Not everyone would start a new business venture in the midst of a pandemic, but that’s exactly what Mila Truong has done.
On July 11, she officially opened Mila’s Variety at 1254 Killarney Beach Rd., in the Innisfil village of Lefroy.
Mila’s Variety includes a mini-convenience store, with candy bars, instant noodle soups, chips and cold drinks, but also a snack bar, where Truong serves up everything from coffee and French fries, to chicken wings, chicken nuggets, barbecue pork ribs, pizza and crispy spring rolls.
She makes the spring rolls herself, as well as the pizza, which is made fresh to order.
“It takes approximately 25 minutes,” Truong says, which is why she suggests calling ahead to avoid a long wait.
There’s no dining in at the moment. Instead, the interior is set up to allow customers to wait for their orders in comfort while social distancing, separated by plastic screens.
A patio area has been set up outside, where customers can sit and eat, protected from the rain and the sun by umbrellas.
It has been “very difficult” to open during COVID-19, Truong admits, which is one reason why Mila’s Variety is starting small with a limited stock and menu in the small space.
“We’re trying,” she says. “We can’t be sitting at home. We need work.”
Right now, the store is more focused on customer safety than “variety," which is why there’s one additional item for sale on Truong's shelves: cloth face masks, manufactured by Vietnam Centre Inc.
“It’s my own company, factory in Vietnam,” Truong explains.
For the past two months, the factory has been making the cloth masks.
"It was my idea to do that,” she says.
To date, the company has produced 2,500 of the masks, which are comfortable, water-repellent, washable, breathable, and constructed of three layers of fabric, including a filter.
The company has also been making easy-to-wear face shields.
Truong sells the masks at her store for $2 apiece, but she has done far more than that. She has been giving them away free of charge to help keep her neighbours safe and protected during the pandemic, and also to assist front-line workers at local retirement homes like Lakeside Retirement Residence in Alcona, long-term care homes and churches.
So far, she has given away hundreds of face masks and at least 20 of the face shields. On Tuesday, she sent a donation of 100 of face masks to the Innisfil Community Church to be handed out to volunteers and anyone in need.
“I give, give, give — to everybody,” Mila says.
The heart logo on each mask and shield is symbolic.
“The heart is my heart. I love everybody,” she says. “I put my heart here.”
Mila’s Variety is still a work in progress, but right now is open for business from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. daily, closed on Tuesdays.
For more information or to order a pizza, call 705-290-0297 or email [email protected]. For information about the masks, email [email protected].
There was one disappointment, though: Mila’s Variety doesn't offer ice cream.
Since Truong is starting small, the needed equipment and freezers are just too expensive, she says, at a time when the summer season has already been shortened and everything is so uncertain due to COVID-19 and the possibility of new shutdowns.
“Next year,” Truong promises.
