Success Leaves Clues with Robin Bailey and Al McDonald

Rob Levy, founder of BrandFire Marketing Group Inc., recognized as one of Canada's fastest growing companies by Profit 500 in 2014 & 2015,  promotes a culture of creativity, curiosity, commitment, collaboration, camaraderie and courage that allow his team to create unique and disruptive marketing programs that drive amazing results. He is also Executive Partner at The Evolve Agency Group, a group of like-minded agencies delivering unique marketing solutions so there’s no need for clients to manage multiple agency relationships.

He joins hosts, Robin Bailey & Al McDonald in a discussion touching on marketing and growth as well as how his entrepreneurial ambitions brought him to the exciting creation of a brand new agency that better tackles the demands of clients in today's strategic marketplace.

Brought to you by Aria Benefits and Life & Legacy Advisory Group

In this episode Robin & Al are joined by entrepreneur Jason Reid, Founder & CEO of Giftagram, an app that connects users with top brands and best-in-class products. The best companies are born when an enterprising individual seeks to solve a problem they experience in everyday life. Tired of long lines, piles of gift-receipts, parking lot showdowns, and the stress of finding the perfect present for the people in his life, Jason decided to redefine the act of giving by creating a personal online gift concierge which then expanded to B2B. Watching his vision come to life has been one of Jason's most satisfying moments and he describes the lessons he's learned along the way as well as the inspiration behind his unwavering entrepreneurial commitment.

Sponsored by Aria Benefits and Life & Legacy Advisory Group

Robin & Al welcome guest Joanna Kmiec, VP and Global Head of People and Culture at Maropost, a unified customer engagement platform that connects companies with their customers in order to increase engagement, conversions and ROI. She is a strategic, authentic, executive HR leader with a ‘roll-up your sleeves’ mentality and a bias for action who has brought a renewed focus and commitment to elevating the employee experience at Maropost across all their global teams.

Joanna brings her energy and passion as well as a wealth of knowledge and experience to the conversation which centres on her ability to continuously learn and transform in order to deal with the unique challenges of a dispersed workforce through compassionate leadership.

Sponsored by Aria Benefits and Life & Legacy Advisory Group 

Bill Wallace leads the executive team at Routes Transport International in the Development of the Food Service Business Unit. He joined the company with a broad history and experience both in the transportation and cold storage industries. Prior to joining Routes, he served as Director of Business Development as well as Vice President of operations with major transportation and cold storage companies in Canada and the USA.

Bill has developed relationships and partnerships with business and government leaders across North America and has been presented with " Fellow" of the Royal Society of the Arts and Science. This notable designation is for his life long contribution to the transportation industry and has been awarded to world leaders in commerce, politics and science across the globe. He shares some wonderful stories with Robin & Al, discussing his journey from Broadcasting to Transport as well as how he has helped transform their company culture into one that encourages all employees to become solution providers not order takers.

Sponsored by Aria Benefits and Life & Legacy Advisory Group

Kosta Mentis founded HKC in 2010 after a 15-year history of large residential, commercial, and institutional projects. He is responsible for overseeing the company’s operations from conception to completion, scaling the company, and positioning HKC for continued success. Kosta joins Robin & Al in a discussion about his journey into the construction sector as well as his desire to continue to develop himself as a leader and influencer while building networks within the industry and beyond.

Sponsored by Aria Benefits and Life & Legacy Advisory Group 

Marie-Chantal Côté is a thought leader and Senior Vice-President of the Sun Life Group Benefits Leadership Team. She has been instrumental in evolving their business to address clients growing needs. This includes improving health access through the launch of Lumino Health Virtual Care, lowering drug claims costs through their Reference Drug Program, and improving workplace mental health with their innovative mental health strategy toolkit. 

Marie-Chantal joins Robin & Al in a discussion centred on helping Canadians live healthier lives by taking control of their health through resources, such as the toolkit, that are available to Canadian employers looking to remove barriers for their employees and improve workplace mental health.

Mental health issues in the workplace are now the leading cause of disability leaves and the fastest growing disability claims area in Canada. As the pandemic has accelerated both expectations and need, Sun Life is endeavouring to make it easier for all Canadians to live healthier lives.

Sponsored by Aria Benefits and Life & Legacy Advisory Group

Bootstrapping entrepreneur Alykhan Jetha (AJ), CEO of Marketcircle Inc., the developer of award-winning Daylite CRM for Mac-based small businesses, discusses the driving forces that led him to become an entrepreneur, with hosts Al & Robin. His ambition to grow Marketcircle into a leading, international, small business productivity software company has been realized but AJ has weathered many storms over the past 20+ years on his journey and shares some insight into the obstacles he has personally faced, and how he overcome them.

Brought to you by Aria Benefits and Life & Legacy Advisory Group

Entrepreneurs Stacie and Justin Howe run two thriving businesses...the Kimberley General Store & Justin's Oven, tucked side by side in the incredibly scenic rural village of Kimberley, ON (just north of Flesherton). Housed in the historic, original building built in 1905, the General Store offer locals and tourists alike an amazing selection of fresh baked treats, rich hot coffee, full sourdough bread, jams, and in-house pies as well as seasonal homegrown produce, homemade soups, hearty sandwiches, local products, curiosities, general sundries, and fresh organic goods. Justin's Oven serves locally sourced, organically fresh meals and Friday Night wood fired pizza has become quite the rage!! The couple has learned to balance their personal and business relationship while sharing resources and adapting their unique skill sets to keep up with the incredible growth in both their community and enterprises.

Brought to you by Aria Benefits and Life & Legacy Advisory Group

kimberleygeneralstore.ca

justinsoven.ca

Aneil Manhas, Founder & CEO of Brüush is a former finance professional turned entrepreneur with a strong track record scaling companies. In 2019 he set out to create a better electric toothbrush to make maintaining your teeth both simple & enjoyable, and fused industry-leading sonic technology with an easy online refill plan so customers would never overspend on or forget to change their brush heads again. And did we mention it looks great on your countertop! Aneil shares his story of success with Robin & Al explaining his thought process behind founding Brüush as well as how they came to partner with comedy legend, Kevin Hart.

Brought to you by Aria Benefits and Life & Legacy Advisory Group

Robin & Al welcome guest Matt Brady, who realized his passion for health, fitness and longevity while competing as a member of Canada's ski team on both the European & World Cup circuits. He joined the virtual healthcare market after hanging up his skis and now works shoulder-to-shoulder with his father Kevin, the founder of Advica Health, who's mission is to give members’ access to the best facilities at home or abroad and help them obtain advice, treatment options and solutions to their current healthcare situation in the most efficient manner possible. They are constantly bringing innovative solutions to the preventative healthcare environment and are dedicated in their support of Canadians who want to personalize their individual medical treatment.