But itâs been an extra sweet week at Canelakeâs Candies.
The iconic candy shop, in operation since 1905, has something new to add to its long history. Canelakeâs, on Tuesday, opened an expansion into the adjacent building, broadening its selection of merchandise and preserving its history â and that of the Virginia area â for generations to come.
The Canelake family spent more than a year renovating 416 Chestnut St., to increase retail space and establish a candy (and Iron Range) museum, said co-owner Pamela Canelake Matson.
Walls are adored with enlarged photographs depicting the shopâs transformations through the decades: An image of the 1900sâ storefront, complete with wooden sidewalks and bananas displayed in the window; second-generation candy makers, brothers John and Leo Canelake, posing in front of the shop in the 1960s; longtime candy dipper, Liona Forst, dipping chocolates at a table now used as a display in the expansion.
VIRGINIA âRyan Carlson, third-generation owner of Range Office Supply after the death in 2016 of his father Gary Carlson, believes he d be happy his son is carrying on the family business tradition. I know heâs smiling down on us. He loved downtown Virginia, he loved this area and he loved his employees. Iâm fortunate to be able to step in and keep the ball rolling, Carlson told the Mesabi Tribune.
And his father would be pleased his son is keeping up with the latest technology in office products and equipment. We are not the same business that we were 71 years ago when my Grandpa bought it, but we continue to offer the same things we did back then: personalized service, knowledge and a smile. The late Philip Carlson Sr. bought Burgher Williams Typewriter Co. on Chestnut Street in 1949 and named the new business Range Office Supply and Equipment Co., and he always put the customer first, Gary Carlson had said in a 2015 Mesabi Daily News story.