Art-Is-In uninvited from Ottawa Farmer’s Market [General]

2019 Apr 10
The bakery posted a message this morning saying that they are no longer welcome at the Farmer’s Market due to the ingredients used in their products. See their Facebook page or the attached screenshot for details.

2019 Apr 10
this is going to get ugly...

2019 Apr 10
Wow.
I wonder whether there was any lead up to this (like an email 'hey, we are concerned about...') or they just sprang it on ArtIsIn.

2019 Apr 10
Nothing like a good food fight. . . . . . . .

2019 Apr 10
Art-Is-In is not well regarded from an employee's point of view. Their products are good but I have no qualms avoiding them based on how they treat their employees.


2019 Apr 10
Looks like Art-is-in will play the victim card. Part of the mandate of the Ottawa Farmers Market is local vendors, local content. Doesn't look like Art-is-in uses very many locally sourced ingredients.

If you have ever seen their "stock room" it's full of commercial/food service ingredients. They are a big production bakery. Not on the scale of Ace or Canada bread, but much much bigger than Bread by Us or Bread and Sons. Just because they are a local business doesn't mean they fit the mandate of the market. And it's up to the market board who gets let in.

And I agree with TheTrunkDr, after a friend in industry had a bad experience with them, I avoid their products.

2019 Apr 10
Ottawa market posted a response on Instagram to Artisin's post.
Vendors must meet 15% local requirement.
15% requirement is part of of rental agreement with the city
OFM contacted them 2 weeks ago asking for a plan to meet the 15% requirement.
OFM contacted Kevin or his wife directly to try and work out how they can meet the 15%.

Looks like to me they are trying to rile up.public opinion to get out of following the rules

2019 Apr 11
Every few months somebody posts on Ottawa Reddit on how badly they treat their employees. It became enough of an issue that they actually responded to it, but the complaints have continued. I also remember when the restaurants basically shut down the attempted market on Sparks, and there was talk of some solidarity with the vendors, they broke ranks and continued to sell at the ill-fated attempt at continuing a market (a 'market' that wouldn't sell anything that might possibly compete with the business of the restaurants). There seems to be a general feeling that the owner is more than a bit of a jerk.

2019 Apr 11
What goes around comes around. They’ve been jerks to anyone who will listen, so I’m not surprised that they are playing dirty here. They’ll still make money hand over fist with all their other outlets and alleged fishy treatment of employees.

2019 Apr 11
Nothing like a good food fight. . . . . . . .

2019 Apr 11
Damn!... they have good croissants though

2019 Apr 12
Ditto on the employee thing (but I won't go there again), and ditto on the croissants (it's always a conundrum because Art-is-in does some things so good but I don't like to personally support them after a family member had a bad experience).

Nevertheless, this made me realize I've never thought about the local requirement for bread vendors. How do they meet it/calculate it? Surely Art-is-in has a starter that can be considered local. Do people use local flour/grain? Can they hit the percentage enough with flavoured breads (e.g. local onions/local cheese)? I mean, Beau's puts "local spring water" on their ingredients list, does that count?

2019 Apr 12
"Market vendors are required to use a minimum of 15% ingredients (by total cost) produced from local agricultural producers."

Source: Instagram comment from ottawafarmmkt :-)

2019 Apr 12
I have bought Niagara peaches at the Farmers’ Market.

2019 Apr 13
I will shed no tears for ArtIsIn. I've avoided the place for a long time due to all the talk about how they've treated their employees. At the same time, the rule and how it is applied seems a bit dodgy. How does Hummingbird Chocolate get a pass? They don't grow cocoa beans. Same with the coffee and tea places. Same with the chocolate covered dates place (I don't think they grow dates in Ottawa?). Aren't there some pottery and woodcraft places too IIRC?

2019 Apr 13
Here is a link to the guidelines for Lansdowne's market. Perhaps that will answer some questions (or raise even more....)

ottawafarmersmarket.ca


2019 Apr 14
Or are they . . . ? (www.instagram.com)

2019 Apr 14
They explained that they will be there until the end of the winter market (end of April) and are now in discussions about what will happen when the summer season begins.

2019 Apr 15
Yep:

"artisinbakery
@chrisp_starsandmapleleafs we’re finishing the winter season until the end of April... hope there’s a solution so we can do the summer market for sure🤗
Fingers crossed 🤞"

I admit, i would be sorry to see them go. Lots of great baked goods options at the market, but they are consistently present, stocked, and consistent quality.

I understand the 'local issue', wouldn't argue with it for a farmer's market that makes that a priority, so i hope AiI can sort it out.

