There was a significant event this morning in Austin, just west of Portage la Prairie.

The new, larger location of Phil's Fine Foods held its grand opening in a new building on 2nd Avenue, after being known as Phil's Corner Store, just next door.

It's operated by Phil Dyck and Lisa McNally, and McNally says it's been a long road.

Lisa McNally and Phil Dyck"We've been talking about this for...it's got to be about three years, or more," she says, "And we're finally here, and it feels good. It hasn't been easy, but we are happy to be here, and I'm just glad the customers like it. Ultimately, at the end of the day, if the customers like it, I'm happy.

McNally realizes it isn't something that happens often in smaller communities.

"I shop for groceries, too," she says, "When I first moved here, I found myself going into Portage, or going into Brandon. And it's a long way to go, for someone in a rural area, and it's not convenient. And in our day to day lives, we're busy people, so for us to have everything you need here, it's very convenient."

Municipality of North Norfolk Ward 3 Councillor Bill Warren adds it's expansion, which is exciting for the region.

Bill Warren

"This is some that indicates the dedication and the commitment to people who live in this area," he says, "We've actually grown since the last Canada census. We've actually had an increase of 8 to 100 people in our municipality, which is wonderful, so this is just another indication of how many people really do feel committed to living here."

Another view of Phil's Fine Foods