As the world transitioned to remote work, Bobbie Racette found herself in the excellent position of running a business designed to help clients do just that.

Racette, the founder and chief executive of the Calgary-based startup Virtual Gurus, said the business she lost from clients struggling in the pandemic was more than made up by those suddenly in the market for affordable remote help. She said she’s tripled the size of her team and is on track to triple her revenue in 2021 to more than $6 million, as well.

“I didn’t predict the pandemic, but I knew that remote work was going to be a thing,” Racette said. “I knew people weren’t going to need an administrative person sitting in their office full time.”

Racette founded Virtual Gurus five years ago, after struggling to find quality remote freelance work herself when she was laid off from her job in the oil and gas industry. Inspired by the difficult time she had finding work as a queer Cree-Métis woman, the company matches freelancers working from home—most of whom are also from underrepresented communities—with clients looking for help with tasks ranging from bookkeeping to web design.

Racette is confident the demand for freelance remote help will continue after the pandemic, but she’s looking forward to returning to the company’s downtown office, hopefully in mid-July. When she’s there, she’ll get to finally meet all the new employees she’s hired.

Racette now has her eye on an expansion to the U.K. and a $12-million to $17-million Series A round. 

“We’re not slowing down. The amount of requests for services coming in is getting bigger and bigger,” she said. “I think we’re just getting started.”