Tech

New Years is extra special for an entrepreneur as it’s a chance to refocus, recharge, and go full speed ahead with buckets of sheer optimism and conviction. Yes, it’s a big deal and really exciting to have a whole year to look forward to and an early excuse freshen things up and iterate (in non-entrepreneurly terms, modify) your approach. You’ll notice some changes in the title, questions asked, and frequency of articles in this series –  all are with the aim to make these super interesting Vancouver entrepreneurs stand out that much more. We kick off 2013 with Indiloop, a local cloud based music mixing and streaming service looking to put the music industry on its hea hea hea headddd – Reeeeeemix. Check it.

It seems like the only time families get to connect these days is at the dinner table – that’s if you’re lucky enough to have everyone come home at the same time. The average working parent spends 20 minutes a day with their kid. There are a lot of both small and big everyday things that go unnoticed by parents when it comes to their kids everyday lives. Danny Robinson, Co-founder and CEO of local startup Perch, is working on a way to bring families a little closer together. This “ambient video communication” app is breaking new grounds in the way families communicate on an everyday basis. 

Have you heard of the name Jim Perkins? If you are alive and active in the city of Vancouver you have probably passed by some of his work. Here is one very cool, largely successful and emerging businessmen located here in our city. From the upcoming Tap and Barrel on top of the Vancouver Convention Centre, to restaurants and tattoo shops on Main Street and local philanthropy work, his Group of Companies are exploding.

Do you like your boss? According to the Webster dictionary, the word Boss stands for: a person who exercises control over workers. Yes, to exercise control. It does sound nicer to be the controller vs. the controlled doesn’t it – but with what strings attached? The fine print that comes with being the boss may not be all it’s cracked up to be. If you’re striving to take over the reigns one day, here are a few earnest insights and considerations worth examining to see if you have what it takes.

Indaba just celebrated their one year anniversary! The past year has been a wild ride as they’ve grown from a solo act to a robust group of five digital strategists working with an amazing roster of world-class clients. To celebrate, and as their way to say thank you to everyone who has helped them along the way, they’ve launched a contest where one lucky winner will receive  a free social media audit and strategy (a $7,000 value).

The past year has been a rough one for the video game industry in Vancouver, and it’s by no means out of the woods just yet. However, the local industry is getting a much needed boost today as Microsoft Studios officially opens the doors to their new gaming studio, Black Tusk Studios in Yaletown.

Railtown’s loss is Mount Pleasant’s gain as HootSuite, makers of the leading social media management system, and the City of Vancouver today announced a deal that will see the local company move into a new, larger head office in Vancouver in early 2013.

Five new promising startups joined the dream team as Vancouver-based startup accelerator, announced the GrowLab Winter 2012 cohort yesterday. It was time for the five startups announced in May to move forward onto their next adventures and make way for the new guys. The new kids on the block start their intensive 4-month program on Monday, November 26th. This is another exciting announcement for the growing entrepreneurial hub in Vancouver.