To set the stage: I was born and raised in India and have been living in Canada for the past 44 years. My kids have worked at Tim Hortons and Starbucks.

This is a #TimHortons vent.

Today was the day that broke the camel’s back. 😉

I’ve been struggling to express what I’ve been feeling without sounding harsh or unfair. But here goes.

When the local Tim Hortons staff — people I knew and who knew me — were replaced by lower-wage “new staff,” everything changed. The customer experience tanked. And the quality of the food? Equally bad. Eventually, I started avoiding the place altogether.

At first, I blamed the new employees.

That’s human nature, right? We react to what’s in front of us — the trigger — without stepping back to see the bigger picture.

But something recently made me pause.

Despite the continued disappointment, I kept going back to Tim’s for my large double-double. Maybe out of habit.

But then one day, I stopped at the 400 S. En Route service centre and visited the Starbucks. It was staffed by Indian international students. And yet — the customer service was fantastic. The food? Spot on.

Right beside it was a Tim Hortons — also staffed by Indian international students. The experience was the opposite. Rushed. Cold. Sloppy food. No eye contact. No connection.

That contrast hit me hard.

It reminded me of a delivery excellence review I once led on a $750M outsourcing deal. When the Canadian president asked why the engagement was failing, I told him:

“People don’t give a shit because they’re being treated like shit.”

My kids — who’ve worked at both places — noticed it too. Starbucks was professional. It had systems. It had purpose. It invested in its people: grants, scholarships, development programs.

Tim Hortons?

It felt like a paan shop on the streets of Old City Hyderabad. Chaotic. Disconnected. No sense of belonging.

When I visit the Mr. Lube beside my local Tim’s — which also replaced its staff with immigrant Indian students — I get a chance to talk to them. And I listen. I hear about their exhaustion. School during the day. Multiple jobs. Crushing rent. Sending money back home. Thousands of miles from family.

And despite it all, they show up. They try.

I don’t get to speak with the Tim Hortons staff the same way. But I suspect their story isn’t much different.

So I ask you to pause and reflect with me.

How often do we say:

“My manager sucks.”

But how often do we say:

“My manager is a person too.”

“Maybe they weren’t ready for that role.”

“Maybe they don’t have support.”

Not all bad service is because of bad people.

Sometimes it’s just people who are burned out, undervalued, and unseen.

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