Vancouver tech founder ready to take entrepreneurs to the next level
A future in tech was always waiting for Vancouver founder Josh Nilson; it just took a little time to be able to press start.
“I grew up in Willow River, a small village in Northern BC just outside of Prince George,” Nilson told Daily Hive. “Tech wasn’t in my plan as I didn’t have funds to attend university for training. So, I worked in hospitality for more than 15 years until enrolling in Capilano College as an adult student and doing a one-year program called InfoTec.”
That first step took the Métis entrepreneur down a path where he would launch one of Vancouver’s top gaming companies and help form an investment company to support Indigenous tech companies.
For Nilson, his work is all about facilitating connections.
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“I always wanted to make experiences with tech and connect people globally; that’s what inspired me about working in tech,” Nilson explained. “I started working in traditional IT – support for ADSL internet services, websites, and email. Then I moved into games.
“I have worked in tech for 20 years, with 15 of those in games and game technologies.”
Nilson is co-founder and former CEO and GM of East Side Games (ESG), which grew from a small startup in East Van to one of the top free-to-play mobile game companies in the country.
ESG is home to games like Archer Danger Phone, It’s Always Sunny: The Gang Goes Mobile, and The Office: Somehow We Manage.
Josh Nilson/Submitted
The Vancouver-based angel investor launched Maskwa Investments earlier this year, providing advice, investments, and consultations with a focus on Indigenous Tech companies.
“We want to make sure founders can focus on their amazing products and services,” said Nilson. We also advise non-indigenous companies in the areas of interactive entertainment, start-ups, tech and, of course, games.
“I’ve been a founder and CEO at a bootstrapped, fast-growing company. We grew from 16 people to over 200 and took the company public in Canada. I think I have a different perspective than most. We never raised money at ESG so focusing on the product and customers is key, and patience to grow slow but move fast.”
Another challenge that Nilson identifies is representation, stating that BC has less than 1% of Indigenous representation in Interactive Media/Games.
Nathan b Caldeira/Pexels
“That is an issue we need to work on as an industry, and organizations like DigiBC are doing exactly that. It is important for several reasons, one of them being if we want to recruit Indigenous people we need to have proper training for organizations, we need to ensure we have studios that are welcoming and that people can see themselves in these roles.”
Nilson’s Métis heritage has also taught him to treat people equally regardless of their position, education, or status.
“The Metis people have always been entrepreneurs. From hunting to trading furs, it is our blood to do business. My Gran was always making quilts and wool sweaters as a side business long before the days of Shopify. It’s just what we do.
“I was raised to work hard and help out, and I believe anyone can be trained to do almost any job. I think we should work together and lift each other up.”
Josh Nilson/Submitted
This ethos has helped drive the Indigenous Tech Circle co-founder’s work with Maskwa Investments, and he is eager to continue helping other entrepreneurs.
“I try to give back to the community by making myself available through talks, knowledge sharing and mentoring,” Nilson added. “Maskwa not only invests, but advises and helps with strategy to get companies started, to get the culture built and to protect that culture in the company. I would love to see more Indigenous tech businesses grow, and I’ll be the loudest person cheering for them along the way.
“We need to start investing more in Indigenous tech founders. The biggest challenges we face in our communities can be helped by investing in companies to tackle this. All levels of government and Indigenous Government need to start working on a plan for this as these are jobs of the future, the jobs the youth want to do.”
For more information on Maskwa Investments, visit its website here.
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