Meet Our Founder
Melissa Sariffodeen is an award-winning entrepreneur — recognized as one of Canada's Top 40 Under 40 and RBC Entrepreneur of the Year — with nearly two decades of building, leading, and scaling organizations that create real economic and social impact.
As Co-Founder and CEO of Canada Learning Code, she transformed a grassroots idea into one of Canada's most recognized education organizations — raising over $50 million, scaling a national team, and creating over one million learning experiences across the country. And then she navigated its acquisition from the inside. She opened the data room, managed diligence, and guided her team through every step of the transition.
That experience gives her something most buyers don't have: she knows exactly what it feels like to be the seller.
Born and raised in London, Ontario to a blue-collar family, Melissa learned early the value of hard work, discipline, and community. She taught herself to code at 11, holds an HBA from the Ivey Business School and a Master's from the University of Toronto. She has traveled Canada and the US extensively — visiting hundreds of cities and towns, meeting business owners, operators, and community leaders along the way. That national perspective shapes how she thinks about the businesses she's looking to acquire and the communities they serve.
Now Melissa is focused on what's next — acquiring and operating one great business, and helping it grow stronger for the long term.
A Note to Owners
Even before high school, I knew I wanted to own a business one day (yearbook photo proof above!).
Since then, I've spent my career building organizations, leading teams, raising capital, and creating things that people and communities rely on. As Co-Founder and CEO of Canada Learning Code, I helped build one of Canada's leading education organizations — scaling a team of 55+, raising more than $50 million, and creating nearly one million learning experiences across the country. In late 2025, I led the organization to be acquired by a peer in the space supporting and guiding my team through that transition. I’m super proud of my work and impact. But as a nonprofit, the company was never something I could own.
That experience only deepened my belief in the importance of ownership — not just as a financial concept, but as a form of responsibility, commitment, and long-term stewardship.
I know how much effort, resilience, and heart it takes to build something meaningful. I also know that deciding what happens next is one of the most important and personal decisions an owner will ever make.
At this stage of my life and career, I can think of nothing more meaningful than acquiring an enduring business and stewarding what's already great — preserving what makes it special, supporting the people behind it, and helping shape its next chapter.
If you're beginning to think about the future of your business, it would be a privilege to chat with you and explore if I can be part of that transition.
A lifetime of building towards this chapter. And, a track record built over decades of leadership.
