Life Sciences BC Selects 2027 Investor Readiness Program Cohort to Support Growth of Emerging Life Sciences Companies
Life Sciences BC (LSBC) has announced the companies selected to participate in its 2027 Investor Readiness Program (IRP), a six-month initiative designed to help emerging British Columbia life sciences ventures strengthen their investment strategies, prepare for capital raising and accelerate company growth.
The program brings together promising small and midsize enterprises (SMEs) from across the province with experienced Entrepreneurs-in-Residence (EIRs), creating an environment in which founders and executives can receive targeted guidance from leaders with backgrounds in venture capital, commercialization, company building and executive management.
The 2027 cohort includes companies working across a range of life sciences areas, reflecting the breadth of innovation emerging from British Columbia’s biotechnology and healthcare ecosystem. The selected organizations include Chondros Bio, Core Motion Inc., ImmunoWell Labs, Miha Biotech, NellaDerm Therapeutics, Novapars Discovery Inc., NTP R&D Services Ltd., Resilience Biosciences Inc. and Total Life. In addition, a stealth biotech company has also been selected to participate in the program.
By pairing each participating company with an experienced mentor, the Investor Readiness Program is intended to help entrepreneurs address some of the challenges that commonly arise as early-stage life sciences companies transition from scientific development toward commercialization and investment.
Building Investor Readiness for Life Sciences Ventures
Raising capital is an important milestone for emerging life sciences companies, particularly those developing therapeutics, medical technologies, diagnostics and other innovations that may require substantial investment before reaching the market.
Scientific progress alone does not necessarily translate into investment readiness. Companies must also be able to communicate their commercial opportunity, define their business model, establish a compelling investment thesis and demonstrate how additional capital will support measurable milestones.
The LSBC Investor Readiness Program is designed to address these needs through customized mentorship and strategic development.
Participants work directly with Entrepreneurs-in-Residence who bring experience from the investment community and the life sciences industry. Through the six-month program, founders can receive guidance on areas such as fundraising strategy, business development, commercialization planning, company positioning and investor engagement.
The program also provides an opportunity for participating companies to build relationships across British Columbia’s broader life sciences ecosystem.
2027 Cohort and Mentor Pairings
The selected companies have been paired with mentors whose backgrounds and experience are intended to complement each organization’s development objectives.
Chondros Bio has been paired with Malcolm Kendall, Founding Partner at CDG Ventures. Chondros Bio is developing OsteoChon and is working toward advancing the program from laboratory development toward clinical testing.
Core Motion Inc. will work with Geof Auchinleck, CEO of Claris Healthcare. The pairing will provide the company with access to executive and commercialization experience as it advances its business objectives.
ImmunoWell Labs has been matched with Jason Roberston, Co-Founder and CEO of Nimbus Synergies Inc. The mentorship will support the company’s efforts to strengthen its strategic and investment positioning.
Miha Biotech will work with Norma Sebestyen, Consultant and Life Sciences Executive, bringing additional industry and leadership experience to the company’s participation in the program.
The stealth biotech company selected for the cohort has been paired with Nancy Harrison, Venture Partner at Amplitude Ventures. The confidential nature of the company allows it to participate in the investor-readiness process while maintaining its current stealth position.
NellaDerm Therapeutics has been paired with Paul Brennan, Chief Corporate Development Officer at Eupraxia. The company is focused on developing approaches for inflammatory skin diseases and will use the program to strengthen its fundraising strategy and broader company development.
Novapars Discovery Inc. will work with Allison Gaw, Partner at Amplitude Ventures. The pairing connects the company with venture investment experience as it advances its development plans.
NTP R&D Services Ltd. has been matched with Lu Han, Partner at Lumira Ventures, bringing a venture capital perspective to the company’s participation.
Resilience Biosciences Inc. will work with Anne Stevens, a Life Sciences Executive. The company is developing non-opioid therapeutics intended to address biological barriers associated with recovery from opioid use disorder.
Finally, Total Life has been paired with Brenda Irwin, Managing Partner at Relentless Venture Fund and an Entrepreneur-in-Residence for the program.
The diversity of mentor backgrounds reflects the broad range of capabilities required to successfully advance life sciences companies, from scientific development and commercialization to corporate development, fundraising and venture capital.
Six Months of Personalized Support
The Investor Readiness Program will run from October through March and provide participants with a structured six-month development experience.
Throughout the program, companies will receive personalized coaching designed around their individual business objectives. Participants will also engage in strategic goal-setting exercises and tailored educational sessions intended to address the specific challenges associated with investment preparation.
Rather than applying a single framework to every participating company, the program is structured to provide customized guidance. This is particularly relevant in life sciences, where development timelines, regulatory requirements, capital needs and commercialization strategies can vary substantially between companies.
A therapeutics company preparing for clinical development, for example, may have different financing requirements and investor priorities than a healthcare technology company approaching commercialization.
The mentorship component gives founders an opportunity to work directly with experienced industry and investment professionals as they refine their strategies and prepare to communicate their value proposition to prospective investors.
The program will conclude with a final pitch event, where participating companies will present their businesses to investors and key stakeholders from British Columbia’s life sciences community.
This final event provides companies with an opportunity to demonstrate the progress achieved during the program while establishing connections with potential investors, partners and other members of the sector.
Resilience Biosciences Focuses on Non-Opioid Therapeutics
For Resilience Biosciences, participation in the program represents an opportunity to sharpen the company’s investment and development strategy as it advances its work in non-opioid therapeutics.
Lily Aleksandrova, Product Development & Compliance Director at Resilience Biosciences, said the program offers the type of support that early-stage life sciences companies need when moving from scientific development toward broader impact.
