The following text may have been generated by Optical Character Recognition, with varying degrees of accuracy. Reader beware!

The fishing widow New uptown home décor and garden shop is ready for spring to arrive espite the snow outside, early signs of Dspring are popping up in the Fishing Widow, a new home and garden décor store in uptown Waterloo. â€" Garden statues and tools, birdhouses, sundials and more are already making their way into the shop, which sells a selection of home accessories, giftware and gift baskets. "You will not see a lot of my products elsewhere," said Dale Van Looyen, the owner of the Fishing Widow. _ â€" And all her handâ€"selected "luxuries" sell at an affordable price. e "I don‘t believe that you need to break the bank to live well and entertain your friends," she said. Since Van Looyen was a teenager, she aspired to open her own shop. "Over the years 1 had received a lot of compliments about the way I had decorated ‘and the vision I was able to bring to various spaces, and 1 felt it was time to bring those sorts of options to other people as well." "It‘s something I‘ve always wanted to do, but with the responsibilities of families and mortgages and whatnot, I‘ve waited until this point to take the plunge," she said. The lifelong Kitchenerâ€"Waterloo resident worked in project and operations manageâ€" ment before deciding to leave the corporate world to try her hand at running a business. Settling on the type of company to start wasn‘t difficult. "I love home décor and I love entertain ing," Van Looyen said. _ o Before taking over the store on Regina Street, she ran the Fishing Widow out of her home. She brought items to companies for onsite shopping and had a stand at the St. Jacobs Farmers‘ Market, but soon found she wanted to carry products that weren‘t easy to transport as well as a permanent space in which to showecase her merchandise. "I think it‘s a lot easier for people to enviâ€" sion how they‘re going to use an item or how it will fit into their life if it‘s in more of a homeâ€"like setting," she said. The next step was finding a location. Van Lobyen knew she wanted to be in uptown Waterloo because of its eclectic feeling. _ "It‘s welcoming," she said. "It‘s a place people are happy to walk around and explore." â€" o Opened in December 2007, the Fishing Widow is in the Regina Street Commons building, located between Erb and Dupont streets. Its name was derived from Van Looyen‘s life. Her husband is an avid fisherman, and this store keeps her busy when he‘s away, she said. The shop appeals to those looking for By Jennirer Ormsron Chronicle Staff _ BUSINESS Déle Vanâ€"Looyen is the owner of the Fishing Widow, a new home and garden décor shop at 8 Regina St. N., Unit 5. Spring merchandise is startâ€" ing to make its way into her shop. senwicer Aruictom Pn "life‘s little luxuries," Van Looyen said, adding people can find that one extra piece or special gift there. _ S Thanks to word of mouth, the Fishing Widow‘s customer base has grown steadily since its doors opened, and the 750â€"squareâ€" foot shop has already attracted some repeat shoppers. The shelves are filled with everything from indoor/outdoor glasses and napkins to soy wax candles and select food items. _"It‘s definitely a place for both indoor and outdoor living," Van Looyen said of her merâ€" HRONICLE |@ chandise. "Most of the items in the store are multipurpose â€" you can use them indoors or out. "And that‘s one of the keys â€" I like things to be easy." l â€" More spring items, including patio burnâ€" ers and wreaths, are on the way. Van Looyen also provides a corporate giftâ€"giving service for customers who want to give gifts to staff, supervisors and clients. This popular service is busy at Christâ€" mastime, but Van Looyen said there are lots of opportunities to say "thank you" in WATERLOO CHRONICLE + Wednesday, March 19, 2008 + 23 a creative way. "I always joke with people and say ‘Think outside the bottle of wine‘ because there are so many other things people would appreciâ€" ate, and other events, like having a baby or anniversaries or promotions, when you can differentiate yourself and make people remember you," she said. The Fishing Widow is open Tuesdays to Fridays from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. and Saturdays from 10 a.m.to § p.m. _ _ Parking is available behind the building or along Dupont and Princess streets. JENNIFEX ORMSTON PHOTO