Looking back to how and why Quest began, I really know I made all the right decisions. I was working in your typical workplace with disgruntled coworkers and I came to the conclusion that there has to be more to the work I enjoy doing. You could say that when I quit that job, there was a bit of ‘flight or fight’ instinct going on; I was driven, you could also say. Charmaine had saved $1200 through tutoring, which allowed us to scour The Bargain Hunter and newspaper ads for second-hand tools. That’s really how the business was born. At first, I installed kitchens for other companies. I remember hauling tools in bins up three flights of stairs to our apartment on Windmill Road in Dart- mouth on many a late night. Once we saved enough funds, the venture that is Quest Kitchens officially began when I rented my own commercial spot – my own cabinet shop. To say that I was generous with my time and effort in the early days would be an understatement, but to say that I minded a minute of it would be wrong. We eventually found ourselves in a position to buy a homestead in Elmsdale from the 1940s formerly owned by a local furniture-making family, the Gilby’s, who had really made a name for them-
selves there.
“I’m always educating myself to improve my craft.” As for the name Quest Kitchens, I have my close friend John to thank for that – he’s really the author on that one. John was a renowned restaurant owner in the 1980s. He later moved on to flipping properties and had a celebrat- ed career as a successful landlord to well-kept buildings in the Halifax area. He hired me for a kitchen reconstruction job in the early 2000s, and that’s how our friendship began. When our first born, Mccabe, came along, John became an important role model. We really had a special kinship and he really became a part of our family. John unfortunately lost his battle with cancer a year ago, it’s a deep loss we feel in our hearts and he is missed every day. As John and I had many conversations about life’s circles. He was always sharing progressive advice on every topic with me. As a family, we decided to dedicate our homestead in honour of
“There are no middle-people when you’re dealing with us. The personal attributes and full-concentrated commitment is a great recipe for trust in this business. People want to be in the know every step of the way and we provide that.”
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