Page 26 - BusinessWest May 29, 2023

something I really
sabidu.si“nAensdsewsh, eincludingctohffeegea-sllheorpy. bSuhseinweassn.te“Idltovebethcoemidea of being a business owner, mmaocntivGerwouitnhdas]local galalenrdy ewvheerynthitinbgecfamllseoanpypoaureantttthaattptohient; I just knew that this is
ketdypaetseaocfhfaoirtshearnd marekxeatcstwlyhwehreatshI ewuansuteadll.y sold her jew-
elry weren’t going to ope“nIfroeraqliuzeitethaatwthielem. ore I put into it, the more I’ll get out of it,”
“Neither one of us is in the cosmetology ind“uIsctoryn;twaceteddonth’tedcoollectivesahnedwseungtgeosnt.e“dI’mtheyxcreitaecdhtougtetotothtehat point — I know it will take a
any of the services,” she went on. “But I justpluobvleicd dthueriindgeathoef lhoacvkidnogwn,” fsehwe yseaaidrs. ,“bI uotffwere’ldl gtoethtehleprwe.”ith online
a spa and building from scratch. My hobby iasnbdusilodciniagl-;mI elidkieatoauktinregach, which was something they needed.”
things from the ground up and just expanding Afrcocmortdhienrge.toSHeeoinffgeri,thaving 15 member artists seems to be the Skin in the Game
and said, ‘let’s try to open a spa.’
Lori Lynn Hoffer specializes in oil paintings of landscapes and
wanted to do.”
botanical scenes.
your artwork. When you exhibit at a commercial gallery, they
“I just loved the idea of having a spa and building from scratch. My hobby is building; I like taking things from the ground up and just expanding from there. Seeing it from start to finish is
what she was thinking about when she was in c and plotting to work for herself one day — and s
“I never thought I’d own a coffee shop ... I’ve coffee before, and I figured, ‘how hard can it be?’ rhetorically, before answering the question by sa business, even an existing one with a core of loy comes with a complete set of challenges.
She said the partners split up the duties of ru with her mother handling most of the accountin ing responsibilities while she tackles marketing, many of the day-to-day operations.
It’s a juggling act that was taken to a much hi the two decided to double down, if you will, and ial plunge, this time with a new business, a spa t low last September called Aura Day Spa.
Unlike Common Grounds, this was somethin to do and has been thinking about for some time “A spa has always been a dream of mine,” she
we realized how well we did with this place [Co and how well we worked together, we kind of loo
ollege and planning everything from facials to massage; body contouring to a sauna.
take half of your sales.”
oon. The venture is off to a solid start that Procon credits to hiring
On the day BusinessWest visited Sawmill River Arts, it
never worked with the right people to provide those services, some aggressive efforts
was Roy Mansur’s day to staff the store. In between helping
here for 12 years,
” Procon asked to get the word out about the facility, and continued work research-
customers, he was removing storm windows to prepare the
ying that every ing the industry with an eye toward best practices and the best
gallery for spring and summer traffic.
and we’ve been successful and
al customers, avenues for achieving results.
me.”
a full-fledged
A nature photographer for three decades, Mansur — a
“I’m always looking at other places — East Coast, West Coast,
member artist at Sawmill River Arts for the past 10 years
nning the business, just seeing what other places are doing and how to stay up to date
— explained why he joined the collective after years of dis-
growing. Now
g and bookkeep- in the industry and what we can add,” she said. “I just like to stay
playing his work in different galleries, stores, and fairs. “The
we’re in a position
social media, and on top of all that and find new ways to bring people and add more
chance to have a wall of my own where I can choose what I
services.”
where we are
want to exhibit was the first big pull to joining the gallery for
gher plane when Procon dares to ponder where this venture might go next and
take entrepreneur- perhaps the possibility of opening several Aura spas. For now,
hey opened in Lud- though, she and her mother have their hands more than full manag-
Focus on Growth
business, and we
ing these two businesses, as well as the ups and downs and emo-
g thatIsnheaarslypi2r0e2d0, Staitgioenr alpspwliiendgstothbaetcoamreeparmt oefmpbaerrcealrt-o being business owners. noiswt.just before the pandem“Iitc’slaocgkrdinodw,”nschleoseadidt,hboursraonwdinsgofanother term, sort of, from her
“We’ve been
have to treat it as
such.”
from start to finish is something I really wanritgehdttnoudmo.b”er to keep the gallery growing. Two new members were
make a change to the gallery or vote a new member into the group,” When asked about the path she’s chosen and what she likes
Having a dream and making it a reality arectewnotlydaiffdedredntatfhteinr gosn,e passed away and another retired. A new-
said Lori Lynn Hoffer, member artist and owner of Waterlily Design, about being an entrepreneur, Procon said this life offers her every-
she acknowledged, adding that she did extemnseivmebrerseseaarcrhchinctommittee takes on the job of finding people to specializing in oil paintings of landscapes and botanical scenes. thing she wanted and expected. Well, sort of.
everything from where her spa concept migahptpwlyortko (bLeupdalortwowf tahse group.
“While email is time-consuming, we do it to make sure all 15 of us “I like the freedom that it offers,” she explained. “I have very little
quickly identified as a community in need of su“cThhaerfea’scialitwy)htolewphraotcess involving interviews, deciding who is a
are on the same page.” right now — I’m tied to both of these places for quite a long time,
types of services should be offered. good fit based on their art, and what strengths they bring to operat-
As a customer of Sawmill River Arts for many years, Hoffer but just being able to show people what we did and what we started
“I was all over the internet looking at spains;gItwhengtalalreoruy,”ndHhoffereer said, noting the online experience Staiger
applied for membership in the collective last year after seeing it go and what our goals are, it’s really rewarding, knowing that I’m in
looking at spas, and just pieced together hobwrougrhstwtoutlhdergurno,”upshwehen she joined. “Hannah is far savvier about
through a positive transformation and deciding that she wanted to here most mornings at 5:30 and then go over to the spa. Some peo-
told BusinessWest. “We have no experiencesioncitahlemineduiastarny,dbount lwinee marketing than most of us in the group.
be part of that effort. ple call me crazy, but it’s very rewarding.”
did our homework, and here we are.” That’s one of the reasons we’ve been looking to bring in younger
“I was willing to do the work of staffing the gallery and tak- It is certainly that, and the woman who wanted to be the next
That due diligence led to a former dancemsetumdbioerosn.”Holyoke
ing part on the committees because it’s so worth it,” she said. “It’s Erin Andrews found something much better. BW
Street that the partners gutted and converted tAosaafnaceilxiatymopffleroinfgnew types of art featured at the gallery, Staiger extremely unusual to be able to get 100% of the selling price for
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