Tenants Archives - Don Quick & Associates, Inc.

620 Art Gallery & Studio – Open for Business

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Meet 620 Art Gallery & Studio owner, Amie Gonser

For over 20 years, Amie Gonser has been dreaming of opening an art center for the local community, which allows people to experience art through a gallery and art classes – and she wasn’t going to let the ongoing situation stop her from fulfilling her vision.

In fact, starting a new business amidst COVID has provided her with the opportunity to prepare the 620 Art Gallery & Studio in the safest way possible. Amie’s space at 1205 Round Rock Ave has a large open gallery space in the front. The current exhibit hangs on each of the four walls of the gallery, allowing visitors to view art in a social-distanced and safe manner. Additionally, Amie has created protocols for her art classes to limit the spread of germs. Some of these safety measures include individual supplies for each student for the duration of camp, smaller class sizes, and more. You can see the full list of safety measures Amie has implemented on her website. 

Amie is an art teacher at Deep Wood Elementary in Round Rock and has over twenty years of experience teaching art in many capacities including college art courses, workshops, camps, and both private and group lessons.

Not only does Amie live in the Deep Wood neighborhood, but she also has been teaching in RRISD for over a decade – making the new location of 620 Art Gallery & Studio truly a community art center. 

620 Art Gallery & Studio provides a unique experience in the Round Rock Area – especially by mixing a gallery and an art studio.

Not only will there be new art exhibits featuring local artists regularly, but patrons will also be able to participate in a variety of studio classes and workshops. These professionally taught classes began last Saturday and include kid’s art camps, birthday parties, adult & teen classes, art & wine experiences, a variety of workshops, parent & child classes, and more. 

Although Amie Gonser is a Louisiana Native and got her Master’s degree in fine arts from Florida State University, she’s been residing and teaching in Round Rock, Texas for over a decade and truly embodies this community’s spirit. Amie is also the founder of Plein Air Round Rock – a meetup group in which members get together once a month to paint the Texas landscape. 

620 Art Gallery & Studio officially opened their doors on June 13, 2020. Darren Quick of Don Quick & Associates, Inc. brokered this deal.

Visit 620 Art Gallery & Studio – a Round Rock community art center. 

Hours:

Monday: Closed
Tuesday: 5pm-8pm
Wednesday: Closed
Thursday: 5pm-8pm
Friday: 5pm-8pm
Saturday: 9am-11:30am, 3pm-7pm
Sunday: Closed

620 Art Gallery & Studio’s first art exhibit is called “Land/escapes” featuring 7 different artists from the Central Texas area. This exhibit focuses on paintings depicting a wide range of beautiful landscapes here in Texas. This exhibit is running from June 13 to July 31, 2020. 620 Art Gallery only displays art by local and regional artists. To be considered you can submit your art online during their “Calls for Art.” 

Check out 620 Art Gallery’s first art exhibit – Land/escapes. 

Opening Gallery Reception this Friday, June 26th, 6:30 – 8 PM. Click here for more information.

 

Learn more about Amie and 620 Art Gallery on their website or Facebook.

Read her Community Impact article here.

Learn more about Amie on her website.

Orange Mud

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Meet Orange Mud owner, Josh Sprague

Born and raised in Paxico, Kansas, Josh Sprague has always had an innate passion for exercise, adventure and the outdoors. As an avid runner and adventure-seeker, Josh has participated in countless endurance events, eco-challenges, and races over the years. Most recently, he has completed both the Dirty Kanza 2019 and the Cannonball 550 mile bike race. (550 miles is about 40 miles longer than the distance between Austin and New Orleans) As Josh completed race after race, he continued to encounter issues with his equipment, especially his water bottle holders, to him they, “just never felt right.” 

In 2012, while still working at a medical device company in California, overseeing a large distribution facility, Josh had one particular day of fun exercise and hydration frustration. That night, the first concept was born. “After a couple of glasses of wine that night I decided to take action and put some work into our concept. So I went into the garage and destroyed a gun holster, tie-down, and a waist pack to build our first HydraQuiver prototype. I went on a little jog with the pack and realized it was a solid concept, so I came back to tell my wife we’re starting a company and we need a name. For the next 3 hours, brainstorming was full speed in front of the iMac on GoDaddy trying name combos based upon trail running, dirt and my middle name which is Clay. My wife wouldn’t let me name our first boy Clay despite my request, so I told her I’d turn it into our company name somehow. Unfortunately, I couldn’t get anything to sound right with Clay, so looking back at my Kansas roots mud was a norm of life, so Clay turned to Mud and I’ve always liked the color Orange so the two came together and voila…Orange Mud!”

