2023 Food Show Product Review

At this year's food show, we were proud to showcase hundreds of incredible products. With so many amazing options, it was difficult for us to pick only a few favourites - but here are some highlights from the event!

The Flanagan Food Show is where the foodservice industry gathers to look ahead into what’s new, exciting and trending in Canadian cuisine. This year was particularly special with over one thousand of people in attendance - all buzzing with anticipation! Even Elvis popped by to entertain our guests. There were exclusive deals, delicious samples and learning opportunities for attendees.

That’s a wrap for this year. We share our heartfelt thanks with everyone who came to celebrate with us. We were thrilled to have you join us!  As Elvis would say, “thank you, thank you very much.”

Explore Our Food Show through Photos: 

Why Choose Flanagan Foodservice?

When it comes to outfitting your restaurant with the right food and supplies, it's important to choose a food distributor that can provide everything you need to help your business thrive. Flanagan Foodservice is a family-owned foodservice distributor that has been serving the Ontario foodservice industry for over 45 years. We are proud to be one of the leading broad-line foodservice distributors in the country, servicing over 8,000 customers in Ontario.

Simple to Deal With

Ordering your food and supplies should be simple and hassle-free. We make it easy to get the products you need so that you can focus on what's important: running your business. We understand that your time is valuable, so we aim to be as efficient as possible. You can rest assured knowing that we'll take care of everything for you.

Premium Products

From budget savvy purchases to premium products, we have it all. With a comprehensive selection of brand name products, exclusive brands and local products, we can equip and supply every aspect of your business. And because we're always updating our inventory, you'll always have access to the latest and greatest products on the market.

Brand Points Plus

Flanagan Foodservice is proud to be the only food distributor in Ontario offering membership to the Brand Points Plus loyalty program. Brand Points Plus offers foodservice operators access to exclusive points on branded products and free rewards. With this unique program in place, independent business owners can gain valuable knowledge for their operations that will result in increased profitability with no extra cost!

We understand that running a restaurant can be a daunting task and we are here to help make your job a little bit easier. For more information on what we can do for you, please visit our website or contact us today. We look forward to hearing from you!

Become a customer

A Day in the Life of a Flanagan AZ Delivery Driver

We're all curious about how others spend their days. We may wonder, "What does my doctor do when she's not seeing patients?" or "What does the person who serves me food do when they're not serving me?" For those of you who want to know what exactly an AZ delivery driver does with their day, we sat down with one of our very own drivers, Johan Enns.

Johan Enns is part of the amazing team of Flanagan's AZ delivery drivers, who help make sure food and supplies reaches restaurants and foodservice operations safely. With five years under his belt, he's no stranger to the ins and outs of the job. In a typical day, he can make between 10 and 16 deliveries, which takes him about 10-12 hours.

When asked what he likes about the job, Johan admits that he enjoys being out there on his own, and is happy to help out when needed. "Once you're out there and have gotten into the swing of things," he says, "it's easy to do one call at a time."

Enns also likes the amount of hours he works: 52-58 hours a week. “You get to go home and do things outside,” he said, noting that during the summer he has a boat so he likes to go fishing and hang out with friends on weekends.

“A lot of places know me and it’s nice after 5 years, you know how they want their product and how they want their products to come in and put away.” He goes out of his way to put product on shelves for their workers that may be difficult for others to put away and he has often been rewarded with lunch each time for his help.

He enjoys getting to know the people who work at his customers. Johan makes sure to be friendly, professional, and courteous when interacting with these people because it makes his job easier when they recognize him as someone who cares about their business as much as they do themselves.

Apply for an AZ Driver position

The Flanagan story dates back to 1977 when Joe and Dee Flanagan opened Bob’s Surplus Food Outlet in Waterloo, Ontario. The retail store operated out of 5,200 square feet of space with three employees and 500 products.

The enterprise quickly evolved into Bob’s Wholesale where dry grocery products were distributed to bakeries and donut shops in the Kitchener-Waterloo area with all deliveries being shipped in the Flanagan family station wagon. Joe Flanagan recognized a need for a full service distribution and set out to expand geographical coverage and diversify the product line. He renamed the company J. and D. Flanagan Sales and Distribution Ltd., and over the next ten years the company dealt with rapid expansion including new vehicles, a new building in Kitchener (1983), and a new branch in Owen Sound. In 1989, the Kitchener branch was moved again to accommodate the growing demand.

The '80s also saw the introduction of Joe’s sons to the family business. Dan, Rick, Jeff and Murray started working at the company in various positions. The company was renamed Flanagan Foodservice Inc. and again, continued to grow. By this time the company viewed the ability to adapt to serve its customer needs as a skill that has been well-developed over the years.

Although many businesses were suffering from a recession in the '90s, the company showed no signs of slowing down. Joe Flanagan told employees that the company “wasn’t taking part in the recession.” A true visionary, he led the company through another decade of growth. Expansions to the Kitchener facility were needed and the Sudbury branch was opened. Fresh seafood, dairy, and new marketing initiatives were introduced that helped propel the company forward.

With a strong succession plan in place, Joe appointed his eldest son, Dan, as President in 1998. A gradual hand off of the management responsibilities and consensus among the brothers as to the direction of the business allowed for a seamless transition to the second generation.

With the passing of Joe Flanagan in 2000, the company was led by Dan, Rick, Jeff and Murray. Each brother was actively involved in the day-to-day management of the company, maintaining the integrity and service that Flanagan Foodservice was built on.  Under their leadership, the next 13 years were another period of growth and advancement for the Flanagan brand.

