Big risks can often yield big reward, but they’re still big risks and that brings with it a lot of complication. Three people who had become very familiar with those complications were Rachel, Natasha, and Walter, co-owners of a Lake Muskoka Resort that was not living up to its potential. Despite a tremendous effort and a beautiful property, they were struggling to bring in guests. That’s where Bryan Baeumler came in. Using his experience from his own resort reno, he got to work overhauling this one-of-a-kind Lake Muskoka Resort.

Catch Bryan’s All In, on Home Network, available to stream Live or On-Demand with STACKTV. Try it free today!

Show What You Got

Despite having a lakefront property, with 9 units and 28 bedrooms, occupancy was way down. The main issue was that the resort did not showcase its strengths and amenities. The previous owner had erected a wall to separate canoe and kayak storage. This cut off much of the shoreline and hid the actual amenities from guests. The wall was the first thing to go when Bryan’s trusty tools came out.

Check out: Bryan Helps a Mother-Son Duo With an Epic Gym Reno

Arrive Strong

Guest experience starts the moment they arrive at a business. That is why it’s so crucial that when they first pull into a business, that it reflects the rest of the property. Unfortunately, this part of the property was lacking. With a nondescript façade, run down utility trailer, and exposed dumpsters, it didn’t reflect the quality of the rest of the property. To remedy this, Bryan overhauled the resort’s utility trailer, giving it an elevated look as well as giving staff a more functional workspace.

Read more: Bryan Baeumler Goes All In on a Chic Century Farm

Sharing the Fun

Once the wall blocking the resort’s water amenities was exposed, the trio got to work making a stunning storage and display for them. As great as having your own amenities is, it’s not cost effective to offer every activity your guests may want to do. It was for this reason that Bryan encouraged them to reach out to other businesses on the Lake. Establishing relationships allows them to offer the most complete experience and helps establish community on the lake. Now, The Chalets on Lake Muskoka is open for business and ready for any and all fun.

Related: Bryan Baeumler Transforms an Open-Air Farmers’ Market

See more of Bryan as he goes cross-country in Bryan’s All In, on Home Network, available to stream Live or On-Demand with STACKTV. Try it free today!

 

Running a roadside farmers’ market in the country is a dream many of us indulge in. The idea of a quiet life on a country road, being a staple in your community, and enjoying nature is an appealing one. It’s so appealing that it’s exactly what Samantha and Paul did in small hamlet of Thomasburg, Ontario. The two moved there to start Our Neighbours’ Farm & Homestead, a local roadside market on their 42-acre garlic farm. As lovely as all that sounds, it was a lot of work for that couple. That’s why they called in Bryan Baeumler, to help them elevate their open-air farmers’ market.

Establishing Essentials

When Bryan first arrived at the farm, some of the most crucial work had already been done. Farmer Sammy had been earning her name, working on the garlic farm, managing the animals, and connecting with other farmers and growers to sell at their stand. Her stand had already been built, a great start, but there was still a lot to do. The property was beautiful, but they needed to create spaces conducive to customers so they could properly enjoy it.

Related: Bryan Baeumler Spruces Up a Coldwater Sugar Shack

Nature Business

One of the biggest draws to a farmers’ market is, well, the farm. As much as the fresh produce draws in people, so does the scenery. That’s why it was so important to Bryan that they also add an open-air farmers’ market to the stand. Not only does it add to the aesthetic, but now all the bases are covered. In inclement weather guests can simply shop inside the stand, but on those nicer days they can shop for their supplies out in that fresh country air.

Check out: Bryan Helps a Mother-Son Duo With an Epic Gym Reno

A Fresh Look

Not only is making a business look its best important to the customers, but it’s also important to its owners. This is especially true when those owners live at their business. Creating a space that you’re both proud of and enjoy being at is crucial. While Bryan was away, Paul and Sammy got to work creating a home and business that checked all of these boxes. Now, Our Neighbour’s Farm & Homestead is open for business.

Read more: Bryan Baeumler Goes All In on a Chic Century Farm

 

Starting a business is guaranteed to bring with it some financial stress. When that new venture is in a new town and industry, those stresses will only feel all the more daunting. That’s what couple Ryan and Taylor were dealing with when Bryan Baeumler arrived in his trusty RV. The two had left the city for a quieter life in Prince Edward County, where they started Wild Lot, a farm distillery set in a hundred-year-old barn. Initial costs to create their chic century farm were intimidating, but thankfully Bryan’s All In and so were they.

