SouthPointe Pavilions’ latest tenant, The Face Place Spa, opened Monday in space formerly occupied by Pixi Chix.

Though the tenant is a small local day spa, it’s a noteworthy addition, because it means SouthPointe is now 100 percent leased at a time when mall vacancies nationwide are skyrocketing.

“We have very tired leasing agents,” joked Julie Lattimer, SouthPointe’s marketing director.

SouthPointe’s leasing agents have probably been working harder to keep tenants than to find them.

SouthPointe has stayed full largely because national retailers have not defected, as they have from other malls, including Lincoln’s Westfield Gateway.

According to Reis, a commercial real estate analysis firm, mall vacancies approached 10 percent nationwide in the first quarter.

In Lincoln, the overall retail vacancy rate was 11.1 at the end of March, up from 10.1 percent in the fourth quarter of 2008 and up from 8 percent at the same time last year, according to a quarterly report from Grubb & Ellis Pacific Realty.

Kent Thompson, owner of Coldwell Banker Commercial Thompson Realty Group, said what SouthPointe has been able to do is nothing short of amazing.

“That shopping center is one of the top-performing shopping centers in the country,” Thompson said.

A big reason vacancy rates are climbing is that national retailers have cut back significantly.

“Retail is just going to be down for a long time,” Thompson said.

“The big issue is that national people are not willing to step out yet,” he said. “We’re a long way from that.”

Thompson has one of the few recent retail success stories: Earlier this month he announced that Rod Kush will open a 40,000-square-foot furniture store in the former Kmart building near 56th and Nebraska 2 — a building that has been vacant since Thompson and some partners bought it more than five years ago.

That occurred in the second quarter of this year. The Grubb & Ellis report noted that despite the uptick in vacancy, the first quarter was otherwise uneventful for retail, with no major openings or closings.

The report described the Lincoln market as “maintaining status quo.”

“Lincoln has remained below the radar … with little activity to note during the quarter,” the report said

The report noted that there have been small retail stores that have gone out of business, “but overall, Lincoln is surviving the recession fairly well.”

Even at Westfield Gateway, which has seen major tenants such as Steve & Barry’s and Circuit City, along with several smaller ones leave in the past year, things are looking up.

“I think we’ve started to get some things going in the right direction,” said Marketing Director Ryan Bouc.

A perfume shop called Perfume Point opened up last month next door to Lids, while a local shop that services computers and sells used ones, 123 System Solutions, is opening in the former Holway Formal Wear spot on the lower level.

Bouc said the mall also has plans for empty space in the food court that could mean new stores opening before the end of the year if all goes as planned.

While retail vacancy went up, the office vacancy rates in Lincoln actually decreased slightly in the first quarter — from 12.4 percent to 11.9 percent — according to the Grubb & Ellis report.

Industrial vacancy increased from 8.4 percent to 8.7 percent in the first quarter. That is better than the first quarter of 2008, when the rate was 9.5 percent.

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Brent Johnson realizes people are cutting back on vacations in this tight economy. Because of that, he wants his salon — Square One Salon and Spa — to provide its customers a few hours of relaxation.

A lot of companies talk about customer service, but Johnson said in the salon industry, even a minor service gaffe can cost customers and tarnish a salon’s reputation.

So Johnson and his fellow owners instituted numerous policies to ensure those gaffes or oversights don’t occur, leaving customer feeling their dollars are well spent.

As such, Square One — which operates a downtown Dayton salon and one in Centerville — continues to flourish with revenue growing 20 percent last year to $2.5 million.

 

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Ever wonder what it’s like to raise three young children, own and operate a business in Danville, and manage a second business — all at the same time?

Just ask Hillary and Jeff Gayler of rural Fithian and their three children, MaKenzie, 12, MaKayla, 10, and Gage, 7.

Jeff and Hillary have owned Escape hair and body spa for almost six years and Hillary is the full-time manager of the business. Jeff also has worked as general manager of Kelly Vault and Monument Co. in Danville for more than 15 years.

“It takes a lot of hard work and long hours on the job when you own your own business,” Hillary said, “but it definitely has some advantages. You can offer your customers the kind of quality services and products that you want. I can also set my own schedule to work around our children’s school and sports activities.”

“I think it’s more work to own and manage your own business than to work for someone else,” Jeff said. “But in our case it was a good move to open the spa when we did. We don’t have any regrets.”

