David Crewson and Mario Gomes have taken a chance on Squamish – and they believe it’s a gamble that will pay off.
Crewson and Gomes co-founded StartUp Squamish and opened the collaborative working space for entrepreneurs at the corner of Cleveland and Pemberton Avenue this past spring.
They invested their own funds to usher Squamish into its future.
“We believe we’re at a tipping point right now,” Gomes said. “Right now, it is a tough environment because of the transition of the community.”
In an interview with The Squamish Chief, Gomes and Crewson were seated on couches in the centre of the offices while new entrepreneurs busily worked at nearby tables.
The founders were animated as they explained the early days of StartUp Squamish – including the first event when the floor had not yet cured and they were worried people would get stuck on what they called a “giant flytrap.”
No one did, because everyone was busily networking.
But not all days are as exciting or frightening as launch day, as entrepreneurs know, and the StartUp centre gives business owners support by working with others who are on the same rollercoaster.
“Entrepreneurship can be very isolating,” said Crewson. “There are days of euphoria, days of depression.”
Crewson explained that the business climate in Squamish right now is one of uncertainty. “We are coming from a traditional economy with monolith employers and evolving into one with greater diversity. All job growth is in small and medium-sized businesses, which have triple the growth rate of large businesses.”
Crewson, who previously owned a software firm in Whistler and worked for major players in technology such as Microsoft and IBM, and Gomes, whose diverse background includes technology, fashion and housing, have both invested their own capital to create StartUp Squamish.
Crewson is an avid sailor, mountain biker, skier and kiteboarder who moved to Squamish in 2006, and Gomes was a competitive free diver with his wife Ananda Gomes – she once held second place in the world after holding her breath more than six minutes – until, he laughed, they became parents of two children and started a quieter family life in Squamish.
“We totally fell in love with the community,” said Gomes, who is originally from Brazil.
The idea of StartUp Squamish is to support local entrepreneurs and incubate new businesses. Already, 16 businesses have emerged though StartUp Squamish, and about 20 currently use the shared office space on a part-time or full-time basis.
“We’ve got a tremendous amount of talent within Squamish,” noted Crewson. He’s proud that the new offices give entrepreneurs a professional place to collaborate and work, away from their kitchen tables. Startup Squamish has a boardroom and working desks – as well as old gondolas, a kitchen and a giant chalkboard.
“This is a sandbox. We want people to play,” Crewson said.
The centre also offers events, mentorship and a business accelerator program.
Do Gomes and Crewson consider Startup Squamish a success?
“It depends on the week,” Crewson replied, laughing. “We’ve been extremely successful.”
For the founding pair, true success will be when the current budding entrepreneurs become so established that they invest in the next group of entrepreneurs. Crewson explained that business success often takes 20 years to build, and many will fail along the way. But simple business plans, “elevator” pitches to describe businesses in one minute and interviews with potential clients before launch all help mitigate the risks.
To ensure a bright future for Squamish businesses, all sectors – public and private – need to come together to support entrepreneurs, they say. They can do this by partnering with StartUp Squamish.
“We want to put Squamish on the map as a startup community,” said Gomes. “This is not Dave and I. It’s a lot bigger than us.
Crewson added, “The benefit is to the community…. We can’t do it alone.”
