Skip to content

Locally made products rule

W hat makes Squamish residents so creative? With Refresh Market wrapping up this weekend at the West Coast Railway Heritage Park, dozens of Squamish-based vendors are taking a minute to relax after showcasing their products – from kombucha and spirit

What makes Squamish residents so creative?

With Refresh Market wrapping up this weekend at the West Coast Railway Heritage Park, dozens of Squamish-based vendors are taking a minute to relax after showcasing their products – from kombucha and spirits to handcrafted wooden bowls and children’s clothing. 

Of the 100-plus vendors from B.C. at the indie market, 32 of them are from right here in our town (turn to page A9 for a photo). 

So what makes Squamish attract such great entrepreneurs?

We definitely think out-of-the-box here and aren’t afraid to try new things. 

Take Vegabonde Babe, for example. A local mom started this unisex kids’ clothing line after she had a difficult time finding T-shirts and pants in the style she wanted for her son.  

With “Gangster of Love,” “Lazy Days” and “Daydreamer” written across shirts and onesies, her clothing isn’t something you would find in a big box store. 

There is also GeoJab Bowls, natural-finished bowls made from pre-fallen local trees and wood given to the artist by friends. The wood has significant “defects,” such as knots, spalting (dried fungus), rot and even worm holes – features that give the bowls their unique character. 

Like these two Squamish entrepreneurs who sold at Refresh Market, many local businesses are home-based or run out of small studios. The products are unique and innovative, and fill a gap in what big companies have to offer. 

And we in Squamish see the value in buying these locally-made products. 

Often, the quality is superior to their massed-produced counterparts and there is something special about buying an item directly from the artist, knowing the hard work that went into creating it. 

Jewelry from Scandinavia Wolf Designs, which moved into the Squamish Town Hub earlier this month (see page B7), has been featured on TV shows including Bates Motel and Minority Report. The people in charge of the characters’ wardrobes chose this small, local designer’s statement pieces because they are gorgeous and one-of-a-kind. 

And then there are the local artists who are banding together to exhibit their work in Vancouver (turn to page A17). The work of the show’s organizer features gritty-looking urban stencil art depicting Vancouver alleyways and he says Squamish artwork can easily compete with any in the city. 

We should be proud that so many Squamish residents can harness their creativity to make a living and provide wonderful, well-made products that can compete with the biggest companies. It’s what makes us, arguably, the best place to live in B.C. 

push icon
Be the first to read breaking stories. Enable push notifications on your device. Disable anytime.
No thanks