Celebrating a Legacy, Building What’s Next: Get to Know the 2026 Finalists of The Odlum Brown Forum Pitch
Ten years ago, The Odlum Brown Forum Pitch program made a bet: with the right room of decision-makers, the right community behind them, and the right support, women entrepreneurs could build companies that shift what’s possible. Since then, more than 100 entrepreneurs have connected with funders, mentors, and a powerful network that remains invested in their growth. Together, Finalists and Semi-Finalists have raised over $70 million and created more than 1,000 jobs across Canada.
This year's Finalists are the next chapter of that story.
Selected from more than 125 national applicants, Kimberley Hiebert of Door Gurus, Randa Mudathir of NovaSonix Healthcare Inc., and Yoobin Lee of Quip Medical are building companies that solve critical problems in home services, medical diagnostics, and healthcare administration.
They're bringing bold ideas and scalable solutions to The Odlum Brown Forum Pitch Finale on April 24, 2026, in Vancouver. On stage, they’ll pitch in front of 800+ investors, business leaders, and entrepreneurs, and to two special guests and Champions whose impressive track records reflect what the Finalists are building toward: Michele Romanow and Tara Bosch.
Michele is a serial entrepreneur, co-founder of Canadian unicorn Clearco, and one of Canada's most recognized investors. As a Dragon on CBC's Dragons' Den for nearly a decade, she’s backed thousands of founders and elevated bold ideas at every stage.
Tara founded SmartSweets and scaled it into the fastest-growing CPG brand ever built by a solo founder—surpassing $1B in sales before a $360M acquisition. She’s appeared as a Guest Dragon on Dragons’ Den and continues to invest in and mentor the next generation of entrepreneurs through her initiative, Bold Beginnings.
Ahead of our much-anticipated 10th anniversary celebration and fundraiser, we sat down with the Finalists to learn more about the motivations that drive them, the impact the program's had, and what they hope the audience takes away from their time on stage.
Kimberley Hiebert, Co-Founder & CEO of Door Gurus
Door Gurus is a Canadian mobile franchise specializing in door repair, installation, and maintenance for residential and commercial clients.
What barriers have you faced in accessing the capital you need to thrive?
As a woman franchisor in the trades and home service sector, accessing mentorship and industry wisdom has been challenging. The franchising and home service industries are still heavily male-dominated, which creates barriers to finding peers and mentors with similar experiences. Limited women’s representation among franchisors can make it difficult to access networks, guidance, and community support that are often critical to scaling and sustaining a growing business.
Your business is solving a meaningful problem. What motivated you to tackle this challenge and how does that motivation sustain you?
During a difficult transition in my life, I was searching for a new way to help others and build better futures. When we discovered a clear gap in the door repair industry and the challenges it created for property owners, the opportunity was obvious. What sustains me is knowing this business solves real problems while creating a pathway for entrepreneurs to build meaningful, life-changing wealth through our franchise model.
What are the next growth opportunities for Door Gurus and how can supporters help?
Our next growth focus is expanding our franchise network across Canada while developing a more flexible training program that reduces operational costs and improves accessibility for new partners. Supporters can help by backing our franchise development efforts through financial support for marketing and operations, and by helping amplify brand awareness and visibility through their networks.
How has The Odlum Brown Forum Pitch impacted you and your ability to scale your business?
The Odlum Brown Forum Pitch Program has been a game-changer, for both me as a CEO and for Door Gurus. The mentorship, guidance, and community support have strengthened my business acumen while increasing visibility and credibility for our brand. That validation has been important as we continue scaling nationally. I am incredibly proud that the program is now part of the early growth story of Door Gurus.
Randa Mudathir, Co-Founder & CEO of NovaSonix Healthcare Inc.
NovaSonix Healthcare Inc. is a medical technology company making advanced 3D musculoskeletal imaging accessible and affordable at the point of care, without the wait times of an MRI.
What barriers have you faced in accessing the capital you need to thrive?
One of our biggest barriers has been operating at the intersection of hardware, medical imaging, and Al, making us difficult to categorize for traditional investors. Early-stage investors often favour software, while medtech-focused investors are few and typically expect early revenue—something that requires upfront capital to achieve. We've also faced hesitation due to long healthcare sales cycles and perceived regulatory risk. To progress, we've relied on non-dilutive funding, academic partnerships, and accelerator programs to build traction and credibility with aligned investors.
