Pomona Raw Fusion Smoothie Bar is making its way to Area 506 this summer, with a spot in the Container Village.
This will be the second location for the fresh fruit-inspired business since opening in Bouctouche three years ago, following a successful stint at the local farmer’s market.
“It’s the perfect place for us,” says owner Melanie Doucet. “It’s such a great atmosphere. It’s exactly what we are; happy, vibrant.”
She says when she heard the call for new vendors at the Container Village, it was an easy decision to throw her hat into the ring.
“We want to be able to bring [Pomona] to as many people as possible. And Saint John was just the obvious next step,” she says. “It’s a larger city. It’s next to the port, which will bring in tourists from all over the world. So yeah, it was a no-brainer.”
When it comes to knowing what tourists want on a hot summer day, Pomona Raw Fusion has its bases covered. The smoothie business has found success appealing to the beach communities in the Bouchtouche area, which includes the spectacular white sands of the Dune de Bouctouche.
Pomona offers an alternative to the usual beach fare of ice cream and popsicles, with fruit-based smoothies and smoothie bowls.
“We have people that drive from Halifax. We have people that drive from Fredericton, from Moncton, just to have our smoothie bowls,” Doucet says.
The customizable bowls feature a smoothie base, anything from berries and bananas to chocolate and espresso, with toppings like granola, hemp seeds, pineapple, and homemade chocolate drizzle.
It’s a great treat for wandering around Uptown Saint John, or for enjoying a farmer’s market which is exactly where Pomona Raw Fusion got its start. Well almost exactly.
“It’s a really funny story,” Doucet says of how Pomona got it started. “I have a son, at the time he was seven or eight …and he used to do lemonade stands when my mother would do yard sales.”
“He was such a cute little kid, no one could resist buying a lemonade. He would make like $40 to $50, per yard sale, just selling lemonade!”
He had ambitions to do even better so Doucet suggested he look into selling at the local farmer’s market in Bouctouche.
“He didn’t last very long because it was very exhausting. We were very, very busy. I found him sleeping in the car after our first shift,” she laughs.
Concerned that lemonade alone wouldn’t be enough to support the stand, Doucet decided to add a few smoothies to the mix, providing a vegan snacking option for farmer’s market patrons.
“We started with three smoothies, and it just expanded from there because people wanted more. By the second year, we had our first smoothie bowl. And by our third year, we had our own storefront.”
Despite the success she’s had with the business so far, Doucet is taking a conservative approach to the Container Village, starting out with a half-container storefront by the fabled Graffiti Alley for her first season, and seeing how things go from there.
“I think the most exciting aspect for me and the business is the growth,” she says. “I had a plan when I opened our shop three years ago … that within the first five years I wanted to have a second location. And here I am opening my second location three years in.”
“It’s very exciting for us to be able to grow our business and to see that there is a demand for smoothies, a healthier food option.”
Alex Graham is a Reporter for Huddle Today in Saint John, a content-sharing partner of Acadia Broadcasting.
