Is Vancouver a Legitimate Tech Hub?

[twoNeurons]

Originally Posted by red-paladin

A very good example of the kind of high tech company that is world famous but flies under the radar in Vancouver: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MacDon...and_Associates

fixed that for ya.

[Klazu]

Originally Posted by Klazu

Noteworthy news from recent days... Seems that the demand for new office space is there with companies constantly moving to new spaces.

BIV: Avigilon completes $42m purchase of Telus building for new HQ

BIV: Expedia triples Vancouver office space, plans rapid expansion

And more great Vancouver tech news keep coming! Eventbase planning to double they staff next year and moving to a new office in Yaletown.

BIV: Eventbase raises US$6m as it prepares to expand Vancouver HQ

A year ago, Eventbase had about 30 employees working on tailor-made mobile apps for events like the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver or the South By Southwest (SXSW) festival.

“Now we’re at 72 (employees) and the plan is to double again in the next year,” said CEO and co-founder Jeff Sinclair.

Eventbase announced Tuesday (December 8) Madrona Venture Group is helping the Vancouver-based tech startup realize those growth plans with US$6 million in funding.

“It’s good to see U.S. (venture capital groups) taking an interest in Canadian companies and I think Vancouver as technology hub is continuing to grow on the global stage,” Sinclair said.

“This (investment) allows us to continue our growth, really building out our product to focus on enterprise-scale features and continue to build our dominance in that space.”

The only other seed funding the startup has sought since its founding in 2009 was from SXSW Tech LLC. In 2014, Eventbase deployed 40 beacons — wireless devices that detect when a smartphone running an appropriate app is in close proximity — at the SXSW festival, allowing attendees to connect with each other at different venues across Austin, Texas. Festival organizers formed a new investment side of the business later that year, with Eventbase walking away with the first investment, US$2 million. In March 2015, Eventbase went on to deploy 1,000 beacons at SXSW.

Other clients include Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT), SAP and Hewlett Packard (NYSE:HPQ). Eventbase is securing a lease to move its offices in Yaletown a few blocks away to provide space for about 150 employees, according to Sinclair. The CEO said about 20% of its business is done in Europe, which is why the company already has an office in London. But Eventbase has also begun exploring the possibility of expanding to Asia sometime in 2016, he told Business in Vancouver.

[csbvan]

And the province announced $100 million in investments to new tech startups. Also, the government noted that the tech industry is outpacing the rest of the province in growth. I'm surprised as I didn't think that this government cared about the tech industry. Maybe they finally realized, as they mentioned today, that the industry is growing faster than the economy as a whole.

http://www.vancouversun.com/business...297/story.html

http://www.vancitybuzz.com/2015/12/b...d-investments/

[trofirhen]

If Vancouver isn't a real tech hub now, I think it sure will be in five years. Though globally, I doubt it will ever reach Seattle levels.

[Klazu]

Never say never. Hootsuite is about to pass 1000 employees, most of them based in Vancouver. There are expectations that their IPO might be in the Billion club, when it happens likely next year.

They could be our first big homegrown tech firm, followed by perhaps others. There are many start-ups in town currently multiplying their employee count.

[LeftCoaster]

Still a ways behind Microsoft, Amazon, Expedia... like a looooong ways.

Microsoft alone employs 40,000 in Seattle.

[Klazu]

Sure, tens of thousands of employees is a stretch, but I could see Hootsuite grow to be several thousand employees. It can also be that they don't necessarily even have to and they can still have a significant business. They are a clear market leader in an area which is really hot right now.

But yeah, Seattle has some biggies. Everyone knows Microsoft and Amazon, but I was surprised to discover companies like Expedia, Tableau, Zillow, Valve and few others having their headquarters there as well. Seattle seems to have the talent pool and investors to incubate such success stories, similarly to Silicon Valley.

[csbvan]

One area in the high tech scene where Vancouver does very well on the world stage is visual effects/3D animation. It seems that we more than hold our own, and are up there with some of the big centres (LA, SF, London, etc).

[logan5]

Speaking of Hootsuite, they just purchased a whole city block around Main and 4th. This could possibly be the location of a consolidated head office for the company. Considering how large Hootsuite is becoming, this would be a relatively large office development for Mt. Pleasant.

[jlousa]

The purchase was by Westbank. Hootsuite had a sweetheart deal with the city, they signed an undermarket rate lease on the city building, and were then given the option to buy the building from the city outright at the price from 5yrs ago. Would've been stupid for them not to exercise that option so they teamed up with Westbank. The original deal was taken to court but never went anywhere. The PEF and all citizens certainly lost out on a lot of money on this deal.

