From Vancouver to Brazil: How One Entrepreneur Built a Location-Independent Empire

Meet Justin Brown, a Canadian entrepreneur who traded the familiar streets of Vancouver for the vibrant culture of Brazil, all while scaling two successful businesses remotely.

In today’s interconnected world, the dream of running a business from anywhere has become a reality for thousands of digital nomads worldwide. But what does it really take to build a location-independent lifestyle while managing complex operations across continents? We sat down with Justin Brown, founder of Just Ascend Consulting and Just In Season Professional Landscapes, to explore his remarkable journey from Canadian entrepreneur to successful remote business owner in South America.

The Canadian Entrepreneur Who Found His Home in Brazil

Justin’s story begins in Vancouver, Canada, where he built a thriving residential construction company. However, his entrepreneurial spirit didn’t stop there. Under his business development umbrella, Just Ascend Consulting, he assembled a talented team to serve clients across multiple industries. Today, he operates both companies entirely from Brazil, proving that geographic boundaries don’t have to limit business success.

“My day-to-day revolves around servicing our consulting clients directly as the Lead Strategist, and managing my team to make sure each individual component of our contracts run smoothly,” Justin explains. From web development to marketing implementation and teaching business strategy fundamentals, his location-independent business model demonstrates the power of strategic delegation and remote operations.

The Cultural Awakening That Changed Everything

What drove a successful Canadian businessman to pack up his life and move to South America? For Justin, it wasn’t just about escaping the cold winters or finding cheaper living costs. The transformation was deeply personal and cultural.

“I think it was a gradual process of not liking the direction in which Canada was heading socially, economically, and culturally,” Justin reflects. “But yes – there WAS a pivotal moment! I travelled to Brazil, and made more genuine friends there than I had in years in Canada.”

The real eye-opener came during his return trip to Vancouver. “The RETURN to Canada was a bigger culture shock than VISITING Brazil! I landed in Vancouver, saw everyone in black clothes, not talking, not smiling – and it was a done deal.” Within ten months, he was back in Brazil with just a suitcase, ready to build his new life.

This experience highlights a crucial aspect of the digital nomad lifestyle that many overlook: the profound personal growth that comes from immersing yourself in different cultures and discovering where you truly belong.

Building Remote Business Operations: The Technical Foundation

Transitioning from in-person to remote business operations requires more than just good intentions. Justin’s approach focuses on simplicity and reliability, proving you don’t need complex systems to succeed as a remote entrepreneur.

His essential toolkit includes:

• Project Management: Slack and Asana for team coordination
• Internal Communications: Google Meet, Docs, and Sheets for seamless collaboration
• Marketing: GoHighLevel for client acquisition and management
• Organization: Separate Google Calendars for each business plus personal scheduling

“I’m not trying to reinvent the wheel here. Keep it simple!” Justin emphasizes. This philosophy extends to his communication strategy, where he maintains a Google Voice business line for inbound construction leads and manages employee meetings through Google Meet.

For financial operations, Justin recommends starting with communication and banking fundamentals. “Wise has been a great option until I was able to get a Brazilian credit card, but also never had any issues with my international cards here. Start with comms and banking – once those two aspects are in place, the rest will come, one step at a time.”

Overcoming the Hidden Challenges of Remote Business Management

While social media often portrays the digital nomad entrepreneur lifestyle as “taking calls on a beach,” Justin’s experience reveals a more complex reality. “There is so much more to it than that on the back-end,” he warns. “It’s much simpler if you’re a remote employee – but if you want to run a business from abroad – be prepared for challenges far greater than if you were running it in person.”

The most significant obstacles weren’t external logistics but internal adaptation. Justin faced burnout from constantly navigating a new environment with a different language, surprises from delegating more aspects of his business to others, and overcoming client apprehension from him living abroad.

His solution? Past establishing non-negotiable routines and boundaries – being very careful of who he chose to work with: “Managing one business – much-less two, while living abroad is more draining than you’d expect. Managing your personal life is essential – but another overlooked aspect is who you’re working with. Your employees and associates can either take a huge weight off your chest – or add significant stress. You can teach an employee any skill – but you cannot teach responsibility and proactiveness – prioritize these traits when you’re vetting people to delegate out any aspect of your business.”

The Philosophy of Strategic Living Abroad

Justin’s approach to international remote work goes beyond mere location arbitrage. He advocates for what he calls “playing chess, not checkers” in life – always having a plan and concrete medium-term outlook while remaining flexible for opportunities.

