Photo description:

Ruth Bonneville /Free Press 49.8 - INTERSECTION - Ideal Electric Photo of hanging lampshade patterns throughout the years. Photos of Michael Gruber, owner of Ideal Electric, along with various shots inside his long-standing business on Selkirk Ave.. What: This is for an Intersection piece on Ideal Electric, a lighting biz started by Michael's grandfather 100 years ago, out of a Main Street garage. Michael's father took over from his own dad, and Michael is presently the third-generation owner. Place is the land time forgot - there are new, in-box parts and pieces for lamps from before the Second World War. Big-box stores send customers there all the time for replacement parts, etc. saying if Ideal Electric doesn't have it, nobody will. They also specialize in custom-made lampshades to match lamps that have been in a family forever. Shots of Michael touring the building - it's a 7,000 square-foot-site encompassing two buildings on Selkirk, rather non-descript from the outside, but sprawling within. This is for the Sat Aug 31 Intersection - Dave Sanderson's story Aug 27th, 2024