Louis Kang

Breakout Labs

Ella Korets-Smith

Located in the heart of Canada’s largest and the world’s most diverse city, MaRS is uniquely placed to lead change. We bring together educators, researchers, social scientists, entrepreneurs and business experts under one roof. Founded by civic leaders, we have a mission that is equal parts public and private — an entrepreneurial venture designed to bridge the gap between what people need and what governments can provide.

Place Matters

Place Matters: Learn more about the high-impact companies we work with, our programs and key successes in our report.Read the report: Learn more about the high-impact companies we work with, our programs and key successes in our online report (also available in PDF format).

MaRS is more than a building, it’s building on MaRS co-founder Dr. John Evans’ vision for the future. Great minds may not think alike but they like each other’s company; a brilliant idea in isolation is not enough to create a real breakthrough.

MaRS is a leader in the trend toward urban innovation districts, which allow entrepreneurs access to corporations, investors, mentors, university institutions and labs to test their concepts. We are where inspiration meets realization.

Community Leader

Innovation doesn’t just happen. As the Toronto Discovery District’s commercialization hub, MaRS gives entrepreneurs what they need most: a home with access to networks and capital. This community keeps our most promising talent here, and supplies established businesses and institutions with a steady stream of creativity.

Partnerships

As a home to entrepreneurs and a bridge to the business world, MaRS helps companies bring breakthrough ideas to market and scale globally. Partnerships are key, and building our corporate network has been a priority.

We work with corporations willing to leverage their global reach to assist startups seeking footholds in foreign markets. Corporations, in turn, are embedding teams at MaRS to boost creativity, scout talent and rekindle their entrepreneurial flames.

Venture Services

Entrepreneurs are a sociable bunch; they enjoy interaction as well as transaction. A chance to meet like-minded individuals is a major reason startups join MaRS Venture Services, whose main goal, of course, is to help them accelerate by providing expert advice, market intelligence and access to capital, as well as connections to talent and customers.

Impact

MaRS is not just about creating billion-dollar companies, but touching a billion lives. We are creating a vanguard of entrepreneurs working to improve society for future generations and making a difference beyond our borders.

Ella Korets-Smith
MaRS Discovery District
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BIO

Ella Korets-Smith is Executive Director of TO Health! and Principal at EKS Business Development, an independent consulting firm passionate about creating value for Canadian biotech and medical device companies through building strong relationships. In her 10 years in industry, Ella worked with small and large, public and private life science and medical device companies, holding positions such as Director Business Development and Director Market Development with a track record of closing deals and leading successful marketing and business development programs. Examples of her accomplishments include in-licensing a new product from Merck KGaA into Immunovaccine’s portfolio, allowing the company to raise over $7 million in financing, plan and implement Nordion’s market expansion plan including Gamma Centre of Excellence, a premier research facility focused on growing the gamma market, and completing a market entry strategy for Synergy Health, a large publicly-traded company, to support the largest organic growth investment case in the company’s history. Ella has an extensive network in the GTA health sciences cluster and a growing network of international business leaders extends her reach to customers and partners in key markets in North America and around the world. Ella has an MSc in Medical Genetics from the University of Toronto and an MBA from Dalhousie University.