Co-founder @ FJ Labs
Fabrice Grinda is among the world’s leading Internet entrepreneurs and investors. He has over $300 million in exits and 150 angel investments. Fabrice has served as CEO for three multinational companies and has an impressive track record as an early investor in Alibaba, Lending Club, Delivery Hero and Brightroll. Fabrice is currently investing in startups and building companies through FJ Labs, which he cofounded with business partner Jose Marin. Fabrice is also co-founder and executive chairman of Beepi, a next generation used car marketplace. Beepi recently raised $60 million in series B funding.
Chief Strategy Officer Canada @ Mediacom
Catherine Lautier is a veteran brand builder with extensive local, regional and global experience. Originally from Paris, Catherine has dual French-American citizenship, thrives in international environments, and has hands-on experience working in more than 30 countries in a variety of industries including FMCG, luxury, automotive, telco and retail.
Co-founder @ TechTO
Alex Norman is the Canadian Partner of AngelList and is active in the Canadian tech ecosystem. He cofounded TechToronto and Elevate Techfest to engage and help grow the tech ecosystem across Canada. Previously, he founded and sold an eCommerce company, was an early employee at Simply Business ($400m+ exit), worked at McKinsey & Lehman Brothers, and received his MBA from the Wharton School. Alex is an active angel investor focused on the Canadian ecosystem with investments in such companies as Logojoy, Wondereur and Fineao.
CEO @ Public Inc.
Phillip Haid co-founded PUBLIC in 2008 to disrupt the way companies think about doing “good”. Driven by a passion to prove that social impact is a key business driver to achieve profit with purpose, he set out to build a hybrid company – part consultancy/part creative agency– designing social purpose brands, community impact strategies and social change programs and campaigns. As CEO, he is responsible for overseeing the strategic and creative growth of the business, including oversight on some of PUBLIC’s North America clients including: NBC Universal, Converse, The Body Shop, Tiffany’s & Co, Johnson & Johnson, Rogers, TD Bank, and the LCBO. Phillip is also a columnist for Fast Company writing on “profit with purpose”.
French Ambassador in Canada
Minister Plenipotentiary First Class Kareen Rispal was named Ambassador of France in Ottawa by decree of the President of the Republic on April 20, 2017. She assumed her duties on June 22, 2017. Serving as Director for the Americas and the Caribbean from 2014 to June 2017, Ms. Rispal is also the Senior Officer for Gender Equality with the Ministry of Affairs of Foreign Affairs and sits on the High Council for Equality between Men and Women. As an Officer of the National Order of Merit, Chevalier of the Legion of Honour, and Chevalier of the Order of Agricultural Merit, Ms. Rispal presented her credentials to His Excellency the Right Honourable David Johnston, Governor General of Canada, on June 22, 2017.
Head of Venture Capital @ CIC Capital
As a pioneer with a true intrapreneurial mindset, Ludovic founded and successfully developed CIC Capital Canada, the first international subsidiary of CM CIC Investissement, the Private Equity arm of the Credit Mutuel banking group. He is now leading the expansion of CIC Capital LUDOVIC ANDRE,Ventures in North America. Ludovic cumulates 16 years of experience in venture capital both in France and North America with a particular exposure to the ICT and Life Science sectors. Prior joining the private equity industry, Ludovic held several engineering and project management positions in the semiconductor industry notably in North America where he has studied, worked and live for more than 11 years.
President Financial Services Canada @ Nissan
After a first bubbly step with LVMH in South Africa as Marketing manager for Moet & Chandon brand, Alain drove his career to develop over 20 years of experience with Financial Services in Renault Nissan Alliance around the world. He assumed responsibilities such as CEO and Founder of a Financial company in South Korea, Regional Director for Sales Finance Alliance operations in South America, Managing Director in charge of international development leading start-up projects and strategic cooperation in countries such as India, Russia and Colombia. Currently President of Nissan Canada Finance based in Toronto, he was sponsor and mentoring the Infiniti Lab accelerator program in Canada. Alain has a Master in Audit & Finance in Business Administration from Kedge Business School, Auditor of the French Institute of Strategic Defense Studies (IHEDN) and certified International Director in Corporate Governance from INSEAD.
CEO @ Socan
As the head of the Society of Composers, Authors & Music Publishers of Canada, Eric Baptiste is one of Canada’s most influential music industry leaders. Under his direction since 2010, SOCAN has grown its membership base and increased the number of organizations licensed to use music to record-high levels. With more than 25 years of experience in the entertainment industry, Eric Baptiste has influenced broadcast media and cultural policy, and promoted new talent around the world.
