P.E.I. business creating iron heart sculpture to welcome back tourists

A Prince Edward Island business is hoping to welcome back tourists this summer with an almost two-metre tall iron sculpture of the letters P.E.I. and a giant heart.  

Malpeque Fine Iron Products is still building the sculpture, but Dianne Schurman, co-owner of the business, hopes for it to be done before the end of summer. 

"People are ready to get moving after COVID and we just want people to be able to come, take some pictures, make some happy memories," said Schurman in an interview with Island Morning's Stephanie Kelly.

"The way social media is now, everybody is looking for photo-ops to capture their memories of where they've been and what they've done on vacation."

Schurman said the sculpture will be located on the business's property in Summerside. Each letter will be 1.8 metres tall, and the iron heart will be a little shorter. 

"We just want people to be happy when they show up here."

Excited for borders reopening

Schurman said her business gets thousands of visitors every year from across the country and the world. But things changed with the COVID-19 pandemic.

"In the beginning of COVID it was very scary for us," said Schurman.

But after a couple of months into the pandemic, sales began picking up on their website.

"Mostly it changed a lot from walk-in to online more," said Schurman.

She said about 70 per cent of the business's products get shipped within Canada and the United States. 

Schurman is excited for P.E.I. to ease its border restrictions to Atlantic Canadians on June 27, both for business and personal reasons.

"We have one daughter who works in nursing in Nova Scotia that we haven't seen since October. So we're pretty excited to be seeing her very soon," Schurman said.

More from CBC P.E.I.