[logan5]

The way it's worded in the Bula story makes it sound like Hootsuite (to some measure) bought the property. Anyways, interesting developments in Mt. Pleasant. Possibly a condo building on the Main Street side with an large Hootsuite office on the Quebec Street side.

The owner of Vancouver’s biggest digital-tech company, Hootsuite, and one of the city’s most successful developers have joined forces to buy a block of land in the city’s hottest industrial zone just as zoning changes are being considered that could benefit the new partnership.

Vancouver’s assistant director of planning, Kent Munro, confirmed this week that planners are looking at changes to zoning in the area near the Olympic Village that might allow higher densities in a few restricted spots on the periphery.

The Hootsuite site was purchased for $40.5-million on Sept. 15 by a corporation formed in August. Its directors are Westbank Corp. developer Ian Gillespie and Hootsuite chief executive officer Ryan Holmes. The property, bounded by Main and Quebec streets and Fourth and Fifth avenues, straddles the eastern boundary of the industrial zone.

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/...ticle27594862/

[Pinion]

Hootsuite is just spamming for dummies. There's no longevity there and certainly nothing to be proud of.

[cornholio]

Originally Posted by Pinion

Hootsuite is just spamming for dummies. There's no longevity there and certainly nothing to be proud of.

Hootsuits exists because of its relationship with Twitter, Facebook etc. So long as that relationship is maintained, and it very well could be, Hootsuits will do fine. Not because their anything special, just because they are the chosen company to partner with by several big social media players to keep control over the value they produce for other companies, like Hootsuit.

[Bcasey25raptor]

I'd say no, but I would say we are up and coming in that department.

[trofirhen]

Originally Posted by csbvan

One area in the high tech scene where Vancouver does very well on the world stage is visual effects/3D animation. It seems that we more than hold our own, and are up there with some of the big centres (LA, SF, London, etc).

.... directly linked to our large film & TV industry.......

[wrenegade]

Originally Posted by jlousa

The purchase was by Westbank. Hootsuite had a sweetheart deal with the city, they signed an undermarket rate lease on the city building, and were then given the option to buy the building from the city outright at the price from 5yrs ago. Would've been stupid for them not to exercise that option so they teamed up with Westbank. The original deal was taken to court but never went anywhere. The PEF and all citizens certainly lost out on a lot of money on this deal.

Aren't these two different properties? The sweetheart lease deal was in the old VPD special operations building at 8th & Ontario wasn't it? Did Hootsuite end up purchasing that site?

The Westbank/Hootsuite deal is the former RBC Operations/Call Centre/BIV offices at 4th/5th & Main/Quebec, which was part of a portfolio Oxford Properties was offloading a couple years ago. Not sure how the PEF/Vancouver taxpayers are losing on this particular deal, unless it is rezoned for a song (currently zoned IC-2, I-1 and M-1).

[whatnext]

Originally Posted by cornholio

Hootsuits exists because of its relationship with Twitter, Facebook etc. So long as that relationship is maintained, and it very well could be, Hootsuits will do fine. Not because their anything special, just because they are the chosen company to partner with by several big social media players to keep control over the value they produce for other companies, like Hootsuit.

Twitter has already peaked and Hootsuite is pretty closely identified with that.

[Klazu]

Why are people in here so eager to anticipate doom and gloom for Hootsuite? Sounds a bit like jealousy to me, since they are doing so exceptionally well in their area. I cannot see them having anything to worry about for a long time and their growth is definitely fueling also other start-ups in the area.

The news about 20 people being let go sounded just as a department being cut. When hiring so many people, you easily end up building some fat that you won't be needing after all...

And Twitter, they are not going anywhere. They might get a bit less media sexy going forward, but they have established a market that will always have its place. Difficult to see anyone (even Facebook or Google) trying to challenge them.

[Bcasey25raptor]

Originally Posted by Klazu

Why are people in here so eager to anticipate doom and gloom for Hootsuite? Sounds a bit like jealousy to me, since they are doing so exceptionally well in their area. I cannot see them having anything to worry about for a long time and their growth is definitely fueling also other start-ups in the area.

The news about 20 people being let go sounded just as a department being cut. When hiring so many people, you easily end up building some fat that you won't be needing after all...

And Twitter, they are not going anywhere. They might get a bit less media sexy going forward, but they have established a market that will always have its place. Difficult to see anyone (even Facebook or Google) trying to challenge them.

When you have a large tech company in town, the spin offs are marvellous. Even if Hootsuite tanks early, the employees will remain very skilled and will enrich the tech scene here regardless.

[Klazu]

Originally Posted by Bcasey25raptor

When you have a large tech company in town, the spin offs are marvellous. Even if Hootsuite tanks early, the employees will remain very skilled and will enrich the tech scene here regardless.

Exactly. This is why Seattle is seeing these second generation spin-offs taking off.