Latest / Coffee In The Park with Jennifer and Cam / A Coffee with Michael, Brenden and Erilyn from The Wall Coffee Roasters!

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A Coffee with Michael, Brenden and Erilyn from The Wall Coffee Roasters! · Coffee In The Park with Jennifer and Cam

0:00
Hi, I'm Michael, and you are listening to Coffee In The Park with Jennifer and Cam.
0:11
Well, good morning, everybody, and welcome to another edition of Coffee In The Park with Jennifer and Cam.
0:16
And we are coming to you this morning live from The Wall Coffee Roasters in the heart of beautiful downtown Acheson, just like we always do.
0:25
And it is a beautiful morning, Jennifer.
0:28
It's lovely.
0:29
It's sunny.
0:30
The sun is streaming in.
0:31
It's warm outside.
0:33
Well, sort of warm.
0:34
It feels like it's fall.
0:35
It's almost the end of October.
0:36
It's a fantastic day.
0:38
Yeah.
0:39
And you know what?
0:40
It's a unique day in Alberta for those who follow.
0:43
And for our Alberta listeners, you know exactly what we're talking about.
0:46
We had the referendum yesterday as to whether Alberta should stay in Canada or not.
0:52
Right.
0:52
And overwhelmingly, Overwhelmingly.
0:54
Right.
0:54
They voted to stay in Canada.
0:56
Which I think is great.
0:57
Oh, and I feel like the province is just kind of taking an exhale, inhale and exhale, and we can hopefully get back to a bit of normality.
1:05
Let's hope.
1:05
Let's hope.
1:06
Anyway, enough of that.
1:08
We don't do politics on the podcast, but it is a beautiful day and it is fall.
1:12
Did you have a good Thanksgiving?
1:13
Did we already have?
1:14
We had a...
1:14
No, we've had a Thanksgiving.
1:16
We've had a program since then.
1:18
Yeah.
1:18
Okay.
1:18
So we won't go there.
1:20
Anything new you want to talk about?
1:21
Anything exciting, anything?
1:23
What's new?
1:24
Well, you know what?
1:24
You and I are moderating an exciting panel tomorrow.
1:29
For the Acheson Business Association.
1:30
We are.
1:31
With Dr.
1:32
Randy Gregg.
1:33
Yes.
1:33
Played for the Oilers, won some Stanley Cups with the Oilers, now owns the Edmonton Riverhawks Baseball Club.
1:40
And was a guest on this podcast.
1:42
And was a guest on this podcast.
1:44
And Laurie Eisler.
1:46
Laurie Eisler is the general manager for the University of Alberta.
1:51
Panda's volleyball team, women's team.
1:54
She is the most, I think this is a word, winningest coach in all of U of A history.
2:00
In fact, she surpassed Clare Drake.
2:02
Yes.
2:02
I think actually, if I remember correctly, she may be the winningest coach in Canadian collegiate sports.
2:10
Phenomenal.
2:11
That's what I think somebody told me that.
2:13
Anyway, you can fact check me on that one, but we're really excited because we have Dr.
2:17
Randy Gregg, we have Laurie Eisler, and we're going to be talking about leadership.
2:20
I know.
2:21
And it's going to be great.
2:21
It's going to be great.
2:22
Sold out.
2:23
Sold out.
2:24
Packed out house.
2:25
And they're bringing like trophies and all kinds of things to show off.
2:28
It's going to be a great morning.
2:29
I don't think he's bringing the Stanley Cup.
2:31
I don't think Dr.
2:32
Gregg's bringing the Stanley Cup.
2:33
That's okay.
2:34
I've seen the Stanley Cup.
2:35
Me too.
2:36
I touched it.
2:36
So did I.
2:37
I didn't get any real vibe out of it.
2:38
But anyway, some people touch it and get excited.
2:42
But I didn't get that vibe.
2:43
So I stood in line for a long time.
2:46
By the time I touched the Stanley Cup, I had to go to the bathroom, actually.
2:50
So like I just wanted to get on with it.
2:51
But anyway, so that's going to be exciting tomorrow.
2:54
It will be exciting.
2:54
Yeah, that's right.
2:56
And can I think of anything else exciting?
2:59
Not really, it's not much.
3:02
Halloween? Christmas is coming.
3:02
Halloween?
3:03
Well, Halloween first.
3:03
Oh, Halloween first.
3:04
Yeah, yeah.
3:06
I was at Costco the other day, and they had like Halloween candy on sale.
3:10
It was right next to the Christmas stuff.
3:12
It was kind of interesting.
3:13
But anyway, yeah.
3:15
Do you do trick or treat?
3:17
Do kids come to your house?
3:19
We're in a weird area.
3:20
Yeah.
3:20
So we're kind of on a main route.
3:22
So the kids kind of go around us and go into the cul-de-sac.
3:25
Yeah.
3:25
Well, in full disclosure, we turn off the lights and go for dinner.
3:29
But anyways, I'm just saying.
3:31
But anyway, we are buying some treats for the kids around us.
3:34
But that's about it.
3:34
But yeah.
3:35
And then after Halloween comes Christmas.
3:37
Well, remembrance day and then Christmas.
3:39
Oh man, I'm so not up on my holidays.
3:41
I know.
3:42
It's kind of bad.
3:44
Remembrance day this year will be, I think, more memorable.
3:48
And we should mention, because we posted it, here in Alberta, we had a terrible tragedy in Wainwright, Alberta, one of the largest Canadian forces bases in Canada.
4:00
And over the weekend, we had a terrible tragedy.
4:02
And four military members lost their life.
4:05
And many others critically injured.
4:07
Critically injured in an explosion.
4:09
And very sad, very sad, very terrible.
4:12
A very devastating, tragic event in the military in peacetime.
4:18
And so it's been a tough weekend in Alberta.
4:21
Tough weekend for the military, that kind of stuff.
4:24
But we're gonna talk about that for Remembrance Day.
4:27
We have a great guest.
4:28
We sure do.
4:28
For Remembrance Day.
4:30
So we'll do that.
4:31
But anyways, I think we should get on with today, because today's kind of exciting, actually.
4:36
It is exciting.
4:38
Our guest, Cam, do you know, now this goes back a ways.
4:42
Yeah.
4:43
This guest was our second guest on the podcast.
4:46
That's right.
4:47
Our second guest ever.
4:49
And we are now on like episode 126, 127.
4:53
So he was guest number two.
4:55
Number two.
4:56
And we're now on 126.
4:58
I know.
4:58
Wow.
5:00
And we're excited to have him, because there's a couple of reasons why we're having this guest this morning.
5:04
Number one is it's small business week here in Alberta.
5:10
Well, across Canada.
5:11
Oh, is it across Canada?
5:12
It is.
5:13
We're celebrating small businesses.
5:15
And that's exciting because there are thousands of small businesses.
5:20
The second is because this small business where we record out of every single week, The Wall Coffee Roasters is a phenomenal story of an incredible small business.
5:33
It is.
5:33
And our listeners always hear us talk about The Wall Coffee Roasters.
5:37
And Cam, because we have listeners all over the world.
5:40
All over the world.
5:41
We wanted to do the story behind The Wall Coffee Roasters.
5:45
And some of the employees behind The Wall Coffee Roasters.
5:47
We are here every week.
5:49
They graciously give us this spot.
5:51
We sit in these incredible, I sit in these incredible church pews at our table.
5:57
And you sit next to me here.
5:59
And this is a beautiful spot.
6:01
It's an incredible spot that was developed, created, built by the owner, who's our guest, our first guest this morning, Michael Wall.
6:11
Can I say owner and proprietor?
6:14
Proprietor.
6:14
Do you like that word?
6:15
I love that word.
6:16
Proprietor of this incredible small business.
6:19
So our guest this morning is Michael Wall.
6:22
Welcome, Michael.
6:23
Welcome back, Michael.
6:24
Welcome back.
6:25
Thanks for having me.
6:26
Yeah, good to have you.
6:27
124 episodes later.
6:30
Yeah, I've had to listen to almost 124 episodes.
6:33
You have.
6:33
Yes, you have.
6:34
He says that with a smirk on his face.
6:36
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
6:38
I never thought of that, actually.
6:39
He's had to listen to all of them.
6:41
That's pretty incredible, yeah.
6:43
You've watched a lot of people come around this table.
6:45
Yes, you have.
6:46
Yeah, no, it's been cool to see.
6:47
Oh, I wanted to ask you guys, but I think you kind of already kind of went into it.
6:51
What has your experience been hosting a podcast in a coffee shop?
6:55
Oh, I think it's been amazing.
6:58
I need to, you know, it's funny you asked that because this morning, somebody came while I was setting up, and they said, doesn't the noise bother you and the people talking?
7:07
And I said, actually not.
7:09
We love the ambiance of the coffee shop.
7:12
The people in the background, it's just like we're coffee and conversation.
