FEATURED BUSINESS
THE PIE BAR
This month’s feature business is The Pie Bar, a small batch bakery located in the charming village of Westport, Ontario. The Pie Bar bakery is owned and operated by Stacy Blair, a Structural Engineer by trade, who reluctantly slipped into the world of baking during her maternity leave in 2013 in order to provide tasty snacks to her hungry husband. Ms. Blair’s husband had worked in a bakery during his youth and was happy to teach her traditional techniques and recipes. Throughout the learning process, Blair fell in love with the process of baking and soon started a blog and Instagram page which amassed a large following.
The Pie Bar business started organically over the years as Blair started bringing her baked goods to local farmers’ markets. In 2019, after many years of trial and error, the business proved to be sustainable, so Blair decided to take leave from her engineering career to pursue her newfound passion. By 2020, Blair and The Pie Bar were successfully providing pre-orders and ready-to-go baked goods to surrounding communities. Despite the COVID-19 pandemic, the business continued to rally support much to the surprise of Blair and her family. Customers understandably desired access to ready-to-go, delicious, and beautifully crafted comfort foods and The Pie Bar filled that slice of the market.
Stacy Blair was a successful participant and grant recipient of the Starter Company Plus Program organized by the Small Business Advisory Centre of Lanark County/Smiths Falls. Blair found the program beneficial in that she was better able to see the vision of the business and make more strategic decisions, especially regarding finances. When asked what her advice would be for other entrepreneurs, Blair stated:
“If you aren’t happy at your 9 – 5 job, take the leap and jump into small business and make a life worth living. Follow your dreams, take a chance and see where it will bring you.”
The Pie Bar can be found on Instagram at the_pie_bar and on Facebook @ThePieBarCanada. You can also contact Stacy Blair directly on the business phone (613) 453-2647 or email stacy.murray@dal.ca.
After decades of developing a love for hats and formal wear by attending military ceremonial events, garden parties and formal evening dinners with her spouse, Ranelle Larocque, the owner and milliner of Queen Bee Millinery, turned her passion into a creative fashion business in 2019. Starting out as an online business, she has filled orders from around the world and has specialized in providing the perfect accessory from her ever changing inventory of one-of-a-kind designs or by creating bespoke wearable art for customized orders. Hats and fascinators designed and hand made by Ranelle have been worn at events such as the Queen’s Birthday Garden Party in London, UK, the Royal Ascot, the Kentucky Derby, and at countless Canadian and international military ceremonial events around the world.
doors just as the first lockdowns were put into place in March of 2020. Despite this potential setback, Ranelle dedicated her time to hone her craft, and to connect with her new found community of local business owners. Through these connections, she has seen a resiliency in the local business retail sector that is and continues to be inspiring. Every day she feels the love and support from the community and from organizations like the Small Business Advisory Centre, whose encouragement and personal attention during this crisis has been invaluable. 
As we all wait patiently for things to open up again, Ranelle is busy connecting with customers online and is operating within the guidelines to offer curbside service until the health protection measures change. You can follow her on Facebook (
nto Bubbles & Bites boxes and delivering them to Ottawa & surrounding areas. This move saved Artizen.