His stability strategy includes three key principles:

1. Find your “Networking Hangout”: Kill two birds with one stone – find a place where you can regularly relax, but also network – I prefer tennis/golf clubs, rooftop pools, and other areas high net-worth/interesting people congregate.
2. Minimize movement: Stay in the same apartment for at least six months
3. Maintain routine consistency: Keep daily habits similar to those in your home country

This approach challenges the stereotype of constantly moving digital nomads, suggesting that successful location-independent entrepreneurs often benefit from establishing deeper roots in their chosen destinations.

Building Authentic Connections in New Cultures

Rather than relying solely on expat communities, Justin prioritizes building relationships with locals through shared interests and activities. “I much prefer to meet locals through my hobbies. Nothing much different from if I were living in-country,” he explains.

His networking philosophy is refreshingly simple: “I highly encourage travellers to talk to as many locals as possible – some of my best connections have been made at the gym, at a bar, or on the beach! You truly never know who you’ll meet!”

This approach not only enriches the cultural experience but also creates valuable business networking opportunities that purely expat-focused strategies might miss.

The Transformation: Becoming Your Authentic Self

Perhaps the most profound aspect of Justin’s journey isn’t business-related at all. Living abroad provided him with something invaluable: the opportunity for complete self-reinvention.

“Living abroad has just confirmed how I always felt about my home country – and made me a more distilled, stronger version of who I always was,” he reflects. “It’s an opportunity to be who you TRULY want to be (professionally and personally) without being stifled by a culture, societal norm, or environment that isn’t truly congruent to who you want to be.”

His advice to aspiring digital nomad entrepreneurs cuts to the heart of why location independence matters: “You aren’t ‘running away’ – you are ‘running toward’ – the best version of your life and yourself.”

Sustaining Long-term Success and Motivation

Maintaining motivation while building a remote business empire requires more than professional systems – it demands personal sustainability practices. Justin’s formula includes:

• A structured daily routine for both weekdays and weekends
• Regular physical activity and healthy eating habits
• Consistent in-person social interactions (online doesn’t count!)
• Occasional self-indulgence and celebration of achievements

His “why” serves as his beacon during uncertain times. “I am very clear on why I made this decision, which makes it honestly quite easy to stay motivated.”

The Bigger Picture: Redefining Success and Freedom

Justin’s story represents more than just another successful digital nomad case study. It’s a blueprint for entrepreneurs who refuse to accept geographic limitations on their personal and professional growth. By building systems that support both business success and cultural integration, he’s created a model that prioritizes authentic living alongside financial achievement.

For aspiring location-independent business owners, Justin’s journey offers practical guidance and philosophical insight: success isn’t just about revenue optimization or cost arbitrage – it’s about creating alignment between your values, lifestyle, and professional ambitions.

His final insight resonates with anyone considering the leap: “Ask yourself: ‘Who would I be, what type of person would I become, if nothing was standing in my way?’ This isn’t just an opportunity to see a new place – it’s your opportunity to totally reinvent yourself, and create the life you’ve always wanted to live.”

Ready to start your own location-independent journey? Connect with Justin at justin@justascendconsulting.com or find him on Instagram @gringo_na_chapa. Whether you’re interested in business strategy, marketing, scaling, or transitioning to operating from abroad, he welcomes connections with fellow entrepreneurs and like-minded individuals who can see beyond traditional boundaries.

Raw Interview Responses – Justin Brown

Background Information

Name: Justin
Email: justin@justascendconsulting.com
Location: Originally from Vancouver, Canada, currently living in Brazil

Interview Questions & Responses

Tell us a bit about yourself – where are you from, what do you do?

My name is Justin – I’m originally from Vancouver, Canada, but am currently living in Brazil. I operate a residential construction company in Canada, and have recently assembled a team under my business development company, Just Ascend Consulting.

What draws you to certain locations? Any particular regions or countries you’re drawn to?

From Canada, I have travelled to various locations in Europe, the US, and Mexico – but my heart lies in South America/Brazil. I find the values of Latin America far more congruent to my own than North America and elsewhere.

What does your typical day look like?

Aside from running the entire back-end of my construction company, my day-to-day revolves around servicing our consulting clients directly as the Lead Strategist, and managing my team to make sure each individual component of our contracts run smoothly – from web development, to marketing implementation, or teaching my clients about different fundamentals of business strategy directly.

What’s your work situation? (Employee, freelancer, business owner, etc.)

Freelancer/Business Owner

How long have you been working remotely?

Over 2 years on a consistent basis, but have been running a 2nd construction location from another city for 4 years.

Do you travel solo, with a partner, or in a group?

Solo

Where can people find you online? (social media, website, etc.) Feel free to include a brief pitch about what you do!

Just In Season Professional Landscapes – www.justinseason.net, Just Ascend Consulting – www.justascendconsulting.com are my 2 companies. I can be found on Facebook as Justin Brown, or on instagram as @gringo_na_chapa. If anyone would like to get in touch regarding starting a business, improving on different aspects of Brand Strategy, Marketing, Sales, Scaling – or transitioning to operating from abroad – you’re more than welcome to send me an email at justin@justascendconsulting.com – I love connecting with fellow entrepreneurs, and like-minded people who can see a bigger picture past North America!

