Montreal River Outpost expands to include Churchill River Canoe Equipment

The expansion may involve hiring new staff, but no final decision has been made yet

Although he had heard “through the grapevine” that Churchill River Canoe Products might be for sale, it wasn't high on Martin Bernardin's priority list for the summer of 2023, but he took a second look at it in the fall.

“In the fall, I was like, 'call him and see,'” Bernardin told the Northern Advocate.

He called the owner of the Churchill River and got a response: “That's great. Come, have a coffee, and we're out of there,” said Bernardin.

He sees the acquisition as an expansion, since the Montreal River outpost is a retail establishment, Churchill River takes the business to rent canoes and offer complete trip packages.

The Montreal River Outpost is moving into its 11th^th Although he has been working in Air Ronge for a year and will be spending more time in Mississippi with the new business, he has no plans to sell his house and move his family out of La Ronge, Bernardin said.

The change could include hiring more employees, he said, adding that retail at the Montreal River outpost will include sales of canoes, kayaks, camping and fishing gear.

Some of the benefits include being able to rent canoes from anywhere. For example, they could rent canoes in La Ronge and eventually take them to Mississippi, or sometimes they could rent them in Mississippi if they wanted, and it would be better to land them in La Ronge.

“It gives people an opportunity to rent.”

The change involved booking trips, booking cabins and creating a new website. The website now allows people to rent cabins, which is an add-on.

“We're doing all of that and then answering phone calls and booking people … we've never had a dull moment,” Bernardin said.

For now, they will operate the two businesses “as separate entities,” and that means keeping the retail business at the Montreal River outpost, while the supply side will remain on the Churchill River.

The expansion also brought cabins, fishing equipment, powerboats and the ability to move into guided fishing and whitewater canoeing experiences.

That likely means adding new staff, but that hasn't been decided yet, he said.

“It's hard to talk about it now. We have a lot of staff ready to come back from last year, … it's a great place to work and I get resumes every other day. It's something that makes people want to come and work for us, it's different,” Bernardin said.

Bernardin has a canoe design and construction business, Kisseynew Canoe Company, which he also plans to continue.