London Inc. Weekly

Written by Kieran Delamont, Associate Editor, London Inc.

Urospot grows to over 25 Canadian units

Urospot, the London-founded pelvic health franchise, opened two more clinics this month — one in Kelowna last week and one in Halifax this week — continuing a run of new markets that started with Winnipeg last October and Regina in December, pushing its national footprint past 25 locations. The company was launched in London in 2019 by Erin Craven (pictured), a former 3M Canada and Graceway Pharmaceuticals exec; she introduced a franchising system in October 2020, and it’s been rolling ever since. The franchises have been broadly popular as they’ve rolled out. Ottawa franchisee Kris Ouimet, who signed on in 2021 after a 20-year pharmaceutical career, said in a Franchise Canada interview that her clinic was booked solid within weeks of opening and had to add a third treatment room inside a year. In Halifax, new franchisee Kim Sonnichsen said she’s hoping to reach people who haven’t sought treatment before and bring the technology to Atlantic Canada. “While there are strong care options available, many women and men still aren’t seeking support,” she said. “My goal is to help bridge that gap.”

The upshot: Hitting 25 franchise locations in Canada — and one internationally, located in the UK — is a nice milestone for Urospot, which has definitely found success with its franchise model. Part of its success seems to come from the fact that it is adept at attracting franchisees with similar backgrounds to Craven: women who have had established professional careers but are looking to take a stab at entrepreneurship, and are attracted to the growing femtech industry. “Most femtech companies are female-led, using technology to solve unmet needs in female health care,” Craven told Ivey’s InTouch magazine a few years ago. “I started UROSPOT to provide freedom and change women’s lives by building strong pelvic floors. I didn’t know I was going to experience this level of personal growth, learning to control my mind and fears, and moving through tough situations.” 

Read more: Newswire | Franchise Canada | Ivey In Touch

Local producers applaud new direct-to-consumer alcohol deal

Ontario joined eight other provinces — all the other sans Quebec — in signing a new agreement this week that will let consumers buy wine, beer and spirits directly from producers in other provinces and have it shipped to them. It’s a move that the premiers have billed as another step towards bringing down the much-discussed interprovincial trade barriers, which have become a point of focus for the domestic economy. “In the face of President Trump’s latest tariffs, it’s more important than ever that Team Canada work together to build a more united, resilient and self-reliant Canadian economy,” Premier Doug Ford said in a statement. Wine Growers Ontario CEO Aaron Dobbin called it something the industry has wanted “for decades,” though he cautioned the “devil is in the details” if other provinces’ markups end up too steep. “If their cut is too much, then it’s just a barrier by another name,” he said. Ontario’s producers likely stand to gain considerably from the arrangement, as one of the larger alcohol-producing provinces. “If you do a quick search on the BC Liquor Distribution Branch website, the last time I checked there were six Ontario wines, and four of them were ice wine,” Dobbin told Postmedia. Locally, the announcement was met positively. “We have lots of people that reach out to us from other provinces that would love us to get our beer out there,” said Paul Corriveau, co-founder of Railway City Brewing in St. Thomas, speaking with CTV News London. “We’re just trying to figure out the economics of shipping and delivering, and what have you.” The official estimates from the government suggest that nationwide, the agreement could unlock “an estimated $200 billion in unrealized economic growth.”

The upshot: A major interprovincial agreement for direct-to-consumer (DTC) alcohol sales has taken on both a practical and symbolic importance in the tariff age. The desire to tear down these interprovincial trade barriers has been a bugbear of the alcohol industry (and many economists) for quite some time, long predating Trump’s tariffs, so they’re getting a win here. It’s also taken on a symbolic importance as well, becoming a bit of an avatar for all interprovincial trade barriers in Canada that many would like to see remedied. So, plenty will be happy to see progress there. The question of whether it will lead to a national blossoming for the booze industry is another matter. There are still, as a Globe and Mail editorial from last month points out, a lot of regulatory steps required before producers can ship into and out of Ontario, including a markup fee that you might think of as a soft barrier. Then there is the logistics of DTC shipping, and whether that will ultimately make out-of-province beverages less appealing. “Because of the cost of shipping glass bottles full of liquid, it’s not done much,” the Globe editorial reads. Still, from a purely national consumer perspective, it’s a big plus in terms of getting your hands on some of the country’s great beers and wines. (London Inc.’s advice: don’t sleep on New Brunswick’s craft beer selection!)

Read more: CTV News London | London Free Press

Where dis office going to go?

Council’s weeks-long debate over whether Westmount Commons can add office space for a potential Carfax Canada relocation got a wee bit heated at this week’s council session, with councillors jawing at each other over the company’s potential relocation. City staff have recommended against a request from Farhi Holdings to rezone the mall for offices larger than 5,000 square metres, citing the desire to keep bigger offices downtown, and this week council was voting on a motion that would have essentially delayed the decision by a couple of months while more information was sought (which they ultimately voted to do.) And then things started to get messy. Councillor Paul Van Meerbergen, whose ward includes Westmount Mall, accused downtown Councillor David Ferreira of “dissin’” the suburb after Ferreira urged colleagues to hold the line on the policy. “Recognize the future implications and the precedent that this will set,” Ferreira said, adding that “downtown has a lot to offer, way more than Westmount does.” That got Van Meerbergen a little miffed. “Don’t diss Westmount!” he countered, accusing Ferreira of being “out of line when you start dissin’ other areas of the city.” He also warned that council was “playing with fire” by trying to artificially hinder a major employer’s decision, warning the fire “is losing over 800 jobs.” Carfax, which currently leases space at 100 Kellogg Lane, is, for now, remaining above the fray.

