Welcome to Shadowbox Custom Framing Gallery.
We are located in Mississauga’s Village on the lake; Port Credit, Ontario.
Established in 2012, the storefront gallery may be a new addition to the Port Credit landscape, but the owner is not. That’s me, Lance Boisvert; local businessman, entrepreneur, and self-proclaimed all-around nice guy. With over 19 years of experience in the custom picture framing industry and being a long standing resident and business owner in Port Credit, all of my work comes with a 100% satisfaction guarantee… and a smile.
I moved to Port Credit with my family in 1976 at the age of 10 and started grade 5 at Riverside Public School.
My parents managed Credit Village Square located at 150 Lakeshore Rd. W. and during that time my father, Lou Boisvert, a talented artist and photographer himself, opened up a retail store at the base of the building called ‘Mr. Photo’, which included custom picture framing. I guess it runs in the family.
As a teen, I attended Port Credit Secondary School, where I focused on art and business courses. Some of my fondest memories are of Port Credit High School… it was where I met many life-long friends, including the woman I fell in love with. After graduating P.C.S.S., I eventually went to work with my brother, Joe, at a very successful art and advertising company of his. This business took us to a variety of towns and cities throughout Ontario. As any outside sales rep can attest to, we spent a significant amount of time in coffee shops, and as always with entrepreneurs, we had a lot of discussions on how to create the best café possible. Thus, when the travelling finally took its toll on us, we decided that a coffee house was the business to be in.
So, we partnered together and opened ‘Higher Grounds Coffee House’ back home in Port Credit. Located on Lakeshore Road, just west of Hurontario Street, Higher Grounds was unlike anything in the area at the time and quickly became the place to get together with friends and family. Higher Grounds was often standing-room only… before and after the local pubs closed for the night.
It was during this time that I had many conversations with my good friend, Paul, about his profession as a custom picture framer. Well, once again my entrepreneurial spirit kicked in and together we opened Frame Magic a few doors down from the coffee shop. Together we created a reputation for quality and creativity which enabled us to grow the company into a small chain of stores which encompassed the surrounding towns of Streetsville and Oakville.
Neighbourhoods grow, as they are prone to do, and our shops eventually made way for new development and condominiums, and our ambitions made way for new careers. . ….and I became sidetracked by the exciting world of industrial chemical logistics for a half dozen years. But as the saying goes, ‘Once an entrepreneur, always an entrepreneur’, so not being able to remain behind a desk any longer, I came back to where my heart is… my passion for the arts and my love of Port Credit. I’m very excited to be embarking on this next chapter of my life, once again bringing a business to life which offers only the best quality products and personalized service.