NovaSonix Healthcare Inc. is solving a meaningful problem. What motivated you to tackle this challenge and how does that motivation sustain you?
Our motivation comes from working directly with patients in our clinical trials and seeing how long MRI wait times impact their quality of life. Patients are left in pain, unable to work or maintain their quality of life—simply due to a lack of timely imaging access. What drives us is that the technology exists, but isn't accessible at the point of care. That's why we've made it our mission to make advanced imaging more accessible and truly patient-centred.
Looking ahead, what are the next growth opportunities for your company? How can supporters help you achieve this?
Our immediate focus is pilot deployments with hospitals, clinics, and research institutions to validate real-world adoption and workflow integration. We've already completed our initial clinical studies, and are now focused on demonstrating usability and value in practice. We’re currently raising our pre-seed round, a key turning point that will help unlock regulatory clearance and accelerate commercialization. Supporters can help through introductions to clinical partners and strategic investors. At this stage, the right relationships are just as critical as capital.
How has The Odlum Brown Forum Pitch impacted you and your ability to scale your business?
The Odlum Brown Forum Pitch program has been instrumental in refining how we communicate our story. As a highly technical company, translating complex technology into a clear, compelling narrative for non-technical investors has been critical. The program pushed us to focus not just on what we've built, but why it matters and the value it brings to healthcare. It also gave us visibility to investors like never before, while connecting us with a strong network of mentors and founders.
Yoobin Lee, CEO & Co-Founder of Quip Medical
Quip Medical is an AI-powered platform that automates and optimizes billing for physicians within their electronic medical records.
What barriers have you faced in accessing the capital you need to thrive?
Moving to Canada alone for medical school meant I had no local network for a traditional "friends and family" fundraising round. As a full-time medical student founder, I faced skepticism about whether I could execute while managing clinical responsibilities from both sides: physicians and investors. Breaking into healthcare investing circles without established connections was challenging until I found communities like The Forum that believed in supporting early-stage founders despite unconventional paths.
Your business is solving a meaningful problem. What motivated you to tackle this challenge and how does that motivation sustain you?
Watching my supervisors struggle to balance patient care, billing, and teaching yet still miss out on thousands of dollars was devastating—not just the financial loss, but the burnout contributing to Canada's physician shortage. As someone entering emergency medicine, I know this administrative burden drives talented doctors away from practice. Every conversation with exhausted physicians reminds me this isn't just about revenue optimization; it's about preserving their passion for patient care and addressing systemic issues pushing physicians beyond their limits.
What are the next growth opportunities for Quip Medical? How can supporters help?
Our immediate opportunity is Ontario's April 2026 FHO+ policy overhaul, creating urgent demand as physicians scramble to relearn billing. With 500+ physicians seeking Ontario licenses, timing is optimal for rapid adoption. Beyond Ontario, expanding to B.C. and other provinces positions us for national scale before U.S. entry. Supporters can help through introductions to hospital networks for enterprise sales, connections with U.S. accounting firms for market entry partnerships, and investor networks for our upcoming seed round.
How has The Odlum Brown Forum Pitch impacted you and your ability to scale your business?
The program provided invaluable mentorship on refining our pitch to emphasize market timing and competitive moats rather than just technology features. Feedback from investors helped us articulate why now is the critical moment for Quip given policy changes and physician migration. Most importantly, the community of fellow founders facing similar scaling challenges, from customer acquisition to fundraising while building, created a support network I didn't have as an outsider to Canada's startup ecosystem.
The Next Decade of Impact Starts Here
Ten years in, the story is clear: when women entrepreneurs get access to the right wisdom, networks, and capital, they build companies that move Canada forward. The 2026 Finalists—Door Gurus, NovaSonix Healthcare Inc., and Quip Medical—are proof of what’s possible, and a glimpse of what the next decade can unlock.
On April 24 at The Odlum Brown Forum Pitch Finale, they’ll bring their visions to the stage, in front of a room full of people who can accelerate their next steps. Whether you’re an investor, funder, founder, or supporter and advocate of women’s entrepreneurship, this is a moment to lean in. You can help write the next decade of outcomes whether you’ll be in the room or cheering them on from afar.