Business Buzz
Red, white, blue, and something new for you! July is the perfect time to head to Avalon and Stone Harbor and check out all that the business community has to offer. With new fitness centers, boutique shopping destinations, places to grab healthy treats and more opening their doors on Seven Mile Beach, there is no better time than now to explore the island. Take a break from the sun and the sand and be sure to check out the buzz within the business community!
Hugh and Lynn Merkle of Compass RE: The Hugh Merkle Team
Compass RE
The Hugh Merkle Team
374 96th Street, Stone Harbor | 609-368-9100
hughmerkle.com
Longtime Stone Harbor Realtor Hugh Merkle and his team announced their move to Compass RE in June. Merkle and his team, which had been with Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices Fox & Roach Realtors, have been serving the Seven Mile Beach and Cape May County for three decades. They decided to change with the times as new technologies have become available in the real estate world.
“They are way ahead of the curve with their technologies, and when they recruited me I saw the benefits of it, and a whole new vision focused on buyers and sellers,” Merkle says of Compass. “After 32 years helping buyers and sellers attain their vacation home goals in Stone Harbor, Avalon and surrounding Cape May County, we are excited to be able to offer the highest and best real estate marketing in the United States.”
The office will be the first at the Jersey Shore offices for Compass, which originated in 2012 in New York City. Compass uses apps and digital products to connect the disparate aspects of buying and selling a house under a single, end-to-end technology platform. The company’s goal is to have a 20 percent market share in the top 20 U.S. cities by 2020.
Merkle and his team are excited to join the other highly successful real estate professionals under the Compass brand who have a proven track record of offering outstanding service to the buying and selling public.
Frank Bowen and Vanessa Scarani of Pure Juice + Kitchen
Pure Juice + Kitchen
9821 Third Avenue, Stone Harbor | 609-741-7226
purejuiceandkitchen.com
Are you ready to experience a taste of #thefreshlife? Partners Vanessa Scarani and Frank Bowen opened Pure Juice + Kitchen in May featuring raw cold-pressed juices, smoothies, smoothie bowls, organic coffee, toast and more.
“When I moved down here almost 10 years ago, there was nowhere to get something that was really truly healthy or good for you,” Scarani says. “It was always something I wanted to bring to the community and something I’ve wanted to do for a long time … offer something that is healthy and good for you but also good and yummy to eat. It’s really so important to me that we know where our food comes from, so we also created our locals list for our customers to see as well.”
Scarani’s mother was diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis at 25, and researched and changed her diet through nutrition, so Scarani was exposed to eating healthy from an early age. She and Bowen are very much into fitness, and when they started drinking juice and feeling the benefits from it, they turned their lifestyle into their business plan and Pure Juice + Kitchen was created. They love to travel around the world, checking out different places that are juicing, as well as enjoying fishing, gardening and going out to eat.
Pure Juice + Kitchen offers all-organic and about 98 percent plant-based products. A lot of the products are obtained locally, such as the organic coffees from Harry and Beans, bread from the Lost Bread Co. in Philadelphia, microgreens from microleaf farms in Estell Manor, and Kombucha from Inspired Brew in Philadelphia, to name a few. Customers can check out the “locals list” on the wall at the restaurant.
Most known for its raw cold-pressed juices that are made in-house, Scarani also makes all the almond milk and cashew milk on the premises. Some of the menu offerings include smoothies and smoothie bowls, hot or iced organic coffee, signature lattes and organic teas. Customers can check out the selection of toasts available, such as avocado toast and the coconut bacon avocado toast. Scarani created all the recipes for the smoothie bowls to keep you fueled throughout your day, so it serves as more of a meal. The Grab + Go Fridge includes all of the cold-pressed juices, wellness shots, breakfast jars, salad bowls and bottled blends to pick up at your convenience.
Pure Juice + Kitchen is open daily from 7am-4pm. If you would like to preorder juices or milk, you can email Scarani at hello@purejuiceandkitchen.com. To check out the full menu and learn more about the cold-press juicing process, go to purejuiceandkitchen.com.
Melissa Musser of Isle of Wellness instructs client Laura Tozour.
