Today we’d like to introduce you to Jenn Slifka.
Hi Jenn, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstory with our readers.
We are Alex and Jenn Slifka. Husband and wife. Entrepreneurs extraordanaire. Creative thinkers, we love our small town and our heart lies right in the heart of downtown where our businesses are. We have three very rambunctious boys and we are running four businesses and managing properties. Every day is wild, it is constantly, go, go, go…but we love what we do and we wouldn’t want it any other way.
My husband Alex and I own 5 historic buildings in downtown Spring Valley, MN. Four of them are right in a row and we have four unique businesses in each of them. Chateau de Chic Salon & Spa, Chic by Chateau (women’s clothing boutique), Some Like It Hot (cafe, bakery, coffee shop, gift shop, cakes, catering owned by my mom Suzanne Gardner), Stellar 181 Taphouse (bar and restaurant.
The salon opened in 2006, my husband was my contractor on the project and we fell in love during the process. In 2011 we bought our first building downtown to expand my salon and add some boutique items. We currently have 7 technicians at the salon and we carry a wide variety of professional products. In 2018, we purchased the two buildings next to the salon to expand the boutique into a full-blown clothing store.
We carry hundreds of brands ranging in style and size and we bring new items in weekly. Funny story…the three buildings had previously all been owned by the same person who I love to think of as my soul sister. She renovated them and brought back the historic character by exposing tin ceilings, hardwood floors, and brick walls. All three are unique and she loved them, so owning the same is a huge honor and we love them just as much.
My mom, Suzanne Gardner, took over the third building to open her business Some Like It Hot. She runs a full coffee shop, bakery, and cafe with gift items, seasonal decor, and fun food items. She also does event catering and custom cakes and desserts. We moved to Spring Valley in 1997. Previous to that we had lived in San Diego where she owned a couple of bakeries and event businesses. She is an amazing baker and specializes in gourmet baked goods and food items. A lot of times you will find customers eating at Stellar and then running over to her business to grab dessert.
In 2019, we purchased the fourth building which we opened as Stellar 181 Taphouse. We completely renovated this building and exposed the brick, the tin ceilings, and the original wood floors. My husband is a woodworker by trade, so he built all of the tables, the bar tops, and the bulkhead above the bar which is so unique. We are a chef-driven kitchen with a unique menu and we try to utilize local ingredients as much as we can. We have a tap system that houses 20 Midwest craft beers that are constantly rotating.
When we started this business we were busy hard working parents of three boys who LOVE craft beer, but never have time to go to breweries…so we decided to open a place that houses a wide variety of great beer made locally in one place. Add on the great atmosphere, amazing food, and great staff that greets you with a smile!! Spring of 2022 we redid the back of the building which had an old garage. We added murals throughout by a local artist, lighting, and landscaping, and opened our garage patio. It is a peaceful and quiet oasis tucked in the alley. The bathroom is always a topic of conversation as well…it has some amazing artwork.
Opening the fourth business tied everything together. All buildings are open and accessible for customers to walk freely through which is so much fun. Clients at the salon will get a full head of foils in and then roam freely through the shops, stop in the bar for a cocktail, sit, and enjoy coffee. It has been named Spring Valley’s “mini mall”. It is an amazing atmosphere. All four businesses are unique in style and feel, but all four are housed in gorgeous buildings that hold so much history and character. We love our buildings as well as the history they hold.
Our goal is to turn downtown Spring Valley into a fun gathering place, a place to spend the afternoon…shop, eat, drink, and hang out. In the last few years, Alex and I have also become very passionate about building our business community. We started a nonprofit, the Spring Valley Business Alliance, a group to bring business owners together to help grow and enrich the community through fun events and community projects. We are also part of a group that puts on a local event Fins and Films, a vintage car show, pinup show, drag races, burnouts, and drive-up movies.
Last year a group of us started monthly summer markets downtown and it has been a huge hit and a great way to fill up the streets. We have over 75 vendors, food, live music, and fun for the whole family. We hope to make downtown Spring Valley a hustling and bustling place like it was years ago.
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
I don’t think being a business owner is ever free of challenges. It’s really about trying to problem-solve through them and being willing to accept that there will always be challenges.
Anything that goes wrong always falls on you as a business owner so it is about being flexible and accepting anything that comes your way. Over the years, we have had our fair share of challenges but we have been fortunate enough to have each other to work through them and come out ahead.
As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
Alex and I are both creative souls. I have been behind the chair as a stylist for 21 years now. I have owned the salon for 17 years. For four of those years, I educated for Moroccanoil as well. I love up styles, doing fashion colors, and braiding. Alex is a woodworker and has made custom tables and bartops for quite a few businesses and restaurants in Rochester.
He also brought that creative side into the Stellar building with all of the unique woodwork in there. I think what sets us and our businesses apart from others is that we both spend so much time in our businesses. We are very hands-on…I am still behind the chair full time and you will find him behind the bar at Stellar making drinks when he isn’t working in the wood shop. I think for a small town our businesses are very unique in look and feel.
Another cool thing is between our five buildings…we have 13 different murals painted throughout them…inside, and outside…all done by a good friend and local artist, Andrea Hindt. Each of them adds a fun spark to whichever area you are in.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.stellar181taphouse.com www.chicbychateau.com www.chateaudechic.com www.somelikeithotcc.com
- Instagram: @stellar181taphouse, @chateaudechicsalon, @chicbychateau, and @somelikeitmn
- Facebook: Stellar 181 Taphouse Chateau de Chic Chic by Chateau Some Like It Hot Cakes & Catering
