New Bothwell is about to see a big change to one of their most popular businesses. Elle Funk, owner of New B’s Café & Store, has sold her business and is moving on to new things.
Funk grew up in Grunthal, but eight years ago she decided to move to New Bothwell and dedicate herself to building New B’s, which is attached to her home.
When she listed the business for sale, Funk says she wasn’t sure of her intentions. But a great opportunity eventually presented itself and she decided that it really was time to make a change.
The main reason Funk is moving on is burnout.
“I’m the only person that owns the place,” Funk says. “So when one person does it all, then it takes a toll.”
She adds that she spent quite a bit of time reflecting on what was best for her—and what was best for the community—before she made the decision to sell.
“I’d been thinking about what I wanted in life,” Funk says. “I couldn’t see myself… doing what would be required to take it to the next level. I wanted to do the town justice too, because I didn’t want to be one of those owners that if my heart isn’t in it anymore they just let it go until it’s a dive… I wanted to go out on a high note.”
For the next little while, Funk will relocate to Steinbach, but she says that’s probably only temporary.
“I have some options available to me… I’m burned out, so I’d like to take however long I need to regroup.”
Funk and her store have been a fixture in New Bothwell these last few years. She often went out of her way to provide a valuable service for locals. On many blizzardy days she had to close New B’s but would post to social media that she was willing to unlock the store if anyone had a pressing need.
“My motto while having [New B’s] has been ‘It’s not about me, it’s about the community,” Funk says.
Although the job of owning a store and restaurant has been physically hard, Funk says that it’s been even harder in an emotional and mental capacity.
One factor that didn’t much come into play in her decision was the pandemic.
“I know there are lots of businesses that are closing because of COVID-19,” she says, “but that is not the case for me.”
Still, Funk says that she has a lot of positive memories and experiences to reflect upon as she moves on to the next phase of her life.
“I’ve made some great connections here,” Funk says. “Burger Days are crazy times. I thrive on the chaos sometimes and it’s just a high throughout Burger Days. The bonus was that we got recognition for our burgers.”
Although New B’s Café is closed as of Saturday, February 26, Funk will continue to honour “take and bake” orders until Monday, February 28. The business will close its doors completely on March 18.
Funk plans to keep updating the New B’s Facebook page over the next few weeks. She will use it as the primary outlet to let people know what she’s doing and when or if she starts a new business venture.
As of April 1, the building will be under new ownership. Funk says that she doesn’t know what the new owners plan to do with the business.