Meet Andrew Todd

Andrew caught the travel bug a little earlier than most. When he was five, he moved with his family from the UK to Istanbul, Turkey. At seven, they relocated to Dubai and at 12, it was back to the UK. Even as a kid, he loved experiencing different cultures and has kept that passion alive. 

Hiking and hitch-hiking 

Perhaps his most memorable destination is Kenya, where he spent four months as a volunteer teacher.   “It was amazing working with kids who had comparatively very little but were always so enthusiastic and ready to learn. Being there was eye-opening and hands down the best four months of my life” he recalls. 

As the teaching group became comfortable in their new surroundings, the more daring members began hitchhiking to different cities. “Our longest journey was to the Ugandan border. We took 11 different vehicles in one day—cars, flatbed trucks, you name it—all we had were our backpacks.”  

However, hiking on foot is Andrew’s preferred way of taking in the sights. In addition to hiking Mount Kenya, he’s trekked through the Himalayas to Everest Base Camp in Nepal, and across the Blue Mountains in Australia. “My first trip to Canada was seven years ago, the off days from snowboarding were spent hiking the hills around Banff”. Recent trips to Iceland and Cost Rica have kept the desire for that next big trip at bay which he hopes will be to Mt. Fitz Roy in Patagonia. 

Canada by choice 

“At the time, I was contemplating a more permanent move to a big city and considered Toronto, Dubai, Hong Kong, or Melbourne. My Dad retained his Canadian citizenship from when he was a child and later applied for citizenship for my brother and I when we were young,” he explains. “It’s something I’m fortunate to have and made the move here easier.” He joined the property ladder in the east end of the city, which he found to have a “great mix of people, cultures and food.” The perfect neighbourhood trifecta for Andrew who now considers Toronto home. 

A good sport 

Andrew loves his sports. “In the UK, I played basketball and football (soccer). Not surprisingly, when I came to North America, my basketball skills ranked a little low, but my football skills were higher.” While new to Toronto, he played ultimate frisbee and then started running, which eventually led to marathons. These days you can catch him playing volleyball at Woodbine beach—followed by a traditional beer chaser—this seem to fit the bill for fitness and camaraderie.  

As a soccer fan, he supports Arsenal in the English Premier League. He’s also become a fan of Toronto’s own TFC. “Twice when they were in the finals here, I went to the games despite temperatures being below zero.” He found the atmosphere amazing in the playoffs, even if the regular season games don’t have all the excitement of games in Europe. 

Food, funk and film 

Andrew is a big proponent of home cooking, having learned a lot from working in restaurants through his educational years—including Jamie Oliver’s Italian the UK. Italian food is a mainstay, but through traveling and having a “try everything” mentality to food, he enjoys diverse ethnic dishes or fusions. On the music front, “live bands with some kind of Jazz, Funk or Electronic influence go down well”. And in between all the traveling and sports, there’s always a little Netflix time left for some “high suspense, crime dramas.” 

Farber for unity, support…and the kitchen snacks 

Though he’s brand new to Farber, Andrew’s formed some favourable first impressions. “There’s a lot of unity and alignment here, especially given the number of business lines. The culture is supportive, and people go out of their way to find out about you.” To top it off, he’s been impressed by the “great snacks in kitchen!” However, he did join just before the holidays.

Meet more Faces of Farber.