The upshot: This whole office debate has had a surprising shelf life in the municipal political discourse over the past few weeks, though maybe that shouldn’t be surprising since it has all the right ingredients: a downtown versus the suburbs dynamic, a large commercial landlord making a request for zoning rules to be bent and an election looming in the fall. It’s all combined to see this usually drab council vocalizing a bit more enthusiastically than they might have otherwise. Downtown mall Citi Plaza, which wrote to the planning committee in support of denying the rezoning and had chimed in to say they have space for an office like this, even caught a few stray shots from Deputy Mayor Shawn Lewis. “Go make them a frickin’ offer, Citi Plaza!” Lewis said at council. “If you think you have the space downtown, then engage with the applicant!” Possibly one area to watch is comments Mayor Morgan made about the company’s lack of a clear decision timeline, “given the process they’re going through in the equity markets.” Earlier this month, Carfax Canada owners, S&P Global Inc., spun out its automotive division, which might have something to do with why Carfax hasn’t staked out a clear public position. Rather than corporate cageyness, it might just be uncertain as to what kind of timeline any of this might be on. 

Read more: CTV News London

Village SoHo opens with 410 affordable units nearly all rented

Village SoHo, the six-nonprofit collaboration turning the old Victoria Hospital lands into a large mixed-income community, has filled almost all 410 of its affordable apartments, with tenants moving into four of the project’s five new buildings this month, the builders report. “After six years of planning and development, the opening of four new rental buildings is a significant milestone that we look forward to celebrating with Londoners,” said Greg Playford, a member of the Housing Action Committee that had worked to make this project happen. The 690-unit project has been under construction since around 2020, and has attracted attention as one of the city’s larger non-profit, affordability-focused developments. It hasn’t been without its hiccups, with Indwell needing to secure additional funding in 2023, but with that in the rearview mirror, seeing the buildings open is a milestone for the developers. “To see the buildings finished, and people moving in very happy with what they’re finding, it’s a very good feeling,” said Greg Playford, a member of the Foundation’s Housing Action Committee, speaking to CBC News London. “It really makes all those volunteer hours getting this organized worth it when you see people housed and living a better life.” The final building is expected to open in 2027.

The upshot: To see the quick uptake of the affordable units, and for the project as a whole to reach the finish line, is a great result for the city’s affordable housing stock. It’s also a win for the London Community Foundation, which convened six non-profit developers into what it called the Vision SoHo Alliance back in 2020, pitching them on a first-of-its-kind in Canada arrangement, where the developers worked on one adaptive reuse project, sharing the old Victoria Hospital lands instead of each chasing their own site. Four of five buildings are now finished, and the affordable units filled up almost as fast as it opened. It’s probably a relatively unique development arrangement, but the demand for these units might spur other non-profit developers to pitch ambitious projects like this, especially as the rate of homebuilding starts ebbs and some of the ongoing rental projects wrap up.

Read more: CBC News London

Home County set to mark 50th anniversary

Get ready to rock and roll — err, folk and roll? Either way you want, you can do it down at Vic Park this weekend, as the Home County Music and Art Festival returns for its 50th anniversary year, boasting more than 20 Canadian and international artists over a two-day festival, headlined by the Rural Alberta Advantage and the Halluci Nation, plus Valdy — a folk and country singer who played Home County’s original 1974 debut. “This year’s lineup celebrates that legacy through artists with a strong connection to Home County’s history while also welcoming new voices to the Home County stages,” said artistic director Farrell Tremblay, speaking with CBC News London. “We have artists coming from various cities around the country who are participants in the UNESCO Creative Cities Network. I think that’s a really cool tie into London as a UNESCO City of Music, and I’m really looking forward to that,” he added in The London Free Press. There will be some new elements, among them a greater focus on children’s programming at the Gary Struckett Family Grove. Beyond that, it will be a lot like the Home County most people remember: craft vendors, food trucks and lots of good tunes. 

The upshot: For all the ups and downs Home County has endured over the last few years, we’re just happy to see them back in downtown London once again. (This writer still counts the 2012 headline show by Kathleen Edwards among his top 10 concerts of all time; the Bahamas show that year probably also cracks the top 15!) “Whether you’re attending for the first time or you’re attending for the 50th time, I think that there is going to be something for you,” said Tremblay. The festival officially has a new name now, too, with a new title sponsor in Donaldson Home Services; it’s now the Donaldson Home County Music & Art Festival. Hopefully, a new title sponsor will help the festival regain its financial footing. Donations always help too — Tremblay says cash donations, collected in the park, is the easiest way to support the festival. “They are so crucial to our capacity to produce this festival year after year. We’re really grateful for our funders and our sponsors. There’s a lot of really great programs in Canada to support the arts, which is really wonderful, but we really could not do it without our donors.”

Read more: London Free Press | CBC News London

Dispatch: July 24, 2026

A summary of recent business appointments and announcements, plus event listings for the upcoming week.

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