Today was the date I had chosen for the grand opening of Bloom. I had planned for this to be a day of celebration after getting settled into the new space. Bloom would have been open for two months this week, and I know if things were different we would be toasting champagne tonight and sharing some laughs and hugs. Well, I’ve decided to observe today in a different way. I still want to celebrate the space, our hard work, and the newness. I want to take a moment to reflect on the process of opening Bloom and share some transformation photos and highlights with you.
First of all, a little background for those of you that don’t know the beginning story.
Jewel in the Lotus (the former occupant of 817 W 3rd Ave) was my first salon home when I moved to Moses Lake in 2007. It is where I met a great number of my clients and built the foundation of my career in a new town. The years passed and my career took me to new places where I continued to grow in my business and make connections in the Moses Lake community. Fast forward to 2020 and an unexpected opportunity brought me back to the space where I got my beginning.
I got the keys to 817 W 3rd Ave on February 1st and got down to the business of a cosmetic remodel in the space.
We ripped out floors (two of them), painted painted and painted some more. I got to learn all kinds of new skills that seem to just be second nature to my husband. I am so very thankful that I have a very handy husband. He sacrificed an unseasonably beautiful February of fishing (and a few drill bits) to help me build my dream. He dedicated long days and a lot of patience to the project..
Old buildings can be tricky to work on and there were a few minor surprises, but we were able to keep on track. Everything came together beautifully and on schedule.
Some dear friends volunteered to be my cleaning and decorating crew in the final days and they went above and beyond; stocking shelves, taking inventory, Ashley even personalized my front desk. I will be forever grateful to them for jumping in and wanting to be a part of my project.
Bloom opened March 2nd, right on schedule. Those first two weeks of March feel like a dream. Everything was so exciting and new, but it went by so quickly. Only a small handful of my guests got to visit the new space, but I was flooded with support from both dear clients and my local salon community.
The world quickly changed around all of us and a statewide order mandated all salons and other businesses to close down. Just two weeks to the day after opening, I closed the doors not knowing when we will be able to reopen them. Six weeks have already passed and we learned today that we have several more a head of us.
Some great things have come from the down time. Kara has joined me to make a team of two at Bloom. I am so thankful that we have each other for support through all of this. She has been my cheerleader and I hope I have reciprocated at the same level. We have been taking advantage of online education and are even putting out a few educational videos of our own in order to stay connected to our clients. It's been fun and we are learning lots of new ways to work on our businesses while we cannot work in them.
Before the salon opened, Kara gifted me a fun tapestry with the words "Bloom Where You Are" printed on it. I hung it in our back room but thanks to a little window it is visible right when you walk in the door. Recently I stopped by the salon to check on a few things and as I was leaving I looked back over my shoulder and saw those words. They hit me in the feels. While this time looks nothing like any of us expected it to, and we might not be able to be where we thought we would be it doesn't mean that we can't still bloom right where we are. All of us.
Kara and I can’t wait to reopen and work side by side again, doing what we love in our beautiful new space.
We will be back and we look forward to celebrating the real way with all of you!
Until then take care
and stay healthy,
Charlotte