M&M Meat Shops

[UrbanWaterloo]

M&M Meat Shops
Head Office: 640 Trillium Drive, Kitchener
www.mmmeatshops.com
http://www.mymenu.com

http://www.mmmeatshops.com/en/images/global/mmm_logo_leftnav.gif


Founded in 1980
482 (http://www.franchise.mmmeatshops.com/faqs.aspx)stores across Canada
Sales of almost $500 million a year
Founder Mac Voisin owns 90 per cent of M&M's shares; CEO James Petrozzi owns the other 10 per cent
About 215 corporate employees and 2,000 store employees
6 (http://www.mymenu.com/stores.asp) stores in the United States


ABOUT M&M: http://www.mmmeatshops.com/en/aboutmm/index.asp
Who We Are
M&M Meat Shops is proud to be Canada's largest retail chain of specialty frozen foods with locations coast to coast. We offer a delectable selection of more than 375 mouth-watering products. You’ll find your trusted family favourites plus exciting new tastes to satisfy the most selective palates. And, the majority of our dishes are ready to thaw-and-serve or heat-and-serve to make meal prep easier for you.

HISTORY OF M&M: http://www.mmmeatshops.com/en/aboutmm/history.asp
The M&M Meat Shops’ Story

M&M Meat Shops Ltd. was founded in the summer of 1980 in Kitchener, Ontario, with the first store opening in October of that year. The original idea for the company (generated by Mac and Mark, hence the name M&M) was simple – create a place where people could purchase choice cuts of restaurant-quality meat and specialty food items at reasonable prices.

The original product selection of 62 items (mostly frozen), were originally only available in hotels and restaurants. That is, until we brought them to M&M. Today, the M&M product line has expanded to over 375 products, including everything from elegant appetizers, classic one-dish meals, single servings, internationally-inspired entrees and delicious desserts made with only the finest ingredients from around the world. As always, our products are designed to meet the changing needs of consumers and offer convenience, taste, good value and exceptional quality.

Over the past two decades, we’ve adapted to many changes in the food industry, including the mainstream use of microwave ovens, the demand for more heat n’ serve foods, a growing enthusiasm for outdoor barbecuing, the expectations of an increasingly health-conscious society and changes in frozen food technology. Just like the original 62 products that were offered in 1980, today’s M&M products are developed using a method called flash-freezing. This process freezes food at extremely low temperatures in a matter of seconds, preserving the natural texture, taste and nutrients of foods so that when it’s time to prepare, the great taste comes through.

From the start, M&M Meat Shops Ltd. believed in the importance of building and rewarding loyalty to the M&M brand. It’s why customer service became the backbone of our retail environment, and why we’ve always listened to the input of our customers. Over the years, we’ve created a strong brand identity, from our unique no-nonsense packaging, to the creation of our M&M MAX program, which offers special discounts and rewards to our loyal M&M customers.

Along the way, M&M has received a number of prestigious awards – we’ve been named as one of Canada’s 50 Best Managed Companies three times, we’ve won numerous awards from the Canadian Franchise Association (CFA) for excellence in franchise relations, and we’ve also collected national awards for our achievements in marketing, advertising and community relations. But, in keeping with our humble beginnings, perhaps one of the most memorable M&M moments was setting the Guinness Record for the World’s Longest Sausage (in fact, we’ve held this title twice!).

The growth of M&M has followed a steady rise over the years. The first franchise was opened in June 1981, just nine months after the first store opened in Kitchener. By 1989, we had opened our 50th store, followed by our 100th store opening just three years later. In 1991, we started our cross-country expansion to other provinces. Today, we rank as Canada’s largest chain of frozen food stores with more than 460 locations stretching from coast to coast – you can find M&M in every single province and territory.

We like to think that the history of M&M Meat Shops is truly a Canadian success story!

[UrbanWaterloo]

M&M Meat goes Uptown
Kitchener-based frozen food retailer cooks up new sales strategy
March 31, 2008
Chuck Howitt, The Record
http://news.therecord.com/article/357171

http://media.therecord.com/images/e7/af/6dfa16ec47228d72a3b287d0d3c8.jpeg http://media.therecord.com/images/70/ba/8ff08b704c178b5ff5cfeb80f29b.jpeg http://media.therecord.com/images/81/cc/054ee8644c33b0b5cc937594ffd8.jpeg

Gary Decatur rhymes off the statistics like a marketing manager drooling over untapped territory.

20,000 potential customers within a 15-minute walk.

Half a dozen highrise condos visible outside the front door.

25 condo or loft buildings within walking distance.

