Canada is a country commonly known for its multiculturalism and very diverse population. If you were to walk down a busy street in Toronto, you would more than likely see people of many different backgrounds along your walk. Canada affords these people opportunities to start a new life. Some end up working “nine to fives”, some end up doing freelance work, but some end up creating their own businesses and start-ups. What are their stories?
Culture through taste
It’s very easy to walk into a Thai restaurant, sit down, and enjoy a bowl of pho. But that bowl of pho may come from years of struggle and hard work. These restaurants and businesses don’t just build themselves and automatically succeed, they are a collection of generations making the chance to move to Canada and create a new life very possible.
Restaurants are a very common business path chosen by people who migrate into Canada. It offers them a chance to hold their culture close to them while also adapting to their new home.
Jerry Pribil is the proud owner of Marienbad Restaurant and Chaucer’s Pub in London. The restaurant offers a plethora of European specialties, from chicken paprikash to wiener schnitzel, while the pub offers beers from six different continents. While the restaurant is broadly European, Jerry was born in Prague in a time where it was a part of Czechoslovakia, now Czech Republic.
Marienbad Restaurant in London, Ontario.
Pribil will be the first to admit that owning a restaurant was not at the top of his list when he arrived in Canada.
“I came to London when I was sixteen years old, but then [after high school] I went to play soccer in Europe,” Jerry explains. “And then I went to the University of Nevada, Las Vegas for their hospitality program. After that I was in hotel management in the U.S, and then Europe, and then back to the U.S. After that it was time for our oldest son to start school so we relocated back to London.”
For many immigrants, settling down is not instantaneous and Pribil is a perfect example of that. After working in hotel management for an extensive period of time, the Prague-born man was offered the opportunity to purchase the Marienbad.
While it was never a dream of his to run a restaurant, Jerry has come to love the industry and what it offers his life.
“I’ve always liked catering to people, I love to change their lives, I love to provide entertainment,” Jerry says. “In this industry, we don’t provide goods…we sell experiences and I always like selling experiences to customers and clients, making the people happy, and helping them enjoy their lives to the fullest.”
It’s not always about making a living, it’s about improving a life. Jerry was able to come from a country filled with hostility and little to no opportunity and, not only turn his life around, but turn around the lives of those around him. Now, he is happy to consider London home.
“I was born in a communist country, I left… London is my home in my heart.”
Taking the first opportunity
Although becoming a restauranteur is seemingly a common path taken, sometimes it’s matter of taking what’s on offer. A perfect example of this is Alphonse Mulder, a dairy farmer from the Netherlands.
Alphonse was born in Wijhe in the Netherlands. In 1990, at a very young age, he was on his way to Canada as an exchange student. While still a student, he began working in farming as it showed itself as an opportunity. He became obsessed and made his goal to one day own a farm in Canada.
While he accomplished his goal, the dutchman admits there was complications along the way. He was by no means rich when he made life in Canada, so money was tight.
“In 1990, the interest rates were super high,” Alphonse explains. “When the interest rates climbed higher, I was wondering if I was going to make it or not.”
While many would see this as a time of hardship and misfortune, Mulder saw it as an opportunity to learn, an opportunity to get creative.
“Looking back, these are the best times of my life because [I] became creative,” Alphonse tells me. “I bought an old tractor that didn’t last very long because I didn’t have money for a new tractor. I had a used Ford Ranger as a farm truck, and now I’m laughing about it.”
Finding positives in a time of struggle is only for the strong-minded. Alphonse saw the positives, he saw the opportunity, and that’s what helped him find his success story.
Every Canadian has a story. What’s yours?
Comments