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Accelerate Fund III invests in Calgary-based Virtual Gurus to rapidly expand its virtual assistant services in North America
Left to right: Dan McCleary, Vice President, Operations; Margaret Glover-Campbell, Chief Operating Officer; Bobbie Racette, Founder and CEO; Rob Shaw, Vice President, Technology & Development; and Jason Mann, Vice President, Sales & Marketing
Calgary, AB, May 4, 2022 – Accelerate Fund III today announced its investment into Virtual Gurus, a Talent as-a-Service subscription-based virtual assistant company that matches organizations with skilled remote talent in North America. This investment is part of Virtual Gurus’ latest funding recently announced.
Virtual Gurus provides fractional, remote virtual assistant services for businesses in Canada and the United States while providing employment opportunities to individuals from historically underrepresented backgrounds. The company’s proprietary matching algorithm is the core of its technology platform, connecting pre-vetted and skilled administrative talent to companies seeking flexible part-time support.
“Our North Star is to create employment opportunities for underrepresented individuals who may have a more challenging time finding work as we grow and scale our talent-as-a-service marketplace model,” said Bobbie Racette, Virtual Gurus CEO and Founder. “We are thrilled to partner with local investor Accelerate Fund III, a team who has supported us for a long time.”
The company’s latest product, askBetty, leverages Virtual Gurus’ community of virtual assistants to provide on-demand administrative and concierge tasks at a per-task rate through the convenience of Slack.
“The gig economy and shift to remote work have created a massive market opportunity to provide new models of employment to part-time skilled workers. Virtual Gurus has uniquely capitalized on the market while providing income-earning opportunities for underrepresented groups,” commented Yasmine Al-Hussein, Investment Analyst, Accelerate Fund II & III. “The company’s rapid growth is a major win for Alberta – in just 10 months they have become the leading choice for virtual assistants in North America.”
The Virtual Gurus team plans to use proceeds from the Accelerate Fund III investment and the Series A round, to further expand into the U.S, which currently accounts for 45 per cent of the company’s revenue. Funds will also be used to enhance its technology platform with automation, artificial intelligence and machine learning. The company seeks to hire 30 additional employees over the next six months to expand its operations.
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About Virtual Gurus
Virtual Gurus leverages proprietary technology to match organizations with highly skilled Canadian and American virtual assistants in a Talent-as-a-Service subscription model. The company employs North America’s most diverse marketplace of trusted remote virtual assistants.
About Accelerate Fund III
Accelerate Fund III is an early-stage angel co-investment fund in Alberta. We co-invest alongside angel investors in financing rounds and will typically invest up to $500,000 on the same terms and conditions as private investors. We work with formal angel groups, super-angels, family funds, and individual angel investors. Accelerate Fund III invests in private, early-stage Alberta companies in knowledge-based industries including: information and communications technology, energy technology, as well as life sciences, including agriculture and biotech. Accelerate Fund III is managed by Yaletown Partners with the support of The A100. Alberta Enterprise Corporation is Accelerate Fund III’s lead limited partner with support from other investors, including Opportunity Calgary Investment Fund.
Media Inquiries:
Accelerate Fund III
Claudia Moore
Material Insight
403.703.0029
Claudia @ materialinsight.com