Ontario Built

  Brainy Games was started in 2016 by Mark Kolb the ‘Merchant of Fun’. Mark started the business out of his home in Aurora, Ontario. When asking Mark about the name he said the name Brainy Games simply came from the opportunity of the domain .games being available. The company was sprouted from an unfortunate event of Mark losing his programming job. Mark was able to utilize his skills from his programming job and creatively started to design games. One of his sons and him took a laser cutting course through NewMakeIt, which enabled him to be able to use a laser cutter which is the main star of the show beside Mark to make this company successful. Mark’s creativity is non-stop as he has around 300 products available on his website for individuals and families to stay entertained with.  Mark has designed many games over the past seven years, but had one in particular that was completely sold out and has now been licensed to Outset Media as Sidelinks. There have been over 11,000...

  Get Outdoors Training @get_outdoors_training was founded in 2018 by Richard King. Get Outdoors Training is a company that provides first aid training, survival training, and a multitude of other outdoors courses and workshops. The name came from Richard noticing that the next generation (and his 3 children) seemed to not enjoy getting outdoors as much and were focused on technology. He believed that the skills he strives to teach with his business are life-saving skills and are crucial to learn. He has encouraged them to get out more and would love for everyone to follow the same path.  The business sparked from Richard realizing that he was a terrible student with first-aid courses. He had the mentality that he could teach them better and used this fuel to push forward. Richard found that often people would admit to not remembering all that was taught to them from their past CPR, first-aid, or survival courses because they were boring and the content was dry. He has found w...

  No.7 Hot Sauce was started in 2013 by husband and wife team Carlos & Sandra Flores. This was not the first business they had started, however, it was started inside of their first business. Carlos and Sandra are also the owners of Cafe Con Leche - a coffee shop located in the Junction Triangle in Toronto. They started bottling their hot sauce during quiet moments, after hours and everything in between. While also running their coffee shop. They stored their bottles under cafe benches as well as in the basement of the coffee shop. Eventually, word got around and they got asked to be part of tradeshows, do in-store demos and be part of festivals. This progressed to fall fairs and the CNE as well! All the buzz sparked tons of interest in their product. So much so that they can now be found in independent shops, restaurants as well as online.  In addition to their success, they work with Quesada Burritos & Tacos - a Canadian chain. They supply their products to them thro...

Spill The Dirt Flower Truck was started by Dana Dimitroff in February of 2021 and they have recently celebrated two years in business! Spill the Dirt Flower Truck is a fully functioning mobile flower shop that often partners with local businesses and has a “popup” for the day. The business provides flower lovers with a unique flower buying experience operating in this manner. While visiting the truck, visitors get the opportunity to tap into their creative sides by making their own bouquet as all flowers are priced by the stem. Some of the flowers are grown on Dana and her husband’s rural property, but having an ideal rural spot was not always the case. When she started the business two years ago, she was running it out of their home in Cambridge, Ontario. She had an industrial sized floral cooler that took residence in their living room and a garage that was not much larger than an oversized shed with a dirt floor. At the beginning, while her truck  “Andie” was in the shop for ove...

  Les Serres Robert Plante Greenhouses was started in 1981 by Robert and Line Plante. Line had a passion for growing plants, fruits and vegetables and Robert had a passion for business and finance. Between their two passions, they took the path of entrepreneurship and started a small greenhouse. When they first started the business, they were selling plants and flowers at the Ottawa Byward Market. This continued for many years, and they eventually opened another location for selling in Orléans in collaboration with the local Metro store on Tenth Line Road. In 2001, the Plante family decided to open their doors to the citizens of Ottawa. Their greenhouse quickly became an ideal location for Ottawans to purchase their baskets, planters, indoor tropical plants, and succulents as it became a year-round greenhouse. Starting their own business kept the Plante family busy. But with countless hours of hard work, dedication and the willingness to make it work they have become a very busy on...

  Special Occasion Cakes @special_occasion_cakes_on is located in Tillsonburg, Ontario and is owned and operated by Susie and Sarah, two sisters that started baking at a young age with their mom. Their brick and mortar storefront opened its doors in 2018, but their passion for the love of baking started at four and five years of age. Not having much growing up, they found joy in creating pastries with their mother. It was embedded deep inside them from the way their mother kneaded bread to the order that she added ingredients. They were intrigued with the entire process and when given the opportunity to take co-op placements as they grew up - they chose bakeries! Special Occasion Cakes @special_occasion_cakes_on is located in Tillsonburg, Ontario and is owned and operated by Susie and Sarah, two sisters that started baking at a young age with their mom. It was the sheer enjoyment on a customer's face that made it have a special feeling for them. They try to treat all customers like...

True North Baits @truenorthbaits was started in the Fall of 2019 (officially)(unofficially Summer of 2019) by Jamie Stothart. He now runs the business with his girlfriend Nikki and has been nothing but busy with his growing business. True North Baits originally was True North Built. Jamie had originally started a side business for woodworking, but when he took a turn with the business, the name only got a slight modification. True North Baits specializes in superior quality soft plastics, but carries a wide range of outdoor products as well. Jamie had a fascination with soft plastics from a young age. He loved having large collections of them to use on a variety of species to see what worked best. As he grew older, he became a pro staff team member on multiple teams giving him first hand knowledge of the process and the industry. He never thought that it would be much more than a hobby for him, making baits. But, he quickly recognized the potential of the business after getting more an...