{image1} Starting a business from the ground up is tough. There's financing, hiring, firing, a good business plan, passion, skills and that all-important location. Location has been the challenge for upscale men's salon, groom, over its first few years.
Last week, owner Theri DeJoode and her staff relocated to the Historic Third Ward into a space at the Commission House building, 330 E. St. Paul Ave. It's the fourth move in a six-year history that's been filled with landlord disputes, an eviction, floods and alleged lies from developers.
Groom started in April 1999 without a clientele at 728 N. Milwaukee St. (now the site of Cubanita's) at a time when Milwaukee Street was "a very dead street with only Hotel Metro, Bear Brew, a book store and us," says stylist Erica Grabczyk, who has been with groom from the beginning.
"When we opened, we had nothing," says DeJoode. At the beginning, she partnered with her former husband's business, Beauty, but has been on her own since the couple divorced. DeJoode was fresh off a stop in Chicago for American Crew, a company she still works for today, and knew that Milwaukee was ready for a men's salon with something more than just scissors and barbershop poles. And she thought Milwaukee Street was the perfect place.
"(The Milwaukee Street location) was chosen because of price. It was reasonable rent at a small-term lease with a large-term option," says DeJoode.
The space was funky and doubled as an art gallery on Gallery Nights and benefited from the proximity to the Milwaukee Athletic Club, banks and the neighboring Hotel Metro. But, conflicts with landlord and building owner John Raettig and rent increases made it hard for groom to stay. So, relocation number one was set in motion.
Again, price and location played the biggest roles in the decision-making process. Groom landed at the Hotel Wisconsin, 714 N. Old World 3rd St., in February 2002.
Like many small business owners, DeJoode didn't have a budget for the move. "We went from this really great street that was just starting to build, to a location inside Hotel Wisconsin," she says. Surprisingly, the old-school atmosphere, additional parking and increased foot traffic actually made the Hotel Wisconsin a better location.
"My rule was six blocks, you really don't want to move more than six to 10 blocks max for a move," DeJoode says. But once again there were problems, this time with contractors. DeJoode and her boyfriend ended up having to do some of the construction work themselves.
Then in November 2003 the hotel's owners announced a grand plan to turn the building into condos and re-do the storefronts and everyone was evicted. This led to legal battles and eventually another move. Three minor floods during the Hotel Wisconsin era ruined equipment and forced groom to seek shelter in an old bar area in the back of the building.
Luckily, DeJoode found a home for groom less than a block away at 230 W. Wells St. in June 2004. DeJoode's efforts to lease the former Radio Doctor's and Preuss Flowers space on the corner of Wells and Second Streets didn't work, however and the salon landed in a back room in the building that previously housed a salon.
"Once I realized we couldn't get the corner space here, I started to look for a new location to purchase and found retail condo space in the Third Ward," says DeJoode.
And with loans from Park Bank and MEDC (Milwaukee Economic Development Corporation) and a banker that bent over backward, her plan worked.
Effective Jan. 18 groom is up and running across from the fast-rising Milwaukee Public Market.
"It's 1,650 square feet, one-third geared toward retail with a sunk-in cutting bay. Art deco with industrial elements," says DeJoode. "The Third Ward is the retail area now, so we'll do more sales. We'll be the resting spot for gentlemen when their women are shopping the boutiques and the new Public Market."
What do customers think of four moves in six years?
"In all of this, our clients were beautiful, they are cool and forgiving and understanding. We do great hair and we are nice, and our relationships we have in our chairs are important," DeJoode says.
Groom has used mailers, word of mouth and phone calls to make the moves known. The salon's four full-time and three part-time employees also play an active role in ensuring that clients know where to go to get their cuts, and they've all helped with the heavy lifting though the multiple moves.
"Luckily the nature of a hairdresser is go, go, go. But this is going to be our final stop, " says Grabczyk.
A life-long and passionate community leader and Milwaukeean, Jeff Sherman is a co-founder of OnMilwaukee.
He grew up in Wauwatosa and graduated from Marquette University, as a Warrior. He holds an MBA from Cardinal Stritch University, and is the founding president of Young Professionals of Milwaukee (YPM)/Fuel Milwaukee.
Early in his career, Sherman was one of youngest members of the Greater Milwaukee Committee, and currently is involved in numerous civic and community groups - including board positions at The Wisconsin Center District, Wisconsin Club and Marcus Center for the Performing Arts. He's honored to have been named to The Business Journal's "30 under 30" and Milwaukee Magazine's "35 under 35" lists.
He owns a condo in Downtown and lives in greater Milwaukee with his wife Stephanie, his son, Jake, and daughter Pierce. He's a political, music, sports and news junkie and thinks, for what it's worth, that all new movies should be released in theaters, on demand, online and on DVD simultaneously.
He also thinks you should read OnMilwaukee each and every day.
