Gourmet food store opens at The Forks ‘Dream come true’: Grocery steps in for one-year pilot at The Forks Market By: Gabrielle Piché Posted: 6:32 PM CDT Friday, Oct. 4, 2024

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The Forks is dipping its toes into grocery territory ahead of accepting residents.

A space once filled with Original Pancake House booths is now stocked with coffee beans, condiments and chocolates. Near the entryway, a “now open” sign welcomes passersby to Food … by Forks Trading Co.

“It’s our dream come true,” said Megan Basaraba, general manager of The Forks Trading Company.

The business — despite its name — isn’t part of The Forks North Portage Partnership, which operates the bustling downtown Winnipeg market. However, The Forks Trading Co. has sold wares on its second floor for 15 years.

It’s been growing its food collection, Basaraba and company owner Brad Hewlett noted.

“We’ve always dreamed of opening up a gourmet food store,” Basaraba said.

The business partners pitched to open such a shop — called Forks, Knives and Spoons — years ago, in a unit now occupied by Manitobah. They were rejected then, Hewlett recalled.

But lately, The Forks has been launching pilot projects in preparation for hundreds of people living on site.

The ground-breaking of Railside at The Forks, a housing development, should be announced in the coming months, according to spokesman Zach Peters. Up to 700 people could be living at Railside within the next few years; the first tenants are anticipated to move in spring 2027.

Last year marked the beginning of an initiative called “Play at The Forks” involving indoor and outdoor table tennis, basketball under the CN Stage and soccer at the nearby field.

The Forks wanted to see “how people interact with that activity space,” Peters said. “Thinking of when people live here, that will be their backyard, that CN Stage and field.”

This summer, The Forks tested a bicycle check. And lately, it’s been considering a grocer-type option.

So The Forks contacted Hewlett and his team: would they set up a food store at The Forks Market on a one-year contract?

“We knew that they’d be able to be nimble and move fast,” Peters said. “Being a one-year pilot, that’s what we needed. We didn’t want something that was going to drag out.”

Conversations began in September, according to Hewlett and Basaraba. Just last week, the space was nearly empty.

The crew transported goods from upstairs — between 150 and 200 brands — to the roughly 2,500-square-foot space on the ground floor previously used by the Original Pancake House.

“We’re excited to see what we can learn,” Peters said, adding The Forks will be gathering data.

Hewlett and Basaraba hope the project becomes permanent. They’re signing up new local makers, such as Jeanne’s Bakery and Gunn’s Bakery, and bringing in freezers to hold items they previously couldn’t.

Clothing, beauty supplies and jewelry have consumed the gaps left on the second floor.

“We’ll be able to feature the food makers here much better than we could,” Basaraba said.

She’s seeking more local producers. Currently, about one-third of the store is filled with Manitoba-made items, Basaraba estimated. She’s envisioning space for seasonal, locally grown fresh produce and flowers.

A corner of the shop is reserved for pop-ups. Entrepreneurs in the food world can showcase and test their products. Renting the space for a day costs $50 to $75; a week during the holiday season runs for $350. Ten per cent of sales goes to The Forks Trading Co.

It’s an extension of the makers’ space The Forks Trading Co. developed on the second floor last year. In June, the area was booked until Christmas, Hewlett noted.

The Forks counted more than four million visitors per year, he highlighted: “It’s a great place to be, a great place to work.”

He hired five staff to accommodate the food shop’s opening. Now, nearly 30 employees work between the new store, The Forks Trading Co. and Two Rivers, a market shop which Hewlett also owns.

The Forks offered the food space to Hewlett’s team because “they’ve proved themselves as a great business partner” in addition to being nimble, Peters said.

More grocery-type options could open as Railside at The Forks progresses, he added: the first floors of the residential complexes will be reserved for businesses.

Customers milled through the new location Friday, the opening day.

“It seems neat,” said Alyssa Stilla. “The first thing that crossed my mind was ‘How do they pick what to bring in the store?’ Seems like very different things.”

Stilla is from from Thunder Bay, Ont.; The Forks is a regular stop during her Winnipeg trips.

Sk8 Skates occupied another section of the former Pancake House this summer. The skateboard shop was a successful pop-up and a formal lease is being negotiated, according to Peters.

He called the makeup of businesses at The Forks “ever-changing.” The Pancake House is among a handful of decades-long restaurant tenants to exit in recent years. Eateries must submit a proposal every three years to bid to keep their location.

gabrielle.piche@winnipegfreepress.com