The company acquired Roseland Produce, added another 65,000 square feet to the Kitchener branch, and became HACCP accredited while helping shape the future of food safety in foodservice distribution.  Sustainability initiatives were a focus and the company committed to ensuring they were proactively managing the impact on the environment.   Dan, Rick, Jeff and Murray kept the spirit of their father alive while staying true to his core values of service, teamwork and growth.

In 2012 the owners embarked on a strategic journey which would shape the future of the company for years to come.  Flanagan Foodservice unveiled a new logo to complement innovative changes to the company vision, mission, values, and tagline. The focus remained on the company strengths and the evolving business environment while always keeping its customers as the top priority.

One value that didn’t change was the company’s commitment to the communities it serves. Flanagan’s has always supported many worthwhile charities. The company is actively involved in We Care, Habitat for Humanity, Speroway and many other worthwhile causes. The company has donated over $1 million dollars to We Care over the years and contributes hundreds of thousands of dollars of food annually to worthwhile causes. The company also introduced paid volunteerism in 2016, encouraging employees to support their communities through effort that is compensated with pay.

In 2014, Rick, Jeff and Murray retired from the active management of the family business, leaving the oldest brother, Dan, to lead the family entrepreneurship into the future. The brothers remain as Shareholders and Board Advisors and continue to collaborate on various company projects and initiatives.

Today, Flanagan Foodservice employs 520 people in 4 branches across Ontario.  The fleet consists of over 80 vehicles delivering foodservice products across Ontario and Southwestern Quebec. As the requirements of customers continue to grow, so does Flanagan’s. Through technical innovation and expansions, foresight and marketing, sales have grown consecutively for 40 years.

The future of Flanagan’s continues to be that of a family-owned, independent company that will exhibit the same distinct family values that have defined its identity for 40 years. Flanagan’s is looking to the future with great excitement. The company is in the midst of its largest expansion to date with an 180,000 square foot branch to open in Whitby, Ontario in the fall of 2017. Dan summarizes the strategy for the future: “Our core values of service excellence, teamwork, continuous improvement, inclusive family spirit, and community building through supporting community events, organizations and charities will continue to define what Flanagan’s will stand for in the future.”

At the heart of it, the Flanagan story comes down to service. Providing exceptional personal service was at the heart of everything Joe and Dee did while establishing and growing the business. In the second generation, the Flanagan brothers embraced that core value while taking the company to the next level. Today, this combined legacy of service provides the core mandate for the future of the company.

“Customer service is the cornerstone of our business,” emphasizes Dan. “It really comes down to all of our people understanding how important each and every customer is, and how they can best serve them to meet their unique needs and help contribute to their success in the foodservice market.”

For the third year in a row, fifteen Flanagan employees volunteered their time (and muscles!) at the Kehl Street build in Kitchener as part of our partnership with Habitat for Humanity.

We participated in a Team Build Day; a unique opportunity for corporations and community groups to share the experience of participating in a Habitat for Humanity build.

Each year, there have been members of our Senior Leadership Team, finance, transportation, warehouse, operations, marketing, purchasing and sales. “Learning a new skill, meeting and working with new people was so much fun,” says Julia Todorski, Flanagan’s Human Resources Generalist. “It was wonderful to see so many people working together to create something beautiful!”

“It’s a very fun and rewarding experience,” adds Darren Murawsky, Director, Continuous Improvement at Flanagan Foodservice. “Always nice to give back to the community.”

About Habitat for Humanity Waterloo Region

Habitat for Humanity is a global organization that helps families in need own their own home.

Volunteers help to build affordable houses which are then sold to residents of their community with an interest-free mortgage as a means to break the cycle of poverty. Families donate 500 hours of volunteer time (“sweat equity”) that can be accumulated by helping construct their home, preparing food for build  [Habitat for Humanity2b] day teams, or working in Habitat’s retail store, ReStore.

Waterloo Region began building the Kehl Street townhouse complex in 2013. When it’s completed in 2021, there will be 44 units in total (the largest project to date in our region). Some families have already been able to move in to some of the completed units.

Flanagan Build Day

Our day starts at 8:15 am with a morning orientation and safety training.

We’re then divided into teams and assigned to various tasks throughout the site. Team Leads (full-time volunteers) lead each crew with their task at hand, which included putting up vapour barriers and dry-walling.

This year was a chilly, rainy day, so we stuck to indoor tasks. Build Days go on rain or shine!

Team Leads are patient and encouraging, and we learned many new skills. Kim Amourette, Data Entry Clerk at Flanagan’s said it perfectly, “I helped put up dry-wall yesterday and what I appreciated the most from my experience was that although I had no previous experience, I was supported and encouraged to be an active part of each step of the process.”

Each group put in a lot of hard work throughout the day, and we kept nourished with a morning snack of fruit, pastries, oatmeal, bagels, spreads, shepherd’s pie and hot beverages. Habitat for Humanity understands that for many of the volunteers this will be hard work that many won’t be used to, so they make sure to keep everyone well fed and hydrated throughout the day. Lunchtime food offerings were as plentiful and delicious as the morning snack. It was an incredible spread of food, and we’re very grateful to the Habitat for Humanity Waterloo Region hospitality team.

Team Build Days are great days. Everyone who participates is thrilled to help such a community-driven initiative and would absolutely volunteer again.

We’re looking forward to returning in 2020!