Meet the Quindio Gold Team

Michael Birch is an entrepreneur originally from Garden Hill First Nation, a remote, fly-in community in Northern Manitoba, who now resides with his wife and children in Winnipeg, Manitoba. Michael got his start operating the Garden Hill Convenience Store in his home community of Garden Hill, MB. Starting from nothing at only 16 years-old, Michael recently sold his operations to Garden Hill First Nation after over 25 years of ownership.

After moving to Winnipeg, Michael began the Aboriginal Beverage Company (ABC), which producedFirst Nations Cola. ABC operated for several years until stiff competit ion from the major players in the industry, Pepsi-co and Coca-Cola, caused ABC to cease operations. 

This business won Michael the first ever Asper School of Business 

Aboriginal Entrepreneur of the Year Award in 2002.

Michael was also behind the First Nations Buying Group of Canada, a company which sought to negotiate bulk pricing for all of Manitoba’s and Canada’s First Nations from many major corporations throughout Canada, including, MTS, Grand & Toy, and Xerox. Michael wound up the Buying Group’s operations to concentrate solely on MBE. M.B. ENTERPRISES Michael was the Owner and President of M.B. Enterprises (MBE). MBE is a one-of-a kind facility management company dedicated to developing new businesses and economic opportunities on Manitoba First Nations. Instead of providing fee-for-service, MBE partners with First Nation governments to create or enhance on-reserve business while stimulating employment and offering specialized training and skills development. MBE offers more than management consulting, it also helps First Nations revitalize their communities with new infrastructure and sustainable business practices.

First, MBE implements profitable turn-key operations on-reserve and then trains First Nation members to maintain the business going forward. Each community realizes an immediate boost in cash flow while benefitting from the long-term skills development that MBE provides.

After a 3-5-year term, MBE withdraws from the community leaving the First Nation with not only a successful business, but the skills to properly manage it for years to come. MBE has worked, or is working with the following Manitoba First Nations:

Cross Lake First Nation (Pimicikamak Cree Nation)

God’s Lake First Nation

Sandy Bay Ojibway First Nation

 Ebb & Flow First Nation

 Roseau River First Nation

Dakota Tipi First Nation

Valley River First Nation

Tadoule Lake First Natio

ICMD

Michael is the co-founder of IcMD.ca. ICMD provides access to free video calling app that puts you directly in touch with a nurse or doctor. ICMD allows indigenous people to get approved for a free medical cannabis prescription and have that product delivered directly to their door. ICMD is partnered with over twenty-five Health Canada licenced producers to fill orders. ICMD has seen many groups and people try to take advantage of our people with regard to economic opportunites.

ICMD Gives Back is our commitment to returning 5%-10% of all IcMD GROSS profits back to eachcommunity it comes from.  ICMD has seen many groups and people try to take advantage or our people’s economic opportunities. ICMD Gives Back is our commitment to returning 5 – 10% of all gross profits back to each community it comes from.

DIRECTION NORTH

After using 5-ton trucks for the 2015/16 and 2016/17 winter road seasons, Michael expanded the operations, offering tractor-trailer service to Garden Hill for the 2017/2018 winter road season. Michael’s vision for this new, larger version of Direction North is to build a first of its kind in Manitoba. A 100% Indigenous owned and operated company. Manitoba’s winter roads have proven very lucrative for the trucking companies that haul goods, but none of the major players are owned and operated by the people who receive the goods shipped on the winter roads.

At the beginning of the winter road season in late 2017, with Michael’s brother Richard as the leaddriver, Direction North began hauling goods to Garden Hill with one truck and one reefer box. By the end of the season in spring 2018, Michael had tripled the size of his fleet and diversified the equipment on hand to deliver a greater variety of goods. 

NORTHERN LIGHTS PETROLEUM

In 2023, Michael was approached by Northern Lights Petroleum, an indigenous-owned fuel supply company which operates from coast to coast. They offer competitive pricing and have the ability to transport fuel on the winter roads, to work with them on getting new customers in Manitoba, Saskatchewan and Northwestern Ontario.Golden Rapture Mining Corporation In 2022, Michael became a Director of the Golden Rapture Mining Corporation. Michael was brought on as a Director because of his vast knowledge of indigenous issues. Golden Rapture is located near Rainy River, Ontario, and its prospectus recently became available..