Peterborough Matboards Unveil New Logo For 120th Anniversary

A new logo celebrating a milestone of 120 years in business for matboards and art material manufacturer Peterboro Matboards was revealed in their factory Thursday morning.

Steven Sprotte, operations manager (left) and his father Alan Yaffe, president (right) after the new unveiling of their new logo. Yaffe purchased the business in 2001 after being a picture framer for over 25 years. Photo by David Tuan Bui.

The logo contains the year the company was founded in 1902 and has five matboards on the left side.

The boards represent the company’s philosophy of quality, integrity, tradition, innovation and social responsibility according to the company’s presentation.

Local politicians such as MPP Dave Smith and Coun. Keith Riel were invited to take a facility tour prior to the logo unveiling.

Smith, Riel and representatives from the Greater Peterborough Chamber of Commerce and Peterborough and the Kawarthas Economic Development gave acknowledgements of the company’s milestone after the tour.

Peterborough Matboards operated in the Larry Electric Motor building until the 1960’s on Sherbrooke Street. They have relocated to the now-Ricart Branded Apparel & Promo building on Lansdowne Street. The company occupies the former Unilever plant that produced Ragu sauce on 715 Neal Dr.

The company boasts roughly 650 different colours of matboards manufactured in their factory.

Roughly 20 workers operate on the manufacturing floor with eight administration employees.

“We’re treating everybody like family and I think that’s played to our success,” said Steven Sprotte, Peterboro Matboards operations manager. “It’s about having great relationships with people. We have a huge focus on quality.”

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StoosNews Spotlight: Check Out The Business Beat This Week Featuring The El P, Lush Cannabis, Peterborough Chamber and PKHBA

PTBOCanada is delighted to be running StoosNews columns each week here, spotlighting new businesses and startups in Peterborough and the Kawarthas. Here is this week’s edition…

The EL[P] restaurant recently opened in the former Hot Belly Mama’s location at 378 George St. in downtown Peterborough.

Owned by Amanda and Greg Da Silva, the couple already operates a successful sister restaurant in Cobourg called “The EL” with the same atmosphere. Described as a “Gastropub”, they say the menu is inspired by worldly travels, featuring locally sourced ingredients.

They have an extensive drinks menu including hand-crafted cocktails, craft beer and international wines. There is vibrant art on the walls, the swanky furniture, live music nights, all capturing their slogan “Food Is Our Common Ground."

Lush Cannabis Company just opened in Cavan.

Located in the former Gallery Q building at 1521 County Rd. 10, that’s at the intersection with Hwy 7A, owner Brent Morrison and crew have spent 6 months on design and renovations and it shows. They have created a beautiful space, a full-service cannabis shop and a great line of branded swag. Lushcannabis.ca or lush cannabis company on Instagram.

A couple of business events coming up, the annual Chamber of Commerce Power Hour goes this Wednesday at 7 p.m. on Zoom.

The event will once again feature the signature four-way panel discussion between our elected leaders, with questions supplied by the audience and Chamber Members.  

On March 23, the Chambers monthly BOSS Series, Business Owners Sharing Solutions will feature a panel discussion on Returning to the Office - Advantages in the New World of Work, exploring the do’s and don’ts around flexibility, hybrid options and more. Details on both Chamber events are at pkchamber.ca.

The Peterborough and the Kawarthas Home Builders' Association Housing Design Awards return on April 21 at The Venue in Downtown Peterborough.

The event recognizes excellence in design and quality of construction in the new home and renovation industry. Details at pkhba.com.

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Vinnies Second Hand Store Ready To Accept Donations At All Three Peterborough Locations

Vinnies second hand store is ready to accept donations at their locations on Erskine, Hunter and in Lakefield.

Photo courtesy of Vinnies.

Recently, the organization closed their George Street location and opened a new store on Hunter Street.

Now all three locations are open Mon. - Fri. 10 a.m. - 4 p.m. and are looking for donations of gently used items.

Profits from all locations fund the Society of Saint Vincent DePaul Food Pantry.

“Part of our mandate is to provide employment for local people here,” said Angela Oran, general manager. “And the other part is to fund the food pantry.”

Oran says Vinnies employs close to 40 local residents.

Vinnies Food Pantry helps over 1860 individuals in Peterborough each month secure food and other essential items.

Oran noted that when they opened their new location on Hunter street, the locations on Erskine Street and in Lakefield did not close, though some people thought they did.

“Our new location is beautiful, we’re very excited about it,” said Oran.

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StoosNews Spotlight: Check Out The Business Beat This Week Featuring The Market, Essential Occupational Therapy and The Cannabis Forest

PTBOCanada is delighted to be running StoosNews columns each week here, spotlighting new businesses and startups in Peterborough and the Kawarthas. Here is this week’s edition…

The Market on Stoney Lake is undergoing a major renovation under the new owners, the Errington’s and the Lang’s.

