On the heels of Startup Canada’s #EveryEntrepreneur Tour, the organization announced the winner of its Entrepreneur of the Year Award at the Startup Canada Awards Grande Finale. Natalie Dakers, president of Accel-RX, was awarded the honour.
“The Startup Canada Awards celebrate Canadians who embody the spirit of entrepreneurship and who have exemplified excellence, integrity, and exceptional impact through their efforts and enterprises,” said Victoria Lennox, CEO and co-founder of Startup Canada. “It is a privilege to celebrate Natalie Dakers — an entrepreneur with fervent passion and a clear vision — and to showcase her work in biotechnology. She is truly raising the tide for entrepreneurship and innovation in Canada.”
Through her work with Accel-RX, Startup Canada said that Dakers has become a leading figure in Canada’s biotechnology industry. The accelerator provides seed capital and support to foster the development of early-stage healthtech companies. Before acting as president, Dakers was the founding CEO of The Centre for Drug Research and Development, and CDRD Ventures Inc., an innovative national organization dedicated to addressesing commercialization gaps between early-stage technologies arising out of university-based research and private sector opportunities.
“Advancing innovation in Canada that has an impact on the well-being of citizens around the world is a great passion of mine,” said Dakers. “Having the ability to do this with the freedom of an entrepreneurial lens is integral to the advances that we have made at Accel-Rx and I look forward to what we will achieve in the future.”
