Hot tub and barbecue store to open in December

A new home leisure store will be opening this month in the recently completed Burfield West development.

The store, Tod Mountain Home Leisure, will focus on selling hot tubs, barbecues and pellet grills, as well as patio furniture in the summer. Owner Rob Keep said they will also do servicing and carry all kinds of other products such as hot tub accessories, barbecue sauces, spices, rubs and ice melt. 

“I’m kind of wide open to look at carrying anything,” said Keep. “Obviously, we’re not just going to bring in every single thing. But if there’s demand and we can get it, then we will.”

Keep has owned home leisure stores for 22 years. His store in Saskatchewan, R&R Home Leisure, won a Consumers’ Choice Award for 12 years in a row. Keep said he hopes this business in Sun Peaks will be just as successful.

Keep has been a property owner in Sun Peaks since 2015, but never made it his permanent home.

“We kind of fell in love with Sun Peaks and made some good friends here and kind of always wanted to make the move out here,” he said. “When the world got so screwed up and went upside down with COVID, we said well we might as well go now.”

Keep sold his store in Saskatchewan and moved to Sun Peaks to make his new business a reality. 

Tod Mountain Home Leisure is set to open sometime in December. Keep said he hopes to have a soft opening before the end of the year, and then have an event or grand opening in January. The store will be open Tuesdays to Saturdays from 1 p.m. to 6 p.m. 

“It’s kind of different than a shop in the village. We’re not really here for the tourists,” said Keep. “So we’re thinking we’re just going to open in the afternoons…The way I’m thinking about it is if I’m going to go ski, it’s going to be in the morning.”

Once the store is open, Keep said he is willing to adjust the hours for whatever he finds works best for the community. But since he will be living in the same building as the store will be in, Keep’s hours can be flexible.

“We’re going to do by appointment anytime,” said Keep. “My number will be on the door. I mean, I live here too. So if I’m home, I’ll just come up the elevator.”