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We lived in the Arctic for 4 years. This experience exposed us to the difficulty of purchasing specific items. Bruce was a pilot with the RCMP and daily worked with shipping, crating and delivery schedules. Gerri taught art at Nunavut Arctic College and was a substitute teacher at schools in Iqaluit. After moving to Ottawa, Bruce retired and Gerri returned to Art.

The idea of a business grew when people from Nunavut requested we purchase and send items to Iqaluit. Orders increased, and I SHOP 4U was born.

I SHOP 4U understands the high cost of shipping by weight and volume. We charge by time for our services and time charged is always a consideration as our shipping service strives to keep your costs down.

Bruce and Gerri Mulley don't live in Iqaluit anymore,
but they can tell you what's on the shopping lists of
many people who do. Chickens. Definitely chickens.

Bruce and Gerri Mulley have been asked to shop
around for a lot of things. As the owners and operators
of I SHOP 4U, the Mulleys, a husband and wife living
in Ottawa, take orders from residents of Iqaluit, where
supplies are limited - and none-too-cheap. Then, the
Mulley's do what people living in Nunavut can only dream
of: they high-tail it to Ottawa megastores like Costco
and go on mad (but customized shopping sprees), the
results of which get shipped to their eager customers.
Usually this involves picking up groceries or clothes,
but the Mulleys make it clear they'll try to get their hands
on anything on a client's shopping list. That includes
what Bruce says is the weirdest thing anyone asked
for: living, breathing, clucking poultry.

"A woman asked us to buy live chickens for her so she could show her children where eggs came from," says Bruce. "We bought them, kept them overnight and then sent them out to be shipped the next morning." But that's just one of a bevy of weird requests that have come the Mulley's way. A high shcool in Iqaluit wanted 40 goldfish sent North so that each table at the school's graduation banquet could be equipped with a fish swimming in a wine glass. Another client asked to have an A&W meal for two just in time for Valentine's Day. The Mulleys took the burgers apart and separately wrapped each component - every pickle, paddy and bun - so the buns wouldn't get soggy.

These orders may cause Bruce and Gerri to chucle with bemusement, but with a rolling list of 500 Nunavummiut who use the Mulleys' southern shopping service on a regular basis, the cheerful middle-aged couple is well-aware of how important their company is. The Mulleys were, after all, also residents of Nunavut at one time. "We lived there from 1997 to 2001, says Bruce, who worked as an airplane pilot for the RCMP. "It was fabulous."

"But," interjects Gerri, "It also allowed us to see that there was a (void) that needed to be filled." so seven years ago, the Mulleys began their operation. Running I SHOP 4U largely out of their house, they relied on word of mouth to build their client base. Today, they are too busy to handle the company by themselves and employ three full-time workers. In the summer, they hire a few extra helpers to handle the increased demand that comes once the sea shipping lanes to the Eastern Arctic thaw out.

But the Mulley's hiring practices differ greatly from that of the average company: I SHOP 4U hires employees who struggle with mental health problems. For Buce and Gerri this mandate could not be more personal. They are not just entrepreneurs, they are also parents, and while their family lived in Nunavut, their son Christopher was diagnosed with schizophrenia.

They relocated to Canada's capital so that he could be closer to medical treatment and started their shopping company largely as a way of prividing Christopher with a job and a safe environment. It was a resounding success and it earned the Mulleys some attention from the local media. The word was out.

"We started getting phone calls from parents begging us to hire their children, and then it just clicked," says Gerri. From that point on I SHOP 4U was no longer just a business, it was also a place of healing. And the Mulley's couldn't be happier about it.

"We get to see (our workers) go on to bigger and better things," says Gerri, who beams at the memory of her former employees. She continues: "We had a young man with Asperger Syndrome. He worked for us and now he's working in Israel."

But I SHOP 4U is no charity; it's a business that demands a solid effort from all those who collect a paycheck. This according to Bruce, is not a drawback, but rather one of his company's greatest assests. "We try to structure the jobs around the strengths of the employees. Everyone has a niche. Going to work every day means that they are instilled with a sense of discipline. It provides them with an environment where they can build their self-esteem."

I SHOP 4U charges $45 per hour for its services. Each minute spent shopping and packing their customers' wish-lists-come-true is carefully indexed on their bill. "We show them how long it took to get in the car and drive to the store and then how long it took to locate and purchase all the items," says Gerri. Theis method of accounting allows consumers from Nunavut to identify with the people who are purchasing their goods for them. "They think to themselves, oh yeah, that's about how long it would take me to do all that," she confirms. And the kudos for the service far outweighs the consternation. "We honestly don't have any complaints. If we make a mistake, we fix it," says Bruce.

