St. Gallen woman has lived in Canada for 20 years "We made mistakes and learned from them"
More than 20 years ago, the Stutz family from St. Gallen decided to make a new start in Canada. The father bought a winery and his children joined him. Separating family and business was not always easy.
No time? blue News summarizes for you
- Hanspeter Stutz bought a winery in Grand Pré in the Canadian province of Nova Scotia in 1993.
- Not only did he leave Switzerland, but his daughter Beatrice and his son Jürg also came with him - including his partner.
- Today, Grand Pré Wines not only includes a wide range of wines, but also a hotel and a restaurant.
- It was not always easy for the Stutz family to keep business and private life separate, as Beatrice recalls in an interview with blue News.
Around the turn of the 2000s, an entire family emigrated from Grabs in St. Gallen to Nova Scotia. "It was clear to me from the start that I was going - I had always liked Canada," says Beatrice Stutz (53) when blue News meets her at the emigrant family's vineyard in Grand Pré.
By the whole family, we mean that Hanspeter Stutz (77) turned his back on Switzerland together with his daughter Beatrice and son Jürg (54). Their partners also came along. Before the St. Gallen native bought the abandoned vineyard in Grand Pré in 1993, he asked Jürg, who was completing a commercial apprenticeship in Grabs, what he thought of the idea and whether he could imagine studying viticulture. Jürg said yes - and the family business was born.
It took a few years for the whole thing to take shape. In 2000, the Grand Pré winery finally opened its doors. Including the restaurant Le Caveau, which Beatrice runs. Since then, The Inn hotel has also been added.
"None of us knew exactly what we were doing at the beginning. Sometimes I look back and think it's amazing that everything worked out," recalls the trained chemist, who dreamed of running a restaurant one day from an early age.
Beatrice Stutz: "Friends and colleagues were missing at the beginning"
Jürg's wife Cäcilia now runs the wine store, takes care of marketing, does social media and is responsible for much more. She accompanied her husband on his new adventure in Canada, but could never have imagined emigrating in the past. "It was always clear to me that I would stay in Switzerland," says Cäcilia with a laugh.
But here they are now. A whole family far away from home. Beatrice no longer misses anything. "Of course I missed my friends and colleagues at the beginning, but you make new friends." The only thing she sometimes regrets is philosophizing about "the good old days". "Because they only started here in the year 2000."
Cäcilia Stutz is the wife of Beatrice's brother Jürg. She has also been in the wine business since the beginning.
Image: Edelweiss_Loren Bedeli
There is a large selection in the Grand Pré Wines wine store.
Image: Edelweiss_Loren Bedeli
According to Beatrice, Nova Scotia is still a very young wine region.
Image: Edelweiss_Loren Bedeli
Beatrice and Jürg's father, Hanspeter Stutz (photo below), bought the winery in Grand Pré in the Canadian province of Nova Scotia in 1993.
Image: zVg
The Grand Pré winery opened its doors in 2000. In the photo: Beatrice together with her brother Jürg.
Image: zVg
Beatrice grew up in the canton of St. Gallen.
Image: zVg
The family business concept also includes a restaurant, Le Caveau. Even as a little girl, Beatrice dreamed of running a restaurant one day.
Image: Edelweiss_Loren Bedeli
A picture of the restaurant as it looked at the beginning.
Image: zVg
Today, creative dishes are conjured up in the kitchen using local ingredients.
Image: Edelweiss_Loren Bedeli
Initially, Beatrice tried Swiss dishes such as rösti and Züri Geschnetzeltes, but that didn't quite work out.
Image: Edelweiss_Loren Bedeli
In autumn, the winery is a dream.
Image: Edelweiss_Loren Bedeli
Hotel The Inn was added in 2021.
Image: Edelweiss_Loren Bedeli
Hanspeter Stutz previously lived in the house.
Image: Edelweiss_Loren Bedeli
The property hasn't changed much compared to the past, but it has undergone some changes. Here is a photo from the early days, when the family came to Canada.
Image: zVg
A pergola has also been added, which provides a nice seating area outside on warm days.
Image: zVg
Nova Scotia is simply "so beautiful", enthuses Beatrice Stutz.
Image: Edelweiss_Loren Bedeli
Cäcilia Stutz is the wife of Beatrice's brother Jürg. She has also been in the wine business since the beginning.
Image: Edelweiss_Loren Bedeli
There is a large selection in the Grand Pré Wines wine store.
Image: Edelweiss_Loren Bedeli
According to Beatrice, Nova Scotia is still a very young wine region.
Image: Edelweiss_Loren Bedeli
Beatrice and Jürg's father, Hanspeter Stutz (photo below), bought the winery in Grand Pré in the Canadian province of Nova Scotia in 1993.
