Ginger Desk ‘Investing Heavily in Tech’ Following Oversubscribed Seed Round

With a keen eye for gaps in the market, natural health expert Dr. Julie Durnan leveraged her 15 years of industry experience to found Ginger Desk after observing how practitioners grappled with admin tasks, especially when clinics closed due to the pandemic in 2020.

Ginger Desk sprouted from the understanding that practitioners’ job satisfaction was closely tied to supportive administrative structures, rather than factors like clinic decor or location. While witnessing the struggle of peers handling admin work—from managing bookings to replying emails post bedtime—Durnan envisioned a service that could shoulder these burdens and allow practitioners to focus on their core responsibilities.

Her startup’s secret sauce is a team of virtual assistants, trained in the “Ginger Methodology” developed by Durnan from her years of successfully running clinics. This method emphasizes operational and organizational expertise, providing health practitioners with comprehensive administrative support.

The B.C. firm recently unveiled that it received $1.5 million in equity through an oversubscribed seed round led by Disruption Ventures that closed in April.

Elaine Kunda, founder of Disruption, believes that Ginger Desk is “solving a very real problem for practitioners.”

“[Durnan] has built a successful framework that is ripe for significant growth, starting with a proprietary tech platform that is pivotal for scaling the business,” the investor said. “We are thrilled to work alongside her to build something great.”

Analysts forecast the virtual healthcare sector to become US$300 billion industry before 2030.

“Our human-powered and tech-enabled approach is reinventing the front desks of health clinics all over North America,” CEO Durnan posits.

The entrepreneur says much of the seed funding will be directed toward technological development.

“We are investing heavily in tech over the next two years,” Durnan stated, “and are poised to become the go-to brand for all clinic administrative needs, globally.”

Since launching in 2020, Ginger Desk clinician survey results have shown reduced administrative tasks, improved practitioner job satisfaction, and increased clinic revenues, a according to data from the startup.