Unused Potential

When Ryan and Taylor first acquired their property, the barn still had cows in it and the hay loft was full of… well, hay. Considering that, the pair had made incredible progress. Despite all that work, the space still felt lacking. They knew that they needed to elevate the space but struggled to take swift and decisive action. Potential is great, it’s arguably the most important element of a space, but it doesn’t mean anything if you don’t take a risk and make choices with your designs.

Check out: Bryan Baeumler’s Do’s and Don’ts for First-Time Entrepreneurs

Rustic Rehab

Barns, though beautiful, should always have a more relaxed atmosphere. While creating an upscale environment, it’s important to walk the fine line between upscale and uptight. Wild Lot was meant to be a place where people can feel at ease while celebrating important moments, so the designs needed to reflect that. Because of this, the team and Bryan made sure that their designs encouraged relaxation and connection throughout.

Centennial Chic

Most importantly, when creating an event space in a barn, it should feel like a barn. Because the building’s age was such an important aspect, the couple had to make the difficult decision of spending the extra money on the main stairway. In the end, breaking down the return on investment made the decision a no-brainer. Now, the stairway serves as a focal point that ties together the new and the old.

Read more: The Ultimate Guide to Visiting the Island of Bryan Bahamas Resort

Often the easiest and most enjoyable part of starting a business is the idea phase. We all love to picture the incredible, successful business we will one day create, but those ideas take time, money, and effort to become reality. For mother and son duo Zach and Joanne, owners of the Sands on Golden Lake Inn, this was their dilemma. After purchasing a second property to serve as housing for Zach and his family, as well as be his own business venture, they were spread too thin. That’s where Bryan Baeumler and the team came in, to make this gym reno one to remember.

A Scrawny Setup

Zach, a former jouster, had found an outlet in the gym that helped him to improve his life. Because of this, he wanted to take that passion and make a business running his own gym. Thanks to financial help from his mother, that dream was in sight. However, Zack was still working at the Inn, as well as raising a new family. Because of that, the gym was looking a bit anemic and there wasn’t enough time to make it the space he had envisioned.

Related: Bryan Revitalizes a Rundown Pollard’s Point Motel

Brains and Brawn

As crucial as the gym was, so was the space above it. This area was going to be Zack’s new home. Joanne wanted to help make sure the home her sweet granddaughter, ‘Pancake’ would be everything she needed. So, she rolled up her sleeves and got to work alongside Bryan.

Check out: Bryan Baeumler Overhauls an Eagle Lake Cabin

Lifting and Learning

When Bryan finally returned, he found a fully operational gym. Silverback was up and running and quickly becoming a part of the community. After the talk Bryan had with them about the needs of their businesses, both Joanne and Zack prioritized creating inviting spaces that feel crucial to locals and guests alike. You could say they’ve really bulked up.

Read more: Bryan Baeumler Spruces Up a Coldwater Sugar Shack

See more of Bryan as he goes cross-country in Bryan’s All In, on Home Network.

 

Expanding a business can be a difficult decision. Just because you’ve figured out how to do something well on a small scale, doesn’t mean the same formula will guarantee success as you grow. For owners of the Backwoods Maple Syrup located in Coldwater, Corey and Abby, this was a real worry. With roughly a million dollars invested in, they’d already set the groundwork for growth, but they needed Bryan Baeumler to help them structure this new business venture. So, Bryan and friends went all in to create a showroom sugar shack.

From the Studs

When Bryan first arrived at the new and improved sugar shack of Backwoods Maple Syrup the hardest work had been done. The building was done, and the shiny new equipment installed, now it was just a matter of making sure that it functioned as intended. Firstly, they needed to understand the businesses needs before they could start to cover those bare walls.

Related: Bryan Revitalizes a Rundown Pollard’s Point Motel

Meeting Needs

This new sugar shack, more of a sugar showroom, needed to serve a lot of purposes. The bottling, cooking and sale of the syrup would all be happening in this one building. Aside from that, Abby hoped to include a coffee bar and retail space for guests to enjoy. Balancing the company’s functionality and guest experience was a delicate process, but by integrating functional design they created a space that feels both inviting and efficient.

Read more: Bryan Transforms a Brewer’s Village Tourist Destination

Sugar Showcase

In the syrup business, trees are the most crucial component to success. When something is that essential to success it only makes sense to incorporate it into the business’ design. That’s why, every chance they got, Bryan and the team made sure to use the stunning natural woods found on the property. Whether its portable birch privacy walls, fresh firewood stacked neatly, or timber cut countertops for syrup sampling, it was important to use woods from the land that made this business possible in the first place.

