Community Futures Nanaimo

Who: Pierre Landy

What: Pierre’s Bay: A successful family owned and operated fishing lodge and marina in the Broughton Archipelago off North Vancouver Island  approximately 45 kilometers west of Port MacNeil.

Profile: Pierre Landy hails orginally from Quebec moved to BC in the late seventies and found himself working in and around the forest industry.  And like many of his compatriots, Pierre survived many years of slowdowns and changes in the industry. In 1998, while working for Interfor, Pierre was diagnosed with early stage Multiple Sclerosis. Undaunted, Pierre retired from the forestry industry and turned his attention to a long-held dream:  to grow a business that would spring from a floating lodge he had started building as a hobby and for his family, running the odd fishing excursion in the off season and contracting to forest companies to offset space shortages in logging camps. He imagined a successful destination for exploring the best of the region and many years earlier, in 1981, after a few years of moving the lodge to different spots around the area, he found his dream property in a small unchartered bay off Gilbord Island in Simmooom Sound. This is where Pierre’s Bay and Marina sits today.

Challenges/ Solutions: Pierre realized that he needed to expand the offerings and the space in the lodge in order to make it a viable as a  year-round business. With the support of the Entrepreneurs with Disabilities fund through Community Futures Central Island in Nanaimo, Pierre was able to increase his square footage to include three rental units, a restaurant, laundry and other facilities, as well as add four bedrooms in the main lodge and a gift shop showcasing the work of local artists. The dock was also expanded to 860 feet and provides 1200 feet of moorage capacity.   Now Pierre’s Bay is available for year round moorage, with April through June attracting the commercial prawn fishers, May through October busy with fishing charters, June through October full with salmon fishing charters and killer whale watching tours, and a lodge available to local workers for the remainder of the year.

For more information about this business please contact: www.pierresbay.com