Launch Academy began in 2012 by three entrepreneurs who wanted to work with like-minded people and leverage each other's experience and networks. Ray Walia, Roger Patterson and Jesse Heasip knew the life of an entrepreneur was tough, solitary and meant doing it all. It made sense to join forces.
Mike Edwards joined the group and offered available space at GrowLab, a Vancouver-based tech startup. Within two weeks, 12 startups joined, and within a month, over 30 entrepreneurs were working out of the space. Using the revenue from selling desk space, Ray bought more desks. But, as demand for sharing resources and learning grew, Launch Academy and its business model had to evolve. Alex Chuang joined the group and helped the business transform from a collaborative workspace into a tech hub offering a variety of essential startup programs and resources. Twelve months later, they established a new 12,000-square-foot home on Hastings Street, in the heart of Gastown. Today, it is Western Canada’s leading tech hub and startup incubator.
In 2014, Hussein Hallak joined to build his own startup. “Soon I became a mentor and then revamped all the training. A year later they asked me to be the general manager," he says. “Being an entrepreneur is a lot of work, you have to be passionate. The journey is a long, hard one that requires support,” Hussein notes. He adds that it also requires an impossibly wide breadth of knowledge. Launch Academy brings entrepreneurs together, gives them access to training, resources, mentors, networking and many perks.
