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Calgary has landed another major tech headquarters.
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Eventcombo, a startup from Hoboken, N.J., chose Calgary to relocate its main operations, including CEO Saroosh Gull moving his family to Alberta.
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Gull was recruited north by Invest Alberta and Calgary Economic Development, but not by promises of funding or tax breaks, it was about the opportunity the city presents.
“It was really the soft touch that facilitated our decision,” he said. “Incentives and cash is available wherever you seek it, but it’s the intangibles that really, really facilitate a decision.”
He noted Calgary’s strategic geographic location with the ability to reach both the east and west coasts, and the city’s efforts in talent transformation.
Eventcombo will invest $10 million over three years as it scales up to 250 employees in Calgary. The staffing will be filled by experienced workers but the company will also be grooming the next generation through its mentorship program called Eventcombo Labs, which after six months will land participants a job.
Eventcombo is an award-winning online event management platform. It assists in managing events from ticket sales to promotion and bookings and everything in between. It utilizes artificial intelligence through a partnership with the Alberta Machine Intelligence Institute in Edmonton to further improve service. About 90 per cent of the events the company plans are in-person events.
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The company was started about five years ago, survived the pandemic and has now reached its scale up phase. Calgary will serve as the launching point for all operations in North America. Still, the opportunity to get into Calgary prior to the completion of the BMO Centre expansion and to create the connections needed to feed business into the largest convention centre in Canada was an appetizing hook.
“We plan on having those conversations,” said Gull. “(It’s serving) Alberta from Alberta . . . Canada from Alberta. We want to offer and contribute to the ecosystem here and we want that to be reciprocated.”
Rick Christiaanse, CEO of Invest Alberta, said the efforts in bringing Eventcombo to Calgary was about bringing added scale to the sector. They are focusing on building momentum in tech, which they hope will snowball into more companies coming to to Calgary.
While other jurisdictions have made large funding promises in their recruitment process of industry, Invest Alberta and the CED did not put any funds or incentives toward attracting Eventcombo.
“When you talk about long-term success for companies, incentives run out at some point,” he said, noting the discussion needs to be about sustainability, tax rate, talent and market for the product. “If it’s purely about ‘can I write a bigger check than you?’ then it’s a short-term game, and we’re not going to win at that. And it doesn’t make sense for Alberta to do that.”
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Brad Parry, president and CEO of CED, said bringing Eventcombo to Calgary was a big win for the city. While there are other event management companies in Calgary, he said the market can support the newcomer and that they bring a more comprehensive technology and platform to the table than what is currently being offered.
It also speaks to the recovery of the event sector that was hammered by the pandemic, that these companies have managed to survive and are regaining their pre-COVID form in Calgary.
“It’s that resiliency that we’re seeing in our community,” said Parry, noting Calgary’s ability to weather economic storms and downturns as a strength. “We’re growing . . . it’s a city that’s been investing in itself. So a company from New Jersey, out of the blue, says, ‘Wow, I’m actually looking at a city that wants to spend on itself and invest in itself to grow.’ That sends a message. I think, that’s what they want be part of.”
jaldrich@postmedia.com
Twitter: @JoshAldrich03
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