Thanks Laura

Yesterday morning, my long time right hand and valued coworker, Laura Heino, announced she was leaving the company to pursue a different career path.  With Grandma Emily for almost nine years, Laura has been there through two company moves, our 2005 personnel drama, a product recall, my cancer surgery and treatment, as well as various other emergencies.  Most of all, Laura was there to smooth out the rough bits, to keep the machine running and to give me the space to deal with a myriad of issues on my plate.

Over the years, I saw Laura evolve from a shy girl from Sudbury, to a self assured young woman, a professional musician and a competent, even handed administrator.  For almost nine years our desks have been within talking distance.  Her calm demeanour and capable nature were a huge asset to our company and to me. 

It’s no surprise really that Laura is moving on.  I’ve always been a strong advocate to keep reaching for the stars to and seize the day.  And Laura is doing just that.

So now we are in transition.  It’s time to hire, to train, to promote, to redistribute. Other lights are just waiting to shine.   It’s time to embrace this temporary chaos. 

Yes, embrace it because chaos brings opportunity.  Chaos theory has always been one of my valued companions as I try to make sense of my ever evolving business plan and the wider world in which we live.  Chaos theory reminds me that long term predictions are impossible in a changing world where elements get tossed about at will. 

All systems need a bit of chaos every so often to shake off the lethargy of outdated beliefs.  In keeping with our recently updated, modernized logo, our new packaging and dynamic new sales and marketing strategy, Grandma Emily is continuing to move in the right direction. 

All of us at Grandma Emily wish Laura much happiness and success in her new direction.  Thank you Laura for your authentic, invaluable contribution.  May you appreciate your wins, embrace your losses and live fully.

Granola Stuffed Baked Brie

A new take on granola from The Hot Plate.  Enjoy!

 

Granola Stuffed Baked Brie

 

No matter what season it is we all love that warm comforting ooze from a melted piece of cheese. Whether it’s in a sandwich, on pizza or in lasagna there is just something so satisfying about this ingredient. To make eating melted cheese even easier we are introducing our new favourite baked brie recipe. Thanks to a little crunch from our Grandma Emily’s Granola and a touch of sweetness from our raspberry jam you’ll be serving up an addictive appetizer all year long!

Serves 4-8
Prep Time: 10 minutes, Cook Time: 15-20 minutes

1 cold medium round brie or camembert cheese
1/4 cup Grandma Emily’s 100% Organic Festive Granola
3 tbsp Raspberry Jam
Crackers or Crostinis

Steps:

1. Prep all of your ingredients.

2. Preheat the oven to 350F. Start by slicing the brie in half lengthwise through the center so that you are left with two large rounds **watch the Episode for our secret!

3. Lay one half of the brie (sliced side up) in an oven proof dish or brie baker. Spread the raspberry jam and Grandma Emily’s granola evenly inside. Top with the remaining brie.

4. Bake for 15-20 minutes until the brie is hot and bubbly. Carefully remove from the oven and serve with your crackers or crostinis.

Imagine That

Imagine a school dedicated to creating wise, progressive, authentic leaders.  Imagine a place where the focus becomes self awareness, personal growth, and pushing the limits of who and what we perceive ourselves to be.

Imagine a place where those who’ve stood out as leaders in their chosen fields, come to share their stories, their career paths, their failures and triumphs.  They come, giving freely of their time and resources with the clear intent to pay it forward.

Imagine a physical location in the countryside, far from the bustle of family and work.   The setting is first class simplicity. Accomodations  include indoor pool, spa and gym, modern, comfortable rooms and excellent cuisine.   Students gather eleven times over a two year period for a five day module.  That’s 55 days for $55,000.

Imagine being joined on this journey by two dozen people.  Backgrounds are diverse but the common desires to reach for constant improvement and to be the very best they can be link the participants.  Strangers no more after the first five day session, powerful bonds are created.

Imagined in the mind of visionary Marc Dutil, President and COO of Canam Group Inc., such a place now exists in St Georges de Beauce, Quebec.  Just over one year old, it is called The Ecole d’Entrepreneurship de Beauce (EEB).   A 3 ½ hour drive from Montreal, the EEB is a jewel in the Quebec landscape.

From the moment I heard about the school, I imagined myself participating.  I imagined myself as a lecturer and facilitator, embarked on this fabulous experiment with kindred souls.

And it came to be.  Just back from five days of training at the school with head coach Franck Nicolas, I feel like Jonathan Livingston Seagull being pushed to new heights, prompted by a sage teacher telling him he has no limits.   You haven’t read this fable by Richard Bach?  At the age of fifteen it meant one thing.  At fifty, it means a whole lot more.  Buy yourself a Christmas gift.  It’s a gem.

The EEB is a gem too, an extraordinary vehicle created out of one man’s imaginings that is going to help change the world in a positive way. Now just imagine that. For more visit

www.eebeauce.com

Refresh – Rebrand

Refresh, rebrand, re-invent – three set points on a fluid scale of brand management and positioning to help remain relevant in a changing world.  It’s a process all companies undergo continuously. When our new GM Martine Chartrand joined us this past summer, it was front and center on her To Do List.

And do we did. Check out logo #4.  Grandma has a new look and we love it!  Here’s how the brand evolved.

Logo #1 :  The long text and busy design were difficult to read on a 2” x 2” label. In wanting to please both official languages in Quebec, we confused our clients.  What was our brand anyway?  Grandma Emily’s?   Granolas d’Emilie?  Nobody knew – including us.

Several years into the game, the label was gently refreshed.  Out came logo #2.   A refresh is less radical than a rebrand.  It means tweaking a design, changing a look but essentially keeping the logo consistent.  It freshens up a brand for an ever expanding, ever more informed market.  Font, color, text can be reworked but by baby steps only. Coca-Cola is masterful at refreshing its brand.

Priorities for refresh #3 were to:

-     make the logo more readable

-     still acknowledge Grandma, granola and Quebec politics

Grandma was still there.  Granola was still there.  We were happy, right?  Wrong. With time, we realized there was even more explaining to do since the two languages were not direct translations of one another.

In came Martine and out went Logo #3.  Logo #4 was born. The ’s was dropped, removing the anglicisation of the brand.   We are now Grandma Emily.  Period.  A rebrand as in Federal Express becoming FedEx. Perhaps it should have been an obvious choice from the beginning.

While still faithful to our origins, our simplified name allows for more than granola.

I would love to hear your thoughts on this evolution and welcome all comments.

If we’re breathing, we’re evolving…

Best, Andrea

No Half Measures

The concept of half life is dazzling and terrifying at the same time.  Nothing is a constant.  There is never ending movement.   Animal, mineral, vegetable, human are 50% incline and 50% decline.  The half life of something is just that, the point at which the decline starts.

It’s easy to measure the half life of a glass of milk left on a counter.  But what about a human being?  I’m 51 yrs old.  Should I consider my half life as being at 40?  At 50?  I consider I am nowhere near that point.  I’m just enjoying this steady incline with no end in sight.  I’d rather live my life fully this way than live a half life with fear and trepidation about growing old.

Let’s assume that the life of a glass of milk left on a counter is four hours.  That milk then has a half life of two hours.  It’s been on the counter for 1 ½ hours.  Awfully close to the two mark…No thanks.  Who wants to drink a declining glass of milk?

So, my vote is that humans are not part of the half life paradigm.  We just have life.  Always on the incline, always moving toward something bigger, better and more joyous.  No half lives, no half measures – just health and well being.  Wine, anyone?  ( It can last on the counter for days…)