SME Universe | The bionic ant asserts itself

It was true from the beginning, so why not have it recognized? After 18 years of existence, La Fourmi bionique, a Montreal-based manufacturer of organic granolas, has officially certified what has been its essence since its founding: a business owned by a woman and driven by the highest standards of social and environmental responsibility.

Geneviève Gagnon’s company obtained the Women Owned (women’s business) and B Corp (societal and environmental requirements) certifications – tedious and costly procedures that lasted a year, but which she does not regret.

“It was a bit of a time to assume, to display and to shout too loudly, finally, what we have always been”, explains the 47-year-old woman, majority owner of the company since its foundation.

“But we agree that I have to pay money to prove that I am a woman entrepreneur,” she adds.

“It’s the same with the B Corp. We have always had this approach, favoring organic products, favoring the human and the craftsman in the work and not making excessive growth to the detriment of the well-being of our employees. »

Fortunately, she is already seeing the benefits of her efforts.

“For the past few days, I have been listed on Costco.ca because I had my Women Owned certification. »

Thanks to this sesame (not that of its mixtures), it was able to come into contact with buyers that its brokers had been trying in vain to reach for years.

“It’s really crazy how it’s changed the game for me. I have been a woman at the head of my company for 18 years, but because I have been certified Women Owned, I enter into a criterion that is official. »

Raw, but roasted

La Fourmi bionique comes from the small catering service that Geneviève Gagnon set up in the early 2000s, in her Montreal apartment. His name, inspired by the cartoon The Atomic Ant, affirmed its biological vocation.

Seeing more of a future – and government support – in food processing, she decided in 2004 to put into production the cereal mixes that were very successful in her establishment.

“I developed the recipes of my own. »

From his own, but roasted in the oven and golden with honey or maple.

“With a taste signature that I liked because I am a girl who likes sweets,” she explains.

She explains, “My dad had a convenience store, so I had unlimited access to candy all my childhood. »

Originally, the distribution of its blends of organic ingredients, most often local, was aimed at luxury hotels.

“Finally, it was very seasonal, there weren’t large volumes and I went knocking on the doors of the grocery stores. The supermarkets were the most welcoming, the easiest to seduce. »

Not the head offices: the stores and their managers, she says. “I landed with my little bags and they are the ones who opened the way for me. »

A credibility card

The B Corp environmental certification “is an important credibility card in North American markets in particular,” emphasizes Geneviève Gagnon.

It has just concluded the purchase of new European equipment, which will be installed at the beginning of the summer.

“I’m going to start more targeted actions precisely to ally myself with business partners and expand into new markets, knowing that I have the capacity to do so. »

The Bionic Ant has just experienced 76% growth over three years.

The company, which has about twenty employees, has supported the increase in its production more by acquiring new equipment and by reorganizing its factory than by increasing the number of its craftsmen.

“We have a robot now on the floor, called Robie,” she gives as an example.

The fact that they gave him a name suggests a certain familiarity, but Robie still had to prove himself to his human colleagues.

“They shunned him a bit, I think, because Robie has his moods, his limits, his abilities. Employees tended not to use it as much as we would have liked. »

She reassures us: “But there, he is starting to be well integrated into the team. »

The bionic ant is really attentive to all its members…

Certified Mom

Geneviève Gagnon is also the mother of three children – which earned her no points for the Women Owned certification.

“I realized the other day that it’s been 10 years since my first pregnancy, 10 years that I’ve been an entrepreneur mom,” she says.

For her, the work-business balance began at the start of her first pregnancy.

“I vomited during all my pregnancies. I threw up in the metro on my way to a meeting with my buyers in Paris. I vomited in my garbage can at the office. I threw up in my car on my way to work.

“And that didn’t stop me from having three children. »

Bravery !

