Business flowing for new water company

by Brent Cooper

Jul 04, 2007

Ken Inglis is hoping that the future of his new enterprise is as clear as the water he bottles.

The owner of The Springhill Freshwater Co. said that the first few weeks of his company have come off as per expectations.

“There is a lot of marketing that still needs to be done, but it has turned out pretty much as I thought it would,” he said.

The company began when Inglis first pursued his idea for a water bottling enterprise in north Muskoka back in 2001. He first attempted to purchase the Brunel Spring from the Town of Huntsville, but when that deal fell through about two years ago due to liability concerns, he turned his attention to finding another source. “We were able to find another aquifer last year that is much better (than the Brunel Springs) and we have no concerns,” he said. “This water is similar in some nature to the Brunel Springs but is a lot lower in terms of minerals and the minerals that are more desirable.”

The company opened its doors in late May after Inglis and production manager David Marshall finalized work on the bottling facility at 1555 Brunel Road. The 2,000 square-foot building took one year to complete and also serves as office and retail outlet for the company.

Marshall said business is picking up in the first month of operation. “Every day we have new customers. We are serving homes and offices, with about a 75 to 25 per cent split between the two,” he said.

The company is touting its product as all-natural pure spring water with no chemical treatment.

“We test our product in-house, as well as it goes to a lab in Orillia for bacterial testing,” Inglis said. “Other samples are sent to British Columbia once a year for source analysis and finished product. That identifies all the chemicals in the water.”

The product comes in four, 10 and 18.9-litre containers and is sold at the bottling facility and at PharmaSave in downtown Huntsville, as well as some small variety stores.

Inglis said he is very positive about his company’s future, adding that there may be a day when he has to hire more people to help him and Marshall. “We will see how it flows, so to speak,” he said.

For more information, call the Springhill Freshwater Co. at 789-8700 or via e-mail at springhillfreshwater@bellnet.ca.