How does a Phoenix business find clients and partners in Toronto?

Scott Cundill · 2026-10-15 · Phoenix

Through someone in Toronto who will put their name behind you. The flight is direct, the language is the same and the clocks are close, so getting there is easy. Getting noticed is not. Toronto is Canada's biggest business market, buyers there have plenty of local choice, and they listen hardest to people they already trust. A personal referral gets you the first meeting far faster than a cold email.

Don't Phoenix and Toronto already have a connection?

They do, mostly in winter. Every year the snowbirds arrive, Canadians who swap the snow for Arizona sunshine for a few months, and many of them come from Ontario. Canada is also one of Arizona's biggest trading partners. So there is real goodwill between the two places.

What there is not is a simple way to turn that goodwill into business. A Phoenix firm might sit next to a Toronto executive at a Scottsdale golf club all winter and never learn that their companies should be working together.

How much does the time difference matter?

Very little. Arizona keeps the same clock all year, so Toronto is three hours ahead of Phoenix in summer and two hours ahead in winter. A Phoenix morning overlaps with the Toronto working afternoon every day, and a nonstop flight takes about four and a half hours.

What do Toronto buyers look for?

Proof, patience and a name they recognise. Toronto business is polite and careful, and decisions often go through several people. A firm from outside Canada is usually asked who else in the city it has worked with. Being introduced by someone they already respect answers that question before it is asked.

And Toronto firms looking at Phoenix?

They find a market that grows fast and moves quickly once it trusts you. Greater Phoenix has been one of the fastest growing metro areas in the United States, with strong building, health care, technology and manufacturing sectors. A Toronto firm that arrives through a trusted local contact can skip months of searching for the right door.

Does the Bridge pass on business referrals?

Yes, but one at a time and only on purpose. You tell the host what kind of client, partner or supplier you are after in the other city. The host goes through the people they really know, and if one of them fits, sends a short note to the two of you explaining the match. Nobody counts referrals, nobody buys contact lists, and if the fit isn't there, no note goes out.

The Phoenix-Toronto Business Bridge

The Phoenix-Toronto Business Bridge was set up for exactly that kind of introduction. It belongs to My Most Trusted, where every new contact comes through a person who already knows both sides.

John Kloian holds the Phoenix end, from the Greater Phoenix Area. He is a partner at The Gap View, has spent more than twenty years leading technology and teams, and describes his approach as servant leadership, built on partnerships rather than transactions. The Toronto host seat is open.

Planning a move on Toronto, or on Phoenix? Write down the one company you would most like to work with there. Then ask around, quietly, to find who already knows someone inside it.