7:16
Well and Cam, you and I have been approached by people to go into a studio to do this.
7:19
They offered us their studios and we've said no.
7:21
We said no.
7:22
We want to do it at the coffee shop.
7:23
Yeah.
7:25
I would suspect, initially, my thought was anyway, oh, there would be a bit of a fishbowl effect.
7:30
People are going to be eavesdropping, staring, but for the most part, from my vantage point behind the bar, you guys do your podcasts.
7:38
Sometimes people look, sometimes after you're done, they'll come up and chat with you.
7:41
We have a little on-air sign here that we turn on right here, a little neon on.
7:46
We should post photos of all of this.
7:48
But anyway, and so people get the hint, not all people, but most people get the hint.
7:52
But you're right, people look over, glance over, and then it just goes back to normal coffee shop life.
7:57
But I think, Michael, this place is just so inviting and comfortable for people that I think that's why so many of our guests actually say yes.
8:05
I think if we would have gone into a studio, people would have been a little more hesitant because...
8:10
Not as relaxed.
8:12
A lot of our guests have never been on a podcast before.
8:15
No, never.
8:16
And so they're all nervous and all, and they come here, we offer them a wonderful beverage from The Wall Coffee Roasters, so they get to sit here and drink a coffee or a drink of their choice, and it's awesome.
8:27
So, here's my question.
8:29
Two years ago when we had you on the podcast, you had just started.
8:32
Yeah.
8:32
The journey has been two years.
8:35
Well, actually, we'll be celebrating four years since we opened our doors next week.
8:39
Is it really?
8:39
Yeah.
8:40
Okay, well, I don't know where I was.
8:41
But were you roasting before that?
8:44
Yeah, six and a half years of roasting.
8:47
Has it been that long?
8:48
It's been, yeah.
8:49
It's kind of hard for me to wrap my head around that.
8:51
Yeah.
8:51
Yeah.
8:51
Six and a half years roasting, and then next week will be four years of the coffee shop.
8:54
Wow.
8:55
I remember the day you got the roaster.
8:57
You put the roaster in, that was pretty incredible.
8:59
And then we went through that thing called COVID.
9:02
And you did this whole thing pretty much yourself.
9:07
Yeah.
9:07
I mean, it's a lot less impressive. Pretty much yourself.
9:08
When you look at how long it took me, but there was some help at the end too.
9:13
I had a buddy come in and help me kind of push things over the finish line.
9:16
A lot of it was, yeah.
9:18
You welded, because there's some metal railing, you welded, you did carpentry, you did flooring, you did everything.
9:26
Well, I didn't do the flooring.
9:27
No, it's nice flooring.
9:28
I didn't do any tile flooring, but yeah.
9:31
Yeah.
9:32
It's beautiful.
9:33
Framing, framing out of walls, and don't look at them too close, they're a little out of square, but welding, yeah.
9:38
Everything's still holding up for you.
9:40
Yeah, no kidding.
9:40
It hasn't fallen apart at The Wall Coffee Roasters.
9:42
The plant is growing in the atrium area.
9:44
We have to take pictures of the plant.
9:46
The giant plant.
9:47
Your viewers need to see the plant.
9:48
They do need to see the plant.
9:50
Some before photos.
9:50
What do you call that plant? That's a...
9:52
Birds of Paradise. Birds of Paradise.
9:54
That thing, it's growing through the roof, through the ceiling.
9:57
Do you have pictures of it when it was just a baby plant?
9:59
Yeah.
10:00
Wow.
10:01
Okay, so six years later, looking back six years, I'm starting a coffee shop in Acheson.
10:11
Well, we didn't know at that time that it would be in Acheson, but we wanted to start a coffee shop.
10:15
But when you decided to come to Acheson, did you have naysayers saying you're in an industrial park, like this will never make it?
10:23
No, I think most of the naysayers were like, are you ever going to open the coffee shop, you know? It took a while, tick tock get on it. You're right it took a while.
10:32
And I do meet a lot of people and they say, oh, I would love to have a coffee shop one day.
10:36
And it is a common thing.
10:37
I think people have a lot of positive experiences.
10:40
There's a sense or feeling of community that goes with coffee shops.
10:43
So I think a lot of people have that idea.
10:45
So I was never offended when people said, oh, are you ever going to actually open a coffee shop.
10:50
Here we are.
10:51
Yeah, and I think Acheson, it just made sense just that we own the building.
10:55
So it was an easy on-ramp for me, a little bit risk averse.
10:59
And so being able to have the opportunity to renovate the building and then have a coffee shop be here.
11:04
We didn't know if it would work, but here we are almost four years later, and the community's kind of come around us here and supported us.
11:10
I'd say this is the jewel of Acheson.
11:12
I would agree with that.
11:13
That's an excellent, actually, what an excellent word, the jewel of Acheson.
11:17
This has become a meeting hub, not just of Acheson, but beyond.
11:22
Like there are people who come from the city and the suburbs and all over the place here, to Acheson, to the coffee shop.
11:29
Pretty incredible.
11:29
So four years later, you've opened your doors, four years, from then till now, how would you summarize this journey, this four year coffee shop journey?
11:39
I think the plants are actually a great metaphor.
11:42
It's like we didn't really know what we were doing.
11:44
And specifically with plants, if you went to my house, you would know, every plant that comes into our house dies.
11:50
And so we planted some plants here at the coffee shop.
11:53
And over time, it's just the right environment for them.
11:55
There's lots of natural light.
11:57
We just water them.
11:58
And so I think that's a good metaphor for the coffee shop.
12:00
So we didn't really know what we were doing.
12:02
You'll talk to the other staff.
12:03
The one that we hired later on, Erilyn, had the most experience, but none of us that started here had any coffee shop experience.
12:09
And so we really just hit the ground not really running, kind of limping and hoping for the best.
12:14
I like that.
12:15
I like that.
12:16
I like the honesty of that.
12:17
Exactly.
12:18
That's true.
12:19
So, since you've opened your doors, and you do have all kinds of people coming in for all kinds of reasons, I mean, it's a unique coffee shop, that's for sure.
12:32
It's a really unique coffee shop.
12:34
Why do you think people keep coming back?
12:36
I would like to think it's the way that they're treated here beyond just the product.
12:40
I think we do have a good product, and we strive to have a good experience for our customers when it comes to coffee, or the limited food options that we offer.
12:49
But I would hope it's the friendliness, and sometimes the listening ear, or the conversations that happen beyond just, yeah, hi, how are you doing?
12:58
Yeah.
12:59
Actually getting to know people, regulars become friends.
13:02
Yeah.
13:02
So I would like to think that's why, you know, we've been able to be successful.
13:06
Yeah.
13:07
I agree.
13:07
No, it's true, right?
13:08
Well, when you say listening ear, I'm just going to say it, because it's the podcast, and I'm just going to always just say it.
13:13
If you go to a Starbucks, I can guarantee you, a barista. There's no listening ear there.
13:17
is not coming out from behind the counter to sit and chat with you.
13:20
That's just guaranteed.
13:21
No.
13:21
Guaranteed.
13:22
Here, how many times have I walked in?
13:25
Michael's been sitting and chatting with somebody, having a great conversation with somebody.
13:29
People are still making the drinks behind the bar and doing all that.
13:33
And you never see that at any other coffee shop.
13:36
That's fantastic.
13:37
Yeah.
13:38
Yeah.
13:38
No, it's cool.
13:39
I think and we're not like, I mean Starbucks has a different business model.
13:42
So like they're usually pretty busy.
13:43
Like we're not insanely busy.
13:45
And so I think it does afford the opportunity for some of the staff to.
13:49
Sometimes you are.
13:49
The only reason I know that is because our office is down there and we see all the cars in the parking lot.
13:54
People can't find a place to park.
13:56
So I feel like running out and being valet parking.
13:58
Just give me your keys, I'll park for you.
14:00
But yeah, I think it's pretty cool.
14:02
I think that is a big part of what you've done here.
14:05
Is it truly folks, you need to come and experience it if you're in the area, because it really is coffee and conversation in a relaxed, a really relaxed way.
14:16
Cam, and how many of our podcast guests have come in the door, looked around and just the, almost the shock and awe on their face on how beautiful this facility is.
14:28
Again, in the middle of an industrial park and they don't expect it.
14:31
And the people that I always love to do that the most are people like Chef and some of those people that we've had on who are well versed kind of in the, I don't know, the culinary world.
14:41
Culinary world.
14:43
And they come in here and they just go, wow, this is great.
14:46
This is fantastic.
14:47
And the best story of all still is that we call it Beautiful Downtown Acheson, about the lady who came to visit her daughter, who listens to the podcast that made her bring her to Beautiful Downtown Acheson and the coffee shop.
15:01
She had to bring her here.
15:02
I thought that was great.
15:04
She wasn't disappointed in the coffee shop.
