This is part of a year-long ‘Love for Local’ series called NB365: portraits of New Brunswick entrepreneurs, businesses and organizations. Huddle is a media partner with Love for Local. Today, we hear from Lauchlan MacIntosh of Tobique River Trading Co. in Perth-Andover.

WE WANTED TO PROVIDE OUR COMMUNITY WITH QUALITY PRODUCTS THAT ARE MADE LOCALLY. OUR GOAL WAS TO PROVIDE AN EASY-GOING, FEEL-GOOD, UNIQUE ATMOSPHERE THAT BRINGS PEOPLE TOGETHER.

Sometimes small communities don’t have these types of amenities and we believe small rural communities should have the same experiences as the urban locations. We have learned that supporting local is more important now than ever before because we need our communities to thrive in order to survive.

Our new reality has forced consumers to explore more locally made options which have shed new light on our way of thinking. We believe that is for the better. We ourselves, as a brewery, are now sourcing over 90 percent of our products that go into our beer within a 30km radius which is pretty rewarding. And we take pride in that. We hope to grow our customer base.

From the roastery side of the business, we are continuously looking for new wholesale locations. From the brewery side of the business, we are working on an outdoor event venue with the idea of hosting a variety of events and concerts. We have just added an outdoor patio to expand our summer seating capacity.

Supporting local businesses has a real impact because local businesses directly impact you, your friends and your neighbourhood. With local business growth, opportunities for employment open up which has a snowball effect in all the aspects of a community.