It’s Small Business Week in Canada! This year's celebration is from October 18 - 24, 2020 and in our current landscape, it has become more important than ever to choose to spend on local and support your neighbourhood shops and restaurants. Sparks Street is home to several locally owned small businesses, some of which you probably already know and love and others you may have yet to discover!
With over 60 businesses on Sparks Street, you can find a variety of restaurants, services, tours and shops. Whether you need to get your hair or nails done, a new outfit, a workout, your teeth cleaned, or a bite to eat, you can find it on Sparks. Here’s a mini spotlight of just a few of our great locally owned businesses:
Esthetics By Lucie has been on the street since 1984 and will be celebrating their 36th anniversary this October! Lucie's teacher, Joan Hart, inspired her to take on the future of her business and make it her own; making her one of the first estheticians on Sparks Street. Lucie grew from an 8 x 10 room to a 3,500 square foot space in less than 4 years and has seen the shifts in markets going from her first group of clientele down to their children and grandchildren. She is honoured to be around this long to see the generations who continue to come to her. The salon is located at 167 Sparks Street.
Freshii has been operating on Sparks Street since their opening date in May 2011. Franchise owner Jag Ghuman has always been an entrepreneur and had a passion for eating healthier. Upon seeing the limited choices, he felt that Freshii was the right option for what people were looking for while on the run. Jag’s greatest reward running Freshii is seeing regular customers go from customers to friends on the street; ‘It's an incredible feeling when you meet someone outside of the everyday work and you know each other's names’.
Goodwin Vision Care is located at 171 Sparks Street and has been since 1964. Prior to that, they were located on Bank Street, going back to the 1800's. Goodwin Vision Care won the award as the best place in Ottawa to get glasses in City Life Magazine, and were featured in Ottawa Life last year. Their last optometrist, Dr. Goodwin, was in practice 67 years; they are now fourth generation. Rodney S. Goodwin has been working in the eye care industry since he was ten years old. He always knew he wanted to take over the business run by his father and grandfather. The biggest challenge they face in their industry today is informing the public about the risk to their eyes from environmental exposure. The greatest reward is dealing with the great variety of public who include parliamentarians, judges, journalists and the public service in general; helping Ottawa run more smoothly.
Ivonne Sanchez Beauty has been in operation on Sparks Street 2 years now. Ivonne is from St. Petersburg Russia and began practicing micropigmentation after leaving behind a 10-year career in the legal industry. Beauty and fashion have always been passions of Ivonne's. While pursuing work in this field was a goal, becoming an entrepreneur was a bonus. The biggest challenge this business currently faces is spreading awareness about Permanent Makeup and Cosmetic Tattoo and the greatest reward is witnessing the excitement that a client expresses after experiencing an aesthetics or permanent makeup treatment. The pursuit of permanent makeup and aesthetics is a form of self-expression; “We love watching our clients feel renewed”.
Morgante Menswear has been on Sparks Street since 1995 and in business since 1978. This is a family owned and operated business; now 2nd generation. Their reputation is built on quality product, service and expertise. Franco is a master tailor trained in Italy and was one of the first in Ottawa to sell Italian/European fashion; many brands they still carry today. Morgante Menswear is located at 141 Sparks Street.
Nate's Deli was originally founded in 1959 on Rideau Street, becoming a huge staple in the Montreal smoked meat market. They were relocated to Sparks Street in 2014 becoming wildly popular with parliament officials as well as local businesses as the place to go for smoked meat, particularly during lunch time. At any given time, you may be dining with the mayor, past prime ministers, current prime ministers, other well-known political figures as well as on-air personalities from CBC and CTV. One of their greatest rewards is seeing new and returning clientele dining and enjoying their meals; leaving satisfied with a smile on their faces.
Remedy Chiropractic clinic has been open for just over 3 years. However, Dr. Konkle has been practicing in this location for over 7 years. He chose to open the clinic to offer patient-centered and evidence-based care to the heart of downtown. The clinic entrance is located at 199 Queen Street.
Society Salon and Blow Dry Bar has been on Sparks Street since 2016 and moved into a brand new space on the main level of 90 Sparks Street last year. Society is a full service salon plus a Blow Dry Bar and they specialize in styling. Their salon has a beautiful, clean, open look but they included a special area for clients who need modesty or privacy during their services. Because of their location, they have many parliamentarians and staffers of all political stripes as clientele, including PM Justin Trudeau for his Rolling Stone Magazine cover! Their greatest reward is making people feel beautiful.
As of last year, almost 95% of businesses in Ottawa were small-sized. Sparks Street is a proud location of so many incredible small businesses and we hope you visit them soon - whether in-store or online! #SupportSmallBusiness #SmallBusinessWeek #MySparksStreet