Tell Us Your Story. What motivated you to start your business? Why are you passionate about what you do?

Since moving to Bowen Island from Ontario, it has been the lead Butcher Eriks dream of creating a butcher shop on the island to bring better quality meats and products to the community. After a few years of manifesting, the opportunity came to operate Meadowbrook Market, a small farm-gate store located mid island with an already existing small following. From here, Erik took his passion for food and vision for sustainability to the next level and put into action. Sourcing only products either from Bowen Island or within 150km from the shop, Erik and his small team provide the island with quality meats for their dinner plates as well as garden fresh vegetables and baked goods from the kitchen.

Describe and demonstrate, including metrics, your community support. How do you support and uplift your community, and how do they show that support in return? Minimum 25 words, maximum 2500 characters.

Since new operators took over, the following of Meadowbrook Market has more than doubled. Each week the local community supports by coming in and purchasing meats and goods while also suggesting special orders or products, New products are always available and through some education and advice from the team, the patrons have continued to come back sometimes two, three times a week to see what's new in the case.

Why do you deserve to win the Business Impact award?

Without Meadowbrook Market, the Bowen community is forced to search for quality meats off island, taking a ferry to do so. Having the shop on island allows patrons to better shop for their meals while also guaranteeing they know where that product is coming from at a convenient price. The steps taken to provide the community with quality products means happier and healthier diets.

Tell Us About Your Culture. How are you creating a sustainable and healthy workplace where everyone feels welcome? Provide examples of leadership you show in interactions with clients, vendors, contractors, staff and others.

It's all about balance, communication, collaboration and transparency. Erik and his team are always open to questions about items sold, providing as many details as possible about animal welfare, location and even right down to the cooking instructions. If a patron us purchasing a new item, Erik and crew will be on call or email making sure that they are comfortable with what they are about to take on. Erik and crew also provide local restaurants with items for their menus, so being open to criticism about a product and amending recipes to better the relationship with the Chefs and owners is key to building a strong community connection.

Why do you think you should win the Premier’s People’s Choice Award?

The importance of what you eat impacts your life. Having highly localized sourced products available for the community means that people can trust where their food is coming from. That is the philosophy of Meadowbrook Market. Know where your meat comes from.