Municipality of Argyle

When Brenda LaGrandeur became the Municipality of Argyle's first Tourism Development Officer she decided to reinvent herself as a tourist. Although she was born and raised in the area, she had been away for 20 years and this was the perfect opportunity to get reacquainted with what the area had to offer tourists. 

"I sat in every restaurant, I talked to the owners of every B&B, I took every tour, and I went through every museum," she says. "It was a full and wonderful experience and it gave me a great working relationship with people in the community."
 
With the responsibility of  bringing the community together to develop a tourism plan, getting to know everyone was important. What she learned early on was people were frustrated by a lack of cohesion. "There just wasn't a sense that people were working together to draw tourists into the region," she says. "Primarily because there was no organizing body to bring together all that our region has to offer."
 
In addition to its bustling fishing industry, the region, located in southwest Nova Scotia, is chock-full of interesting and diverse attractions, such as the oldest courthouse and jail in Canada, a sport tuna fishing museum, and an annual Tern Festival for birdwatchers. But according to LaGrandeur, the region just wasn’t getting the exposure it needed to promote its diverse attractions. "We wanted to let people know that our part of the world had more to offer than just lobster."
 
The provincial government’s re-organization of Nova Scotia's scenic travelways has certainly helped the cause and provided the region with more exposure. The entire southwest region, encompassing the Municipalities of Argyle, Yarmouth, Clare, and the Town of Yarmouth, is now known as "Yarmouth and Acadian Shores."
 
"It opened up a whole new world of possibilities," says LaGrandeur. "We began to think about our communities as a cohesive region and what we could accomplish together." To that end, she and her colleagues initiated a "Total Market Readiness" project.
 
Experts in the fields of accommodations, restaurants, and attractions, worked one-on-one with business owners to assess how effectively their businesses were operating. There were also networking events where restaurant owners, hotel managers, and event planners came together to share information and discuss future plans. "People responded really well and learned a lot," says LaGrandeur. "For many of the tourism operators attending, this was the first time they'd been in the same room with each other. It was very beneficial."
 
For Aldric d'Entremont, Warden of the Municipality of Argyle for nearly a decade, the region has always been alive with exciting activities. "There's always something going on," says the 68-year-old who is nowhere close to retirement. "Between festivals and lobster boils and live music, there isn't a dull moment!" As a previous business owner of a family hardware store in Middle West Pubnico for 22 years—seeing business drawn to the region, such as the province's largest wind farm, is very gratifying. And as one of approximately 5,000 Acadians in the Municipality of Argyle, he's delighted by the merging of the area's Acadian attractions.
 
According to LaGrandeur, this has been one of the main benefits of the new Yarmouth and Acadian Shores designation—the ability to share resources, energy, and funding. Working together, the area is now attracts those tourists specifically interested in the Acadian culture and way of life. One of these events is the internationally-acclaimed Acadian Music Festival.
 
In fact, birthing this popular event was one of LaGrandeur's first tasks as Tourism Development Officer. "There were four separate Acadian music festivals in our region, but each one basically served its own community and didn't really draw tourists." Now, the festival has its own artistic director, a marketing fund, a website, and attracts big names.
 
Recently, Joel Plaskett played Argyle for Nova Scotia Music Week. With the opening of a 300-seat event venue in the summer of 2010, LeGrandeur thinks this is just the beginning. "It's extremely exciting for the region," she says, noting this theatre will also house an art gallery, a daycare, and will be attached to a grade school. "This is a massive boost to the arts and culture scene in our region."
 
Also joining forces are the fishing and restaurant industries. Together they have created a popular initiative called "Savour the Local Sea." Fresh caught seafood, paired with local recipes, teach tourists about the region's seafood, while giving them an exquisite culinary experience to take home.
 
"Sometimes it takes someone from away to teach you just how wonderful your birthplace is," says LaGrandeur. She cites that National Geographic has chosen local Trout Point Lodge as one of their "Top Ten Must See" locations and the TV show "Dime Store Fisherman" filmed two episodes in the region. "Visitors are captured by the beauty of what we take for granted every day."
 
For both d'Entremont and LaGrandeur, they would never choose to live anywhere else. "Not only is it beautiful, but the sense of community is without compare," says LaGrandeur. "I'm so grateful and proud that more people are enjoying the warmth and hospitality our region has to offer."