Looking to learn something new, get inspired, meet and network with some of the best young professionals and entrepreneurs, and celebrate entrepreneurship in a fun and festive atmosphere? The International Startup Festival should be on your calendar this week if it already isn’t.
Once again being held in Montreal’s historic Old Port at the Montreal Science Centre, this year’s festival promises awesome speakers and workshops to help you explore and learn everything you’ve ever wanted to about entrepreneurship, focusing on every stage of the start-up lifecycle.
Every year, the start-up has a theme, and this year is focusing on “Start-up Stories.” You will have a chance to look back, as industry heavyweights explain how they used technology to transform the way we live, work and play. Today’s crop of hot start-ups will also be front row and centre convincing guests to get involved in the action. And, of course, there will be a solid look at the future, talking about trends, disruptions, and opportunities, where ideas will be shared and connections will be made.
So who will be attending? Expect a hugely diverse group of people that want to change the world, from creators to entrepreneurs, investors, advisers and more. You will be able to meet with the people who inspire you and the people who want to meet you. With amazing pop-up spaces like their Tent Expo, you’ll have the chance to network with investors, co-founders, and media – the perfect environment to make real connections.
Now to the speakers; the roster of exemplary, inspirational young leaders is truly stellar. Here are just some of the names you can expect to see, listen to and learn from at the festival: Harley Finkelstein, an entrepreneur, lawyer, and the Chief Platform Officer (CPO) at Shopify. He started his first company when he was 17 and has been building start-ups ever since; HP Cloud Services Vice President of Product Marketing and Cloud Evangelist Margaret Dawson, who has held leadership roles with start-ups and Fortune 500 technology companies, including Microsoft and Amazon.com, for over 20 years; Danae Ringelmann, the co-founder of Indiegogo, who has helped to propel the company into the world’s largest crowdfunding platform.
A new addition this year is a free open house day this Saturday (July 13th) following the Festival itself. The Startupfest Tent Village will be open to the general public free of charge for an entire day. The Open House is the perfect day to come connect and the ideal way to get a fast-track introduction to the entrepreneurial scene and have the opportunity to connect with like-minded individuals, local and international.
Make sure to partake in these three unforgettable days; this is truly the most interactive learning experience you will have this summer as a young entrepreneur or a young entrepreneur to be!
Images by: Stephane Cocke