When I bumped into MintList co-founder Mehrsa Raeiszadeh at Traction Conference last week, it was a joy. Raeiszadeh was her usual effervescent self, and was brimming with energy and conversation. “A hummingbird on espresso,” her MintList co-founder Mike Wood joked. I will admit that I did not need any more cups of coffee after our chat — espresso osmosis, perhaps. But, she was buzzing for good reason. MintList had just made history.

The company was named Tech Startup of the Year - Software in the International Business Awards — known as The Stevies colloquially. More than 3,700 nominations from organizations of all sizes across multiple industries were submitted to this year's awards cohort, and previous winners include IBM, T-Mobile, Lenovo, and Fortinet. MintList joins exclusive company north of the border: Out of hundreds of winners in the competition’s 19-year run, only three Canadian businesses have ever won an award. MintList is the first Canadian company to win Tech Startup of the Year - Software. 

Spearmint, but it stands for spear(heading tremendous growth)mint: Over the last year, the company has been on a rocketing growth trajectory. Born as Traffic Driven Technologies in early 2020, it took home first place in the 2021 New Ventures BC Competition. Then, the newly-incorporated company known as MintList — named after its flagship product — raised $2.6 million in January 2022. “The company that consisted of just Raeiszadeh, (co-founder Mike) Wood and an intern two years ago recently hired its 25th employee,” wrote Nathan Caddell for Vancouver Tech Journal in February. Most recently, before the Stevie was added to their trophy cabinet, MintList was unveiled in the Google for Startups Accelerator Canada Class of 2022. 

• Go deeper: MintList steers the auto industry kicking and screaming into the future

Pennyroyal, but it stands for penny(for your thoughts)royal: MintList appears to be something of a darling amongst the awards winners. “Disrupting an existing industry with cutting-edge and highly scalable technology demonstrates [the company’s] huge success” and “the achievements obtained in the period are astonishing” were just some of the plaudits it received in being handed a Stevie.

“It is extremely gratifying to be the first Canadian company to win this award in this category,” said Wood in a release. “MintList simplifies the vehicle buying and selling process and reduces risk, putting the control back into consumers' hands. Our technology is a welcome change from the traditionally frustrating process of buying or selling a car, and our record growth is proof that consumers want this.”  

“We couldn’t be more thrilled to receive this great honour,” said Raeiszadeh. “Winning this Stevie Award acknowledges the tremendous success we’ve had in disrupting the trillion-dollar global automotive market. Our technology, drive, and determination to succeed is unmatched, and I believe this award is an early indicator of what’s to come.” 

London is now calling for MintList. The company will be among the winners celebrated during a gala banquet at the InterContinental London Park Lane Hotel in October – the first live International Business Awards ceremony since 2019.

Share