New business owner April Ruggles toasts the recent opening of Optimum Nutrition with Bob Pierce, executive director of Chelsea Area Chamber of Commerce. In the background is Jennifer Folts and all are drinking a mango and aloe drink that aids in digestion.

Lisa Allmendinger | AnnArbor.com

Optimum Nutrition, a private health club, is one of a dozen new businesses that have opened in Chelsea in the past nine months.

Business owner and health nutrition coach April Ruggles of Grass Lake opened her new business in the lower level of the Sylvan Building downtown and hopes to help people find a healthier lifestyle with free personal wellness evaluations and community weight-loss challenges.

“This is terrific for the community, any time a small business opens up it’s another positive step for Chelsea, Washtenaw County and the state of Michigan,” said state Rep. Mark Ouimet, R-Scio Township.

Back to The Roots on Main Street is one of about a dozen new businesses in Chelsea.

Lisa Allmendinger | AnnArbor.com

Ruggles said she was excited “to get people on board to a healthier lifestyle, it’s our passion and our love.”

Chelsea Area Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Bob Pierce said he thought there were a number of reasons why entrepreneurs were opening businesses in the city.

Companies such as newcomers AutoZone and Biggby Coffee have done company due diligence before deciding to open in Chelsea.

"They find Chelsea is a growing community that can support franchises and, as corny as it sounds, Chelsea is a great community to open a business."

He said that Back to the Roots, another new business, has a store in another state, but the owners decided to open a store in Chelsea, "because the business climate is collaborative."

Plus, he said, “A number of folks are coming to grips with the ‘new normal’ and they see this as an opportunity to build their future,” adding that although things are improving, “the job market has still not recovered.”

He said “new business owners want to control their own destiny.”

Among the new businesses that have opened are:

• Back to the Roots, clothing store and sushi bar
• Chelsea Bodyworks, massage therapy
• Chelsea Creative Pet Grooming in Chelsea Animal Hospital
• The Computer Source, a computer repair store
• Ellie’s Chelsea, a small family restaurant
• Faulk Family Agency, an Allstate Insurance office
• James A. Watson, DDS
• Jimmy Johns, a sandwich shop
• Russell Cellular
• Shabby Chic Consignments, women's clothing and furniture
• The Verizon store, a cellphone store
• Auto Zone, an auto parts business

Carolyn McNagny, who opened Bumbles Dry Goods in downtown

Glee Cake and Pastry is expected to open this month in Chelsea.

Lisa Allmendinger | AnnArbor.com

She said she came from a small town in Indiana where “no one was out walking around. In Chelsea, there are always people out, it’s an honest to goodness community, and the town itself is charming.”

"Chelsea has the advantage of having long established businesses like Jiffy Mix and new businesses like Back to the Roots, which she said has an “excellent sushi bar," she said.

“Chelsea is just a great place to be with a great sense of community,” she said.

Pierce said that few storefronts on Main Street remain vacant for very long. For instance, when an art gallery closed, Back to the Roots immediately began negotiating for the space. When Mission Marketplace moved to another location in the city, Glee Bakery began remodeling the space for its new business.

Pierce said the only open storefront on Main Street is a former jewelry store.

Bruce Szcodronski, vice president of the Chelsea Area Chamber of Commerce and the general manager of the Chelsea Comfort Inn and Conference Center said there was a unique storefront opportunity in Chelsea, “Main Street is pretty long,” he said.

“ To have new businesses opening in these trying times, while the mainstays continue, we just have a great community,” he said.

Pierce said he thinks that Chelsea has been “insulated from the economy,” and “From a new business perspective, this is a collaborative community.”

He said that new businesses owners have told him they see the value in the community’s chamber of commerce because of the business-to-business connections that are made.

And the new business boom in Chelsea is expected to continue this month when Glee Cake and Pastry, a high end cake and pastry shop, is expected to open on Main Street.

Lisa Allmendinger is a regional reporter for AnnArbor.com. She can be reached at lisaallmendinger@annarbor.com. For more Chelsea stories, visit our Chelsea page.