The arrival of spring usually means warmer temperatures, T-shirts and shorts and, for fans of sweet treats, the opening of the B&B Fruit Stand — now in its 40th year.
Owner Todd Bell officially opened his hut at 432 High Street West — in the parking lot between Water Vision Pool & Spas and Fine Line Builders — on April 2, laying out a colourful and tasty assortment of fruits and vegetables from which customers could choose.
“It’s awesome to be back. I think in the 40 years (since the stand started), this is the second-earliest I’ve ever been open,” Bell said, noting the earliest was in mid-March in either 1989 or 1991 because of how warm it was.
Time has flown by for Bell, while he never thought he would still be running the fruit stand after all this time. He explained that fruit peddlers were a new concept in the 1980s, so they had to acquire special sales permits and couldn’t just hawk their wares on the roadside.
Bell has been running the fruit stand since his uncle, who owned an orchard in British Columbia, began looking for new ways to sell his produce. The name B&B arose from a partnership he had with someone whose last name also started with a B. While the partnership didn’t last, the name did.
“It’s had its good times and its bad times. When I first started, it was mostly older people I dealt with … and they were all into canning and fruit preserving … ,” said Bell.
Younger people initially weren’t interested in those preservation practices, but in the past decade, they have become more interested in eating healthy. So, they have come to him for their fruits and veggies.
Sales experienced “quiet times” in the late 1990s and 2000s, especially when Costco and Superstore began opening more stores, Bell said. Now, however, more people are returning to the “mom and pop” businesses of butcher’s shops and bakeries for their items.
Freshness is the biggest reason why more people come to the B&B Fruit Stand, as most of his produce doesn’t sit in a warehouse for long periods, he continued. For example, fruit is shipped to 10 places before arriving in big box stores. Conversely, the B.C. peaches and cherries he sells are picked on a Thursday and arrive on Monday.
“So we can just get the stuff here a lot quicker. And then especially the B.C. stuff because we deal directly with the farmers,” said Bell. “There’s no wholesalers or brokers.”
Being outside talking to people is the most enjoyable aspect of Bell’s job. While he has owned the stand since day 1, he took off some time during the past four decades and let others run it since he had other jobs.
There haven’t been any major changes the kiosk has experienced during its 40 years, although the average age of customers has dropped to about 35 from 50, while unpredictable weather in California and B.C. can affect prices.
Most fruits and veggies he sells are in season, so the early items come from the U.S., while the later produce comes from the West Coast. He also deals with five Hutterite colonies that provide him with seasonal products.
Bell normally keeps the stand open until about Oct. 1 before closing for the season. However, he fills orders in the winter since people can pre-purchase through the stand’s Facebook page.
That platform is his best communications tool because after announcing on April 1 that he would be open the next day, nearly 50,000 people saw the post and 9,000 left comments.
“I’ll do this till the day I die,” Bell added. “It’s a good five-month gig in the summer … . It would be cool to hit 50 years.”
