After last year’s 43North Finals, many participants and attendees gathered for a celebration at a nearby restaurant.
Despite not winning one of the $1 million grand prizes, Mary Lobson, CEO of REES Technology Group Inc., went to the event. Her Winnipeg, Canada-based startup is an online platform for reporting discrimination and harassment that can be adapted for an individual industry or sector.
“I had so many people coming up to me, most of whom I’d say were survivors, that had in some way been impacted by some type of harm,” she said. “There was just a gratitude for the work that we’re doing.”
That was just one factor that convinced Lobson Buffalo was the right place for REES. She had no obligation to do so, and she had never been to the Queen City prior to 43North, but she recently rented an apartment at Seneca One Tower and got office space there in Serendipity Labs. As a Canadian citizen, she got her visa Jan. 9 to operate REES in the U.S.
The startup, founded in 2019, will keep its Winnipeg presence and team of eight in Canada. The business is on track to quadruple its year-over-year gross revenue from last year.
Related: Here are all startups at Seneca One as latest 43North winners move in
Here are some of the other main factors that led Lobson to choose Buffalo:
- Higher education has been the bulk of REES’ customers, and there are many colleges and universities in Western New York, as well as New York state as a whole. There’s also easy access to the Pennsylvania market.
- The area also has a large presence of sectors, such as manufacturing, banking and sports ownership groups, that are potential customers for the startup.
- Buffalo’s proximity to Canada makes it easy for Lobson to go back and forth from Winnipeg and the Queen City.
- The cost of hiring is lower here than in larger markets.
- The community. Locals have been “incredibly welcoming,” and the startup environment supports entrepreneurship.
“A lot of people I’ve met have lived here their whole lives or left and came back,” she said. “That really speaks to what’s happening in the community and the type of community that it is. All of those things drew me here.”
Lobson expects to hire locally, although it’s too soon to say how many positions she’ll add. The business has applied to Startup NY, a state program that helps companies through academic partnerships and tax-based incentives.
“It remains to be seen what the future will hold, but certainly every indication that I have so far is that Buffalo is the right place for REES and we’re really excited to be here,” she said.
