We’re Opening A Retail Store In Fort Erie!

UPDATE 02/06/2023: We have finalized a date! View our Grand Opening blog post for the details!

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Since 2015 there have been many exciting moments for Lovebee and our family, and we have so many fond “first” memories.

There was our first lavender harvest, our first product line, our first farmers’ market, our first ‘large’ event, our first product review, our first consignment partner, our first international sale, our first wholesale order — and these are just to name a few!

We are extremely grateful and thankful that we’ve been able to experience so many great firsts so far.

A New Adventure

Today, we are beyond excited to announce a new first for Lovebee, and it is perhaps the largest first to date: We are opening a physical retail store in Fort Erie at 44 Jarvis street (formerly Bridgeburg Jewelers)!!!

It is no small endeavor to open a physical store, which is one of the reasons we waited patiently to do it. After many years of amazing local interest, genuine support, and a great growth opportunity before us (more on that in a moment) we believe it is truly the time to step out into this new adventure!

Watch our store announcement video below!

The Plan (Opening & Hours)

To say we’ve been busy would be a colossal understatement. Between our current orders, upcoming holiday events, moving out of one location and relocating to a new much larger space (that is beautiful, but currently lacks many of the business components to run a commercial operation), family Christmas planning and managing the expectations of a 5 and 7 year old — yes, we are busy indeed! Still however, we would not trade this moment for anything.

We’re designing lighting and ordering signs, building furniture and fixtures, cleaning, painting and all of the fun (and sometimes not so fun) things that come along with opening a retail store in Fort Erie. We can’t wait for you to visit!

Soft Opening

As of right now, we are planning a ‘soft opening’ (in other words, open on select days leading up to Christmas even though we won’t be fully set up just yet) on December 8th, 2022, from 10am – 6pm. We’ll then be open on the following days and times:

• Thursday, December 8th (10am – 6pm)
• Friday, December 9th (10am – 6pm)
• Saturday, December 10th (10am – 6pm)
• Friday, December 16th (10am – 6pm)
• Saturday, December 17th (10am – 6pm)
• Monday, December 19th (10am – 6pm)
• Tuesday, December 20th (10am – 6pm)
• Wednesday, December 21th (10am – 3pm)

IMPORTANT PARKING NOTE: Please make sure to view the info & parking map before visiting as the street is currently under construction!

Grand Opening

After taking a small break over Christmas and the new year, we plan to have our grand opening in mid – late January. We’ll need a little time to make some final touches before being open on a regular basis.

Businesses Bet On Jarvis Street

If you’re local to Fort Erie / Ridgeway, you’ve likely been hearing a lot of buzz (no pun intended) about Jarvis street, and the historic Bridgeburg district lately.

If not, here’s the quick scoop — The Bridgeburg district and it’s core business area (which runs the length of Jarvis street) is currently undergoing a 4 million dollar revitalization project, which includes new roads, sidewalks, street lights, benches, planters and other beautification features!

Historic Bridgeburg has been the talk of the town lately, and rightfully so! There is a lot of new interest and new investment beyond the city’s contributions that are happening behind the scenes.

Jarvis street is looking like the place to be in 2023 and we certainly hope so 🙂 The Bridgeburg district is currently home to over 100 businesses and we’re truly thrilled to becoming a part of the community.

In general, Fort Erie seems to be booming despite pandemic setbacks, and new businesses are popping up every week. From big box stores like Winners, to restaurant chains like A&W, Arby’s and Starbucks to new housing developments and local artisanal businesses like Lovebee, there is a lot going on and it’s very exciting.

Roots

While we began Lovebee in Ridgeway, many do not know that we spent a few years living in Fort Erie when we first moved to the area. Specifically, we lived in a small apartment overlooking, you guessed it, Jarvis street!

Jarvis street was not random choice, or a coincidence for us. We know the area, and many people in the area too. When 44 Jarvis became available, we went to take a look as we remembered the charming little building with its authentic brick facia and awning.

While some work would need to be done to make it our own, it had just the right combination of space and old apothecary like charm we wanted in a location. Not only were we looking for a place to have our own retail space, we wanted to make products right at the store too, and 44 Jarvis was perfect for that.

So when we say products are freshly made, we really mean it! All products will be freshly made on location just days new!

Even back over a decade ago now we saw huge potential on Jarvis and the surrounding area. The reality at the time however was that the area needed a huge injection of funds to kickstart a transition in the area, and of course Lovebee wasn’t born just yet either.

We have always loved the quaint cobblestone streets of Europe with their often bustling local shops, and imagined Jarvis could always be something just like that — a beautiful and restful area for eating, shopping and strolling just off the mighty picturesque Niagara river.

While not exactly European of course, the vision of transformation presented for the area was aligned with what we imagined one day ourselves, and for Lovebee, the opportunity and timing was perfect.

We couldn’t be more thrilled to be a part of the transformation happening in the area, and hope Lovebee will also help to attract new attention and breathe new life into the area too!

Mark your calendar for December 8th, and come visit the new Lovebee retail store in Fort Erie for your locally and freshly made bath, body, skincare and homecare products!