News Release

For Immediate Distribution

HomeFed wins Startup Weekend Kitchener-Waterloo

Waterloo Region, ON – April 8, 2013 –HomeFed won the first-ever Startup Weekend Kitchener-Waterloo, a 54-hour event at the Communitech Hub where budding entrepreneurs created several brand-new companies from scratch.

HomeFed to connect travellers with home-cooked and authentic foods wherever they are, by matchingthem with enthusiastic local hosts who will cook for them.

The HomeFed platform was born from three separate ideas pitched on Friday night during Startup Weekend’sopen mic pitch session. The three people who pitched then decided to join forces and work on a common theme.

They tapped the pool of event attendees to form an eight-person team, made up of two developers, two designers and four marketing and business specialists, and ‘pivoted’– changed direction – three times before they settled on the HomeFed concept.

“Winning means it’s time for next steps. It doesn’t end now,” saidHomeFed project manager Marcus Doran.

“What impressed us about this company is their really solid pitch. They covered everything they needed to. They offered us an idea we could all relate to. All of us would use it,” said Carol Leaman, a competition judge and serial entrepreneur who is CEO of local startup Axonify.

Startup Weekend kicked off Friday night with more than 100 peoplegathering to watch 44 business idea pitches. From there, 12 teams were formed around the strongest ideas.

“In 54 hours, teams go from an idea to a company. It is incredible to witness,” said Steve Currie, VP Startup Services for Communitech. “Communitech is hosting Startup Weekend because it feeds the culture of innovation and entrepreneurial spirit we foster here in Waterloo Region.”

Powered by the Kauffman Foundation, Startup Weekends, are part of a global movement that has swept through cities in more than 100 countries. The weekend-long, hands-on experiences offer would-be entrepreneurs a chance to find out if their startup ideas are viable.

Beginning with open mic pitches, attendees bring their best ideas and inspire others to join their teams. Over Saturday and Sunday, teams focused on customer development, validating their ideas, practising Lean Startup methodologies and building a minimal viable product. On Sunday evening, teams demonstrated their prototypes and received feedback from a panel of experts.

HomeFed, made up of eight people from across southwestern Ontario, was victorious at the final pitch session late Sunday night. The team won a prize package including: Three hours with KPMG, a ticket to the International Startup Festival in Montreal in July, mentoring time with Communitech executives-in-residence, eight Google Nexus 7 tablets, a design-thinking session with Emerging Technologies SAP, and a consultation with Bereskin & Parr to discuss intellectual property and bragging rights.

More than 100 attendees participated in Startup Weekend, and came from various technical, design, and business backgrounds. Based on the strong attendance and positive response, Communitech will organize another Startup Weekend Kitchener-Waterloo in the fall of 2013.

Facts about Startup Weekend Kitchener-Waterloo:

  • 105participants
  • 44 pitches
  • 12 teams
  • 54 hours
  • 1 winner

About Communitech

Communitech the regional hub for the commercialization of innovative technologies supporting and building a Southwestern Ontario tech cluster of close to 1,000 companies that now generates more than $30B in revenue. A member of the Ontario Network of Excellence ( which is funded by the Ontario government, Communitech supports tech companies at all stages of their growth and development – from startup companies, to rapidly growing SMEs, to large global players – to create greater numbers of successful global businesses for Ontario and for Canada.

About Startup Weekend

Startup Weekend, powered by the Kauffman Foundation, a global grassroots movement of active and empowered entrepreneurs who are learning the basics of founding startups and launching successful ventures. It is the largest community of passionate entrepreneurs with over 400 past events in 100 countries around the world in 2011.

Media Contacts

Joy Lee, PR, HomeFed, 416-558-7762

Avvey Peters, VP External Relations, Communitech, 519-888-9944 x 2028