Why Headquartering in "Rural" Eastern Ontario Makes Sense

Three and a half years ago, I moved back to the city I grew up in. After being gone and exploring bigger cities for the better part of a decade, life's circumstances brought me home to Cornwall, Ontario and I am so grateful that I landed here. Kris was born and raised in Ottawa but moved to Cornwall for hockey a couple of years back, when we first met. He has since become a big advocate of the city he never thought he'd live in. Neither of us ever imagined we'd ultimately co-found and headquarter a sports-tech startup in a city better known for it's manufacturing and warehousing industries.

Kris and I meet a lot of people at the many networking events we attend and almost all of them are always surprised when we tell them we're located in Cornwall. Some chuckle and tell us we won't stay there long. Others stare blankly, questioning why on earth anyone would want to live and work in a city better known for the now-defunct Domtar Paper Mill (and the associated smell) which closed in 2006.

We chuckle back, feeling like we're some of the only ones in on the secret of life in Cornwall. We tell them Cornwall makes sense for us; the low cost of living, the geography and the community involvement are just a few reasons why this city is perfect for FanSaves. While considered "rural", Cornwall is in fact a city with a population of 47,000. We have great restaurants, awesome people, local entertainment, festivals and events and so many things to do no matter the time of year.

Here are some highlights of why we've headquartered FanSaves in Cornwall:

Low-Cost of Living

The other day I was browsing real estate listings in Cornwall to see what was on the market. One of the best things about Cornwall is that, unlike bigger cities, houses are still reasonably priced and afforable. When I lived in Toronto only a few years ago, the thought of owning a house was extremely out of reach. The thought of owning a nice house was a pipe dream. So, after my search of Cornwall real estate, I wheeled on over to the Toronto market and found the gem above. For close to $660,000 you can get a run-down shack, with boarded up windows and a tiny space in the back which I wouldn't even consider a backyard. Is this real life?

In Cornwall, you can get a sprawling house on a large lot of land, 6 bedrooms and 4 bathrooms for $125,000 less than a small 2+1 bungalow in Toronto. Also, rent is much cheaper. If Kris and I lived in a big city and decided to start FanSaves, I can assure you that it would have been a lot harder to get off the ground and running. This day and age, with the internet allowing companies to start from anywhere, why would we choose a big city that costs an arm and a leg?

Geography

If you've never been to or heard of Cornwall, you might not realize the prime location the city is in. Located along the banks of the St. Lawrence River near the Quebec border, Cornwall is located just a short hour from both Montreal and Ottawa and sits next to New York State, while Toronto is a quick four hour drive up the 401.

Because of it's prime location, being headquarted in Cornwall has actually given us so many more opportunities. We spend a lot of time in Ottawa (at least 1-3 days a week, sometimes) and can get there and back in the same amount of time that most people in big cities sit in traffic for on most days. Oh yeah, did I mention that Cornwall has no traffic? I personally feel that sitting in traffic for hours every day or basing your work day around travel times never did anything good for my mental health. Living and working in Cornwall means less time agonizing over driving conditions and traffic beyond my control (and also costs a lot less, both gas and time wise) considering I can get from one end of town to the other in less than 15 minutes.

Community Involvement

We're lucky to be able to grow FanSaves in a community that knows us personally and cares about what we're doing. We're not just another number in Cornwall. We know so many great people and we attend so many awesome events and everytime we see people we know they genuinely care about how our business is doing. Building a startup can be lonely and hard and I can only imagine how anyone doing it in bigger cities feels. The isolation that can come with creating a business is real but for us, we've been able to sidestep a lot of it simply by involving ourselves in our community, giving back and building organic relationships.

There is also an up-and-coming innovation movement in Cornwall, with a lot of young people beginning to move back and starting to create more diverse employment opportunites themselves. Had there been an opportunity like FanSaves when I graduated from university, I know I would have been a lot more inclined to move back sooner. We've recently hired three employees who are proud to work for a Cornwall company and would have ended up at jobs in bigger cities, perhaps less happy, chasing the same dream I was chasing in my 20s. We're of the belief that "if you build it, they will come" and we are excited for the bright, young people who our startup continues to attract.

So for anyone who is wondering why on earth we would ever headquarter ourselves in rural Eastern Ontario, these are a few reasons why. We are proof that you can create success where ever you live and that sometimes, there really is no place like home.