Tag: locally owned

Local Love: Garage Authority

We love getting connected with local business owners who have chosen to put down roots and grow their dream right here in Greenville. Today we’re sharing a little background Garage Authority, written by owner Nancy Martin,

 
2016 ChamberGrowthAward

Nancy Martin’s Garage Authority

Greenville is a wonderful, thriving community! There has been some amazing growth in the area for quite a while now, with an increased activity of culture and diversity. It’s an economically booming area, rich with opportunity left, right and center. The question shouldn’t be, what do I love about Greenville, but more, what don’t I love!

Why We Chose Greenville

The growth of Greenville has been constantly on the rise. When we first started this business, Greenville was doing pretty good as a whole. Now it is growing even more than we could have imagined! As a whole, we have been very pleased with how the business has done is such an amazing area.

How We Got Started

I have been designing cabinetry since 2005. My extensive corporate background comes into play as we professionally handle all our business dealings. However, it was my son who first started the business, right after he graduated college. It was back in 2011, we were in the middle of the financial recession. He had just graduated with a degree in Construction Management Building Science and none of the construction companies in the area were hiring.

When he found the Monkey Bars product, he did all the research and planning himself so he could make a living doing something he loved. My initial input was limited to simply advising my son and providing some insight into marketing the business. Since then, we have thrived!

Our Passion

We have strong Christian values which we strive to implement into our daily personal and business lives. Our passion to help those in need extends to everyone! The challenges you face with your garage excites us, and we love to find solutions that will best help your garage. Our philosophy is to try our very best in making a difference in the lives that we interact with. We strive constantly to have a positive impact in everyone’s lives. The world would be a much better place if everyone took a little more time out of their day to care and help one another.

The Garage Authority is your local garage storage, and organization company.
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Local Love: Compost House

I have been spending more time in Spartanburg lately and had the chance to meet Leslie Rodgers, the Education Director and Compost House Coordinator. We spent well over an hour sitting at The Crepe Factory downtown talking (mostly) trash. And it was awesome.

Compost House is a part of Atlas Organics, which is a local company that handles the commercial collection of food waste. (Did you know some of your favorite local spots like Swamp Rabbit Cafe & Grocery use them and compost their waste?) Compost House is the residential component of Atlas.

There are two different ways you can compost with Compost House. They offer a door-step collection, with weekly or bi-weekly options starting at $16 per month. Or you can take your 5 gallon compost bucket to one of their many drop-off locations once a week for $14/month. What is really cool is that once a month you get 10 gallons of super nutrient rich finished compost to use in your garden (or gift to a friend who gardens) once a month!

So I live in Travelers Rest and am married to a hippie who is very green. Let’s just say we already have a serious composting operation going on. When Leslie offered me a free month of the door-step service it didn’t make sense for me in particular, but then entered Hazel.

This is Hazel the puppy.

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Hazel lives in a one bedroom apartment in downtown Greenville with her owner, who was a complete newbie to all things composting. I was curious to see how composting and the pick-up itself would go over in an apartment with secure access, that had limited space and with Hazel, who has a track record for tearing apart all kinds of inanimate objects. (But is really cute, so it’s okay.) 

A few weeks into the service and Hazel’s owner reported back that the entire system is extremely easy. The Do’s and Don’ts of what to put in the buckets are clearly labeled on the outside. One of them fits easily under the sink. It doesn’t smell. Pick up has been effortless. And the big one–Hazel has not gotten into the buckets or even been mildly interested in them.

If composting is still a little scary, go read the great reviews over at Greenville360 and Kidding Around Greenville. Then go be a greener person and support local by signing up!

— Courtney

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Local Experience: Lash Extensions at Organic Tan Face & Body

Lash extensions frightened me.

But I was still intrigued because hey, I am a female and lashes are having a bigger moment than usual right now.

I see ladies with extensions that look so good it makes you wonder if they just have really good genes or have discovered the mother of all mascaras.

Then I see ladies that look like they have tarantula legs trying to attack their faces.

I hear rumors that they will ruin your real lashes (untrue if cared for properly) or make your real lashes fall out (same as above).

So right before the holidays I paid a visit to Organic Tan Face & Body to watch a session in person. The owner, Lindsey, is a very cool chick (you can follow her here) and I remember going to see her several years ago when she was working out of the upstairs of a house on McBee Avenue and perfecting her art of the “organic tan”. Since then, she has continued to grow her business to a spot right on Haywood Road and is just a major girl boss to admire. She even published a book  recently.

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I started getting tired ten minutes into the process, which can take anywhere from 90 minutes to 2 hours. So I can only imagine how our lash model felt. You literally just lay there and relax, which is extremely enticing to me. There are a variety of different lash looks you can go for at Organic Tan, however today our model was looking for something that still looked natural and not over the top.

90 minutes later….

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They turned out absolutely perfect and will last about 2-3 weeks. At that point, if you want to keep them up, you just schedule a fill-in appointment. The Organic Tan team also understands a busy schedule and offers online booking to make an appointment even at the last-minute.

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These babies are for sure an investment for those who want to keep the look going for longer than just a special event or photos. The initial extensions can run anywhere from $150-$230 and fill ins from $60-$100. Which is why they offer memberships and packages for frequent lashers. And if extensions aren’t your thing, they offer a Lash Lift option and also sell an eyelash growth serum.

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Go support a great locally owned business and check out Organic Tan if you are looking for not only lash services but also tanning, massage, make-up, waxing, nails or esthetic services.

— Courtney

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