"It's where we need to be," says the president and chief operating officer of M&M Meat Shops. "Our gig is to get to where the people are and there are a lot of people down there."

Decatur is talking about downtown Toronto, more specifically the company's new Uptown store, located at Front Street and Blue Jays Way, across the street from the Rogers Centre, home of the Toronto Blue Jays. Behind him is a map of Canada that stretches across almost an entire wall at M&M's head office in Kitchener. The choice of wall decoration couldn't be more appropriate for a company that has blanketed the country from coast to coast with more than 460 M&M franchises. From Come by Chance to Comox, Whitehorse to Windsor, customers have beaten a path to M&M's door to snap up its popular array of frozen meats, entrees, desserts and snacks.

Yet, there's a gaping hole in the company's reach, an area that the ubiquitous orange and blue M&M logo has failed to penetrate -- the urban cores of Canada's largest cities. The Front Street store is designed to fill the gap. It's the first of what the company hopes will be 30 to 40 stores shoehorned into the cores of the country's biggest cities -- Toronto, Montreal, Vancouver, Calgary and Ottawa.

The first Uptown store bears a different look than the typical M&M outlet. At 1,200 square feet, it's about 25 per cent smaller. It features a darker, edgier, more urban colour scheme. "More earth tones," is the way store manager Phil Miller describes it.

Everything about the store radiates speed and efficiency. Sign boards behind the counter advertise Express Meals, Speedy Single Serves, Meals in Minutes, Rush-Hour Dinners. There's a selection of accessories not available in regular M&M Meat stores, including soup bowls, platter sets and even an indoor grill for condo dwellers without a place to put a barbecue. "Our Angus steak turns out great on them," Miller points out.

The store, which opened in November, gets steady traffic throughout the day. Workers hustle in at lunch hour, buy frozen meals and scurry back to nearby offices to heat them up in the microwave. But the big rush starts at 3:30 p.m. and doesn't let up until the store closes at 10, says Miller, who commutes from Stratford where he has owned an M&M franchise with his wife for the past 15 years.

There's even some celebrity customers. Sam Mitchell, coach of the Toronto Raptors basketball team, lives in the 20-storey condo above the store as do four or five other Raptors.

The purchases are more frequent than at a regular M&M shop, but smaller in volume. "More often, but less product," is the way Decatur describes it.

The push into the heart of Canada's biggest cities was almost inevitable for M&M. Since Kitchener native Mac Voisin and former partner Mark Nowak opened the first M&M store at Victoria and Lawrence streets in Kitchener in 1980 (M&M stands for Mark and Mac), the company has preferred the convenience of suburban strip malls where customers can drive up to the front door, make a fast purchase and hit the road quickly.

But there aren't many suburban malls left to conquer in the company's march across the country. The only uncharted territories are the cores of big cities and the main streets of small towns.

M&M first set its sights on small-town Canada. The key was establishing a lower break-even mark because sales would not approach the $1-million annual average of its regular stores. Rent and maintenance costs were lower because the stores were smaller and located in less expensive spaces; finishings were modified to further slash expenses.

The first of these small-town shops, called M&M Select, opened in Mount Forest in 2005. The company now has six and plans to raise the total to 70.

Rolling out the urban stores involves a different set of challenges. "Real estate in the cores is challenging to find," says Decatur. "The right location is very challenging to find."

One factor working in the company's favour was familiarity, he says. Many customers were raised in the suburbs where M&M had already carved out a niche. The brand wasn't foreign to them.

Decatur joined M&M three years ago largely to direct the company's expansion. An easygoing type with a hearty laugh and a few days' growth of beard, he looks more like an M&M franchise owner than the president of a company nearing $500 million a year in sales.

A former executive in the hotel industry, he tosses off his lack of experience in the food business with a shrug. "You're still dealing with customers across a counter," he says. "Both businesses are heavily weighted in franchises and marketing."

Decatur was recruited by Voisin after the energetic and ebullient founder decided to step back from day-to-day management of his mushrooming creation and assume the role of chair of M&M's board. About 18 months before stepping down, he received a call from Frank Zaid, a franchise lawyer in Toronto who worked for M&M. Zaid sat on the board of Choice Hotels Canada, a national hotel company that operates such familiar franchises as Comfort Inn and Sleep Inn. Decatur was the CEO.

A native of Schenectady, N.Y., Decatur came to Canada at a time when Choice Hotels was "struggling a bit" in this country, says Zaid. "He turned the operation around tremendously in Canada. I got to admire his skills as quite a creative and hard-driving individual who thought outside the box." Zaid urged M&M to consider Decatur for the president's job. But when the company started the selection process, Decatur wasn't among the È È175 applicants. Voisin called him and suggested he throw his hat into the ring. By that time, Decatur had left Choice Hotels to become a franchise consultant. "When the smoke cleared it was obvious to us that Gary was by far the best qualified for the job," says Voisin.

