Founder & Operator - Kimberfire (Acquired)
Making AI work for your business.
I help you find where AI actually fits, and then I build it. My goal is to take the draining work off your plate and your team's, so the team you have can do the work of a much larger one.
Founder of Kimberfire - the custom jewellery company I spent 13 years building by replacing the showroom with software I designed and shipped. Before that, an Ivey MBA and investment banking.
A 10-minute assessment I built: which task to fix first, or whether AI fits at all. Results on the spot.
Before making AI work for anyone else's business, I ran my own. So I judge every build the way an owner has to - what it costs, what it saves, and whether it pays for itself.
A few beliefs that shape the work.
Start with the problem, not the tool
Most people start by asking “where can we use AI?” My preference is to ask “what's draining your team?” instead. That's usually where the good conversations start.
Systems over demos
Almost anything looks good in a demo, because a demo only has to work once, on the easy case. A system has to handle the messy ones every day - the missing detail, the week someone's away. That's the hard part, and it's the part that matters.
It should give you time back
AI should take work off your plate, not add one more thing to manage. If it isn't making the day lighter, it isn't working.
It earns its keep where the answer can be checked
Intake, quoting, purchase orders, filings, reconciliations, the bookkeeping you send out. If the work repeats and someone can check the result, AI has gotten good at it. If the call takes judgment, in my opinion a person should still make it.
What this costs.
Five stages, each a fixed price you see before it starts, and you can stop after any one of them. Not ready to build? A working session is 90 minutes of planning or education on what AI means for your business, at a flat price per session. Just want it written down? Documentation is its own engagement - how the business runs, written up one workflow at a time, whether or not anything ever gets automated.
If it won't pay for itself inside a year, I'll tell you not to build it.
See the numbers
Jonathan Goldberg - Toronto, Canada
Thirteen years building one company, from concept to acquisition.
Kimberfire is the custom jewellery company I built from the ground up. The product mattered, of course, but the real advantage was the system behind it: a virtual consultation process that let a small team serve thousands of clients across Canada with the polish of a much larger operation. That system is a large part of what the buyer was buying. Now I help other businesses build theirs.
I designed that system and the software behind it, and ran its development for 10 years. Alongside it I looked after the brand, the supply chain, and Kimberfire's CAD/CAM production (computer-aided design and manufacturing, from sketch to finished piece). I also ran the business day to day, finances and team included. Since the acquisition, I've continued to advise Kimberfire on its technology.
I came to Kimberfire from the business side. After an MBA at Ivey, I spent several years in investment banking at one of the big Canadian banks, building the models behind financings and M&A and seeing the deals through. That's still how I look at a business - including whether an AI build is worth the money. Before banking, I worked in the diamond trade, in business development and manufacturing across Canada, the Middle East, and Belgium.
If you're wondering where AI actually fits in your business, that's my favourite kind of conversation.
Banker, then builder.
- 2026-Present
AI Consultant & Builder
Small and Mid-Sized Business
Helping small and mid-sized businesses across Canada work out where AI fits, then building it: practical systems that take draining work off the people who run a business, so the team it already has can do the work of a much larger one. Built the assessment on this site, where every build starts. It scores a business's own workflows and makes the case for the one to fix first.
Applied AI
- 2026-Present
Advisor
Kimberfire
Advising on technology, strategy, and operations since the acquisition.
Leadership
- 2013-2025
Founder, President & CEO
Kimberfire
Built the business from concept to acquisition. Designed the system (a virtual consultation process that paired personalized service with e-commerce efficiency) and the software behind it, then ran its development for 10 years. Also owned the brand, digital presence, supplier relationships, and the CAD/CAM production pipeline.
Entrepreneurship
- 2021-2023
Mentor
BHive & Toronto Business Development Centre
Mentor in the Start-Up Visa Program and Start-Up Incubator.
Mentorship
- 2009-2012
Associate, Investment Banking
National Bank Financial
Financings and M&A for issuers in the mining, agriculture, and diversified sectors. Worked deals from origination through execution, and built the financial models behind them.
Finance
- 2008-2009
MBA
Ivey Business School, Western University
Full-time MBA. The bridge from the diamond trade to investment banking.
Education
- 2006-2008
Business Development Manager
Northam Diamond Inc.
Business development and manufacturing roles in Canada, the Middle East, and Belgium.
International Business
Featured & quoted.
20+ publications across business, lifestyle, and Canadian press.