A sweet addition to Salmon Arm’s downtown will open early next month.
When it does, stepping into “The Candy Vault on Hudson” will be a step into the past.
Owner Shawn Rogers, formerly the director of marketing with the Salmon Arm SilverBacks, says the idea has been to create an old-fashioned Banff-style candy shop.
“I think people are going to be really surprised. It’s going to be really charming, with lots of special features inside of it,” he says.
One of those features is the walk-in bank vault at the back of the store, which was constructed when the building was built in 1947 to house the Bank of Nova Scotia.
The store will feature products that you won’t find elsewhere in Salmon Arm, he says, such as 42 different types of bulk candy, 25 candy bars from the United States, salt-water taffy and 15 different types of soda in vintage containers.
Customers will also be able to purchase caramel apples, cotton candy, ice cream and popcorn.
In the gourmet line, the Candy Vault will offer Rogers’ Chocolates, as the store is an official supplier for the famous confections.
As well, there’ll be corporate gift baskets available, novelty gifts for children such as vintage metal lunch boxes, and birthday gift loot bags.
Rogers likes his landlord Bill Laird’s vision for the downtown as a shopping destination with interesting shops, so was pleased when the former location of Shuswap Pawn became available.
The store, which is set to open on Friday, Dec. 2, will be family-owned and operated by Shawn, his spouse Carol and daughter Brooke.