Riff’s is located on 2 Hardy Avenue in Grand Falls-Windsor across from the Exploits Valley Mall. The first store was opened by Mr. James Riff in May 1939 on Main Street, Windsor. It was called The Windsor Style Shoppe. Riff’s just celebrated its 67th anniversary. Mr. Riff’s aim was to always provide to his customers quality, service, and lower prices. He used to make regular buying trips to Montreal, Toronto, and New York to buy directly from the manufacturers so he could charge less for the merchandise. He even opened an office in Montreal in 1949 so that he could get the latest fashions at the lowest prices. Although a lot has changed since Mr. Riff started his business 67 years ago, Riff’s still continues to provide quality, service, and lower prices to its customers. Mr. Riff passed away in 1971, and his two sons, Donald and Ivar, took over the business.
Riff’s sells dry goods. This means they sell things like clothing and shoes for adults and children. They also sell some toys and household things like pots and pans, towels, and pillows. Riff’s now has 26 dry goods stores in Newfoundland and Labrador, and four dry goods stores in Nova Scotia. They also have four furniture stores. One of the furniture stores is located on Main Street in Grand Falls-Windsor where the first Riff’s store was located in 1939.
Ms. Warr told us that when she was a little girl growing up in our town one of her favourite places was Riff’s. She can remember standing for hours watching TV with her brothers and sisters and her friends in front of Riff’s windows on Main Street. When televisions were first introduced to Newfoundland in the 1950s, Riff’s had a television set turned on in one of its big display windows. She would stare for hours at this new invention until her parents bought their first television set. Her favourite show was Maggie Mullins.
Riff’s in Grand Falls-Windsor has 20 to 25 part-time and full-time employees. My nan, Jane Oldford, worked at Riff’s for 32 years. She worked in the Ladies Department and she retired in 2002. She went to Riff's with me and my four classmates to get pictures for my report, and she gave us treats. Thank you, Nan!
Mariah Strickland (2005-2006)