Check out: Bryan Baeumler Overhauls an Eagle Lake Cabin

Like many businesses, vacation rental properties are a lot of risk and reward. They take a great deal of investment and there’s no guarantee that the markets will stay high. This makes it easy to get overwhelmed, which makes it harder to focus on what matters most, your guests’ experience. This was the case for new business owners Michelle and Jesse, who just recently purchased their first vacation rental property, an Eagle Lake cabin in Haliburton. That’s where Bryan Baeumler came in, with his extensive experience in rental properties, he was just the man to make this Eagle Lake cabin stand out from the crowd.

Disjointed Design

Luckily for Michelle and Jesse, their cabin had a lot of key factors to make it desirable to prospective renters. However, what the cabin didn’t have was a comfortable layout. Between multiple stairways that seemed to go up, down, and all around and no proper place to dine, the space was slightly uncomfortable, but the solution was nearby. In an old drafty sunroom, there was a tremendous amount of potential. Bryan suggested they transform this rundown room into their new entrance and dining room.

Related: Bryan Gives an Off-Grid Resort the Renovation of a Lifetime

Lavish Laundry

Another thing that the Eagle Lake cabin had going for it was its laundry room. Although not the most glamorous element, having a space where guests can do laundry drastically increases their comfort and the likelihood of longer-term rentals. It was for this reason that they wanted to make it a beautiful space where guests could feel at home, even when they aren’t enjoying the flashier parts of vacationing.

Read more: Bryan Transforms a Brewer’s Village Tourist Destination

Sunroom Success

While Bryan was away, Michelle and Jesse got busy creating an enticing entryway. With the drafts taken care of thanks to Michelle’s spray foam skills and a door replaced with a welcoming walkthrough, this space finally felt like it belonged. Now guests don’t have three different sets of stairs to trek when they arrive.

Related: Bryan Revitalizes a Rundown Pollard’s Point Motel

Beyond just providing an income, businesses can be a way of sharing the things important to us. For the owners of Gypsy Sea Adventures, Brian and Vera, that was the case. Being that Brian was born in the remote town of Deer Harbour, Newfoundland, resettling the once abandoned village was a project they were passionate about. Most renovations come with their own difficulties, but restoring an abandoned fishing village that’s boat access only is a whole new level. That’s where Bryan Baeumler came in, to go all in on an off-grid resort.

 

Center Stage

The term ‘fishing stage’ might not mean much to most, but for Newfoundlanders its an important part of their history. The same could be said for the Deer Harbour fishing stage, a building full of history and clutter. Despite that, Brian and Vera saw the potential it held. So, together with Bryan, they got to work cleaning, decluttering, and securing this historic landing space for their guests.

Read more: Bryan Transforms a Brewer’s Village Tourist Destination

Coming Together

An often-overlooked aspect of resorts are the communal spaces. It’s easy to get caught up in ensuring the guest quarters and experiences are exceptional, but you can’t forget the importance of connection. That’s why, during his stay, Bryan stressed the need to create these spaces. One of which was a communal cooking and dining space where guests can come together, share a meal, and look out at the majestic scenery. After all, vacation friends often become friends for life.

Related: Bryan Revitalizes a Rundown Pollard’s Point Motel

Experience Expertise

When your business is as remote as Deer Harbour is, it has to be worth the trek. The two things that made this off-grid resort worth it were the scenery and the experiences. The view goes without saying, but it was important to emphasize the experiences guests could have. Whether it be open-water fishing, whale watching, or embracing the village’s history, there was no shortage. This is why it was crucial to breath new life into the fishing stage. Now, the first experience that guests have is one that transports them through time and shows them the significance of such a stunning place.

 

 

 

Growing pains are a natural part in the life of any business. When a business is ready to expand, that takes time, effort, and money. This was true for Lake of the Woods Brewery in Kenora, Ontario. Having long since outgrown their original facility, a retired fire hall built in 1912, they were in the process of moving operations to a much larger facility. Coupled with a new location, owners, Taras and Rob, wanted to create a outdoor market and tourist destination. Thus, Brewer’s Village was born. Given that the two had taken on such a large project, they needed some help, that’s where Bryan Baeumler came in.

A Blank Canvas

Expanding a business is a nerve-wracking endeavor, but one of the upsides is you often get to start with a blank canvas. In a newer and larger space, you have the opportunity to let your imagination run wild. That was the case for Taras and Rob, who decided to create the infrastructure for their outdoor bars out of shipping containers. Alongside the outdoor venue, they utilized stunning, unique ice fishing huts, designed by local architecture students, to serve as vendor booths. All of these ideas and potential were only possible with the right space and opportunity. Now, it was up to Bryan to help maximize their potential.

