Company

Omar Balaa has always been fascinated with locks and keys. So his friends and family were not surprised when he opened up a small locksmith shop in his native country Lebanon.

He closed the shop in the mid-1970s when he moved his young family to Ottawa. Omar started modestly in his new home, working for another locksmith during the day and driving a cab at night.

In 1976, Omar opened City Locksmith in Sandy Hill. Customers responded to Omar’s mix of expertise, integrity and friendly service. By 1982, the company became a true family business when son Shawn, came on board. Soon the staff expanded to include Omar’s other sons, Sam and Victor.

While City Locksmith continues to provide traditional locksmithing services, the business has grown to include security and surveillance equipment.

The business has also grown in the literal sense: from the original cozy 400-square-foot store to today’s state-of-the-art 6,000 square-foot showroom and service centre. And their fleet of fully-equipped service vehicles lets them take their legendary customer service on the road, 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.