OK a short break but the weekly update is back

Two international retailers will be joining the shops at Dartmouth Crossing, Under Armour and Columbia Sportswear.

Osh Kosh and Carters will be opening a new location on the top floor of Halifax Shopping Centre.

Charger (burgers) is coming to the former Off The Grill location. This is a second location and the start of a rebrand for Lazeezo Burger in Clayton Park. They also plan to open a location in Lower Sackville this fall.

Ontario based information technology store Canada Computers is opening a location at 201 Chain Lake Dr. They will take part of the former Home Outfitters store.

A&W has opened it’s latest location in Bedford on the corner of Gary Martin Drive and Hammonds Plains Road, this location also has a 24 hour drive-thru.

The newest location of Thai Express is now open on Spring Garden Road near Queen Street.

Randy’s Pizza is now open on Boland Road in Dartmouth

The Daily Grind has opened their newest location in Bishops Landing on Lower Water Street.

I like tiny shops and out in Simms Settlement (Hubbards) 874 Hwy 3 Creative Squirrel Art has opened



August 10 will be the last day for Agricola Street landmark Smith’s Bakery

They were named the “Best New Bar in Canada” last year but The Watch That Ends The Night has closed their doors at King’s Wharf in Dartmouth.

The catering business will continue but Scanway has closed their Grafton Street cafe

Children’s clothing stores Baby Chic and Mayoral have moved from a house on the Bedford Highway to a storefront inside of Bedford Place Mall a few kilometres away

With all the heat, it’s probably a good time to mention this is Mexi’s last summer on Spring Garden “We will be moving our spring garden road location this fall to a brand new stand alone store located in Halifax, in an area more suited to our family style service.”

It is nothing new for food to be served out of a vehicle but recently there has been a trend for vehicle cafés.

The latest is Frankie’s Espresso Bar, which just served up for the first time lover a week ago at a food truck rally in Hubbards. Owners Adam Ottmar and Jill Mulveney picked up a former fire department utility truck in auction and have re-imagined it into what they are calling Halifax’s first 100 per-cent plant-based café.

“We’ve both been super interested in food trucks as a very affordable way to get into the industry,” says Ottmar. “After each of us worked in restaurants and cafés that had failed financially, we decided that if we were ever to open our own place it would be out of a truck.”

As for being all plant based, Otmar adds: “With a rising interest in plant-based diets and non-dairy milk options that require no refrigeration it’s never been a better time to feasibly open a mobile café.”

The couple are working on securing a regular parking spot but are ready to travel around town for events and gatherings.

Out of town: a free standing Starbucks is being built in the parking lot of the Aberdeen Mall in New Glasgow

Costco has been getting a little more automated in the last couple weeks at both Nova Scotia locations they have installed self ordering kiosks at the canteen, and have opened up self checkout lanes.

I was in a UNIQLO on the last week in Toronto and then one again a few days later in Boston and they both used the same price points. So as an example a shirt in Boston is $29.90USD but in Toronto it’s $29.90CAD!