does the owner count as an employee?

You are an 'employer'

"“employer” includes,

(a) an owner, proprietor, manager, superintendent, overseer, receiver or trustee of an activity, business, work, trade, occupation, profession, project or undertaking who has control or direction of, or is directly or indirectly responsible for, the employment of a person in it, and [...]" source

I am not a lawyer, but i dont think that a sole proprietor (owner) of a business is an employee.

In an employee scenario, there is an employment contractual relationship (employer and employee). In your case, it appears to be no such relationship. As a sole proprietor, you don't pay yourself a salary and you cannot deduct your salary as a business expense. Technically, your “pay” is the profit (sales minus expenses) the business makes at the end of the year. However, you can hire other employees and pay them a salary.