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LEADING LADIES AN INDEPENDENT SERIES • PART
Some of Goss's clients have been astonished at her ability to do what many view as heavy work - men's work. But Goss, who is one of the island's prominent female landscapers, does not shrink from hard labor, including laying stone patios, and is a skilled and respected gardener who takes great pride in her accomplishments and satisfaction from what she does. Goss began in landscaping 30 years ago working for Cindy (Collins) Butler, who is still in business and has been joined in the trade since she started by many female landscapers. Twenty years ago, when she had her first son, Goss worked part-time for Butler and then decided she needed more flexibility and went into business on her own.
"It's a great joy. It's physically heartening and strengthening and spiritually satisfying," Goss said of her work. "And I'm always learning something new." When talking of women's successes on Nantucket, Goss has a broad view as to why the community seems so receptive and supportive. "On Nantucket I think it's not just women; we have the same attitude towards eccentrics. We love people for who they are and what they do," she said. "Maybe the whaling era started the tradition, but our interdependency makes it necessary to be honest with each other. There were extremes when there was work and no work and money and no money that helped bind us together. I think we all work together and need each other, so I think the island itself has helped carry on this tradition.
there are girls who will follow us. Our selfrespect and the respect we receive from others will carry on the tradition." JAN JAEGER Jan Jaeger had her grand opening of Geronimo's Pet Store in May 1991. She and her husband, Fred, the former Airport Manager, had previously lived in Colorado where she was active with an area humane society wanting to add retail business to help fund the shelter. Jaeger began investigating pet stores in the Denver area to see what they carried, and then the couple moved to Nantucket. When they arrived, with pets in tow, Jaeger realized that she had no outlets for the types of foods or supplies she was used to buying for her pets and began thinking about opening her own business.
"I thought it made sense to be my own landlord. It's a great location and we're able to have more space as a result," she said. Her client base increased through word-of-mouth, particularly as she understood that not only did Nantucket pet owners have dogs and cats, they had other small animals, birds and some turtles and she started including supplies for those species as well. Staff grew with the inventory and Jaeger stays current with trade shows and customer information passed to her that keeps her abreast of trends and new products. She believes Nantucket offers a special environment for anyone - particularly women - to try their hand at business.
"We are kind of separate from the rest of the world and it encourages a sense of independence," Jaeger added. "From my own standpoint, my husband, a silent partner who has no connection with the business, has been very supportive of me. I've likened this to being more compelling than having a child where the two of you are involved. When [a business] is all yours it's your own baby." MARY BETH SPLAINE As the grande dame of the island's gallery world, Mary Beth Splaine has held court representing local artists for 29 years since she opened South Wharf Gallery on Old South Wharf in 1978. Splaine started coming here at the end of the 1950s when she was in college and had a friend with family on Nantucket. Splaine's cousin, Judith Powers, also living on the island, once ran the Granary Gallery on Old South Wharf and closed it at about the same time Splaine began her business. She was fortunate to inherit some of Powers' artists, but Splaine did very well very quickly, to expand on her artist representations, seeking 'edgy, unique art,' and increased her reputation. She also increased her gallery space to an adjacent building on Old South Wharf in 1999 so she could host a group show at the same time she held a one person show. Last year, Splaine opened a gallery at 3 India St. At that time she retained the Old South Wharf location, but this year decided to limit her business to India Street as well as showing works in a home studio environment. "I think what draws us all to Nantucket besides the beauty is the sense that individuality is cherished here," she said. "I remember when I went to a Rotary Club meeting as a speaker but there were no women members. Women from my generation had some struggles for positions of influence, and today's young women, thankfully, take it all for granted. They are treated as individuals. I don't think it's as true elsewhere as it is here. We cherish individuals. I think Nantucket, on the whole, is very accepting of people's individuality and it's a wonderful place to grow your individuality." THERESA DAVIS Theresa Davis is about a lot more than creating pretty hair styles. She is a keen businesswoman who started as someone's employee, watched the industry's trends, knew where she wanted to go and made it happen. When Davis came here from Florida in 1972 she was an attendant at the Airport Beauty Salon. She later opened Davis Hair Designers in part of the Marine Home Center complex and in the early 1980s determined that her best move would be to start her own salon on her own property. She purchased her present location on Pleasant Street before Glidden's Seafoods, Geronimo's, The SeaGrille or the Nantucket Commons existed and obtained her mortgage from "Hank the Bank" Henry Kehlenbach at Pacific Bank. "He looked over my application and plans and slammed his hand on the desk and said, 'You know, I like a girl with balls.' " Davis's salon opened in 1983, but she sold the business to spend a year in Florida. When she returned to Nantucket, Davis worked part-time at R.J. Miller's, but when she learned the person she had sold her business to had moved to another property, since she still owned the original property, she returned to her business. "What I decided then, when hair salons were mostly just hair, was to do something different from the relaxation point of view," Davis explained. "I researched the most comfortable cutting chairs, the best music to play and put all the emphasis on client comfort." At that point, Davis had just one facial room, one manicure table and four hairdressing chairs. By 1994, she had added a spa with a hydro-tub, a steam room, three massage and body treatment rooms, showers and a locker room. She began running out of space again and took over an adjacent unit in her building to add three facial rooms, a make-up area, a tanning room and additional manicure and pedicure stations. "That's it - no more," Davis said of her expansion, but added her insights on why the island seems to embrace women in business. "I think it does come from the history of Nantucket. Those women paved the way for us today, and each generation is building on that. On Nantucket, women have always been strong community leaders and business people, and women have the capacity to do a lot of things at one time. It's just our gender that we're capable of doing that." ANNYE CAMARA There is a sizable community element on Nantucket who would have been very unhappy if Annye Camara had not taken over the island's former health food store when it was closing in 1999 and who are very happy today about the way Camara has worked hard to enlarge her store to include everything anyone could want in natural and organic varieties for breakfast, lunch and dinner. When Camara assumed the old Light Generation health food store on Washington Street Extension, she began growing her staff and inventory until her steadily increasing business outgrew the space. She bought and moved into a much larger condo unit at 14 Amelia Drive in June 2005, where she was able to double her previous offerings. "One of the appeals of this place was having a full kitchen," said Camara. "We began that summer cooking our famous chickens and later in the fall made soups and dinners, which have continued, as well as our prepared lunches. It has been exciting to see how this part of it has developed because [prepared food] was not the focus of wanting more space. We have a variety of people cooking here now who prepare dishes that have become part of the repertoire." Camara has her own take on women's prevalence in business on Nantucket and elsewhere. "My feeling is that the mainland is catching up with Nantucket. There are [female] mayors and judges and CEOs of huge companies. Maybe Nantucket was a bit ahead of itself in that respect," she said. "From my own perspective, speaking as a retailer, I think retail is very, very pleasurable and exciting. The downside of retail is it is a heck of a lot of detailed work, but I think women are good at that, being able to juggle a lot. I feel like it's a good match for me and I love to be of service and addressing the express needs of my customers. You have a lot of women doing what I do and growing their businesses in response to what we need. I'm always open to doing more of what I already do." I |
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