Image: zVg
The Grand Pré winery opened its doors in 2000. In the photo: Beatrice together with her brother Jürg.
Image: zVg
Beatrice grew up in the canton of St. Gallen.
Image: zVg
The family business concept also includes a restaurant, Le Caveau. Even as a little girl, Beatrice dreamed of running a restaurant one day.
Image: Edelweiss_Loren Bedeli
A picture of the restaurant as it looked at the beginning.
Image: zVg
Today, creative dishes are conjured up in the kitchen using local ingredients.
Image: Edelweiss_Loren Bedeli
Initially, Beatrice tried Swiss dishes such as rösti and Züri Geschnetzeltes, but that didn't quite work out.
Image: Edelweiss_Loren Bedeli
In autumn, the winery is a dream.
Image: Edelweiss_Loren Bedeli
Hotel The Inn was added in 2021.
Image: Edelweiss_Loren Bedeli
Hanspeter Stutz previously lived in the house.
Image: Edelweiss_Loren Bedeli
The property hasn't changed much compared to the past, but it has undergone some changes. Here is a photo from the early days, when the family came to Canada.
Image: zVg
A pergola has also been added, which provides a nice seating area outside on warm days.
Image: zVg
Nova Scotia is simply "so beautiful", enthuses Beatrice Stutz.
Image: Edelweiss_Loren Bedeli
2000 was the year in which she finally packed her bags and emigrated with her then husband, a chef from Switzerland.
However, the first marriage broke up. "It wasn't easy for him, in the end we didn't have the same goals and his path led him back to Switzerland."
Her new husband, whom Beatrice married in 2014, met her in her new home country. "Yes, he's Canadian, and yes, he's a chef," adds the 53-year-old with a smile.
A new start in Canada
Beatrice and Jürg's mother did not live to see the start of their new home. She died one day before the siblings' birthday, who were both born a year apart on the same day, in 1992 at the age of just 45.
"I think my father was ready for a new start after that," says Beatrice in a low voice. She becomes thoughtful and remembers the early days in Canada.
It wasn't always easy, and of course the language was a hurdle at first. However, she had already learned English at a young age during a language study trip to San Diego, USA. "I just needed a refresher and I had to learn all the technical terms first."
If she were to do it all over again, Beatrice would like to have someone at her side who comes from the country and could give her helpful tips from a business perspective. "We simply did everything the way we thought it should be done. And in the end it worked out. We made mistakes, learned from them and eventually found the people who helped us," reflects the St. Gallen native.
The challenge in a new country is to find out how this unknown place works. "Just because something is done this way in Switzerland doesn't mean it works the same elsewhere," explains Beatrice.
If you want to emigrate, you have to be brave and open, not complain and be aware of what you're getting yourself into. "If you don't do your homework, you have to learn the hard way." Beatrice laughs and adds that it's the same with everything.
Family business wasn't always easy
Nova Scotia has become Beatrice's new home and she has been here for a long time because it is simply "so beautiful". Sure, there were moments when she wanted to throw in the towel - business-wise - but returning home? "Never!"
"When you start a business as a family, it presents you with huge challenges. Meetings often get emotional, you simply argue more quickly with your brother than with a stranger."
Sometimes she regrets having set up a business with the whole family, because in all the important decisions concerning the business, the family would sometimes take a back seat and get lost. "It's just incredibly difficult to separate private life and work."
The Nova Scotia wine region is still relatively young
Grand Pré Wines will be celebrating its 25th anniversary next June. A reason to celebrate, as Beatrice points out. "And as if we had agreed, Edelweiss will be flying to Halifax from summer 2025, bringing more Swiss people to the region," says the expatriate happily.
Why is Nova Scotia worth a visit? A smile spreads across Beatrice's face and you can immediately see how passionate she is about her Canadian home. "Oh, there are so many reasons. The beautiful nature, of course - and the wine region is still relatively young compared to all the wine regions with their ancient history. It offers so many opportunities."
Above all, however, she also likes the fact that the Canadian province is still a little behind the times, everything is still a little slower here. Beatrice says: "In Switzerland, everything is developed, everything happens so quickly, it's perfect and beautiful, but here everything is a little more pristine. And we are surrounded by the sea, the landscapes are simply unique." For hiking, seafood or wildlife spotting - such as bald eagle spotting - Nova Scotia is just right.
Even if it wasn't always easy for the Stutz family, in the end everyone found their place in the family business. "Each of us has a certain responsibility."
Time will tell whether one of Beatrice's three sons or Cäcilia's two boys will one day follow in their parents' footsteps.
