ROEDC

Long before Katie Prouse ever scooped a cone in Mount Elgin, another family member already had. Irv’s Ice Cream Shop takes its name from Irvin Prouse — the great-grandfather of Katie’s husband, Matt, and grandfather of his cousin Keith — who once sold Silverwood ice cream at this exact spot in the village.  Opening in

Almost every account of when Quehl’s Restaurant & Catering began comes with an asterisk — and Cindy Larsen has finally sorted out why. “Every advertisement I had, and when we first bought it, said it started in 1931 as a restaurant,” said Cindy, who owns Quehl’s alongside her husband, Brian. A recent deep dive into

Lavender has a way of marking time. At Deep Purple Lavender Farm in Embro, lavender farming is anything but easy. Like all flower farmers, they face the uncertainty of weather and changing seasons, hoping each spring that their perennial plants return healthy and produce the beautiful blooms visitors look forward to. July is lavender season,

Jacco Schep didn’t grow up dreaming of running a bakery. He grew up on the production line, mostly to keep him out of trouble. “I didn’t actually know that I wanted it at first,” Jacco admitted, reflecting on taking over Schep’s Bakeries as part of the family’s second generation. “I mean, I grew up doing

Some businesses start with a market gap. Terra Nova Nordic Spa & Cafe started with a feeling. “I love Nordic spas, and I felt that there was a need here to do that,” said Jodi Pendry, who owns Terra Nova alongside Pete Overdevest. “So I jumped right in.” The journey from that instinct to an

It started with two women on maternity leave at the same time. Erica Haas and Lindsay Vandenbussche, co-owners of CommYOUnity Counselling & Family Support, were both social workers with prior community and hospital experience when their leaves overlapped -Erica with her youngest, Lindsay with her oldest. “We both had a passion for supporting children, youth,

Sometimes the best business ideas aren’t planned at all. Sometimes they show up on day 60 of a 90 day journey to create something new each day. For Danielle Paluska, owner of Wild Comfort Body Care, that’s where it began. “I had worked in mental health for years and had gotten rundown. I sensed it

Steve Bohner didn’t want to just own a golf course. “I knew I didn’t want to simply own a golf course — I wanted to create something much bigger,” said Bohner, who together with Marie van Esch owns The Oxford Hills in Mount Elgin. “A destination that would bring people together, contribute to the local

Some businesses change hands and change with the times. Krug’s Meat Market has changed hands — but the recipes haven’t budged. Bob Jantzi, who owns Krug’s alongside his wife Sherri, took over the shop in 2005, nearly 70 years after it first opened its doors in Tavistock in 1936. “I was looking for an opportunity

You can’t call your doctor at night, but in the village of Thamesford, you can usually find your pharmacist. That accessibility sits at the heart of Pharmasave Thamesford, where Pharmacy Manager Marcie Prior has spent decades building the kind of rapport that only comes from staying put in a small community. “We are a retail