(Alyssa Lavictoire (l) and Nancy Lavictoire (r) are ready to open the doors and welcome Stittsville residents when the Kardish Health Food Centre celebrates their grand opening on May 20th. Kardish is located at Stittsville’s Crossing Bridge Square. Photo: submitted)
Since 1979, the Kardish Health Food Store has always been associated as a friendly, family business that retailed only quality products with their first store in Bell’s Corners. This tradition continued with the Assaf family when they purchased a franchise at the Herongate Mall in 1984. Son Robert grew up working alongside his family in the store and fell in love with the business.
In 2005, the opportunity arose for Robert Assaf to purchase the Kardish Health Food business from the Kardish family and the franchise owners. Since that time, Robert and his wife, Melinda, have worked tirelessly to build the business and bring the best wellness solutions to the Ottawa community.
The business has modernized and has grown to seven locations across Ottawa over the last two decades. Kardish is the largest health food retailer in Ottawa, with more than 50 team members.
The Stittsville location, at 1250 Stittsville Main Street (Crossing Bridge Square), will officially open it’s doors on May 20th. There will be a ribbon-cutting ceremony at 1:00pm with local personalities in attendance.
Of the store opening in Stittsville, Robert shared with Stittsville Central, “We are thrilled to announce the grand opening of a Kardish Health Food Store in Stittsville! Stittsville is a vibrant and growing area, with a strong sense of family and community. We are excited to join the Stittsville community and look forward to supporting the health of its residents with our natural health solutions“.
Kardish Health Food Centre has been recognized for their excellence, as both a retailer and employer, receiving many awards over the years – the Canadian Health Food Association Brock Elliott Award for Excellence in Retailing; Best Ottawa Business Awards (BOBs); and, Ottawa Business Journal’s Employee’s Choice Awards.
The Kardish stores are also involved in the community in which they are located through engagement and awareness. They also encourage residents to bring to their attention any local causes that will improve community health and wellness. You may recall from our previous Kardish articles: in 2020, Kardish offered free same-day grocery delivery and curb-side pick-ups, one of the first Ottawa businesses to do so at the onset of the pandemic. In 2021, Kardish launched the sale of the ‘Ottawa Mask’, developed by researchers at CHEO. All proceeds from the mask sales were directed back to CHEO.
The Assaf family is looking forward to opening Kardish in Stittsville and invite residents to visit and discover the health products and food that Kardish has available for purchase.
We welcome the addition of Kardish to Stittsville and to the local business community!