2019 Apr 15
Its our second year at the Market and we were also asked to prove how we'd meet the 15% criteria and had to submit a proposal to be welcomed back this year. For the Local content stipulation they have it outlined this:

Local - obtaining the defining ingredient(s) used in prepared dishes from, in the following order:
• OFMA Members (including exceptions outside 100 km);
• Farmers/producers within 100 km of Ottawa; and
• Farmers/producers from Ontario and/or Quebec.

So as much as possible, if we can use local ingredients, we should. Luckily for us we can get fresh produce locally that should account for the minimum. We were using Ontario produce last year as we were still figuring things out and were kind of worried when we got a notification from them but they did give us an opportunity to submit a proposal of how we'd achieve 15% local content and we got accepted again this year.

Its hard to see how you can get local flour etc. but its a fraction of your total sales value - so if they sold sadwiches etc. that had local produce, fruits, meats etc. that would account for the 15% as well. Hopefully they figure it out. They do have an amazing stall there and theres always a line up. Its a good source of income for them to be losing out on.

2019 Apr 15
I was not aware of the rumours around the treatment of employees at Art-Is-In bakery but this may make some sense based on my experiences there. While I love their bakery products and their eat-in food, my wife and I found that on most occasions (not all) at their City Centre shop we have been treated borderline rudely by employees there. We felt that their attitude was that they were doing us a favour by serving us (whether it was bakery items to go or when we ate in). If those rumours are true, that might explain this behaviour. When you mistreat employees that can poison their attitude and impact how they treat customers.

2019 Apr 15
One time at Art-is-in I came in for bread about 45 minutes before close, and I was looking at the options and an employee yelled at me saying "WHAT DO YOU WANT!?" and seemed to be in distress. I didn't take it personally, I assumed it was the stressful work environment that caused her to behave that way. A friend of mine also went in around lunch time and tried to order a sandwich but was barked at by an employee there and told he would have to hold his horses and wait. It seems that when workers are stressed, they take it out on their customers as a way of releasing that tension. I understand if a customer is being a dick, but you should never snap at nice customers.

2019 Apr 18
The latest Reddit thread on Art-Is-In (www.reddit.com). Some of the complaints, unfortunately, seem to be Late Capitalism and the way workers are now treated, generally, but many seem specific to this business.

2019 Apr 19
It's not fair to accept only the negatives about Art-is-in by ex-employees, they may very been treated poorly from their perspective but from people that I know that have worked there, they they found the workload difficult but Art-is-in is crazy busy from opening, it's a stressful place to work simply because of the volume of customers...

There is a person that works there now & on reddit they praise both Stephanie & Kevin...It's not fair to tarnish their reputation because of some gossip being spread by self admitting disgruntled employees...

This is what's wrong with social media where gossip is perceived as fact

If you believe the ex-employees, don't patronize the shop...

Just my 2 cents...

2019 Apr 21
I think it's completely fair to accept only the negatives, because the way you treat employees matters. The way you treat customers matters. There have been literally dozens of accounts by former and even current employees, attesting to the cruel work environment. Not to mention the accounts by customers (myself included) who have had very bad experiences there. An employee being called a retard is not simply being "treated poorly from their perspective." That is plain wrong, period. Firing employees on the spot without giving a valid reason, that is not a matter of perspective. It's unethical, and probably illegal. Their reputation deserves to be tarnished.

2019 Apr 21
They go through cycles of complaints, followed by a seemingly contrite 'we hear you' and a promise to improve, then more complaints of exactly the same behaviour, and so on. It doesn't appear that any of this is having the slightest effect on business, which is booming. It is possible that the quality of the baking is a product of the same personality traits which lead to all the other problems.

2019 Apr 21
As I posted, if you choose to believe the employees then don't patronize the store, as I & many have pointed out it's a difficult place to work, Kevin & Stephanie's reputation is on every loaf of bread, every croissant, every burger, etc, they depend on their staff to maintain a certain quality, it's a stressful environment that some can handle & others can't..

I will whole hardheartedly agree that no one should ever be called names & it's actually against labour laws, it's called abuse, it's illegal but most importantly it's wrong...

You could fill a reddit post with disgruntled employees from any line of work, I'm sure they have legitimate complaints but under such stress & the heat of the moment things are said that are not well thought out, we've all said things we didn't mean, it's how we react to it with those employees that's important...


2019 Apr 21
I went to their operation once, the lineup was really long, and seemed to be moving slowly. I believe I had lunch down the road at Bite This that day. I did go to the place in the market once, and paid 10$ for a coffee and croissant, which seemed a little steep. It was very good though.

