ATCO Blue Flame Kitchen: Process Solutions, Revenue & Reporting Strategy
Culinary legacy meets digital transformation. From cooking classes to data-driven growth.
Blue Flame Kitchen (BFK) is the iconic culinary arm of ATCO Ltd., rooted in Alberta since 1929, with a mission of food education, community engagement and creating kitchen comfort for Albertans.
The Brief
As ATCO’s diversified business portfolio expanded, Blue Flame Kitchen required a digital infrastructure overhaul: to modernize their web presence, integrate multiple revenue streams (events, café, classes, e-commerce), unify data platforms, and dramatically improve ad-buy performance and lead generation.
Key goals
Improve the efficiency and effectiveness of digital advertising
Triple new leads and maximize sales capacity
Tie disparate platforms (Salesforce, Shopify, Google Analytics, ad accounts) into a unified dashboard system
Develop reporting and process solutions that could be scaled across other ATCO business units
Our Approach
We organised the project across three strategic pillars:
1. Digital Infrastructure & Process Integration
- Built a unified data architecture linking Shopify (e-commerce classes, gift cards), Salesforce (lead management), Google Analytics/Ads (digital traffic & campaigns) and internal reporting systems.
- Created an “Easy Living Dashboard” which tracks website users, segments high-relevance audiences for revenue maximisation and gives live performance insights.
- Developed a product-pacing calendar based on the business sales cycle and live-performance KPIs so advertising could be accurately bracketed and timed.
2. Ad Buying & Lead Generation Optimization
- Revamped the ad-buy architecture: improved ad‐efficiency by 1,800%, tripled leads and maximized sales to capacity.
- Performed performance attribution for campaigns, connected ad spend to lead inflow, and integrated e-commerce revenue attribution across all digital channels (“STIM” model).
- Tracked organic and generic keywords that generate traffic to the website in distinct revenue regions, bolstering SEO and enabling smarter campaign targeting.
3. Scalable Reporting & Roll-Out to Other Business Units
- Delivered dashboards and reporting models that were designed to be reused across ATCO’s other business units, enabling the learnings from Blue Flame Kitchen to be implemented enterprise-wide.
- Established a clear language across marketing and operations: the aligned Salesforce dashboard allows marketing initiatives and lead/revenue metrics to be shared in one view, breaking down operational silos.
- Provided training, rollout plans and ongoing analysis services to ensure that the adoption of data-driven decision-making became embedded.
Technologies & Tools Used
Google Analytics & Google Ads (traffic, campaigns)
SEMrush & Google Search Console (keyword tracking, SEO architecture)
Shopify (e-commerce for classes, café, event booking)
Salesforce Marketing Cloud (lead and customer management)
Looker Studios & Microsoft PowerBI (dashboarding, live reporting)
Impact & Key Outcomes
Blue Flame Kitchen’s ad-buy operations achieved 1,800% greater efficiency and leads were tripled, setting a new standard for marketing ROI.
Revenue-maximization was dramatically improved through clearer segmentation, timing of campaigns and full-funnel attribution.
A unified dashboard ecosystem replaced disconnected spreadsheets, enabling real-time decision-making by marketing, operations and senior leadership.
The process tools developed for BFK became the foundation for ATCO’s other business units, meaning the gains extended far beyond one brand.
Operational silos were broken down: marketing and back-office platforms now share a common language around lead generation and revenue, simplifying collaboration and scaling.
FAQ
What is Blue Flame Kitchen, and what does it do?
Blue Flame Kitchen is an educational and culinary brand under ATCO Ltd., offering cooking classes, culinary experiences, café service, event rentals and community outreach in Calgary, Alberta.
What platforms and tools were used for Blue Flame Kitchen’s transformation?
Google Analytics, Google Ads, SEMrush, Google Search Console, Salesforce Marketing Cloud, Shopify, Looker Studios, Microsoft PowerBI.
How does Simple Simple’s work on Blue Flame Kitchen help other businesses or brands?
It illustrates how a multi-stream brand (events, café, e-commerce) can integrate marketing, operations and analytics infrastructure; how to break down silos; how to tie ad spend to revenue; and how to scale solutions across business divisions.
Why is integrating platforms like Shopify, Salesforce and Google Analytics important?
Because having disconnected systems leads to fragmented data, poor visibility into performance and operational silos. Integrating them enables unified dashboards, consistent metrics, faster decision-making and clear ROI on marketing spend.
Did the solution for Blue Flame Kitchen apply beyond that brand?
Yes. The process and digital infrastructure built for BFK were designed to be scalable and were rolled out across other ATCO business units, meaning the benefits extended beyond just one brand to the client’s broader diversified business portfolio.