Lead By A Team Of Exceptional Women

Tara Black

Tara co-founded Origin in 2009 with a partner and became the sole owner in 2020. She has been CEO for 15 years. Tara started her career in the hospitality industry at the age of 13, working for caterers and local restaurants. She did her culinary apprenticeship throughout high school (1996) and then did a pastry/baking apprenticeship (2002). In her capacity as a Chef/Pastry, she has mentored over 45 chefs and bakers since holding her accreditations and has worked in prominent hotels, restaurants, bakeries, and cafes. She has worked with Universities and Colleges and the Government of Canada to inform programming decisions for the needs of developing education and accessibility to gluten-free foods. Tara discerned a gap in the Gluten-Free Industry over 20 years ago. She has worked in multiple establishments where it was her responsibility to accommodate the needs of special diets, including gluten-free. She invested time and research to create and recreate tastes and textures in products that would deliver to the customer exactly what they wanted, whether it was a cake for a special celebration or bread. However, the accessibility to these products was extremely limited. This is where Origin Gluten-Free Bakery was born. Since then, Tara has worked with numerous companies to build relationships and viability for the gluten-free industry on Vancouver Island, establishing local gluten-free milling and increased accessibility to gluten-free ingredients. Tara has led in management roles for over 25 years and trained in leadership for 30 years. She achieved her MBA in Executive Management and Global Leadership in 2022 through Royal Roads University. She is well-versed in the hospitality industry, has a unique understanding of the niche GF industry, and has a diverse skill set in leadership and executive management. She has been a business mentor with WeBC for 9 years, and an ambassador for them since 2023. She sits on the board of The Island Chef’s Collaborative, as past-treasurer and a director, which raises awareness and funds initiatives to increase the sustainability of local agriculture and helps build local businesses and their connections. Tara has been nominated for several awards due to her work with Origin Bakery and other associations, BC Business Women of the Year, RBC Canadian Women Entrepreneur Awards (6 times), and Small Business BC Best Employer (twice).

Stacey Kosick

Stacey began her journey with franchise operations in Australia in 2007. She played a key operational role in the opening and establishment of The Coffee Club at Strathpine, now operating through Australia with 500 stores. She immigrated to Canada in 2009 and joined local grocer Red Barn Markets. Red Barn Markets was strategically growing, where her primary role was in designing and setting up their iconic Deli departments, Oak Bay location in 2016 and successfully opened two more stores in 2017 and 2018. Red Barn markets now operates with 8 stores in the Victoria region. Joining Origin in 2019 as the General Manager, these experiences were invaluable as the company was launching the Origin Cafe concept. The Origin Cafe opened its doors in January 2020 and today, she takes pride in the thriving and efficient operation we have built. Stacey holds professional certifications in Cooking, Hospitality, and Leadership. She has extensive experience leading and managing large diverse teams, and is well skilled in product management, project management and has a passion for creating and managing complex systems.