Janet Bannister

Janet is the Founder and General Partner of Staircase Ventures, which invests in Canada’s most promising early-stage technology companies. Staircase recognizes that founders are the bedrock upon which companies are built, and therefore provides unparalleled support to accelerate founders’ development and performance. Staircase Ventures is backed by leading institutional investors and successful entrepreneurs.  

Prior to launching Staircase Ventures, Janet was Managing Partner at Real Ventures, one of Canada’s largest and most active early-stage investors. Janet is also a graduate of the prestigious Kauffman Fellows program, a global network of the world’s top 1% of venture investors and innovation leaders.

In addition, Janet is very active in the Canadian tech ecosystem; she is the Co-Chair of C100 and on the Boards of the Ivey Business School and LEAP, a social venture accelerator.  She is a mentor at Creative Destruction Lab and advisor to One Eleven. In addition, Janet was Honorary Co-Chair of the Princess Margaret Ride to Conquer Cancer in 2023, the largest single fundraising event in Canada.

Janet has won numerous awards and recognition including Toronto Region Builder of the Year Award for 2023, Business Insider’s 2024 and 2023 “Best Women Early-Stage Investors”, Venture Capital Journal’s 2021 “Women of Influence in Private Markets”, Pitchbook’s 2021 “Female Founders & Investors to Know”, and American Bankers’ 2019 “Most Influential Women in Payments”.

In 2004, Janet launched Kijiji.ca and grew it to become one of the most visited websites in Canada. Subsequently, she led the Kijiji Global business, launching the website in new countries and accelerating growth in North America, Europe, and Asia.

Janet also spent four years at eBay in Silicon Valley where she helped transform eBay from a collectibles to a mainstream marketplace, growing the business 4-fold year-over-year for four years. She started her career as a Brand Manager at Procter & Gamble and then joined McKinsey & Co. where she was an Engagement Manager. She also founded and built a successful consulting business and was CEO at a venture-backed start-up.

Janet was a varsity long-distance runner at Western University, where she completed her business degree at Ivey, earning the Gold Medal. Post university, she switched to triathlons and two years later, became Canada’s national triathlon champion. She competed internationally on the national team for several years while working full time. Janet is married with a 19-year-old son.