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Small business program a highlight for aSPArations owner

T-R PHOTOS BY JOE FISHER — aSPArations owner Tasha Schnathorst was selected to participate in the Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Businesses program. The program provides educational tools to business owners to encourage growth and the creation of jobs.

The future looks bright for aSPArations Salon and Day Spa.

Owner Tasha Schnathorst was recently chosen to take part in the Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Businesses program. The program aims to educate small business owners on practices and techniques that can grow the business and create jobs. It also provides support services and interaction with other business owners. More than 9,000 business owners have already graduated from the program. She is one of 27 business owners in Iowa to be chosen.

Originally, Schnathorst was meant to attend classes hosted at Des Moines Area Community College but classes switched to virtual because of the COVID-19 pandemic. The program includes 12 weeks of classes meeting twice per week. There are additional optional classes and office hours available.

Schnathorst was nominated for inclusion in the Goldman Sachs 10,000 by the Marshalltown Chamber of Commerce. She went through a series of interviews over the summer before being selected.

“It was an honor just to be nominated. I don’t think I had a real idea of what it was when I signed up for it,” she said. “The instructors are so engaging. Each week I’m more and more excited about what we’re going to learn.”

aSPArations moved to a new location at 112 Nicholas Drive in February.

For a business to be selected it must be in operation for at least two years, have two employees or more and have a revenue of $100,000 in its last fiscal year.

“It’s really designed to get us to think bigger than what our business already is,” Schnathorst said. “One thing we’re working on is improving our training system and implementing an associate program — mentoring those who are recently licensed in both technical and soft skills to build them and make them better.”

aSPArations employs 19 people and provides a full suite of services including massage, hair, nails and skin care.

One of the newest additions glowing up the salon and spa is a clinical strength LED bed. It might look like a tanning bed at a glance, but the bed actually stimulates repair and recovery of damaged tissue through a process called lightwave therapy.

aSPArations is home to the only LED bed in Iowa.

aSPArations cosmetologist Yesenia Merino shampoos Beatrice Davalos’ hair during an appointment on Monday.

“Light therapy has been around about 100 years. They started making a lot of advances in the 80s when NASA got involved,” Schnathorst said. “Without light, the body will not heal. It can increase the rate the body repairs itself by 300 times.”

The owner said it is used for pain management, improving complexion and relaxation.

The salon also carries an array of hair, skin and cosmetic products.

Earlier this year the business moved to a new location at 112 Nicholas Drive. The new space allows for services to be spread out and social distancing to be practiced.

For more information:

A new LED bed was recently installed at aSPArations. Light therapy is used to treat pain, heal tissue and improve complexion along with other health benefits, according to owner Tasha Schnathorst.

Call aSPArations at 641-753-4095 or visit its facebook page www.facebook.com/aSPArations

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Contact Joe Fisher at 641-753-6611 or jfisher@timesrepublican.com

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