Long hours, stress... and a whole lot of fun
By Paul Knowles
Marc and Judi Duciaume are busy, busy, busy... and wouldn’t have it any other way
The math itself was daunting. Marc and Judi Duciaume had signed up to feed 380 hockey players, coaches and other officials. Not once, mind you, but three times a day – breakfast, lunch and supper. And not for a day or two, either, but for nine days straight, as the official caterers to the World Under 17 Hockey Challenge, which was staged in their home town of Timmins, Ontario.
They served over 10,000 meals to the visitors from Russia, the Czech Republic, Sweden, Finland, the United States, and every region of Canada. (The US took the gold, by the way, defeating Ontario 2-1 in a tense championship game, the final contest of the tournament that ran from Boxing Day, 2009 to January 4, 2010.)
At the same time as they were feeding hundreds of hungry teenage hockey players, the Duciaumes and their team also had to run their two restaurants, including Boogy’s Diner, at the Timmins Airport; and they also operate cafeterias in a local high school and a college. All of these, clearly, are high traffic locations.
Marc talks about the challenge and the stress – and laughs that he absolutely loves it all. Judi agrees, and adds that while not every couple can work well together, she wouldn’t have it any other way. “I enjoy working with my husband,” she says, adding with a smile that she likes to know what’s going on with the business, and prefers her involvement to be hands-on. “I’d rather be here than off at home stewing about what’s happening here... I’d rather be in the middle of the mess.”
While their business is certainly not “a mess”, it is a daunting challenge, at times, demanding a high level of energy and enthusiasm. Fortunately, the Duciaumes have plenty of both.
They got involved in the food service business less than 10 years ago. After 25 years in the dry cleaning trade, Marc “needed a change.” He felt that business was not growing, and he wanted to be where the action is. He’d been intrigued by the restaurant and food service business for a long time; “I’d always liked the restaurant business,” he says, recalling that long before he got into the trade, he would draw up menus and analyze the service provided in restaurants he and Judi visited.
Marc and Judi were both born and raised in Timmins, and were still living and working in that northern Ontario city in 2003, when an opportunity came up at the Timmins Airport. Marc says he “tiptoed in.” The restaurant at the airport became available for lease, and Marc signed on. And any initial, “tiptoe” caution didn’t last very long. Judi promptly left her job at a Timmins bank, and joined him. That made them half of the staff that totalled four people.
That changed, quickly. Today, their employees total about 50, including Judi and Marc’s three children, who are aged 16, 20 and 22. What kick-started the growth was that the Duciaumes used their airport location as a foundation to launch a catering business, which “blew out of control within six months,” according to Marc.
They started to look for a second location, and found themselves negotiating with the City of Timmins, which operates the McIntyre Community Centre – a complex far more extensive than the name might imply.
The McIntyre Community Centre was built in 1938; its design mirrors Maple Leaf Gardens. With curling facilities, a hockey arena, and ballrooms, the facility locally known as “The Mac” presented almost unlimited challenges – and opportunities – to the Duciaumes, who supply all food services throughout the venue. That includes the McIntyre Coffee Shop, which despite the name is a 50s style diner that seats 85; concessions in the arena areas; and two grand ballrooms that host a constant stream of events.
Their contract with the city means that all food services are supplied by the Duciaumes – weddings, corporate, you name it. They also do off-site catering. And they supply bar and decorating services to almost all catering clients, as well.
Marc laughs that on any given night, they may be catering up to three weddings, running the restaurants and operating the concessions – serving a diverse menu ranging from candy floss and popcorn to soup and sandwiches to prime rib.
The Duciaumes are clearly a couple who love a new challenge – two years ago, they took over a cafeteria in a Timmins high school; now, they also have the cafeteria business in a brand new college, the Timmins campus of the francophone Université de Hearst.
Add it all together, says Marc, and you have “a fast-paced business, challenges, stress... and we just love it.”
Marc and Judi admit that the Under 17 World Hockey Challenge was their biggest concerted effort – and “it went perfectly,” he says. But for this ambitious couple, that experience just raised the bar. “It proved we can cater anything, of any size.”
And while the chance to serve 10,000 meals in nine days may not come up again any time soon, it is not at all rare for them to approach the 2,000 meals mark on a Saturday, if there happen to be three or four weddings, a hockey game, and a busy day at the airport.
By the way – airport visitors don’t only enjoy Duciaumes’ meals in the restaurant, which seats 65 diners – the company also supplies meals to Air Canada Jazz flights and other airlines.
Back at the Mac, food preparation takes place in a lot of locations. The main kitchen is associated with the restaurant, but there are food prep areas in the concessions, and smaller kitchens and bars in the halls. “Everything is pretty well done on site,” says Marc.
All of those facilities, combined, could not meet the need when the world came to town to play hockey. And it is at this point in the conversation and Judi and Marc start to sing the praises of Flanagan Foodservice, and specifically of their Flanagans rep, Claude Pichette.
The Duciaumes have been Flanagans customers almost since they entered the restaurant trade in 2003; since 2004, Flanagans have been their sole supplier. Marc is a big fan of their Flanagan’s representative. “I was introduced to Claude in 2004. Ever since then, I would not buy a bag of potatoes from anybody else,” declares Marc.
That happy business relationship came into full flower in preparation for the world hockey tournament. Marc starting planning for the nine-day event six months earlier. He developed the full menu – 27 meals – and submitted it to Hockey Canada for approval.
The moment approval was granted, the Duciaumes started consulting with their Flanagans representative, who came to Timmins to help plan the venture. Pichette then returned on delivery day, staying for two days to help organize everything.
And because there were not sufficient facilities to store and refrigerate all the food needed to satisfy the appetites of nine teenaged hockey teams and their friends, Pichette arranged it for Flanagans to supply a truck and refrigerated trailer for the duration of the tournament.
Marc admits that although nine 6 a.m. to midnight days can take their toll, he was still sad to see the tournament end. He was having a lot of fun. That experience only whetted the appetite of Marc and Judi Duciaume, so the couple have turned their attention to upcoming challenges.
Judi notes that Timmins will host a major mining symposium in May, and the attendees will be fed by the Duciaumes. Marc adds that there are already plans in place for between 25 and 28 weddings this summer... the more, the merrier.
Just a decade ago, Marc Duciaume was involved in the dry cleaning business; Judi was working in a bank. Today, they are working long hours, juggling on-site and off-site catering, running two restaurants and two cafeterias, managing a staff of 50, and ... says Judi... “I find this way more fun.”