The journey hasn't been easy and it's come with it's fair share of challenges, but they're living life on their terms and they're finding success as they make their way.
Ray Sharp and Nadine Jennett were looking for a change and who would have thought a change for them would also mean a new start for a familiar Yorkton sight, near and dear to the hearts of many in the community.
In 2006 the pair took over the Yorkton Hotel and last week they accepted the Yorkton Chamber of Commerce's Celebrate Success Award for Property Restoration.
Sponsored by City of Yorkton, the award is presented to a local business that demonstrates exceptional performance in restoring or revitalizing an older existing building or property to be aesthetically pleasing. The Award is designed to encourage businesses to make their place of business more attractive thereby increasing business activity, employee performance, enhancing land values and offering an enticing setting for new businesses planning to locate in Yorkton and area. The Yorkton Hotel has managed to do just that.
"It was a huge surprise to us...," says Sharp, "first to get nominated and again for us to be chosen from among the other entrants... they were all very reputable entries. It was a great feeling. And I guess for us it was nice to have some acknowledgment of the work that we've done, knowing that we have a lot more to do. It gives us that extra boost to keep going. People are seeing the difference we're making..."
Born and raised in Saltcoats, Sharp says he left the province for schooling but came back to raise his family and to start a business. From Stockholm, Jennett has called Yorkton home for the past 23 years.
When a career in electronics repair looked as though it was becoming obsolete, the two started looking at other options which led them to the Yorkton Hotel. Originally built in 1902 and abandoned for at least five years, it was a prospect from which most would shy away, but for Sharp it was a diamond in the rough he felt couldn't be passed up.
"I had been looking at this building for quite a few years... I love restoring old things and this was definitely a project that needed some TLC. In fact I think it was very near the wrecking ball. Nobody had an interest in taking it on."
Owned by the bank, in 2006 Sharp began the process of negotiations and before he knew it, became the new proud (and possibly a little overwhelmed) owner of a piece of Yorkton history.
"It was very dirty, very old, very run down, but I look at things not cosmetically but structurally... I overlooked the peeling paint, broken things... and I realized this is a strong, big, old building that obviously had made over 100 years already..."
Sometimes you have to go against the grain to find success.
A tad daunting the first time they walked into their new purchase, Sharp says the couple found themselves wondering what they had just done. The first task was to just find the light switches.
"The big thing was to take a good look around to see what really needed to be done to get the lights on and to get it to a position of where we could open it up."
Months of work ensued, assessing, cleaning, fixing and overhauling.
More than a hotel, the building consists of a restaurant (now serving a full sushi menu), a lounge (Rayzr's Bar & Pub), rental apartments on the upper floor and business rental spaces on the lower floor. There was much to attend to before the couple could even think of opening any doors.
About four months into the project the work began to pay off. "We opened the doors and we were busy right off the bat," says Sharp. "It exceeded our expectations..."
Both single parents working to make ends meet, neither Sharp nor Jennett had any previous experience in the hospitality industry. It was a learning curve in all areas and a challenge they had to meet head on.
"It was exciting, overwhelming, crazy and... we learned fast because we had no choice... I can honestly say I've become a master fixer of just about anything and everything..."
Profits were turned back into the building and since that time the old Yorkton Hotel has undergone many renovations on every level, earning the couple the award they received last week. With every aspect of the hotel now up and running, it's still a work in progress says Sharp but it's come a long way more change can be expected in the coming months.
This summer the plan is restore the outside of the building. "We've got a lot more work we want to do in every area... it really never ends. But we never have to worry about what we have to do when we get here in the morning that's for sure."
Taking on such a monumental project and turning it into a success story can't help but come with a certain sense of pride. "It was a 100 year plus old building at the time we took it over... the history is amazing... I don't think there's a person that walks in here that doesn't have a story... I'm a sucker for old stuff, a sucker for the historical value of things... so it meant a lot to me to know that this is a big part of history and to know that I had an opportunity to be a part of it.
"We've spent about five and a half years here now and I'm hoping that our five and a half years will give this place another 110 years... and that we're just going to be a small part of whatever it will have to offer."
If you're a would-be entrepreneur and you have dreams of following in the footsteps of Sharp and Jennett don't give up but do be prepared to work hard and to think a little differently.
"You can't be scared to take on something everyone else is scared of. Everything I've accomplished in my life I've accomplished by going outside the box. When people say no, there's not a chance, that makes me drive a little harder... If you're afraid of change, if you're afraid of new things, if you're afraid of doing something you've never done before then probably it's not for you," says Sharp.
"If you've got the drive and you're not scared to take something on that looks overwhelming your chances are good."
Strong support networks don't hurt an entrepreneur's chances either. Sharp says he wouldn't be where he is today without Jennett and he adds, it's a great feeling that together, they can finally start enjoying the fruits of success.
