Kamal Saab

When Kamal Saab left his native Lebanon, he never imagined that his journey would bring him to a small town on a Canadian island. But as an entrepreneur whose love of food and family drew him into the kitchen, perhaps it’s not surprising that he’d end up owning and operating Ladysmith’s Worldly Gourmet.

The kitchen supply store in a heritage building on Ladysmith’s 1st Avenue, which Saab runs with Therese, his wife of 35 years, stocks a vast assortment of kitchenware for both home cooks and professional chefs. The Saabs currently live in a spacious apartment they designed above the store, where the kitchen has become the heart of their home —a gathering place for their two daughters and nine grandchildren. 

Yet when Saab and his family landed in Toronto in 1990, in the aftermath of the Lebanese civil war, he says they arrived with only $40 in their pockets.

Starting over in Canada

Though Saab had graduated from hotel management school, and his career in hospitality management had taken him to Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Kuwait, finding a job in his new Canadian city wasn’t easy, an experience that many new immigrants share. He finally found work at Staples, the office supply company, as he recounts, “putting paper on the shelves.”

He steadily advanced during what became a 16-year career with the organization, moving into management. When the company sent him to Vancouver Island on a temporary assignment as part of the project team that was opening a new store, Saab was immediately drawn to the Island environment. 

With its mountains and beaches, “the Island felt to me like back home, like Lebanon,” he says. “So I called my wife and said ‘I’m not going back. I rented an apartment. Pack up the kids and come over.’” 

Therese and their daughters joined him on the Island, where he was able to continue his career with Staples—a career he was content with for several more years, until management wanted him to relocate again. “No, thank you,” he says he told his bosses, who asked him to move either to Vancouver or back to Toronto. “This is where my family is now, and this is where I want to be.”

Shopping the world

Kamal and Therese eventually decided they were ready to run their own business and began looking for opportunities. The Worldly Gourmet store had been operating in Ladysmith for about seven years when the Saabs learned in 2014 that the previous owner was ready to sell. The couple saw the potential to transform the small shop into a higher-end culinary destination.

It was fortunate, Saab says, that the previous owner had chosen the Worldly Gourmet name. “Our concept fit perfectly with the name of the store.” They bring things in from all over the world, focusing on mid-range to higher-end products, from paella pans to espresso makers. 

“We’re always on the lookout for new things,” he continues. He and Therese spend time every day searching out new ideas, different suppliers and unique products that aren’t readily available elsewhere in the region, whether it’s rolling pins from Holland or knives imported from France. 

They also enjoy consulting with their customers, advising them about ways to use particular products and even offering cooking advice. As avid cooks, both Kamal and Therese have personal experience with many of the supplies that they stock. For several years, they partnered with local chefs to offer cooking classes in the store as well.

Building a “his and hers” kitchen

When the Saabs were able to purchase the building that houses their store, they began redesigning the unit upstairs (previously home to a yoga studio and a massage therapy office) as their residence. They knew they wanted to centre the 2,500-square-foot space around the kitchen, creating a gathering place for the family with ample room for both Therese and Kamal to cook. 

They designed “his and hers” cooking stations with two stoves—one where Therese often prepares traditional Lebanese dishes, the other where Kamal cooks steaks or fish and experiments with sauces. They selected stainless steel appliances, drawers and pot racks, as well as a huge stainless steel sink, then opted to balance the industrial style with fir slabs on the fourteen-by-four-foot island where the Saabs’ grandchildren often gather.

The kitchen has become the place where they most enjoy spending time with their family. “We’re Lebanese, so we love food. We love people. And we love our family,” Saab insists. “We don’t want business to take over our life.”

After making their home in Ladysmith, the Saabs clearly draw strength from the relationships they have with their clients, too. “We feel fortunate to be in this community,” Kamal says. “Our customers, we call them friends.”