Spa Site is Back in Business at Mayflower Centre

Plymouth’s newest business has opened its doors, and for owners Kerri Pollard and her father, Larry Lester, the space is familiar.

The pair – who opened the Agio Spa di Reposo on Aug. 3 after a whirlwind month of re-decorating the space, making provisions for its house skin care line, and buying all of the equipment need to run a high-end day spa – are occupying the former Spa Juliana space at 444 Main Street.

And, as a former manager at that now-defunct business, Pollard is more than a little excited to bring a spa back to the downtown community.

“My goal is for this spa to be the destination day spa in the Metro Detroit area,” said Pollard, a 20-year veteran of the retail world and a resident of Plymouth Township.

Among Agio Spa’s offerings are hair, massage, make-up, and nail services, and also some more unique body treatments, such as the vichy shower, in which a client relaxes on a treatment table while a soothing seven-head shower system works to hydrate and exfoliate skin.

Pollard said deciding on the spa’s menu of services was something that was key in the decision to open the business.

“We worked hard to bring balance to our list of services, and we’re very happy to be here in Plymouth,” she added. “That comes across (to clients), and it’s something we want to maintain.”

Pollard and Lester signed the lease for the spot several weeks ago, and by July 1 were implementing the equipment it needed to open its doors.

“We worked very fast, said Pollard. “But one of the great things is that we could tell the people were excited about our opening – they would stop by as we were setting up and tell us how happy they were.”

But in recessionary times, opening a new business can be an intimidating proposition, said Lester, who’s new to the spa business, but has a background in finance.

“Of course it’s risky, but obviously it’s one we thought was worth taking,” said Lester, who said he’s enjoying spending time at the spa during his retirement. Additionally, Pollard, because she worked at Spa Juliana, said knew a spa could work at the location.

Tony Bruscato, the director of the Plymouth Downtown Development Authority, said he’s glad to see the spa open its doors.

“It’s certainly going to bring a lot of people into downtown because the services they perform are popular these days,” he said. “It’s an advantage to have something like Agio Spa in the downtown area because it’s one of those places that people look forward to going –  if they feel good, they’ll want to walk around downtown.”

Pollard said Plymouth‘s tight-knit business community will be an asset to her going forward.

“The close business community is a plus because we know each other,” she said. “The businesses work together to create a block of businesses that are desirable to the entire community.”

Though Pollard is focusing on today to make the business a success, she has even loftier goals.

“I would love to double the size of this spa and open another location,” she said. “But those are both a long time off.”

Agio Spa di Reposo is currently planning an official grand opening and ribbon cutting at its 444 Main Street location on Sept. 12.