Tony Singh immigrated as a youth to Montreal in 1975 with his family. He studied architecture before turning to business studies and realizing that he hated accounting. This provided him the final push to pursue an opportunity with a wholesale food business which later shaped into the establishment of Fruiticana. During a visit to Vancouver, Singh noticed an unfilled need in the Indian market. He moved to Vancouver in 1994 and opened his first Fruiticana store in Newton. Rather than being the run of the mill type shop, he had a concept in mind – a store that offers customers the freshest produce straight from local farmers, as well as specialty products from around the world. The first six months were difficult, he worked long hours with the help of his father, wife, and one other staff member. His talent of visiting local farms in Abbotsford, Langley, and Surrey and handpicking the freshest products he could find, began to pay off. Within a year, he opened his second Fruiticana outlet in Richmond and then a third location opened six months later. Fruiticana’s growth has not slowed down since; instead, Singh has opened a Fruiticana every year.