The former Precison Print & Copy space in Patterson remains fenced off and awaits a demolition date. (BizSense file)
It’s been nearly four months since a fire destroyed the office building at 10615 Patterson Ave. and left a handful of local small businesses displaced.
And after pondering their future, wrestling with insurance companies and looking for space, at least some of these companies have found new homes and are trying to get back to normal business.
Precision Print & Copy, a 30-year-old commercial printing company that was a longtime tenant in Patterson’s Canterbury Green retail and office center before the late January fire, is back up and running in a new space nearby.
Co-owner Rhonda Tanir said the business was out of service for nearly two months while it looked for a new home and ordered new equipment needed to fully reopen.
New Precision space at John Rolfe Commons.
It landed in a former Amish furniture store next to Publix at 2260 John Rolfe Parkway in the John Rolfe Commons. Its owner in the mall is the same as Patterson: locally based Wilton Cos.
Tanir, who co-owns the business with her husband TJ, said Precision moved into the new space in March. While they are happy to be reopening and taking orders, she said they are still recovering.
The fire destroyed her clients’ art files, which she kept on hand for repeat orders, which meant putting many orders on hold. She said the company is still playing catch-up and hopefully waiting to see how many of the 300 pre-fire customers return with new orders or have gone elsewhere. Precision often prints for churches, schools, non-profits, restaurants and other small businesses.
“It’s too early to say what this outage means for us as far as our customer database is concerned,” Tanir said. “We’ve had a lot of them for a long time, but we’ve been so busy it’s hard to say if there’s any change.”
But Tanir said there are reasons to be optimistic.
First, she said the business was “super insured,” which was helpful since they ordered $250,000 worth of new equipment and supplies.
“Our insurance company took care of us very quickly,” she said.
Secondly, Tanir said they are enjoying the new space and environment. Canterbury Green was an older complex, with smaller windows and not much to see around. This has changed for the better at John Rolfe Commons.
“It’s a much better view, if you will. We are looking out the big windows at the blue sky and green grass,” she said.
Ultimately, Tanir said he is optimistic that the new location will not only attract previous customers but also drive new business.
“We hope our new location will regenerate everything we lost,” she said.
Rachel Duke moves out
Rachel Duke and Luna’s space after the fire.
One of Precision’s clients is a former construction buddy in Patterson who is also in rebuilding mode.
Rachel Duke, who runs her eponymous clinic that does Botox and other injection treatments, has reopened in a new space in Short Pump.
Duke had moved into the Patterson building just seven months before the fire, into a suite she shared with Chelsea Martin’s Luna Aesthetics & Spa. The two spent around US$175,000 to equip their spaces.
For a short time after the fire, Duke said she and Martin moved into the nearby coworking space, Balance, to begin serving clients and generating at least some income.
Rachel King (left) and Chelsea Martin.
But Duke needed a more permanent space. She said she got lucky through a connection made by a neighbor and ended up renting 1,200 square feet of surplus office space at 1630 Wilkes Ridge Parkway in the West Creek offices of Virginia Oculofacial Surgeons.
Duke said the office was essentially move-in ready and gave her space for two treatment rooms with reception and preparation areas. She moved in March. The only downside: an increase in rent.
“The biggest slap in the face I got was rent,” Duke said. “Because (the old space in Patterson) was an old building, our rent was very reasonable. I’m paying significantly more rent (at Wilkes Ridge), but I had to make a business decision when it comes to my patients’ needs.”
Duke said he has rehired two nurses and a receptionist and added that his former suitemate, Martin, remains at Balance and has three employees at Luna.
Duke said she was among the tenants in the Patterson building who were “uninsured” and was fighting with her insurance company to try to get reimbursed for equipment and supplies lost in the fire.
“There were days when I thought, ‘Wow, do I want to keep working to rebuild everything?’” Duke said.
She said she was encouraged by support from customers and industry colleagues.
“What kept me going was receiving little notes and care packages from colleagues in the community,” she said. “It has been so refreshing to see how patients have reached out with warm messages and words of encouragement.”
Annie Mae and Wes begin to heal
Annie Mae and Wes’s suite, red front door, a few days after the fire.
Brady Zizzo said support from her customers also kept her spirits up and some businesses coming through as she and her company Annie Mae & Wes worked to rebuild after the fire.
Annie Mae & Wes makes hair ties for cheerleaders, a niche that last year helped the company land on the RVA 25 list of the region’s fastest-growing companies.
After the fire, Zizzo found himself, like Duke, underinsured and pondering how best to reopen and keep his dozen workers employed.
His company ran out of dedicated space for about a month while Zizzo fulfilled some orders from his home.
Brady Zizzo at last year’s RVA 25 awards ceremony.
With the help of Andy Walsh of Sugar Oak Realty, Zizzo finally found a new space for his bow manufacturing and shipping operations on the corner of Patterson Avenue and Lauderdale Drive.
She said the space is a little smaller and about twice the cost of her previous office, but it gives her what she needs to start recovering and preparing for the busy bow industry season from mid-May. to September.
“We’re really happy there,” Zizzo said. “The best thing for me is that people have been very supportive. I don’t think I lost many customers. I think we’ll be fine.”
Zizzo hopes the fire wasn’t enough of a setback to prevent Annie & Wes from regaining its spot on the RVA 25 list.
“That definitely knocked me down a few pegs. But I’m optimistic,” she said. “I definitely learned a lot about insurance and a lot about having to start over.
“It’s like I’m coming back from an illness,” she said of recovering from the fire. “It’s like I feel good, but I don’t feel like running yet. The thing from the beginning was to open up because if you are open you can heal.”