2019 Apr 21
I usually wouldn't respond to something like this, but Terry, your attitude is appalling.

"If you choose to believe the employees" - yeah, I'm going to believe the employees. The business has every reason to lie and cover their behinds or pretend to be good employers, the employees have absolutely no reason to take time out of their days to write out fiction about their experience working there, and I can't imagine why so many people would do that, especially all for this one business.

It's not normal for there to be this many negative threads and comments about a business. Sure, any business probably has disgruntled employees, but to have so many vocal ones is abnormal. It just doesn't make sense that a bunch of people would be conspiring against the owners and all lie about having the same sorts of negative experiences together while the owners are totally innocent. That doesn't happen. Why aren't people doing it to other innocent businesses?

And that last part is absolutely the most insane. How can you actually defend people treating their workers like that. How can you, in one line, say its illegal and wrong and then in the next defend it as something done in the heat of the moment? That's NEVER okay, not even "in the heat of the moment".

It's really disappointing to see another business owner defending what they did... It certainly makes me question how you treat your employees.

2019 Apr 21
I choose to believe a family member that has worked all over the world on the frontlines of the food service/restaurant industry and knows the standard of treatment by an employer (and local business). But that family member's experience with Art-Is-In bakery was almost 5 years ago. After the blowup and the promise posted publicly by Art-Is-In to do better (which proves that the maltreatment was fact) I'm just flat out bummed (but maybe not surprised) that in 2019 not much has changed.

Now this is also a bit back, but I know it wasn't just employees, but another local business that had a good relationship with Art-Is-In and used to regularly dine there once per week had their relationship sour for some reason (but I wasn't privy to the specific cause of this).

What irks me about all of this (getting back to the original topic of the thread) is that Art-Is-In decided to distort the facts and rile up the base instead of just being honest and hitting this head on. Shitty PR.

2019 Apr 21
I wasn't trying to offend anyone nor have I sided with the restaurant, I know people that have worked there & yes it was stressful but they didn't have any issues with the owners...

I didn't defend anything that they've done but we all lose our temper, it's important to acknowledge any abuse & deal with it immediately, if they don't do that then yes they're terrible employers...

Look if Art-is-In treats their staff that poorly it's atrocious, I don't condone any of that & I apologize if my thread came across as a "us against them' & that I was defending them, I was simply pointing out that it's a thread from a 'self confessed disgruntled employee'...

As far as the way we treat our fellow workers, you won't find any negative thread about us, our staff is our family & are treated as such, I don't know how other places treat their staff, I just treat ours like equals, not employees...

Hope that clears that up a bit..

2019 Apr 23
Latest Reddit thread makes accusations of social media manipulation (www.reddit.com).

2019 Apr 23
"From a 'self confessed disgruntled employee'" is literally the source for every complaint about any employer and is applicable universally thus negating every single possible complaint against any employer. This along with phrases like "if you choose to believe the employees" are nothing but apologia to defend the employer in question and cast doubt on the claims of the employees. No employer is going to volunteer the information that they mistreat employees, at best they'll cop to it when a complaint surfaces.

A few complaints from employees are probably inevitable for any business but when there are several following the same pattern that's a sign there's an issue at that business. Art-is-in definitely fits that with complaints of similar behaviour from several current and former employees over the course of a long period of time. Further damning is statements from clients and business partners about issues they've had with the company.

As for the market I think I'd prefer some other baking company take Art's spot. Art doesn't need the market and the promotion that comes with it anymore. It's a popular successful business. The market can be a great tool to help small business gain a foothold and promote itself. I'd love to see a new bakery come it and give Art some competition in the city.

2019 Apr 23
It just seems a bit unfair to me that Kevin & Stephanie are automatically guilty as charged without even a chance to address it ...

Here is their number & email address
Email: admin@artisinbakery.com
Phone: 613-695-1226x1

Why not call them ask to sit down?

Again, I'm not taking sides, it wouldn't be right for me to judge anyone without knowing the details from both parties...

2019 Apr 23
I was on the receiving end of a rude interaction with Art-Is-In on social media so I asked to whom I was corresponding with. Turns out it was Stephanie and then she doubled-down on the rudeness. So in some cases they've already addressed it - they are sure of their words because they are written, they had the chance to be polite or humble or to not say anything at all, and went the other direction with no apologies. She seemed quite delighted to be a jerk and was persistent with it. I have no trouble believing that they are jerks - that's my experience with the people who set the tone at that business.

2019 Apr 24
How many restaurants and bakeries are there in Ottawa? Why is it always Art Is In that's the subject of these posts, both on here and on Reddit and on Facebook? We are talking *years* of posts too. You have to look pretty hard to find any posts that paint them in a good light (no one is doubting that they make good food). They must be unluckiest people on the face of the earth, or maybe it's just a grand conspiracy, but sure, we should all phone them up as I'm sure they have some useful information to contribute. You might want to block out the entire day on your schedule though if you expect them to address all the posts about them.