Robert Nevin is a nurse in Iqaluit who has lived in the North since 1988. He's been a client of I SHOP 4U for five years. And while you'd think he - like anyone else who's lived in the North long enough - would miss being able to try on a pair of shoes himself, you'd be wrong. "It allows me to be lazy," he says with a self-deprecating laugh. "They provide me with shopping lists from places like Loblaws and Costco. They handle the entire sea-lift operations to get the goods to Nunavut. Everything just gets done, done, done." The Mulley's personal experience in the North has given them an almost endless supply of empapthy for the clents they serve, he adds. "They're very patient. I might have an order that I know I should have got into to them at the beginning of May, but they don't get it until July, and it's still no problem."

Another advantage of I SHOP 4U? There's no requirement to order in bulk. "There were other servcies like this, (where) you used to have to buy things in case lots," says Nevin. But if you want some soy sauce to tide you over for the winter, I SHOP 4U lets you order just enought to keep your chicken-fried rice salty, he says. As far as his shopping lists are concerned, you'll find nothing as extravagant as chickens on them. Though he might ask the Mulleys to do an "IKEA run" for him, or pick up a specialty jar of tomato sauce, that's about as weird as Nevin's orders get. "I guess my shopping list is pretty boring compared to some people's," he admits.

While they're busy catering to whims of others, the Mulleys have desires of their own, namely, further expansion into other markets. "Every year (our business) grows," says Bruce. But like a lot of businessmen, he's hard to please. "We wouldn't mind supplying mines and construction companies, and we'd like to establish a shipping route on the western side from Edmonton to Yellowknife."

Until I SHOP 4U goes national, Bruce and Gerri Mulley will settle ffor a smaller-but-nonetheless important victory:
providing a quality service that people in Nunvut need. As Gerri says, "It's always a nice feeling to complete someone's list." END - Up Here Business Magazine Sept. 2011

2008 Royal Ottawa Hospital Inspiration Award Winners - Inspiration Awards Recipient Profiles

There's an old saying about dealing with adversity that "When life hands you lemons, make lemonade".

Well, Gerri and Bruce Mulley didn't just make lemonade, they made a store to sell the lemonade and then hired people living with a mental illness so they could enjoy the fruits of their labour too.

It all began when their son Christopher was diagnosed with schizophrenia. Like most parents, Gerri and Bruce would do just about anything for their child, but they not only supported Christopher i his time of need, they relocated the whold family from Nunavut to Ottawa so they could access the best treatment for their son.

Once here they faced a myriad of appointments, consultations, and difficult decisions. They found solace at the Royal Ottawa's Family Informations and Support Group, where they were quick to share their own experiences and information with other families dealing with mental health issues.

They found this network so invaluable that they, along with a few other family members from the Group, spearheaded a monthly self-help gathering, where families get together over a pot-luck meal to share friendship and lean on one another.

In Addition, Gerri and Bruce have responded positively time and time again to requests from clinicians at the Royal's Schizophrenia Program to speak formally to other families in crisis. Bruce is able to enhance these talks by drawing on his own experience with periodic bouts of depression.

The two social workers who nominated them for this award said "they always deliver meaningful, detailded, stigma-busting messages. Without exception, feedback from other struggling family members has validated the empowering gift of inspiration the Mulley's are to them."

But they did not stop there. Gerri and Bruce --imaginative, energetic and creative people that they are -- decided to turn their abrupt career changes into a business opportunity that would help thier son Christopher in his recovery and employ others living with mental illness too.

Hearing that Christopher's recovery would probably take five to 10 years, the Mulleys decided to create an endeavor Christopher could participate in rather than focusing solely on his illness.

They set up 'I SHOP 4U', a personal shopping service that largely serves the needs of people in their beloved Nunavut. Knowing how pricey the far north can be and still having strong ties to the territory they had to leave so suddenly, the Mulleys realized they could help northerners save money by purchasing goods for them here more cheaply and then send them by seal-lift.

The result was a remarkable win-win-win situation: a win for the Mulley's son Christopher, a win for the people of Nunavut, and a win for the four other people with mental health issues the Mulleys employed.

In an arcticle about their unusual buisiness published in the Ottawa Citizen, Bruce Mulley says, I think there is a message of hope that people with mental illness can recover with a little bit of help. If you provide just a bit of meaningful work, it can provide them with a source of pride... it helps them appreciate where they are in life and where they can go."

Gerri Mulley echoed her husband's positive outlook, saying "It's very fulfilling to provide a service to a community where people don't really have the outlet to get the things they need, plus we're providing work for people with special needs. It's a really awsome little venture."

So Gerri and Bruce, congratulations for having the courage to turn your lemons into lemonade, and the generosity to turn your lemonade stand into a place of hope and healing. End