(Above: Josh Sprague)

After a couple years of balancing his day job with Orange Mud, Josh quit his job to focus solely on his business. Him and his family then moved to Denver, Colorado expecting a large population of endurance athletes. Unfortunately, this wasn’t the case. That, along with a slew of other issues forced Josh and his family to relocate again. He wanted to move somewhere not only more affordable, but also smarter for their business. Josh had been running the Orange Mud business through his home and, in order to continue growing, he needed more space. During a trip to Texas for an endurance event, Josh decided that the Austin Area, specifically Georgetown, fit the bill. He called his wife who immedately packed the house and the rest is history.   

Orange Mud’s headquarters is now based in Round Rock – and business is better than ever. Orange Mud is sold in over 500 stores and 40+ countries and boasts over 337 brand ambassadors. He has also started a screen printing company called Seven Clay. (He finally gets to use his middle name for something)

Josh Sprague and the Orange Mud Team will be at The Running Event in December. Find more info here: https://www.therunningevent.com/

For more on Orange Mud:

Website: https://www.orangemud.com/

Website: https://sevenclay.com/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/orangemud

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/orangemud/

A New Age of Pinball Machines

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Meet Multimorphic owner, Gerry Stellenberg

Gerry Stellenberg first got into pinball machines in college. Originally an avid pool player, he only gave pinball a chance because on one particular day he was tired of waiting for his turn to play pool. Now, he’s leading the charge on the new wave of pinball machines with his company, Multimorphic. Gerry and his team just brought the future of pinball to Austin’s Dave & Buster’s.

After graduating from college, Gerry began working in the tech industry; however, after years in the industry, he decided he wanted to take his own path in something he was interested in. Hence, the birth of Multimorphic.

At first, Gerry’s goal was simply to improve pinball digitally. Gerry first created the P-ROC (Pinball – Remote Operations Controller) which is a circuit board that enables a computer to control a pinball machine over USB. According to Gerry, this is an “evolutionary machine,” especially because it can be used to retheme existing games, including WPC, WPC-95, Stern Whitestar, and Stern SAM generations of machines – all of the popular pinball machines.

The P-ROC itself gained popularity in the pinball community; however, Gerry wanted to take it one step further. He created the P3, a pinball machine that a user can play different games on as if it were an Xbox or a PS4. All aspects of the pinball machine, from the playfield to the animated graphics on the built-in screen even to the side panel graphics can be changed. Instead of having one singular pinball machine with one unchanging theme, a P3 owner can change out their games easily as they please. Furthermore, the P3 also has a responsive playfield, that allows for increased functionality and customization.

Moreover, because the P3 utilizes a more advanced version of the P-ROC, the new age pinball machine has new features that normal pinball machines offer. For example, the P3 can be played head to head, allowing for a multiplayer type of game.

This past week marked a major achievement in Multimorphic’s existence. Gerry and his team finally got the P3 into the most popular arcade in Austin – Dave & Buster’s.

While Multimorphic has made headway in the pinball world with the P3, perhaps the hardest challenge is converting traditional pinball lovers to accept the new age design; however, the P3 is successfully growing the market beyond the traditional pinball community.

Check out the future of pinball machines, the P3, at the Austin Dave & Buster’s.

Multimorphic is currently running a promotion right now for a chance to win a $100 gift card to Dave & Buster’s. Just take a photo of the machine, post it on Facebook with your review, and tag Multimorphic

 

Learn more about Gerry and Multimorphic on their website or Facebook.

AND check out the P3 at Dave & Buster’s.

https://www.daveandbusters.com/locations/austin

Salt + Waves Brings High-End Beauty Salon to Leander

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Salt + Waves Salon Now Open in Leander

With the Austin-RR area growing at a rate of approximately 152 people per day (Austin Business Journal), more and more people are choosing to settle down in Austin’s suburbs to the north. One of these suburbs, Leander, was ranked the fastest growing city in the nation in previous years and continues to not only see strong population growth, but also a rise in business and development growth. Two local women teamed up to pursue their dreams of opening up their very own salon. Read their story below and check out the salon’s transformation.

