The Screen Door: A custom store for everyone

By Paul Adair

The Screen Door was first founded by Rick and Gailyn Whincup in 1983 and has since been known as one of Manitoba’s top shops providing quality custom prints and embroidery.

With four employees, the business operates out of a 5,000-square-foot facility at 1645 Saskatchewan Avenue West and features both a front of house retail area, where customers can see the products for themselves. The business offers a wide range of printing and embroidery services like screen printing, embroidery, direct-to-garment printing, promotional products, advertising specialty products, apparel, and even skate sharpening.

In fact, The Screen Door is the only company in Portage la Prairie that offers all its printing and embroidery services in-house.

“This allows us to not have minimum quantities on printed clothing orders, which means our customers are able to order even a single item,” says current owner Neil Whincup. “We provide great customer service, and we pride ourselves at being the best at what we do.”

After nearly 40 years in business, Rick (and family dog Drake) decided to retire, and The Screen Door was purchased by their son Neil in late 2022. Gailyn continues to work in the business.

Although Neil had worked in the shop when he was younger and has another business in the city (Prairie Electrical Ltd.), running the day-to-day operations of his parents’ shop has been a completely new experience for him –and a legacy that he appreciates.

“My parents took the business from ground level and built it up to the business it is today, so it was important for me to keep the family business going, as well as to see if I’m able to provide some insight that can take the business to the next level,” says Whincup. “Now that I have gained some knowledge over these last 10 months, I’m starting to settle in and – although I still have a lot to learn and long ways to go – I’m excited to see where this leads.”

A custom customer experience

The business is currently in the process of setting up a new website that will allow its customers to browse products online and get to know a little bit more about the company and what it offers. This will be a one-of-a-kind website featuring customer, corporate, and organization custom online stores that can be set up with any products the customer might like.

Using the Portage Minor Hockey Association (PMHA) as an example, Whincup explains how the new website will streamline the shopping experience for his customers.

“Simply click on the ‘Shop Online’ button at the top of the page and there will then be an alphabetical list of organizations on the left-hand side of the screen,” says Whincup. “All customers have to do is scroll down until they find the association’s button and, once they click on it, it goes to the PMHA page for a custom customer experience that’s specifically curated by us here at The Screen Door.”

What’s more, every customer that spends over $200 in the PMHA store will also receive a free, custom Portage Minor Hockey mini stick. At the end of the year, The Screen Door will donate to Portage Minor Hockey for all the online sales.

“We’re able to create this kind of custom store for any organization, business, school, or sports team – basically, there’s a custom store for anyone who wants one,” says Whincup.

Finding that running one business is enough, Whincup is currently in the process of trying to sell Prairie Electrical and devote himself full-time to The Screen Door. Looking ahead, he’s also interested in exploring the benefits of the Portage Chamber of Commerce, and organization that the business has been part of for many years.