Voisin has a knack for putting the right people in the right places when the need arises. In 1989, the company was at a crossroads. It had grown to 55 franchises, but didn't know where to go from there. "We didn't know how big companies operated," says Voisin candidly.

But someone else in town did. James Petrozzi, vice-president of retail sales for J.M. Schneider, was looking for a change.

When Petrozzi, one of the top guys at Schneider, decided to join M&M "it sent shock waves across the food industry," says Voisin. "They said what is this guy doing going to little M&M?"

He proved to be a perfect fit. Drawing on a sports broadcasting metaphor, Voisin quips that "if you said, Mac, what are the TSN turning points for M&M, he (Petrozzi) was one of them."

Petrozzi, now M&M's CEO, put the infrastructure in place to allow the company to grow strategically. That included developing its marketing department as well as a training arm for new franchise owners and the construction division, which designs and builds the stores.

One of the keys to M&M's success is the strength of its franchise system. The company virtually guarantees franchise owners a decent salary. A properly run M&M franchise earns sales of about $1 million a year, with the owner taking home seven to 10 per cent of that. Each franchise turns over five per cent of sales -- three per cent to finance M&M's corporate arm and two per cent for marketing.

The franchisee selection process is tough but realistic. Owners are told not to rely on income from the store for living expenses in the early stages, but to expect those bills to be paid by a spouse or partner working at another job.

Prospective franchisees are given a battery of psychological tests and practical tests in an actual store. The aim is to hire "people people," says Decatur.

"Franchise companies in the 1960s and '70s got a bad rap because they would accept anyone with a pulse and pocketbook," says Voisin. "We don't believe in that philosophy. We treat people like family, not just business partners."

Once a month, six or seven franchisees from across the country are brought to M&M's training centre, in the basement of a plaza at Westmount Road and Ottawa Streets in Kitchener, for two weeks of intensive training "so they're all singing from the same song sheet," says Voisin. Part of the goal is to ensure they hire the right employees. M&M has a certification process that requires each employee to answer up to 1,000 questions about the company and its products; they also must be able to answer customers' questions about meal planning, budgeting and party planning.

Because M&M has its own construction division, franchisees walk into a turnkey operation. "It's a great franchise to run because of its simplicity," says Decatur.

The company, which employs about 115 people in its recently expanded headquarters in the Huron Business Park and another 100 or so at regional offices in Calgary and near Montreal, has a number of suppliers who produce proprietary products for M&M, including MacGregors Meat & Seafood, Maple Leaf Foods and McCain Foods.

Some recipes come from suppliers who suggest ideas, which are then tweaked by M&M and, if approved, sent back for production. Others are the result of regular polling of M&M franchisees; the company produces modifications of their top selling items.

Products, of which there are more than 370, are shipped to Conestoga Cold Storage warehouses in Kitchener and Calgary, and from there are distributed to each store. Located just a block away from M&M's head office on Trillium Drive, Conestoga supplies all of M&M's stores in Canada. "They have followed our growth," says Voisin.

M&M owes its success to the fact it has stuck to its core business, he says. "We've stayed right away from the temptation to get involved in delivering our own product or raising our own chickens or producing our own flyers. The reality is we don't know anything about those areas. We just want to stick to our own knitting."

M&M did try something outside its comfort zone in the early 2000s. It launched a concept called L'Oven Bakery, but found that setting up a bakery under the franchise model was too challenging. "This type of retail business is better suited to a family-run operation versus a franchise operation," Voisin says, adding that M&M plans to sell its two L'Oven Bakery stores, located in Kitchener and Waterloo, in the next few years.

M&M's main competition is large grocery stores, which started offering boxed meats and a larger selection of frozen meals in the early 1990s in response to M&M's success. The competition has grown fiercer in recent years with Wal-Mart's expansion into the grocery market and the opening of super-sized stores by the Canadian supermarket chains. "Canada is badly over-stored in the food industry," says Voisin, who predicts "there'll be a huge shakeout" at some point down the road.

John Winter, a retail analyst in Toronto, says M&M's new line of shops shows the company is a vibrant business. "It's always good to reinvigorate. It's good for morale if employees know that you're pushing forward into new frontiers."

There's a an old rule in the retail trade, he adds. "If you're sitting still, you go backwards." Although the new Uptown and Select stores will ultimately have to prove themselves in the marketplace, "they certainly seem to be a logical extension of the M&M line," he says.

