Olivers

By Paul Knowles

Building a business, one cup at a time

It’s not the first time that a retired Canadian hockey player has founded a successful chain of coffee shops. But John English’s Oliver’s Coffee chain didn’t come about because an athlete was trading on his professional reputation – English got involved in the coffee and donut business simply because he needed a job.

John English hit a crossroads in his life much earlier than most. As a young man, his entire focus had been on hockey. He starred as a defenseman at the Junior A level, suiting up with the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds, the Hamilton Steelhawks and the Ottawa 67’s, and was drafted by the Los Angeles Kings in 1984.

Ironically, his big league career amount to what is known in sports vernacular as “a cup of coffee” – he played in the International Hockey League and was called up to the Kings for a three-game stint in the 1987-88 season, during which he scored a goal and picked up three assists. He was traded to the Edmonton Oilers – but not, he laughs, as part of the trade that brought Wayne Gretzky from Edmonton to LA. English played another season in the IHL, and then, during the off-season, began to suffer from arthritis.

After three games in the big league, at the advanced age of 23, John English found himself out of hockey, and looking for a job. He soon began working for a major donut shop chain – not one named for an NHLer – and stayed there for several years.

He explains, “I’m an ex hockey player. I didn’t go the university route. I got injured, and had to pay my mortgage.” So he took a job with the donut store chain.

But his post-hockey dream was to be in business for himself, so in 2003, he took the plunge, opening three coffee shops under the name “Oliver’s”.

Asked for the origins of the name, English laughs. During his final months with the chain that employed him, he started to plan to branch out on his own. He owned some real estate, and opened an independent coffee shop in that building, calling it “Muskoka Bean”. That was his brand name of choice – except he sold the building, beans and all, and when it came time to name his new enterprise, he was short on time and without a brand.

So he dubbed his three new coffee shops “Oliver’s” – named after his dog.

Today, there are six Oliver’s – three in Bracebridge, and on each in Gravenhurst, Port Carling, and Bala. By mid-summer, 2010, there will be seven, as an Oliver’s is opening in Huntsville.

English says that each of the location is unique – two are located as part of service stations, while the newest is situated in the atrium of the new, combination Sportsplex and high school in Bracebridge. His shops range “from kiosks to a 2,500 square foot, sit-down store.”

The decor evokes comfort and class – “a nice atmosphere, cushy chairs... a great place for people to meet up with their friends” in a restaurant where there is still a focus on “good speed of service.”

The menu is typical of coffee shops... with one key difference. Oliver’s serves coffee, donuts, pastries, lunches, soups, says English, “but where we differ slightly is, we still operate a bakery. A lot of the big guys pull it right out of a box.”

Maybe it’s a habit English learned from the discipline of professional sports, but he is very focused on getting things right. He has seen the number of outlets double – and more, come this summer – and he has also launched an affiliated business, Diesel House Coffee Roasters, supplying coffee to institutions, businesses, golf courses, restaurants and other outlets.

But in spite of this success – or maybe at the root of it – is a determination to not rest on his laurels. He talks about learning from “a lot of trial an error... we’re a seven or eight year old company. We’re still ironing out the kinks.”

When he talks about the success he has found so far, English is quick to give a lot of credit to his team – “I work with very talented people.” One of those people is Sue Lalonde, now in her eighth year with Oliver’s. Lalonde started in marketing, took over as operations manager, and this year has become an equity partner. English remains principle owner.

He says that having a partner in the business is a great advantage. It means “a couple sets of eyes” on the business. That kind of oversight is important, he says, to “somebody as passionate about the business as I am.” He also jokes that Lalonde’s role allows English “to go away once in a while.”

Lalonde has primary responsibility to oversee the operation that employs 50 staff members. English is now able to focus more on business growth and “new site development”. But he is not going to jump into major expansion mode, just yet. He asks “Do we continue to grow?” and answers his own question: “Our philosophy is to run deep rather than wide. We need to be the best we can.”

He notes that with seven sites already open or about to be launched, “seven restaurant sites... that’s a lot to handle.”

Some times during the year, it is even more challenging. The Oliver’s locations are all in tourist country, and there is no question that the summer months mean being “crazy busy,” says English. But that doesn’t imply there is no action in the other seasons. The shoulder seasons – spring and fall – continue to be busy, and even in the winter months, which see a drop-off of between 20% and 25%, still see plenty of customers.

“Even though we’re a seasonal town, we make money all year round,” says English. He admits that volumes are not as high as they were during “the roaring 90s”, but expresses delight that “our local following is very strong.”

Flanagan Foodservice is supplier to both of English’s business ventures – Oliver’s and Diesel Coffee Roasters. He has been a Flanagan customer for just over a year, but he’s pleased with the new relationship, which he calls “a great partnership.” He credits his Flanagan’s rep both for being “a personable, good guy,” and for being persistent in his efforts to sell English on Flanagan’s service.

English has had a couple of brushes with fame. He did achieve the goal of almost every Canadian kid, suiting up for an NHL team... and he was only days away from sitting on the same bench as the Great Gretzky.

He laughs about a more recent incident, in which his picture appeared in the Globe & Mail, illustrator a story about the famous author, academic, biographer and politician, John English, the man who penned the two acclaimed volume biography of Pierre Elliot Trudeau. That story was carried into Oliver’s Coffee shops by a fair number of somewhat confused customers. Oliver’s owner had to admit that the Globe simply used a photo of the wrong “John English”.

But while he may not write books, and no longer suits up to play Canada’s game at the highest level, this John English certainly knows how to keep coffee shop customers smiling, in five Ontario communities. For the fans of Oliver’s, that’s accomplishment enough.