A “heart reset” in Lunenburg

Story by TINA HENNIGAR
Photo by . Ian Selig

I first met Alex and Margaret Pearson for coffee at No. 9 Coffee Bar in Lunenburg just after starting as the Population Growth Coordinator for NOW Lunenburg County. After exploring our community from Halifax for day trips, and lamenting the drive home to the city, they asked themselves, “Could we create a life here in Lunenburg County?” During our coffee, I got to know them. Alex and Margaret are a creative duo with hustle and an entrepreneurial spirit. I had no doubt they’d be just fine here.
Fast forward a year later, I was delivering our first edition of this very magazine that you’re reading. I poked my head in a new, cool store on Lincoln Street in Lunenburg called Ametora Supply, a vintage shop specializing in Canadiana and Americana, with a focus on vintage denim and heritage brands. Lo and behold, there were Alex and Margaret, the proud owners of the shop. And my instincts were right. They were doing just great.
“We were trying to figure out what we were going to do,” Margaret said. The shop came about because we’ve always been thrifty. Alex used to do pop-ups and sell online. Alex said that he’s been thrifting since he was a kid, buying stuff that was too cool to leave behind. That led him to selling on the Internet. “We weren’t sure we could open a shop here until our neighbour suggested that we were thinking of Halifax retail rates,” Alex shared. They found an affordable space and went shopping for merchandise. “We’re really lucky that we owned a substantial personal collection,” he said. Margaret credits a collegial business community who work together who have helped them along the way. “Lunenburg is really great for that. If you need a thing you just put out the word, and all of a sudden you have half-a-dozen people helping you get the thing into the shop,” Margaret said, referring to their hunt for a 12-foot church pew. “The next day, we had a pew in our shop. We didn’t know any of these people before we moved here.”
Ametora Supply is size and gender inclusive and is a favourite place to a diverse
group of local people and tourists alike. Teenagers are always in their shop, and older people come in to share their memories of their time with that vintage item.
“We really sell stories,” Alex shared. A surprise even to them is that Ametora Supply
has become a safe space for teenagers. “They come to hangout here. We even had
a mother come in to make sure we were legit,” Margaret said of being a place where everyone feels comfortable. Alex and Margaret take pride in that. As a photographer and social media guru, Alex has created an engaging online presence for the shop. “It all starts with a photo and I let that image tell the story,” Alex said of his posts.
The couple has discovered one pitfall to living in Lunenburg, and that is housing. They found a good rental, but before that the couple was very concerned
about where they’d live. It’s a barrier that almost forced them back to Halifax. “We really lucked out here,” they said of their situation. “Housing is a challenge here.” Alex and Margaret could have moved anywhere to open up their shop. They chose here, Lunenburg County, to live, plant roots and start their business. Their passion for this place is apparent. “We wanted a fresh start-a heart reset.” Alex said. “We can’t think of a better place we’d rather be.” Visit ametorasupply.ca