Urban cores and small towns aren't the only growth opportunities for M&M. The company plans to expand internationally and has hired a Chicago company to look at different markets. An announcement about U.S. expansion could come this spring, Decatur says.

Voisin, 58, remains M&M's major shareholder. His brother, Greg, owned 25 per cent of the company's shares until last year when he retired as the company's vice-president and sold his shares. Voisin increased his stake to 90 per cent while Petrozzi acquired a 10-per-cent interest.

Although Voisin's daughter owns two M&M franchises in Victoria, neither of his two children have shown an interest in running the company.

"I plan to stay as chair and principal owner for sometime yet," Voisin says.

The man who used to call himself "the baron of barbecuing" now prefers the title "guardian of the M&M culture."

"I know that sounds silly, but I try to create a fun environment at the store level and head office. If people are having fun, they work twice as hard and are twice as productive."

Thinking back to the company's first year, Voisin says he was a bit cocky. He told people "if this thing really caught fire, we could end up with 50 to 100 stores across Canada." Twenty-eight years later, he can't believe his good fortune. "Everyday I wake up and say: 'Is this real'?"

KEYS TO SUCCESS
Mac Voisin's top reasons why M&M Meat Shops took off in the 1980s:

More women joined the workforce, leaving less time to cook.
People wanted to get in and out of the kitchen quickly to increase leisure time.
The growing consumer use of microwave ovens and freezers.
The emergence of flash freezing which allowed food products to be frozen in seconds.


M&M MEAT SHOPS

Founded in 1980
460 stores across Canada
Sales of almost $500 million a year
Founder Mac Voisin owns 90 per cent of M&M's shares; CEO James Petrozzi owns the other 10 per cent
About 215 corporate employees and 2,000 store employees



M&M Uptown's Website: http://www.mmuptown.com/en/welcome/index.asp

http://www.mmuptown.com/images/banners/52.jpg
http://www.mmuptown.com/en/welcome/uptownstorephoto2.jpg

Welcome to M&M Uptown. A place that knows somewhere between your crowded schedule of work and play, you still need nourishment. And we’re pretty sure you’d rather shop in a place that’s done the thinking for you than waste your time wandering the uninspiring aisles of a big box grocery store.

M&M Uptown has one aisle loaded with hundreds of delicious meal ideas that are ready in just minutes. Click through and see just how many ways you can easily and quickly fit satisfying meals into your day – every day.

But being fast doesn’t mean fast food. We offer exceptional mouth-watering products like Cedar Planked Salmon, Tandoori Chicken Mini-Skewers and Certified Angus Beef® Steaks. They’re as perfect for entertaining as they are after a long day at the office.

M&M Uptown. Hundreds of meal ideas. One aisle.

Location:
340 Front Street West, Toronto
Corner of Blue Jays Way and Front Street
416-506-1793

Store Hours:
Monday to Friday: 10 am until 10 pm
Saturday: 9 am until 7 pm
Sunday: 10 am until 7 pm

http://www.mmuptown.com/en/welcome/map-big.jpg

[UrbanWaterloo]

M&M goes south of the border
Called MyMenu shops, U.S. outlets resemble Canadian cousins
July 30, 2008
Chuck Howitt, RECORD STAFF - KITCHENER
http://news.therecord.com/article/391510

http://media.therecord.com/images/18/cd/df2c19a54a01a3a9c6a8ee69bbd2.jpeg
Vicky Firth shows the new look yesterday of My Menu, the name that M&M Meats Shops will use in the U.S.

After blanketing Canada from coast to coast with more than 450 stores in 28 years of selling frozen foods, M&M Meat Shops was looking for new areas to conquer.

The Kitchener-based company was to announce today it is expanding south of the border. Over the past two months it quietly opened five shops in Madison, Wisc., and plans to unveil three more by the end of the year, somewhere else in the American midwest.

After that, it's too early to say how many shops the company ultimately hopes to establish in the U.S., M&M's president and chief operating officer Gary Decatur said in a phone interview.

"Do I have a number? No I don't. The plan is to work with these eight stores and learn from these stores."

Called MyMenu shops, the U.S. outlets closely resemble their Canadian cousins. Following the same formula of "hundreds of meal ideas, one aisle," they are compact in size, offer a similar lineup of frozen meals and desserts and are located in suburban strip malls close to power centres for easy access, he said.

For now, the first eight shops will be corporately owned and run by the Kitchener head office and a team based in Wisconsin. Only if the concept is successful will M&M switch to the franchise model which it has used extensively in Canada, the company said.

