Episode 23 (Part 1) – How to disrupt big industry and fund your startup with Jean-Marc La Flamme
What happens when one of the original builders of the web decides he prefers the ski and mountain bike valley of Revelstoke, BC over Silicon Valley California? What happens when one of the top web producers in the business, opts to take his experience having built such websites as Yahoo!, Expedia and WestJet among others, and goes out on his own? Finally, what happens when you’re an ideas guy, who is regularly coming up with new solutions to problems and new businesses to fund and launch?
The result is the development and launch of a cutting edge new website, the first of its kind in Canada, opening up the investment world to everyday web surfers. He’s also helping to open up and make accessible a vast new pool of capital for small businesses seeking investment.
That’s just a small part of the story. I connected with Jean-Marc La Flamme via Skype to talk about his impressive backstory, how he shunned Silicon Valley for Revelstoke BC, the importance and value of crowdfunding for entrepreneurs, and a few of his latest projects including a new solution called crowd financing.
Jean-Marc’s story was so impressive, trying to hold it within the bounds of a 30 minute show was a challenge, and we’ll definitely connect with Jean-Marc again in the future. Not wanting to cut out any of his story, I’ve broken this week’s show up into two parts. In part one we learn about Jean-Marc’s backstory, talk crowdfunding and learn about his latest startup aiming to disrupt the small business investment world. Check out part 2 to learn about how he’s disrupting air travel, what drives and inspires this uber entrepreneur and what might be next on the horizon.