Michele Romanow

Michele Romanow

Dragon, CBC’s Dragons’ Den
Co-Founder of Clearco

Tech titan Michele Romanow is a serial entrepreneur who started six companies before her 35th birthday. A “Dragon” on CBC’s hit show Dragons’ Den, Romanow is the co-founder of Canadian unicorn, Clearco. Clearco has invested more than $3.2B into 7,000+ companies making them the biggest e-commerce investor in the world. She previously co-founded SnapSaves, acquired by American tech giant Groupon, and Buytopia.ca, which acquired ten competitors, including Shop.ca and WagJag. In 2015, Romanow became the youngest judge on CBC’s Dragons’ Den. A prolific investor, she was named among Fortune’s “40 under 40”, a “Young Global Leader” by the World Economic Forum, one of Canada’s “100 Most Powerful in Canada” by WXN, and Canada’s “Angel Investor of the Year”. She was also the only Canadian to be included in Forbes’ “Millennial on a Mission” list.

10:15 am - 11:00 am

The Venture Capitalist Journey: A Fireside Chat

How to enter and succeed in your venture capital journey.

Moderated By: Sheena Brady, Founder Tease and Founders Fund

Bobbie Racette is the first Indigenous woman to close a Series A. Her startup, Virtual Gurus, is now worth $40 million. Built primarily once COVID hit in 2020, Virtual Gurus leveraged the pandemic layoffs of administrative staff by scooping them up for her own booming business, now employing close to 1,000 with a commitment to hiring underrepresented and minority staff members.

Michele Romanow is a serial entrepreneur who started six companies before her 35th birthday. A “Dragon” on CBC’s hit show Dragons’ Den, Romanow is the co-founder of Canadian unicorn, Clearco. Clearco has invested more than $3.2B into 7,000+ companies making them the biggest e-commerce investor in the world.

Join these two Canadian tech titans as they discuss with Sheena Brady key decision points in their growth journey, what a Series A closing looks like from both the entrepreneur and the investor, and how to build your company with a commitment to sustainability and futureproofing.