M&M first began thinking about international growth as far back as 2005 when founder Mac Voisin was on one of his many cross-Canada tours. People kept asking if the company was ever going to expand internationally, Decatur said.

Opting to seriously study the matter, the company hired iFranchise Group, a Chicago-based consulting firm, to help with the process. A list of 42 countries was narrowed to six, and then to two -- the U.S. and Australia, Decatur said. Australia was ruled out because of the time change and distance, leaving the U.S. as the winner.

Because of its enormous size, the U.S. was then broken down into nine marketing areas. Madison was eventually chosen because "the demographic profile of folks best emulated our best customers in Canada," Decatur said.

As well, the city has a number of media outlets based in Madison, making advertising easier. M&M didn't want a situation where it was advertising in a city like Toronto to reach a market in Kitchener, he said.

But the work was not done yet. M&M then filled two tractor-trailers with company products and equipment and replicated two typical M&M Meat Shops in Fort Wayne, Ind. More than 100 customers were brought in to sit on taste panels.

"They loved it," Decatur said. "We knew we were on the right track."

The first Madison shop opened at the end of May, then two on June 13 and the final two on July 3. A grand opening is planned Aug. 16.

"These are early days, but we are extremely excited about the reception we've received," he said.

An M&M news release says Fort Wayne, Ind., will get the next three MyMenu shops, but Decatur said other U.S. Midwest cities are being looked at as well. The three additional stores will open by the end of the year, he said.

Delora Newton, executive vice-president of the Greater Madison Chamber of Commerce, said MyMenu is getting off to a good start by opening five shops quickly. "The more locations, the more people are going to notice they are there. That increases their ability to drive sales."

She has visited one of the MyMenu outlets, located close to a large new Target shopping centre. "The concept appealed to me. You can buy something quickly and throw it in the oven."

MyMenu's strategy of appealing to people on the go has a good chance in Madison, which has a population of about 500,000, she said. "We are a very active area with a lot of working families and parents with two jobs."

MyMenu is also following M&M's policy of supporting local charities. Each store will host a grand opening charity barbecue with all proceeds supporting the American Family Children's Hospital in Madison.

The U.S. market is not the only untapped territory for M&M. Earlier this year it opened a store, called M&M Uptown, in the heart of Toronto in an attempt to crack the large urban market in Canada. It has yet to open a second store, but Decatur said the company is currently looking elsewhere in Toronto.

In addition, M&M has opened eight or nine M&M Select stores in smaller Canadian towns such as Mount Forest.


M&M Meat Shops opens stores in U.S. Midwest after consumers show interest
Eric Shackleton, THE CANADIAN PRESS
July 30, 2008 - 12:57 a.m.
http://www.canadianbusiness.com/markets/market_news/article.jsp?content=b073075A

TORONTO - M&M Meat Shops, Canada's largest retailer of specialty frozen foods, officially launched Wednesday its first foray into foreign markets, opening five stores in the U.S. Midwest.

"Because of proximity and (similar) demographics, we chose the Midwest" over eight other areas of the U.S. for the launch, president and CEO Gary Decatur said in an interview.

During a series of market tests in the Midwest, he said, consumers, such as busy career-oriented mothers, showed a strong interest in the company's approach to food preparation.

"A taste panel on the products that we offer in Canada ...loved" the offerings, he said.

The Kitchener, Ont.-based chain with 467 outlets across Canada already has five corporately-owned stores operating in the Madison, Wis.-area, opening one in May, two in June and another two in early July.

They are operating under a different name - MyMenu - to indicate that their products go beyond just meat, said Decatur, also president of MyMenu. However, they are similar in format to the company's Canadian outlets.

"We expect to have eight open by the end of the calendar year," all being run by a Madison-based, 30-member team under the direction of the Kitchener-based headquarters, he said.

M&M, he said, plans to franchise these outlets in the next couple of years.

The company, founded in 1980 and whose customers include many so-called "soccer moms," has annual sales of between $465 million and $467 million.

It defines soccer moms as 25-to 54-year old suburban women who juggle careers and families but who like to put healthy meals on the table.

M&M joins several Canadian retailers that have tried to enter the U.S. market but later were forced to retreat because of poor sales and little brand awareness.

These include Loblaw Cos. Ltd., Shoppers Drug Mart Corp. and Canadian Tire Corp. Ltd.

Meanwhile, nearly 300 of Canadian food icon Tim Hortons' more than 2,800 stores are based in the United States.

Decatur said M&M looked to Tim Hortons for inspiration.

