Coywolf Enterprises opens Lost Bear Market in Inglewood

November 18, 2021 · 0 Comments

By Rob Paul

Growing up in Cheltenham, Ariel Somes always had a passion for the Caledon community. In her youth she played hockey in Inglewood and over the years she began to notice fewer and fewer businesses and events happening in the village.

With her successful endeavour as owner of Lothlorien Equestrian Corporation—one of the top private jumper barns in Canada that specializes in high quality breeding, training, and competition around the world—Somes wanted to turn some of her attention to making a positive impact on Inglewood.

So much so that not only did she have the goal of opening one business, but she set her sights even higher with the idea of four businesses. A few months ago, Somes and her team at Coywolf Enterprises opened Coywolf Coffee on McLaughlin Road—a cozy coffee shop and cafe that prides itself on its small-town hospitality.

“There were less and less open businesses in Inglewood and it sort of started to become a bit of a ghost town,” said Rebecca Staunton, Coywolf Enterprises’ Chief of Staff and Business Manager. “The coffee shop opened in June and Ariel had spent many years in coffee shops all over the world and thought the idea would be great for a small town and that’s how that came together. Then when this lovely building down the street on McLaughlin (that had been many things, a bank, a flower shop and an art gallery) became available, [Somes] bit the bullet and purchased it. Now, we’re going to have three more businesses housed under one roof. We’re really trying to give life back to the town because there was nowhere to go to grab a coffee or for kids to hangout or to meet a friend. Now they’ll have options and it’s an amazing vision to meet the needs of the community.”

Now, just this week, Coywolf Enterprises has opened Lost Bear Market on McLaughlin Road, a modern take on the country marketplace.

“Lost Bear Market just opened on Monday (November 15),” Staunton said. “It’s a fine food and provisions store. We have a kitchen in the back with a chef who is preparing ready-to-go entrees. We have a really lovely menu with lots of different offerings—soups, lamb shank, flatbreads, and we have sandwiches and salads to pick up to go. There are also really beautiful locally made goods and high-end fare such as really fine olive oils, vinegars, hot sauces, and gourmet potato chips and vintage candy to buy. There are some great charcuterie boards and lovely wooden trays made in Muskoka, local soaps, and preserves. Then there’s a freezer section and a produce fridge, plus, we have dog treats and sweatshirts. Also, 95 per cent of it is Canadian made—only the olives aren’t because they have to be imported, obviously.”

Although it’s been just a few days since opening, Coywolf Enterprises is excited to bring something to Inglewood that it didn’t have before, and Staunton thinks the team they’ve assembled to run Lost Bear Market will thrive in the opportunity.

“It’s been going really well and it’s such a lovely space,” Staunton said. “It can be a pickup place for a quick meal, or a place to buy a hostess gift or Christmas present. We wanted it to be a one-stop shop. We have an amazing manager, Megan, who was a pastry chef [previously] and owned her own business in Australia for six years, and our chef, Mark, is local and has 17 years in the industry. We have a really great team and it’s been fun. It’s been a great time to open, we wanted to get our feet wet before the Christmas rush.”

With Caledon being such a widespread Town, Inglewood didn’t have place to shop that could keep residents close to home, but Staunton says Somes saw a chance for Lost Bear Market to be that while continuing to emphasize the importance of shopping local.

“Ariel travels a lot with her equestrian corporation, and she had spent a lot of time noticing nice little shops in her stops across Europe,” Staunton said. “She realized this lovely building in Inglewood was sitting empty and there was nowhere nearby for the residents to really go and shop. You have to go quite far to get to a grocery store and so Ariel thought what if we offered something a little different than a typical grocery store but not so expensive that it won’t appeal to the vast majority of residents.

Not only will Coywolf Enterprises be opening four businesses in Inglewood, they also have plans to bring more events to the village and that starts with the upcoming holiday season.

“We’re planning on having some really fun events,” Staunton said. “We have a Christmas market coming up on December 4 and 5 with Comet, the reindeer visiting. We’ll have lots of local things for sale like holiday wreaths and centrepieces by local floral designer, Twine & Tendril and some local artists and artisans.”

Under the Coywolf Enterprises umbrella, Somes and her team have opened Coywolf Coffee and Lost Bear Market with plans to open up an ice cream shop in the spring and summer months and Bird Dog Fitness in 2022.

“This building had the space for the market and beside it we have the Cub—an ice cream shop that we only had open for about a month in the summer due to COVID—and above we’re going to open a Pilates fitness studio,” said Staunton. “We’re excited it’s all housed in one building. We decided to keep the ice cream shop seasonal and we’re planning to have a big opening next spring because we weren’t able to do that this year. But we are hoping when the fitness studio opens in the new year that clients will be able to go downstairs and have a smoothie made for them.”

One of the most important aspects of the Lost Bear Market is their commitment to homegrown products, something that has become even more crucial throughout the pandemic.

“It’s great that Ariel is local, so she knows what people in this area want and it’s also amazing to have a female-owned business that relies on mostly Canadian suppliers, which are both very important things,” Staunton said. “It’s a mandate that we have that we not only want to support Canadian businesses, but a lot of local businesses, too.”