We are a CPG Growth Ecosystem

​Our Vision

A thriving ecosystem that drives innovation, accelerates growth, and shapes the future of Canadian CPG entrepreneurship, empowering food and beverage founders to overcome challenges and achieve exceptional success.

Our Mission

Venturepark challenges potential and accelerates growth. 

Founded for entrepreneurs, we provide unparalleled support, resources, and community to help businesses scale, grow and succeed, thereby strengthening the entrepreneurial spirit and foundation of the Canadian economy.

We put entrepreneurs first. We are impact-driven. We strive for better.

Icon of a dollar sign with a graduation hat atop it

$200m

annual revenue achieved by our alumni

Icon of a rocket launching

225

brands launched since 2015

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30,000

stores currently stock our alumnis’ products

Founded by Arlene Dickinson

Arlene Dickinson is a visionary Canadian entrepreneur, industry leader, investor, and the founder of Venturepark. With decades of business experience and as the founder of District Ventures Capital, a venture capital fund focused on food, beverage, and health and wellness, she understands firsthand what it takes to build a successful brand. Venturepark was born from her belief that Canadian entrepreneurs deserve access to the right mentorship, community and resources to thrive.
Widely recognized as a long-standing Venture Capitalist on Dragons’ Den, a three-time bestselling author, philanthropist, and an inductee into Canada’s Most Powerful Women Top 100 Hall of Fame, Arlene brings a wealth of experience to everything Venturepark does. When you join Venturepark, you join a community built by someone who invests in founders and champions their growth at every stage.

Our Team

Glen Price

President

Glen Price

President

Glen Price’s journey with Sunterra Quality Food Markets spans over three decades. After earning a Bachelor of Commerce from the University of Alberta and building his retail food expertise in Hong Kong, he returned to Canada in 1989 and helped pioneer the European-style fresh market concept, opening the first Sunterra Market in Calgary in 1990. Glen also lends his experience to boards including the Vineland Research & Innovation Centre and the Haskayne School of Business Management Advisory Board.

Kalyan Chinnamanthur

Head of Program Operations

Kalyan Chinnamanthur

Head of Program Operations

Kalyan has many years of experience leading large multinational consumer packaged goods brands in corporate strategy, finance, and operations. As Head of Programs at Venturepark, he is committed to helping entrepreneurs build the fundamentals needed to achieve sustainable growth. Kalyan brings a commitment to continuous improvement and a strong growth mindset to lead the Accelerator team.

Marlis Bens

Head of Resource Development

Marlis Bens

Head of Resource Development

Marlis has a background in leading product development and regulatory affairs in both grocery retail and large-scale food manufacturing.  As part of the Venturepark team she has guided over 150 early-stage food and beverage companies to design and launch and their products through the Concept to Market Sprint program. Marlis believes that every founder’s journey is unique even when they share the common goal to build a great brand.

Saadia Syed

Program Lead

Saadia Syed

Program Lead

Saadia brings over a decade of experience in business development, strategic advisory, and venture capital. As an Associate Vice President at RBCx, she advised technology clients on scaling strategies, and during five years at Platform Calgary she coached over 100 entrepreneurs on market validation and go-to-market strategy. She has also designed entrepreneurship programs at NAIT and built partnerships across the public and private sectors. Saadia holds an MBA in Finance from Dalhousie University and is based in Calgary.

Allison Webb

Communications and Content Lead

Allison Webb

Communications and Content Lead

Allison brings over five years of experience in communications and content development, including work within the health and wellness consumer packaged goods space. As Communications and Content Lead at Venturepark, she supports the Growth Hub platform and national CPG founder network through educational programming, platform development, and industry initiatives. Based in Calgary, Allison is motivated by building strong founder communities and creating resources that help entrepreneurs grow and scale successfully across Canada.

Serene Martin

Executive in Residence

Serene Martin

Executive in Residence

Serene has over 20 years of experience in the consumer-packaged goods sector.  She brings hands on experience as the New Business Development Lead for Tree of Life,  a full service nationwide product distributor and partner to Venturepark. As an Accelerator Executive in Residence, Serene shares her expertise to support early-stage consumer packaged goods brands by giving companies insightful and applicable feedback to help them to strategically view their value proposition, branding, distribution and sales channel strategy. 

Rob Horricks

Executive in Residence

Rob Horricks

Executive in Residence

Rob brings his expertise in the consumer-packaged goods retail space to the Venturepark Accelerator Cohort companies. Rob founded Blush Lane Organic Grocery Chain in 2004 and post sale he continued as CEO within the Spud.ca group of companies until 2023.  As an Executive in Residence, Rob shares his expertise in the importance of having a strong business model, strategic organizational structure and all things finance.

Ted Fleming

Executive in Residence

Ted Fleming

Executive in Residence

In 2017, Ted set out to prove that a great-tasting, low-calorie non-alcoholic beer could stand tall, and he has been redefining the category ever since. Founded after a Crohn’s diagnosis led him to give up alcohol, Partake is now an award-winning, B-Corp certified leader, earning Ted a place on the Globe & Mail Changemakers list and Maclean’s Power 100. As an Executive in Residence, he guides new and growing CPG brands to think bigger and scale with purpose.

Carley George

Executive in Residence

Carley George

Executive in Residence

Carley George brings over 18 years of experience across consumer technology, health tech, consumer packaged goods, and strategic partnerships and was named one of Canada’s 50 Best Executives in Sales and Marketing by The Globe and Mail (2021). As Chief Marketing Officer at Vitalist, she leads brand strategy, product marketing, communications, and co-branding initiatives for the company’s connected-device ecosystem. As an Executive in Residence at Venturepark, Carley draws on this experience to mentor CPG brands in the Accelerator.

Jessica Lau

Digital Marketing Lead

Jessica Lau

Digital Marketing Lead

Jessica Lau brings over a decade of experience across traditional and digital marketing within agency settings. She runs Morii Social Media, where she builds and executes organic and paid digital strategies that help companies create a strong online presence through strategic content. As Digital Marketing Lead at Venturepark, she supports and strengthens the organization’s digital presence.

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