15:06
She was disappointed in the fact that there were no condos in Beautiful Downtown Acheson.
15:10
Thats right, because we call it Beautiful Downtown Acheson.
15:12
But she would love the coffee shop.
15:14
Okay, it's small business week.
15:17
Had you ever been a small businessman before this?
15:19
No, no.
15:20
I grew up in a family business that at one point would have been considered a small business.
15:25
So I was around it or adjacent to it.
15:27
Right.
15:28
But yeah, never had any business experience other than working in the family business at a younger age.
15:34
So what's been, do you think, the toughest part of opening and running a small business?
15:40
I think there's, I mean, it's twofold.
15:42
On the one hand, it would be the financial reality, but in our case, very fortunate, had a lot of generous people around us that helped us out. Good backing.
15:52
And then there's kind of the imposter syndrome, or the like, can we actually do this?
15:57
I think over time, you gain some confidence in that.
16:00
It's like, yeah, if you produce a good product and people are actually enjoying it, you're gonna find your niche and you're gonna be able to make it work.
16:09
Obviously, there's gotta be a lot of effort that's put in.
16:11
And I think that, yeah, you have to accept that, but yeah, here we are.
16:16
It's still working.
16:17
We've still been growing year over year and we're really grateful for that.
16:20
I have a question, Michael, about the coffee community because Edmonton is a huge coffee community.
16:27
Is it pretty supportive of one another?
16:29
Is there a lot of support for each other?
16:31
Yeah, the coffee community is interesting in that way.
16:34
I mean, you'll always have the odd person who views everyone as competition.
16:39
That exists everywhere, but in the coffee world, for the most part, all the roasters at Edmonton really do support each other.
16:46
And we've had...
16:47
There's times people are needing beans or something, and they'll reach out and they're like, hey, our shipment's late, can you help us out?
16:53
Or vice versa, we know we can ask them.
16:55
And I think it's a really cool relationship that we are able to share here in Edmonton with the other quote unquote competition.
17:04
Do you ever have coffee shop owner conferences, or do you go to all meet at a different coffee shop?
17:13
There has been attempts for a few of those.
17:16
Those haven't really taken off.
17:17
Yeah.
17:19
Yeah, for whatever the reason is.
17:20
Well, you're busy.
17:21
Yeah.
17:22
Yeah.
17:23
I think that it does come down to that.
17:24
People are living pretty slammed lives when they're running a business.
17:28
And you have to do everything, right?
17:31
Well, you started out being the roaster.
17:34
You were the roaster.
17:36
You ran the business.
17:37
You ordered the beans.
17:39
Yeah.
17:40
People just think that's not an easy thing, ordering the beans.
17:44
Yeah.
17:44
I mean, initially for me, it was pretty terrifying.
17:46
But as you get more comfortable, you build good relationships with importers.
17:49
Listen, I've seen Michael at the Business Costco getting his order for the week.
17:53
Yeah. I waved to him in line.
17:54
And we've been here when the beans get delivered because they have to bring him in through the big garage door on the little forklift thing and they bring him back there.
18:01
And you've had to hire staff.
18:04
Yeah.
18:04
Tell us about that.
18:05
Well, I mean, you'll have a few of them on.
18:07
Yeah, we're going to have some.
18:08
We've been so fortunate.
18:09
Like Brenden, who will be on here, you guys will be talking to him in a bit.
18:13
He has been with me from basically day one.
18:16
He took over roasting for me a couple of years in.
18:19
And ever since then, I've rarely had to roast.
18:22
He's done the vast, vast majority of all the roasting and has developed his craft.
18:26
So that's been fun to watch.
18:28
Extremely hard worker, extremely loyal.
18:30
And so we've been fortunate.
18:31
We've been able to hire people that have all been incredible employees.
18:36
We haven't had one bad experience yet.
18:38
Yeah.
18:38
Cause staffing is tough out there.
18:39
Well, yeah.
18:40
I mean, everybody will tell you right now, it's really hard to hire. Especially like hospitality, retail.
18:43
So I've been here the whole four years, pretty much, so have you, almost.
18:48
And it's not like you got big turnover happening.
18:51
If you do have turnover, it's because they either like maybe you have to go to school or get married or something like that.
18:57
It's not because it was I want to go work somewhere else.
19:01
You got a pretty loyal staff.
19:03
Yeah.
19:03
And I think it's not like that we haven't figured it out.
19:08
So I don't want to overstate this, but I think if you take care of your staff and you care about them, and they can see that, oh, the bottom line here is not that this coffee shop wants to just be profitable.
19:20
So if you have some margin, it's like, can we give you a raise?
19:23
Or can we elevate the amount of responsibility that you have here?
19:28
So there's been that kind of mindset where we've been playing around with what does it look like to not even have, like I'm the quote unquote owner, but what does it look like for us to all have equal power and responsibility within the company?
19:38
So that's been fun to watch.
19:39
And I think that's part of the reason why people are still here.
19:43
I think you've done a phenomenal job, Michael, and I've known you, well, pretty much all your life, in and out of your life.
19:50
I've known you.
19:51
I think you've done a phenomenal job.
19:53
And I think one of the true tale signs of you doing a phenomenal job with your coffee shop, Wall Coffee Roasters, is you can go away, and this thing still runs like clockwork.
20:05
Yeah.
20:05
And I think that's the true tell sign of a really good leader.
20:10
Because some leaders go away and the thing falls apart.
20:13
Like, literally.
20:14
You can go away, you and your family on a vacation, whatever it might be, this thing.
20:19
I mean, I don't see all the behind the scenes, so maybe they're phoning you every 10 minutes, going, I don't know what to do.
20:24
But for the most part, it runs like clockwork.
20:27
No, yeah, I think I finally got to a place where that was the reality before.
20:32
But it took me a while to be like, oh, I'm able to leave.
20:35
Like, I would have that sense of responsibility, or I'd feel guilty, or I'd feel bad.
20:40
Or some like staff have to do things that normally I would be doing.
20:42
Right.
20:43
And I think on their side of things, they're like, get out of here.
20:46
We actually need a break from you. We can do this.
20:49
Yeah, we can do this.
20:50
It's not actually rocket science or that complicated.
20:52
Yeah.
20:53
But you've done it.
20:54
And I think in small businesses, that is a model of leadership right there, I think.
21:00
And you've obviously invested in mentoring your staff.
21:03
Well, and I think as an owner proprietor, I think that's really important to do because if not, you can completely burn yourself out if you are doing it all all the time, 24-7.
21:13
That's right.
21:14
And you also take, I'm just going to say this, I don't know if I should be letting these cats out of the bag, but I'm going to, you take every Friday off.
21:22
Now you work Saturday, but you take every, and you're closed on Sunday, but you take every Friday off to be with your family.
21:28
Yeah.
21:28
And be with your kids.
21:30
And I know because I've seen you in here the odd Friday, and I give you a hard time about that because I know that that's very sacred to you.
21:36
And that's very important.
21:38
I think as a small business owner, I know there's some listening going, well, I could never do that, my business.
21:43
No, you do it.
21:45
Yeah.
21:45
Yeah.
21:45
I think one of the, and yes, are we missing out on business on a Sunday?
21:50
It's like, yeah, we are.
21:52
But I think for us, it was like a non-negotiable, hey, we have to have one day a week for sure that we're closed down.
21:59
And I suspect that if you did that, the fear of losing out on those, I actually don't think it would have as big of an impact as people think.
22:09
Well, because here we are four years later.
22:13
I'm like, we're thriving.
22:14
Yeah, we're growing.
22:15
We're continuing to grow.
22:16
And there's that small chain down the road called Chick-fil-A.
22:21
Right.
22:21
They do the same thing.
22:22
They're closed on Sunday.
22:23
Ever tried to go to Chick-fil-A on Sunday?
22:25
But they're not losing business.
22:26
They're not.
22:26
They're the number one fast food restaurant in North America.
22:33
And they closed on Sundays.
22:35
I know this, because I've accidentally driven there on a Sunday.
22:38
You told me I'm going to Chick-fil-A, but I forgot it's closed.
22:40
I lived in Oklahoma for a bit.
22:42
Yes, you did.
22:42
And I frequented Chick-fil-A.
22:44
Yeah.
22:45
And embarrassingly, I'm at, like, a ton.
22:48
But the, I've...
22:49
You and John Chris, the comedian.
22:50
I probably had, like, at least five instances in the two years I lived there where I sat in the drive-thru waiting for someone to talk to me, not realizing it was Sunday.
22:58
That's right.
22:59
And finally feeling extremely embarrassed.
23:01
It happened again.
23:03
Going through and thinking, oh, it's quieter today.
23:05
Folks, if you come to the Wall Coffee Shop on a Sunday and are sitting in the parking lot thinking, I wonder when it's going to open.
23:11
It's not.
23:12
It's not.
23:13
But there's reason for that.
23:14
And I love your theory on that, your thinking on that.