As for franchising outlets, he said it "will take anywhere from six months to a year ... to work out any nuances that we may have to modify" before deciding on franchises.

However, if the MyMenu concept pans out in the Madison area, he said, M&M hopes to eventually have 300 to 400 outlets in the Midwest alone, all franchised like in Canada.

"We believe the MyMenu brand and shopping experience has incredible potential for growth internationally," he said.

Decatur said M&M's major competitors in the U.S. are the supermarkets, such as Kroger.

But while supermarkets carry lots of frozen foods, consumers increasingly indicated they like to shop at smaller, neighbourhood grocers, he said.

As in Canada, the M&M outlets in Madison are located in suburban strip malls with easy access, and are designed with orange and blue colours, in formats ranging from 1,200 to 1,400 square feet, with a single aisle and one-on-one service.

M&M, he said, believes its offerings are unique enough and separated enough from the supermarket format that "we'll be successful."

In the past 27 years, M&M has "experienced tremendous success and market penetration in Canada," he said.

"After many market research initiatives, we identified Madison as an area of communities that would benefit from our concept and residents who would find it particularly relevant to their lifestyle.

"Our new line of stores is specially designed for communities in the U.S."

Going forward, said Decatur, "we look at openings in the neighbourhood of 20 stores a year."

M&M is also looking at urban intensification projects as more people abandon suburban living for the downtown core due to high fuel and high land prices.

While most of M&M stores are located in suburban areas, "last fall we opened ... our first truly urban location in Toronto under the name M&M Meat Shops Uptown.

"We changed the decor to be more appealing to urbanites and located it in the base of a condo building."


From the MyMenu Website: http://www.mymenustores.com/GOsavings.asp
http://www.mymenustores.com/images/GOartwork4.jpg

[Spokes]

I think an M&M Uptown would do quite well at the base of the Bauer tower (http://www.wonderfulwaterloo.com/showthread.php/40-Bauer-Buildings-|-57-m-|-15-4-2-fl-|-U-C).

[UrbanWaterloo]

The Health Charities Coalition of Canada (HCCC) provides health policy leadership for the health of Canadians.

HCCC Award of Distinction


HCCC Award of Distinction 2010
http://www.healthcharities.ca/hccc-award-of-distinction-2010.html

Presented to Mac Voisin, Founder and Chair, M&M Meat Shops; Philanthropist; Community Leader

Mac Voisin has been selected as the recipient of HCCC’s 2010 Award of Distinction. The selection committee considered a range of criteria such as volunteerism, scope of influence, geographic scope of service, community outreach and the advancement of the charitable health sector. Mr. Voisin was chosen for his considerable contributions to the charitable health sector through his work with the Crohn’s and Colitis Foundation of Canada (CCFC), where he has made a tremendous difference through his support for cure-directed research into a common disease – inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). IBD was a previously “orphaned” disease in the sense that little research funding occurred in this area in Canada prior to his involvement.

Through Mac’s support, and by extension the more than 465 M&M Meat Shops franchisees from coast-to-coast in Canada, the CCFC has been able to significantly advance the health research agenda for the more than 200,000 Canadians affected by IBD and, by extension, influence public policy. Without the support of Mac Voisin, it is possible that IBD would have remained an “orphaned” disease in Canada.

It has been through the support of Mac Voisin that the CCFC, Canada’s leading funder in IBD research, has become the number one per capita funder of IBD research in the non-governmental sector in the world and one of the top globally in absolute terms. His support has enabled the CCFC to fund genetic discoveries for Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis; contribute to better therapies; and launch the “Framingham Study” for IBD – a $5.5 million GEM (genetic, environmental, microbial) Project which involves twenty regional collaborative centres across Canada and up to 5,000 persons being followed over a period of five years to find out what triggers Crohn’s disease. Without Mac’s support of the CCFC and IBD research, the GEM Project would not have been possible.

Over the past 21 years Mac and his associates have raised an astounding $18.3 million towards finding a cure for inflammatory bowel disease. This represents approximately one quarter of all IBD research funded by the CCFC over the past two decades. Mac is an inspiration to other philanthropists. There can be no doubt that he has made an outstanding difference in the lives thousands of Canadians, in addition to people suffering from Crohn’s and Colitis worldwide.

Mac is a most deserving candidate for the Health Charities Coalition of Canada’s 2010 Award of Distinction. On behalf of all the members of HCCC, thank you, Mac, for your exceptional contributions to the CCFC and to the many Canadians who have benefited from your dedication to supporting health research in Canada.

This award will be presented to Mr. Voisin at HCCC’s Annual Roundtable Meeting, to be held on April 8, 2010 in Toronto.