National Innovation Director Canada @ Deloitte
Bernard has over 24 years of international work experience as consultant / entrepreneur with top consultancy firms and businesses. He is a regular keynote speaker on Age of Disruption, Exponential Synergies & Innovation both for Corporate Executive Committees and Academics. A serial entrepreneur, Bernard previously founded Bleu Cobalt, a Design Thinking Consulting boutique specializing in Innovation & Performance in France as well as a Fintech specializing on Compensation & Benefits and VC portfolio management tools.
Founder & CEO @ Impak Finance
With more than 20 years of experience in management, marketing and funding of innovative companies in growth environments specifically in the media and technology industry, Mr. Allard is currently founder and President of Impak Finance Inc. Since 2015, he has been a senior advisor at Redwood Capital, an investment bank specialised in M&A based in New York.
Founder @ Nerve Strategic
Founder Marjorie Malpass started as an actor when she was a teenager. She toured Improv, Stand-up and Theatre internationally, including Italy, Finland, Hong Kong, Broadway and Winnipeg in February. She has voiced cartoons, acted on-camera and has been in over 50 commercials. Nerve Strategic has worked coaching and workshop facilitating for major corporations such as Bruce Power, Insurance Bureau of Canada and TD Bank. Combining her knowledge of the corporate world and the entertainment industry, Marjorie recently provided On-Camera coaching for CBC Music personalities and the Dragons from the hit show, Dragon's Den. Nerve Strategic is dedicated to helping people be the best versions of themselves through professional development.
CMO Canada @ Microsoft
Katia Houbiguian is the CMO and leads the Central Marketing Organization at Microsoft Canada, managing go-to-market, center-of-excellence and operations teams to drive integrated digital marketing, advertising, social media, events, and analytics across consumer and commercial businesses. Prior to joining the Canadian subsidiary in January 2016, Katia held various roles at the Microsoft France subsidiary, including leading the Commercial Marketing Team and managing the subsidiary’s Business, Strategic Planning and Operations. Previous to Microsoft, Katia had held a number of progressively senior roles within great IT companies (Compaq and HP), giving her strong experience in P&L management, sales, communications and marketing.
Co-Founder @ Blockchain Research Institute
Alex Tapscott is a globally-recognized writer, speaker, investor and advisor focused on the impact of emerging technologies, such as blockchain and cryptocurrencies, on business, society and government. He is the co-author (with Don Tapscott) of the critically acclaimed non-fiction best-seller, Blockchain Revolution: How the Technology Behind Bitcoin and Other Cryptocurrencies is Changing the World, which has been translated into more than 15 languages. His TedX San Francisco talk: Blockchain is Eating Wall Street has been viewed over 600,000 times.
Co-Founder & CEO @ TransPod
Sebastien Gendron is the founder and CEO of TransPod Hyperloop. He founded Transpod in 2015 to build hyperloop as an alternative to the means of travel we have today. With the mission of building a tech leader based in Canada, Mr. Gendron brings more than 11 years of experience leading engineers at global transportation manufacturers, including Bombardier, Safran S.A., and Airbus Group. He holds a master’s degree in aerospace engineering from ISAE-SUPAERO and Aix-Marseille University in France.
This world-class business event bridges business ecosystems in France, in the US and in Canada by bringing together entrepreneurs, business leaders, investors, academics and officials of all nationalities to create new opportunities for investment and economic growth. Tickets at CAD $200 (excl. tax).
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111 Princes’ Boulevard
Toronto, ON M6K 3C3
Entrance at corner of Lakeshore Blvd and Newfoundland Dr.
Name: Njara Zafimehy
Phone: +1 905 334 1162
Email: njara@teamwhatrocks.com
Name: Léa Netter
Phone: +1 415 996 8941
Email: lea@frenchfounders.com
Hotel X Toronto has 411 underground parking spots available. The entrance is located on Newfoundland Drive between Princes’ Boulevard and Lakeshore Boulevard.
Conveniently located within an 8-minute walk from the hotel, is the Exhibition GO Station and the Exhibition Loop Streetcar 509.
If you need any assistance or would like to arrange transportation from Toronto Pearson International Airport, please contact stay@hotelxtoronto.com
International and entrepreneurial are in our DNA as we help business leaders to connect and gather within our business club. We know how important and efficient it is to get the right connection at the right moment when growing your business: FrenchFounders makes it happen.
