Sometimes in life, you have to leave your hometown for a while to realize how much you miss it.

For Bryce Shegelski, it was always his goal to move back to Lake Country after leaving town when he was 18.

After growing up in the Okanagan, playing Winfield Minor Hockey and every sport imaginable at George Elliot Secondary School, Shegelski made the move to Calgary to join his dad in the auto glass industry.

含羞草研究社淚t was either go and work in the oil rigs or move out and join Dad in Calgary,含羞草研究社� said Shegelski.

His dad, Rob Shegelski, started in the business at 20 years old, made his way up the ranks, and eventually owned his own business in Calgary.

Over the 10 years in Calgary, Shegelski learned the ropes of replacing glass as well as sales and worked his way up.

During his time there, in late 2016, GlassMasters Autoglass, a solely retail shop, joined forces with ARG Wholesale to cover both sides of the business.

After this, the business continued to grow and expand to multiple provinces.

含羞草研究社淲hen I found out that we were opening in B.C., I put my hand up in the air because I thought it含羞草研究社檇 be pretty cool to go back home and be able to run this,含羞草研究社� said Shegelski. 含羞草研究社淔or me, it was a pretty cool opportunity.含羞草研究社�

Because of this, Shegelski has moved back home and is now the Branch Manager of GlassMasters Autoglass on the Kelowna/Lake Country border. This move doesn含羞草研究社檛 just fulfill his dream of bringing the business home, but his father含羞草研究社檚 as well, even though he remains in Calgary for now as he believes his store is for Shegelski to run with.

The wholesale side of the new location opened in Sept. 2023 and the GlassMasters retail store opened at #150-220 Beaver Lake Court in Feb. 2024.

含羞草研究社淚t含羞草研究社檚 crazy to see the growth in this area,含羞草研究社� said Bryce. 含羞草研究社淲e含羞草研究社檙e pretty happy with this location.含羞草研究社�

Now that the word is getting out about the newest auto glass shop in town, the Shegelski name is being recognized again.

含羞草研究社淓veryone I talk to in [the industry], they used to deal with my dad and now they含羞草研究社檙e dealing with me,含羞草研究社� said Shegelski, adding there are some people he含羞草研究社檚 done business with who are the sons of people his dad dealt with.

GlassMasters is ICBC-certified and aims to replace glass for vehicles in a two to three-hour span. Being both wholesale and retail, they have more than 10,000 parts in their store and more on the way.

含羞草研究社淲e want, not only to have the best customer service out here but we含羞草研究社檙e also wanting to provide the most windshields for everybody on the wholeside side,含羞草研究社� said Shegelski.

And on top of bringing this business to Central Okanagan, Shegelski is just happy to be home.

含羞草研究社淚t含羞草研究社檚 pretty cool, driving by the lake and the vineyards every day to work, nothing beats that,含羞草研究社� added Shegelski. 含羞草研究社淣othing beats home and now that含羞草研究社檚 the sun含羞草研究社檚 shining down, I don含羞草研究社檛 know why I ever left.含羞草研究社�

Also with these factors, and being an athlete growing up in Lake Country, Shegelski is looking to sponsor local teams in the future and help give back to the hometown.

含羞草研究社淲e含羞草研究社檙e happy to be back and provide for the community,含羞草研究社� said Shegelski.

This store is the company含羞草研究社檚 14th location in Western Canada, with their 15th scheduled to open this June in Manitoba.

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