ST. JOHN'S, N.L. — An iconic St. John’s gardening store has found a new home in the former of home of an iconic hardware store.
The Seed Company by E.W. Gaze announced today that when the business leaves its current home at 9 Buchanan Street — which will soon be incorporated into an expansion of the JAG Hotel across the street — it will move into Templeton’s building on Harbour Drive.
“It’s the perfect fit for us” owner Peter Byrne, great-grandson of founder Ernest Walter Gaze, stated in a release. “We’ve been looking for a new location that has customer parking, street visibility, and rustic charm, and this spot has all three.”
Templeton’s ceased operations in February of 2017.
The Seed Company will continue to use the Buchanan location as its base of operations until the new location is up and running, anticipated to be in late April or early May.
Byrne says they’ll have a grand-opening event similar to the one that took place in 1969 when Gaze Seed Co. moved from Water Street to Buchanan.
“We can’t wait to show everyone the new space, which is actually a lot larger and more open than where we are now,” he stated.
“We’re overwhelmed by the support we’ve received from new and long-time customers who are happy to see a local business like ours thrive in this challenging climate.”
Earlier this year, the company had submitted a change of non-conforming use application to the City of St. John’s requesting permission to change the occupancy of 1 Campbell Avenue — formerly home to the Newfoundland Insurance Agency — to retail use.
The Seed Company won’t be the only tenant in the former Templeton’s property. As first reported by the CBC, the newly formed Wooden Walls Distilling Company is also planning on setting up shop in the landmark building.
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