An independent café in Cold Lake has closed after its proprietor says customers stopped coming following an event connected to a push for Alberta to leave Canada. The owner, John Ewanek, says his business was already under pressure from rising costs, and the fallout from the gathering pushed it past a breaking point.
What happened at the café
The business, called Beantrees, hosted an event earlier this year for a group collecting signatures on a petition seeking a referendum on whether Alberta should separate from Canada. According to the owner, patrons who disagreed with the political stance stopped visiting the café in the weeks that followed, intensifying financial strain tied to inflation.
Political backdrop
Last week, Elections Alberta confirmed the petition by the group Stay Free Alberta was successful. Alberta Premier Danielle Smith has pointed to that petition — and to a competing pro-Canada petition — as the reason she placed a separation question on a province-wide referendum set for Oct. 19.
The combination of a polarizing public debate and the broader economic squeeze from higher prices left the café with fewer customers, the owner said, and he ultimately chose to shutter the operation.
Small businesses on the front lines
This case highlights how national and provincial political movements can have direct commercial consequences for small, locally focused businesses. Owners who permit political meetings or otherwise become associated with a cause risk alienating segments of their clientele, particularly when debates are as divisive as a proposal to leave the federation.
- Business: Beantrees, Cold Lake café (owner: John Ewanek).
- Cause of strain: Inflation, followed by loss of customers after separatist petition event.
- Political context: Stay Free Alberta petition ruled successful by Elections Alberta; premier cited petitions in moving a referendum to Oct. 19.
| Item | Detail |
|---|---|
| Business name | Beantrees |
| Location | Cold Lake, Alberta |
| Owner | John Ewanek |
| Political group | Stay Free Alberta |
| Referendum date | Oct. 19 |
For many independent outlets, margins were already tight before this episode. The owner of Beantrees said inflation had been eroding profitability; after the petition event, he estimated that a portion of his regular customers chose to take their business elsewhere. That decline proved decisive in his decision to close.
Broader implications
The closure underscores broader questions about how businesses navigate civic life. Some proprietors avoid hosting public events or taking public stances to preserve customer neutrality; others view their space as a community hub and accept the political risk. Either path carries consequences when the political temperature rises.
While the Beantrees case is one example, it raises issues for policymakers and business organisations about how to support small companies caught in political crossfire — particularly at a time when many are still contending with inflationary cost pressures. The referendum campaign itself, now set for Oct. 19, may amplify such tensions as proponents and opponents make their case across communities and local venues.
There was no immediate public statement from provincial officials about the specific café closure. The facts made public so far link the business's decline to a combination of economic strain and an adverse customer reaction after hosting the petition event tied to the separation debate.
As Alberta moves toward the referendum this fall, observers will be watching how political mobilisation affects local economies, and whether similar incidents prompt new conversations about the role of commercial spaces in democratic engagement.
