A group of Canadian alumni from the University of the Fraser Valley (UFV) is launching a homegrown alternative to U.S.-dominated social media platforms. The new platform, Northsocial.ca, is owned by Zynim Media Inc., a Chilliwack-based company co-founded by CEO and former UFV student Colin Schmidt (Computer Information Systems). The team includes several UFV alumni: Kalvin Morrow, founder, COO (Civil and Architectural Drafting and Design); Lindsay Comeau, founder and creative director (Fine Arts); and Jill Santos, partner, community engagement (CIS) – alongside Brenda Currie, founder, head of marketing. 

“Our goal with Northsocial.ca is to make sure Canadians have a place to be Canadian and communicate without the influence of big-tech algorithms that are out of our control,” Colin says. “We like to say we aren’t anti anything, we’re just pro-Canada, and we want to create a space for conversations that are important to our country.” 

The Northsocial.ca website is live, with an app coming soon. The platform is built with Canadian technology, and private data is stored on Canadian servers. It includes familiar social media features such as commenting, following, and reactions. 

“Social media platforms look simple to the user, but they’re anything but,” Colin says. “One user may have 100 posts in their feed, and one of those posts may have a million comments or likes. That creates unique technical obstacles our team has had to overcome.” 

The biggest challenge, he adds, has been building the community. 

“Despite all the enthusiasm for the idea, it’s not easy for someone to come onto a platform that’s mostly empty at the start and not have their friends and family there,” Colin says. “We knew there would be a lack of content early on because most people are lurkers, and it’s a very small percentage who actually post on social media.” 

He likens the growth process to a snowball gaining momentum downhill. After eight months with only a few hundred users, Northsocial.ca has seen its user base grow tenfold in the past six weeks. 

“We’re at the point now where our tech is solid and we can focus on growing the user base,” Colin says. That growth happens largely through word of mouth, with the team engaging potential users across platforms and in the community. “We’re hitting the virtual road on all the big-tech platforms, spreading the word. But we’re also hanging posters in coffee shops. However we can engage users, it is about getting that snowball going, because that will allow us to unlock so much more.” 

Colin is proud of Northsocial.ca’s UFV roots. “There’s only one member of our founding team who isn’t from UFV. We’re all very pleased to be UFV alumni.”  

Zynim Inc. (one of Zynim Media Inc’s parent companies) has maintained a close relationship with the university for years, including a representative on the School of Computing advisory board and hiring co-op students for at least 15 years. Many students have stayed beyond their co-op terms, moving to part-time work during their studies before joining full-time after graduation. 

“What we appreciate is that UFV’s program is broader in a good way, including business courses, for example, than some other schools in the region,” Colin says. “UFV students do well on our corporate entrance testing and outperform graduates from other schools in the first year of their careers. They come to us knowing how to code, but they also have exposure to other concepts that help them interact with our clients.” 

UFV alumni will continue to play key roles as Northsocial.ca expands. The team plans to add groups, a built-in marketplace, and gaming features. 

“We haven’t raised a lot of capital, so it’s been mostly powered by sweat equity,” Colin says. “We know this is a journey and a commitment, and it takes perseverance. It takes passion and you must believe in it. The amount of enthusiasm within our team right now is definitely 10 out of 10.”