A long-running perfume business in Wolseley may be forced to close its doors over a city bylaw on home-based businesses. Michael O’Malley has been running La Parfumerie out of his home on Evanson Street for nearly 30 years. “Artisanal home-based businesses doing retail is a wonderful thing for the community,” he said. “La Parfumerie is a beautiful example of sustainability and the possibilities for artists to earn a modest livelihood just doing their art.” But now, O’Malley is worried his decades-long legacy will come to an abrupt end. “The City of Winnipeg, for the second time, wants to just shut me down. It’s just crazy, crazy, crazy, crazy.” He said the city has ordered him to close his doors by Nov. 10, citing a by-law banning retail sales in home-based businesses. O’Malley said he’s been given two options: rezone his home to a commercial business—which would cost him around $50,000 in permits and renovations—or he can cut out walk-in customers. “Which effectively puts me out of business,” he said. In a statement to CTV News, a city spokesperson said businesses can apply for conditional use approvals allowing them to serve customers or clients in-home on a small scale. The city noted these approvals do not permit retail sales and generally limit business to appointment only. “These rules are in place to balance the ability of small businesses to operate in residential areas without unduly impacting their community,” the city spokesperson said in an email to CTV News. “They are also in place to ensure accessibility and fire code requirements are followed.” Briana Solberg with the Canadian Federation of Independent Business said this situation is an example of red tape impacting small businesses. “The regulation itself may make sense, but it doesn’t make sense to apply it as a blanket over businesses that have existed in the community and no one in the community seems to have a problem with for years,” she said. Solberg would like to see an exemption made. “This business has been operating since 1999, so I don’t see the risk in allowing them to continue,” she said. O’Malley said this is not the first time the city has tried to close his shop. Back in 2015, he faced the same situation but was granted a 10-year conditional use approval. The city said this approval allowed him to operate as “a small-scale art crafter providing a personal service on the premises.” The city said it did not authorize retail sales and noted the conditional use approval expired last year. Now, O’Malley is hoping to rally community support. “I’m fighting back. I don’t know what’s going to happen,” he said. ‘“If nothing changes, I lose my job on November 10th.” He’s launched a petition to save La Parfumerie, gathering just over 1,600 signatures as of Tuesday.
