A look back on an eventful summer
Events and community at Notman this summer!
Fall is now upon us and it’s shaping up to be a busy one. We’re working on some really great programming right now!
But still, we’re thinking about our eventful summer. After two years of rather slow activities, it was a pleasure to have so many opportunities during the warm season to meet the startup community of Montreal and the rest of Quebec and Canada!
Here’s a look back at the events that marked the summer of 2022 for Notman:
May
Summer at Notman started at the end of May, when we held our first community 5@7 on our terrace, thanks to the nice weather! We spent the evening with close to 40 participants. This 5@7 was also an opportunity for us to raise funds for the Techaide Soccer Tournament, and we are proud to have raised over $400!
The next day, a major event was held in the Clark room, the Montreal stop of Countdown to Collision, touring Canada in anticipation of Collision, the fastest growing tech conference in North America to take place in Toronto the following month. The opportunities and challenges of Montreal as a tech hub were the topic of the evening, with Katy Yam of Real Ventures and Scott Loong of Panache Ventures as special guests and over 75 attendees.
One of our summer 2022 Happy Hour
June
We started the month of June at the Techaide Soccer Tournament, a truly inspiring fundraising event. The Notman Team, made up of a dozen players, raised $1230 and, to our surprise, made it to the semi-finals! But most importantly, the 32 participating teams raised over $60,000 to help Centraide fight poverty and social exclusion in Montreal.
We couldn’t pass June without highlighting Pride month. So in collaboration with our friends at Queertech, we organized what was supposed to be a Pride BBQ. In the end, the bad weather led us to do an indoor Pride Pizza Night instead, but it was still a very nice evening with close to 100 people!
The month ended with another one of our famous community 5@7. Thanks to the 70 people who attended, we once again saw the appeal of these simple networking evenings open to all! And we raised a nice $600 for the Techaide volleyball tournament this time!
The the Notman Team, after an amazing day on field
July
In July, it was of course the first edition of Startupfest in person since the pandemic that was the main event for the startup community.
And for us too! Not only were we very happy to participate in this large-scale event and to meet startups, entrepreneurs and support organizations from all over Canada, but we were also very proud to welcome them to our home!
Indeed, the Startupfest After Hours at Notman on July 14th was one of the highlights of the summer. Organized in collaboration with Montreal NewTech, this evening where close to 400 people came to Notman to celebrate, network, have a drink and dance was a huge success.
Startupfest AfterHours, an incredible evening
The next day, at our booth at the Grand Quai, people were talking about it and the enthusiasm was palpable. Needless to say, we can’t wait to do it again!
August
August started with a first ever Offsite for the Notman team. We had the opportunity to discuss values, strategies, projects and goals. We also had a lot of fun getting to know each other through games, shared meals and a memorable outing to an escape room.
What we love most is when Notman residents take the initiative to organize events by and for the community. In August, Sanjay (Livescale) and Teja (Wamble) did just that, hosting a game night and BBQ for the House. Another great opportunity to spend time together and get to know each other!
And, both in July and August, we closed the month with a 5@7 on the terrace and about 40 participants.
Notman at Zú? That’s right! For our first ever offsite
September
Another community member’s initiative helped us start September off with a bang. Sam Haffar of Real Ventures organized a BBQ for the entire community on the Notman Terrace. There were 200 people in attendance. Another event that proves the importance of human contacts and meetings in the startup ecosystem!
And finally, we got to play volleyball with the 14 teams of the Techaide tournament. Team Notman raised $1160 and all the teams raised over $20,000. Another great success for Techaide, its team of volunteers and the Montreal tech community.
The Notman Team on the volley ball court
In short, it was a busy summer and we hope you enjoyed it as much as we did. Now it’s time to get ready for our recurring events! Stay tuned!
You have an idea for an event by and for the startup community? Contact us.
