by Tom Sasvari
GORE BAY—Split Rail Brewing Company in Gore Bay is the featured Manitoulin business for the Federation of Northern Ontario Municipalities (FONOM) Go North Video.
“It was an honour to be the featured Manitoulin business in the FONOM Go North video this year!” said Andrea Smith, president of Split Rail Brewing Company. “We greatly appreciate (FONOM) board member Al MacNevin (Mayor of the Town of Northeastern Manitoulin and the Islands) for recommending Split Rail to the FONOM board as a candidate for the Go North Video Series.”
“We have had two funding rounds through the support of FedNor for this video series,” said Mr. MacNevin. He pointed out Henley Boats (Manitowaning) had been featured in the Go North video last year. “Craft breweries are here (Manitoulin) as well, and are one of the unique ways to bring businesses and jobs to the North.”
Mr. MacNevin pointed out Split Rail has a unique history, having been started in part through a Kickstarter fundraising campaign and over the years it has expanded its business, employee numbers both full-time and part-time “and in recent publications I have read that they have partnered with New Grain to provide food at their business as well. They source local producers for their ingredients for their product as well. They have proven to be a success and are a model for other business entrepreneurs from here and other areas that if you do things right you can be successful.”
Mac Bain, executive director of FONOM told The Expositor, “In the first series of videos (in 2022 which featured Henley Boats in Manitowaning in this area), and the videos were seen over half a million times. For a small little organization and having had this product in Northern Ontario is pretty impressive.”
Split Rail Brewing Company produces high quality, small batch beer and soda. Founders Andrea Smith and Eleanor Charlton began brewing in a garage in 2011, and opened Manitoulin Island’s first craft brewery in 2015 in Gore Bay, with solid community support and a Kickstarter campaign.
“Our goal was to create something that would not compete with other local businesses,” Ms. Smith said in the video. “We were the first to start a Kickstarter campaign in Ontario, if not Canada to open a brewery.”
Mr. MacNevin said FedNor has provided funding for these promotional videos. “The film producers (Good Gauley Productions) did a very good job on the video. I saw a draft of it. It will go a long way to convince entrepreneurs from southern Ontario and other areas that they can move up to North and have a successful business and enjoy life.”
Randy Smith, sales/marketing manager for Split Rail told The Expositor the taping of the Split Rail episode took place last fall. “The producer introduced himself, then explained the idea of the video was designed to help promote Northern Ontario businesses, but also to promote the fact that businesspeople can open businesses in the North and be successful. They were here for a couple of days of filming and conducting interviews with employees and customers of the business.”
Ms. Smith was quoted on the video explaining that both she and Eleanor are both originally from Toronto but after visiting Manitoulin they both fell in love with the Island. Help from LAMBAC and government support grants were significant to obtaining the infrastructure and equipment needed to start a business.
“Right from the beginning the response has been really great that the residents want a local beer product,” Ms. Smith said.
Many of the unique features, sites and places to visit on Manitoulin were noted in the video.
“Having good people is the number one resource a business needs to have,” said Ms. Smith. “We are not family run, but in a way we are because everyone can bring forward ideas and have input on things we could be doing.”
