Has anyone ever heard of the The Saucery Fine Foods?
Me neither… until just a couple days ago.
One of the best pieces of advice given this week was, “Go extraordinary. Hold on to the top of the rope.”
That is exactly what Shawn Harnett is doing right now.
Harnett is the one who recently bought the Food & Beverage department at the Best Western. Not only does this include The Fog on the River restaurant, but also the entire banquet hall catering.
Following the purchase, Harnett closed his doors on March 1 in order to do some renovations and make necessary changes to the business.
With a grand opening set for March 25, he was preparing to present ‘Scratch’ to the community. Our new local restaurant.
March 25 came and went. The doors remain locked.
Today Harnett took the time to speak with us in regard to the challenges he faced prior to purchase and what his present and future looks like now.
“I fought tooth and nail to get Fog on the River. At the time, I was a little under funded, but I had some big events coming up that I was depending on to help financially secure my situation.”
Shawn’s plan hit zero overnight and suddenly he was in a world of undeniable collapse. Faced with a heavy and devastating financial concern, as well as ownership of a restaurant that might never open, he seriously considered giving up all together.
On one hand, he could look favourably on spending three months at home with his kids. On the other hand, there were bills to pay and he knew that his community needed him.
The idea for The Saucery Fine Foods developed almost over night. Within days, he launched his website, purchased the ingredients and hit social media.
The Saucery is now creating individual meals as well as making available to the public; homemade soups and household items that will be delivered to your door, then sterilized. They will drop items at your doorstep, leave the area and then send you a message to let you know that your order has arrived.
“I am at the mercy of my wholesale suppliers. It’s ridiculous that I have to charge $2.50 for a roll of toilet paper,” Shawn explains, “but I can deliver three avocados for $5.”
Deliveries started last week and Shawn is overwhelmed at the unbelievable support he has already received from the community.
“I actually got a little emotional yesterday, watching the orders come in.”
A start up company, making the best of a bad situation, The Saucery Fine Foods is made up of two very busy staff members right now - Angela and Shawn.
“It’s great to be a part of this community right now,” Harnett tells us. “But it feels so good to be helping as well.”
Fore more visit thesauceryfinefoods.com or call 604-287-3660 between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. Monday to Saturday.
