SUPPORTING PARTNER
Back of the House : Wayne Holm BiographyBorn May 12, 1948 in Garden Bay, British Columbia While Wayne Holm may be best known for his part in creating Spectra Foods, hospitality was far from his first career. From 1966-1969 Wayne had an acknowledged football career with Simon Fraser University. In 1969 he was SFU's Athlete of the Year and was subsequently named to the Sports Canada all Canadian College Football Team. In 1970, Wayne was the first selection in the Canadian Football Leagues' Canadian draft by the Calgary Stampeders. He played professional football for Calgary, Vancouver and Toronto for 4 years before suffering a career ending knee injury in 1973. In 1988, Wayne was honoured by being inducted into SFU's Sports Hall of Fame. While the end of a promising career in professional sports might seem disheartening to some, for Wayne it was an opportunity knocking. George Tidball invited him to wash dishes and develop his business and management skills in the early days of the Keg. Wayne would spend 15 years with the Keg learning the business, with George acting as a mentor and friend. Wayne's success on the gridiron quickly translated to success in the restaurant industry. He was able to draw on his leadership abilities developed through sport to attract talented and motivated people, and quickly produced incredible dining experiences while growing businesses through multiple markets. By taking a “people first” approach to the business, Wayne developed a loyal following that today stretches throughout Canada and the United States. During his years with the Keg, Wayne held numerous positions including; Manager, Joint Venture Partner, Regional President, Franchisee for the State of Washington Kegs, and Senior Vice President Keg Corporate. Wayne ultimately owned 10% of the Keg with Whitbread from the United Kingdom. In 1989, Wayne sold his interest in the Keg to join forces with his long-time friend Peter Bonner and form The Spectra Group of Great Restaurants. Wayne brought two concepts to the partnership; Boathouse, a concept jointly developed with the Keg in 1981 and Bread Garden, a company he recently bought into with Linda Meinhardt. These two concepts were joined with Peter's existing companies; English Bay Café and a group of restaurants called PJ Burger and Sons. Peter and Wayne agreed to convert the PJ Burgers and Sons group to a new concept that would eventually be called Milestone's. The Spectra Group era was a very special time for growth and development, successes and challenges both personally and in business. In 1998, Wayne moved to Toronto taking on a 3 year position with Cara Operations as the President of Cara's restaurant group, leading a portfolio of brands with 700 million in sales. In 2001 Cara and Wayne joined forces to acquire Milestones from Spectra. Wayne has worked for Cara as a President, Partner and Advisor, and continues to work directly with CEO Don Robinson providing concept development advice and expertise. While Wayne's career has been long and varied, his proudest accomplishment has been the success of the many people he has had the good fortune to work with and mentor over his years. Wayne is incredibly grateful to George Tidball for his inspiration; Peter Bonner for his counsel, friendship and for being the best partner anyone could ask for; and for all the wonderful fortuitous years of being in the restaurant industry with people like: Mark Roberts, Ian and Cathy Tostenson, Kelly Gordon, John Tietzen, Kelly Nordin, Jim Romer, Scott Ward, Ackeeu Lee and lifelong friend and partner Jeff Stipec. Wayne continues to be active in the business through his ongoing relationship with Cara and a new start up restaurant; Romer's Burger Bar, a partnership with 2 of the key members of the original Milestone's development team, Chef Jim Romer and Operations Director Scott Ward. Romer's is a joyous example of once again having the opportunity to have fun with people and be creative with food. Personally, life for Wayne is all about family; it starts and ends with his incredible wife Erin and his four talented sons, Stefan, Erik, Nathan and James. |