SHEGUIANDAH – Many travellers along Highway 6 will likely have noticed the sheds and outbuildings that cropped up at the site of the former Sheguiandah post office over the last year. These Mennonite-made buildings are just one of the many offerings of Ferguson Cottage Supply Co., located in that former post office that was run for many years by the Ferguson family.
Ferguson Cottage Supply Co. is the brainchild of Lee-Anne Ferguson and her husband Jim Jr., who also own and operate Ferguson’s Maintenance.
“Jim’s family has been in business for generations,” Ms. Ferguson tells The Expositor during a tour of the brand new Sheguiandah store. The family always sold docks and water purification equipment, so the couple thought, ‘why not expand the brand and open a cottage supply store?’
The first brand addition was the eye-catching outbuildings by Old Hickory, a Verner-based company. The buildings are all engineered, with the plans available for purchase for just $50 to keep municipal building inspectors happy. The buildings can be bought on-site or customized too.
“We put them in the yard last year and they attracted a lot of attention,” Ms. Ferguson says, who notes that the plan then came to create a storefront with new and interesting things relating to cottage supply.
And then COVID-19 hit.
But that didn’t stop this enterprising couple, who decided to forge head and open the chic and modern store in the time of pandemic.
Ferguson Cottage Supply Co. continues to carry Whitewater docks, which are welded tube frame floating docks, as well as EZ Dock, a plastic floating dock that “kind of link together like Lego,” Ms. Ferguson explains. “They’re pretty neat.”
“We try to have different brands than what other Islands stores are carrying, and try to think of different ideas too,” Ms. Ferguson says.
During a brainstorming session last year, the couple came up with their ‘Manitoulin Deer Gear’ brand, had a logo designed by the talented Kendra Edwards of Kendra Edwards Design and now all kinds of Manitoulin Deer Gear swag, from hoodies to tanks to tees and more (Ferguson Cottage Supply Co. does heat transfers and etching), can be purchased at the store.
The store also offers quality clothing that is logo-free too, such as the Wanakome brand which Ms. Ferguson swears by to keep her warm (and stylish) on snowmobiling trips with friends and family.
Ferguson Cottage Supply Co. is also an official dealer of Island Pads inflatable islands, an Ontario company that make 8” thick PVC fabric floating pads that come in four different sizes that can be anchored and used a swim platform or a dock.
The store also carries authentic Muskoka chairs in every colour imaginable, BruMate and Corksicle insulated cops in all shapes and sizes, Kinsley Armelle bohemian jewellery, Taliitowels, a microfiber antibacterial towel perfect for camping and even the Radiate ‘campfire in a can,’ with a burn time of five to eight hours—perfect for the no fuss, no muss camper in your life. Ferguson Cottage Supply Co. is also an Island dealer of Local Jerky, a fast-growing Sudbury-based jerky company.
“We just want to be that place where you can stop on your way to camp,” Ms. Ferguson adds, noting that new items will appear regularly as they get the feel for what people want.
Stop by Ferguson Cottage Supply Co., 10741 Highway 6 in Sheguiandah, from Tuesdays and Thursdays from 10:30 am to 5 pm, Fridays from noon to 7 pm and Saturdays from 10:30 am to 4 pm.
Contact Ferguson Cottage Supply Co. by calling 705-368-3346 or by searching for them on Facebook and sending a message there.
