Evan McCann

The Hard Part with Evan McCann

Business EN ↓ 367 episodes

The Hard Part, hosted by Evan McCann, uncovers the stories, strategies, and playbooks of Canada’s most influential founders, investors, and leaders. While Canadian innovators often fly under the radar compared to their American peers, The Hard Part shines a spotlight on their impact, redefining Canada’s role in global entrepreneurship.

Author

Evan McCann

Category

Business

Latest episode

Mar 30, 2026

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Episodes

Jim Murphy from Boltmade and Shopify 25.11.2022

Jim Murphy was the co-founder of Boltmade which was acquired by Shopify . In this episode, we discuss Jim’s extensive tech background, the Waterloo tech scene, and what it is like being acquired by Shopify, Jim’s view on investing and why he decided to buy a farm. Check out Jim's brewery, Elora Brewing Company .

Justin Herlick from Pine 18.11.2022

Justin Herlick is the co-founder of Pine . Pine is transforming the Canadian home financing process by creating a new digital-first, direct-to-consumer and low-rate process for their clients. In this episode, we discuss Justin’s background that led to starting Pine, he also gives a crash course on the mortgage industry in Canada and why it is ripe for disruption. If you are looking for a mortgage,...

Andrew Arruda from Flexpa 11.11.2022

Andrew Arruda is the co-founder of Flexpa . Flexpa is improving healthcare for everyone by building developer-first infrastructure. In this episode, we discuss Andrew’s first venture ROSS Intelligence, what it is like building an API business and why Andrew chose health tech for his second venture.

Jason Goldlist from Venue 04.11.2022

Jason Goldlist is the co-founder of Venue . Venue is the platform powering internal meetings that inspire and engage remote-first teams like Shopify and Wealthsimple. In this episode, we discuss Jason’s early days at Wealthsimple, the power of people and what makes Venue different in a busy video conferencing space. Jason is also a co-founder of TechTO . TechTO is a technology community that wins...

Aaron Upright from Zenhub 28.10.2022

My guest today is Aaron Upright the co-founder of Zenhub . Zenhub helps teams ship great code faster with time-saving agile automations, less meetings, & more visibility in GitHub. In this episode, we how Aaron came to co-found Zenhub, the impact that Zenhub has on teams building software and why Aaron's favourite books are not business books.

Brandon Waselnuk from Codex 21.10.2022

Brandon Waselnuk is the co-founder of Codex . Codex is an IDE extension that allows any engineer to attach comments, questions, notes or any kind of content to specific lines of code. In this episode, we discuss Brandon’s first venture TattooHero, Brandon’s extensive product background and the unique way he and his team created Codex.

Cameron Service from Kulin & Oddit 14.10.2022

Cameron Service is the co-founder of Kulin and Oddit . Kulin helps DTC eCommerce brands scale revenue through smart strategy, Google ads, paid social, email/SMS and creative. Oddit provides UX teardowns for websites looking to boost long-term conversion & strengthen brand loyalty. In this episode, we discuss Cameron’s history in the branding space, starting 3 different companies and what brand...

Brandon Li from Power 07.10.2022

Brandon Li is the co-founder of Power. Power is the most patient-friendly platform for clinical trials. They are making it easy for all patients to discover promising clinical trials and get in touch with the researchers directly. In this episode, we discuss Brandon’s entrepreneurial background, obsession with marketplaces and how the clinical trial process needs to be disrupted. Read about Power'...

Marc Campagna from oxio 30.09.2022

My guest today is Marc Campagna. Marc is the co-founder of oxio. oxio is an internet service provider without the big telco bullsh*t. In this episode, we discuss how Marc started oxio and then I got a crash course on the Canadian telecom space. Check out oxio's website to enter your address to see if you can switch today!

Ted Spare from Neat 23.09.2022

Ted Spare is the co-founder of Neat . Neat is a unified inbox for work notifications. Currently focused on GitHub and Linear for software engineers. In this episode with Ted, we discuss Ted’s first dip into entrepreneurship at McGill, building tools for developers and Ted’s framework to interview customers. Teams from Lego, Microsoft and Twilio use Neat for their notifications. Go to Neat.run to d...

Gavin Dove from Fluent 16.09.2022

Gavin Dove is the co-founder of Fluent. Fluent is a Chrome extension that helps you practice new languages. Fluent translates select English words to the language you are practicing as you browse the internet. In this episode, we discuss Gavin’s background, why Fluent focuses on immersion and how Fluent monetizes. If you want to start practicing a new language today, hit this link to add Fluent to...

Daniel Baum from Sleek 08.09.2022

Daniel Baum is the co-founder of Sleek . Sleek saves you time and money when shopping online. Checkout with just 1 click at Best Buy, Zara, Gap and all your favourite stores. Plus, earn cashback on top of your credit card rewards. In this episode, we discuss Daniel’s Y Combinator experience, the checkout landscape and the future of Sleek. Check out Sleek's Product Hunt page . Check out TechCrunch'...

Myles Shedden from Chroma 19.08.2022

Myles Shedden is the Co-Founder of Chroma. Myles spent time at RBC Capital Markets, TriWest Capital Partners and SkipTheDishes. Chroma is Canada's first and only financial services platform for renters. Their industry-leading rent now, pay later product makes paying rent more convenient and helps you build your credit score by paying on time.

Spencer Kerber from Bessie 05.08.2022

Spencer is a mechanical engineer who left the industry to engage with his values for environmentalism and his passion for food. He founded Bessie, a farm-to-table grocer that delivers healthy food from growers to customers. All hyperlocally, people to people. No shipping required. It expanded across Alberta to 14 different municipalities and has served thousands of customers during good times and...

Fahd Ananta from Roach Capital 29.07.2022

Roach Capital is an investment firm focused on early-stage internet companies. In this episode, we discuss Fahd’s investing style, how he vets investments and find out why he is obsessed with roaches.  Check out Roach Capital's website to learn more!

Ruslan Nikolaev from Float 22.07.2022

Float’s vision is to deliver an end-to-end business spending platform for small and medium-sized businesses. We want this platform to enable businesses and teams to focus on investing in their growth and eliminate the need to use different banking and software tools to make day-to-day payments.  In this episode, we discuss the founding story of Float, how Ruslan has brought together a top-not...

Brett Chang from The Peak 15.07.2022

Brett Chang is the co-founder of The Peak. The Peak Daily is fast Canadian business news. They help you get up-to-speed quick with a fun and smart breakdown of the three biggest Canadian and global business stories in less than 10 minutes.  Enjoy my conversation with Brett! 

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