This award is for profit centered businesses which have been in operation in the Haliburton Highlands for at least 1 year to a maximum of 3 years. This category includes a new business or a business that has renovated to meet the changing needs of the Haliburton Highlands.
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241 Pizza
241′s branded slogan is “Proudly made for you!” and in a nutshell, that’s how they operate their business – with pride and commitment to customer satisfaction. Always looking for ways to better serve their customers, 241 took a look at their lunch-time student customers – being close to the high school they realized that they had an opportunity to attract and serve students quickly and economically, so they started a lunch special that now sees a steady flow of students and other diners through their doors at lunch time.
241′s commitment to customer satisfaction was made evident when they jumped on the opportunity to provide customers with a ‘dining’ area. They acquired the lower-level in their building and set-up a comfortable zone for pizza lovers to relax and catch some TV while enjoying their pizza.
Since opening their doors in May 2010, 241 has prided themselves in their ability to contribute to the community’s economy by employing full-time staff throughout the year. Not expecting to do as well as they have in their first year of business, 241 Pizza is looking ahead and focused on delivering on their slogan – “Proudly made for you!”
Deer Creek Custom Wood Products
Deer Creek Custom Wood Products Ltd. is a custom manufacturer of mid to high-end kitchens, vanities, mantels, wall units, offices, etc. Incorporated in May 2010 and owned by Cutis Tighe, Deer Creek Customer Wood Products has been in operation since May 2011. They custom manufacture carvings and custom manufacture and sell custom finished s. Deer Creek is fortunate to have a manufacturing facility that is outfitted with the best equipment in the area including a CNC wood router and an automated edgebander. Their state of the art design software allows their customers to see cabinet designs in 3D before they order them. The software then exports a file to the CNC router for the products to be manufactured. Having this machinery and technology allows Deer Creek to produce cabinets extremely accurately and fast with the least amount of material wasted.
mj Creative Services
mj Creative Services has been in the graphic design, sign, and print business for over 30 years. They offer a complete and diverse line of print products – the most popular being their business cards. Their signage ranges from standard “no smoking” type signs, to road signs, and vinyl lettering.
In 2009 mj Creative Services relocated to Minden, where they expanded their business into hand-lettered, hand-carved and custom painted signs, and vehicle wrapping. The signs at The Wine Store and Antique Shop in Minden are good examples of their work. A recent addition to the mj promotional product line is T-shirts. This new business had a productive year, providing promotional products, and signage for the Winterfest 2011 Ontario Senior Games and T-shirts for the First Annual Bluegrass Festival held in Minden.
Mike Janetakes, is the owner of mj Creative Services – his creativity spills over into every aspect of his life. He’s a painter, an actor, a radio show host, a volunteer, and he has a history of organizing small town promotions.
Pine Grove Point
Pine Grove Point (P.G.P.) is a family oriented all season trailer park offering a wide range of services and amenities to the public; including a Restaurant, Gas Station, Convenience Store, Showers, Laundromat, Cottages, Camping and a Beach. PGP is a popular destination for snowmobiles, hunters, ATV’s, boaters and hikers.
The most significant change to the business has been its expansion to become an all season park. In making this change, PGP became a destination for snowmobiles and ice fishing in the winter months, helping to increase tourism in the Haliburton Highlands. PGP’s goal is to instil a mindset that PGP will always be there, providing fuel, a hot meal and a place to stay if needed to all their visitors. The development of a new water park which is open to the public, has created a lot of excitement in the area. PGP is poised for growth – new additions coming every season, will help make PGP “the” summer destination.
The owners of Pine Grove Point are members of the Algonquin Gateway Business and Tourism Association. As members, they are able to strengthen their support and relationships with local businesses. They believe that building partnerships with local businesses allows them to offer a wider range of services to their clients; making all businesses stronger and more profitable.
WAI Products Limited
Picture yourself riding a rocket that needs constant refueling and tends to do the odd flip; that’s what the first year of WAI Products Ltd. felt like! While there were some challenges, there were also some significant accomplishments and successes. Owner Brandi Hewson believes that her success is rooted in clear determination, passion, and relationships, in combination with the selection of innovative products and making the right moves at the right time.
Some of WAI’s 2011 milestones have included: negotiations with multi-billion dollar companies securing distribution agreements as well as a market presence; nailing sales within 10% of forecasts; travelling over 40,000 km in 6 months to build their market; providing employment for the community; building a new corporate website in combination with a new ecommerce website; building a brand people associate with an ultimate level of customer service – gaining recognition in a 40 billion dollar industry!; building and moving into a new office to promote enhanced service to the local community and an expanded inventory.
WAI Products has definitely experienced a positive and satisfying first year in business! And in all of this, Hewson, still managed to fulfill her other roles as a mother, a wife, a friend, a daughter…. Brandi does not expect the next years to be easy; she didn’t become an entrepreneur to take the easy road. She embraces the road ahead and all the challenges it may bring. She finds great reward in knowing that she has built a little empire that will support her community and her family. Looking back Brandi has a sense of a solid foundation and moving forward – she’s strapped onto her little rocket and ready to take off!
