohort experience including four to six founders, will focus on identifying and overcoming execution and validation challenges.
Velocity will offer ongoing support for founders seeking momentum, clarity and progress without a cohort structure.
Accelerator is designed for companies ready to scale specific aspects of their business with focused support.
Ignition is now open to founders building early-stage companies across a range of industries. The first Breakpoint cohort will begin next month.
The studio wants to work with founders who are passionate about their ideas and demonstrate resilience, Abbott said.
“Entrepreneurship is not for the faint of heart,” he said. “You’re going to be faced with challenges and so we want to ensure that this is something that they are going to see through.”
Innovation is also important, added Jas Johal, CEO of ProductStak. “You really need someone that thinks outside of the box and that finds those gaps within any industry.”
The Ignition founders bring a variety of experiences to the new endeavour.
Abbott has founded and been a founding partner in five startups. They include Launch Coworking, which offers workspace and programming for professionals at three locations in Winnipeg, and Oi Furniture, a small modular furniture company.
Johal, who is originally from Seattle, is an entrepreneur, developer and investor who has led product and engineering teams at a number of companies, including T-Mobile and TripLog-Expedia.
His latest business, ProductStak, is a venture and product consultancy that partners with founders to turn ideas into viable, scalable businesses.
Johal was introduced to Winnipeg about four years ago, when he was working for Microsoft and made a business trip to the Manitoba capital. He met his now-wife, who was born and raised in Winnipeg, while he was in the city. Today, they divide their time between Winnipeg and Seattle.
Johal and ProductStak co-founder Ras Sandhu hope Ignition will help develop Manitoba’s startup ecosystem and create jobs in the province, so people don’t have to leave for the United States or larger Canadian startup hubs like B.C., Alberta and Ontario.
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“We’re trying to build a tech scene in Winnipeg where founders and engineers and everyone just wants to stay here,” Sandhu said.
Manitoba’s startup ecosystem is going through “a very interesting phase with lots of activity” right now, said Rajeev Koyal, who leads Idea Start, the University of Manitoba’s hub for entrepreneurship.
Koyal points to the provincial government’s creation of an innovation and new technology department in 2024, the recent emergence of early-stage venture capital fund Trillick Ventures, and now the launch of Ignition, as examples.
“This is a very exciting time for anybody who is interested in starting a business, honestly,” Koyal said. “I think the Winnipeg ecosystem is poised for growth.”
aaron.epp@freepress.mb.ca
Aaron Epp reports on business for the Free Press. After freelancing for the paper for a decade, he joined the staff full-time in 2024. Read more about Aaron.
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