One Stop Framing and Gallery has won Edmonton’s Consumer Choice Awards multiple years running. “We’re pretty pumped about that,” exclaims owner Lila Phillips. Lila’s been running the business since 1988, and originally started by selling ready-made art and Mylar frames. But when customers kept asking for custom framing, she realized the value in the new direction. Custom framing slowly became the majority of Lila’s business, and in 1998, the store doubled in size and added a full gallery.
In the years she’s been running the business, Lila has framed some pretty eclectic things. She once made a display for a massive reindeer hide. “The customer wanted to be able to open it and feel it, so we made a jersey box with a hinge and magnet,” she explains. Another customer framed her father’s cowboy outfit – chaps and all. But when asked what touches her the most, Lila replies, “When we do medals for war veterans. They’re getting their grandfather’s or their father’s medals framed. You put a picture of them in it, and it’s the most memorable.”