By Shandy Walls
Stories are often best told when starting from the beginning – but this is not one of them.
The last question I posed to Pineridge Hollow founder and owner, Jan Regehr, was how she would like to be remembered after she is gone.
Her answer was “What I want to be remembered for, I think, is that I helped to heal a part of society, that I moved the needle, that I helped to connect and create a healthy community; and to hold space for lots of diversity of thought and people. That I truly believe that when we work in our strengths together, we are way stronger than our individual parts.”
Part of that healing for Jan is food. She told of trips into town as a young girl with her father when numerous stops were natural so they could get the best produce from one farmer, the best meats from another, and the best dairy and cheeses from yet another.
“I actually believe that food is a part of the healing, and I actually believe the quality of food people are eating is contributing to our mental health crisis.”
Celebrating 33 years in business this year, Pineridge Hollow has evolved into a farm-to-table experience like no other, with most things on her menu being grown on her family’s Oak Knoll Farms. What her farm doesn’t produce, she sources locally.
With her 2022 Pineridge Village expansion, Jan bet on her philosophy of “good food makes good cooks” and she opened The Farmer’s Kitchen, a grocery store that offers seasonal produce, local fare, ready-to-make meal kits and, of course, her famous homemade beet chips that she has been serving for over a decade.
Making the volume of beet chips needed on a weekly basis is a full-time position all by itself, so that requires help. Most business owners would put into place structures, processes and policies as the business expands.
Not to say that Pineridge Hollow doesn’t do that, but they approach this a little differently. They rely on creating a Statement of Purpose, clear and value driven, with the underlying theme of “better together”.
When hiring management, they invest in personality type assessments using tools such as Working Genius (www.workinggenius.com) to ensure that the right people are in the right roles, not only for the success of the business, but for the success and fulfillment of the individual.
Understanding employees’ areas of strength and frustration is important for obvious reasons. Understanding becomes even more personal when the people you love the most – your husband and three adult children – are also a part of the business.
Investing time in assessments, such as the Enneagram, allows for better understanding of each other and allows for each to work within areas of their own strengths and to not always take things personally. (Hint: Jan is an 8 on the Enneagram….www.enneagraminstitute.com)
If you haven’t been to Pineridge Hollow, and you MUST go, you will find yourself driving 10 minutes past the perimeter highway off Highway 59. Just follow your Google Map (which, at one point you may think has given you the wrong directions. It didn’t) and you will find her.
Always a visionary and thinking way ahead of the curve, Jan moved the original site to this isolated location for a reason, despite her only support being her husband and father-in-law, Walter. She knew that the sense of “being away from it all” was key to achieving her vision to create a place where people could enjoy the experience of dining, of hiking trails, of forest bathing – all those restorative activities that along with good food and shopping, can make for a wonderful experience.
What is next? Phase two of the Village is already in the works for 2026, which will encompass development of more retail space, services and an expanded Furniture Design Centre. You can contact [email protected] if you would like more information on how to become a part of the Village.
And the cherry on top will be the Pineridge Hollow Inn and Spa. Let me give you a glimpse of Jan’s vision – imagine yourself checked into a lovely, rustic Inn in the middle of a prairie forest, relaxed from your day of work, invigorated by your re-connection to yourself and nature. You are walking to the Village, beverage in hand, along the beautifully groomed trails, off to the shops before a farm-to-table gourmet meal in the restaurant, then relaxing on the porch as the sun sets over the Manitoba horizon.
Yes, Jan, we are all better together. Thank you for moving the needle.
To find out more about Pineridge Hollow visit pineridgehollow.com/
The Village
The VillageYou might be asking yourself, what is the Village? No, it is not a miniature town. It an avenue on “like-minded” businesses “bringing together shopping, dining, workshops, entertainment and exploring the outdoors.” Some of the shopping experiences you will encounter include a jewelry store, fashion, a bakery, farmers market, gift shop, body and skin care . . . and when your retail therapy is complete, you can stroll the garden or have a relaxing meal in the restaurant.
