Seeing that name up there brought me to tears, Fakih said.

“For someone who landed in Canada with nothing, to have a sign for his business up there and represent the minority community made me very emotional,” he added.

“I wanted to tell the little guys who don’t come from a lot of money that we can do it too.”

While many developments in Fakih’s life have been positive recently, it hasn’t been without his share of challenges.

In July 2017, Ranendra “Ron” Banerjee – a prominent fixture at anti-Muslim rallies across the GTA – stood in front of Paramount Fine Foods in Mississauga and labelled the business "nefarious" and one that served customers who are “jihadist” or “raped your wife at least a few times,” even though Fakih says he has never met him.

In response, Fakih sued Banerjee for defamation and won, according to a settlement reached on Dec. 7 this year.

The reason he chose to file the lawsuit, Fakih says, was to set an example for his three boys.

“I’ve always told my kids that people are generally kind, but I wanted them to know to never give in to bigotry” he said.

“I believe when we stand up against hate, we make their voice smaller and smaller until it disappears. If we are silent and don’t condemn hate, we are sending a message that we are OK with hate.”

Winning, Fakih added, set an example of love and unity by the beautiful country that welcomed him.