The reno is top to bottom including a new top floor three-bedroom vacation rental, enclosing part of the patio, increasing the indoor seating capacity with a new bar, moving the ice cream parlour to their secondary building, increasing the LCBO and market inventory and completely upgrading the commercial kitchen.

They are shooting for a May opening and then will remain open year-round. Located at Crowes Landing on Stoney Lake, check it out at stoneylakemarket.com or on social media.

Meanwhile The Market in Lakefield recently reopened after an interior facelift.

Owner Lee Galley has adjusted his product mix and presentation, spruced things up and is excited to be introducing fresh new signage shortly. The Market specializes in its signature produce, gourmet specialty items, local, organic meat and freshly baked delights, with an emphasis on supporting local producers and growers. themarketlakefield.ca or find them on Facebook.

Kim Lamont and Associates recently rebranded to Essential Occupational Therapy. A Team of five, they provide in-home, workplace and community-based assessment and treatment, a brain injury and concussion program, anxiety, operational and post-traumatic stress treatment, chronic pain rehab, accident recovery, post-covid syndrome and more.

Funded sources include WSIB, Veterans Affairs Canada, auto insurance and some workplaces. Visit otservices.ca

The Cannabis Forest recently opened in Havelock. Located at 2 Ottawa street, owners Samantha and Patrick Hogan pride themselves on their locally owned business and their modern space offering cannabis, concentrates, edibles, vape cartridges and a variety of CBD products.

They also have accessories such as grinders, vaporizers, bongs, pipes, and rolling papers and they’ll have some fancy branded apparel on the shelves soon. Visit cannabisforest.shop or on social media.

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Peterborough Graphic Designer Emma Scott Looks Back On The Condom Design Contest That Gave Her A Kickstart In Creativity

Local business owner Emma Scott is enjoying her time in the spotlight as a condom wrapper design she made as part of a contest through 2013 - 2019 is circulating again.

Scott with her two winning 2017 designs, inspired by Canada. Photo by Angela O’Grady.

Scott entered a contest held by ONE Condom, a company based in the U.S, after she graduated as a graphic designer and was working as a server.

“I was serving so I wasn’t really doing anything to do with graphic design,” she said. “Someone sent me the contest and I just went wild with it. It was almost like getting back into the art world after just ignoring it, it was a good way back into it for sure.”

Recently, her design was featured in a New York Post article, which brought back her punny creations.

Scott notes that this contest is held every year, and as an aspiring graphic designer at the time she entered, the prize money was significant in comparison to similar contests.

Her design ‘ONE beanie for your weenie’ placed first in 2019, voted by a panel of judges.

Scott’s winning 2019 entry. Photo courtesy of ONE Condoms.

In 2017 the company held “ONE Canada Design Contest” and encouraged entrants to draw inspiration from Canadian culture.

Scott submitted three designs, and won the first and second place spot.

Scott calls this design ‘the one that got away’ as it was ultimately disqualified from the contest for potential copyright issues. Photo courtesy of Emma Scott Design.

With her multiple wins in the annual contest, Scott has acquired multiple years supplies of condoms.

“So many people were like ‘what do they assume a lifetime supply is?’ It was a lot,” she laughed. “It just became a joke, bringing them to things and giving them to friends or mailing them out.”

She also had the opportunity to donate a large quantity to the organization of her choosing. She chose Sistering, a women’s shelter in Toronto, and to George brown College.

Scott says that winning this contest was a great kick-starter for her business, and she still does freelance work for ONE Condom on occasion.

Now, Scott owns and operates Emma Scott Design in Peterborough and specializes in logo design and brand development.

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Peterborough Formal Wear Store T-Elle Boutique Closing Its Doors After 37 Years

Local business owner Lien Vu is closing her shop T-Elle Boutique on March 31 after 37 years in business and hundreds of special-occasion outfits sold.

Lien Vu (pictured) relocated her store to 131 Charlotte St. from her previously location at 351. George St. N. Photo by Angela O’Grady.

Vu graduated from Fleming College with a degree in business in the 1980s and found herself wondering where she would start her career.

“When I graduated I must have applied to 100 jobs, nothing,” said Vu. “I took the $5,000 I had and started this.”

She put $2,500 to get the store ready with a fresh coat of paint, small renovations and another $2,500 to buy merchandise.

She says she wanted T-Elle to be customers’ go-to shop when they needed a fancy outfit to wear.

“I’m not normal,” said Vu with a laugh. “When customers come in, I want them to stand out. I want them to go to their party and heads to turn.”

Vu says the formal wear started to sell very quickly and she was soon able to bring in more merchandise including casual wear.