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2012 Nominee Bios / Overviews
New Business Award
This award is for profit centered businesses which have been in operation in the Haliburton Highlands for at least 1 year to a maximum of 3 years. This category includes a new business or a business that has renovated to meet the changing needs of the Haliburton Highlands.
241 Pizza
241′s branded slogan is “Proudly made for you!” and in a nutshell, that’s how they operate their business – with pride and commitment to customer satisfaction. Always looking for ways to better serve their customers, 241 took a look at their lunch-time student customers – being close to the high school they realized that they had an opportunity to attract and serve students quickly and economically, so they started a lunch special that now sees a steady flow of students and other diners through their doors at lunch time.
241′s commitment to customer satisfaction was made evident when they jumped on the opportunity to provide customers with a ‘dining’ area. They acquired the lower-level in their building and set-up a comfortable zone for pizza lovers to relax and catch some TV while enjoying their pizza.
Since opening their doors in May 2010, 241 has prided themselves in their ability to contribute to the community’s economy by employing full-time staff throughout the year. Not expecting to do as well as they have in their first year of business, 241 Pizza is looking ahead and focused on delivering on their slogan – “Proudly made for you!”
Deer Creek Custom Wood Products
Deer Creek Custom Wood Products Ltd. is a custom manufacturer of mid to high-end kitchens, vanities, mantels, wall units, offices, etc. Incorporated in May 2010 and owned by Cutis Tighe, Deer Creek Customer Wood Products has been in operation since May 2011. They custom manufacture carvings and custom manufacture and sell custom finished s. Deer Creek is fortunate to have a manufacturing facility that is outfitted with the best equipment in the area including a CNC wood router and an automated edgebander. Their state of the art design software allows their customers to see cabinet designs in 3D before they order them. The software then exports a file to the CNC router for the products to be manufactured. Having this machinery and technology allows Deer Creek to produce cabinets extremely accurately and fast with the least amount of material wasted.
mj Creative Services
mj Creative Services has been in the graphic design, sign, and print business for over 30 years. They offer a complete and diverse line of print products – the most popular being their business cards. Their signage ranges from standard “no smoking” type signs, to road signs, and vinyl lettering.
In 2009 mj Creative Services relocated to Minden, where they expanded their business into hand-lettered, hand-carved and custom painted signs, and vehicle wrapping. The signs at The Wine Store and Antique Shop in Minden are good examples of their work. A recent addition to the mj promotional product line is T-shirts. This new business had a productive year, providing promotional products, and signage for the Winterfest 2011 Ontario Senior Games and T-shirts for the First Annual Bluegrass Festival held in Minden.
Mike Janetakes, is the owner of mj Creative Services – his creativity spills over into every aspect of his life. He’s a painter, an actor, a radio show host, a volunteer, and he has a history of organizing small town promotions.
Pine Grove Point
Pine Grove Point (P.G.P.) is a family oriented all season trailer park offering a wide range of services and amenities to the public; including a Restaurant, Gas Station, Convenience Store, Showers, Laundromat, Cottages, Camping and a Beach. PGP is a popular destination for snowmobiles, hunters, ATV’s, boaters and hikers.
The most significant change to the business has been its expansion to become an all season park. In making this change, PGP became a destination for snowmobiles and ice fishing in the winter months, helping to increase tourism in the Haliburton Highlands. PGP’s goal is to instil a mindset that PGP will always be there, providing fuel, a hot meal and a place to stay if needed to all their visitors. The development of a new water park which is open to the public, has created a lot of excitement in the area. PGP is poised for growth – new additions coming every season, will help make PGP “the” summer destination.
The owners of Pine Grove Point are members of the Algonquin Gateway Business and Tourism Association. As members, they are able to strengthen their support and relationships with local businesses. They believe that building partnerships with local businesses allows them to offer a wider range of services to their clients; making all businesses stronger and more profitable.
WAI Products Limited
Picture yourself riding a rocket that needs constant refueling and tends to do the odd flip; that’s what the first year of WAI Products Ltd. felt like! While there were some challenges, there were also some significant accomplishments and successes. Owner Brandi Hewson believes that her success is rooted in clear determination, passion, and relationships, in combination with the selection of innovative products and making the right moves at the right time.
Some of WAI’s 2011 milestones have included: negotiations with multi-billion dollar companies securing distribution agreements as well as a market presence; nailing sales within 10% of forecasts; travelling over 40,000 km in 6 months to build their market; providing employment for the community; building a new corporate website in combination with a new ecommerce website; building a brand people associate with an ultimate level of customer service – gaining recognition in a 40 billion dollar industry!; building and moving into a new office to promote enhanced service to the local community and an expanded inventory.
WAI Products has definitely experienced a positive and satisfying first year in business! And in all of this, Hewson, still managed to fulfill her other roles as a mother, a wife, a friend, a daughter…. Brandi does not expect the next years to be easy; she didn’t become an entrepreneur to take the easy road. She embraces the road ahead and all the challenges it may bring. She finds great reward in knowing that she has built a little empire that will support her community and her family. Looking back Brandi has a sense of a solid foundation and moving forward – she’s strapped onto her little rocket and ready to take off!