23:18
I think it's fantastic.
23:20
And you have done it, Michael.
23:22
I get to say this, because I'm kind of like family.
23:24
I'm just so proud of you.
23:26
Like, I really am.
23:27
Like, I probably don't tell you that enough.
23:29
I'm just so proud of you in what you've done here.
23:32
And I know you've had a lot of people barking up your tree, saying, open another one.
23:39
I got a space for you downtown.
23:41
Open another one.
23:42
And you've stuck, you've really stuck true to your values, to what you think is right.
23:48
And I think to your business plan.
23:50
And I think that's phenomenal.
23:52
Thank you.
23:52
Yeah, I appreciate it.
23:53
And so this morning, we get to talk to some of Michael's staff.
23:58
I know.
23:58
That he's hired.
24:00
And you can get the truth out of them too.
24:02
Feel free to ask whenever you want.
24:03
That's right.
24:04
So awesome.
24:05
So thank you, Michael.
24:06
Thank you, Michael.
24:06
And yeah, we're gonna in just a second here, we're gonna bring, is it Brenden in?
24:10
I think Brenden is next.
24:11
Is gonna come in.
24:12
All right.
24:12
You bet.
24:13
Thanks, Michael.
24:14
Some of the employees that make the Wall Coffee Roaster, what it is.
24:18
And Michael said they could tell the truth.
24:20
He said we could ask anything.
24:21
We could ask anything we want.
24:22
So we'll ask anything we want.
24:24
So we are very privileged to have with us one of the long time and almost original staff, if not...
24:33
Oh, he's an OG.
24:34
Yeah, he's an OG.
24:35
Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah.
24:36
I know he's been around forever.
24:38
We're happy to have Brenden with us today.
24:40
Brenden, welcome.
24:41
Yeah, well, thanks.
24:42
Good to have you.
24:42
Thanks for having me.
24:43
All right, let's start from the beginning.
24:44
Okay.
24:45
So because we had Michael before, we didn't have to ask this question.
24:49
Right.
24:49
But for Brenden, where did you grow up, Brenden?
24:52
Where are you from?
24:52
So I grew up in Mission, which is an hour east of Vancouver.
24:57
That's right.
24:58
In there.
24:58
Yeah.
24:59
So coming to Alberta, we moved about five years ago.
25:04
So that was a bit of an eye-opening experience.
25:07
Were you raised in Mission?
25:08
Yeah.
25:09
Oh, so you're a Mission boy.
25:11
Yeah. Yeah.
25:11
Okay.
25:13
I never lived, I lived in Abbotsford.
25:14
I never lived in Surrey, but I lived in New West, but you'd all have to go by Mission to get to Abbotsford.
25:20
You're pretty much in Mission.
25:21
Yeah.
25:22
Yeah, exactly.
25:22
Okay.
25:23
Cool.
25:23
Five years ago, you moved to Alberta.
25:25
Yeah.
25:27
Shock?
25:28
Were you like, minus 40?
25:29
What am I doing?
25:30
They don't have that in Mission.
25:31
No.
25:32
No.
25:33
No, it was a bit of an adjustment.
25:35
Would you say there was a cultural adjustment?
25:38
A temperature adjustment, for sure. Temperature for sure.
25:41
Yeah.
25:41
A bit of a cultural adjustment.
25:42
Yeah.
25:43
I think Albertans, I always noticed, and I was raised in Alberta, born and raised in Alberta, then lived in Vancouver for many, many years.
25:51
I always came back, I always felt there was a bit of a cultural difference.
25:53
Yeah.
25:54
Whether you want to call it the red neck attitude or whatever, it was just anyway.
25:58
Anyway, so okay, you moved to Alberta.
25:59
Yeah.
26:00
And did you know you were going to come work at The Wall Coffee Roasters?
26:04
No.
26:04
So we just kind of, so my wife got an internship at the Children's Hospital here.
26:08
So we kind of decided, kay, we're going to go to Alberta.
26:11
We'll see kind of how things go.
26:13
Yeah.
26:14
And so I know Michael back in BC.
26:16
Yeah.
26:16
We had been going to Bible College together.
26:19
And so he was the only person I knew in Edmonton.
26:22
So I just called him up and said, Hey, like, I'm here.
26:25
Do you want to hang out?
26:26
Or like, can I come live at your house?
26:30
No.
26:30
Yeah.
26:31
All right.
26:32
So you connected.
26:33
Yeah.
26:33
And then we both, we both had a love for coffee, which was good.
26:38
So he was at the time, he was looking for someone to help him roast.
26:42
Yeah.
26:42
And I had kind of been as a hobby learning about roasting.
26:45
Okay.
26:45
Let's talk about that first. Tell us about that.
26:46
Because that's an interesting story. A hobby.
26:49
So when you were in Mission in BC, did you work at a coffee shop?
26:53
No.
26:54
So I've never worked at a coffee shop prior to this.
26:56
But you had a great interest in coffee.
26:58
Yeah.
26:58
That came later in life.
27:01
So growing up, my family is very tall.
27:03
I'm quite short.
27:04
So I was told that coffee stunts your growth.
27:07
So I never had coffee until I was in my 20s.
27:11
Look what happened.
27:13
So for those who are listening, that myth is totally debunked by Brenden.
27:16
But don't you remember that myth?
27:18
My mom and grandma told me that all the time.
27:20
I know.
27:20
As a kid, why couldn't you drink coffee?
27:21
I know.
27:21
I wanted a sip.
27:22
No, no, it will stunt your growth.
27:23
Here I am, 5'6, and shrinking.
27:25
And so yeah.
27:26
Yeah.
27:26
So I was 20 and I was like, I'm guessing this groth spurt is not coming.
27:30
It's not happening.
27:31
So I decided, you know what?
27:33
I'm going to start drinking coffee.
27:34
Yeah.
27:34
Yeah.
27:34
Yeah.
27:34
Yeah.
27:35
And then I was living in Vancouver for a little bit, and I lived in a community house with a bunch of different people.
27:41
And so some of the people in that house were super into coffee.
27:44
And so they kind of made me go down the rabbit hole.
27:47
And yeah.
27:48
Well, let's be honest, Vancouver area has huge coffee culture.
27:53
Huge.
27:53
Like you could go to a different coffee shop every weekend if you wanted to.
27:58
Oh, yeah for sure.
27:58
Just massive.
27:59
Yeah.
28:00
But in Alberta, I don't think quite caught on quite as quick.
28:03
Yeah.
28:03
But it's definitely growing.
28:05
Okay.
28:05
So you moved here.
28:07
But you decided you were going to, you were getting into coffee.
28:12
Yeah.
28:12
So I decided, I mean, as you go further and further down the rabbit hole, I decided, okay, I want to start roasting my own coffee.
28:19
Yeah.
28:20
Can you do this?
28:21
And so I bought a little air roaster.
28:23
So if you know those old air popcorn makers?
28:26
Yeah.
28:27
Basically, it's like a converted one to roast coffee.
28:30
Really?
28:30
And so my wife and I, we were in a 500 square foot apartment.
28:34
And so I had it underneath the hood fan of my oven and try to roast this.
28:38
So you were roasting coffee?
28:39
Yeah.
28:39
So I set off the fire alarm a couple of times, but our apartment smelt great.
28:44
Yeah.
28:45
I bet it did.
28:46
Okay.
28:47
Really?
28:47
So you were roasting, where you bought beans?
28:51
Yeah.
28:52
Found different places online.
28:53
Amazon.
28:54
You can buy green beans on Amazon.
28:56
I didn't know that actually.
28:57
Okay.
28:58
And you were roasting.
28:59
And as you were roasting, as this was your hobby, did you like actually perfect it?
29:04
Like, did you get to a point where you and your wife were like, this is great coffee.
29:08
Yeah.
29:09
I mean, there's with a, with an air popcorn.
29:14
There's only the ceiling is only so high.
29:16
Yeah.
29:17
But, but actually like it was, it was pretty good.
29:20
Pretty good.
29:20
Yeah.
29:20
We're looking over here at the big roaster.
29:22
Yeah.
29:23
Like the little air roaster.
29:24
Okay.
29:25
Did you guys like roast your coffee?
29:27
Did you kind of like then sit around and sip and bring out all the nuances and talk about all that kind of stuff and how we could do this different?
29:36
Were you really getting into it?
29:37
Yeah.
29:37
I had a whole Excel spreadsheet.
29:39
Oh my goodness.
29:40
All the different things.
29:41
Come on.
29:41
This is great.
29:42
Yeah.
29:42
But the funny thing is my wife, she doesn't like coffee.
29:46
So she just let me do my own thing.
29:47
That's funny.
29:49
Some people hunt and fish and you do.
29:52
Okay.
29:53
So that's just amazing.
29:56
That's so great, I think.
29:57
I just think that's great.
29:59
You know what it reminds me of is our guest from Flatboy Burgers.
