Business Buzz
Amid the coronavirus pandemic, supporting small and local businesses is more important now than ever. As everyone is eager to get to the shore and enjoy their favorite shopping and dining destinations, take a walk on the beach and catch up with their Sea Isle friends, it is also the perfect time to check out what’s new in town. We caught up with some new local business owners and got the scoop on all the latest buzz in the business community.
Dustin Laricks of Compass RE Laricks Real Estate
Compass RE: Laricks Real Estate
4110 Landis Avenue, Sea Isle City
609-263-8300
laricks.com
Sea Isle City real estate brokerage Laricks Real Estate joined Compass RE this March. Laricks Real Estate was formed in 1946 by principal agent Dustin Laricks’ grandfather Arthur Laricks, and built over three generations on the simple principles of excellent customer service and experienced advice. Having grown up in the industry alongside his grandfather and his father Don, Dustin decided now was a good time for the team to partner with Compass.
“I began discussions with Compass in October 2019 and immediately recognized that we share the same culture,” Laricks says. “Our business models, morals and work ethic aligned, and it made the decision of partnering our company very easy. Compass has exceeded our expectations and we are excited to share our future together. Compass offered an opportunity to infuse the latest technology and innovation. Together our partnership allows us to deliver unparalleled service to our clients.”
Compass was founded in 2012 by Ori Allon and Robert Reffkin and is the fastest-growing real estate technology company and operating in more than 100 US cities. In addition to Don and Dustin, the Laricks Team offers a staff of professional agents including Maggie Sgalio, Valerie Bell, Debbie Gannon, Jason Walawender, Kerry Huddleston and its marketing director, Laida Degan. The team works out of the office at 4110 Landis Ave., and offers expertise in vacation rentals and sales.
For more information about Compass RE: Laricks Real Estate, go to laricks.com.
Maria McQuillen of Bella Roots Salon
Bella Roots Salon
3918 Landis Avenue, Sea Isle City
609-263-8805
bellarootssic.com
Bella Roots Salon, formerly known as Salon Shannon Leigh, was purchased from Shannon O’Rourke by new owner Maria McQuillen, who had worked at the salon for 10 years. The salon has been in its 39th and Landis Avenue location for more than 60 years.
“Bella Roots has a lot of meaning behind our name: Bella meaning beautiful in Italian and Roots standing for family roots, which is very dear to my heart,” McQuillen says, explaining the name change. “The girls and I are very close, and we work together as a team and as a family.”
McQuillen has been in the salon industry since 1994 and it was always her dream to own her own salon one day. Her husband, Tom, is the Sea Isle City police chief, and they have two daughters, Adyson and Alyssa. Her team at Bella Roots Salon consists of O’Rourke, Donna Hadfield, Laurie Carlson, Jessica Abraham, Deserie Farrington and Alexis Olson.
Bella Roots Salon offers cut and style for women, children and men, color treatments, blow outs, bridal and special-occasion styles and more. A full selection of products and gift certificates are also available online at bellarootssic.com.
Although the salon is currently closed due to the COVID-19 restrictions, McQuillen and her team look forward to their reopening soon. The business hours as well as monthly specials will be posted on Facebook and Instagram.
“Soon Bella Roots will be back to the beach and better than ever,” McQuillen says. “We can’t wait to see our Be-YOU-tiful friends and clients.”
Andrew Jenkins and the Fractured Prune mascot Prune Dude
Fractured Prune Donut Shoppe
5004 Landis Avenue, Sea Isle City
609-425-9352
fracturedprunenj.com
Offering hot, hand-dipped, made-to-order donuts with different flavors and toppings, Fractured Prune Donut Shoppe will open its doors in Sea Isle City this summer. Owner Andrew Jenkins is excited to bring his family-owned business to town.
“Our family has two locations in Ocean City and one in North Wildwood for a total now, with Sea Isle, we have four locations in South Jersey,” Jenkins says. “Over the years, many of our Sea Isle fans have had to travel to our other locations. Therefore, we always wanted to open a shop to serve our fans in Sea Isle but have been waiting for the right location.”
The Fractured Prune story dates back to 1976 when Tom Parshall purchased Josh’s 46th Street Market in Ocean City, Md., and was thinking about a new name for his enterprise. He came across the name Prunella Shriek, a woman in her 70s who had owned much of the land in that area in the late 1800s. She was an avid ice skater and loved to ski and play pingpong, often returning from rigorous competitons in a wheelchair or on crutches due to her age and brittle physique. The community lovingly referred to her as “Fractured Prunella.” This clicked for Parshall, and the Fractured Prune was born.
In 2010, the Jenkins family licensed the rights to bring the Fractured Prune to the Jersey Shore and opened its first location in Ocean City about nine years ago, at the time Andrew was just getting started in college. He would spend time working in the shop over summer break and eventually when he graduated and got a full-time job, he would sneak back to the Ocean City job whenever he could.
“I just kept coming back whenever I could because it was always just a fun atmosphere being down the shore. Making sure I taste-tested the donuts every time did not hurt, either,” he says. “After a while I decided to quit my other job and join the family business full time by expanding to Wildwood and now Sea Isle. We love our donuts! We are a family-run business and are grateful that our fans allow us to be part of their vacation experience at the Jersey Shore year after year.”
While the Fractured Prune specializes in custom donuts, it also offers breakfast sandwiches and a variety of coffee choices. The business is also the home of the delicious “Glazer,” which is a scope of ice cream heat-sealed inside a donut. Throughout the season, the Fractured Prune offers a limited batch of specialty donuts that are announced on its social media pages.
