Historic Stagecoach Building houses many businesses

Featured Photo: Several small businesses now operate from the 1830 Stagecoach building. Photos by W. Turrell

by Wendy Turrell

The Stagecoach Building, on the corner of Brecksville and Streetsboro roads, has seen many incarnations since 1830 when James Weld built the Center Hotel and stagecoach mail stop. A large room upstairs was used as a dance hall well into the 20^th century, and late in the century, the building was a popular lawn and garden store.

Now the building has been reinvented with distinctive shops and services.

Owner Alex Burlotos bought the building in 2007 and moved his real estate legal consulting business, The Symphony Group, into an office on the second floor. “I loved the beauty of the building,” Burlotos said, “and its history, proximity, and exposure.”

Burlotos hasn’t remodeled the building, wanting to preserve its historic footprint, but he has updated and maintained it carefully, even during the lean years of the pandemic. The tenant mix has recently grown to eight active businesses.  

Somerville Antiques

“We have a great tenant mix. They are all wonderful people, and everybody wants to help each other,” Burlotos said recently.

He called Somerville Antiques – the landmark business on the bottom floor – the anchor of the structure since the 1980s. Melissa Somerville, current owner and daughter of Somerville Antiques’ founder Joffrey Somerville, buys, sells, and trades antiques and vintage items. She also sells recycled metal folk art and unique gifts.

Somerville’s vision includes “trying to grow the business to encapsulate this next generation, saving the planet in finding pieces that can be reimagined or repurposed.” Her folk art includes colorful pieces such as whimsical figures of roosters, goats, birds and sunflowers.

She added, “We have a line of metal wall art related to bar décor – bourbon, whiskey, beer, wine, Cleveland and sports teams.” ArchAngelDesignz, a design business owned by Somererville’s husband, Brian George, supplies metal engraving to the shop.

“We love this community and love the rich history of this building,” Somerville enthused.

Century Hair Studio

Allyson Gaydemski, owner of Century Hair Studio, established her hair salon at the Stagecoach last October. She has expertise in several techniques, explaining, “I am a master, certified Bellami hair extension artist, a Redken colorist, and I also specialize in balayage [hair painting], blonding, modern cuts, men’s cuts, and I do a lot of bridal hair.” She has waxing services and hopes to soon offer manicures.

Gaydemski says of the Stagecoach building, “As a Richfield local, I fell in love with the Stagecoach building. … It’s got a lot of character and is so beautiful inside. …. Most of my clients say they feel like they’re at home when they’re in my shop.”

Energy Wellness Studio

Kimberly Ganley owns Energy Wellness Studio and follows the Sanskrit theory of seven “chakras,” which denote circles of energy that form our bodies’ energy fields. She says these “correlate and affect different aspects of our emotional and physical well-being.”

Ganley watched her father and grandmother battle Parkinson’s disease, and that led her to start the “Reiki for Caregivers” program in 2009. Ganley is a certified Reiki master and teacher, Donna Eden Energy Medicine practitioner, and an accredited international practitioner of Emotional Freedom Techniques, or Tapping.

Ganley offers group workshops called “Meditate and Paint,” during which participants meditate, then create paintings based upon their insights. The two-hour sessions include art supplies, refreshments, and the painting to take home as a keepsake.

“I was drawn to the Stagecoach Building for its charming appearance and rich history,” Ganley said.

Home Equity Realty Group

Jenne Haddox is the branch owner of Home Equity Realty Group. She and her husband James opened the office in the Stagecoach Building last September. “We offer curated real estate services including purchasing, sales and leasing for residential, commercial and investment real estate,” she explained.

Haddox said, “James and I live in Hinckley, and the Stagecoach Building has always been near and dear to our hearts. It was the ideal location for my business and keeps us just minutes to our hometown, as well as convenient to all of our primary markets, including Bath, Fairlawn, and Cleveland.”

JPIX Photography

Jennifer Jones’ spacious, airy JPIX Photography studio occupies the light-filled second floor. Jones offers maternity, newborn, cake smash, family and senior photos and professional headshots.

Jones said, “[I] always had a camera at my side,” although her early career was spent in the dental field. She turned her avocation into a vocation five years ago, after studying for two years at the New York Institute of Photography.

She appreciates the studio at the Stagecoach Building because the space is large enough for family portraits. “Not many photographers in the area have that option or a large enough space to accommodate larger groups.”

She has an extensive costume and prop corner, where clients can experiment with different looks. This is especially popular with maternity clients, a segment of her business she would like to concentrate on in the coming year. Jones also offers in-home and on-location shoots.

Since moving to her Richfield studio, Jones said, “I have been reaching clients in so many new areas.”

Stone and Sage

After studying at the University of Akron art school, Krista Gorzelanczyk started making and selling gemstone crystal jewelry online. She branched out and sold jewelry in a friend’s boutique, and then decided she would like to open her own shop. Stone and Sage became the newest tenant in the Stagecoach building, opening Dec. 2.

Along with her bracelets, earrings, necklaces and rings, Gorzelanczyk sells a wide array of crystals, and gift items such as candles, scarves, plants, and bath and body products. She also carries clothing from a friend’s boutique. Stone and Sage will have an open house on Feb. 3 from 5 – 8 p.m.

Open House

That spirit of tenant collaboration is evident in plans for a joint open house on Sunday, March 26, from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. There will be refreshments, raffles and giveaways. The businesses will also take part in the annual Cabin Fever Tour on March 19.

Cathy Matousek, owner of Serenity Therapeutic Massage, could not be reached for this article. ∞