Jardins St-Léon Gardens opens for the season

St. Vital

A landmark local market opened for the season last week and, as always, the owners can’t wait to get going.

Jardins St-Léon Gardens is owned by siblings Janelle, Luc and Colin Rémillard and their cousin, Daniel Rémillard. This year marks the 10th anniversary of the quartet taking the reins from Janelle, Luc and Colin’s parents, Lise Mulaire and the late Denis Rémillard.

St-Léon Gardens sells produce grown or made by more than 200 local producers, which will begin to appear at the market in stages, depending on different factors, such as typical growing conditions and windows, and what kind of weather Mother Nature decides to bestow in the early part of the season.

“We now try to open in late April, so we can train our new staff,” said Colin Rémillard, noting that Mother’s Day — which falls on May 10 — is one of the busiest days for the market. “We have 15 to 20 new staff, and many more returning ones.”

Rémillard said it feels as if the business is opening earlier this year because the weather was colder in April than previous years, but there were plenty of plants, produce and goods awaiting the first customers of the season as the clock ticked down for the gates to open April 29. The Rémillards have added a sixth cash register this season, intended to help ease lineups at peak periods.

The operations management model of a seasonal market is an interesting one, not least because it’s only open for five to six months the year.

“We’re open every single day. We make the most of it,” Rémillard said, adding the team usually closes up shop at Thanksgiving.

“We live very unique, very seasonal lives. As we’ve been doing this for a long time, we’re programmed to live like this. In January and February, you can disconnect a bit, but by then you’re excited to get started again. My favourite part of the job is working so hard in the summer, as you know there’s going to be a huge demand for goods.”

Noting that strawberries are many people’s favourite item, Rémillard said late May could see the arrival of local asparagus, as well as greens, dill and spinach. Products such as jams, sauces and pies are always popular items, and the market’s bakery section grows every year. Esthetically, the business takes on a whole different colour palette when the gourds and pumpkins arrive near the end of the season.

The family continues to be thankful for all the local support of St-Léon’s customers, which have become a community.

“We’re the luckiest family in the province. It’s not only the best job in the world, but we also have the best customers in the world,” Rémillard said.

“It’s a different type of store to a farmers’ market, as the vendors aren’t here, so we’re here seven days a week. And it’s great that people are able to change their shopping habits for these few months, even when it’s cold and raining, which shows there’s demand for local goods.”

“At the end of the day, we’re the middle man, and it’s a nice symbiotic relationship,” he added.

Jardins St-Léon Gardens is open Monday to Saturday from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m., and Sundays and holidays from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.

Visit www.stleongardens.com for more information.