 

A Community Space

The main objective when creating a business model is to generate income, but that doesn’t have to be its only objective. Given that the Lake of the Woods Brewing Company had done well for themselves, they wanted this new space to benefit the town of Kenora as a whole. One creative way they did this was with ice fishing huts, but not just any ice fishing huts. The duo, with the help of local architecture students, placed these unique and beautiful huts of the site to act as vendor booths. Not only are they beautiful but they’ll help local artisans to grow their own businesses while drawing in more attendees to Brewer’s Village.

 

Blood Sweat and Beers

Once Bryan left, Taras and Rob had an incredible amount of work, but they knew what needed to be done. They, and many others, rolled up their sleeves and got to work. The result was a beautiful but relaxed space for Kenorans to gather and connect in. Complete with a bar, coffee bar, outdoor dining, and a concert stage, Brewer’s Village was transformed into a local hotspot. Now locals and tourists alike can come and enjoy the fabulous space, and all it took was some blood, sweat, and beers.

 

Becoming an entrepreneur comes with a heavy workload and to-do list. It’s easy to get caught up in all of your objectives and forget the reasons for starting a business. For teachers-turned-business-owners, Rob and Larraine, they didn’t need to look very far to see that reminder. Surrounded by the stunning scenery of Northwest Newfoundland’s mountains and sea, reminders were all around. Armed with his crew, RV, and a familiar face, Bryan Baeumler sets out to make the Riversea Motel the ultimate getaway in Pollard’s Point.

On-the-Rock Rustic

Having worked on one hotel on an island before, Bryan was a perfect match for Rob and Larraine’s Riversea motel. Although it wasn’t on a literal island it may as well have been. With a lack of access to the normal resources needed for a renovation, business owners need to get creative. One way to mitigate this issue is by leaning on local friends and experts. So when Bryan found himself in beautiful Pollard’s Point, he reached out to Newfoundland and Rock Solid Build’s very own Randy Spracklin.

Stage Ready

There is a lot one can do to spruce up their business, the possibilities are near endless, but one thing you can’t change is the scenery. It’s for this reason, that when you have a spectacular view, you do everything you can to emphasize it. For the Riversea Motel, this meant building an outdoor amphitheater. Given their love for their community, Rob and Lorraine wanted to create something that would entice both locals and tourists alike. Building a stage with a truly breathtaking backdrop was an easy decision.

Cozy Retreat

Fancy isn’t always better. That was the case for this renovation being so far off the beaten path, guests wanted to enjoy a rustic retreat, away from the modern world. This meant that the decor needed to match, so rather than upscale modern designs, the space was best suited to tasteful, rustic, and comfortable amenities. When visiting a place like Pollard’s Point, the draw isn’t the hotel room, but the people, places, and experiences. It’s important to know what matters to your clientele to give them the kind of stay that will make them want to return.

 

Everyone has heard the phrase ‘it’s just business,’ but sometimes it’s not, sometimes it’s much more. When Matt and Alicia moved to the small town of Arnprior, they purchased a bowling alley that was indeed more than just pins and lanes. The Arnprior Bowling Alley turned out to be Canada’s oldest bowling alley still in operation. Aside from just being old, it was staple of the local community. Serving as a cornerstone of the town, it hosted people of all walks of life, from children to retirees and even a special Olympics team. So, now Bryan Baeumler is All In to help give this piece of history a new lease on life.

Lackluster Laneways

Having been in continuous operation for over ninety years, the Arnprior alley had seen countless iterations. Despite all that time and change it remained a constant refuge and safe space for members of its community. This was a space that gave a lot to people and all of that giving had left it a bit worse for ware. Like all other things worthy of maintaining the test of time, the alley needed proper care. That’s where Bryan, his team, and the trusty RV come in.

Functional Features

For serial entrepreneurs, Matt and Alicia, they were well aware that every business has essential aspects that you can’t avoid. When we think of bowling shoes and bathrooms, we tend not to think of them as exciting, but Bryan convinced the two that even the essential elements can be standout features. By pulling the designs into the rest rooms and transforming their shoe rental into a focal piece, they guaranteed every aspect wowed.

 

Deco Design

Heritage was a crucial aspect of the Arnprior Bowling Alley. That’s why it was so important to honor it with renewed art deco designs. Having been built in the 30’s it just made sense to restore the lavish aesthetics with rich, dark greens, opulent golds, and warm wood tones. Despite its speakeasy looks, we don’t think this bar will ever manage to stay a secret.

 

Read more: The Ultimate Guide to Visiting the Island of Bryan Bahamas Resort