Fractured Prune’s donuts have been listed among the best in the state by bestofnj.com, and the business was named the 2018 winner of the Fastest Growing Small Business by the Philadelphia Inquirer and received the 2017 Best New Addition to the Boardwalk from the Wildwood Chamber of Commerce.
The business will be open from 7am-1pm daily this summer. Stay tuned for its grand opening announcement on Facebook and Instagram.
Capt. Adam Fox and Sean McNulty of Carefree Boat Club
Carefree Boat Club of South Jersey
86th Street & Bay, Sea Isle City
900 Ocean Drive, Avalon
609-388-9009
southjerseyboatclub.com
Entering its second season in Avalon as the 80th Carefree Boat Club across North America under the leadership duo of Sean McNulty and Captain Adam Fox, Carefree Boat Club of South Jersey is expanding to Sea Isle City this summer with its fleet of boats and personal watercraft.
“We are adding a Sea Isle location because it is better suited for our smaller boats and Jet Skis which we are adding this year,” says McNulty. “We have one boat club but keep vessels at two separate locations: Commodore Bay Marina in Avalon and Sunset Pier in Sea Isle City.”
McNulty grew up spending summers in Sea Isle City from the time he was in eighth grade until he graduated from college. Dishwashing at Sunset Pier was his first job. His family has owned Commodore Bay Marina for close to 20 years. And after graduating from college and spending two years in Sydney, Australia, McNulty moved home to Pennsylvania in 2017 before becoming the membership director for the local Carefree Boat Club last year.
Fox has been a professional full-time captain and guide for more than 20 years. He grew up in Avalon from the age of 10 and has been running boats and fishing full-time since graduating from Stockton University. He spent years as a private sport fishing captain before starting his own charter fishing business. Fox was hired to run Commodore Bay Marina before he and McNulty found the boat club concept and decided to bring it to Avalon.
The Carefree Boat Club was founded in Virginia in 2002 with the mentality of “boating without owning.” When you join Carefree Boat Club of South Jersey, you have access to several different boats, personal watercraft, amenities, member socials and more. With three membership tiers available, you can pick the one that best fits your needs. Membership options include: Ski Membership, which gains you access to personal watercraft only; Bay Membership includes access to personal watercraft and boats up to 21 feet; the Ocean Membership access to the entire fleet, including the new 26-foot Cobia Center Console with twin engines.
All memberships include winterization, insurance, maintenance, taxes, repairs, you name it. It is as close as you can get to owning a boat or personal watercraft without actually owning them. The local club has already received accolades after its first year, too; it was named Best New Club of the Year and was honored with the President’s Club Award at the National Carefree Boat Club Conference.
“In the summer of social distancing, we believe boating offers a way to continue to enjoy the sun and surf,” says McNulty. “Carefree Boat Club members have the opportunity to create new shore-time memories via boating without the responsibilities that come along with boat ownership. New contact free check-in/checkout and disinfecting protocols will help ensure the health and safety of our members, crew and the community.”
For more information on membership or the company, contact Sean McNulty at 609-388-9009 or visit southjerseyboatclub.com.
TJ Heist of Jet Drive Exchange
Jet Drive Exchange
8800 Sounds Avenue, Sea Isle City (Pier 88 Marina)
609-224-1773jetdriveexchange.com
TJ Heist of Jet Drive Exchange
TJ Heist, the owner of Jet Drive Exchange, a boat and Jet Ski club, is excited to be expanding his fleet to Pier 88 Marina in Sea Isle City this summer.
“Sea Isle City was the logical next location for our club,” Heist says. “Being a neighbor to Ocean City, it shares many of the same attributes that has allowed us to grow in Ocean City. It is a family-friendly town with a large population of people that would love to be able to get into boating without the headache or expense of purchasing a boat, renting a slip, and maintaining it year after year.”
A young entrepreneur, Heist, 27, started his first business, Totally Tubular Watersports, in 2013 and has since grown that business in Ocean City to add more boats and the inflatable AQUA PARK. He opened Jet Drive Exchange in 2018 in Ocean City. He has a business management degree from Washington College in Chestertown, Md., and a certificate in risk and insurance from St. John’s University.
“Starting Jet Drive Exchange in 2018 has been a rewarding process from getting to know every one of our members while seeing our membership grow over 300 percent since our first year,” Heist says. “We recently outgrew our first location in Ocean City and moved into another space to allow for more growth and more boats for our members in the coming years. This same philosophy holds true for our Sea Isle location as well. We plan to add more watercraft to our Sea Isle City fleet as more members join Jet Drive Exchange.”
When you join Jet Drive Exchange, membership gains you unlimited access to the fleet of boats and Jet Skis for the season. The company offers unlimited usage of a diverse range of watercraft ranging from Jet Skis to center consoles, ski boats, and pontoon boats. In addition to locations in Ocean City and Sea Isle City, the company is in the process of expanding to other shore towns, and members have reciprocal access to all locations. Time slots are available daily from 8am-7pm.
As a new-location incentive, Jet Drive Exchange is offering $1,000 to $1,500 off new memberships. The company has a strict ratio of members to watercraft to ensure plenty of availability for its members. As soon as the ratio is met, new memberships will close for the year until more watercraft is added the following year.
For more information on membership, go to jetdriveexchange.com.
