Jay Downton of Oilers Nation, Oodle Noodle, Little Brick & The River Valley Company speaks about being born & raised in Edmonton, AB along with how his Entrepreneurial Spirit has guided his love for our city (& vice versa). Jay speaks candidly with Sherri Beauchamp & Jessie McCracken about his wins and loses along the way and what's next for his vision of our city. *This is Part 1 of 2 in this interview.
[3:48 ] Who is Jay Downton?
[5:50] Launching A Pub-Crawl
[7:50] Opening A Blues Bar (Blue Chicago)
[11:11] How Oilers Nation Was Started
[13:30] Introduction to Oodle Noodle (2010)
[19:17] Why buy a factory (Visit To Hong Kong)
[21:41] How he "tripped" over The Little Brick Cafe
[24:25] The mission of The River Valley Company
[28:24] COMING SOON: The Umpherville Block
[30:00] Biggest Lesson During COVID
"My biggest core value is Edmonton - what are we going to do for Edmonton."
"How can we put Edmonton on the map?"
"We want to create vibrancy here on a national & global level."
"With a tourism economy - everyone wins."
"There's no reason Edmonton can't be on the map like Stockholm is on the map."
"We're putting our money where our mouth is."
"This is not going away, we are doubling down - it's now a pillar of our business."