“Things started moving and I realized ‘hey, this is what I like to do’ and I started bringing more stuff in,” Vu said gesturing to the colourful dresses and outfits around her. “After a while, we were able to bring in more casual stuff but my casual is not casual.”

Vu looking at photos from her shops past. Photo by Angela O’Grady.

Vu’s shop is slowly emptying as shoppers buy up the last of her stock.

She says the changing business environment is in part to blame.

“It’s all online but my dresses - you need to try them on to know,” she said.

Reflecting on the pieces she has sold in the past, Vu says she is grateful to have been a part of so many peoples special days.

“You need a lot of dedication and a lot of patience to do this job,” she said. “Working weddings and graduations, that’s not something you try on one dress for. You have to be so good to everyone and so patient. I’m glad I’ve built a good reputation here.”

Vu plans to move closer to her children and grandchildren and enjoy retirement surrounded by family.

Merchandise is on sale now and T-Elle’s will close on March 31.

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StoosNews Spotlight: Check Out The Business Beat This Week Featuring Vinnie's, Forest of Flowers, Peterboro Matboards and Comfort Keepers

PTBOCanada is delighted to be running StoosNews columns each week here, spotlighting new businesses and startups in Peterborough and the Kawarthas. Here is this week’s edition…

Vinnies, the popular thrift and consignment store has opened on Monday after moving from the George Street location to 52 Hunter St. E.

Vinnies operates three stores in the area on Hunter Street, Erskine Avenue and Lakefield. All three stores are open Monday to Saturday from 10:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. Vinnies is the modern evolution of The Saint Vincent de Paul Thrift Store that opened in the late 1960s. Stop in, or visit vinnies.ca or Vinnies on social media.

The Forest of Flowers recently opened at 139 George St., across from the Holiday Inn.

The franchise operates numerous stores in 11 Ontario cities. Local franchise owners are Devi and Anand Ramdas. Open seven days a week, they offer a full-service flower shop with walk-in coolers and both worldwide delivery and same-day local delivery. Stop in or visit forestofflowers.com.

Peterboro Matboards is celebrating its 120 anniversary this year.

Beginning in 1902 as Turner Brothers, producing handmade watercolour and art paper, the company now distributes globally. They manufacture highly specialized products for museums, conservation, illustration, solid core and mount boards, specialized fabrics and more. Watch for a special anniversary celebration on Thu., March 17 at 11:00 a.m. including small group tours, speeches and a ribbon-cutting ceremony. Peterboromatboards.com

Comfort Keepers recently introduced a new In-Home Tech Support service for seniors.

The service is available in private homes or retirement residence, wherever home is for you and includes; basic IT support, Internet support, new computer or tech set up, basic computer troubleshooting, virus support, smart TV help, networking and more. Whether it is making a video call to the grandkids or doing your banking, give Comfort Keepers a call at (705) 243-4042 or visit comfortkeepers.ca/peterborough.

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Local Rideshare and Food Delivery Service To Hold Job Fair On Saturday

Y Drive is looking to employ delivery and rideshare drivers at their hiring fair at the Peterborough Square offices on the third floor on Saturday.

Vietnamese restaurant Hanoi House (with vermicelli and spring rolls pictured in the foreground) located on Hunter Street and Lansdowne Street West was one of the first restaurants to have their food delivered by Y Drive. Photo courtesy of Y Drive.

The hiring fair will run from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. at 360 George St. where applicants can optionally bring their resumé.

The local company wants roughly 25 drivers for their rideshare program. In addition, they want to add another 20-30 delivery drivers for Y Drive Eats and have already hired 20 to start.

“Demand is so high, we need those people to keep growing,” said Joel Potter, Y Drive Eats owner.

Rideshare drivers must be at least 25, have a G license and have a newer vehicle. Delivery drivers do not have to meet those requirements.

Employees can work delivery or rideshare but not simultaneously on the same shift.

The delivery service starts on Tuesday with roughly eight restaurants to start. A new restaurant will be announced daily beginning in March for 30 days to be available for the delivery service.

Rob Davidson, Y Drive owner says his service will charge less to the restaurants.

"We actually got to know a lot of restaurant owners via Ydrive, said Davidson. "They are running into an issue where they are getting a lot of food out but not making any money. It allows our restaurant community to grow which is beneficial for us as customers and it also allows us to employ local drivers to do local work and make local money."

Vietnamese restaurant Hanoi House is one of the first businesses available for Y Drive delivery.

“I’m excited that there is a local option that charges a reasonable commission rate to restaurants,” said Susan Tung, Hanoi House owner. “People don’t realize how much money restaurants lose yearly to these large third-party apps. At least the money is now kept in the community so that is something we can all get behind.”

On Feb. 19, Y Drive started delivering for LCBO during their business hours.

Click here to submit an online application.

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