Isle of Wellness
9505 Third Avenue, Stone Harbor | 609-224-0185
theisleofwellness.com
What has been a dream for as long as she can remember has finally turned into reality for Melissa Musser, who recently opened Isle of Wellness in Stone Harbor. A place to reconnect mind, body and spirit to get healthy and stay healthy, Isle of Wellness offers physical therapy and several wellness classes including mat Pilates Fusion, stretch, core align and springboard classes.
“As a practicing physical therapist for over 20 years, along with years of training in Pilates, I wanted a place to offer not only physical therapy, where clients can receive one-on-one therapy which is difficult to find these days, as well as a variety of wellness classes where clients can maintain or improve their level of fitness,” Musser says. “Isle of Wellness has been a dream of mine for almost as long as I’ve been a physical therapist. My family has lived in the area for years, my children attend Stone Harbor Elementary and Avalon Elementary schools, and I feel so blessed to live in such a beautiful area, I couldn’t imagine opening my business in any other place.”
Originally from Chicago, Musser received her master’s degree in physical therapy at Marquette University. When she met her husband, Doug, whose family has lived in Avalon for more than 50 years, they decided they wanted to live in this area with their two daughters and three dogs. She also holds her doctorate in physical therapy from Stockton University.
In addition to physical therapy and wellness classes, Musser offers private sessions in any or all of her classes, as well as reiki, a research-based energy healing technique that decreases stress and provides harmony to body, mind and spirit. She will also provide seminars on wellness-related topics throughout the summer including nutrition, mediation with crystals, exercise fashion, reiki and more.
Classes run daily between 6:30am and 5:30pm. For a full schedule of classes, be sure to check out theisleofwellness.com or the company’s Facebook page.
Michael Bosacco of Avalon Fitness
Avalon Fitness
3206 Dune Drive, Avalon | 610-306-9867
avalonfitnessnj.com
Avalon Fitness opened its new fitness center on the corner at 3206 Dune Drive this spring. Owned by Michael Bosacco in partnership with Nancy Crafts, the business offers a full gym and all-new cardio equipment, an outdoor exercise space on AstroTurf, a renovated fitness studio for group classes and a renovated indoor cycling studio with new bikes.
“Avalon needed a fitness center and 3206 Dune Drive in Avalon has been home to health and fitness since 1998,” Bosacco says. “When the opportunity presented itself to partner with Nancy Crafts to create a state-of-the-art fitness facility on the Seven Mile Island, the team took on the challenge to begin a fitness journey, a lifelong adventure and ever-changing balance dedicated to serving Avalon and Stone Harbor.”
Avalon Fitness is open daily from 4am-10pm and is accessible via key tag or branded Avalon Fitness App. Those who wish to join the gym can download the app from the iTunes App store or Google Play for ease of entry. There are several options to choose from when purchasing options to work out at
Avalon Fitness. You can choose to just enjoy the class offerings such as Barre Strength, Body Sculpt, Yoga Vinyasa Flow, to name a few. Or if you would rather work out on the equipment, the new facility has everything you need for cardio, strength training and more. If you need a little help with your workouts, Avalon Fitness also offers personal training with a team of dedicated and knowledgeable trainers ready to assist you.
Visit avalonfitnessnj.com for pricing and details.
Maria Delany of Louella
Louella
2819 Dune Drive, Avalon | 609-830-3275
louellastyle.com
From trendy handwoven purses to affordable date-night tops, Louella has been a chic women’s fashion staple on the Main Line since 2012. And now, the popular Pennsylvania store is accessible at the Jersey Shore, with a new location on Dune Drive.
“My customers kept asking for us to come down here,” owner Maria Delany says. “The space just came out and it all came together. It’s been phenomenal.”
Louella Avalon opened here on Mother’s Day weekend. Selling resort chic clothing and accessories for women, the store features brands like Wooden Ships, Escapade, Hatley, Lisi Lerch and PowerBeads by Jen.
Located between 28th and 29th streets and Dune Drive on what Delany is referring to as “Louella Lane,” the Avalon store prides itself on being the perfect shore shopping getaway. Louella’s merchandise ranges from glasses to earrings to sweaters. Ever thing in the store is selected with the store’s customers in mind.
“We really like to get to know our customers and we preshop for them,” Delany said. “We like to help women with their complete wardrobe, and we like to make women feel good about themselves.”
Louella Avalon is open daily all summer.
