What’s in a name may be the question Carla Jean will be answering when curious customers enter her new shop at Harbour Quay. But they will soon realize that the one-of-a-kind products at Love & Inity are just as unique and creative as the name.
Inity is a created word of the Rastafarian movement that represents positive unity. Jean first heard the word in a favourite reggae song.
“I might regret using it for my store,” she laughs. “People think it’s an error.”
But there is no mistake about Jean’s vision for her shop.
“It’s a work in progress,” says Jean, who categorizes the style from modern to shabby chic. “We make almost everything in the shop work space. Home decor and gifts, from candles to small furniture, locally made body products and some jewelry.”
Going forward Jean hopes to offer do-it-yourself classes for different age groups including painting and crochet.
“I have love of designing and crafting and décor and colour,” says Jean, who moved to the Alberni Valley in September and opened her shop in late May.
With experience as a fashion designer and store owner, Jean sees herself as an artist and wants to give up-and-coming local artists an avenue to get their projects to the public through consignment.
“I want to work with other local artisans as a community.”
The shop is located next to the Blue Door Café, in the former Ecuador and More location in Harbour Quay. Love & Inity is open Tuesday to Saturday 11:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. and Sunday noon to 4:00 p.m. Find the shop on Facebook or call 778-421-5683.
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Jeremy Brown loves restoring and repairing boats, but he couldn’t afford to open a shop in his hometown of Victoria. His solution? Move to Port Alberni.
“I worked for various marine businesses before moving to Port Alberni because here it was affordable to purchase my own shop. In Victoria this would not have been possible,” says Brown.
“Since moving here I have also hired four workers that are specialists in fiberglass, engine work, electrical and plumbing.”
ProActive Industries restores, repairs and stores boats and recreational vehicles.
Brown was born and raised in Victoria and got introduced to the marine industry when he bought and restored his first boat.
“I continue to update my knowledge of new marine innovations and have been as far as Italy to add to my knowledge,” says Brown. ProActive Services is located at the corner of Bute Street and 4th Avenue. www.proactiveservices.ca 250-723-3033
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Brian Francis loves everything about fishing, especially fishing tackle. An experienced sport and commercial fisherman, Francis began making and marketing his own fishing tackle – Magic Lure Products – in 1985 to fishing gear shops from Alaska to Oregon.
He also purchased the popular Ed Pallister Spoons line, a 60-plus year old business in Sooke popular with the commercial fleet.
Now Francis is opening a shop of his own in Port Alberni.
Alberni Gear and Tackle opens July 1 in the old Anker Electric building on Bute Street at Fifth Avenue.
“I will have fishing gear and tackle for sports and commercial fishermen,” says Francis.
“I was looking to give fishermen another option for fishing gear, and I will be catering to the commercial fleet as well. No one else in the Valley is doing that,” says Francis of his motivation to go into retail after living in the Valley for 30 years. www.salmontrollinglures.com 250-724-0094.
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Certified financial planner Aaron Vissia has invested several months into rebranding his business. AV Financial has updated logos, a new website launching later this month and a new look coming to the business front on Johnston Road.
“I am celebrating 20 years working in financial services and it was the right time to get a new look for the future,” says Vissia who was born and raised in the Alberni Valley.
The rebranding comes on the heels of an extensive expansion and renovation project Vissia took on two years ago. The result is expanded office space, a conference room and a meeting room added to the existing offices. Most of the finishing work was done by Vissia himself.
AV Financial offers a wide variety of financial services including pension planning, life and disability insurance, TFSAs, RESPs, group benefits, tax preparation, bookkeeping and tax minimization strategies and estate planning. www.avfinancial.ca 250-724-9745.
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Chef Art Nesbitt has expanded his catering business to a full restaurant at the Howard Johnson hotel on Beaver Creek Road. Trained at Pierre Dubrulle Culinary School in Vancouver, Nesbitt started Twisted Spoon Catering about a year before the opportunity to open a restaurant by the same name came along.
“I am trained for the restaurant business and this gave me a larger kitchen to work in,” says Nesbitt, who is continuing to offer catering.
Nesbitt has brought more than just his culinary skills back to the Alberni Valley where he was born and raised.
“There is a bit of a South African flare to the décor,” says Nesbitt who spent 14 years in South Africa. “My artifacts are on display and I feature South African dishes sometimes.”
The rest of the time is “down-to-earth homemade food for the whole family, says Nesbitt.
The Twisted Spoon serves breakfast and lunch from 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. daily with dinner available in the pub in the evening. The 35-seat restaurant is also available for evening events. Find Twisted Spoon on Facebook or call 250-918-8374.
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The Van Isle Ford Drive 4 UR Community event at John Howitt School raised $1840 for the leadership class’s Haiti project as well as more than $7,000 Fort McMurray fire victims.
Teresa Bird is the Alberni Valley News publisher. E-mail her with your Business Beat tips to publisher@albernivalleynews.com.