30:03
Oh, Dan Cote-Rosen.
30:05
Who started doing Smash Burgers in his apartment.
30:08
Yeah, in his apartment.
30:09
That's what he started.
30:10
This is another one of those stories.
30:11
I love this story.
30:12
This is great.
30:13
Okay.
30:13
So then you moved to Edmonton.
30:15
Yeah.
30:15
Phone up Michael.
30:16
To hang out.
30:16
Yeah, to hang out and find out he's into coffee.
30:19
Well, you knew he was into coffee.
30:20
A little bit.
30:21
Yeah.
30:21
Did you know, so he told you he was doing this?
30:24
Yeah.
30:24
So he said, come look at the space or whatever.
30:27
So I came and at the time he was roasting coffee, selling it online, but he was looking to actually hire a roaster to help him out.
30:34
Okay.
30:35
Yeah.
30:35
And so I was like, well, I don't have a job right now.
30:38
And I'm like, I'm interested.
30:39
I've done this in my apartment.
30:41
You are an experienced roaster.
30:43
Yeah.
30:44
Which, roasting on that, there's like no comparison to actually roasting on it.
30:48
Did you, were you straight forward?
30:50
Did you come clean and say my roaster was like a modified air popper?
30:54
Like, is that?
30:54
Oh yeah.
30:55
Yeah.
30:55
Yeah.
30:56
Roasting with an air popper, I love that.
30:58
Completely different concept.
30:59
Yeah.
30:59
Yeah.
31:00
Totally.
31:00
I was interested.
31:01
Yeah.
31:01
So basically he just let me try and practice.
31:04
Yeah.
31:05
Yeah.
31:06
So that was really cool.
31:07
Because it's hard to kind of find space or to have people that will.
31:11
Yeah.
31:11
Will let you try with hundreds of dollars of coffee in a roaster.
31:15
And okay.
31:15
So for our listeners and most of us, I think take it for granted that we either come to a coffee shop and order a latte or a cappuccino or whatever it is.
31:24
And that's as far as sort of our thinking goes in terms of, we don't think beyond where did the beans come from.
31:31
Right.
31:31
We might hear, well, these came from Africa or wherever. Brazil or yeah.
31:35
But we don't think of that in between process of what goes into roasting a bean.
31:40
Yeah.
31:40
And it's very intricate.
31:41
It's a science.
31:42
Right?
31:42
It's a science.
31:44
Yeah.
31:44
It's a little bit of like a science and a bit of an art.
31:47
Yeah.
31:48
Yeah.
31:48
Yeah.
31:49
So basically how it works for us is like, we work with different importers.
31:53
So they'll send us samples of different coffee and they'll have pre-roasted it or sometimes we'll roast it.
31:59
So then you kind of taste coffee, find out what you like, but also you got to think, okay, what is your customer like?
32:06
Right.
32:06
Right.
32:06
Which isn't always the same thing.
32:08
That you like.
32:09
And then so we kind of get a picture and a profile of what that coffee is, and then we order some.
32:14
And then we, it's called profile roast that coffee.
32:17
So we kind of get, learn as much as we can about that specific bean.
32:22
So, you know, the country it's from, how it gets processed.
32:27
Sometimes there's different like tasting notes or the variety of, all these different factors play in the elevation it was grown at.
32:36
So coffee grown at a higher elevation will likely be fruitier.
32:41
Coffee grown at like lower elevation.
32:43
Okay, well, folks, are you hearing this?
32:45
Because most of us just come in and order that coffee and drink it back.
32:50
We have no concept or idea of what has gone in.
32:54
I mean, in a coffee place like The Wall or other coffee places, we have no idea.
32:59
Like you're talking about the science of the bean to create a great coffee.
33:04
Yeah.
33:05
How do you get the beans?
33:06
The beans come in a sack.
33:08
I've seen them come in a sack.
33:09
And they're green, are they, for the most part?
33:12
Yes, they're green.
33:12
So coffee is actually, so it's a cherry.
33:15
And then inside the cherry are the beans, which are the seeds.
33:20
And so then basically it's the process is they get picked while they're ripe.
33:25
And then they go through some form of either like a de-pulping process to get the beans out.
33:32
And then they get processed a couple of different ways.
33:37
We need to do a whole podcast on this.
33:41
I know, it's fascinating.
33:42
I had no clue.
33:43
We could talk to Brenden for, I think, for a very long time about this.
33:47
And we're trying, we have a specific plan here, talk about The Wall and small business and all that, but this is fascinating.
33:54
And the fact that he started still with an air pop, a popcorn air popper doing this is fascinating.
34:01
Okay, so yeah, so we'll need to do, I think we should do another podcast on this.
34:05
Oh, I agree.
34:06
Okay, so you started working for Michael.
34:08
He got you roasting.
34:10
You were learning.
34:12
You were in the learning phase.
34:13
Yeah.
34:14
How was that?
34:14
Is that a huge learning curve?
34:16
Different from obviously from your air popper, this is a huge learning curve.
34:20
Yeah, so it was a bit, definitely a bit of a learning curve on, then you have to learn your specific roaster as well.
34:27
Yeah.
34:28
So that was a, but luckily, as a small business, you're not, there's not a huge demand early on, which is helpful to gain skills. To gain skills.
34:38
Were you roasting on the little roaster or the big roaster?
34:41
Yeah.
34:41
So we have, we started with the little one.
34:44
It's not little, but it's...
34:45
Yeah.
34:46
So it's just one and a half kilograms of coffee at a time.
34:48
Okay.
34:49
And then we would get big orders and it would take us like three or four days to do it.
34:54
So then we ended up buying a larger roaster, which does 10 kilograms of coffee at a time.
34:59
Because the thing people need to know is the Wall Coffee Roaster, you can order online.
35:03
Yeah.
35:03
Right?
35:03
Yes, you can.
35:04
And you'll send it to them.
35:05
Yeah.
35:05
Locally.
35:06
Locally.
35:07
Around Edmonton area.
35:09
Okay.
35:09
For our listeners who aren't local, well, send them an email.
35:13
Maybe convince them to send it to you in Zimbabwe.
35:16
Well, they probably don't eat it in Zimbabwe.
35:18
But you know what I mean?
35:20
Like Winnipeg or something.
35:21
So, if you're, say you're roasting a one kilogram bag, how long is that process to roast?
35:28
Yeah.
35:28
So for a roast for us is usually somewhere between 12 to 13 minutes, depending on the.
35:33
Really?
35:34
Yeah.
35:34
So it's not super, super long as a lot of people think it's like hours.
35:39
But I would just like to say we get to enjoy the aroma of your roasting.
35:45
If you go outside of our office quite often and you're roasting, it's just a wonderful aroma of coffee.
35:50
I love the smell of coffee.
35:51
I do too.
35:52
Now, the only downside is, is here in Acheson, if the pet food factory is roasting, cooking yes, that's not a good smell.
36:01
But if the Wall is roasting and the pet food is roasting, in my opinion, the Wall outpowers the pet food and it's a nicer smell.
36:09
That's right.
36:09
That's my opinion.
36:10
I won't talk about the other place.
36:11
No, we won't talk about the other.
36:13
It's a distinct smell that you can only experience in Acheson.
36:15
Yes.
36:16
This is true.
36:17
I love it.
36:17
Distinct.
36:18
So you're working for Michael now, you're doing some roasting, you're learning the processes, you're kind of at the ground floor of The Wall Coffee Roasters.
36:26
Yeah.
36:28
What are you thinking?
36:28
Are you thinking, this is a great place, I want to be here a long time, or it's a learn and run, or what are you thinking here?
36:35
Yeah, I think, well, at the time, I also ended up helping him do the renovations.
36:40
That's right.
36:40
Yeah.
36:41
Which, so being there from the beginning.
36:44
And I think, like, for me, I also part of, I went to school to become a pastor, so I think for me, a big heart is always to care for people.
36:54
Right.
36:55
Yeah.
36:55
And so this space has been a really unique space to connect with people.
37:00
I mean, just one story that stands out to me is before we opened at Genics, they had someone that was very significant and loved pass away.
37:09
Yeah.
37:10
And the very first people we actually got to serve were the people from that funeral.
37:13
That's right.
37:14
And so I was here.
37:15
That was, in some ways, that's kind of been part of getting to do this, is getting to be part of people's story.
37:22
Yeah.
37:23
Coffee is a very communal product.
37:27
Yeah.
37:27
Well, it's like we said with Michael, just before you, we said, there's not too many coffee shops where the baristas are going to come out from behind the bar and sit and have a conversation with you when they're able to do that.
37:38
Like that's what makes The Wall Coffee Roasters unique.
37:42
And special.
37:42
And special.
37:43
In that, yeah, it's just, that's what you guys do.
37:47
And I think it's fantastic.
37:49
So have you been promoted since being here?
37:52
Are you?
37:52
Head Roaster?
