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Business and Industry
Mr. T.M. Gamble wrote a letter in 1913 describing the town. “Ogema has the appearance of a very busy and energetic little town, it is fortunate in having many citizens of good standing with marked ability for developing a town. It has no less than seven stores, one bank, a bakery, two large livery stables with the prospects of a third, four lumber yards, two others coming in, five machine companies, two flour and feed stores, one starting in business, no hotel but three restaurants, a number of offices and residential buildings.” Hotels

The Royal Hotel was built by Jake Nurnberger in 1910 on Railway Avenue, a two and a half storey building. Their dining room, the first in the town, was used by the railway construction crews, and later by the people arriving by train. Also in 1910, the Whittam Brothers built the Ogema Hotel, although this came to be used as an apartment building under the later ownership of Eddie Sadler. Then in 1914, T.H. West built the National Hotel.

There are currently two hotels in Ogema. The Little Amego Inn is located at 306 Railway Avenue and has eight guest rooms, and the Ogema Motel is located at 404 Railway Avenue and has fifteen guest rooms.

The Ogema Co-operative Association

The Ogema Co-operative Association was incorporated in 1940. Its original board of directors was President J. Scott Burns, F.J. Mead, A.E. Johnson, P.G. McGregor, C.W. Heron, A.D. Mc Phail, with C.B. Grainger as secretary and Roy Farr as the manager. Each of these members had to buy barrels of fuel and two five dollar shares. Although the business started out on the east side of the town, the tanks and shed moved in 1941 to a local farm, the Earl Farr farm. After the manager Roy Farr resigned, the Association wanted to move these back into the town, but the War Time Prices and Trade Board did not allow it. After a period of inactivity, the Ogema Co-operative Association dissolved in 1954.

In 1940, the Bures Co-op was incorporated. This store was moved to the north side of Ogema in 1954, and four years later they bought a building in the centre of town, which they added on to. In 1988, a new store was built that was 40 feet by 80 feet for $60,630.00, and it officially opened on April 13, 1989. The name changed from Bures Co-op to Ogema Co-op in 1984 so people wouldn’t be confused about the store's location. The Ogema Co-op is currently located at 302 Railway Avenue.

Solo Italia Fine Pasta Inc.

The Solo Italia Fine Pasta Inc began in Ogema in 2013. The owners, Marco and Tracey de Michele, moved to Ogema in 2012 from Italy and they brought authentic Italian pizza, pasta, and espresso beans with them.

Big Sky Farms Inc.

In 2000, Big Sky Farms Inc. opened hog production facilities in Ogema, creating around 45 jobs in the community. The 188,000 square foot facility has space for 5,000 hogs and is the largest facility of its kind in Western Canada.

Other Businesses

Other Ogema businesses include Deep South Cafe and Bowl, Ogema Cafe, Rolling Hills Restaurant, Ogema Foods, NAPA Auto Parts, and A Touch of Wellness Day Spa & Wellness Centre.