by CONNIE TABBERT
Editor
COBDEN — Emily Kwon and Willy Kim are looking forward to becoming involved in the Cobden and area community once they have settled in a bit more.
The couple are the new owners of Cobden Freshmart, taking ownership on Monday, Jan. 23.
They are also the owners of Village Discount and Variety Store in Eganville.
When Ms. Kwon decided she wanted a larger business, the current owners of Freshmart told her they wanted to sell.
Looking back to when the couple first moved to Canada in 2009, Mr. Kim said they settled in London, Ontario for five years. They then moved to Kingston where their son lived. However, after four months of no job and no prospects of finding a business, Ms. Kwon began checking websites and newspapers and found the variety store in Eganville.
Mr. Kim didn’t think they were going to live in Canada forever, but the decision was made when Ms. Kwon sold her property in South Korea.
“It’s very cold here,” Mr. Kim said.
The coldest it gets in South Korea is -10 Celsius. He recalled with a slight chuckle when temperatures were dropping to -30 Celsius and then -40 Celsius.
However, they managed to make friends, deal with the cold weather and operate their business.
Undertaking a different kind of store, Mr. Kim said, “It’s very complicated. Cigarettes and lottery are the main things we sell in the variety store.
“Here, it’s bread and milk and groceries.”
Ms. Kwon added, “We’re dealing with food, not so much manufactured things. We have to be much more careful.
“The health inspector has already been here twice,” she said.
Ms. Kwon added that the visits have given her more confidence that they are doing things right and safely.
With one full-time and 12 part-time employees, she doesn’t see many changes coming, and Mr. Kim said definitely not during the winter months.
They both agree once spring arrives there could be some changes, but they just aren’t sure what they are yet.
Ms. Kwon is hopeful they can sell the store in Eganville, which will give them more time to become involved in the Cobden community.
“We need to concentrate on one business,” Mr. Kim said. “Two busy jobs. No time to eat. It’s too complicated.”
A professional artist, Mr. Kim is looking forward to painting the area landscapes while Ms. Kwon is looking forward to reading.
They both agree that becoming involved with the community is something they are both looking forward too.
They encourage people to come in and say hi. Ms. Kwon and Mr. Kim will be holding a meet and greet with some specials, but the date has yet to be set.
