Kiosks reminiscent of Old St. B

Opinion

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This article was published 29/06/2015 (3752 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Three seasonal kiosks designed to look like horse-drawn trams from the early 1900s are back for the summer on the Esplanade Riel bridge.

The kiosks, which will operate until the end of the Labour Day long weekend in September, are the brainchild of Enterprises Riel, the economic development agency for the local French community. One serves as a tourist information centre, and the other two are food kiosks.

One of the food kiosks, called Délices Glacés (Frozen Delights), serves up ice cream sandwiches and other frozen treats made by local artisan-chocolate-maker Chocolatier Constance Popp, which has a shop on Provencher Boulevard.

“I’m very excited because this is an ideal location to sample some of my products and welcome people into St. Boniface,” said Constance Menzies, owner of Chocolatier Constance Popp.

The other food outlet, called Régales de l’Afrique, is a new business operated by Université de Saint-Boniface (USB) business administration students Nadine Zougmaré and Serge Tamba.

The kiosks have been a summer-time feature on the bridge for the last five years. Enterprises Riel started out with just one, which served as a tourist information centre, then added two more over the next couple of years.

Normand Gousseau, the agency’s chief executive officer, said the idea of putting seasonal kiosks on the bridge was originally conceived to help celebrate St. Boniface’s 100th birthday in 2008. Unfortunately, the kiosks weren’t ready in time for the centennial celebrations.

He said the kiosks were modelled after the horse-drawn trams that operated in Winnipeg in the early 1900s.

“The first public transportation into St. Boniface by trams was in 1908, and it crossed that bridge. So we wanted to bring that back and remind people that there used to be tram cars that came across the old Provencher Bridge.”

Tourism Riel, a division of Enterprises Riel, operates the tourist information centre.

“Our objective is to encourage visitors to explore and discover the array of unique boutiques, restaurants and the exceptional wealth of attractions in the area,” Gousseau explained. “We also direct them to the museum for human rights and The Forks, so it goes way beyond just our community.”

The kiosk occupied by Régales de l’Afrique is reserved each year for first-time entrepreneurs looking to launch a micro enterprise. It’s supported by USB, the CDEM and the Winnipeg Foundation.

“It’s to provide an opportunity for people who are studying business (at USB) to launch their first little business without a whole lot of overhead,” Gousseau said. “They can get their feet wet and learn what it takes to set up a little business. Get all of the permits and all of that kind of stuff, find your suppliers — everything that you need, basically, at a micro level, to set up shop.

“So it’s great experience, and we hope one day to find them (setting up a shop) on the streets of St. Norbert, St. Vital or in St. Boniface,” he added.

 

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A fledgling company owned by the wife and son of Lululemon founder Chip Wilson is opening a clothing shop next week in the Exchange District that specializes in luxury streetwear, including machine-washable, cashmere-blended sweaters.

The Vancouver-based company is called Kit and Ace, and was launched last July by Shannon and JJ Wilson.

The new 2,800-square-foot Winnipeg shop is one of three the company plans to open next month in Canada and is located at 264 McDermot Ave.

The bulk of the store’s products, which will include tank tops, T-shirts, shirts, sweaters and outerwear, are made from a proprietary fabric they developed themselves called Technical Cashmere.

It’s basically cashmere blended with viscose and elastane, or Lycra. Wilson said the idea is to offer a garment that is functional without sacrificing quality. While the blended-fabric garments retain some of the same elements as cashmere, they can be machine-washed and dried, rather than having to be dry cleaned, he added.

For the first month or so, the McDermot Avenue shop will carry mainly tops, he said. But starting sometime in August, it will begin broadening its product offering to also include such things as pants, mid-weight cashmere tops, mini-jackets and coats.

The new shop will feature some locally made fixtures and pieces — such things as lighting, photographs and a large dinner table. Wilson said the goal is to create an atmosphere where customers feel comfortable just “hanging out” and talking.

Kit and Ace currently has five shops in Canada, but hopes to have at least 20 by later this year.

Wilson said he’s familiar with Winnipeg because he has friends here, and there was never any doubt they would open a shop here.

“There is a little bit of excitement in Winnipeg right now, and there’s growth. And if you go to the Exchange District now, you’re seeing new, cool things popping up. So I wanted to make sure we had a presence there early on.”

He said they’re not sure at this point if they’ll stay at that location for the long term, or possibly relocate to a different part of the city. Another option might be to retain the Exchange District shop and open a second store elsewhere.

“It could take the path where the studio shop (in the Exchange) just ends up killing it and we love it there… and we also end up in Polo Park, or something to that effect,” he added.

 

Know of any newsworthy or interesting trends or developments in the local office, retail or industrial real estate sectors? Let real estate reporter Murray McNeill know at the email address below, or at 204-697-7254.

murray.mcneill@freepress.mb.ca