Undercover Boss Canada doesn’t debut until Thursday night, but it’s already making a major impact on the nation. Or at least, the nation’s morning cups of joe.
Second Cup CEO Stacey Mowbray is one of the 10 heads of homegrown companies who will be featured on the Canadian spinoff of American series Undercover Boss. The Canadian edition, like its Stateside counterpart, has bosses donning elaborate disguises to spend a few days in the lives of their employees.
In a recent interview with TV Guide Canada, Mowbray served up preview of the show, which she says was both a no-brainer and a game-changer for her brand.
“We thought it would be a great opportunity for Second Cup,” Mowbray says of her decision to join the cast, which also includes the CEO of Pizza Pizza (Paul Goddard), the chair of the Toronto Transit Commission (Karen Stintz), Molson Coors’s chief legal officer (Kelly Brown) and Cineplex Entertainment CEO Ellis Jacob.
“In retail, that the moment of truth, the moment where the brand comes to life, is right there in the customer interaction. This was an opportunity to see and live the brand experience … up close and personal.”
Mowbray’s episode, in which she plays barista and works at a roasting plant while pretending to be a woman “reentering the workforce,” does not air until March 15 – Thursday’s premiere follows the Toronto Zoo’s John Tracogna as he scoops monkey poop and feeds penguins – but you may already be seeing parts of it come to life at your local Second Cup.
“There was a gentleman [at one of the cafés] who had gone onto YouTube and taught himself latte art. He was doing different art for various guests and the reaction was so positive,” Mowbray says.
“It was something that we were playing around with but, after this, we realized it was such an important part in bringing our tagline – ‘a little love in every cup.’ We launched latte art across the country in January. By mid-February, we hope that every latte has a heart on it.”
Second Cup also initiated another business venture following filming Undercover Boss Canada, but Mowbray wanted to keep the lid on that, so as not to spoil her episode. However, she did admit that while the overall experience was “incredibly valuable,” the few days she spent living out the daily grind of her loyal employees were also extremely testing.
Second Cup requires all of its workers to learn the coffee bar basics before being hired, but that didn’t keep Mowbray from making “some mistakes” during filming, some of which we will see on screen.
“You forget how physical it is,” she says of her time undercover. “You’re working behind the counter for a long period of time on your feet. [Also] there’s so much precision around the machinery – the timing, the coffee quality, the roasting precision … people underestimate that.”
The biggest issue for Mowbray, however, was staying in character: “That’s always a challenge because you know more than you’re supposed to know. And I truly wanted to live the experience and see it through. But you know what? I loved it. Honestly, it was, a fantastic experience, far better than I even imagined.”
It’s easy to see why Mowbray, and the other 10 bosses, would want to participate in the show, but why should you watch it? Mowbray has a theory.
“There’s always an emotional element. We had some lovely stories [come out of our episode], just wonderful people who really care about the business and the guests,” she says, having followed the American version as well.
“People can always see a bit of themselves in the show – whether that’s as the boss, or one of the employees, or a customer of that company.”
Catch the series premiere of Undercover Boss Canada on Thursday Feb. 2, at 9 p.m. ET on W Network.
Are you a fan of Undercover Boss? What Canadian corporations would you like to see featured on the show? Comment below.
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