Startup Cultures Across Canada – Victoria

‘Kayak o’clock’: Victoria’s laid back, island attitude appeals to tech founders.

Image: By Bobak Ha’Eri (Own work) [CC BY 3.0], via Wikimedia Commons

Small City, Big Lifestyle

Victoria is British Columbia’s capital, a harbour city on the southern tip of Vancouver Island. It’s best known for government, tourism and a mild climate, which makes its tech scene easy to overlook from the mainland.

The “kayak o’clock” idea captures what draws people here. Founders and engineers can finish work and be on the water, on a trail or at the beach within minutes. For a tech company, that lifestyle is a recruiting tool: it attracts people who could earn more in a bigger city but would rather live somewhere quieter.

The island setting has a practical side too. Victoria is a short flight or ferry ride from Vancouver and close to Seattle, so local companies can reach bigger markets and investors without giving up the island lifestyle.

Victoria startup facts

Accelerators in Victoria: 2 (3 if including UVic incubator)
Academic programs: University of Victoria
Top startup in Victoria: Metalab

Tech Is Now Victoria’s Biggest Industry

Victoria’s tech sector has grown well beyond “pint-sized.” VIATEC, the region’s technology industry association, describes technology as Greater Victoria’s number one industry, spread across 1,172 high-tech companies.

Its most recent economic impact study, published in June 2024, found 52% growth in the sector since VIATEC’s previous study in 2017, and said Greater Victoria’s tech industry was outpacing the national average. For a city best known for government and tourism, that’s a striking shift: by VIATEC’s measure, a sector once treated as a side story now leads the regional economy.

VIATEC also supports the sector directly. The association runs a Venture Accelerator Program, a job board and events that connect the region’s founders, which matters more in a small city where everyone benefits from knowing who’s building what.

MetaLab and the Design Advantage

MetaLab, the company TechPortfolio picked as Victoria’s top startup in 2016, is a design firm that works with startups and large companies on their products and brands. It was founded in 2006 by Andrew Wilkinson and is still headquartered in Victoria.

Its best-known project shows how far a small-city firm can reach. Describing its work for the workplace messaging company Slack, MetaLab says “Slack came to us in their very early days with a working prototype and a vision to become the new standard for corporate communication.” MetaLab designed Slack’s original product suite and brand, then went on to work with other technology companies, including AI firms.

MetaLab also shows a different model of success from the venture-backed startup. A services business can be built from a smaller city and serve clients around the world, as long as the work is good enough that clients don’t care where the team lives.

What It Means for Founders

Victoria suits founders who put quality of life first and are building products that can be sold anywhere, such as software, design and digital services. The University of Victoria and Camosun College provide local talent, and the region’s growing tech sector means more experienced hires are available than a decade ago.

The trade-offs are scale and cost. Victoria has far fewer local investors than Vancouver, and housing is expensive, as it is across much of British Columbia. Founders who plan to raise larger rounds from Vancouver, Seattle or further afield, while building the team on the island, get the best of both.

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