#264: W. Brett Wilson (Prairie Merchant) - FirstEnergy ~1992 & Dragons' Den Lessons
Thu Feb 05 2026
Greetings, and welcome back to the podcast.
This episode, we are joined by W.Brett Wilson - CEO & Chairman of Prairie Merchant Corp - a private merchant bank which finances key personal investments in five major areas - energy, agriculture, real estate, entertainment and sport.
Prior to founding Prairie Merchant Corp, W.Brett Wilson co-founded investment banking advisory firm, Wilson Mackie & Co., in 1991, and in 1993, co-founded FirstEnergy Capital Corp. in Calgary, Alberta with Rick Grafton, Jim Davidson, and N. Murray Edwards.
W.Brett Wilson was a season 3, 4 & 5 panelist on CBC Television's Dragons' Den.
He has written regularly on entrepreneurship for publications including Oilweek, Alberta Venture and the National Post, and in 2012, he published the book titled Redefining Success: Still Making Mistakes.
His sports interests include ownership in the Nashville Predators of the National Hockey League.
W. Brett Wilson has supported hundreds of charities including, The Southern Alberta Institute of Urology, the David Foster Foundation, Right to Play & the Wilson Centre for Domestic Abuse Studies at the Calgary Counseling Centre.
W. Brett Wilson obtained a Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering from the University of Saskatchewan and a Masters of Business Administration degree from the University of Calgary.
In 2010, W. Brett Wilson received an Honorary Doctorate of Laws from Royal Roads University. In 2011, he was awarded the Order of Canada and subsequently received the Saskatchewan Order of Merit in 2012.
Among other things, we learned about FirstEnergy ~1992 & Dragons' Den Lessons.
Enjoy.
Thank you to our sponsors.
Without their support this episode would not be possible:
Connate Water Solutions
ATB Capital Markets
Ambyint
JSG
Bidell Gas Compression
Bunch Projects
Support the show
More
Greetings, and welcome back to the podcast. This episode, we are joined by W.Brett Wilson - CEO & Chairman of Prairie Merchant Corp - a private merchant bank which finances key personal investments in five major areas - energy, agriculture, real estate, entertainment and sport. Prior to founding Prairie Merchant Corp, W.Brett Wilson co-founded investment banking advisory firm, Wilson Mackie & Co., in 1991, and in 1993, co-founded FirstEnergy Capital Corp. in Calgary, Alberta with Rick Grafton, Jim Davidson, and N. Murray Edwards. W.Brett Wilson was a season 3, 4 & 5 panelist on CBC Television's Dragons' Den. He has written regularly on entrepreneurship for publications including Oilweek, Alberta Venture and the National Post, and in 2012, he published the book titled Redefining Success: Still Making Mistakes. His sports interests include ownership in the Nashville Predators of the National Hockey League. W. Brett Wilson has supported hundreds of charities including, The Southern Alberta Institute of Urology, the David Foster Foundation, Right to Play & the Wilson Centre for Domestic Abuse Studies at the Calgary Counseling Centre. W. Brett Wilson obtained a Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering from the University of Saskatchewan and a Masters of Business Administration degree from the University of Calgary. In 2010, W. Brett Wilson received an Honorary Doctorate of Laws from Royal Roads University. In 2011, he was awarded the Order of Canada and subsequently received the Saskatchewan Order of Merit in 2012. Among other things, we learned about FirstEnergy ~1992 & Dragons' Den Lessons. Enjoy. Thank you to our sponsors. Without their support this episode would not be possible: Connate Water Solutions ATB Capital Markets Ambyint JSG Bidell Gas Compression Bunch Projects Support the show