Some food and drink businesses spent thousands of dollars getting ready for a busy winter
John Hennessy was thrilled when the National Capital Commission (NCC) called him and asked him to sell things on the Rideau Canal Skateway this season.
Hennessy opened ZUPS ByWard, an Ottawa restaurant that serves poutine, in the ByWard Market just six months ago. He didn’t plan to grow so quickly, but the chance was too good to pass up.
“They thought we would be a great partner for the canal,” said Hennessy, whose business is also in Wakefield, Que.
He got to work right away and spent “north of $10,000” to buy and upgrade a new food-safe trailer to meet requirements for weight, fire safety, and fuel, as well as electrical upgrades like new kill switches.
The ZUPS logo would also need to be put on the trailer, and Hennessy would need new signs and menu boards.
“It mostly took time, but we had to pay for some of the things we had to do to make sure the trailer was legal and safe on the ice,” he said.
Instead, the canal is still closed because of bad ice and bad weather, so Hennessy is one of a number of food and drink vendors who have to sit around and watch their investments melt away.
At this point in the season, it’s becoming more and more likely that the skateway won’t open at all.
“It’s a lot for a small business.
The first time liquor was sold on the canal was when Dunrobin Distilleries opened on the skateway last winter.
The company hoped to build on that this year. Mark Watson, the company’s president and co-founder, said that his company spent around $10,000 to get a shack and bring it up to code, make signs, hire seasonal workers, and buy supplies.
Watson said, “We went through all of that, but Mother Nature made it so we couldn’t sell our spirits on the canal.”
Some things, like the ingredients for the Northern Spike cocktail, were bought just for the skating season and can’t really be used for anything else. Watson said that those costs can no longer be changed.
“It’s a lot for a small company,” he said. “We’d have to sell a lot of drinks to make up for that.”
Trying to find other chance
Hennessy said that he is waiting to hear if ZUPS will be allowed to set up at this summer’s Bluesfest. He also wants to go to the Ottawa Jazz Festival, the Ottawa PoutineFest, and the Canadian Tulip Festival.
“It’s a shame we didn’t get on the ice, but we now have a mobile service we didn’t have before,” he said. “It just came early, and sales didn’t make up for it.”
Hennessy and Watson both said that they were upset, but they were happy with how the NCC was handling the setback.
Watson said, “The NCC did their best.” “I really think they kept us informed every step of the way, and safety came first at the end of the day.”
“There was a good chance that we would do well,” Hennessy said. “It’s just a problem caused by the weather that we had to deal with.”