All in the family
Summerside siblings, cousin open new downtown store
SUMMERSIDE, P.E.I. – After years of aspiring to open their own business together, a Summerside family has done just that.
In November 2023, siblings Alice, Lokki and Jen Ma, alongside their cousin, Jessica, opened Home is Here: a home and lifestyle store on Water Street.
Inside the doors, one can find apparel and home decor along with things for babies, baths and self-care in general.
“It’s a lot of things that you can bring into your home and your life,” said Jessica.
Alice finishes, “To make you happy. Or to make someone else happy.”
Candles made by the owners themselves are another item shoppers can find for sale. Learning to pour their own candles was a project they took on together.
“That’s been a really fun thing to learn how to do together,” said Lokki. “That’s something we really enjoyed bringing to our customers.”
Every day, they light one of their creations and let the aroma fill the space.
As much as possible, the family tries to source locally. A few items they carry come from further away, though – like chocolate from the United Kingdom.
“We also want to make everything affordable to everyone,” said Alice. “And we want everyone that walks in here to feel comfortable buying something from our store, depending on what they can afford.”
“I know a lot of people are going online now, and I'm not an exception to that,” said Jessica. “But it’s so nice to be able to go into a place and feel things in your hand and feel the texture and material, smell things. I feel like that’s still really important.”
DREAMS IN THE MAKING
Growing up, the Ma women worked in their family’s restaurant – King Wok, a staple in the community for more than three decades, just down the street from Home is Here. Operating a business of their own was a natural next step for them, who consider themselves and their family to be especially tight-knit.
“I think it’s nice to have a brick-and-mortar store in Summerside like this,” said Alice. “It’s definitely unique, and lots of people come in, we see lots of familiar faces. It’s
kenepidng just kinda the family legacy alive.”
Over the years, Jessica, in particular, had a number of ideas idling in her head.
None manifested, though, until November 2023. Jessica heard that one downtown business, Home by Caley Joy, was shutting its doors, and leapt at the opportunity to fill the void.
“When we saw that Caley was planning on selling the store and closing down, we were like, ‘well that’s such a great spot in Summerside,’” said Jessica. “We loved coming in and we liked the feeling of the stuff inside here and the community.”
STARTING UP
Joining her cousin and sisters in the initiative was a nobrainer for Lokki.
“I think we’re really excited to build something that feels like we’re gonna grow with the community,” she said. “Growing up in Summerside and working in our parent’s restaurant, we saw all the changes that happened to Summerside, especially to downtown, over the years. It feels like Summerside is ready for something more. It’s poised for a renaissance.”
Within a few days of the former business closing, the Ma family moved in and opened before the month was up.
“The turnaround was very quick,” said Jessica. “When she shut down, we were open days after.”
Five months into the endeavour the women are no less excited than they were on day one – and are looking forward to their first tourist season.
“We’ve been really enjoying it,” said Lokki. “Our bond was strong before, but I think it’s made it stronger.”
It’s not just the dream of operating a family business that has the Ma women excited.
For Lokki, “The best part of having a store is having people come through these doors every day and getting to chat with them.”
Alice hopes to one day expand.
Lokki echoed the sentiment, adding that she would love to grow the space to the point where they can use it to give back to the community.
“I think Islanders are really good at supporting one another,” she said. “We participated in Coldest Night of The Year, if we can do more initiatives like that. I really want this spot to go beyond being a retail store.”