Business pitch winner awarded $15,000, has an ‘urban fix’ for Sault businesses

Steeson Mathew, an entrepreneurial newcomer to Sault Ste. Marie, is helping local businesses succeed and is planning to expand his own company - UrbanFix Technologies Inc. - after winning the Millworks Centre for Entrepreneurship business pitch competition’s first prize of $15,000.

“It’s pretty exciting. There was a big pool of competitors. We’re thankful,” Mathew said.

UrbanFix, a tech start-up, is a web and mobile-based marketplace for local service providers.

“Service providers...like painters, plumbers, hair stylists, beauticians, snow removal, and self-employed people, can list their services and their prices (through the UrbanFix app and website),” Mathew said.

“People will be able to hook into the app and use their services.”

“We are pretty much open to all service providers in the Sault, and freelancers, so they can list their services with us. To be in the app itself is free but we are working on a commission basis, so if somebody books any services, once the booking comes through we will take a small percentage from the service provider,” Mathew explained.

UrbanFix launched approximately eight months ago.

“We thought the Sault would be a very good place to start and test our app. We’ve made a lot of upgrades. We have also developed a customer relations management software to help service providers to manage their businesses, to dispatch and track their employees through the Cloud. We want to help all the service providers from the bricks and mortar system as well as the digital economy which the world is moving into,” Mathew said.

The prize money of $15,000 will be put into UrbanFix research and development, marketing and expansion into Kitchener - Waterloo and the Greater Toronto Area, Mathew said.

“We have a couple of employees in India for us right now but we want to bring people over here and hire people in this city as well. Soon, probably after one year, we are planning expansion of the team in Canada,” Mathew said, currently operating from an office space at Millworks on Huron Street.  

Mathew emigrated to Canada from India, first completing business management studies at Vancouver’s Douglas College before enrolling in Sault College’s Civil Engineering Technology program two years ago.

After a year of study in the Sault, he saw an opportunity, rolled up his sleeves and developed his web and app-based UrbanFix solution.

“The Sault is a very good community. We have a network here and I’ve personally connected with a lot of people because of this start-up and they are all very much supportive. It’s good to be in the Sault.”

Entrepreneurs took part in the business pitch competition, scored by audience voting and an expert panel of judges. 

UrbanFix - and runner up John Findlay from Findlay’s Fungus, who won $5,000 - made it to the finals after a competitive process involving over a dozen submissions from business owners across Algoma.

The competition took place as part of the Bridges to Better Business event, an annual learning and networking forum hosted by the Millworks Centre for Entrepreneurship.

UrbanFix may be contacted through the MyUrbanFix website or through Facebook.