2009 - Dr. Barbara Whylie (http://www.healthcharities.ca/hccc-award-of-distinction-2009.html), Chief Executive Officer, Canadian Cancer Society

2008 - Dr. Alan Bernstein (http://www.healthcharities.ca/hccc-award-of-distinction-2008.html), Executive Director of the Global HIV Vaccine Enterprise and former President of the Canadian Institutes of Health Research
Together, we can strengthen the health of all Canadians.

[UrbanWaterloo]

M&M Meat Shops co-founder named Laurier’s outstanding business leader for 2010
Waterloo | January 18, 2011 | Link (http://www.wlu.ca/news_detail.php?grp_id=0&nws_id=7304)

http://www.wlu.ca/images/news_images/7304/7304_Mac-formal-web.jpg

Mac Voisin, chairman and co-founder of M&M Meat Shops Ltd., has been named Laurier’s Outstanding Business Leader for 2010. The award will be presented at a formal celebratory luncheon at Laurier on Feb. 14.

Voisin was selected for this prestigious award in recognition of his entrepreneurial leadership and innovation in founding one of Canada’s most successful retail food businesses, and for his extensive community involvement.

“Mac has demonstrated innovation by founding Canada’s largest retail chain of specialty frozen foods, driving substantial year-over-year growth, and providing entrepreneurial leadership through a strong corporate philosopy,” said Ginny Dybenko, Laurier’s dean of business and economics. “His tireless support of the Crohns and Colitis Foundation of Canada and several other charitable organizations make him an ideal recipient for this award.”

Voisin, along with then-brother-in-law Mark Nowak, opened the first M&M Meat Shop in Kitchener in 1980 with the aim to sell top quality meat at affordable prices. It expanded quickly under Voisin’s philosophy of “act big even when you’re small.” The first franchise opened in 1981 in Cambridge. Today there are more than 465 locations across Canada.

An active community partner, Voisin started the first chain-wide Charity BBQ Day to raise funds for the Crohns and Colitis Foundation of Canada (CCFC) in 1989. Since then, it has raised more than $16 million for CCFC research. Voisin also supports the Waterloo Region Food Bank, St. Mary’s Hospital, the Kitchener-Waterloo Community Foundation, Junior Achievement of Waterloo Region, and the K-W Counselling Centre.

The School of Business & Economics has presented the Laurier Outstanding Business Leader Award annually since 1987. Award winners are business leaders who exemplify the qualities and characteristics of leadership and management excellence that the school seeks to develop in its students. A list of past recipients can be viewed here (http://www.wlu.ca/page.php?grp_id=31&p=440).

[Shawn]

Winter BBQ @ M&M Meat Shop

WHERE · M&M Meat Shop at 480 Hespeler Rd in Cambridge
WHEN · Saturday, February 05, 2011
TIME · 10am to 2pm

Come and enjoy a winter BBQ Feb 5th 10-2 pm. Come to M&M Meat Shop at 480 Hespeler Rd in Cambridge and get a Hamburger or Hot Dog and a drink for a Minimum Donation of $2.50. Net proceeds will be donated to the family to help them with the overwhelming expenses of treatment. On November 26th Six year old Elli was diagnosed with Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia and her family needs our support. Elli will need two years of Chemotherapy and numerous bone marrow biopsies and lumbar punctures. No child of any age should ever have to endure these painful treatments. Come out and support Elli and her family, they need our support. I'm also taking pledges in advance at either M&M Meat Shops in Cambridge. The day of the BBQ if we make a grand total of $2000 I'm going to shave my head in support of Elli. Won't that make a pretty picture LOL! And think else you need don’t hesitate to call!

[UrbanWaterloo]

M&M Meat Shops: Pay a Little, Eat a Lot, to Raise Money for Research
Charity BBQ Day-Saturday, May 7, 2011!
Help Find the Cure for Crohn's Disease and Ulcerative Colitis
May 3, 2011 | Marketwire | Link (http://www.marketwire.com/press-release/m-m-meat-shops-pay-little-eat-lot-raise-money-research-on-charity-bbq-day-saturday-may-1509015.htm)

http://www.charitybbqday.ca/images/header.jpg

On Saturday, May 7, 2011, visit any of the more than 465 M&M Meat Shops locations across Canada to support the 23rd Annual M&M Meat Shops Charity BBQ Day (http://www.charitybbqday.ca/) benefiting the Crohn's and Colitis Foundation of Canada (CCFC) (http://www.ccfc.ca/site/c.ajIRK4NLLhJ0E/b.6319851/k.BDBF/Home.htm).

