Kohl’s, specialty shops open in Bellis Fair Mall
With the start of the holiday retail season rapidly approaching, several new businesses have opened or will soon open in Bellis Fair Mall in Bellingham.
The largest is Kohl’s, a department store with numerous outlets in the east and Midwest. It takes the anchor position previously occupied by Mervyn’s on the north end of the mall and opened on Oct. 1.
Others include:
• TeaQuent Stop, which opened in October, specializes in serving teas from around the world and provides customers with a selection of high quality teas and tea accessories: including Black, Green, Oolong, White, Herbal, Rooibos, Mate, Chai, Organic, Estate Teas, Flavored Teas, Decaffeinated, Sugar and Honey. The store also offers tea service for local businesses.
• The Mount Baker Chocolate Co., which plans to open in 1,043 square feet of space in the JC Penney wing next to Auntie Anne’s Pretzels. The independent operator will feature hand-made chocolates and other items.
• Whatcom Educational Credit Union (WECU) recently opened a branch in the Target wing.
• Zumiez, a sports-related apparel and footwear store, will move into the food court area later this fall.
• Daiso, a Japanese variety store, will open in the Sears wing.

SynapseLife introduces new web-based organizational tool
SynapseLife opened to the World Wide Web in late September. At the forefront of the launch are Seattle based entrepreneurs Mark Michael and Daniel Rust, co-founders of Synapse Corporate Solutions.
SynapseLife is a free set of fully interactive “modules” that can be easily customized to deliver the information people want, how and when people want it. With its clean and easy-to-use interactive interface and dynamic functionalities SynapseLife.com is the homepage for people who truly use the net whether for email, business or browsing. SynapseLife contains eight web-based applications accessible for free which include: People, Calendar, Broadcast, Lists, Ledger, Favorites, Feeds and Tags.
The information a user has stored on SynapseLife can be accessed from virtually anywhere using a PC, PDA, or cell phone with Internet accessibility. When users sign up for SynapseLife they create their own virtual portal from which they access their encrypted password protected data.
The big push will come in January 2007 when the company launches the Synapse Business solutions. These “modules,” will be suited for business individuals looking to manage their personal, business, and web all in one solution.

New ski magazine planned
Funny Feelings, LLC, independent publisher of the award-winning quarterly Frequency The Snowboarder’s Journal, announced the launch of a new magazine, The Ski Journal.
“We’ve been planning The Ski Journal for several years. Since the first issue of Frequency TSJ, skiers -- pros and regular subscribers -- have asked us when we were going to produce something of the same quality for them,” Frequency TSJ founder and publisher Jeff Galbraith said.
Featuring the highest-quality paper, printing, and design in the industry, The Ski Journal is a community brought together in a limited edition coffee-table quarterly. The Ski Journal is a year-round catalogue of the sport’s culture, not just another gear guide.
Releasing in January of 2007, The Ski Journal features sking’s top writers and photographers, as well as a global perspective and an appreciation for all aspects of skiing and ski culture.

Coupeville Espresso Cafe holds grand opening
Miriam Meyer hosted the grand opening for her popular espresso restaurant on Main Street in Coupeville during the week of October 2. Although she opened the doors to her 2,100 square foot restaurant on April 14, the grand opening introduced customers to the expanded breakfast and lunch menus.
In addition to a full-line of espresso drinks, made with Caffe Vita coffee from Seattle, Miriam’s Espresso now provides a wide range of pastries, breakfast sandwiches, quiches and egg dishes for breakfast, and for lunch Miriam’s has a large selection of paninis, soups and salads. The café offers an upscale ambience that is warm and welcoming. The colors of the restaurant are rich and deep, like the coffees they serve, and different styles of lighting accent the room. High ceilings, a 360-degree raised hearth fireplace, wi-fi access, indoor and (when the weather cooperates) outdoor seating are some of the features.
The business currently employs 15 people, and many of the Meyer family members participate. Her son is the chef and her daughters are baristas. All of Meyer’s children have worked at the cafe at some time in the last few years.

Ready 4 U Gift Baskets opens in La Conner
Dorothy Stevens and Judy Bowers have opened a home-based business, Ready 4 U Gift Baskets, in La Conner. The store has gift baskets for all occasions and prices. Baskets can either be standard or custom. All the work is done for the customer: shopping, wrapping and delivery.
Also, Ready 4 U works for retail stores. Items are taken from the store inventory, put into baskets with everything included (basket, shred, decorations, cello and ribbons) for a small percentage of the store’s retail price.

First Impressions NW announces opening
Susan Palmer has opened First Impressions NW, a home staging and interior redesign business, to give home sellers and real estate agents the competitive advantage.
Palmer is a certified Interior Redesign Industry Specialist (I.R.I.S.), and is the only I.R.I.S. certified home stager and redesign specialist in Whatcom and Skagit counties. I.R.I.S. is a professional redesign organization whose members are often featured on popular HGTV shows, such as Decorating Cents.

Graphic design studio opens in Fairhaven
Visual Studios, a branding and communication design firm, has opened in the Sycamore Square building in Fairhaven. The company provides graphic, website design, and branding services for businesses of all sizes. “We strive to provide all of the design and marketing solutions that a client needs under one roof” said Nate Marohn, the company’s owner and lead designer.