Economic Development Winnipeg
Winnipeg Economic Development & Tourism is Manitoba's publicly funded lead economic development and tourism agency, providing free business attraction, talent recruitment, and visitor promotion services to investors, employers, skilled workers, and tourists through integrated Choose Winnipeg, Invest, Live, and Tourism Winnipeg platforms.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2003
- HeadquartersWinnipeg, Canada
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What Economic Development Winnipeg does
Economic Development Winnipeg Inc. (EDW), operating under the brand Winnipeg Economic Development & Tourism, is the lead government economic development and tourism agency for Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. Founded in 2003, it is a publicly funded non-profit entity headquartered at Suite 810, One Lombard Place, Winnipeg, with 11–50 employees. The agency's mandate is to drive inclusive, sustainable growth by attracting business investment, talent, and visitors to the city, while strengthening Winnipeg's global competitiveness. It serves three primary beneficiary groups: businesses and investors evaluating Winnipeg as a location or expansion site; skilled workers and talent considering relocation; and visitors and tourists. EDW is led by President & CEO Dayna Spiring and operates under a governance board.
EDW's product surface is built around an integrated multi-platform architecture: the Choose Winnipeg umbrella platform anchors three specialized sub-brands — Invest Winnipeg (business attraction and site selection), Live in Winnipeg (talent attraction), and Tourism Winnipeg (visitor promotion) — supported by Talent Services, a Partnership Program for collaborative economic growth, and the Winnipeg Economic Digest as a thought-leadership publication. It actively promotes 10 key industry verticals including aerospace (Canada's 3rd largest sector), advanced manufacturing, ICT, agribusiness, life sciences, energy & environment, and tourism. The agency is positioned within Treaty One Territory with formal Indigenous partnerships.
EDW's business model is non-commercial: services are provided free of charge as a publicly funded economic development initiative. Funding flows from federal agencies, including a $2,979,298 grant from Prairies Economic Development Canada (June 2024) and a prior $689,814 grant from Western Economic Diversification Canada (August 2019), alongside likely municipal appropriations. Go-to-market is delivered through a combination of direct enterprise engagement (account management for investors/expanding firms) and digital self-service platforms targeting SMBs, individuals, and visitors. No proprietary technology, API, or app is offered; the technology layer is content/information delivery rather than software-as-a-service.
Economic Development Winnipeg firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Economic Development Winnipeg
- Legal name
- Winnipeg Economic Development & Tourism
- Website
- https://economicdevelopmentwinnipeg.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2003
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- Winnipeg Economic Development & Tourism is Manitoba's publicly funded lead economic development and tourism agency, providing free business attraction, talent recruitment, and visitor promotion services to investors, employers, skilled workers, and tourists through integrated Choose Winnipeg, Invest, Live, and Tourism Winnipeg platforms.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Economic Development Winnipeg industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Economic Development Services
- NAICS
- Administration of Economic Programs (9261), Administration of General Economic Programs (92611), Administration of General Economic Programs (926110), Administration of Urban Planning and Community and Rural Development (925120)
- SIC
- Services-Management Services (8741)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Economic Development & Business Licensing (Local) (BPAIACAN)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Economic Growth, Livelihoods & Private Sector Development (BPADAEAE), SME & Entrepreneurship Development (Trade-Linked) (BPADAMAE), Program & Project Implementation (TA Delivery) (BPADAEAA)
Keywords
Where Economic Development Winnipeg is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Winnipeg
- HQ country
- Canada
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
Economic Development Winnipeg business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Operations, Technology or R&D, Others
Distribution channels2 records
Marketing channels5 records
Economic Development Winnipeg product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Economic Development Winnipeg is a publicly funded government agency that attracts business investment, talent, and visitors to Winnipeg while promoting tourism. It delivers economic development services through an integrated platform comprising Invest Winnipeg (investment facilitation and site location), Live in Winnipeg (talent attraction), and Tourism Winnipeg (visitor promotion), all unified under the Choose Winnipeg umbrella. Its services include site selection support, talent recruitment assistance, partnership programs, and corporate publications such as the Winnipeg Economic Digest.
