Michael LeBlanc and Dr. Sylvain Charlebois welcome Trinh Tham, CEO of the Kevito Group, to discuss scaling QSR concepts Chatime and Bake Code across Canada. Tham shares insights on brand building, franchise growth, and bringing global food trends to Canadian consumers through authenticity and localization. The episode also covers key food industry news, including inflation, sustainability trends, grocery pricing, and global trade pressures impacting Canada’s agri-food sector, as well as thoughts on Prime Minister Mark Carney’s Canada-U.S. trade advisory council.
In this episode of The Food Professor Podcast, hosts Michael LeBlanc and Dr. Sylvain Charlebois sit down with Trinh Tham, CEO of the Kevito Group, operator of Chatime and Bake Code—two of Canada’s fastest-growing quick-service restaurant (QSR) brands. Tham shares a compelling leadership journey spanning grocery retail, luxury fashion, and now high-growth foodservice, offering a masterclass in brand building, cultural authenticity, and scaling modern food concepts.
Tham explains how her career—rooted in marketing, e-commerce, and digital merchandising at leading organizations like Sobeys and Harry Rosen—prepared her to lead in an entrepreneurial environment. She discusses the intentional pivot into a purpose-driven role aligned with her cultural heritage, helping bring globally inspired Asian beverage and bakery concepts into the Canadian mainstream. Under her leadership, Chatime has grown to over 100 locations, capitalizing on the explosive popularity of bubble tea—a category she describes as still early in its growth curve in Canada.
A central theme is the balance between authenticity and localization. Tham outlines how Kevito adapts global food trends for Canadian consumers while preserving the cultural DNA that gives these brands credibility. She also breaks down the operational realities of scaling a franchise system, including managing costs, driving unit economics, and maintaining consistency—all while innovating with new products and experiences. Her perspective on building versus managing a business—and her emphasis on relationships, creativity, and disciplined execution—offers valuable insights for food entrepreneurs and retail leaders alike.
Before the interview, the hosts unpack the week's food and agriculture news. Key topics include shifting consumer attitudes toward sustainability amid economic pressure, rising food inflation (still among the highest in the G7), and new data identifying Canada’s most and least expensive cities for grocery shopping. The episode also dives into global trade tensions impacting agri-food, including beef pricing pressures, supply chain dynamics, and potential import strategies to ease consumer costs. Additional discussion touches on farmland policy, grocery labour disruptions, and the ongoing complexity of food affordability.