Co.Labs startups continue to break revenue records. While in Co.Labs’ programs, startups have generated over $100M in revenue! Even more impressive is that nearly $30M of that has been generated in the past 12 months. One of the key reasons that growth has accelerated is the XiR program (short for “X in Residence”), which launched in 2023 with funding from PrairiesCan.
Quarterly Revenue Chart
Quarterly Co.Labs startup revenue ($ Millions) - quarters in red are after the launch of the XiR program
The XiR program was created to continue supporting Saskatchewan tech startups as they scaled past the initial product development phase and into global expansion. At this level, founders face increasingly complex and unique challenges. Early-stage companies often can’t find or afford the kind of experienced tech talent that can unblock those challenges.
XiR changes that, equipping founders with experts who help them find breakout growth. These experts don’t just give advice, they roll up their sleeves and work hands-on with companies to solve problems, unblock growth, and empower teams. XiR has become essential scaffolding to accelerate the growth of early-stage tech startups in Saskatchewan.
A Stacked Roster
Every expert (called an “XiR”) has scaled one or more tech companies as a founder or operator. Their areas of expertise cover financing, sales, marketing, partnerships, and much more. Each one of them is currently a full-time or fractional executive who dedicates some of their time to support Saskatchewan tech startups through the XiR program.
Featured XiRs:
Michael Gaudet brings his expertise in marketing & growth to the XiR roster. He’s currently the CRO at LINK and was previously the Head of Performance Marketing at Neo Financial and Director of Sales & Marketing Operations at Benevity.
Jayesh Parmar is a serial founder-turned executive coach. He’s best known for founding Picatic, which was acquired by Eventbrite in 2018. He’s a coach to many founders in Co.Labs’ programs, supporting founder performance and psychology.
James Moncarz has made a career of developing partnerships at tech scale-ups and now supports Co.Labs’ doing the same thing. James previously worked at 7shifts, Docebo, and Ceridian, leading each of their Partnerships strategies.
"Michael was a cut above. All advice was bang-on — either new and enlightening or reinforced my conviction to double-down in the right areas. Few with his calibre and pace are also great coaches who can push me to become the founder that scales SolusGuard."
- Serese Selanders, CEO and Founder of Solusguard
"Working with Jay was invaluable. As a fellow founder, he shows empathy and a deep understanding of founder psychology, making him an incredible mentor. Jay was instrumental in helping us move our latest funding round forward. We wouldn't be where we are today without him."
- Mike Wesolowski, CEO and Co-Founder Luxsonic
Saskatchewan Tech’s Secret Weapon
Access to experts like Michael, Jayesh, and James is rare and invaluable for startups. The XiR program does this for Saskatchewan tech startups and has helped them raise more capital and accelerate revenue growth.
XiRs are more than a group of experts, they’re a vital resource to Saskatchewan tech startups, enabling them to build stronger companies faster and playing a critical role in making Saskatchewan a nationally competitive tech ecosystem.
Congratulations to all of the companies that have contributed to the $100M milestone and thanks to the XiRs that support those companies. Cheers to the momentum that’s been built in the tech community. Until the next $100M…
Read more about how XiR Nick Gray went from running product strategy workshops for startup LiORA (formerly known as EMS) to becoming their full-time COO.
