Stylish makeover

In 1996, hair stylist Joseph Santoro moved his business from the center of Philadelphia to rural Bridgeton, New Jersey. There, he established his Experts in Hair salon in a building connected to a 750-square-foot space on seven acres on a highway. His business partner, David Friel, built an office for his medical practice on the property, and Santoro designed and decorated the space. Soon, bolstered by compliments about the design and decor, and Friel's encouragement, Santoro decided he should branch out.

In 1997, Joseph opened Santoro & Company Gifts, Antiques, and Home Decor in the vacant 750-foot space, despite fears that the depressed economy and the ubiquitous country theme of local retail would prove unwelcoming to his unique vision for a gift store.

Santoro, cutting hair full time, needed someone to manage the new store. Then one day, when Michael Bohannan came in for a trim, Joseph found his manager sitting right under his flying scissors. Now Bohannan not only manages the store while Santoro continues clipping, he creates all the displays and goes along on buying trips.

Not long after opening, the store was doing so well that Santoro decided to expand. He designed a new space incorporating the old store for a total of 4,000 square feet. The main showroom is located on the first floor, with a staircase leading to a balcony overlooking the main floor. The store includes an 8'x6' display window, a basement showroom, and, outside, a 30'x40' marble patio to showcase outdoor furniture.

Even in the smaller space, Santoro & Company had offered a wide-ranging mix. But when the retail area more than tripled with the remodeling, Joseph was inspired to go from selling "a little bit of everything" to selling a whole lot. Santoro & Company is jam-packed with an eclectic mix of product, with everything from dinnerware to artwork, jewelry, baby gifts, antiques and home accents, rugs, crystal, furniture reproductions, candles, garden items, Christmas decor, pet accessories … and more.

The main part of the new construction opened in September 2002, approximately seven months after breaking ground. However, the basement showroom was unfinished. Santoro had intended to use that space to showcase merchandise, but didn't have the money to finish it. But fate — and networking — intervened once more to help in the store's development.

Santoro applied to a local flooring manufacturer, Mannington Mills, which donated a free test floor for the basement. The floor's vinyl material had a marble look that took Santoro back to fond memories of his trips to Italy — and the Italian villa theme at Santoro & Co. was born.

"A lot of people in this area haven't traveled or experienced that European feeling," says Joseph.

Santoro had planned to do his own paint treatments when he could find the time and money, but another salon client, designer Robert Holitt, suggested that Santoro & Co. was a perfect venue to showcase his own work. Holitt Sheetrocked the basement, at cost, and applied Tuscan-style paint treatments for free. Completing the effect are ceiling murals, antique "doors to nowhere," and skylights that open onto a sunken area where Santoro hopes to one day add a bistro. As a result, Robert Holitt got the publicity of a great showpiece, and Joseph Santoro got his piece of Italy sooner than he expected.

In the meantime, the outside of the store is anything but spartan. Grapevines grow on a wrought iron Belgian gazebo, the patio is filled with garden furniture, and the front yard displays an eclectic mix of product to passing tourist traffic.

The salon has proved to be the key to Santoro's success. When he first started out, his clientele provided the gift store with the majority of its customers. In addition to those folks, Santoro attracted patrons over time through a low-budget publicity blitz and a few eye-catching events. But Bohannan estimates that salon clients still make up 60 percent of the gift store's customers.

Last year, the salon (which employs one other hairdresser) and the 750-square-foot shop contributed about equally to Joseph Santoro's $275,000 take. But this year the Santoro & Company expansion has roughly doubled the gift shop's proceeds, adding at least another $10,000 per month. Sales from June 2002 to June 2003 went from $9,000 to $20,000 for the gift store alone.

That's a stylish makeover.