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The first Cora restaurant opened in a snack bar in Ville St. Laurent in 1987. The dynamic creator, Cora Tsouflidou, was quickly designated “Canada’s Queen of Breakfast.”
4 K( p2 C7 Q Y7 k/ C: pThe Cora concept, an all day breakfast, was easily adopted by native Montrealers. Their penchant for late night socializing followed by early mornings at the office made breakfast in Quebec a must-have for refueling energies. 6 D3 o5 W: j) A3 N: O+ v. `
Cora quickly established herself with a menu of core "comfort foods” recipes rooted in the memories of her childhood home in the Gaspé Peninsula.
: k! v8 E( i& V( [1 FIt wasn’t long before Cora began exploring her creative culinary talents, delighting her customers with an eclectic mix of ingredients including fresh fruit and vegetables. The results of her creations caused a buzz across the island of Montreal. Fresh crepes loaded with fruit and creamy chocolate hazelnut filling, waffles smothered with year round fresh strawberries, incredible creations that tempted the taste buds of even the most finicky eater. Her unique stuffed crepes served with a mountain of fresh fruit soon had thousands of hungry people licking their lips in delight. . K4 L" }3 {1 T0 w$ n0 ~
It wasn’t just the extraordinary food Cora served that had locals flocking to her initial Cote Vertu location, it was the imaginative way in which she engaged her customers.
$ Y1 R+ x" `' K- }% h2 U. w& E4 IShe personalized meals and named them after her customers, setting the stage for both a menu and a décor that reflected the whimsy that is truly Cora. Names like April ’89, Julia’s Delight, 90’s Harvest, Rosemary’s Sunday – each recipe has an anecdotal history, stories that are circulated throughout the chain and shared with a clientele who enjoy good stories, good company and good food. , x1 R4 e8 f8 |5 B- v( O
The restaurants are open from 6:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. Monday to Saturday, and Sundays from 7:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. everywhere in Canada. Cora Breakfast & Lunch provides its franchisees with a successful business that leaves room for the art of living. $ m& ?$ S) N' X9 J2 ]! O. A
Cora has been one of Canada’s 50 Best Managed Companies, for the past three consecutive years.
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Cora Tsouflidou – The Woman Behind the Brand ( [6 B3 o8 T. G @
Cora Tsouflidou is a mentor, a mother, and an accomplished businesswoman with many talents; she is also Chairman of the Board for Cora’s Breakfast and Lunch.
2 h1 P. Y" K0 {' x8 ]" i& kCora founded the company in 1987 and was looking forward to retirement when she handed over the reins to her son Nicolas. She may have thought she was retiring, but in fact, she just changed her role. She is now the public relations and marketing expert for the company, with coaching and mentoring her son an important part of her day. . r ~, y' L6 `' G
Cora is a self-made businesswoman with a tremendous love for her work. While she stresses the importance of perseverance and insists that it is a major part of her recipe for success, her passion for food is also a key ingredient. According to Cora, she “speaks with her food” – she truly loves to feed people, and see their eyes light up when they taste her creations. 7 ?# j1 f' g; l5 s4 A+ V9 S4 w
She is most at home in her own kitchen, cooking for family and friends and at Cora’s Breakfast and Lunch she has recreated that sense of warmth and family for the business.
0 z; J. }- l8 d9 LCora created a new category in the restaurant industry when she re-invented breakfast by bringing a creative, yet traditionally appealing and nutritious breakfast and lunch menu to Canadian consumers. It has been said that Cora’s has brought hotel quality breakfast to street level restaurants .
T4 f0 \+ H& y7 ~. mPart of her new role is to travel to her stores across the country, dropping in to say "hello” to both staff and customers. Surprised customers are delighted to find out there really is a "Cora” and often ask for autographs and pictures taken with the real "Cora”.
9 @: }9 u! f; u. k. E9 I% [8 x6 oCora is unique, always willing to go that extra mile for her customers. Every customer receives a delicious piece of homemade fudge when they leave the restaurant. It’s Cora’s way of saying “this is our home, thanks for coming to visit.” Like Cora herself, the restaurant and staff are caring, hospitable and friendly – it’s a place you want to return to again and again !
0 L* R9 y; X! A/ Z9 BCora paints pictures with words; she compares the business to a garden, where there is a need to water and weed, to ensure that the garden grows and bears fruit. % K1 F7 c3 H, M5 D+ L5 s2 `: ^0 b
Through her artistic abilities, Cora created all of the original graphics that decorate the walls of a Cora restaurant. She not only created the menu and the concept of a breakfast and lunch restaurant, she also designed the Sun Logo brand. It’s a symbol that is both caring and comforting and has attained a level of assisted brand awareness of more than 95% in Quebec.
& d% E/ d0 C, K) G, G2 j8 l9 xAs an innovator and smart strategist, Cora got much of her business education from the hundreds of books she’s read, learning and implementing best practices from some of the worlds’ most successful companies. For her, books provide easy access to a wealth of knowledge that she easily absorbs and puts into practice within the Cora Group. & N: A0 Y$ z6 c* C T' f4 |
Using all of what she read, Cora quickly identified the opportunity to create a unique concept in the restaurant industry; a restaurant that opened at 6:00 a.m. and closed at 3:00 p.m. serving only breakfast and lunch. Statistics show that today, what used to be a business dinner meeting, has been transformed into a power breakfast meeting.
( O1 o: k* c2 k2 LCora is an incredible communicator in both English and French. She is passionate about sharing her vision with employees, franchisees and suppliers. She hosts a monthly breakfast with the corporate staff, providing a forum for Cora to update the team on company status and new business initiatives. ) n) B: R$ p% O+ f: q# ?% ?. b4 u
Cora is a mentor currently sharing her vision with young entrepreneurs. She has initiated a series of "Breakfast with Cora” events where she meets with a small group of protégees to listen to their challenges, answer their questions and suggest ideas that will help them succeed in their business development. - f4 j* O( ^" x1 J3 m5 L$ E
Her charisma has captured the hearts of her staff, her franchisees and her customers. The name "Cora” is synonymous with the words innovative, artistic, imaginative and creative. Her welcoming smile, her warm and friendly appeal and her incredible success with the growth of the chain, make Cora Tsouflidou truly a trendsetter. $ v% d* u$ L& N' J6 t
Her administrative assistant, Joan Bouchard says, "Madam Cora is an inspiration, a catalyst and a humble woman who genuinely enjoys the work she does.”
6 A# D# m6 m1 p& `Cora designed a "growth tree” several years ago which has been used as a visual to show how the company planned on reaching its strategic objectives. The growth tree showed the inter-relationships between departments, tasks, goals and objectives. Now, under the leadership of her son Nicholas, the company has a state of the art communication system that keeps everyone current on ongoing projects and issues. . ?+ I# d& c8 O
As a divorced woman with children to support, Cora was in typical survival mode when she decided to open her first restaurant. She was singularly motivated to work hard by focusing her energy to succeed in the restaurant trade. She quickly found that franchising was the tool she needed to accomplish this goal. Today, her focus is to introduce Canadians across the country to Cora's Breakfast & Lunch. |
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