>I'd love to see a new bakery come it and give Art some competition in the city.

No one else is exactly the same, but Bread by Us offers lunch as well as bread and pastries that are excellent. They've been in the media for paying above minimum wage and offering benefits to employees. True Loaf is superior bakery to ArtIsIn IMHO, but they are just a straight-on bakery.

2019 Apr 24
I'm starting to think Terry's an Art-Is-In shill or far too close to the owners.

These allegations have been made in public and they can easily be addressed in public. I'm not obliged to contact them simply to satisfy some strange notion that I have to hear all sides of story about a business to which I have no involvement before deciding if I should support it or not. An ongoing history of similar stories is enough evidence for me to choose to spend my money elsewhere. They're free to address the allegations in public or not. If they do I can then re-evaluate my position with regard to their business. As it stands I have no reason to give money to what appears to be a couple of a-hole owners. I also suspect there's very little they can possibly say at this point to change my mind and I think that's perfectly reasonable. I don't need a massive amount of justification to not spend money somewhere and I don't need to justify that decision to anyone.

I'm curious now Terry, what would it take for you to choose to not support a business? Do you really need to hear from the owner directly that they're terrible to their employees and partners?

2019 Apr 24
I just put it all together...

Terry is Kevin.
We're through the looking glass now, people!

It's true, isn't it Terry? ...i mean, Kevin?

All this time, you've been leading a double life, the lies are just piling up, aren't they... oh yes, we're on to you ...admit it Tervin i mean Kevry, admit it

CONFESS
CONFESS
CONFESS
CONFESS
SHAME
SHAME
SHAME
*picture of that angry nun from GoT last season ringing the bell*

...also, could i please have some of those berry scones they ran out of on Sunday am? And a mudpile cookie? And how far in advance do i need to order a meat pie for next weekend?


2019 Apr 25
Yet another new thread has been posted to reddit, this time from a senior employee.

www.reddit.com

Art-is-in seriously needs to be boycotted. Also the Ministry of Labour needs to get involved.

2019 Apr 26
wow... that one is seriously brutal.

2019 Apr 26
make a play list... wtf?

2019 Apr 26
They seem to be blitzing Instagram with photos of happy employees!

2019 Apr 29
My 2 cents.

Terry is looking at the situation through the lens of a small business owner in the same industry. Not a shill, not a front. If there were issues like with Art is in floating around, Terry and Randy would want to address it directly and work to resolve the issue. Art is in has shown over several years that they are not interested in making changes.


2019 May 1
The Instagram blitzing is getting a little out of hand. Look at the previous months and months of Instagram posts, none showing off any happy smiling staff. #bestteamever

2019 May 1
I don't claim to know Terry personally but I have been to his restaurant a great many times. He is a very nice man and seems to treat his employees well from what I have observed. I find it impossible to believe that he is a shill for the owners of Art is In.

2019 May 1
I should clarify, I don't actually think Terry's a shill or anything. It was more a statement about how I find it difficult to believe that after the huge number of reports over the last decade with no apparent signs of change that anyone would defend Art-Is-In. It seems obvious it is a terrible place to work, has been for some time, and that, to me, stating so should be non-controversial at this point.

2019 May 2
"It seems .. to me, stating so should be non-controversial at this point."

Hi, welcome to the Internet.

2019 May 9
Well, they are at almost every grocery store, so I'm sure it is not a huge loss.
Can't you also get some of their frozen products somewhere?? or am i thinking of another local bakery.

2019 May 9
Ace bakery maybe or Rideau? I don't recall seeing Art-Is-In at any grocery store

2019 May 10
Well, they posted recently they'll be able to stay at the Ottawa Farmer's Market. A happy ending for a great local company!

2019 May 10
"Well, they are at almost every grocery store, so I'm sure it is not a huge loss."

I think you might be confusing Art-Is-In with the word 'artisan' that gets put on many many baked things about are artisinal as a movie theatre popcorn.

2019 May 10
You can buy Art-Is-In bread at Hartman’s, I know that for sure. It’s on a little shelf in front of the deli meat. If their products are in one local grocery store it stands to reason they could be in more than one...

2019 May 10
"A happy ending for a great local company!"

2019 May 10
I have bought Art-is-In at Farmboy regularly and Metro (at least the one in the Glebe). Unless things have changed its available in some grocery stores for sure.

2019 May 12
They are still at the Lansdowne market and are still listed as vendors.
#fakenews