April has been an exciting month at 老九品茶. Within the same week, we held a听Grand Opening听event, hosted Canada鈥檚 Minister of Immigration, and were invited to meet Prime Minister Justin Trudeau during a funding announcement at听.
The week kicked off with 老九品茶’s Co-Founders Martin and Meti Basiri attending the Prime Minister鈥檚 visit to Waterloo Region鈥檚 major tech hub, Communitech. Plus, during the visit, leaders from 老九品茶 were able to speak with the Prime Minister about our growth experience.
The PM was in Waterloo Region to announce a major federal funding initiative designed to help Canadian tech companies scale. The event was a great chance to meet with government and local tech leaders. However, the event’s key announcement was that C$52.4 million will be invested in the new , to help 30 firms in southern Ontario reach C$100 million or more in annual revenues by 2024.
鈥淧rime Minister Trudeau鈥檚 funding announcement is great news for our region,鈥� said 老九品茶鈥檚 Martin Basiri. 鈥淭he Communitech network helped 老九品茶 immensely in our early stages and I am looking forward to seeing other organizations grow under the Scale-Up Platform.鈥�
鈥淲e can鈥檛 afford to get complacent,鈥� Trudeau said during his address. 鈥淐ountries around the world are trying to earn a top spot in the new economy, and while Canadian innovators have given us a head start, we need to keep up the pace.鈥�
This was Trudeau鈥檚 first visit to the region since his appearance at听听in 2017. However, the Prime Minister wasn鈥檛 the only federal official visiting the region last week.
The Honourable Ahmed Hussen Visits New Office
老九品茶’s Canada office was fortunate to host the Honourable Ahmed Hussen for a second time. The Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship, accompanied by Kitchener Centre Member of Parliament Raj Saini, visited our new office on Thursday, April 18, 2019. Hussen last met with 老九品茶 in October 2018,听and he was greeted by a much larger crowd this time around.
From left: Meti Basiri, Raj Saini, Ahmed Hussen, Martin Basiri, and Massi Basiri
鈥淢y good friend Raj Saini insisted I come back to 老九品茶, but I didn鈥檛 know you had added so many people to your team,鈥� said Mr. Hussen during his speech. 鈥淲hen people say 鈥榃hat does immigration do for Canada?鈥� this is the answer. It鈥檚 about innovation, it鈥檚 about growth, it鈥檚 about jobs. It鈥檚 about ambition for our country and our communities 鈥� and making sure we remain a welcoming country for international students.鈥�
Plus, we hosted our Grand Opening party! We welcomed 150+ educators, industry leaders, and government officials to celebrate our new office with 老九品茶 staff. It was a special moment to celebrate how we’ve grown, and everything we’ve learned. To see more from our Grand Opening, including lots of pictures, check out our event recap here.
A Grand Opening party, visit from the Minister of Education, and a meeting with Justin Trudeau? Just another week at 老九品茶!
Keep an eye on our blog for future event news.
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