37:53
Are you that?
37:54
I get the promotion of the title without any other responsibility.
37:59
Good deal.
38:00
That's right.
38:01
What is your title?
38:02
Your title is?
38:03
Yeah, Head Roaster.
38:04
Head Roaster of The Wall.
38:05
Yeah.
38:06
That's a big deal.
38:07
I do all the roasting pretty much at this stage.
38:08
Yeah, you do.
38:09
That's a big deal.
38:10
Yeah.
38:10
And then we get to interact some of the wholesale customers.
38:13
So I think that's been encouraging.
38:15
So here's the question, because Michael said we could ask any question.
38:18
Okay.
38:19
What's it like working for Michael?
38:24
The thought, the hesitation.
38:27
He can't fire you.
38:28
You know that.
38:28
So we're just kidding.
38:30
Just kidding.
38:30
Well, I'll say in the renovations, I ended up cutting through a pipe and flooding the basement.
38:35
So if he didn't fire me then.
38:36
He did fire him.
38:37
Oh, he did?
38:37
No, he didn't.
38:38
He didn't.
38:38
No, he got to stay on.
38:40
If he didn't at that point, I don't think he will at this point.
38:41
He got to stay on.
38:42
If he flooded the place.
38:43
Yeah.
38:44
I was going to say, yeah.
38:46
No, I think for people that spend any time with Michael, they can tell that he really cares about people and more than just simply running a business.
38:56
But how do we actually run this in a way that is benefiting other people?
39:01
You too, you're the same, and which I think that's why there's a great synergy there.
39:05
Yeah.
39:05
Is that you care about people.
39:07
You do, and I've watched you many times sit at a table with someone and you're in a conversation that's obviously a life conversation.
39:15
Yeah.
39:15
I think that's fantastic.
39:16
That's really amazing.
39:18
I think that's awesome.
39:19
Yeah.
39:20
Wow.
39:21
Okay.
39:21
What's next for Brenden at The Wall Coffee Roaster?
39:23
You're the head roaster now.
39:25
Yeah.
39:27
Oh wait, there's something I want to bring up for our listeners because they might not know that you do coffee tastings.
39:33
Yes.
39:33
Yeah.
39:34
Tell us what that is.
39:35
That's right.
39:35
Yeah.
39:36
So we've been trying to do that a little bit more frequently.
39:39
Yeah.
39:40
Usually once every couple of months, but we just do coffee tasting.
39:45
It's something that's actually free.
39:46
We just put out registration and so we can only take 10 people at a time.
39:51
Right.
39:52
But similar, it's also great to have a little bit more space to talk about the coffee.
39:58
But we found one of the greatest experiences is actually getting to taste coffee with other people together.
40:03
So we did it.
40:04
We did it.
40:04
I love it.
40:05
You know why?
40:05
And it was great.
40:06
Because you get the slurp.
40:08
Yeah.
40:08
That's right.
40:10
And then you get the spit.
40:12
And you slurp and spit.
40:13
And slurp and spit.
40:14
I love that.
40:15
It's really cool, actually.
40:16
But I learned a lot.
40:17
I did learn a lot.
40:18
It was amazing, actually.
40:19
So they can go to the website and check.
40:21
Yeah, we don't have any at this moment.
40:24
Coming up.
40:25
Coming up in the next couple months.
40:26
What is the website?
40:28
Better tell us.
40:30
www.thewallcoffeeroasters.com And you're on all the social medias.
40:32
Yeah, all the social medias.
40:33
And you have a great guy who's actually filming us right now, Kaden, who does a lot of your video stuff.
40:38
He's standing over our shoulder over here.
40:39
That's right.
40:39
He does incredible work.
40:40
He does incredible video work.
40:43
He's not even listening because I just looked over at him and he's like off in space, but he's videoing this.
40:49
But anyway, that's been such a great space, too.
40:52
Yeah, just to be able to tell the story of what we're doing, but also just other people within the community getting to highlight that.
40:58
Brenden, you do a great job.
41:00
You're a great guy.
41:01
You really are.
41:02
And I mean that really sincerely.
41:04
What I love most about you is I think you're just genuine.
41:07
And I really love that.
41:08
And I can come in here and there can be nobody in here and just a great little chat or if it's busy, you don't treat me or anybody else like I don't got time.
41:19
You make you feel like you got time for all of us.
41:21
I think it's pretty cool.
41:22
Thanks for putting up with us for 127 episodes.
41:25
I know.
41:26
And so folks, a lot of times when you hear in the background, you might hear a noise while we're taping an episode.
41:34
And we say we want to do it in the Wall Coffee Roasters.
41:37
I was telling Michael, I had somebody earlier today stand here and go, why don't you do it in a studio?
41:41
No, we love the ambiance.
41:43
So oftentimes you'll be roasting, and I guess you have to use like a vacuum or something in there. *Whirring sounds* You do hear it.
41:50
And I don't care because it's just part of it.
41:53
And I think it's fantastic.
41:54
I think it's really great.
41:55
Yeah, I appreciate it.
41:56
Thanks for being awesome.
41:57
Thanks for everything you do.
41:59
And we get to talk to one more employee.
42:01
That's right.
42:01
Coming up.
42:02
Thanks.
42:02
Thank you.
42:05
Well, that conversation with Brenden was phenomenal.
42:09
And we're going to, like I say, we're going to have to do just a whole episode on roasting coffee.
42:13
I agree.
42:13
Because that is phenomenal.
42:14
The science of it.
42:15
There's so much to it.
42:16
That goes in, that makes a great cup of coffee is absolutely incredible.
42:19
Yes.
42:20
So yeah, so we'll have to, yeah, we'll have to do that.
42:22
But, so we've had the owner, founder, owner.
42:25
Proprietor.
42:26
Proprietor.
42:27
I love that word.
42:27
The proprietor.
42:28
That's right.
42:29
Of The Wall Coffee Roasters, Michael Wall.
42:31
We've had Brenden.
42:32
Yes.
42:33
Head roaster.
42:34
Head roaster.
42:35
And now.
42:37
Now we have the person who runs the place.
42:39
She runs the place and she's the creative mind behind the drinks.
42:42
That's right.
42:43
That are served at The Wall Coffee Roaster.
42:46
Let's welcome Erilyn.
42:49
Good to have you, Erilyn.
42:50
Thanks for having me, hi guys Yeah, this is awesome.
42:52
Okay.
42:53
So we need to learn a little bit about Erilyn.
42:56
Okay.
42:57
Where did you grow up, Erilyn?
42:59
I grew up mostly in Lethbridge, Alberta. Oooh a Lethbridge girl.
43:02
Oh, southern Alberta.
43:04
Okay.
43:04
The windy city.
43:05
The windy city.
43:06
Yeah.
43:06
Oh my gosh.
43:07
Very windy.
43:08
Yeah.
43:08
Right.
43:09
Yes.
43:10
And you say mostly.
43:11
So.
43:12
Yeah.
43:13
I was born in Stony Plain.
43:15
Really?
43:16
Just down the road?
43:17
Yeah.
43:17
Just down the road.
43:18
Did you know this?
43:19
No, I did not know this.
43:21
And then you moved to Lethbridge.
43:22
And then, yeah, we were in Edmonton at the time.
43:24
Oh, okay.
43:25
Mostly Edmonton for a while.
43:27
And then most of my childhood was in Lethbridge.
43:29
Okay.
43:30
All right.
43:31
You went to school there, graduated there.
43:33
Yeah.
43:33
Yeah.
43:34
Pretty much.
43:34
And then after grade 12, you?
43:37
Then I moved back up here.
43:38
Moved to Edmonton.
43:39
To Edmonton.
43:40
Yeah.
43:40
Just because you needed to get back to the big city or?
43:43
Maybe.
43:43
Yeah.
43:44
It was essentially, I was like, oh, I kind of want to just go.
43:48
Yeah.
43:48
And do something.
43:49
You need to change.
43:49
Yeah.
43:50
Yeah.
43:50
So I did, initially it was for school.
43:52
I did a year at Vanguard Bible College.
43:53
Oh, okay.
43:54
Yeah.
43:54
Yeah.
43:55
Cool.
43:55
And you specialize, your specialization was in music.
44:00
It was.
44:00
Yeah.
44:01
I did a certificate in worship arts.
44:02
I'm just going to say it, because I got to say it. I know you have to! Erilyn is an opera singer.
44:06
I know.
44:07
She sings opera.
44:09
I think it's actually classical.
44:12
Classical opera.
44:16
I don't know very much about opera. i think you just like saying opera.
44:20
I like the word opera.
44:21
I think, okay, because I'm trying to convince Erilyn here at the coffee shop to have an opera afternoon where people would come in and she would sing as she's making the coffee.
44:32
As I'm, oh, so both at the same time.
44:34
Can you do that?
44:35
Or that'd be tough.
44:36
That'd be tough.
