The B&B Fruit Stand has offered its produce from the same location in Moose Jaw for the past 34 years, but it was recently forced to find a new home.
With fruit trucked in from the Oosyoos region in British Columbia, owner Todd Bell operated his fruit stand on the northeast corner near the intersection of High Street West and Ninth Avenue Northwest since 1985. That property used to contain an office for M&M Construction, before Fas Gas arrived in 1988 and took over.
However, Bell was forced to move his fruit stand after the owners of Fas Gas decided a couple of months ago to close down the gas station and sell the property. For the past month, Bell has been operating his business on a lot near 432 High Street West, adjacent to Flat Line Builders.
Bell moved his fruit stand to that particular location since there was room and parking for his customers. It’s a good location, which allows him to be outside and talk with people. Yet, being at the intersection also provided a high degree of visibility.
“It’s tough to get a spot (in Moose Jaw) … ,” he remarked. “But I’ll be honest, having 2,700 followers on Facebook has helped (spread the word).”
He explained that he was not into Facebook all that much, but his son helped him get set up on the social media platform as one way to promote his business.
“I’m now with my third generation of customers,” Bell added.
Bell expects to keep his fruit stand on this lot for the long-term since he knows the owner of the property.
B&B Fruit Stand is open Monday through Saturday from 9 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. and on Sundays from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
