CANORA - A 100-year run for a family business is something that’s rare to see.
But the Witwicki name and Canora Auto Electric have become well-known and relied upon in Canora and area for more than a century.
Andrew Witwicki, Al’s grandfather, was born in Poland in 1897. His parents immigrated to Winnipeg and he later moved to Canora in search of a new life.
Witwicki came to Canora in 1921 and started a small business repairing starters and generators. He hired Emil Parsons to help with the work at the beginning.
In order to build the business, Witwicki started with a few parts, loaded them up and headed out on several different routes, including east into Manitoba, selling what he had with him and taking orders as he went. Parts were ordered from Toronto and New York, and came COD (Cash On Delivery) by train. He would get enough money together from his trips to pay for some of the parts at the CN freight office.
They let him take what he could pay for and off he went again, usually driving a 1938 International panel truck on another route to drop off parts and take more orders.
“Andrew was known for smoking a big cigar and having a shot of Scotch or homebrew in the back for customers,” said Al. “He played piano and violin, he was a real musician.”
Andrew Witwicki established the business on Nov. 2. 1925 with his brother-in-law Andrew Rewucki. They acquired a Ford franchise, and sold and repaired all vehicles. The Ford dealership only lasted for six years. Although they were outselling most dealers in Saskatchewan, Ford pulled it.
Rewucki left for Winnipeg to start Eastern Chrysler in 1930. Andrew then acquired an Essex, Hudson, Oliver, and later an International dealership.
In addition to being a leader in the business community, Andrew was community-minded. In 1934, he was elected to town council and served on council for eight years until 1941. During that time, the new Canora Town Hall was built in 1938. The mayor at that time was James Parker. Al Witwicki still lives on Parker Crescent, which was named after that mayor.
An addition was built on to the original Canora Auto Electric building during the ’50s.
“Grandpa had a strong spirit, work ethic, and drive to make his vision for the business into a reality.”
He built a customer base from as far away as Hudson Bay, Yorkton, and even into Manitoba.
Al’s father Michael spent most of his time working for his father at the business while he was growing up, and officially became part owner in 1950.
“I remember going to Invermay on one of those sales trips with Grandpa when I was really young,” said Al.
In 1956, Andrew made the change to a VW van, the first one in Saskatchewan according to Al,, and used it until 1976 when it was sold.
In addition to stocking new parts, Canora Auto Electric became well known for having hard-to-find parts available from as far back as the 1940s.
The Canora Auto Electric building is presently at the same location as where it all started in the 1920s.
Al said he never seriously considered any other career, and worked for his father and grandfather through high school, graduating in 1970.
“I grew up in that place.”
The original Canora Auto Electric building went up in flames on Ukrainian Christmas Eve in Jan. 1970, when Al was in Grade 12.
Local firefighters battled the blaze in -30°C cold, but the building had to be torn down.
Al said this could have been the end of Canora Auto Electric, if not for the generosity of a fellow local businessman.
“The business was moved to the old bottling plant owned by Mert Ochitwa,” recalled Al. “He allowed us to use the building until we got a new one built.”
Canora Auto Electric moved into its current building in November 1970.
The business has had as many as nine employees at a time. In 1998, Mike’s sons Al and Charles assumed ownership of the business.
Over the years, the Witwicki family and their employees developed contacts all over Canada and the United States, making it easier to find parts that their customers were looking for.
“We have always taken pride in finding parts and services that were hard to find,” said Al.
One of the most important reasons behind their success is learning to deal with people.
“It’s give and take, just like being married,” said Al with a smile. “Keep smiling, you have to learn to accept people as they are. You can usually reason with people.”
Over a century of doing business, Al said they learned to evolve according to the changing needs of their customers and diversify their stock. For instance, in the 1970s it was necessary to have a large inventory of parts for those who rebuilt their own engines.
“When the need for engine parts slowed, the demand for things like shocks, water pumps, chassis parts, and filters grew,” recalled Al. “To diversify, snowmobile clothing was added and did well. Grinding flywheels was added to enhance services to customers. Other lines were added to broaden our stock. We liked sourcing parts that customers had not seen before.”
Al said meeting people has probably been his favourite part of the business.
“Spending time at Canora Auto Electric was always a great way to catch up on local news.”
Presently, he is going through the process of winding the business down. He has no definite plans for retirement, other than, “I’m looking forward to seeing what happens.”
Even so, Al said he is going to miss interacting with customers on a daily basis.
“We would like to thank everyone who has supported us over the years including customers, employees past and present, and my wife Deb.”
