My Story
Always had grit. Do not take no for an answer. I do not give up. I would rather try and regret than not try at all. That is what got me to where I am today.
2010 to 2013: Filmmaking to Coding
I loved filmmaking as a kid and went to Niagara College to study it.
At Niagara, while most students were out partying, I was in my room coding. It was not just about hustling, I loved coding on the side. I would spend hours teaching myself Objective C and building little iPhone projects. One day, a programming student saw my code and said, "Your code looks horrible. You will never make it in this industry." I ignored him, went back to my room, and coded even more.
Months later, I was hired by Giant FM, Z101, and Country 89 stations with Wellport Broadcasting Group to build their iPhone apps. Soon after, Seaway Mall in Niagara hired me to build a shopping mall app.
A few months later, we had our end of year culminating project. Everyone had to work on short films, but I wanted to do my own thing. My teacher would not allow it.
So, on my own time, I pitched the president of Seaway Mall on a TV commercial. They approved a fifty thousand dollar budget. I hired student actors, produced, directed, and edited the commercial.
At the final school screening, with a well-known TV film producer, my teacher asked me to show my commercial. He loved it and raved to the producer. That day, my rule breaking project became my official final assignment, and I got one hundred percent.
From TV to Restaurants
After graduating, I worked briefly on a TV show as a trainee assistant editor. I realized the industry was not for me.
Around the same time, my dad wanted to own a restaurant, so we took over a struggling restaurant location in Burlington, Ontario. I became part owner and GM, cleaning floors and running the kitchen to turn it around.
Soul Searching and Building a Brand
After my grandfather passed away, I went soul searching in Iceland. I wore a Canada Goose jacket, but even with it I was freezing. The cold cut through me, and I realized the jacket was not enough.
When I came back, that moment stayed with me. I began designing my own parka brand despite friends saying, "You are not a designer, you cannot do this." I wanted to prove them wrong. Eight months later, I returned to Iceland to film a commercial in heavy winds and rain to show that my jacket could endure where others failed.
In fall 2019, I posted about my jacket online. The head of leasing at RioCan Canada saw my story and offered me a pop up space for Christmas. My dad told me I would lose money. My mom said, "You never know unless you try." Even the founder of the franchise and one of Canada's most successful businesswomen told me, "If you have the chance to do something for yourself, go all in."
So I did. I ordered thirty jackets, built the store with my architect friend, and launched. The RioCan team was blown away. My Iceland commercial screened before Star Wars The Rise of Skywalker to more than one thousand people.
That Christmas, I sold my first one thousand dollar day. My jackets, priced at five hundred dollars each, sold out in two weeks. Local council members, the mall GM, and even RioCan's senior VP of leasing bought jackets and gave us glowing testimonials. Cadillac Fairview invited us to expand, but without inventory, I declined. Lesson learned: always stay a year ahead of trends.
Back to Restaurants During COVID Pandemic
After shutting down the brand, I went back to help my parents.
Through COVID, I saw firsthand how restaurants run on razor thin margins, how important impressions are in person and online, and how phone calls were being lost to poor service. We lost takeouts and reservations simply because servers could not handle multiple calls. Voice AI was not ready yet, so I could not fix it then.
Pivot to E Commerce and SaaS
To survive, I started dropshipping.
In five months, I scaled to one hundred fifty thousand dollars in revenue. A PayPal rep told me he had never seen anyone grow that fast. That success gave me confidence.
I then co founded an analytics SaaS startup. Within six months, we raised at a twenty five million dollar valuation and signed five hundred customers in our first month. I built the product while my co founder led marketing.
Two years later, we had a team of fifteen. I sold my stake and moved on, again ignoring the voices that said I was not experienced enough.
Zweelie: The Current Chapter
After leaving, I started Zweelie. I pivoted multiple times, got into Founder University, and raised funding from Jason Calacanis's Launch Fund as a solo founder.
After one hundred seventy rejections, I closed a one hundred thirty thousand dollar angel round, then brought on my co founder Adeel Malik as product designer. Together, we launched a content platform. Our first customer was Brian Livingston.
Brian was not just any client. He had studied under Grant Cardone and Jim Cathcart, with Jim as his mentor, and he became both a paying customer and a business coach for me. He helped me sharpen our approach and refine Zweelie into what it is today.
The Voice AI Breakthrough
A month ago, my dad called me and said, "We are losing customers to competitors. We need help."
I built a demo voice AI receptionist for the restaurant. On the first day, Zweelie saved a sixty five dollar takeout order when a server could not answer the phone. On the second day, it captured six reservations. On the third day, one caller canceled a six person reservation, but at the same time Zweelie picked up another call and booked a seven person reservation, replacing the lost revenue instantly.
That experience proved the concept. I saw how voice AI could save missed opportunities in real time, and I realized the use cases went far beyond restaurants.
The following week, I met a property manager at a summit. He told me they lose hundreds of thousands every year to missed calls and wasted staff time. We agreed to a pilot.
Zweelie started by solving a restaurant problem close to home, but the real opportunity revealed itself when property managers began pulling us into their world. The pain is too big, and the opportunity too real, not to chase.
Journey Timeline
Voice AI Breakthrough (2024)
Zweelie
January 2024 - Present
Built voice AI receptionist for restaurants, saving $65 orders on day one. Expanded to property management. Raised $130K angel round after 170 rejections.
Zweelie Launch (2023)
Founder University
March 2023 - December 2023
Started Zweelie, got into Founder University, raised funding from Jason Calacanis's Launch Fund. After 170 rejections, closed $130K angel round. Brought on co-founder Adeel Malik.
SaaS Success (2022-2023)
Analytics Startup
January 2022 - February 2023
Co-founded analytics SaaS, raised at $25M valuation, signed 500 customers in first month. Built team of 15, then sold stake to pursue new ventures.
E-commerce Scale (2020-2021)
Dropshipping Success
March 2020 - August 2021
Scaled dropshipping to $150K revenue in 5 months. PayPal rep said he'd never seen growth that fast. Gained confidence to pursue bigger ventures.
Parka Brand Launch (2019)
Iceland Inspiration
January 2019 - December 2019
After Iceland trip, designed own parka brand. RioCan offered pop-up space. Sold out $500 jackets in 2 weeks, $1000 first day. Commercial screened before Star Wars to 1000+ people.
Restaurant & TV (2014-2018)
Restaurant Business
2014 - 2018
Worked briefly on a TV show as trainee assistant editor, then helped run struggling restaurant location in Burlington. Became part owner and GM, cleaning floors and running kitchen to turn it around.
Filmmaking to Coding (2010-2013)
Niagara College
September 2010 - June 2013
Studied filmmaking but coded in spare time. Built iPhone apps for radio stations and Seaway Mall. Created $50K TV commercial that became final project, earning 100% grade.