Category Archives: New Businesses

The Center for Economic Growth (CEG) is merging with the Creative Economy (ACE) in an effort to expand on the economic development endeavors of both organizations.ACE was founded in 2016 to advocate and help grow the “creative industries,” which have now become the fourth largest employment sector in the Capital Region, generating over $1.4 billion in earnings in 2017, according to development officials.

By Jill Nagy
Photographer Holly LeBihan realized a long time dream when she opened Images by Holly Ann, her new photography studio at 206 Glen St. in Glens Falls, in mid-May.
After raising her three children, LeBihan returned to school in 2010, earning an associate degree from SUNY Adirondack and a bachelor’s degree at Fitchburg State University in Massachusetts. After that, she spent two years building her portfolio, moving around as the demands of her husband’s job required, and taking photographs on location, whether at schools, in clients’ homes, or out of doors.
Now, she has a studio on the fourth floor of the Covin Building.
“It’s nice to have consistent lighting,” she said. She looks forward to getting established.
Her work is primarily portrait photography, particularly of children and family pets.
“I love children,” she said, “My heart is drawn to kids.”

by Andrea Palmer
Natascha Pearl-Mansman is finishing her first year in business as Darling Doughnuts, and is pleased with the popularity of her company.
“I’ve always had an entrepreneurial spirit, but it wasn’t until after the birth of my daughter that I took the leap and started my own business,” said Pearl-Mansman. “I suppose I spent too much time watching baking competitions on TV while I was up at all hours of the day and night with a newborn. I’d sit there and wonder how all these people were lucky enough to be doing that for a living. I realized you can’t sit around and wait for the perfect time to start something, that you have to just get up and go for it.”

By Jennifer Farnsworth
Wendy Waldron has taken her years of experience and success and created her own consulting firm that reaches clients from Albany to the Adirondack Mountains.
WaldronWorks officially launched in March of this year with a soft opening a few months prior. The firm took on their first client in December, providing operations leadership.
Originally from Queensbury, Waldron said family roots in the area that go back for generations is one reason she wanted to open up her business in the area that she loves, the Adirondacks.
“I love strengthening our community and local economy by supporting our entrepreneurs,” said Waldron.

By Christine Graf
Queensbury digital marketing company DDM Generation was launched in March by Albany native Jenna Clark.
Before opening her own company, Clark worked at a search engine marketing company in New York City. She also worked for a New York City startup that launched a mobile ordering app for pizzerias. After several years of working in the city, she decided to move back to the area to start her own business.
“Entrepreneurship has always been a passion of mine,” she said. “I knew it was time to pursue what I truly love and that is helping businesses grow.”

By Jill Nagy
Having experienced showering outdoors, Ted Beyer is ready to build stalls for other people through his new side business, Sunnyside Outdoor Shower LLC in Queensbury.
He got the idea from Cape Cod and Maine beach houses, which commonly have an outdoor shower for people to wash off before coming inside, leaving behind mud, sand and salt. He said he thought about it last summer and set up the business over the winter. He has a few unassembled showers waiting in his garage.
He builds the showers in five pieces—four walls and a floor—in his garage and can set them up in a few hours at a customer’s site. They are built of cedar, purchased from Northern Hardwoods in Lake George, and “smell great,” he said.

by Andrea Palmer
Cliff Stark and his son, Alex Stark, are opening a new restaurant in Hudson Falls.
Starky’s Grill will be located at 3515 Burgoyne Ave., the location of the former Latham’s Diner.
The father-son team purchased the diner in April. They will co-own and co-operate the eatery. Stark has four other children, whom he said will be helping out. Two are the head of Starky’s Grill marketing.

By Christine Graf
Ollie’s Bargain Outlet will be opening a new retail store at Aviation Mall in late August or early September. The store will occupy 30,000 square feet of space in the former Bon-Ton location.
Ollie’s will occupy just over one-third of the former Bon-Ton location. Bon-Ton closed its 80,000-square-foot store in April 2018. Aviation Mall also lost another large tenant at the end of 2018 when Sears closed the doors of its 95,000-squre-foot store.

By Jill Nagy
Chris Patten, the new owner of the Rockhill Bakehouse Cafe, received approval from the Glens Falls Planning Board when he presented plans to enlarge and renovate the property.
He plans to add two apartments above the cafe, expand the cafe itself, and do a “full gut renovation” of the inside of the building, he said.
Meanwhile, Matt Funiciello, who founded the cafe and operated it for 15 years, plans to move his bread baking operation from its current location in a Moreau strip mall to an old brick former Nabisco warehouse in Glens Falls and add a vegan cafe. He is moving into the Shirt Factory, at 18 Curran Lane. Rockhill’s neighbors in the building will include a distillery, a bike shop, and Pies on Wheels.

By Jennifer Farnsworth
When Lisa Farina DePalma made the move late last year from Aviation Road to Mount Royal Plaza, the Queensbury hair salon owner hoped that her staff and client base would come with her. The years of experience at Adonis Hair Supply Design and her friendly demeanor seemed to pay off, with all of her employees as well her customers following her.
“Our new location has been great to us. I feel as though I have many blessings,” said DePalma.