The Mississauga Flagship Startup Pitch was the culmination of the Fall 2021 Leap Startup League—an incubation programme designed to empower early-stage founders. Rather than a traditional competition, it was a celebration of learning and experimentation across four months with ICUBE UTM and EDGE Sheridan.
I want to take a moment to reflect—and to express deep appreciation. Sincere thanks to Marisol and Erecca from EDGE, Kayla and Ignacio from ICUBE, our mentor Diego, and the many facilitators and instructors who generously shared their time and insights. I wish every cohort member success in their next chapters.
Time, Accelerated by Purpose
The past three months went by in a flash, yet every moment felt purposeful. Wednesday evening workshops became something I looked forward to. Though the programme had to adapt to COVID-19 conditions, the virtual format turned out to be a fortunate shift—especially given my commute challenges from work to the UTM campus.
Workshops that once required physical presence were now accessible remotely. This inclusivity was not only a logistical convenience, but a nod to how incubation itself must evolve: becoming more accessible, decentralised, and founder-friendly.
Leap helped us grow our idea while balancing other responsibilities—a delicate dance that every aspiring entrepreneur knows all too well. But it also made the small wins more meaningful: seeing our pitch evolve, gathering feedback, and slowly building something real.
What the Leap Startup League Offered
The Leap Startup League (LSL) was a 12-week pre-accelerator designed to turn startup ideas into executable plans. Its curriculum covered core topics such as market validation, prototyping, digital marketing, finance, and early-stage sales. Participants benefited from three key support structures:
- Biweekly founder-focused workshops,
- One-on-one mentorship with a designated advisor,
- Access to a local entrepreneurship network via UTM, Sheridan, and the City of Mississauga.
While less intensive than the 500 Founders Academy, LSL maintained a clear expectation: founders needed to come prepared. That meant investing time to understand the week’s topic, apply learnings to one’s own startup, and bring thoughtful questions to each session. Monthly mentorship check-ins were mandatory to remain eligible for LSL microgrants.
We especially appreciated the programme’s emphasis on applying theory in real-time. The content alone wasn’t transformative—it was how we used it. Every founder in the room was encouraged to experiment, test hypotheses, and share lessons learned. For us at Tenatch, it was a crucial runway.
An Honest Suggestion: Strengthen Community Bonds
One reflection I’d offer to future programme organisers is this: incubation is not just about content—it’s also about community. Compared to other programmes, such as the 500 Founders Academy, the sense of peer connection in LSL felt limited. Despite attending all workshops, I finished the programme only knowing one other founder by name.
As a sociable founder, this was disappointing. Community is what sustains early-stage entrepreneurs through ambiguity and doubt. Even simple changes could help: a pre-workshop 30-minute virtual mixer, biweekly founder speed-intros, or dedicated Slack channels for interest-based networking. These low-lift interventions could foster more serendipitous relationships.
To be clear, I take some responsibility for this as well. Post-session Zoom calls often ended abruptly, making it difficult to initiate conversations. But incubation is not a lecture—it’s a sandbox. We need more frictionless spaces to meet, collaborate, and co-elevate.
In Closing: Gratitude and Forward Momentum
Despite this, my experience in the Leap Startup League was deeply rewarding. Tenatch has grown because of it. The programme’s resources, coaching, and structure helped us take meaningful steps forward. ICUBE UTM and EDGE Sheridan are not just collaborators—they are foundational parts of Tenatch’s early journey.
Thank you to everyone who made this 12-week sprint possible. What may feel like a small milestone externally was, for us, a defining one. To our cohort peers—your ideas, tenacity, and resilience will take you far. And remember: the end of a programme is not the end of a venture. It’s a beginning.
We look forward to crossing paths again. Until then—keep building.
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