44:37
That'd be hard, I think.
44:37
You know what? I could try.
44:38
She could sing while people are enjoying their coffee.
44:40
That's right.
44:41
Like every half hour, she could just break into song.
44:45
We'd all sit and sip and listen and be whatever.
44:47
You're so cultured.
44:48
I know opera.
44:50
Anyway, so you moved back to Edmonton, you went to college, then what?
44:57
Then I worked for a while.
45:00
I worked at a church with the kids' ministry.
45:05
I worked at a youth center as well in the city.
45:09
That was my first time working with youth, and that was an incredible experience as well.
45:14
Then I worked at a coffee shop.
45:16
That's where it kinda comes in.
45:17
Yeah, so we talked about, she is the one with the coffee experience.
45:23
That's right.
45:24
She was versed in the understanding of coffee.
45:28
I know.
45:28
Shop running.
45:29
Okay, so Erilyn, where was your job?
45:31
What coffee shop? Are we allowed to say that?
45:33
Sure.
45:33
Okay, yeah, sure, yeah, yeah, we can say it.
45:36
We talked to Michael, talked about the support of coffee community.
45:38
That's true.
45:39
Yeah, so you worked for?
45:41
Okay, yeah, I worked for the Colombian Coffee Roasters.
45:44
Yeah, they're cool.
45:46
Yeah, great coffee.
45:47
Yeah, we've been there.
45:48
We have.
45:49
We've been to the Colombia Coffee Roasters.
45:50
Yeah, that's pretty.
45:51
How long did you work there?
45:53
I think it was maybe just over two years or almost two years.
45:58
So you were there for a while.
45:59
Yeah, it was a decent amount of time there.
46:01
So before you worked at Colombia Coffee Roasters, did you like coffee?
46:05
This is always a question.
46:06
Because we find out with Brenden that when he lived in Mission, he was roasting beans with a modified air popcorn popper thing. Yeah I've heard this.
46:14
But his wife didn't like coffee.
46:15
His wife didn't like coffee.
46:17
Did you like coffee?
46:20
So I did, but not to the extent that I do now, which I think is kind of what happens when you get into kind of the specialty coffee scene before, like you would never catch me drinking like a black drip coffee or a pour over.
46:33
I was like, why? Where's the milk.
46:36
I needed something else with my coffee.
46:39
But now, I'm like, there's so much that you can, like coffee can be so complex.
46:45
Yeah.
46:46
Which I just didn't understand before because I wasn't, I guess, into coffee before.
46:49
When you were at Colombian, did you sort of get a new appreciation?
46:53
Absolutely.
46:53
Or because they're like Michael, they roast and they're really into it.
46:58
Yeah, they source great coffee.
47:00
So yeah, I remember the first coffee that I tried.
47:03
It was a pour-over.
47:04
And I was like, this is coffee?
47:06
Like it tasted completely different from what I had previously.
47:11
Okay, you're drinking black coffee.
47:12
Like it did totally different from what I had experienced.
47:17
So yeah, that was really exciting.
47:18
And so I was like, oh, coffee can taste like this.
47:19
What's a pour-over?
47:20
A pour-over, so it's essentially like, think of drip coffee.
47:24
So it's like you're brewing a lot, big amounts.
47:29
Kind of, you can just serve it and go.
47:31
Pour-over, you make it by the serving.
47:35
So you use like a- It's cool to watch when you guys make it.
47:37
Cause you're like, it's like a little funnel, filter thing, and you're pouring and you do it really slow.
47:42
It's really awesome.
47:43
Yeah, exactly.
47:44
I had a pour-over last week of their new beans.
47:46
Oh! Oh yeah, you did.
47:47
It was really good.
47:49
Yeah, it was great.
47:50
Yeah, where was I?
47:51
How come?
47:51
Anyway, whatever.
47:52
All right, I just wanted to know where I was.
47:54
I would like that too.
47:55
But anyways.
47:56
You can try one later.
47:56
Yeah, I'll try one later.
47:57
They never bring me anymore.
48:02
Okay, so you're at Columbian.
48:03
You're learning all this about coffee.
48:05
Yeah.
48:07
And then you leave Columbian.
48:09
Did you leave to come to The Wall or did you just?
48:12
Well, essentially because, so before I worked at The Colombian, I knew Michael and Lauren already.
48:19
Okay.
48:19
Yeah.
48:20
I had connections with them.
48:21
And so they were like, yeah, we're opening up a coffee shop.
48:23
This would have been back in 2021.
48:25
Oh yeah.
48:26
Or 2022 when they opened.
48:27
Back in the day.
48:29
And I was like, oh my gosh, that would be so awesome.
48:30
I would love to work at a coffee shop.
48:32
Yeah.
48:32
That would be so cool.
48:34
Initially, they were only offering part-time.
48:36
Right.
48:36
And so I needed full-time.
48:37
Right.
48:38
Maybe it'll work out later on or whatever.
48:42
And so I didn't really think about it.
48:44
And then I started working at The Colombian.
48:46
It was great.
48:46
Got experience.
48:48
And then, yeah, randomly Lauren reached out and was like, hey, are you looking for a full-time job?
48:55
We actually have availability.
48:56
Cool.
48:57
Yeah.
48:58
And you showed up.
48:59
They asked if I was interested and I was like, yeah.
49:00
I remember your first day.
49:01
Yeah.
49:02
I thought, who's that?
49:03
Yeah.
49:05
And what did you think about coming out to an industrial park each and every day?
49:09
Because it is a little different environment than the Colombian.
49:12
Yes, it is.
49:12
Like a little different.
49:13
Yeah.
49:14
Yeah, quite different.
49:16
Yeah.
49:17
I had been here maybe once or twice before I started working here.
49:20
But I just remember thinking, like, do people come here?
49:23
I know.
49:25
Yeah, that's what everybody said.
49:26
In an industrial park?
49:27
Yeah.
49:27
I'm like, wait, you guys make customers?
49:29
Yeah.
49:29
No, it's a very interesting area.
49:31
But I think it's, like I know Michael has said, like, to come here, you have to be very intentional.
49:37
Yeah.
49:38
Which I think kind of helps with the way that community is kind of created here.
49:43
Like, it's very, like we try to be, like, an intentional community-driven space, and I think that really helps with it.
49:49
I like using the term for the coffee shop, The Wall Coffee Roasters.
49:52
It's a destination point, a destination spot.
49:55
In other words, you purposely go there.
49:58
You're not just driving down the road and you see a coffee shop, I'm gonna stop there.
50:02
And when you get here, it's a destination.
50:05
Yeah, absolutely.
50:07
It's a cool destination.
50:08
Okay, so you come, you start working for Michael, and how was that?
50:13
Good?
50:14
He said we can ask anything we want.
50:17
He's like, oh.
50:18
I don't know, this guy, no.
50:20
Just so you know, he doesn't get to filter this podcast.
50:24
Nobody gets to edit or filter our podcast.
50:26
Okay, so yeah.
50:28
No, it's been great.
50:29
Yeah, honestly, it's, I feel like most days I'll be here and I'll be like, how is this even a job?
50:36
Like this is great.
50:36
Like I'm just like hanging out with people.
50:38
Yeah.
50:38
And like getting to connect with people.
50:40
And obviously making coffees is so much fun and I love learning more and more about it.
50:45
And yeah, no getting to work for Michael's just, it's awesome.
50:48
I'm going to say it, cause I said it about the other two.
50:50
So I am repeating, this will be the third time I'm repeating it.
50:53
It's so unlike other coffee shops, Starbucks, whatever, where you get to see you guys, the baristas coming out from behind the bar and sitting and having conversation with people.
51:05
That's phenomenal.
51:06
Like that's phenomenal.
51:08
And I get it.
51:08
And Michael made the point that some of the others, it's too busy or whatever.
51:12
But you guys, and often, and as I said to Brenden, you can tell it's a life conversation.
51:17
It's not just, hey, how's the weather?
51:19
You're having a life conversation.
51:21
That's phenomenal.
51:22
That's what makes it unique.
51:23
And that's what makes you guys unique.
51:26
And I think that's incredible.
51:27
Okay.
51:28
You got a promotion?
51:30
A promotion.
51:31
Didn't you?
51:32
What are you in charge of?
51:33
Oh, yeah, I did.
51:35
She's like, what?
51:36
Did I?
51:36
Did I?
51:37
Is there something I don't know?
51:40
Does Michael tell you something he didn't tell me?
51:42
No, no.
51:43
No, you got a promotion.
51:44
Yes, I did.
51:45
You are now the- What is your title now, Erilyn?
51:48
Yeah.
51:48
Now I am the cafe manager.
51:50
Cafe manager?
51:51
The whole cafe manager?
51:52
The whole cafe- Yeah, I can't believe he let me, honestly.
51:55
That's incredible.
51:56
Right?
51:57
You are the whole cafe manager.
