Candy store to open shop in Saint John
Published Friday, June 18, 2011
Hilary Paige Smith, Telegraph-Journal
SAINT JOHN — If you have a sweet tooth, get ready. There is a new candy store in town.
Jeremy Smith, owner of the Freak Lunchbox candy chain, says he chose to open a location on King Street because of the nice buildings and atmosphere.
Freak Lunchbox, an independent chain of stores based out of Halifax, has selected the Port City as its third location and the first store to open outside of Nova Scotia.
Jeremy Smith, owner of the chain, said he and his team have been on the lookout for where to grow next. Before picking Saint John, they looked at cities like Moncton and Charlottetown.
”Saint John came out on top of the list, mainly the downtown had some really nice buildings and really nice atmosphere. And we did get a lot of requests from people who wanted to purchase a franchise in that area.“ he said.
Smith said cruise ship traffic was another factor in the decision to set up in Saint John. ”We're not a tourist business, but it's going to help to have that bump-up in the summer.“
Freak Lunchbox is expected to open early next week. It is in the former TravelMax location at 6 King St.
”It's very close to the water. It's a very nice building. It's been thoroughly renovated above us and yeah, I'm really excited about the location,“ Smith said. Smith has had artists working on hand-painted signs for the store for three months.
The space is crammed full of colourful candy, bright displays and novelty items. Smith said their most popular section is usually the wall of bulk candy.
”It's very colourful, very interactive and there's a lot to draw your attention inside the store,” he said.