M A R C L A F L E U R
“Play hard games. Win cool prizes.”
Built and sold truLOCAL for $16.7M, then wrote a book about it.
Everything happens for a reason.
Marc had holes in his shoes at sixteen. His entrepreneurial journey didn’t happen until he heard that Snapchat turned down a $3 billion offer from Facebook. That’s when everything changed. In 2016, at the age of twenty-five, he co-founded truLOCAL— an online marketplace for consumers to connect with local farmers and producers. Over the course of five years, as cofounder and CEO, he grew the business to over sixty employees and expanded across the country. Following a string of successes including a successful pitch on Dragons’ Den, and then landing the cover of the Globe and Mail’s Report on Business, truLOCAL’s story culminated in a $16.8 million dollar acquisition in 2020.
How I got here
Co-founded "Tell", my 1st startup - Failed
At 23, I heard that Snapchat turned down $3B from Facebook. That's when I realized I didn't care too much about my health degree anymore and decided to focus on business. I founded an instant messaging app called "Tell". 6 month later, I accidentally deleted all of our users. That was the end of my first startup.
Co-founded "DashTask", my 2nd startup - Failed
Believe it or not, even after Tell failed I realized I really wanted to do it again. I took what I learned from getting Tell off the ground, partnered with a CS student from the University of Waterloo and built a website that let students do random tasks and odd-jobs for cash called DashTask. We made it further than Tell, but then my co-founder got recruited by Google, and I couldn't get any funding.
Co-founded "truLOCAL", my 3rd startup
After Tell and DashTask, I ended up getting a job as a door-to-door meat salesman. I realized that people loved the product, but the business model made no sense. We decided that we could take best practices from the eComm world and bring it to small producers helping them connect with their customers at a larger scale.
Hit $20 million in annual revenue at truLOCAL
There's no substitute for experience and as co-founder and CEO of truLOCAL, I was fortunate to experience first hand all of the hats that need to be worn to manage a growth business. Over 5 years, we grew the team to over 60+ employees and expanded across Canada and into the USA, landing the cover story of the Globe and Mail's Report on Business for being Canada's 14th Top Growing Company along the way. During that time, we accumulated a series of wins including a succesful pitch on Dragons' Den in 2017 on our way to becoming Canada's largest ecommerce-based protein business with revenues exceeding $20M/ARR.
truLOCAL was successfully acquired for $16.7 million
You go fast alone, but you go far together. The journey is far from over but a new chapter has begun. Our company was never succesful because we did a good job selling a product online. truLOCAL accomplished what it did because every person involved worked for the team member beside them, and that's what let us accomplish what we did while being outmatched, underfunded, and understaffed.
“The only role you should focus on as a founder is being a professional problem solver”
Summer Company Expo keynote - The Truth About Motivation
If nobody else will say it, I will. You can’t be a first-time founder and have a work-life balance…
Marc has shared his inspiring message to companies such as Lululemon and Google, as well as academic institutions like the University of Waterloo and York University. With a special interest in speaking to today’s youth in hopes of inspiring a new generation of leaders, he says, “If my story can inspire even one kid to take a risk and go after something someone told them they couldn’t achieve, then I’ve done what I’m here to do.”
I love imparting my wisdom in areas like leadership and management under the age of 30, along with the realities of being a first-time founder. An extension of that experience is the fundraising process, from the deck to the first investor cheque. Finally, thanks to my experience with truLOCAL, I also love diving deep into D2C and last-mile delivery systems, sharing tips and tricks I’ve learned along the way.
Three startups and everything that goes with it, from daily operations to the complete fundraising process. Wondering what it’s like to be the first-time founder of a startup that went from $0 to $20 million annual revenue, all under the age of 30? I’ve got stories to share.
What People Are Saying
Marc Lafleur giving a lecture on “AI and the Future of Business” at the University of Waterloo.
I didn’t grow a $20 million dollar business in 5 years without learning a few things.
I probably don’t look like the last picture you saw with the letters CEO underneath it.
And it wasn’t until after 5 years of growing my business that I even felt comfortable calling myself a young CEO. I knew early on that I was never special, and that I didn’t have the skill set to lead a 60-person business. But what I did know was that I was hungry enough to learn what I needed to along the way, I embraced becoming a professional problem solver, and nothing was going to stop me from getting after what I wanted.
So, I might not be the first person that pops into your head when you hear the word “CEO.” But I’m working to inspire a generation that is going to change that.
Fast alone, far together.
Building a business is always more than the product or service you deliver. It’s about the community you create and the people who join you on your journey.
That’s why I’ve always felt strongly about giving back to the communities that helped raise me up through personal contributions.
Most recently, I helped found the truLOCAL Equal Opportunity Business Grant, which provides $10,000 to incredible Black-owned or founded businesses.
As Black founders, we’re used to being told “no”, but in my eyes, that’s exactly why we’re better prepared to take on the challenges of growing a business. Growing up, I got pretty used to having doors shut in my face. Now I’m spending my time letting Black and minority founders know that we don’t just deserve a seat at the table, the table was made for us.
truLOCAL donates $10,000 of grants to Black
entrepreneurs
Today, truLOCAL, a Canadian meat subscription company that delivers high quality meats produced on small farms directly to local consumers' doors, announces the launch of a grant program dedicated to fueling tech innovation led by Black entrepreneurs in Canada.
Black business owner supporting other Black entrepreneurs
truLOCAL has launched a grant program to support Black entrepreneurs and innovators, and will also be donating $5 from each sale of their popular Father’s Day Steak boxes to the Black Health Alliance, a non-profit dedicated to supporting the health of Black Canadians.
Lifting Black-owned businesses
truLOCAL helps meat consumers find local producers and its founder, Marc Lafleur, was inspired by his employees to help other Black businesses reach a new plateau.