“Determination,” she corrects. The dream of being a mother was even more important than that of being an entrepreneur. »

Change of logo

The company, even if it keeps the same corporate name, adopted in 2021 a new trademark and a new logo: La Fourmi, quite simply. It is currently only used on its website, but it should appear on packaging during the summer.

“The idea was to have an easier name to remember. And to pronounce for English-speaking customers, in whose mouths the word ant sounds “for me” – “for me”, a very appropriate meaning.

“I said to myself: we are going to simplify their lives, and for us, we are going to have something more concise,” says Geneviève Gagnon.

“And I wasn’t ready to make the compromise of changing the language. »

Tite Frette is gaining ground

Opportunities are multiplying for the chain of craft beer shops Tite Frette. The company opened its 26^and branch in Saguenay (in Jonquière, for those nostalgic for Plume Latraverse) on December 11 and is preparing to open three more in February, in Magog, Chambly and Mont-Royal. Tite Frette offers a selection of more than 500 beers from Quebec microbreweries in each store, around 100 of which are exclusive to its network. The company was founded in 2018 in Magog by Karl Magnone and Jérémie Poupart, who wanted to create a network of shops dedicated to microbrewery beers. They opened the first three stores in 2018, the fourth in 2019. Everything exploded after their appearance on the show In the eye of the dragon, in April 2020. “The dragons confirmed to us that it was absolutely necessary to franchise the concept”, relates Karl Magnone. Steve Morency and Frédéric Matt, co-founders of the Yuzu restaurant chain, then invested in the company. The uniform design of the stores was entrusted to Quebec designers. Their furniture is designed and manufactured in Quebec. No less than 22 franchise stores opened in 2021. “We have on average ten franchise requests per day, informs Karl Magnone. We have well exceeded 800 requests over the past year. »

Financial serenity for Rose Buddha

The oak comes to support the rosebush, in a way. The co-founders of the famous Montreal clothing brand Frank And Oak are investing in the equally Montreal-based eco-responsible clothing brand Rose Buddha. This is the first investment made by the Noble Pace fund, created by Ethan Song and Hicham Ratnani to support companies that aim to “have a positive effect on our planet”, as the latter put it. Rose Buddha was founded in 2016 by entrepreneurs Maxime Morin and Madeleine Arcand. Certified B Corp, in Canada, it creates sportswear and accessories with recycled materials and natural and organic fibers. Launched with an investment of $300, the company now exceeds 5 million in sales, indicated Maxime Morin. It grew by 400% last year, and by 2400% over four years. With this influx of new money, Rose Buddha plans to announce various initiatives over the next year, including the opening of a flagship store and the revitalization of its meditation application, Rose Buddha Meditations. Frank And Oak was sold in 2020 to the American investment fund UGC.

LANDR FX mixing suite piggybacks on LANDR

Music creators will now be able to mix with unadulterated bliss. Montreal-based LANDR has just launched a new suite of mixing tools called LANDR FX, which joins the revolutionary music post-production and distribution platform that bears its name. The set contains five plugins – extension modules, or plug-ins, as recommended by the OQLF –, which include up to 50 multi-effect presets. Their intuitive interface reduces creating a mix to mere decisions, allowing creators to achieve the same finesse as studio professionals, its designers argue. “LANDR FX tools are among the plugins simplest and most powerful multi-effects ever created,” said Daniel Rowland, Head of Production at LANDR, in a press release. LANDR FX suite is included in annual subscription All Access Pass by LANDR. LANDR was founded in Montreal in 2014 by Pascal Pilon. The company then launched a virtual post-production studio, which has since been used by millions of musicians in some 200 countries. LANDR has offices in Montreal, Los Angeles and Berlin.

$50,000

Amount awarded to the winner of Hydro-Québec’s Energy Innovation Award, launched by its subsidiary InnovHQ. The competition is aimed at SMEs and start-ups that have a ready-to-market solution in their boxes, for energy efficiency or the electrification of transport. They can register on the InnovHQ website until February 28.