Hillary got her license in cosmetology in 1994 and worked at a couple of different Danville hair salons before going on her own. “I got a taste of giving facials and other spa services and discovered that I really liked that part of the business,” she said.

“We decided we could fill a need in the Danville area by opening a spa that would offer all the services in one place,” she added, “so we started looking for a vacant building. When an 1,800-square-foot space became available in Towne Centre, we jumped at the opportunity. Jeff completely gutted and renovated the place.”

Getting started

“Plenty of people told us it was risky to open the spa in Danville,” Hillary said, “but even though we knew it was a gamble, we had confidence in our gut feelings.”

The day before the Gaylers planned to have their grand opening in April 2003, some of their essential equipment still had not arrived.

“Jeff drove all the way to Chicago and literally claimed our items off the dock,” Hillary said. “We were awake all that night assembling things before our opening the following morning.

“We were astounded at our immediate response. People were lined up out the door, and many wanted to buy gift cards for Mother’s Day. We didn’t have enough cards printed to meet the demand, so we had to hand write them for the customers.

“Our first year in business was great,” Hillary said, “and our best advertising was by word of mouth.”

They started out by offering full hair services, manicures, pedicures and massages. “We use and sell only Aveda products, which I truly believe in,” Hillary said.

The business grew so fast that the couple moved their spa to another location in Towne Centre within 14 months. The new area is twice the size of their original building.

The Gaylers are continually adding new services to keep their spa on the cutting edge — such as Mystic Tan (spray tanning), laser hair removal, permanent makeup, microdermabrasion, natural chemical peels and Foto Facials. Hillary attended special classes to become licensed in all the special services that Escape now offers.

Hillary still works many 12-hour days in her role as manager. Jeff does all the accounting and billing for the business, and is also the on-call maintenance man. Since they opened in 2003, the number of employees has grown from the original seven to 17.

Hillary said so far the sluggish economy hasn’t significantly hurt business at Escape.

“We were prepared for a downturn in business over the past few months, but I believe that people still feel it’s important to get the services that we offer,” she said. “Our services help people feel good about themselves.”

Both men and women of all ages come to Escape, Hillary said, adding, “We have little girls who come in with their mothers and grandmothers for manicures, just as we bring in women who are up in their 80s.”

Busy family

The Gaylers started dating when they were both at Covington (Ind.) High School. Jeff participated in many of the sports and Hillary was a cheerleader.

Busy parents usually have busy children, which is played out in the Gayler family. MaKenzie is in student council and volleyball, and is a cheerleader at Oakwood. MaKayla is in fifth grade, where she is also a cheerleader and plans to try out for the Scholastic Bowl competition. She also is a member of the Midwest Gymnastics team and competes statewide.

Gage plays Little League in the summer and is a member of the Peanuts football team. He also wants to play basketball.

Hillary coaches both of her daughters’ cheerleading teams, and Jeff is the coach for his son’s baseball and football teams. He also is board president of the Oakwood Youth Football Association.

The Gaylers’ physical activities don’t stop there. Hillary and Jeff run between 3 and 5 miles every day in preparation for a half marathon, which they plan to complete this April in Champaign. MaKayla will do the 5-K run and Gage will participate in the 1-K run.

Even though they usually forego sitting down to meals together during the weekdays, the Gaylers get their quality family time in other ways. They all try to attend each other’s sports events, and they take more than one family vacation every year. Their favorite destination is Disney World.

“When you own and manage your own business, you have to get away to really be on vacation,” Jeff said. “We have good people working for us, so we’re able to do that without worrying.”

“I admit we’ve had our hard times,” Hillary said. “But when you own your own business you can’t just quit and walk out the door. We take pride in providing services that we believe in, and that’s what keeps us going.”

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El Pasoans Spend More On Needs, Less On Wants

EL PASO, Texas — At Foliage Hair Salon And Day Spa a spa in West El Paso, you can get your hair done, manicures, pedicures and massages to relieve your stress. Lately, the stress has been not just on the customers, but also on the business.

Massage therapist Danny Venzor walks into his massage room for another day of work at Foliage. Instead of doing what he loves, he will sit and read a book. His two customers for the day both canceled.

“People that I’ve known for years that come by more often, tend to come by much less often then they used to,” said Venzor.

Venzor told KFOX the customers are not only coming by less, but spending less when they get here.

“A lot of things that people consider to be luxuries, they tend to forgo those first,” said Venzor.

