SALT VICTORIA NOW OPEN | 813 Fort St

It's finally here! SALT 2.0

For those of you who have ever started a business, you know how insane it can be to tackle the big milestones. And how rewarding! For anyone who hasn't, let us tell you, it is quite the ride! 

There are a thousand and one decisions to be made, and they all seem to culminate at the same time. There are so many balls in the air all the time and keeping them floating is like running a circus. Our brave leader Jessica has had her life dedicated to this project non-stop for months. 

“Coming to Victoria is a big deal for SALT. I wanted to do everything I could to ensure that my brand makes a big impact in it’s new home. This store is my vision come to life.”

As a designer, Jessica is used to the feeling of trying to explain her ideas to people who have trouble grasping them. That makes seeing them coming together in real life all the more satisfying. The new space has undergone a huge transition and Jess’ signature stamp is shining through. She didn’t put any limitations on what she wanted for the store and didn’t compromise the parts that she felt were integral to the feel of the interior. There are lots of clean lines and geometrically inspired features. We particularly enjoyed working with welder Lindsay Mitchell from Biophilia, the previous tenant of the space, and our hardworking friend Tristan Fetherston of Fetherston Fabrication. They created some of the more intricate and unique parts of our space.

So many great local trades helped bring this store together. A big thank you to them all!

Vic City Painting

Tony the Drywaller

Ken from Houle Electric

Henry, who made our concrete counter top in a rush! 

Kenwood Design, for our shelving

Philco Construction + their guys for our framing

Tristan from Fetherston Fabrication for our welded structures

Lindsay from Biophilia  also for some of our welded structures

As SALT has grown as a brand, so has it’s team. With the upstairs loft we will finally have a proper shipping and stock area, as well as an office space where we can have staff meetings, training sessions, and a communal work space where we can collaborate with other business owners and dream our big dreams together. The staff area was designed to be plastic free, in conjunction with our 2018 commitment to be plastic-free in our daily operations. Piled in the cabinets are our new 100% cotton labels and paper hangtags. We tried to compromise as little as possible to make our space eco-friendly, and built our design around natural materials like wood, metal, and concrete.

Jessica is excited to become a part of a new community and bring another sustainable shopping option to the Fort St area. We are all looking forward to connecting and collaborating with our neighbouring entrepreneurs. And to sample from all the nearby restaurants and cafes. Our spot is surrounded with so many delicious establishments like Discovery Coffee, La Taquisa, and Fishook; we will certainly never go hungry!

As the proprietors of these businesses, and any business surely know, building a company from scratch isn’t easy. Taking on expanding it to be more, to go beyond what is required is an even bigger undertaking. There isn’t time to slow down and focus on one thing in any given moment. You still have to keep everything else running, and Jessica has been running till most people would drop, and getting up every day to do it again.

“Being your own boss can be tough. You could always be working. Managing production schedules and orders, leading a team, plus all the added work that goes into opening a second store – it has been a lot. But I still choose to make time for myself to achieve balance and make sure I am enjoying the process and sticking to my values. I am so grateful for everyone on my team and everyone I have worked with to make this new location happen.”



We could go on about every screw and drop of sweat that went into this process, or you could come down and check it out for yourself. We are very proud of this new space and super excited to share it with you and all the strangers who will become friends in Victoria. 

Our doors are open and for the next few weeks we will be working out any kinks that arise. Our Grand Opening Party is set for August 9th. It will be held in the beautiful outdoor Fort Commons space behind the store, and will be an evening of food, music, fun, and touring the new space. Stay tuned for details!

Address | 813 Fort St, Victoria

Store Hours | 

Monday-Thursday 10-6

Friday- Saturday 10-7

Sunday 11-5

from SALT Shop - Journal https://saltshop.ca/blogs/news/victoria-opening

FALCON ENAMEL | Inside and Out

To so many of us, summer means getting back to things we’ve been longing for after many grey months. Back to a connection with nature. With dewey mornings, vitamin-D enriching rays, and more time outdoors. 

We were meant to live amongst nature. The way we are now, stacked atop one another in so many places, it is a natural solution to being over-crowded, and yet such an unnatural way to live. Humans are social beings yes, but we need to run through open spaces, marvel at wide skies, and feel Earth beneath our toes. It's programmed right in. There is a reason so many campsites book up months in advance. We are waiting until we can drive away from our desks, kick off our shoes, and sleep out in the fresh night air.

Camping is an odd tradition if we really think about it. We leave our perfectly functional homes to escape into the woods and set up a temporary lodging, only to take it down again in a few days. Yet we all understand why we do it. If you live in an urban environment, it may be the only time you get to smell the forest, see the stars, hear the quiet. 

While we're out there, we need the right supplies to keep us fed as we embark on our adventures. Falcon Enamel is a 1920s established enamelware company that we have been carrying for just under a year now. Enamelware, for those unfamiliar with it, is a type of dishware that is created by fusing porcelain onto metal, usually steel, iron, or aluminum. The result is a (usually) glossy finish that can withstand high heats and is very easy to clean, being the second most stick resistant material used in cooking (Source).

