Meet Olivia Petrou George Stanchev | Founder & Co-Founder

We had the good fortune of connecting with Olivia Petrou George Stanchev and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Olivia Petrou, is there something you can share with us that those outside of the industry might not be aware of?
As we are experts at charcuterie delivery, most of our customers (and outsiders) are likely unaware that we are actually not a storefront or walk-in restaurant. We operate solely as a ghost kitchen, essentially a digital storefront, whereby our team is fulfilling online orders that are placed directly on our website. Our products are made-to-order in a commercial kitchen that is optimized for delivery.

Our digital presence vs a physical storefront allows us to reach more customers than we ever would with solely a physical location. The demand for food delivery has only increased over the past couple of years and the ability for customers to order from Olive & Fig directly from their couch is our competitive advantage .

What should our readers know about your business?
Founded in 2019 as a side-hustle, Olive & Fig quickly rose in popularity during the pandemic. In 2020, we transitioned from an in-house grazing table company to delivering grazing boxes and platters. With a positive business trajectory in sight, George & I resigned from our corporate careers to pursue Olive & Fig full-time. Having no entrepreneurial experience, this leap was a decision we did not take lightly, but we it was a now-or-never opportunity and we haven’t looked back!

We were the first charcuterie company in the Greater Toronto Area to adopt an ecommerce website (that George & built ourselves within our first two weeks of our resignation) offering and specializing in a high-volume, multiple address delivery-based model. In addition to this differentiator, Olive & Fig’s elevated style truly stands out and is second to none on quality, presentation and attention-to-detail.

Olive & Fig has had the honour to work with brands such as Twitter, Snapchat, Red Bull, Dior, Microsoft, Ugg, Mejuri, Fable, among others, A few notable mentions is working with the American Broadcasting Company (ABC) on an Emmy-related event, Pinterest (Canada USA & UK) for local and national events, and being the go-to provider for executive charcuterie + wine tastings for Bell Canada.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
Day 1 They would start their day at our house where George would make them the best latte they’ve ever had! We would then begin exploring our neighbourhood by taking a short drive south to Lakeshore in Oakville for breakfast at one of our favourite bakeries – Croissant Express. We would people watch on their patio while enjoying more lattes, fresh croissants and a scrambled-egg breakfast (I like to have the scrambled eggs on my croissant!).

We would take a post-breakfast slow-paced stroll along Lakeshore popping into the quaint shops until it was time for a mid-day lunch where we would take rest

Remainder Of Week
The rest of the week would be spent focused on where to eat! We would take day trips to some of our favourite locations to visit restaurants and check out some fun sights.

Toronto – Giulietta, Cheese Boutique, La Salumeria, Piano Piano…too many places to name
Niagara Falls – Good Earth Winery (for wine & lunch), Two Sisters (“best small winery in Canada”), Pearl Morrissette (a holistic fine dining experience in the heart of agriculture)
Muskoka – Enjoying Nature, Antiquing, Crossroads for lunch, Kawartha Ice Cream by the lake

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
Thank you to the mailman at 50 Richmond in Toronto for delivering the mail to the wrong floor, bringing George & I together to live our dream life.

Website: https://olive-fig.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/oliveandfigco/

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/oliveandfig/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/olivefigco/

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@oliveandfigco

Other: Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.ca/oliveandfigco/

Image Credits
Photo of George & I are photographed by Veronique Saint Germain https://www.instagram.com/Veronique.saintgermain/