That seems to be the the trend in all departments at Foliage.
“Our clients are scheduling farther apart, instead of every six weeks, they might be coming in every eight weeks instead,” said Joemily Prieto with Foliage.

Many economic experts say what’s happening here at Foliage is happening to a lot of companies, and that many businesses are now feeling the heat.
“A lot of people will put off buying major household appliances, they’ll put off purchasing large-scale furniture, they’ll also delay automobile purchases,” said Tom Fullerton, a professor of Economics at UTEP.

So at Foliage the music remains off, the candles remain unlit, and Venzor must wait for gas prices to drop, and the economy to turn around.
“Well, it makes me worry about how I’m going to pay the rent, and how I am going to come up with certain funds for certain basic costs,” said Venzor.

Out of all the reasons why people are spending less money at places like Foliage, the number one reason people told KFOX was gas prices.

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Iowa Spas • Iowa Resort Spas

Next time you hit up an Iowa City hair salon to get your legs waxed, consider getting your car waxed, too.

Or maybe when you need some fresh polish on your nails, think about your rims. Don’t forget shampooing, either, for your hair and carpet.

Doug Warner, who owns Twin Image Spa Salon a Lifestyle Aveda Spa with his wife, Laura, said his business takes full-service to the next level.

Recently, the pair bought an old car rental facility at 824 Orchard St., and have converted it into TI Auto Spa, located just behind the salon at 121 W. Benton St.

Warner said when clients come in for lengthy salon services, they can pamper their cars at the same time. They simply request what they want for their car at the same time they make their other appointments.

The auto spa is also open to people who aren’t clients of Twin Image and are just looking for a car detailing business, Warner said.

“You can get your car spa’d,” he said.

Warner has one full-time employee right now who does car detailing for salon clients. Soon, he said he’d like to hire a few more summer employees to help, possibly high school-age students.

Services range from simple vacuuming, window-washing and dash-cleaning to waxing, stain removal and vent cleaning, Warner said.

“It seems to me there is a fair amount of clients interested in this,” he said.

Warner said part of his business philosophy is to keep things new and fresh for his customers. Along with the auto spa, he said the shampoo and cutting areas of the salon are getting a new look.

“I’m kind of constantly doing renovation,” Warner said.

Twin Image has been around for 32 years and started as a small barber shop with just three employees. It now has 35 employees and has won numerous national awards through the years, Warner said.

He said the auto spa was a great new venture to take on. He said in the last week, about a half-dozen cars have already gotten some services.

Warner said he’s still working to put up signs and put together a menu of car services.

“We’ve got all the equipment, we’re ready to rock,” he said.

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eDen Salon & Boutique to take Spa 151 location

97 N. Kingshighway
Cape Girardeau, MO 63701
(573) 335-3500
(573) 335-3379 fax

REVIEW THIS SPA NOW

The lodgings of the defunct Spa 151 on the River at 151 S. Spanish St. will soon be occupied by eDen Salon & Boutique, which currently resides at 97 N. Kings Highway.

Kristina Schumer was issued a business license recently to open her business at the new location. According to the paperwork at city hall, she expects to be open there by May 1.

For those of you who may have forgotten, Spa 151 closed in January during a messy divorce case between the owners Ashli Rowland and Scott Rowland. When the spa closed, it left employees grumbling that they had not been paid and irate customers holding apparently worthless gift cards and certificates.

Ashli Rowland promised to refund the outstanding gift cards and certificates, but she has been unavailable since that interview. I reached Scott Rowland a few minutes ago, but as soon as I identified myself, he hung up on me — again.

Customers have responded to Rowland’s lack of follow-up by filing consumer complaints with the Missouri Attorney General’s office. I’ve got a call in to the AG’s press secretary, John Fougere, but I counted 330 complaints on the AG’s Web site, almost triple the number of one month ago.

Schumer has no apparent connection to Spa 151. I’m waiting to hear from her as well.

Meanwhile, the divorce is moving forward, with a trial setting scheduled for June 10 before Judge Benjamin Lewis.

And the looming divorce and investigation by the Missouri Attorney General aren’t the only legal issues dogging the Rowlands. They were partners in a statewide chain of Check Please locations prior to last October, and in February they were sued by The Great Eight LLC, a land company owned by the Buchheit family, for failure to pay rent on a Perryville, Mo., building leased by Check Please. Eric Bohl, attorney for the the Great Eight LLC, said the lawsuit alleges that the Rowlands stopped paying rent after closing the Check Please branch.

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