Mary's Corner Store reopens in Bowness

More than three years after the Calgary floods, a small but beloved corner store in Bownesshas reopened its doors.

Mary's Corner Store has stood on Bowness Road by 60th Streetsince the 1940s, but was demolished in 2014 after suffering major flood damage, like many other businesses and homes in the area.

But on Thursday morning, the cash register was ringingaway asfamiliar faces andcustomers milled about the store, chatting as they picked over the offerings.

"I'm happy. I like to hear that sound," owner Jade Tea told CBC's The Homestretch.

"My customers so happy they heard I'm opening. They always come in to here, and they hug me. That's why I feel so happy," she said.

'I do it for you'

The building had to be demolished in 2014, but Tea knew she wasn't ready to close her doors forever. She spoke with her husband about what they could do to keep their business alive.

"He told me that, okay, he would build a new one for me. 'Ido it for you, if you want. We'll both work together,'" Tea recounted.

He's since passed away, but Tea saidshe manages just fine with the help of all her sons.

Tea has owned the store for just over eight years, and its reopening onSept. 8 in the same location is no coincidence.

The number eight is viewed as a particularly lucky number in Chinese culture because it sounds like the word for "wealth" or "prosper."

Tea isn't sure what impact,ifany, that might have on her business, but she thinks she's off to a good start.

"I feel like it's luckybecauseI saw all my customers so happy," she said.

With files from The Homestretch