BURRILLVILLE –Massage Therapist Tina Breault-Cardon is clearly doing something right.
Whether it’s good karma, a clear vision, being great at what she does – or perhaps some combination of the three – Breault-Cardon has watched her business, Solitude Massage & Wellness Center, grow from a one-woman operation to what will soon be an enterprise occupying a 2,500-square-foot space and employing nearly a dozen local women – in the course of just three years.
In the first week of January, Breault-Cardon and her team will relocate from their current digs in the small plaza behind Bella Restaurant, to a brand new space custom-built to accommodate not just their regular services, but also the young entrepreneur’s plans for the future.
“I want to add more services,” she told NRI NOW this week. “I wasn’t able to do that because I didn’t have the space. I have a lot of new ideas.”
At the new location, a highly visible spot at the corner of Bronco Highway and East Avenue, she’ll be surrounded by complimentary woman-owned businesses, including a hair salon and a physical therapist. Developers Paul Vanasse and John Somyk recently finished work on the retail space and Breault-Cardon signed on early, first visiting the location last April, when the structure was little more than construction beams and a dirt floor.
“At the time, the project was only in the beginning stages,” she said, while offering a tour of a sprawling and beautifully-built structure her business will now call home, featuring plenty of space for clients to relax as Breault-Cardon and her staff work their magic.
That “magic,” includes a list of services focused on wellness including skin care, facials, acupuncture and of course, massage. Following the move, she plans to grow from a staff of five to more than nine, including her daughter, Shiann Greene, who recently graduated from esthetic school and plans to offer facials.
“I can fill it up,” she said of the new location – nearly double the size of her current space. “I’m definitely hiring more.”
When she opens the doors to the business in 2024, clients will find a more efficient space featuring an earthy theme, a space for retail products and a lounge area. Breault-Cardon designed the floor plan herself, paying for construction of the unique setup, with a corridor leading to spacious individual rooms for each service, to ensure she got exactly what she wanted.
“This is what I saw when I walked in here,” she said of her first visit back in April. “I knew this was it. It just felt right.”
The owner said she’s not surprised by the business’s growth and success – although it hasn’t all been easy. Solitude first opened in August of 2020 amid Covid restrictions and serious economic uncertainty, not just locally but across the world.
But her own solitude at 1991 Victory Highway wouldn’t last long and soon, Breault-Cardon was looking for help.
“I couldn’t keep up with the clients that needed appointments,” she said.
The speedy growth continued, and the owner soon found herself booking appointments two months out.
“We’ve just been growing so much that I had to expand,” she said of the latest decision.
She notes she has already begun booking appointments at the new building, less than a mile from the old, and for her, it all feels like the natural outcome of following her dream and pursuing her passion.
“I always wanted to have more,” she said. “I feel like this is where my heart is.”
And even as Solitude doubles in size and reach, Breault-Cardon says she has no intention of slowing down.
“My goal is to take over the upstairs as well by summertime,” she said. “I know I’m going to make it happen.”
“I feel like this is something that I really, really wanted,” she added. “My passion is to provide a safe, healing space for our community. Now that I can expand, I can reach out to more people.”
Solitude Massage & Wellness Center will start the new year at 979 East Ave. with hours by appointment. To learn more call (401) 710-4207, visit solitudewellnesscenter.com or follow the business on Facebook.
