Their destinations may differ, but they all began at the same place. A look at alumni stories of success that started at Ivey.
I was born and raised in Timmins, a northern Ontario community known for gold mining. My grandparents immigrated to Canada from Italy and landed there. My parents became Tim Hortons’ franchisees when I was in elementary school. This became the foundation of my interest in business, restaurants, and community engagement.
Following high school, I attended King’s University College at Western University. I met my husband, John Chayka, on our first day of class – Monday morning calculus. We both attended the Ivey HBA program together, graduating in 2014. We began building our restaurant business together in 2015.
I am currently the CEO of JKC Restaurants, which owns and operates 61 locations globally. In 2025, I was named one of Canada’s Top 100 Most Powerful Women by WXN. John and I reside in St. Catharines, Ontario, and have three children: Capri, Monterey, and Steel.
What led you to your career and how has it evolved over time?
It feels like it was equal parts luck and timing. When we graduated from Ivey, Wendy’s Canada was packaging and selling all remaining corporate restaurants. A package of 12 stores became available in the Niagara region, my husband’s hometown. With my parents’ background, it felt like a natural opportunity for us. It included 12 stores, which felt like a significant business opportunity. It was small enough that we could manage, but also large enough for our business expertise to impact decisions.
The initial acquisition was an adjustment, especially from an infrastructure standpoint. We had to stand up every business function and decide what to invest in and what to take on ourselves. Over time, building that infrastructure has become our core competency. Investing in a support team has allowed us to grow quickly. At our peak, we owned 80 restaurants globally. As prudent investors, we don’t want to just add store count; we are mindful of our growth strategy and want to carefully prune as we grow, so we can continue to uphold the highest standards. Today, we own 61 locations, and I oversee all restaurant operations as CEO.
Who inspired you?
I’ve always been inspired by my parents, who took a risk with young children to pursue business ownership themselves. My mom has been a sounding board as I ventured down the same path.
Now, I’m also so inspired by my daughters and their willingness to speak up, learn new things, make new friends, and be risk-takers. They are a constant reminder to slow down and not always take the most efficient path.
How did Ivey play a role?
Ivey pushed so many boundaries for me and really pushed me outside of my comfort zone. To grow as a person, you have to put yourself in uncomfortable situations. At Ivey, the risk was low – you might say something silly and embarrass yourself in front of your classmates. I didn’t realize how much this would shape my ability to lead.
I constantly encourage everyone to share their ideas, no matter how silly they may be. Many great ideas are sparked by internal conversations. We highlight failures as a learning opportunity and encourage everyone to try out their ideas. Failing fast is a key part of our culture. When we bring in new executives, we purposely provide little guidance. We never want to become old or stuck in a box – new hires bring their unique outside perspectives on our business. Instead of saying, “This is how things get done at JKC,” we ask them, "How can we improve?" Bringing together diverse backgrounds and thoughts has created a unique flywheel for us where we are continuously improving the next 1 per cent.
Why did you choose the HBA program specifically (why was it a fit for you)?
The HBA was a great fit for me because I was still exploring my career path and wanted to experience diversified learning. The case method gives you such a breadth of experience while prioritizing problem-solving, which is so critical for any business. I was seriously considering law school following my undergrad, but I wanted a meaningful degree regardless of whether I pursued grad school. Ivey has always been well known for its ability to develop and nurture future business leaders. I enjoy being part of a community, and Ivey was a great one. John and I completed the New Venture Project with Jeff Husson, also HBA ’14, and he now works for JKC as VP, Finance and Business Performance. Meeting like-minded people we trust and can later work with has been incredibly meaningful.
What personal or professional accomplishment are you most proud of?
The growth of our Quebec Wendy’s portfolio tops the list of professional accomplishments. We purchased the portfolio of 13 stores in 2021, and this was our first time growing through acquisition since our initial portfolio purchase. Strong infrastructure and support were critical to make the transition seamless. The stores had performed significantly under the Canadian average when we purchased them. Within a year, we had grown unit volumes by $1 million per store, driven 80 per cent by transaction growth. This was a huge accomplishment and a testament to our team. We carefully audited each aspect of the business – and this is a great example of how small changes can compound over time. We exited the business successfully in early 2026.
What do you like to do when you’re not working?
When I’m not working, you will find me hanging out with my kids, at Pilates, or travelling with my family. Over the last year, I’ve found a great harmony in my life where work and life don’t have clear cut-offs, but are more cohesive. I can’t be off the grid in this business, but I can still take time to unplug.
What might someone be surprised to know about you?
I took up tennis in my early 30s. It feels odd learning a new sport much later in life, but it is consistent with my belief in trying new things. It’s also fun playing pickleball with my kids now. Both of my daughters love tennis, and I hope it's a lifelong sport we can enjoy together.
What is your favourite memory from your time at Ivey?
The lemonade challenge (a fundraising challenge that was the final event of the HBA Learning Through Action program) tops the list. Our twist was that we could only sell lemonade online. Keep in mind, this was not 2026 – but we built a website and still raised several thousand dollars to contribute (in 48 hours)!
What is the most important takeaway from your Ivey experience?
Always look for opportunities. You may land at the status quo, but if you aren’t analyzing and understanding opportunities for improvement, you will miss them. One of my favourite quotes is, “If you don’t like change, you’ll like irrelevance even less” (from retired U.S. Army General Eric Shinseki). Anytime I’m about to say something won’t work, I consider how quickly circumstances can change and remember that it’s worth taking a shot.
This is also why debate is so important. We all have biases shaped by our unique set of experiences, and those biases sometimes give us tunnel vision. Listening and understanding different ideas is usually more important than voicing your own. I learned this intimately at Ivey, listening to the unique perspectives of my classmates who brought diverse ideas to all conversations.
Are you still connected to the School in any way?
In 2017, John and I approached the School about starting a student-led sports conference. John had founded Stathletes, a hockey analytics company, and became the youngest General Manager in pro-sports history at age 26, so this was a meaningful way to engage students interested in sports careers.
The Ivey Sports Leadership Conference just celebrated its 9th year and is now the largest student-led sports conference in the country. We have proudly supported the event since its inauguration and have happily helped grow the event through our networks. It started as a very small, primarily local event and has now grown to include students and industry professionals from across Canada.
The speaker line-up has evolved to include top Canadian industry leaders for everything from sports management to marketing and partnerships to facility operations. The most recent conference hosted Ed Rogers, Executive Chair of Rogers Communications, as the keynote speaker, providing attendees with a special opportunity to hear from the best voices in Canada.
