His life in Canada as a first-generation immigrant has been the epitome of consistent service. He has ceaselessly strived to be a social entrepreneur who serves his clients, his community and Canada – his adopted country. His business and personal motto is ‘People before Profit’. The single-minded pursuit of this motto has led to consistent success. In fact, he has inspired over 300 friends to immigrate to Canada.
Zealously giving back
A dedicated professional approach to his core business and to his clients over the last decade-and-a-half has ensured that his ICC Immigration is one of Canada’s leading immigration consulting agencies. It has helped over 10,000 immigrants settle in Canada and is now focused on business and corporate immigration.
Immigration consulting is a business based on trust. People who desire to immigrate depend upon the consultant to give shape to their dreams and to build their future in a new country. Their first contact is the immigration consultant, who creates the right impression with the service they provide, which creates a lasting positive impression on the immigrant. Ripudaman has built an awesome reputation as an immigrant consultant, a reputation based on trust.
A keen proponent of giving back to the community, Ripudaman has been actively engaged with the Conservative Party of Canada and the Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario and was the Conservative Party of Canada’s candidate for Brampton North. He explains his commitment to the Conservative Party both federally and provincially, “Conservative values are at the core of all that is good for nation building. These values encompass family values, less government, better governance, free market economy, fiscal prudence and putting nation before self. These values when turned to policies lead to glory.”
In 2021, he was elected the president of the Indo-Canada Chamber of Commerce (ICCC). In a relatively short span of his tenure, Ripudaman has brought back accountability and governance to one of the oldest business organisations of the Indian diaspora in Canada. At the ICCC, he has handled different portfolios including sponsorship and membership, and was instrumental in organising major back-to-back programmes at the Chamber engaging decision-makers from the federal, provincial and city levels.
With the ICCC since 2012, and being on the board since 2020, Ripudaman has a clear vision and focus of his aim for the 44-year-old institution that has come to reflect the hopes and aspirations of the Indo-Canadian business community. “Our Chamber has to remain relevant to the ever-changing needs of the Indo-Canadian business community. I am committed to staying focused on serving the needs of the ICCC’s members, stakeholders and sponsors.”
People before profit
Ripudaman takes pride in building a promising career and establishing his name in Canada, far away from home. He immigrated to Canada in 2003 from India but overwhelmed by the initial hardship, he returned briefly to India, before returning in 2005.
As with most immigrants, he began with a survival job at the Canadian Tire before launching his own business – immigration consulting in 2007. He teamed up with Manu Datta, his friend, philosopher and guide, who has stood by him throughout his entrepreneurial journey.
Since then, Ripudaman has never looked back and ensured an upward trajectory in his business. His professionalism and result-oriented approach to his business has ensured that success has followed him in all his subsequent entrepreneurial ventures which include media and entertainment, hospitality, fashion services and real-estate development.
Ripudaman’s entrepreneurial zeal led him to launch a chain of three restaurants that ran for six years. In 2014, inspired to serve his community, he started Radio Dhun, Ontario’s first radio station to feature multilingual and multicultural shows. Recently, he became the sixth South Asian to acquire a radio frequency in Canada.
In 2013, he acquired The International Fashion Festival Toronto to promote and unify the traditional and modern aspects of the fashion, lifestyle and entertainment industry of South Asia. He is focused on promoting Indian and other South Asian designers.
Humble origins
Ripudaman was born in Jalandhar, Punjab, in 1971, to Charanjeet Kaur and Mohan Singh. He is the youngest of four siblings – two brothers, Gurinder and Raghuvinder, and a sister, Bhupinder. His is a close-knit family and the siblings shared strong emotional bonds while growing up. “My carefree time with my siblings was probably the best period of my life,” he says, reminiscing his childhood.
His grandfather and father both were engineers. His grandfather was a renowned engineer and a supervisor at the Modi Sugar Mills in Ghaziabad, Uttar Pradesh. His father too was an engineer at the Modi Sugar Mills. His mother is a homemaker. His parents ensured that their children get a decent upbringing and secure future. The family briefly moved to Veraval, Gujarat, before finally settling down in Jalandhar.
Ripudaman’s maternal uncle was the first to settle in Canada in the 1960s. Later, he took his parents along with him. Ripudaman had a strong emotional bond with his maternal grandmother who was keen for Ripudaman to settle in Canada with her. Alas, it was not to be during her lifetime. He immigrated to Canada only after she passed away in 2003, and the process took nearly a decade.
Education and career
He earned a B.Sc. degree in 1992 from Lyallpur Khalsa College, Jalandhar. During school, he was a quiet and shy child and didn’t have too many friends; things changed when he was in college when he made a lot of friends. “Those were some days! I was generally brooding over something while in school, it all bore fruit when I was in college. Then I decided to do something with my life,” he says.
Soon after his graduation, he started looking for jobs. He easily secured an opening at the Jalandhar branch of the Union Bank of India. But his interest lay elsewhere. He soon joined Brawn Pharmaceuticals Ltd., New Delhi, where he swiftly excelled. Through the guidance of his mentor, Vikram Sood, he was adjudged the best auditor and most knowledgeable trainee.
A year later, he grabbed an opening for a senior medical representative at Torrent Pharmaceuticals Ltd. where he worked for more than a decade before leaving for Canada. By the time Ripudaman decided for Canada, he already owned an independent business and a couple of agencies in India.
Remembering his early career days in India, he says, “The hardship and initial struggle that one has to put in to build a career stand in good stead forever. Struggle builds character; it helps in understanding failure and gives us strength to continue.” His experience in business also helped him when he immigrated to Canada. “My Indian venture was a training ground for me – it led to subsequent success in Canada.”
Quintessential Punjabi
Ripudaman characterises himself as a quintessential Punjabi. “Punjabiyat can never leave me: I still meet all my friends from back in college, I enjoy Indian and especially Bollywood music, I break into bhangra whenever I listen to any Punjabi beat, I eat Indian and especially Punjabi cuisine. ABCD: Any Body Can Dance is among my favourite movies because it has enterprise, entrepreneurship and dance in it.”
At 50, he still is single and awaits marriage, “It is common in this part of the world, so I don’t really bother. Things happen when they have to.” Ripudaman is an ardent and devoted follower of Sai Baba of Shirdi. “Baba gives me spiritual sustenance,” he says. He chants the Gayatri Mantra every night before going to bed. “It provides me with peace of mind, and encourages me to give back,” he says.