Falcon uses a heavy-gauge steel for extra durability, smoothness, and chemical-resistance. All their enamelware is oven safe and can be used on both electric and gas burners. Plus, if you drop them, they may chip, but very rarely would they break. Meaning, these dishes could be used for a very, very long time, and in very diverse ways.

Enamelware is perfectly suited for use both indoors and out. Whether it is in classic white or black, or a more modern choice like Pigeon Grey, a table set with Falcon dishes will always be presentable, and easy to pair with whatever meal you may be serving. And everything can be served hot, as anything ready ahead can simply be popped into the oven right in their dish.

We would be less inclined to take our regular dishes camping if they were made of porcelain, for fear of breaking them. But with enamelware’s durability, that is no longer an issue. Say goodbye to needing a separate bin of dishes for camping or picnics. Simply open your cupboards and pack out what you need. Long-lasting, multi-use; beautiful and functional. It ticks all the boxes! And once it truly does meet the end of it’s lifecycle, the enamel doesn’t effect the recyclable nature of the material that it covers. 

We love the idea of everything in our homes having the same life cycle as we do, or beyond. There truly is peace in knowing you are living a de-cluttered life and what possessions you do require, will be forever useful, even after they are re-purposed. 

Shop Falcon Enamel here.

from SALT Shop - Journal https://saltshop.ca/blogs/news/falcon-enamel

MULTI-USE LIFESTYLE | Purchasing with Purpose

We all know that single-use plastics are bad. That is unless we have been living in deep denial or deep in the woods somewhere. Plastics are getting the most attention right now, as they should, they are poisoning our Earth. Realistically though, we should be deterring the production and consumption of any item that is single-use, or even designed for short-term use, no matter what it is made of. 

The discussion of lifestyles takes place so much these days, that the word has reached buzz worthy status. We don't want to forget what the core of that discussion is though. Whether you think about a lifestyle as being a set of virtues or principles, or more activity based, our chosen lifestyles guide how we impact our surroundings. With so many advancements in the way we can produce basically anything, we have to consciously choose options that prioritize sustainability over convenience. 

There are things in our modern society that are too difficult to obtain any way other than in some sort of container, like most beverages, or sauces, most non-solid food items. And in most places getting a fully prepared meal to go, even one that is healthy and filling, is all too easy. But those bottles and containers stack up, and even if they can go in our blue or green bins, the energy it takes to produce them can't be reversed. That should encourage us to be cooking more at home, purchasing whole ingredients that don't need packaging that we can turn into something healthy and delicious ourselves. Some things need to be specialized, but eating out less, focusing on a diet that incorporates whole foods and less processed items will decrease how much waste we create. 

Using recyclable items is great, we want all the materials we use to fit into a closed loop system, but something that can be used over and over again before it moves on is even better. And as we have learned lately, a large percentage of Canadians are not recycling properly, which results in more landfill waste. 

An item that we can re-purpose or use multiple times in different ways, has a longer life, potentially an infinitely useful one. Glass jars for example. Mason jars specifically are a very trendy item. And we love that! There are innumerable uses for a glass jar with a lid. Serving and transporting food/drinks, crafts, decor, and storage of anything that will fit. It is one of the most useful things you can have on hand, and something that can be used again and again. (And if they do get damaged in some way, they are recyclable.) We suggest buying a few and keeping them in your car, your home, at work, anywhere, just in case. We take on this practice as part of our #nocupnocoffee commitment. 

We want this mentality to spread to designers of all industries. Think about planned obsolescence - all the focus is on sales, not on the impact to the bottom line of our ecosystem. This is an issue in the tech sector especially. Some technology does need to be upgraded, but if we could say goodbye to the desire to have the newest thing, the most up to date item, we could likely get a lot more use out of our items. 

The same goes for fashion. We all want a few exciting, more out there pieces for fancy occasions. Our every day wear though, should be as versatile as our life is. SALT styles are designed with longevity in mind. Their quality, eco-friendly fabrics are friend to the environment, the palette we choose from is timeless and goes together with everything, so you can keep the items you purchase longer and wear them more.

We want everything from our store to be both beautiful and useful. From the Uashmama paper bags, to Falcon Enamelware, to beautiful handmade serving boards, we try to carry items that can be used over and over for all kinds of different things. We are excited to bring in a few new re-purposeable items, like Goldilocks cotton beeswax wraps, and our own line of SALT candles, that melt away to leave you with a cocktail glass. 

In the end, it really comes down to choices, options, and being conscious of our decisions. Purchasing with purpose can decrease the amount of waste going into our oceans and landfills and help make our Earth happier and healthier. What items do you find the most useful in your home?

from SALT Shop - Journal https://saltshop.ca/blogs/news/multi-use-items