“I’m excited to be part of Life Sciences BC’s Investor Readiness Program because it provides exactly the kind of bridge early-stage life science companies need: focused mentorship, investor perspective, and a clearer path from strong science to real-world impact,” Aleksandrova said.
“For Resilience Biosciences, this is an important opportunity to sharpen our strategy as we advance non-opioid therapeutics for the biological barriers to recovery from opioid use disorder,” she added.
The company’s participation illustrates how the IRP can support ventures working in areas with significant healthcare needs while helping them develop the business and investment strategies necessary to advance their technologies.
Total Life Targets Mental Health and Longevity Care
Total Life is another company entering the program with a focus on an important and growing healthcare need. The company aims to provide timely mental health support and longevity care to older adults globally.
Neelam Brar, CEO of Total Life, said the company is looking forward to using the support and resources available through the program to accelerate its mission.
“We are delighted to have the support of Life Sciences BC to help us accelerate our mission of to provide timely mental health support and longevity care to older adults globally,” Brar said.
The company’s participation highlights the broad scope of the Investor Readiness Program, which extends beyond traditional drug development to include emerging healthcare and life sciences businesses addressing evolving patient and population needs.
Mentorship as a Driver of Company Development
For mentors participating in the program, the IRP provides an opportunity to work closely with founders and help companies navigate the complex process of building investment-ready organizations.
Brenda Irwin, Entrepreneur-in-Residence and Managing Partner at Relentless Venture Fund, said she particularly values the opportunity to work directly with ambitious founders.
“I love the Investor Readiness Program because I get to roll up my sleeves with ambitious founders tackling important problems,” Irwin said. “This year’s 1:1 match is particularly close to my heart: an entrepreneur working to improve mental health in older adults. I can’t wait to get started. And of course, to share my infamous VC101 content with all the participants!”
The one-to-one mentor structure is intended to create a more focused relationship between company leaders and experienced advisors. This can allow participants to address specific business challenges rather than relying solely on generalized educational content.
For emerging companies, access to experienced investors and executives can be particularly valuable as they prepare for fundraising discussions, refine their business narratives and evaluate their next development milestones.
NellaDerm Seeks to Advance Inflammatory Skin Disease Treatment
NellaDerm Therapeutics is entering the program with a goal of advancing its approach to inflammatory skin diseases and improving treatment beyond trial-and-error approaches.
Sajjad Janfaza, CEO of NellaDerm Therapeutics, said the company expects the program’s mentorship and industry connections to contribute to its fundraising and development efforts.
“We’re excited to join Life Sciences BC’s Investor Readiness Program as we work to move treatment for inflammatory skin diseases beyond trial and error,” Janfaza said. “The program’s mentorship and industry connections will help us strengthen our fundraising approach and advance NellaDerm’s vision.”
The company’s participation underscores the importance of investor preparation for emerging therapeutic companies, which often need to communicate both their scientific rationale and the potential commercial opportunity to prospective investors.
Chondros Bio Prepares for Clinical Development
Chondros Bio is also entering a significant development stage. The company is working to advance OsteoChon from laboratory research toward clinical development.
Bob Mighell, Founder and CEO of Chondros Bio, said the IRP comes at an important point in the company’s trajectory.
“Chondros Bio is at an exciting inflection point as we move OsteoChon from the lab toward the clinic,” Mighell said. “The Investor Readiness Program gives us the coaching, investor access and B.C. community support to raise the capital we need to get there.”
The transition from laboratory development to clinical testing is a major milestone for a life sciences company and can require substantial financial resources. Investor preparation can therefore play an important role in helping companies communicate their development plans and financing requirements.
Supporting British Columbia’s Life Sciences Ecosystem
The Investor Readiness Program forms part of LSBC’s broader efforts to strengthen British Columbia’s life sciences ecosystem by supporting emerging companies and connecting them with experienced industry and investment leaders.
The program’s focus on capital attraction is particularly important for small and midsize enterprises, which often need external investment to advance research, reach clinical milestones, build teams and prepare technologies for commercialization.
By bringing founders and experienced mentors together over an extended period, the IRP creates a structured environment for companies to develop their investment strategies while also strengthening relationships within the provincial life sciences community.
The program is supported in part by funding from the National Research Council of Canada Industrial Research Assistance Program (NRC IRAP), providing additional support for the initiative.
The 2027 Investor Readiness Program brings together companies operating across a range of life sciences and healthcare fields, from therapeutics and biotechnology to mental health and other emerging healthcare solutions.
Over the six-month program, each participating company will work with its assigned Entrepreneur-in-Residence to establish strategic goals, strengthen its investment proposition and prepare for conversations with investors and other stakeholders.
The final pitch event in March will provide the cohort with an opportunity to showcase its progress and connect with members of British Columbia’s investment and life sciences community.
For the participating companies, the program represents more than a fundraising exercise. It offers an opportunity to strengthen the foundations needed for long-term growth, including business strategy, commercialization planning, leadership development and investor communication.
As British Columbia’s life sciences sector continues to produce emerging companies seeking to translate scientific innovation into products and services, programs such as the IRP can help bridge the gap between promising technology and the capital, expertise and relationships required to advance it.
With nine publicly identified companies and one stealth biotech venture selected for the 2027 cohort, LSBC is positioning the latest Investor Readiness Program to support another group of emerging innovators as they prepare for their next stages of growth and investment.
About Life Sciences BC
Life Sciences BC (LSBC) is a not-for-profit sector association dedicated to advancing British Columbia’s life sciences ecosystem. LSBC represents more than 280 members across industry, academia, government, service providers, and associated organizations. Strengthening the sector, LSBC fosters collaboration, facilitates partnerships and investment, and develops talent. LSBC promotes and brings national and international visibility to the sector through various initiatives. Through this work, LSBC helps create opportunities for innovation, economic growth, and solutions that can improve health outcomes and patients’ lives.