W. John Bennett is Chairman of Bennett Church Hill Capital Inc. and a founder of MacKinnon, Bennett & Company. He has nearly four decades of successful investment and merchant banking experience, with a long record of building, investing in and supporting Canadian and international businesses.
John began his career with McLeod, Young, Weir Ltd., where he became Executive Vice-President and a member of the Executive Committee. Following the firm’s sale to the Bank of Nova Scotia in 1987, it became Scotia Capital Markets. Since then, John has been principally involved in direct investments, both on his own account and on behalf of associated investors, through Benvest Holdings Ltd. and Bennett Church Hill Capital Inc.
Through BCH and its related investment activities, John has been involved with a number of significant public and private businesses, including Colliers, New Look Vision Group and many other operating companies and investment holdings. He was Chairman of New Look Vision Group Inc. prior to its successful sale in 2021.
John has served on the boards of numerous public and private companies, as well as educational and charitable organizations. His past philanthropic and educational involvement includes the Canadian History Society, the University of St. Michael’s College and other philanthropic endeavours.
John holds an Honours BA and an LLB from the University of Toronto and is a member of the Law Society of Upper Canada.