We are a family of five living on Cortes Island on the west coast of Canada. In addition to running Gathering Place Trading, we are also organic growers and homesteaders on 22 acres of land. We share this land with three other families in a small community and grow most of our food.
”We've aligned our business practices to fit our life and are proud to say we walk the talk - something our customers really love.

Our story begins fifteen years ago in South Africa
Out for an afternoon jaunt through the countryside in our vintage VW camper van, we got lost and stopped to ask directions. Fate had placed us at the doorstep of the most highly respected Rooibos tea farmers in the region (although we didn’t know that yet!).
We were organic farmers in Canada, and were delighted to stumble upon an organic farm. Directions turned into an offer of tea and being treated to the best cup of tea ever! We found out that the farmers, Frans and Gerda, used special techniques that ensured their Rooibos was of the highest quality. They harvested by hand, fermented in small batches, and then sun dried it. And they’d been doing it this way for the last 50 years!
It didn’t take long for an idea to hatch. What if we tried to sell this incredible tea back home? We offered to import their tea to Canada and they happily accepted. On one condition: they wanted to trade a ton of their tea for our VW camper van (that unbeknownst to us, Frans and Gerda had fallen in love with!).
As our children have grown so has our business!
We’ve added spices, salt, dried fruit, and olives to our list of imports – over 70 tonnes per year in total.
Our three home-schooled kids have always been actively involved in the family business, helping us make decisions and travelling with us to get to know our farmers in other parts of the world. We love working together on our little piece of island, planting, harvesting, preserving, and eating the food we grow.
At Gathering Place Trading, we donate 1% of our profits.
Projects are hand-selected based on need and impact, with our gifts most often supporting the empowerment of girls and women around the world.