William Allaway

WHAT GOT YOU STARTED?

by Burke Campbell 

Published in the Financial Post

 May 26, 2008

William Allaway is the son of Brian and Simonne Allaway, a family that runs Acadian Maple ( www.acadianmaple.com ), a company that processes and distributes maple syrup, headquartered in Halifax, Nova Scotia . William Allaway tells the Financial Post what motivated him to become an entrepreneur.

Starts as a hobby: “When I was only four years old, my Dad showed my sister and me how to tap a tree for maple syrup. What started as a family hobby soon suggested greater potential. More people wanted to buy our syrup, so in 1982, we went into business.”

Demand snowballs: “When we couldn’t meet the demand, we began to buy from others. We filter and test the syrup for purity, and blend for taste. Our business has grown every year for twenty-five years. Now we wholesale to businesses right across  Nova Scotia.”

Climate change: “Maple trees produce the sap in response to the ‘swing’ in temperature between very cold nights and warmer days. This ‘swing’ affects the right kind of maple stands only in the Northeast-- Ontario, Quebec, the Maritimes, and New England. We’ve noticed global warming effects have reduced yield. To ensure our growth, we’ve diversified, selling BBQ sauces, blueberry jam, cranberry sauce, many other foods and gift items.”

The best life: “Every day brings new challenges to production. When you grow up working for yourself, you can’t imagine it any other way.”

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