Town & Country

2 WINNIPEG FREE PRESS, SATURDAY APRIL 20, 2019 M I N N E D O S A Hamiota Hotel Ph (204) 764-2426 Open 7 Days a Week ✸ 7 Rooms with WiFi ✸ Beverage Room and Cafe Industrial • Construction • Safety Machinist Supplies and more.... • Abrasives & Lubricants • Pferd & Walter • Cutting Tools • Seco, WIDIA, Dormer/Pramet, Greenfield, Niagara, M.A Ford,SGS • Milwaukee Power Tools • Unbrako Socket Products •Workholding Solutions-Jergens 879 Wall Street, Winnipeg, Manitoba R3G 2T9 Tel: 204-786-7481 Fax: 204-772-8131 Manitoba: 1-800-224-0377 A.ADAMS SUPPLY (1969) LTD. GLADSTONE BAKERY & EATERY Delicious breads, cinnamon buns, donuts & pastries baked fresh daily! Hearty soups, sandwiches, wraps & salads! FRESH HOMEMADE GOODNESS! Ph: 204.385.2225 5 MORRIS AVENUE N., GLADSTONE, MB Pierson's 41 st Annual Carnival of Crafts Saturday, Oct. 5, 2019 11:00 am to 4:00 pm DST Edwards Sports Centre, Pierson, MB Looking for quality crafters to join our sale. Contact: Betty Mayes 204-634-2482 bmayes@mymts.net www.carnivalofcrafts.ca Big Al's Burgers C o m e a n d V i sit At Notre Dame des Lourdes OPEN 7 DAYS/ WEEK 10 AM to 8 PM MILLENNIAL MILE Young entrepreneurs transform Minnedosa's Main Street Clockwise from top left: Farmhouse 50 ice cream, Katie Hunter and Copper at K.S. Hunter's Barbershop, Inspire Studio of Fine Art, Boho Soul Market kombucha samplers, Lake Minnedosa and Boho Soul owner Magen Swift. Below: The Oxbow Trail. Photos courtesy of Minnedosa Area Community Development Corp. Manitoba's first inflatable floating water park is expected to open on Lake Minnedosa this summer, and the town is undergoing a rebranding to focus greater attention on its advantages and attractions for visitors, businesses and residents. Minnedosa Area Community Develop- ment Corp. economic development offi- cer Chantelle Parrott says the new place brand, Valley Life, will have a major pres- ence, including a new Valley Life website that will be more streamlined and user- friendly than the previous Destination Minnedosa site. The branding project led to a nice bit of serendipity, putting Parrott in the right place, at the right time, to connect with Alberta-based Splish Splash Water Park owner Gerry Champagne. Travel Manitoba had provided some assistance, facilitating a strategic plan- ning session with community stakehold- ers, and Parrott went to pick up the plan a few hours after staff received an email from Champagne, who was looking for a suitable location to get his business afloat. "The stars just completely and abso- lutely aligned, because he had sent the email in the morning and my meeting with them was at 1 p.m.," Parrott says. She was looking for ways to attract more young family crowds to Lake Minnedosa, and the water park business, with its floating slides and obstacle course, was an ideal fit. "It was perfect because not only is there the idea and the concept, but there is ac- tually the person who is there to make the investment and run the business." One goal of the branding strategy is to get the word out that Minnedosa isn't just a great place to visit or retire; it's also a great place to raise a family. Along with annual festivals, summer fun and winter skating at the lake, a golf course and an ever-expanding trail net- work, the town is getting a boost from its new crop of Millennial entrepreneurs. Last summer, Meaghan and Jamie Cann opened Farmhouse 50 (farmhouse50. com) in a historic brick building at 50 Main St., in the old Chipperfield Coffee Company building. Part restaurant, part chic boutique, Farmhouse 50 serves lo- cally roasted coffee, fresh baked goods, sa- voury flatbreads, Buddha bowls, quiches and other meal options, while the bou- tique is stocked with a wide selection of Manitoba-made crafts, gifts and specialty food items. "It is super cool — it's very on trend," says Parrott. "There's a patio in the back and it's got this big tree in the middle of it and it's got all the twinkle lights and everything. And she's actually opened up the Farmhouse Loft, which is a bed and breakfast." Another Main Street newcomer is Boho Soul Market (bohosoulmarket.com), where owner Magen Swift, a Licensed Practical Nurse, offers a variety of healthy paleo-based foods. Customers can stock their pantry or enjoy a meal or snack on site. Recent menu items have included a variety of smoothies and vegetarian op- tions, along with savoury pork carnitas, Mongolian beef and blackened chicken. "She sells quinoa, Bulletproof coffee, kombucha and other fermented foods including kimchi and sauerkraut," Parrott says. Just up the block at K.S. Hunter's Bar- bershop, owner Katie Hunter is contrib- uting a retro-vibe to the downtown at- mosphere, with a striped barber pole and antique chair where customers can get a hair tattoo or a more traditional style. "She's got this old hound dog, Copper. He comes to work with her and lays in the window and sleeps. It's just totally small- town like." One driver behind all the entrepreneur- ial activity is an annual Dragon's Den-type pitch event called What's the BIG Idea? It's co-hosted by Minnedosa Area Com- munity Development Corp. and Neepawa Economic Development, and the Town of Minnedosa, area businesses and chambers of commerce contribute cash and other prizes. Past pitchers who now have businesses on Main Street include Marlies Soltys, whose Inspire Studio of Fine Art is now expanding, and Mlee Kingdon, founder of TheraDream Therapeutics (theradream. com). Kingdon started making weighted therapy blankets in 2016 and now ships blankets of all sizes across the country. Right now, there are no commercial va- cancies on Main Street, but yet another young entrepreneur, Drew Cardy, who owns agri-business Cardy Crop Solutions, is remedying that situation. He's develop- ing a former clothing store so he can scale up his own business and provide office space downtown. Parrott says the building has an "indus- trial-contemporary" look, with exposed beams, bricks and duct work, and the rental space will open up even more busi- ness opportunities. Y oung entrepreneurs are creating a lot of buzz in Minnedosa. New businesses — including two ultra on- trend eateries and a retro barbershop on Main Street — have been generating a fresh vibe downtown over the past year. And they're not the only startups making a splash. BY PAT ST. GERMAIN

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