Congratulations to Brenda Ibey of The Avant-Garden Shop, who recently won the EPIC Ventures award and recognition from the Greater Peterborough Area Economic Development Corporation.

PtboCanada had the opportunity to visit the downtown store and chat with Brenda about her experiences over the years.

Although some items do come to the store from the United States, Brenda has always strived to keep the store as local and as Canadian-based as possible. The store has a wide array of bird feeders, gardening supplies and décor for your home both inside and out.

The Avant-Garden Shop will be celebrating 10 years in business on December 12th and are commemorating the occasion tonight (November 22nd) by hosting a Customer Appreciation Event from 5:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.

There will be door prizes, refreshments and no tax on store items. It's a great opportunity to get started on some holiday shopping.

The shop is also part of the Peterborough and Area Garden Route. This initiative is to help support our local growers and garden boutiques in the area, as well as to promote and encourage the genuine love for all things nature and gardening within our area. For the complete list of participants and for more info, visit them on Facebook.

Along with their EPIC Ventures award, Avant-Garden also just won the award for Best Retail Business (non-chain) at the Peterborough Chamber of Commerce Business Excellence Awards held in October.

The Avant-Garden Shop is located at 165 Sherbrooke Street and is open Monday to Friday 9:30 a.m to 5:30 p.m. and Saturdays 9:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. You can contact Brenda at 705.743.0068/Facebook/Twitter.