New owner of the newly named Squatter’s Creek Wines & Designs, Kelly Munday is brimming with enthusiasm. In a whirlwind of personal change and activity that included participating in the self-employment program at Community Futures, buying the business on January 26 and opening on February 14, Kelly has hit the ground running with fresh new ideas and products.
“It’s been really busy,” says Kelly. “I’ve barely had time to sit and breathe.”
Prior to the new endeavour, Kelly spent 27 years working for Air Canada Jazz in Terrace, BC. She and her husband Terry moved to Powell River in 2015 with their teenage son Michael.
“We decided to come here, enjoy the Sunshine Coast and have a different perspective on living the good life,” says Kelly.
Her best friend, whom she met in Terrace, was born and raised in Powell River.
“We came down to visit about 10 years ago and thought, ‘Wow, what a nice place,’” says Kelly.
Two years later, as a rental investment, the friends bought a house in Powell River together. “Now we live in that house,” says Kelly.
The family spent two years renovating the home, then Kelly decided she needed something else to do, “and here I am,” she says.
While new to the retail wine business, Kelly has been making wine as a hobbyist for several years. The previous owner provided hands-on training and employee Karen Andrews is staying on to allow for a smooth transition.
Although ownership has changed, the process for customers remains the same.
“Clients who want to make a batch of wine come in, decide on a varietal and start the process,” explains Kelly. “Then we handle all the in-between stuff, including the fermenting process, racking it down and filtering to remove the sediment.”
The business has 4-, 5-, 6- and 8-week RJS Craft Winemaking kits, including reds, whites and rosés, in stock. When a batch is ready, clients return for bottling.
“The customer fills and corks the bottles and adds a label if they wish,” says Kelly. “We can create custom labels with a special label printer on site.”
Although beer is not made on the premises, Kelly can order kits for customers interested in making their own at home.
“People can buy wine kits, too, and make it at home, or they can do the whole package here,” says Kelly. “They can also bring in wine kits purchased elsewhere, pay a service charge and make it here.”
Squatter’s also has a unique array of wine accessories, home-brewing supplies, specialty kits for port and a new product called Mivino, which customers can use to mix two varietals to make their own blend.
While wine accounts for 90 per cent of the business, Kelly says artwork occupies the other 10 per cent of her time.
For the past 14 years, through her own home-based business, now incorporated into the new store-front venture, Kelly has been creating unique greeting cards and custom-framed designs for businesses, individuals and weddings. Her craft involves finding natural typography that looks like letters, photographing it, then spelling names, words or phrases using one photo for each letter and mounting them into a variety of frames, foam board, canvas or wood.
“I have about 2,000 letters in my collection,” says Kelly, who uses anything from leaves to stylized armrests on benches for inspiration.
In addition to her own creations, she hosts workshops and shows participants what to look for to create their own art.
“I take them on a two-to-three-hour walk and show them how to find letters; not everyone notices without direction,” says Kelly.
For people who are not as creative or mobile enough for the walk, an in-house workshop allows attendees to use Kelly’s collection and learn how to create and mount their own phrase or name.
To celebrate its grand opening under new ownership, Squatter’s Creek’s March Madness continues until the end of the month. Customers will receive $20 off their next order, one per customer.
For more information, email squatterscreekwines@gmail.com, call 604.485.7775, drop in at 103-4871 Joyce Avenue, or go to squatterscreekwines.com.
