A prominent roadside stop is back in business, and it may have a positive ripple effect on the north.
Fidler’s Corner Store, located at the junction of Highway 10 and Highway 39 about 16 kilometres south of Cranberry Portage, has reopened under new ownership.
The original business, started by Gordon and Jeannette Fidler in 1992, had been closed for almost a decade. Run by Ken Fidler after his parents passed away in 2009 and 2010, the store has been up for sale for years.
The Tooley family from The Pas – father Terry and son Trevor – will operate the store.
“We got possession of property in early December,” said Trevor.
While new co-owner Trevor admits he doesn’t remember much of the original store, he still remembers some parts of the business.
“I was at the old Fidler’s store when I was younger, a couple of times,” he said.
“I was pretty young when I was there, maybe five or six years old when I first went there. It would be me and my dad on a fishing trip, we’d go in there for some lunch and get some stuff for the road.”
It’s a welcome change for the area, especially for Cranberry Portage. Over the last decade, multiple businesses have been shuttered as demand for goods in town dropped and residents have travelled to Flin Flon for necessities.
Rick Huck currently operates Rick’s Quikstop, a gas station and store on Highway 10 in Cranberry Portage. Huck also owned and operated Family Food Town, which was Cranberry Portage’s only grocery store. In the face of increasing expenses and lower demand, Huck closed Family Food Town in 2016 and moved the business to the Quikstop.
“I never really gave it up. I did what I had to do, I adapted. Instead of trying to run two businesses and have twice as much overhead, I took the more successful business I got – the one on the highway here – and moved everything into here. I did what I had to do,” he said.
“The mom and pop store thing, the big box stores have kind of wiped that out.”
Huck said the reopening of the store at Fidler’s would be a positive sign for the region and the community, even though it may mean a more competitive market.
“I think it’ll benefit the community. I think it could bring more people here. They’ll have people staying out there and they’ll have to venture into town for something, I can imagine. I’m happy it’s reopened,” he said.
“I know the people who are taking over Fidler’s. I’ve known them since I was working at the mall 25 years ago. They’re just good people and they’re going to run a good business. I’m happy for them.”
Former Flin Flon MLA and longtime Cranberry Portage resident Gerard Jennissen agreed, noting that a new business opening in the north – especially in a time of growing economic uncertainty – is a good sign.
“It’s a ray of hope. It seems like things are building up again. We want to keep that momentum going if we can. We’re a little worried about the northern economy as it is – in fact, quite worried,” he said.
“I think that’s a good thing. I think it’s going to be a very positive thing for the north.”
Jennissen said that the store opening could mean adjustments for other businesses, but added the pros outweighed the cons when the original store opened in 1992.
“It will probably affect businesses – no doubt it will, that’s what we felt when it was first established. But I don’t think it can be seen as a negative. Any time something opens up in the north, when we’re going through some tough economic times, I think it’s a good thing,” he said.
Inside the building, Tooley said there will not be much change to the store itself. The kitchen inside has been renovated and some smaller fixes have been finished up.
The Tooleys also hope to build cabins nearby and plan to operate part of an existing family business – a fish guiding service – out of the store.
Tooley said the store opening would have a positive impact on the area.
“It can’t have anything but a positive impact, right? It’d be good for travellers, it gives them an extra place they can stop at, a bit more security and an extra place to get gas and eat. It can’t be anything but good for the north.”
