WELCOME.
Marina and Andrei Stulov are the new owners of the popular Dorset motel, the Nordic Inn.
HUNTSVILLE - A popular destination in the northeast Muskoka region has new owners and a new look.
Marina and Andrei Stulov have purchased the Dorset-based Nordic Inn. The former Toronto residents became owners of the property in March from former owners Jane and Andre Tieman, according to Marina.
“I am a registered nutritionist and I was looking to move my practice from Toronto to a more rural area,” she said. “We were also looking for a business that we could make a living with … we did consider a lot of options and we ended up with the motel option.”
Stulov said that the couple looked at a number of places in the north that they could have purchased, such as in the Blue Mountain and Peterborough areas, but she said they fell in love with the Dorset area, and most notably, the 11-room Nordic Inn.
“We found the (for sale) advertisement on the Internet. The former owners didn’t use real estate people. I was searching on the Internet for a motel for sale. The nature here is unbelievably nice with Crown land behind us and the Dorset Scenic Tower in front of it.”
It is very busy times for the couple as they get the business ready for the expected deluge of summer residents to the region.
“We are trying to refurbish and reorganize everything in our own way. We are also spending a lot of time promoting it.”
She said that it is her hope that she can use her skills as a nutritionist to offer package deals to her customers who want to live a healthier lifestyle.
“I’d like to do a program for cleansing and weight management. I announced this on our website, but they can also come to us about any other health challenges.”
Stulov said her husband would continue his work as a business consultant for his Toronto clients as well as running the motel with her. “He can continue to do his work here because all he needs is the Internet,” she said.
The new Nordic Inn will have a grand re-opening today (Wednesday) from 4 to 7 p.m.
One of the ideas behind hosting the ceremony, according to Stulov, is to inform the community that the inn’s 30-seat restaurant, which had been closed by the previous owners, is back open for business under the name Tower Bistro.
“It is a nice facility, so we decided to have the restaurant opened again. We will try to organize the menu to everyone’s taste, but at the same time I want to show people they can eat healthy,” she said, adding that the restaurant will also offer a take-out menu.”
The Nordic Inn is located along Hwy 35 on the north side of the village.
For more information visit the website at www.thenordicinn.com.