About Us

Refined Substance was founded in 2012 to help companies in the mining industry improve their communications and marketing initiatives. Founder Kimberly Darlington, a graduate of the Smith School of Business at Queen’s University, has more than two decades’ marketing and PR expertise built across a wide variety of industries. She applied her experience to the mining industry because mining, like many other industries, has a unique lexicon of technical language, terminology, acronyms and ways of operating that are sometimes difficult for those outside the industry to comprehend. Refined Substance takes the substance of the information that its clients are seeking to communicate and refines it so that its meaning and significance is easily understood by any number of target audiences, be they investors, senior managers with limited mining background, media, employees, or the general public.

For those clients looking for investor relations and communications expertise, we are proudly affiliated with Cathy Hume, a Toronto-based IR expert specializing in small-cap companies, most notably junior mining companies. Her many years on Bay Street has allowed her to forge strong relationships with Canada’s top mining analysts and institutional investors.

In 2019 Refined Substance expanded its realm of mining expertise with the addition of Ken Darlington to the executive team. A professional engineer by training with a strong background in process metallurgy, Ken’s experience as a senior executive in engineering and construction for the mining industry has equipped him with strong practical knowledge in all areas of mining. With Ken on board, we are pleased to provide project development and advisory services to owners’ teams, engineering/construction consultancies, and other project stakeholders.

Put us to work for you in refining your company’s efforts to produce results – the “substance” you’re looking for – in the mining business.

Kimberly Darlington

Kimberly Darlington

President and Founder

Cathy Hume

Cathy Hume

Investor Relations Consultant

Ken Darlington, B.Sc., P.Eng.

Ken Darlington

Project Development and Advisory Services