Product overview
Winnipeg Economic Development & Tourism operates as an integrated platform with multiple interconnected sub-brands and services. The core offering consists of Choose Winnipeg as the main umbrella platform, complemented by specialized sub-platforms: Live in Winnipeg (talent attraction), Invest Winnipeg (business investment), and Tourism Winnipeg (visitor promotion). Supporting services include Talent Services for workforce development and a Partnership Program for collaborative economic growth initiatives. The organization also publishes the Winnipeg Economic Digest as a thought leadership resource.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- Tourism Winnipeg: Visit Winnipeg tourism portal
- Live in Winnipeg
- Invest Winnipeg
Products and services
- Choose Winnipeg
Companies that use Economic Development Winnipeg
Customer profileSegments3 records
Ideal customer profiles2 records
Economic Development Winnipeg technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Economic Development Winnipeg partnerships and signals
Strategic signalScale indicators3 records
Recent moves5 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Economic Development Winnipeg competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Halifax Partnership: Halifax's public-private economic development organization attracting investment, talent, and immigrants to Atlantic Canada. Comparable hybrid funding model and a similar sized Canadian metro mandate.
- Montréal International: Montréal's economic development agency focused on attracting foreign investment, international organizations, and skilled talent. Closely mirrors EDW's investor- and talent-attraction remit within another major Canadian city.
- Toronto Global: Toronto's lead foreign direct investment and talent attraction agency. Directly comparable mandate — business investment attraction, site selection support, and talent pipeline development — at a larger scale in another Canadian metro.
- Vancouver Economic Commission: Municipal economic development agency for the City of Vancouver, with parallel mandates in business attraction, sector development, and inclusive economic strategy. Same municipal-government-affiliated model as EDW.
- Invest Alberta: Alberta's provincial investment attraction agency. Same core mandate of attracting business investment to a Canadian province, with comparable sectoral focus (energy, agriculture, aerospace, technology) and a similar public-sector funding model.
- Calgary Economic Development: Calgary's lead economic development agency pursuing investment attraction, talent strategy, and sector development. Closely comparable structure, mandate, and funding model — and a key competitor for Prairies-region capital flows.
- Edmonton Global: Edmonton metropolitan region's economic development corporation, focused on investment attraction, global trade, and talent in the Alberta capital. Directly comparable in scale, mandate, and competitive geography to Winnipeg in the Prairies.
- Ottawa Business Growth (Lead Economic Developer): Invest Ottawa / Ottawa Business Growth is the lead economic development agency for Canada's capital region, operating a similar talent attraction, business retention, and FDI mandate at municipal scale.
Broad incumbents
- Business Development Bank of Canada (BDC): Canada's federal development bank supporting entrepreneurs with financing, growth capital, and advisory. Broader mandate than EDW, but functions as a national-level counterpart for SME and growth-stage business support referenced in EDW's SME and entrepreneurship promotion work.
Others
- Canadian Manufacturers & Exporters (CME): National industry association representing Canadian manufacturers and exporters. Adjacent to EDW's advanced manufacturing and transportation/distribution sector priorities; not a direct competitor but a frequent policy and ecosystem partner.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat3 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
Economic Development Winnipeg social profiles
Digital presenceEconomic Development Winnipeg financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Economic Development Winnipeg leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles1 record
Economic Development Winnipeg funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds2 records
Investors2 records
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Economic Development Winnipeg M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Economic Development Winnipeg
What does Economic Development Winnipeg do?
Economic Development Winnipeg is a publicly funded government agency that attracts business investment, talent, and visitors to Winnipeg while promoting tourism. It delivers economic development services through an integrated platform comprising Invest Winnipeg (investment facilitation and site location), Live in Winnipeg (talent attraction), and Tourism Winnipeg (visitor promotion), all unified under the Choose Winnipeg umbrella. Its services include site selection support, talent recruitment assistance, partnership programs, and corporate publications such as the Winnipeg Economic Digest.
Is Economic Development Winnipeg a public or private company?
Economic Development Winnipeg is a private company. It is classified as state government owned and is currently operating.
When was Economic Development Winnipeg founded?
Economic Development Winnipeg was founded in 2003. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Economic Development Winnipeg based?
Economic Development Winnipeg is headquartered in Winnipeg, Canada, in the North America region.
Who are Economic Development Winnipeg's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Halifax Partnership, Montréal International, Toronto Global, Vancouver Economic Commission, Invest Alberta, Calgary Economic Development, Edmonton Global and Ottawa Business Growth (Lead Economic Developer). Business Development Bank of Canada (BDC) is listed as a broad incumbent. Canadian Manufacturers & Exporters (CME) is listed as an others.
Does Economic Development Winnipeg have an API?
No public API is recorded for Economic Development Winnipeg.
What industry is Economic Development Winnipeg in?
Economic Development Winnipeg's product category is Economic Development Services. Its primary akta.pro industry code is BPAIACAN, Economic Development & Business Licensing (Local), with a secondary code of BPADAEAE, Economic Growth, Livelihoods & Private Sector Development. Its NAICS code is 9261 and its SIC code is 8741.