Ottawa Goodtime Centre a few weeks later, everyone remembered her name. “It reminded me of the TV show Cheers,” she laughed. Bryan still greets people coming through the door like Ted Danson or Woody Harrelson behind the bar, she told me. “I love coming to work, lis- tening to music all day, chatting with great customers and working with awesome teammates. Bryan is going to give you the same service he gave me when I came in here thirty years ago. It’s the level of service that encouraged, no motivated me, to become part of this team in 1998.” When Jason and I first spoke, I was immediately reminded of Isabel’s warm memories. He was as welcoming as someone can be over the phone and remembered details from our preliminary discussion weeks before that I’d honestly forgotten. I scribbled down and underlined on my notepad “He’s a man who listens.” I was about to find out that he’s also a man who has a lot of pride in his family and what they’ve accomplished alongside the rest of the Ottawa Goodtime Centre team. “We’ve been a family-run business from day one. My father and mother started Ottawa Goodtime Centre when I was on the way, so to speak. My father actually used to work for Kawasaki Canada as a district manager and then sales manager,” Jason recalled. “An opening came up for a dealer in Ottawa, so he decided to move the family from Toronto and make a go of it. Because of his experience, he was just that much more observant in terms of what other dealers were doing well and poorly. On top of that, he’d long been involved with a company that manufactures helmets – actually, he still is – so, he had experience in the industry at levels beyond retail as well.” LIKE FATHER, LIKE SON.
Bryan isn’t the only Thoms with experience in the motor- cycle industry beyond retail. “It’s the level of service that encouraged, no motivated me, to become part of this team in 1998.” “I was a decent motocrosser,” Jason said, “but I wouldn’t say it was a career option for me. I started riding motor- cycles at about three or four years old. I started racing motorcycles not long after,” Jason chuckled in hushed tones. “My first bike was a little 50cc motocross, then on to a Yamaha YZ 250. I used to take the YZ 250 to school on the back of my truck because there was a racetrack nearby. I raced competitively for many years – I even did some ice racing – and I still do some road racing but mostly as a casual pastime. I try to get at it at least once a year. I actually race for the Canadian national team when I do compete and I still follow the sport internationally. I’m definitely a fan of Ricky Carmichael and Valentino Rossi. It still all feels like it did from the start. I still have heroes in the sport. The thrill has never changed. I think that’s why motorcycle enthusiasts become loyal customers here. We’re genuine.”
ALL ROADS LEAD TO HOME
To all you lifestyle bikers out there, you’re not going to stump Jason. He’s the real article. “I grew up in this business,” he began. “I remember when we were more or less exclusively Kawasaki. I remember in 1999 when we
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SPOTLIGHT ON BUSINESS MAGAZINE • DECEMBER 2017
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