OUR ORIGINS

It all started in the 1970's, when Mike and Jennifer Veres, after living in both Western and Central Canada, decided to take a vacation to the East Coast. While traveling around the Atlantic provinces, they were amazed by the quality, variety and artistry of hand-produced items. Here, more than in other parts of the country, handcrafts seemed an intrinsic part of the region's lifestyle and culture. Surprisingly, many of these fine works were not available in retail stores.
Having fallen in love with Nova Scotia, they packed up and moved across the country. Full of inspiration and ambition, they purchased a plot of land in Bayside, Nova Scotia (on the road to Peggy's Cove) and began work on what would come to be known as Jennifer's of Nova Scotia. Jennifer's officially opened its doors in 1978 with the mission of providing locals and visitors alike with a place to purchase the works of Atlantic Canadian artists. A store that was locally owned and locally produced. A place to be proud of as an Atlantic Canadian.
After 4 extremely successful years, Mike and Jennifer decided it was time to open a second shop. They purchased a building on the corner of Spring Garden and Dresden in the heart of downtown Halifax. With much hard work and love, they turned the once upon a time dress shop into the sister store of their Bayside location. Jennifer's proudly opened its Spring Garden doors in 1982, much to the delight of Halifax's downtown community.
Many years later, in 2002, to prepare for retirement, Jennifer and Mike said, "Goodbye" to the Bayside store in an effort to downsize.
Then, in 2005, 3 long time employees, Darlene Bulger (a clerk at the Spring Garden location since 1982), Kurt Bulger (who had started as a "handyman" in the early 80's and then worked his way up to managing the Spring Garden shop) and Kevin Finch (who started in 1995 as an "Administrative Assistant.") became the proud new owners of Jennifer's.
In May of 2006, we opened a seasonal location at Pier 22's Cruise Ship Pavilion.
2020 marks 42 years of supporting local! Still our original mission continues. Since our start in 1978, Jennifer's has flourished into a thriving business. We are honoured to say that we are currently supporting the artistic talents of over 200 of Atlantic Canada's finest artisans. We look forward to the many inspiring years to come.