51:59
Yeah.
51:59
Yeah.
52:00
I love it.
52:00
Yeah.
52:01
It's a lot of fun.
52:02
So what does that mean, though?
52:03
So- What do you have to do?
52:06
Sometimes I'm like, oh, I don't know.
52:07
What am I doing?
52:09
Essentially, yeah, it's scheduling, doing all the orders, ordering all of our supplies, reaching out to suppliers if needed.
52:18
It's essentially deciding what's on the menu, like Jennifer said.
52:21
Yeah.
52:23
Obviously, I get opinions from the team.
52:25
Sure.
52:25
We're a pretty small team, so it's fun to have those conversations and ideas.
52:29
And yeah, essentially, I get the last say, essentially.
52:33
And you get to help create the drinks.
52:35
Yeah.
52:35
So whenever there's the specials that come up, we've talked about them on the podcast all the time.
52:40
Which you help, you're the impetus of the creations of those drinks.
52:45
Okay but i have a question. Have you thought, I'm going to make this creation and you've tasted it and you thought, oh, this is terrible, I'm not putting this on the menu.
52:53
Yes.
52:53
That has happened before.
52:54
Where we're like, oh, we have this idea.
52:56
I'm like, oh, it'd be really cool if we do this, this, this.
52:58
And then you put it together and I'm like, hmm, something's not quite right.
53:02
So sometimes the drinks definitely need tweaking before we're able to confidently put them on the menu sometimes.
53:08
Remember when we tried a drink?
53:10
When we tried one?
53:11
The JC.
53:11
We tried to make one.
53:13
Remember the JC?
53:14
You and I thought it was great.
53:15
They went along, Erilyn and the team went along with it, I think to appease us.
53:19
Well, they do, often.
53:20
It wasn't to appease us.
53:22
Because it was, I don't think, it was good.
53:24
I liked it.
53:25
I like the JC.
53:26
I don't think others were that big on it, but anyway.
53:29
Let's not talk about it.
53:30
Okay, it brings back bad memories.
53:32
Anyways, you've had a lot of life things happen while you've worked here.
53:37
Yeah, for sure.
53:38
You got married.
53:38
I got married.
53:39
Yeah.
53:40
Yeah.
53:41
Yep, that's cool.
53:42
That's a big life moment.
53:43
That was a big, I remember, it was big.
53:45
It was like, yeah, and Erilyn's gone for two weeks on her honeymoon.
53:50
She's out of here.
53:50
Yeah, but then she came back.
53:52
It fell apart when she left.
53:53
No, I'm just kidding.
53:54
It was never the same.
53:55
It was never the same.
53:57
I know everybody thinks it's Michael holding it together, but it's Erilyn.
54:01
Yeah.
54:03
Small business week in Alberta, you obviously work in a small business.
54:07
You've worked in other small businesses.
54:11
What's it like?
54:13
You know, you could go work for a Starbucks or a big corporation or whatever, but what's it like being in a family-owned small business?
54:21
The difference really truly is like the relationships that you're able to make and have.
54:26
And I think just the support to like the difference from working in kind of more like an industry, or essentially versus now working in a smaller business.
54:39
It's just like people truly, I don't know, you can feel that people truly care about you.
54:43
Yeah.
54:45
Which is super cool to be able to have those relationships.
54:47
So that was going to be my next question.
54:48
What keeps you here?
54:50
Yeah, the people.
54:52
Yeah.
54:52
The people.
54:52
It's like whether it's the customers or the people I work with, like it almost becomes you feel like another family.
55:00
Yeah.
55:01
It does truly feel like a family here.
55:03
I know some people say that, but no, it truly does.
55:07
It feels like a home for lots of people.
55:11
And like I said to Brenden, the best part is I think you make your customers feel that way too.
55:15
You walk in here, no matter what you're doing or how busy you guys are, you'll always have time for somebody. Always.
55:21
Which is great.
55:22
Yeah.
55:23
And I think what sets it apart, right?
55:24
The Wall Coffee Roasters.
55:25
And you know a lot of your customers by name.
55:27
Yeah.
55:28
Like the Cheers song.
55:30
For sure.
55:31
That's right.
55:31
Everybody knows your name.
55:32
I was going to sing it, but I'm not going to because I have an opera singer singing across from me.
55:37
Oh, my goodness.
55:38
So, anyway.
55:39
So yeah.
55:39
Okay.
55:40
So great.
55:41
And I think you do an awesome job.
55:42
I think you're amazing.
55:43
Thank you.
55:44
And I watch you interact with people and it's pretty incredible.
55:48
And yeah.
55:49
You want to sing for us?
55:52
She's like, no.
55:53
I can.
55:54
Yeah.
55:55
I don't know about today.
55:56
Okay.
55:56
Don't know if I'm warmed up.
55:59
Hey, opera singers have to warm up.
56:01
My mom and me, whatever they do, they know.
56:03
Yeah, I know.
56:04
They got to.
56:04
Yeah.
56:05
But maybe you can convey.
56:06
Maybe we can convince her to do opera and coffee on night.
56:10
That would be a great podcast.
56:12
Opera and coffee.
56:13
Yeah.
56:13
We could do that.
56:14
Anyway, it's great.
56:17
I think you're great.
56:17
I think you do an amazing job.
56:19
We've had Michael, we've had Brenden, we've had you and thank you for letting us do this every week.
56:26
Of course. We love having you.
56:27
I know some days you watch us and probably they just, they roll their eyes, you guys are idiots.
56:31
But anyway, it's very entertaining.
56:33
I love it.
56:34
I love it.
56:35
And we were telling them that we were telling the others that when we bring people here who have never been here and they walk in, they're in awe.
56:42
They are, they truly are.
56:43
And we've had, I think Michael used the word, culinary people come in and look around and go, this is incredible.
56:49
Everybody's always so impressed.
56:50
But more than that, not just the atmosphere, but you guys make them feel so comfortable, which works for us because they come in, some of them with great fear and trepidation.
57:02
And that's why we always offer them a coffee first.
57:04
You guys do a great, you bring it to us, and they just love that, and it's great.
57:08
So thank you for coming here.
57:10
Thanks for, thanks.
57:12
Listen folks, there it is, small business week in Alberta.
57:15
And the story behind the story of The Wall Coffee Roaster.
57:18
Where we record every, 126 podcasts have been done mostly, I would say 122, I think.
57:26
Is that a right number? Yeah, cause we've done a couple offsite.
57:28
Somewhere in there have been done at this table, in this coffee shop.
57:32
We've done some remotes, but they've mostly all been done here.
57:36
Thank you to Michael.
57:37
Thank you to his staff.
57:39
Cause they reserve it for us.
57:41
This is a sought after table.
57:43
This is actually called by some, My Second Office.
57:46
And again, I get a little perturbed when I come in here and there's people here.
57:49
But I know it has, it's a public table, other than Tuesday mornings when we get to, when we get to record.
57:55
We tried to have a little shrine in this corner, but it's not going.
57:58
Michael said no.
57:59
Yeah.
58:00
Anyway, thanks everybody.
58:02
You know what we forgot at the beginning, which I feel bad about, is we forgot to tell you our sponsor.
58:07
Thank you to Wing Snob.
58:08
Also a small business.
58:09
A small business.
58:10
Thank you to Wing Snob for sponsoring Coffee In The Park.
58:14
How many flavors?
58:15
16 flavors.
58:17
Four rubs.
58:17
Four rubs.
58:19
Cornbread, Parmesan fries.
58:22
Ten locations.
58:24
One in Calgary, one in Grande Prairie, eight in Edmonton.
58:27
Check out Wing Snob tonight.
58:28
There's a hockey game.
58:29
You don't know what to get for the fam.
58:30
Order from Wing Snob.
58:32
Get everybody together.
58:33
They do catering too.
58:34
They do catering.
58:35
I know.
58:35
We've been to a Wing Snob catered event.
58:37
We have.
58:38
Phenomenal.
58:39
Phenomenal.
58:40
Thank you Wing Snob for being our sponsor.
58:42
Thank you everybody for listening.
58:44
We couldn't do it without you.
58:45
126 episodes, 30,000 listeners all around the world.
58:50
Listen, make sure to tell your friends, your neighbors, your coworkers, your enemies.
58:54
If you don't have any friends, make one just so you can tell them about the podcast.
58:59
And where do we find...
59:00
they find us?
59:01
They can find us at www.coffeeinthepark.com or on any podcast platform.
59:06
Wherever you get your podcasts.
59:07
That's right.
59:08
And make sure to...
59:09
Subscribe.
59:10
Subscribe.
59:10
And we're going to show pictures this time around.
59:13
We are.
59:13
On our Instagram of the roasters and all these things.
59:17
So thanks everybody.
59:18
Thank you to The Wall Coffee Shop for being the most gracious host in the whole wide world.
59:22
And thanks everybody for listening and we'll see you next time.