On May 7th, between 10:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m. M&M Meat Shops' franchisees, staff and thousands of volunteers from coast-to-coast will grill hamburgers and hot dogs to meet the 23rd Anniversary Charity BBQ Day fundraising goal of $1.6 million., Supporters will receive a hamburger or hot dog, a drink and a bag of chips for a minimum donation of $2.50. All food and time is donated, so every penny raised goes directly to the CCFC for its research programs.

For an additional $2, supporters can cool down by purchasing a delicious M&M Meat Shops Strawberry Shortcake Bar (http://www.mmmeatshops.com/en/products/product.asp?productID=324&catID=8) and proceeds will be donated to CCFC.

Canada has among the highest incidence of Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis in the world, two similar yet distinct conditions also known as inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). The public profile of these "taboo" diseases, however, continues to be low. There are more than 200,000 Canadians suffering from IBD. It is a painful and unpredictable disorder. There is no known cause or cure and the number of cases continues to grow.

This year, M&M Meat Shops Charity BBQ Day is being supported by Amanda Holmes, daughter of Canada's Most Trusted Contractor Mike Holmes. Amanda was diagnosed with Crohn's as a teenager. "My dad is an expert at home renovation and construction." says Amanda. "But when I was diagnosed with Crohn's disease even he didn't have the tools to fix me. At this point, nobody does and that's why both of us are proud to support the CCFC. M&M Meat Shops Charity BBQ is an important way to raise funds and awareness for Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis."

"There are few things harder than seeing your child in pain," says Mike Holmes. "I appreciate every dollar donated to the CCFC."

Breaking Records for a Cure

From humble beginnings, M&M Meat Shops Charity BBQ Day has grown into CCFC's largest annual fundraising activity by any single supporter. Over the past 22 years, M&M Meat Shops has raised more than $20 million for medical research dedicated to finding a cure for IBD.

The money raised through events such as Charity BBQ Day has allowed CCFC to fund more than $65 million in medical research projects. Charity BBQ Day began in 1989, when Mac Voisin, Founder of M&M Meat Shops learned that Canadians suffer from IBD at an unusually high rate. He quickly realized that he had the unique opportunity to help raise awareness and funds for a little known, and even less spoken-about condition and Canadian charity. Charity BBQ Day was born and the CCFC gained both a corporate sponsor and a public voice. Over the past 22 years, Charity BBQ Day has grown rapidly. Last year, $1.6 million was raised and this year the goal is also set at $1.6 million.

"What began in 1989 with just a handful of stores has evolved into a national event at more than 465 M&M Meat Shops locations across Canada. We are celebrating 22 years of fundraising for CCFC and Charity BBQ Day has definitely become an expression of who we are as a company. The commitment of our franchisees and volunteers in communities from coast-to-coast is phenomenal and we thank everyone for their dedication," says Mac Voisin. "Our goal is to help find a cure so that our event can become an annual celebration of the cure for IBD.

$2.50 Hamburgers Help Find a Cure

"We are extremely grateful to those who support M&M Meat Shops Charity BBQ Day," says CCFC CEO Kevin Glasgow. "Our 22-year-partnership with M&M Meat Shops has made an enormous difference in our effort to find a cure for IBD. The generous donations, combined with the hard work of thousands of volunteers, raise a significant portion of our annual research funds in just one day."

The money raised through Charity BBQ Day is invested into IBD research, which includes:


Investing in the most talented inflammatory bowel disease researchers in Canada;
Reporting on the incidence and prevalence of IBD in Canada and the economic and social burden of this disease on patients, their families and the Canadian health care system;
Funding collaborations involving various researchers and research centres to find the cure for Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis; and
Working with paediatric gastroenterologists across Canada, CCFC is developing a model for tracking paediatric IBD cases in order to learn more about how youth develop IBD, how they fare with the diseases and how they respond to treatment. The initiative will encourage Canadian researchers to develop new questions and studies that ultimately would lead to improved quality of care and clinical outcomes for youth with IBD.

Be a Star

From Friday, April 1 until Sunday, May 8, Canadians can also support IBD research by purchasing and signing a Star in-store at M&M Meat Shops. Each star can be personalized with a signature, picture, or short message.

There are three types of Stars to choose from:


For $2, supporters will receive a Star and a chance to win a $500 M&M Meat Shops gift card;
For $3, supporters will receive a Star, an M&M Meat Shops Blossom Pastry and double the chance to win a $500 M&M Meat Shops gift card;
For $5, supporters will receive a Star, a coupon book worth more than $50 in M&M Meat Shops savings and triple the chance to win a $500 M&M Meat Shops gift card.