Big Wheel Burger founder Calen McNeil, who graduated from Camosun College’s Pacific Rim Studies program in 1992, says that the college was pivotal in creating the success he shares with the community today. He says that it gave him the business fundamentals he needed and it taught him about community.
“Camosun is always very open and friendly and inclusive,” he says. “The extent of my formal business training is Camosun College, and I’ve managed to run several successful businesses over the years, and I’m still giving back to the community as a result of what Camosun gave me.”
McNeil is proud of his Camosun history, and credits the college’s community for inspiring him to build a lifelong legacy in Victoria.
“I came down here when I was 19 to go to college, and I haven’t left, and Camosun made such an impression on me that I ended up staying and putting roots down, and building businesses,” he says. “What better props to a college, that people who go there actually stay and build the community around them, right?”
Big Wheel Burger has three locations around town and a commitment to sustainable practices.
“We’re the first carbon-neutral restaurant in Canada,” says McNeil. “When we do anything, we make sure that it’s done in environmental, sustainable ways.”
McNeil built his business on active community involvement and sustainable environmental practices, which include using fresh, local ingredients.
“We grind our beef fresh every day; it’s made from hormone-free, antibiotic-free meat,” says McNeil. “We source as much locally as we can, and we make all of our own sauces and things like this that go into our burger, so it’s kind of fast food without the guilt trip.”
McNeil laughs as he recalls the history of the restaurant’s name. Nearly 20 years ago, he was playing soccer with some friends and he tripped while sprinting down the field.
“I took a little bit of a tumble, and my last name is McNeil, and I was kinda spinning like a wheel, and somebody said ‘Big wheels keep on turning’—from the song ‘Proud Mary’—and they just called me Big Wheel McNeil after that,” he says.
McNeil takes pride in the fact that his restaurants cater to a wide range of customers with different needs, serving vegetarian and vegan burgers, and following strict celiac-friendly protocols in the kitchen. He says that one thing most people don’t know is that all of the disposable packaging that comes with their meals is fully compostable. As well, when the COVID-19 pandemic hit, McNeil instated a 12-percent auto-gratuity to keep his business afloat, but also donated a portion of the order total to the Big Wheel Burger Community Foundation, which helped donate food to frontline workers and the homeless population. McNeil later changed the gratuity to a compulsory 1.5-percent charity tax on every order, which his company matches—the proceeds go to local charity foundations.
“When people choose to buy from Big Wheel Burger, they choose to support the community,” says McNeil. “I want to be transparent, because the spirit of it for me is that we’re all doing this together, so I’m not asking anybody to do anything I wouldn’t do, and I want people to be proud of it.”
McNeil feels that his customers have been supportive of the initiative and his involvement in the community.
“I think people are comfortable that we’re matching it, and we’re pretty transparent with where the money goes, so I think it’s been real positive,” he says. “People who understand who we are as a business know that this is what we’re about, so we’ve always been built for a triple-bottom-line philosophy, so making sure we’re taking care of our staff, and our community, and the environment.”