Spring is pitch season in the region. Funding programs have deadlines, the regional rounds of the Défi OSEntreprendre are concluding, and many people who spent the winter on a business plan are now asked for "a short presentation" by a bank, a local fund or a prospective investor.
A pitch deck consists of ten or twelve slides. The format appears simple, yet it is often where strong projects appear weaker than they are.
Pitching was part of the business launch program our founder, Robert Scales, taught for four years at the CFP Calixa-Lavallée, until June 2025, and it is an underestimated skill. Knowing a business and presenting it in ten slides are two different abilities. This article presents the checklist we would use today for a Quebec startup, whether for a meeting at a Desjardins branch, at the MRC's economic development office, or with an angel investor in Gatineau or Montreal.
Who is the audience, and what does it look for?
The deck's emphasis changes depending on who is in the room, more than its structure.
- A bank or a credit union wants to know whether the loan can be repaid: cash flow, the founder's own contribution, guarantees.
- A local or regional fund, such as the FLI managed by an MRC, a SADC or Futurpreneur, wants to know whether the project is sound, whether the founder is the right person, and often what it means for jobs and the region.
- An investor wants to know how large the business could become and why it will succeed.
The same deck, with a different slide receiving the most time in each case. Identify that slide before the meeting.
What should each slide contain?
Y Combinator offers a clear guide on how to build a seed round pitch deck. It is written for technology startups raising capital, but the basic sequence suits almost any business: title, problem, solution, traction, differentiation, business model, market, team, and the ask. Its three design rules deserve particular attention: make it legible, keep it simple, make it obvious.
Here is how we would apply it for a Quebec startup.
Title slide
- Business name, one line stating what the business does, the founder's name, and contact information
- Location. In a regional pitch, being from the region is an advantage
Problem and solution
- The problem in one sentence a stranger would understand
- Who has that problem, specifically
- The solution, shown where possible: a photo of the product, a screenshot, the premises
Traction
- Every tangible result: pre-orders, a waiting list, a pilot season, letters of intent, a few paying customers
- If there are no results yet, state what has been tested and what was learned, without embellishment
Differentiation
- One slide: why you, why this, why now
- Name the competitors. Claiming to have none raises concerns
Business model and market
- How the business earns revenue, with an actual price
- The market, with sources (see below)
Team
- Who does what, and why they are the right people
- Advisors or mentors, if any
The ask
- How much, for what purpose, and what milestone it reaches
- The founder's own contribution, stated clearly. Funders in the region almost always ask
These nine sections can mostly be covered in one slide each. A deck of eighteen slides needs to be shortened.
Why does a bilingual pitch deck open more doors in Quebec?
Because funders and buyers work in different languages. This point is specific to our region. A startup in the Petite-Nation is located between Gatineau-Ottawa and Montreal. Provincial programs and most local funds operate in French. A federal program or a lender may operate in either language. An angel investor from Ottawa may be more comfortable in English, and a buyer in Toronto almost certainly will be.
We therefore recommend two versions of the deck: not one deck run through a translator, but two decks, each properly written, with the same figures and the same structure. The French version should sound like Quebec rather than like a manual. The English version should sound like a person rather than a translated form.
This requires more work. It also demonstrates to the audience that the business can sell in both markets, which for many local businesses is part of the plan in any case.
How should the local market be presented?
With genuine sources. The market slide is where the most unsupported figures appear: "The market is worth 2 billion dollars." Which market, and according to whom?
For a Quebec business, reliable sources are free:
- Statistics Canada census profiles, down to the municipality and the MRC
- The Institut de la statistique du Québec, for regional data
- The MRC and the regional tourism office, for visitor numbers and local economic data
- Industry associations for the sector
- The founder's own surveys and pre-sales, which carry more weight than many expect
Place the source in small text under every figure. One defensible market figure is worth more than three large figures that cannot be supported. Local data should come first. For a small business, the relevant question is rarely the size of the entire industry, but how many people within an hour's drive, or visiting the website, will actually buy.
Which figures must be known without notes?
The core financial figures. This is where pitches most often falter: someone asks "what is your break-even point?" and the founder turns to the spreadsheet.
A founder should be able to state, without notes:
- The price charged and the cost of delivery
- Monthly fixed costs
- The number of monthly sales needed to break even
- The amount requested and exactly how it will be used
- When the business expects to become profitable, and on what that depends
Precision to the dollar is not required. What is required is enough command of the figures to discuss them with confidence. If that is not yet possible, the business plan behind the deck is not finished, and it should be completed before the meeting rather than after.
Practise aloud: with a friend, in front of a mirror, or using a phone's recorder. Time the presentation. Most people exceed the allotted time on their first attempts, and no one in the room will indicate that they have stopped listening.
What should be checked before sending the deck?
Export it to PDF. Review it on a phone, since someone will open it there. Include contact details on the last slide as well as the first. Name the file with the business name and the date, rather than "deck final v7."
Also provide a destination for follow-up. A simple landing page describing the business and how to reach it adds more credibility than any slide.
The most effective decks we have seen were almost plain: clear, concise and candid about what remains to be done. That is usually what secures a second meeting.