The story of Vancouver Umbrella began back in 1932, when the Great Grandfather of Vancouver Umbrella’s current President, Shana Hochfelder, began what would become a family legacy. Isadore Flader was a Polish immigrant who started his career repairing umbrellas door-to-door in Toronto. Although the business grew relatively quickly, Isadore had dreams of creating something even bigger, and when he heard from a friend about the rainy west coast of Canada, he decided that it was time for a move. He moved his family, including his four young children, to Vancouver and opened Vancouver Umbrella’s first manufacturing facility and retail store on West Pender Street in the heart of the city. As Isadore’s children got older, his three sons began working in the shop, and with the extra help of his family, the business flourished.

Between the 1930’s and the 1970’s, Vancouver Umbrella imported umbrella frames and fabrics from worldwide sources and maintained the final production (cutting, sewing and assembly) locally in the factory on Pender St. That period saw the business undergo massive growth - garden umbrellas and new designs of rain umbrellas were added to the product mix, and the customer base grew exponentially. By the late 1960’s, products from Vancouver Umbrella could be found at Simpson’s, the Bay, Eaton’s, Woodward’s and other major retailers around the country. In 1972, the manufacturing and retail shop were moved to a location on West Hastings to accommodate the need for expansion.

At about the same time, the cost of materials and labour in Canada began to rise and the inexpensive Japanese market emerged. As a result, the Fladers began importing frames and fabric from Japan, and soon after, they began exploring the idea of production in Asia as well. By the late 1970’s, Vancouver Umbrella was importing over 50% of its rain umbrellas as finished product from Japan. Slowly the focus began to shift to importing all of the umbrellas as finished product, and there became less and less of a need for the factory in Vancouver.

1986 was a turning point for Vancouver Umbrella. Isadore Flader, after many years of tireless work, decided to retire and appointed Peter Hochfelder, the husband of Isadore’s granddaughter, to continue the tradition he had started over 50 years prior. Times were changing - the economy was hitting a recession and business was slowing. So, Peter decided to take the company in a new direction – he chose to focus the company on wholesaling umbrellas to the many customers they had developed, divesting of the retail store that had been a fixture of downtown Vancouver for so many years. In addition, Peter began importing the entire product line, a decision that required closing the local factory, but eventually led to an excellent partnership with an overseas manufacturing facility.

After a year of adjustment to the new leadership, Vancouver Umbrella began a major growth phase. The company secured a selection of new Chinese suppliers and developed new major retail accounts. The business was run out of the Hochfelder’s home for a short period before an office and warehouse space was purchased in Richmond, BC (south of Vancouver) in the early 1990’s.

The family’s involvement in the business continued when Peter Hochfelder’s asked his daughter, Shana, to start working full time with Vancouver Umbrella in 1992. Shana’s first mandate was to initiate corporate relationships, and when she landed a local brewery in British Columbia as her first corporate client, she knew she was onto something. Since she began, she has not only expanded the business to include production of corporate umbrellas, but she has also grown the retail customer base and generated new products with innovative patented designs for frames, handles and fabrics. Shana Hochfelder became company President in 2004, and today the business boasts multi-million dollar annual sales volumes from all over North America. Despite the many changes over the years, Vancouver Umbrella has continued to build on the legacy and tradition Isadore began back in 1932, providing the highest quality products and delivering exceptional service to its customers.