Rob Laidlaw

Entrepreneur, work-aholic, with a passion for automotive, powersports, and technology

Rob Laidlaw is the visionary behind VerticalScope. Rob founded TopHosts.Com, the founding company behind VerticalScope, in 1997 at the age of sixteen.

TopHosts.Com was launched in 1997 by Rob from his home in Regina, Saskatchewan. The site was built to serve the need of early adapters of online publishing who were seeking to get their web sites online. TopHosts.com became the defacto resource for small businesses and webmasters looking to outsource their hosting services. Today, it remains the authoritative portal for consumer and small business web hosting needs.

In 1999, TopHosts.com was re-named to VerticalScope Inc, and gained Jesse Rasch as a shareholder in the business. The new name, and a slick new loft office in downtown Toronto allowed the business to flourish. Under the guidance of Rob the company expanded internationally with the launch of UK.Tophosts.com, AU.Tophosts.com and CA.TopHosts.com, as well as vertically with the launches of MerchantSelect and MarketingFind.

In 2002, VerticalScope experienced the slow-down of growth in the technology field. Despite the healthy technology brands within the VerticalScope family, it was time to look outside of tech for new growth opportunities. As automotive enthusiasts, both Rob and Jesse recognized the rapidly growing aftermarket automotive sector. Despite overall economic weakness, the sport compact segment of the automotive market had been growing at a rate of greater than 100% per year! In July 2002, in what was one of the fastest magazine launches the industry had ever seen, Modified Magazine was born.

Following the successful launch of Modified Magazine the company brought forward additional titles including Modified Luxury & Exotics in 2004, and Modified Mustangs in 2005. These titles again represented some of the fastest growing sectors in the automotive industry, and displayed VerticalScope's flexibility and ability to capture new market opportunities.

In 2005 & 2006, VerticalScope began the acquisition of over 30 online forum communities across 3 verticals: sports, automotive and technology. The transactions represented VerticalScope's first major investment in online media since 2002, and brought together some of the most significant niche online communities and matched them with highly sought direct-traffic domain names. Today, VerticalScope is seen as a world-leader in consumer generated media through AutoForums.com and VerticalSports.com.

Rob currently serves as President & CEO of VerticalScope, focusing his energies on business development and marketing strategy. Rob is a passionate enthusiast whose personal interests in technology, cars, and sports are reflected in each of VerticalScope’s business groups. His successes at VerticalScope have been widely publicized, with stories appearing in leading publications such as The Toronto Star, The National Post, PC World, Canadian Business and The Washington Times.