Putting Our Spin on Things: The 411.ca 10,000 Customer Gala

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I’m new here, at the 411.ca offices, but the “411” brand is hardly unknown to anyone who’s in the business of digital media. You think ‘411’ you think of information.

So, here’s a little story about how my house, this company, your next home reno and rap music all fit together:

Just this summer I was doing a search for “home improvements Toronto” for some renovations I’m doing to this new-old house that my husband and I bought in the West End of the city.

I hated every minute of it.

Do you know what’s more exhausting than renovating an old house? Finding the experts to do it for you.

With the hundreds (maybe thousands) of flyers, banners and lawn signs that litter the city during the hot summer months – “Peter’s Painting”, “Harold’s Home Improvement” – it’s a full time job trying to sift through the legit businesses versus the guys who show up at your door with a hammer, a drill and a case of beer.

So, to find people who were willing to invest in their business (the way I was investing in my house) I did   what more than 2.5 million Canadians do each month: I typed “411.ca” into my browser and got to down to researching the nitty-gritty of the Toronto home improvement market.

After a few hours of phone calls, deliberation and even interviewing two contractors, I found my guy.  And I found him on 411.ca. And now, just a few months later, I’m here working for the company that put me in touch with the man who restored the antique base boards in my bedroom.

How’s that for a turn of events?

And so, as the new Senior Manager of Marketing and Communications for 411.ca, on October 22, I found myself at a swanky company gala, hosted at the Capitol Events Theatre in Toronto, to celebrate a milestone: 10,000 customers.

I expected it to be like any other company event I’d ever attended in my career: uneventful and ‘a nice evening.’

Boy, was I wrong.

The Capitol Theatre is an elegant venue with soaring antique ceilings, divine architecture and signs of an eclectic history in its decor and grandeur. My first impression: This company has style.

More than 100 employees from our Montreal and Toronto offices danced late into the night, with a New Year’s Eve-style falling of balloons at midnight, a champagne toast to the team’s accomplishments and to a healthy third quarter. So far, I’m impressed, but not entertained, just yet.

And then, a surprise gift from the VP of Sales and the Chief Financial Officer: a rap song. Seriously.

In all my years working in corporate settings, I had never seen a company’s top brass get down and get “jiggy with it” (which, yes, I believe both gentlemen said at some point) just to entertain the team that, in their words, “make this company what it is”.

A unique approach, sure, but then again, as I’ve come to learn, so is the way we do business. And that’s what makes us different.

Here are a few snaps of the evening:

The Gang: A blend of our Toronto and Montreal Team

We're "all in" around here..

Doing it in style

Ladies and Gentlemen, our CFO, Matt Rosen!

VP of Sales, Neal Romanchych

... and that's me, Sandy Braz.

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