This story was originally published in the 2023 fall issue of strategy magazine.
Porta’s grand plan
By Justin Crann
When you think about the hottest thing in the frozen food business, your mind might not immediately wander to pizza or pasta – a space long since cornered in grocery by major international CPG brands. But Toronto-based Porta, launched by Italian restaurant brand Terroni in 2021, has been succeeding in stealing some of the limelight. With more than 500,000 meals delivered in Ontario in its first year, and more than 700,000 this year, the brand is also stocked in nearly 100 grocery stores across the country, including Longo’s and Organic Garage. The brand’s winning recipe is a simple one, according to general manager Jason Cassidy. “You often hear others reference restaurant quality, and we’ve been screaming that from day one. That’s because we are restaurants,” he explains, citing Porta co-founder Cosimo Mammoliti’s many culinary pursuits, which also include Sud Forno and Spaccio. “Porta is restaurant-quality Italian, and we don’t plan to veer from that.” The brand built its business in the direct-to-consumer channel first, launching a “curated” offering with a menu of eight pizzas, eight pastas and four desserts. That menu quickly expanded with new innovations as the brand learned more about what its customers enjoy, through frequent surveys and social media, Cassidy says. Now, more than 30 items are offered by the brand, including an array of risottos, four breakfast pastries and seasonal offerings. While the early years have brought almost meteoric growth for the brand, Porta is positioning itself for even greater scale. “A year from now, I’d like people to think of Porta as a North American omnichannel CPG brand with multiple products in multiple categories,” he says.
Birch Bark Coffee, brewed with purpose
By Christopher Lombardo
Ojibway-owned and Ottawa-based Birch Bark Coffee is the brainchild of Mark Marsolais-Nahwegahbow, a Band member of Whitefish River First Nation. He started Birch Bark Coffee in 2018 as a simple Shopify play, but when the ecommerce platform highlighted the brand during National Indigenous History Month, several small businesses took notice and started carrying it, followed by larger Ottawa-area grocery banners. Now, Birch Bark’s most popular blend, Inukshuk, can be found in Costco stores across Central and Eastern Canada. When he first started, Marsolais-Nahwegahbow admits he spent a “little bit of money” on advertising and persevered through belief in himself as an entrepreneur. Now, the business is thriving. Marsolais-Nahwegahbow says Millennial and Gen Z consumers “really care what’s behind a product,” and have gravitated to Birch Bark Coffee, which exists to make a difference by using 100% organic, Fair Trade Arabica coffee, produced by Indigenous farmers. A recent partnership with another purpose-driven brand, Chapman’s, has also helped drive awareness. Earlier this year, the ice-cream brand launched a super-premium line, with packaging designed by Ukraine’s 360 Branding, whose owner, Elena Fedorenko, is a war refugee. Birch Bark also works with True North Aid, a charity that provides humanitarian support to Northern and remote Indigenous communities, as well as international non-profit Life From Water.
Sobrii’s sober spirits
By Jennifer Horn
Teetotallers who like the taste of beer are spoiled for choice. There isn’t a lager, ale, craft, stout or pilsner out there that hasn’t been dealcoholized. On the other hand, those abstaining from alcohol who like the taste of spirits have been left pretty much stranded. That was until Bob Huitema came onto the scene. The Stratford, Ontario entrepreneur from a farming family spent several years working in the food and beverage industry at companies like Kraft Heinz, Diageo and Timothy’s. Drawing on that experience and his time exploring non-alcoholic spirits in the U.K., Huitema developed Sobrii 0-Gin, Canada’s first distilled gin that contains all the flavour, but none of the alcohol. More than that, it’s products are also free from artificial flavours, sugars, sweetners and calories. And soon, it will be free from preservatives too. The brand, owned by parent co. DistillX Beverages, will potentially then be able to stock its products in places like Whole Foods, where it’s been a harder sell for Sobrii, says Huitema. “Non-alcoholic spirits use food preservatives, and a lot of places like Whole Foods don’t accept them. So what I’ve done, over the last six months, is reformulated our products, making us the first in the market to remove preservatives.” Distribution of Sobrii is across Canada and in parts of the U.S., with its dealcoholized gin and, more recently, tequila, seen in specialty stores like Pusateri’s, Market Fresh and Well.ca. Next, Sobrii plans to launch a whiskey and a rum SKU, as well as a ready-to-drink (RTD) product that will be priced more affordably and allow the brand to expand its consumer base. “Our gin bottles sell for around for $35; the RTDs will be in the $12 to $15 range, so it’s a more affordable buy, and retailers like it better,” he says. “There’s really no reason we can’t replicate the spirits-in-a-can trend on the non-alcoholic side, and use our advantages in terms of our brand position: where the RTD will be no sugar, no calories, no preservatives, but all the fun.”
Ciele blends form with function
By Sheima Benembarek
“It’s cee-elle-ay. However, we’re very comfortable with people pronouncing it differently,” clarifies Dan Marrett, director of global marketing and business development at Ciele Athletics. Before co-founding the Montreal-based brand in 2014, Jeremy Bresnen began running eight kilometres to work as a way to improve his physical and mental health. A problem arose when he couldn’t find a hat that could be worn during a run and then afterwards, for example, when he met up with friends. Bresnen realized there was an opportunity for more curated running apparel and so he partnered up with entrepreneur Mike Giles to create a hat that offered a balance of both function and fashion. And while you can purchase a range of running apparel, footwear and accessories today, the duo first launched the business with the Ciele GoCap Standard – a one style hat, available in four colours. The brand went from producing 600 caps (144 of each colour) in its first year to over 1 million to date. And in April, it opened a brick-and-mortar flagship store in the heart of Montreal’s Griffintown neighbourhood called espace MTL. The store displays Ciele’s entire collection, but it also serves as a meeting place for like-minded people. “We have a few couches, a water refill station, cubbies and lockers. We have eight run clubs that are running out of there on a regular basis each week,” says Marrett. “It provides us with a physical space where we can engage with the running community.” The brand’s function-first, fashion-forward products are eye-catching and iconic in their own right. And whether you know how to say the brand’s name correctly or not, it’s safe to say that you can’t walk down Montreal’s Sainte-Catherine street without catching a glimpse of a Ciele running hat.
