White Eagle Cooke

Sunnyside holds silver celebration

To be successful in business you have to move with the times, and make adjustments to keep your business growing.

Sunnyside Country Markets opened their doors in the first week of September, 1986 in the same location they are today. But to get here they have overcome numerous obstacles.

Back in 1986, Dave Barth thought he had a deal to move into the space then occupied by the White Eagle butcher shop in Colborne.  Dave had the equipment and was ready to go, but the deal fell through.

Hardly more than a teenager, Dave moved on and built his building on a piece of pasture on the family farm. Some of the customers who walked through his doors in September, 1986 are still returning 25 years later.

When they first opened, custom cutting for farmers was 80% of their business. Government regulations changed and he wasn’t allowed to take carcasses butchered on the farm and turn them into freezer orders.

The enterprising couple turned to kobasa, smoked fish and turkey. They created the products then sold them to other small butcher shops and meat markets. Government regulations changed again, requiring special licences for meat processing.  Sixty per cent of the business disappeared again.

Catering has taken over from there. Dave and Esther look after the needs of customers across the county, offering them a wide range of prices and product lines for their special occasions. Because Sunnyside is small, the customer gets the personal touch which ensures they get what they want, along with a guarantee of quality that has been built over a quarter of a century.

Sunnyside has become much more than a business for Dave and Esther. It is their life. Their business decisions are geared to giving their customers the best quality possible with friendly knowledgeable service – and all at a reasonable price.

When something consumes most of your life, it has its ups and downs. Dave bemoans the government regulations which have limited his aspirations to give his customers unique products to set on their plates. And the couple can relate stories of less-than-scrupulous sales people.

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