WATCH: This store hopes to bring out the professional chef in everyone

• This local store was actually boosted because of the pandemic
• Mixing retail with demonstration

One of Kelowna’s premier spots for cookware and kitchen gadgets opened a bigger space in the hopes of inspiring more people to cook at home.

Lakehouse Home Store on Bernard Avenue has been in business for the past ten years, and has officially celebrated the grand opening of their second floor, expanding the operation from 4,000 sq/ft to 10,000.

Operations Manager & Executive Chef, Travis Pye, told Kelowna10, the reception of the new space has been positive.

“We’ve had all our regulars come down. It’s crazy to think that everything on both floors was originally on one floor,” he said. “It just allowed everything to breathe and make for a more enjoyable shopping experience.”

One key addition for the upstairs space will be cooking classes being offered to residents in the coming months.

“There will be two styles of classes, one’s a participation style class where you’ll be able to cook alongside the instructor at the front,” Pye said. “The other side will be more of a demonstration where you sit and watch while the chef instructor prepares the meal.”

Pye said owner Ben Boschman wanted to integrate cooking classes in the store as part of the long-term vision, while continuing to mix in the retail component.

“We’re trying to create an experiential experience for people to come and learn and talk with chefs and see the equipment live,” he said.

While many businesses took a hit from the COVID-19 pandemic, Pye said they stayed steady as many people were reignited to cook.

“We were pretty fortunate that during the pandemic everyone was spending more time at home nesting and rediscovering their passion for cooking,” he said. “We’ve been lucky and stayed nice and busy and offered more of a selection to home cooks.”