We’re getting to know our neighbours! People on Preston? is a collection of street portraits and short interviews with merchants, residents and patrons who live, work and play on Preston Street. There will be six new stories each week. Click on an image below, or click here to see all of the People on Preston stories in one place.
“I finished school in March and I moved in here in October. I had very little [business] experience but lots of drive. It was a time when esthetics wasn’t very well known; 1987. People didn’t even know what facials were. They thought a facial was just makeup. So it took a long time to build a clientele. I cleaned houses for four years; that helped to pay one rent. After four years I was able to stand on my own two feet and didn’t need the second job.” (read more)
“La Roma Restaurant originally opened in 1962 on the corner of Somerset and Bronson Avenue. Our family took over in 1990 and brought La Roma ‘home’ to Preston Street. This year, our family will be celebrating 25 years in the business. Our mom Maria and our entire family have so much to celebrate and are truly grateful for all of the wonderful clients and friends we have made over the years.” (read more)
“Our recipes have been passed down from generation to generation. My mother has always been baking and she had us involved in the process as children. It might have been a way that she kept control of us [laughs]. Since we were immersed in baking from such a young age, my sister and I just love it and have always dabbled in the kitchen.” (read more)
“During my third year of pharmacy studies I started to think about what I really wanted to do. I wanted to be more hands on with patient care. I worked for a year, applied to dental school. Now I’m here. We are not a hard sell dentist office. We advise you of what we think is best for you in terms of care.” (read more)
“For us our late Uncle Vincent, who passed away at age 11 before we could have met him, represents the creative potential that we saw in ourselves that was inspired by him and his talents. We sell clothes and there are a lot of beautiful things here. At the end of the day, the whole essence of our store is to help each woman reach her full potential. That’s what we do every day. It’s their potential that we’re translating.” (read more)