Libby Bednarek and Cassidee Johnson met years ago at Austin Aveda Institute where Libby was employed and Cassidee was attending. “Cassidee always stood out from the crowd, as an exceptionally talented and upstanding student, she caught everyone’s attention.” Cassidee would go to Libby for support throughout her time during school, and their friendship took off from there.

Libby and Cassidee wanted to create a salon environment that is welcoming, high end, where their team and guests feel comfortable, valued and well taken care of. From stylist to our guests, they hope by cultivating a nourishing, positive, team oriented, beautiful environment, everyone will enjoy being part of the Salt + Waves Salon community.

Owners Libby Bednarek (left) and Cassidee Johnson (right).
#TransformationTuesday

Mission Statement:

Based in dedicated care Salt + Waves Salon is a collaborative, creative, and welcoming community where we thrive on providing our guests with amazing customer service and technical excellence; providing a variety of hair services utilizing products chosen for their high quality and advanced performance.

 

Owner Bios:

Owner Libby Bednarek has built a name for herself in the beauty industry through integrity, continuous hard work, desire to reach new goals, and leads with an infectious positive attitude.

She began her journey at Duncan Brothers Barber School in Oklahoma City. Afterward, she spent 9 years as a hairstylist where she grew her passion and pursued her strength in the business side of the hair industry. Libby then moved into her career path at the Austin Aveda Institute and following managed multi-location salons where she successfully led style teams, management teams, and gained a larger perspective of the industry with strengths in teaching the best in customer service, marketing, style, and support.

Through this experience and motivation, naturally, the next step was to open Salt + Waves Salon alongside her business partner and lead stylist Cassidee Johnson.

 

Owner Cassidee Johnson is an award-winning stylist and her work has been featured in Austin Bridal Magazine.

After 2 years of business school, she made the decision to follow her passion for hair and style. She attended Austin Aveda Institute where she met her now business partner Libby Bednarek.

Cassidee loves her hair people and they love her back, from cut, color, style, to Wedding hair and Habit Hand-tied extensions. Cassidee’s motto has always been, “Do what you love!” Her heart and passion show in her art and style with those who sit in her chair.

Salt+Waves Grand Opening

 Learn more about Salt + Waves Salon on their website or their Facebook page

Or visit Salt + Waves Salon at 3550 Lakeline Blvd Ste 175 (11.58 mi)
Leander, Texas 78641.

Treasured Earth Foods Picked Up by Snap Kitchen

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Whole Foods Market Vendor Picked Up by Snap Kitchen

Whole Foods Market Vendor, Treasured Earth Foods, is now available through Snap Kitchen. 

Treasured Earth Foods creates delicious baked goods that taste amazing and happen to be gluten-free, paleo, and, most importantly, diabetes-friendly. Ruth Noel, the creator of the family-run company, explained how the idea for healthy delicacies stemmed from her father’s inability to consume sweets due to his diabetes. Through much experimentation in the kitchen, Ruth’s mother created a truffle that her husband could enjoy without worrying about his blood sugar levels. Eventually and without any medication, Ruth’s father was no longer diabetic. Soon, that truffle, the Chocolate Kika Truffle (named after Ruth’s mother), became the first product Treasured Earth Foods sold at the Sunset Valley Farmer’s Market around 2009.

Ruth, a Texas A&M grad, had previously owned a state processing facility for meat on their ranch called Tesoro Terra Farms, which roughly translates into Treasured Earth Farms. She decided to change paths and started Treasured Earth Foods in 2009, modifying her mom’s truffle invention and creating new healthy desserts. After years of selling their products primarily at farmer’s markets and creating local buzz, the company finally got into Whole Foods Market in 2013 and was even asked to create a brand new product, specifically for the opening of the Whole Foods Market Domain location in 2014.  Later that same year, Whole Foods Market decided to put Treasured Earth Foods in its Southwest region that includes Texas, Oklahoma, Louisiana, and Arkansas. Besides Whole Foods Market and Snap Kitchen, you can find their products in Austin at Fresh Plus, People’s Pharmacy, Wheatsville Co-Op and online. 

Treasured Earth Foods currently operates out of their commercial kitchen just north of Austin. Ruth explained how it is a great location for their kitchen because it allows her to make her deliveries on time – especially when they are delivering to different cities and states. She plans on opening a brick-mortar store for her healthy baked goods one day. Learn more about Treasured Earth Foods on their website or their Facebook page