Jean-François Cardinal
CEO & managing partner
Canadian Born entrepreneur, he started his first business venture in High School !
Business major Graduate, at age 23 he founded his First Telecom company that later evolved into a multi-service IT powerhouse still operating successfully and based out of Montreal Quebec, Canada.
Driven and Passionate in all aspects of his life, he later created the IFR - Family Investment Holding, which has focused primarily on acquiring and managing Real Estate Assets in Eastern Canada.
Known by his peers to be obsessed with excellence and creating VALUE, that philosophy has always well served his Clients, investors and partners. His approach to investing and management is based on harvesting maximum potential while remaining disciplined in execution.
His core values remain:
Never Stop Learning & Surround yourself with the best team.
Trudy Brandon
SVP Acquisitions AND ASSET MANAGER
Trudy is a licensed Residential and Commercial real estate broker with over 15 years experience. She is an experienced negotiator who knows how to bring creative solutions to the most complex transactions. Having lead multiple teams and projects in her career, she is Authentic, visionary and passionate, she thrives on challenges and teamwork.
Focused on mobilizing teams and creating value. Possessing excellent judgment and intuition: She quickly analyzes and understands both strategic and operational issues.
Rigorous, structured, self-taught with attention to detail, which allows her to carry out multiple projects simultaneously. Maximizing human potential through empowerment and team spirit remains at the center of her values.
Sébastien Leblond, LL.B
Strategic Advisor
Sébastien is an entrepreneur and business lawyer specializing in financial and legal technologies (fintech and legaltech), business process modeling, and corporate governance.
Since 2007, Sébastien has been developing innovative ecosystems, particularly in the field of debt and consumer finance, as well as in the field of sustainable development.
For 5 years, Sébastien has been particularly active in the field of food security, circular economy, investment and energy.
He is the co-founder and CEO of The Farms (headquartered in Abu Dhabi, UAE) and co-founder and co-host of The Gentlemen of Abu Dhabi, the first podcast covering food security in the Middle East.
For more than 25 years, Sébastien has traveled the world to meet entrepreneurs, academics and investors. The knowledge acquired and proprietary networks developed are particularly relevant in this era where we witness the emergence of artificial intelligence, data science and a geopolitical repositioning of certain economies.
Previously, Sébastien developed a company specializing in the management of legal and technological outsourcing processes linked to the management of bank loans. In 13 years, the company founded became a national leader in its field, with offices in 9 Canadian provinces, servicing a clientele composed mainly of lenders and financial institutions.
Due to his long-standing commitment to improving women in leadership roles, Sebastien was named a partner in the DenimClub, a He for She peer group supporting G100, Mission Million (Group of 100 Women Leaders), for the cluster Agtech (www.g100.in).
Sébastien is an alumni of the Entrepreneur Organization. He supports entrepreneurship and the arts through his personal commitment and donations.
Jonathan Mérineau Gosselin, MBA
Strategic Advisor
With over 15 years of successful entrepreneurial and managerial experiences throughout Canada, South America, and the GCC, Jonathan is no stranger to best practices in management, strategy and leadership. Starting with a highly successful real estate brokerage firm in Montreal Canada, at the age of 21 which earned him multiple awards. He then moved to the UAE to work into the real estate industry, holding several positions within the local real estate powerhouses. For the last 36 months, Jonathan co-developed a new business model, in support to the development of GCC economies and worked towards building an ecosystem for food security in the UAE.
Jonathan started his academic career in marketing and business in Montreal and continued in the field of management with an MBA with University of Strathclyde, Glasgow, for which he was awarded merit. He also holds a Certificate for Sustainable Food Security on the Value of System Thinking, delivered by Wageningen University.