October brought with it several new additions to the Upper Peninsula business climate. A combination of big national stores opening locally plus small businesses means a promising holiday season for the retail, hospitality and service sectors.
Two U.P. hotels bought, re-opened by Adoba
Two Upper Peninsula hotels have been bought by a national chain that focuses on green, sustainable business. adoba® Hotels Group has purchased, renovated and re-opened the former Lakeside Motor Inn in Gladstone and the former Askwith Lockview Motel in Sault Ste. Marie.
The Gladstone hotel is now called the adoba® Gladstone, and is located at 26 Lowrie, between downtown Gladstone and the Lake Michigan shoreline. It offers 30 newly-renovated guest rooms and a meeting facility.
The Sault Ste. Marie acquisition is now known as the adoba® Lockview, with a mix of 16 traditional hotel rooms and 31 individual drive-up cottages, right across the street from the Soo Locks (therefore the name) in downtown Sault Ste. Marie.
Adoba has seen some success already in the U.P. with a renovated historic hotel property in Naubinway. The hotel group focuses on using all sustainable products while still providing modern luxuries like big luxury beds and big breakfasts, and keeping their rates in line with sustainable values. Local contractors and companies are preferred by the hotel group, so Restonic in Escanaba will be hand-crafting all the beds for the Gladstone hotel.
"We are extremely excited about or newest locations and all they have to offer. We are also thrilled to be part of the Gladstone / Escanaba and Sault St. Marie communities," says Leslie Chapman, owner-operator. "The adoba® brand is known for providing an elevated level of guest service and we look forward to delivering this to our newest guests in both these wonderful Upper Peninsula cities."
Each uniquely designed Adoba hotel differs in style based on its location, reflecting the local area culture and personality of the hotel.
Ashley Furniture HomeStore cuts ribbon in Marquette
National furniture store Ashley Furniture HomeStore has officially opened a new location in Marquette. The new store, at 2152 U.S. 41 West in Marquette, is across from the Marquette Mall, and held a grand opening and ribbon cutting in late October to welcome area customers.
There's been an Ashley HomeStore in Escanaba for some time, but the popular retailer is making its first appearance in Marquette. It's owned and operated by the same owners as the Escanaba store, the Jensen family, and is one of more than 700 Ashley Furniture stores in the U.S.
Kelly Jensen, owner and general manager of the HomeStores in Marquette and Escanaba, says, "The response that we've received from the Marquette community has been tremendous. We're proud and excited to get to know our customers and serve the Marquette area as the number one furniture store brand, and we look forward to earning their loyalty and trust."
The offerings on display at Ashley HomeStore include bedroom, children's, dining room, home office, and living room furniture, as well as upholstery, leather, lamps, pillows, rugs, decor and accessories. They also have an extensive mattress and bedding gallery.
Aldi in Escanaba opens
Discount grocer Aldi has finally arrived in the Upper Peninsula with the opening of a new store in Escanaba! It's located at 2520 3rd Avenue in Escanaba, right by the new Meijer store there.
Aldi is a newcomer to the U.P. but a grand opening last month was successful, with lots of customers checking out the new store. Shoppers visiting Aldi for the first time will notice some differences -- you have to bring your own bags or boxes, for one. Shopping carts cost a quarter to take out (you do get it back when you're done), and while the prices are low, the brands will likely be unfamiliar to local residents. Highlights, however, include great prices on produce, organic produce and grocery items.
The new store is open seven days a week, from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. daily.
Integrative health practitioners open as a collective
Three Marquette-area holistic health practitioners have joined forces to open a new kind of health care office, known as Trailhead Holistic Health Collective.
It can be tough to go it alone as an independent contractor or entrepreneur, and the three owners, Marc Weinrick, Carolyn Provencher and Beth Robertson, are working together to help make that task easier on both themselves and their clients. They all work in the field of integrative medicine, combining alternative therapies like acupuncture, yoga, tai chi, clinical bodywork and massage, herbal medicine, and meditation, to help their clients.
Each practitioner offers patients something different, so that all three complement each other's' practices, and can refer clients to each other if their areas of expertise don't fit the disease or issue at hand.
Weinrick, of MQT Acupuncture and Bodywork, specializes in musculoskeletal pain and orthopedic problems, such as chronic headache, lower back pain, and frozen shoulder.
Provencher owns Carolyn Provencher Acupuncture and specializes in emotional health and chronic illness such as anxiety, depression and autoimmune disorders.
Beth "Dharmini" Robertson, of Coldwater Haven Ayurvedic Health and Yoga Therapy, practices traditional medicines of India, including herbal medicine and yoga therapy. She describes yoga therapy as "yoga for people who can't do yoga in a regular class format. They have experienced trauma, either emotional or physical, and have individual areas of pain that prohibit them from taking a yoga class. I choose specific yogic practices to help facilitate their recovery."
Trailhead Holistic Health Collective's new location is at 1055 West Baraga Ave., Suite C, in Marquette.