What was your “aha” moment that made you realize you wanted to live/work abroad?

I think it was a gradual process of not liking the direction in which Canada was heading socially, economically, and culturally. But yes – there WAS a pivotal moment! I travelled to Brazil, and made more genuine friends there than I had in years in Canada. The final nail in the coffin? Realizing the RETURN to Canada was a bigger culture shock than VISITING Brazil! I landed in Vancouver, saw everyone in black clothes, not talking, not smiling – and it was a done deal – I immediately started making arrangements to leave, and flew back with only a suitcase 10 months later.

What practical steps did you take to set up your remote work situation? (tools, communication, payments, etc.)

Short answer – step-by-step. Creating a logistical situation that suits you is very specific to each individual. For communications, I still use Google Voice as a basic business line for inbound construction leads. I manage meetings with employees heavily through Google Meet.

For payments, Wise has been a great option until I was able to get a Brazilian credit card, but also never had any issues with my international cards here.

My best advice is: Start with comms and banking – once those two aspects are in place, the rest will come, one step at a time.

What have been your biggest challenges or obstacles?

Honestly – I’ve had very few extrinsic struggles – the biggest difficulties for me have been internal – overstimulation from constantly being in a different environment with a new language, burnout from building a new life here while running 2 bizzes, and occasionally feeling a bit lonely being one of the few Canadians here. Overall however – knowing this was one of the best decisions I have ever made (second only to starting my own business at 24) makes it easy to keep pushing. It only gets easier and easier!

How do you maintain productivity and routine while traveling?

There are definitely 2 keys here:

• trying not to move around too much – I try to stay a minimum of 6m in the same apartment.
• Having a balanced daily routine – and never deviating from it. Your day-to-day shouldn’t be much different from your home country. Keep up the same hobbies while exploring new things, and prioritize being social with the locals – but not at the cost of your productivity.

Past this – always try to play chess – not checkers in life. Always have a plan, and a relatively concrete medium-term outlook. This keeps me grounded, while remaining flexible.

What’s the biggest misconception people have about the digital nomad lifestyle?

I think the most prevalent cliche is that it’s just taking calls on a beach or at the pool in the sun. There is so much more to it than that on the back-end.

Yes – it’s much simpler if you’re a remote employee – but if you want to run a business from abroad – be prepared for challenges far greater than if you were running it in person.

How has living/working abroad changed you as a person?

Honestly, I’ve always been extremely self-aware, even from a young age. If anything, living abroad has just confirmed how I always felt about my home country – and made me a more distilled, stronger version of who I always was. It’s an opportunity to be who you TRULY want to be (professionally and personally) without being stifled by a culture, societal norm, or environment that isn’t truly congruent to who you want to be. There truly is a community for everyone – no matter who you want to be. You just need to find it!

What tools or apps do you swear by for remote work?

I think many would be shocked at how simple I’ve made everything – and I’m not a crazy tech guy, so I’ll list a few:

• Project Management: Slack, Asana
• Internal Comms: Google Meet/Docs/Sheets
• Marketing: GoHighLevel
• I have a Google Calendar for each biz, plus a personal!

That’s honestly about it – not trying to reinvent the wheel here. Keep it simple!

How do you handle networking and building relationships while traveling?

While I am well-established on some Expat groups, I much prefer to meet locals through my hobbies. Nothing much different from if I were living in-country. I highly encourage travellers to talk to as many locals as possible – some of my best connections have been made at the gym, at a bar, or on the beach! You truly never know who you’ll meet!

What’s your best piece of advice for someone considering the nomadic lifestyle?

Apart from the usual cliches – I would say my deepest insight would be:

You are leaving abroad for a bigger reason than just cost of living and work – ask yourself: “Who would I be, what type of person would I become, if nothing was standing in my way?”

This isn’t just an opportunity to see a new place – it’s your opportunity to totally reinvent yourself, and create the life you’ve always wanted to live – but with the benefit of past experiences leading the way.

You aren’t “running away” – you are “running toward” – the best version of your life and yourself.

How do you stay motivated during tough times or when facing uncertainty?

As above – my “why” is my beacon, even when the short-term is unclear. I am very clear on why I made this decision, which makes it honestly quite easy to stay motivated.

What does work-life balance look like for you as a nomad?

To keep it short:

• A killer daily routine for weekdays/weekends.
• Staying active
• Eating healthy
• Being social (in person! Chatting online DOES NOT COUNT!)
• And remembering to spoil myself once in awhile!