The only shop inside Spectra Place opened last week, with a perfect view of the ice surface that sits below.

Owners of Excessive Sports, Chris and Judy Istace, said there is a balance to be struck in a store that sits in a community building that includes a swimming pool, gym, hockey rink and running path. That's a balance between merchandise of convenience, or a lower-end product that people don't mind picking up if they forget something, and all the higher-end product for the "athlete."

"We want to really make sure we have the product for the athlete, something that specializes to their market and what they do," said Chris, adding that, "The store isn't (always) the destination, (Spectra Place) is the destination. You're working with that."

Tenders went out a couple of years ago for bids to be placed on a store. The Istaces' vision for what Spectra Place could use was ultimately selected and has now been brought to life.

Having a diverse range of sports equipment available in the community is growing more necessary as water sports, football and others grow in ubiquity.

"It's great to see the kids who got football going," said Chris. "I couldn't believe, when we first moved here there was no football. It's awesome to see that. Soccer's growing exponentially. With lacrosse and the broomball, there's so much going on."

He added that it's important to support those sports, making sure people have local access to the equipment needed to enjoy those pastimes. That support isn't just about providing the goods, but also supporting the programs themselves.

"Every sports organization, everybody who comes through our doors, we support. Anybody who needs a donation of any kind, we've never said no."

Both Chris and Judy agree, that is a business philosophy they share.

"You're nothing, absolutely nothing without the people who walk in the door. That's what matters," he said. "I like the idea of people who come in the door and feel like it's their store."

"It's like the Cheers philosophy," said Judy. "They love coming in and everybody knows their name."

The shop was originally scheduled to move in and open up in February, and while the delay and uncertain opening time meant there were some issues with ordering product, small orders were placed in the absence of a structured timeline. They have also been canvassing what people want from the store, as the two owners don't want to tell people what they need.

Fulfilling a local need keeps money within the community.

The Istaces are also working on an agreement with the Estevan Bruins junior A team to be their official licensed products vendor.

"We're going to be selling all of their apparel during the games," said Chris. "They've also never had the opportunity to sell their product outside of the game, but it'll be here (all the time). That's a major part of a team. Your logo. Your identity. You want your identity in the community."

The couple has owned a store for nearly decade in town and will continue to operate it in conjunction with Excessive.

Chris said, "It seems to be in all the brand new facilities, there's an outlet. So five years ago, when the rink was being designed, they incorporated that. That was the intention ... to have something along those lines."

Being in business locally for so many years, Chris said they had an idea of what Estevan still needed, and Judy submitted all the paper work for their proposal. Chris said it was thanks to their experience in the community that they had the best plan in town.