Combining Capital and Operational Expertise to Build Stronger Businesses
Smart Capital
Real Partnership
Better Operations
Founded in 2025, Hayeward Ventures Ltd. is a friends and family investment company based in Victoria, British Columbia. We invest in Vancouver Island businesses with strong potential that need support improving operations and execution.
Our focus is simple: we help good businesses run better. Beyond providing capital, we bring hands-on experience in building, scaling, and strengthening operations to create lasting value for owners, employees, and communities.
Vancouver Island is home to a diverse and resilient business community, from family-run companies to emerging operators driving local innovation. We believe that investing in these businesses and helping them execute more effectively strengthens not only the companies themselves but also the broader communities they support.
Our Company Ethos
At Hayeward Ventures, we believe meaningful growth starts with doing things the right way. Our approach to investing is grounded in relationships, discipline, and a commitment to building stronger businesses that make a difference on Vancouver Island.
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We take ownership, move fast, and deliver. Effort and execution separate ideas from impact.
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We listen to what the numbers say. Data drives our decisions, our strategy, and our growth.
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Every action should make life better for our customers. If it doesn’t create value, we don’t do it.
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Honesty builds trust. We say what we see, even when it’s hard, because truth moves us forward.
Built on Experience
Robert Hayes | Founder & General Partner
Robert is an entrepreneur, operator, and investor with a proven track record of turning good businesses into efficient, high-performing organizations. As Co-Founder and CEO of Athena, he led the company from a startup to a global powerhouse with more than 3,000 employees across the Philippines, Kenya, and Guatemala. In just three years, Athena grew from $5 million to over $100 million in annual recurring revenue.
Before Athena, Robert served as Chief Operating Officer at TaskUs, where he led Operations, Workforce Management, Data Science, and Project Management teams. He built award-winning facilities and helped transform the company into a global outsourcing leader with more than 20,000 employees across six countries. Robert played a key role in the company’s major growth milestones while shaping a culture grounded in operational excellence and people-first leadership.
Robert serves on the boards of Macaloney’s Distillery, an award-winning craft whisky distillery in Victoria, BC, and Island Heights Construction Ltd. in Nanaimo. His investment philosophy focuses on operational discipline, performance management, and bringing structure to every business he partners with.
At Hayeward Ventures Ltd., Robert applies this same operational lens to investing, helping businesses improve performance, strengthen systems, and execute with precision to achieve sustainable results.
Our Investments
Our first investment, Macaloney Distillers, is an award-winning craft whisky distillery in Victoria, BC. We partnered with the company to support operational growth and long-term sustainability as it continues to bring world-class, proudly Canadian whisky that rivals global brands
