​Toronto's Grinder Coffee Wants Tom Hanks to Visit During TIFF

BY Sarah MurphyPublished Sep 4, 2019

Toronto coffee shop Grinder Coffee has become an expert celebrity solicitor during the Toronto International Film Festival, and this year, it has set its sights on Tom Hanks.
 
For three years now, the east end café has selected one celebrity to "stalk" during TIFF — complete with social media posts, cardboard cutouts and an open-ended invitation. In 2017, Idris Elba failed to accept the invitation, but last year, Ryan Gosling did indeed grace Grinder with his presence.
 
Now, the campaign to get Hanks into the coffee shop has begun. He was selected as the target of the shop's affection, after followers voted for him over Meryl Streep.
 
Hanks will be in town for the premiere of his Mr. Rogers film A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood.
 
Grinder owner Joelle Murray told CTV News that she'll gift Hanks a free coffee (we'd suggest crafting a David S. Pumpkins spice latte) and will give a 15 percent off discount to anyone in his entourage.
 
Below, see the elaborate #TomNeedsGrinder social media campaign so far.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Day 1 of our #tomneedsgrinder campaign. Welcome @tomhanks for what is going be a fun ride. In order to entice you over to #leslieville during #tiff we thought we would compile a list of fascinating fun facts about #grindercoffeegerrard. 1. Life is better with Grinder. When @idriselba didn't show up, Brexit happened. Do you want to be responsible for another 4 years of Trump? We think not. 2. We have a 50% success rate for our #needsgrinder campaigns. It is known that an appearance at Grinder is a guaranteed maker of careers. #ryangosling still hot, still famous. 3. Ryan Goslling and you have a lot more in common than a #tifftime Grinder invite. He's a man you're a man, he played an astronaut, you played an astronaut. 4. We are an #independentcoffeeshop and our owner Joelle does our campaign on a $100 budget, a broken BlackBerry and a whole lot sass. 5. Coffee at Grinder is pretty freaking awesome. #tiff2019 #coffeehouse #torontocafe @globalnews @bttoronto @blogto @people @tiff_net @narcitycanada @cbctoronto @cbc @city_tv @ctvtoronto

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Day 2 of our #tomneedsgrinder campaign. @tomhanks this campaign may make you a bit nervous as you may not be aware of our #stellar reputation. So Joelle...oops we mean Ryan superstar #ryangosling wrote a recommendation letter to help put your mind at ease. Dear Tom, I hope you and the family are well. I keep meaning to have you and @ritawilson over to the house for a bbq. My partner @evamendes makes a killer Jello salad you just have to try. Let me know a few dates that work for you. I am writing you on behalf of @grindercoffeegerrard and Joelle my #bff They wanted me to let you know how awesome their coffee is. This place Tom, is wonderful! The vibe, the staff , the coffee top notch. The best coffee I have ever had and Joelle she's a riot. You would really regret not going for your #needsgrinder campaign. I heard from @vancityreynolds (yes the #ryans hangout) that he heard from @theellenshow that @idriselba was crying at a party last week about how he is not the same man after his noshow. Don't be an #idris, Tom. TTYS, Ryan. @blogto @narcitycanada @bttoronto @cbc @tiff_net @globalnews @cityline @ctv @cbctoronto

A post shared by Grinder Coffee Gerrard (@grindercoffeegerrard) on

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Day 4 of our #tomneedsgrinder campaign. @tomhanks we get we are punching above our weight here by asking you a mega superstar to come visit our humble #smallbuisness. However, we here at Grinder know that even the richest of rich and the biggest of big occasionally need to save a penny. So this post is all about showing you how not only is our food and coffee #delicious it is very reasonable priced. It must get very expensive taking out your #squad, #friends (ie #merylstreep , @springsteen ) #costars @matthewrhysofficial and even those crazy people who ask you for coffee on social media. #grindercoffeegerrard provides amazing coffee and food that will impress even the pickiest eater (@idriselba you probably thought our pricing was in pounds) You can thank us later for the recomendation. #saveapenny #wecandothis #amazingcoffee

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