Challenge
Capture a life of relentless drive
René Fluri had spent his entire life working, and he was ready for the good life of retirement.
But after decades of building a career that touched countless customers, suppliers, and family members, he felt he had one last big project to complete.
He had crossed oceans. Built businesses. Raised a family. Made the buns for McDonald’s hamburgers across Canada.
He wanted to tell that story. Not to boast, but to document. And not just for his family, but for anyone who might wonder what it takes to build something lasting from the ground up.
René didn’t want a book of numbers or milestones. He wanted something honest. Something that captured his early doubts, his near misses, his leaps of faith. A story of setbacks, resilience, and a bit of luck, told with the same discipline and care that defined his career.
And he didn’t want it ghostwritten in someone else’s voice. He wanted it to feel like him.
Solution
A memoir with the grain left in
Echo began the process with a series of in-depth interviews. René spoke candidly about growing up in Switzerland as a fourth-generation baker, about almost missing his ship to North America, and about arriving in Vancouver in 1959 with almost nothing.
We traced his journey through small bakeries, international setbacks, and entrepreneurial pivots. He described a career built on consistency, craft, and clever decisions, including a major turning point: becoming McDonald’s sole bun supplier for British Columbia and later for much of Eastern Canada.
The editorial tone was unembellished, pragmatic, and true to René’s character. The design was clean, restrained, and photo-forward, pairing archival images with contemporary reflections.
This was a story built brick by brick. We kept the mortar visible.
Result
A book that feels like the man
When From Scratch: The René Fluri Story was completed, René held it in his hands with quiet satisfaction.
The book now circulates among family, friends, and former colleagues. It has become a record of identity, of where René came from, what he built, and the choices that defined him.
It doesn’t tell readers how to succeed. It shows them what it looks like to try — and try again — until you get it right.
For his family, it is a tangible piece of their legacy. For René, it is a fitting tribute to a life lived with focus, humility, and drive.
One more cool thing...
It opens with a Ferrari
The first image in From Scratch isn’t a family portrait or a bakery storefront. It’s René Fluri behind the wheel of a Ferrari California T, winding his way through the serpentine hills of West Vancouver.
The passage is vivid: 552 horsepower, hairpin turns, and a road that resists ease. But it’s not about luxury.
It’s a metaphor.
The road is difficult. The car demands focus. And René, ever composed, leans into the curves.
It’s an opening that tells you everything: he didn’t take the easy route, but he made the ride his own.
Want to preserve a life lived with purpose and care?
If you liked this story, you’ll love these. We help families create memoirs that honour legacy in every detail.
- Personal legacy
- mining
- Don McLeod
- Personal memoir
- Personal legacy
- philanthropy
- Irv and Dianne Kipnes
- Family history book
- Personal legacy
- human rights advocacy
- Gian Sandhu
- Personal memoir
- Personal legacy
- mining
- Don McLeod
- Personal memoir
- Personal legacy
- philanthropy
- Irv and Dianne Kipnes
- Family history book
- Personal legacy
- human rights advocacy
- Gian Sandhu
- Personal memoir