The Madison-Morgan Chamber of Commerce welcomed R3 Massage to the community with a ribbon-cutting ceremony on June 21.
The business opened in January at 536 East Ave.
After the ceremony, owner Lashonda Ross held an open house for visitors and customers. She gave insights into her services and how her background ties into her new business.
Ross chose the name R3 Massage because her goal is to help customers “relax, release stress, and rejuvenate.”
“I started out doing mobile [massage therapy] a couple of years ago, but then I had the opportunity to rent this space here,” she said. “I figured I could see more clients if I’m local because they can come to me, versus me only able to see a handful trying to do mobile.”
Ross has been working as a licensed massage therapist for three years and has 18 years of experience as an assistant physical therapist. After being laid off from her job during the COVID-19 pandemic, she wanted to return to school for something different.
“I had always thought about massage because we do it as part of physical therapy,” she said. “We can only do a short session with physical therapy because insurance does not cover what they consider a regular, relaxing massage.”
According to Ross, she enjoys her job because of her passion for helping people. She credits her background in physical therapy with helping her start the business.
“I also wanted to also be able to work for myself. So that way, I am not rushed,” Ross said. “I feel like I can be more personable here because it is mine. So, I am more invested in it and making it work because I am not just in it for a check.”
Ross believes her previous career has helped others and allowed her to work with everyday issues like pain complications.
“And I try to educate as I massage,” said Ross. “ So if somebody asks, ‘What is that muscle? Why does that hurt?’ With my therapy background, I can kind of explain how the muscle works.”
As her priority is assisting with such needs, Ross often helps clients with neck and shoulder pain. She believes this factor is a direct result of living in a technically advanced community.
“Everybody has a cell phone, and they’re on their laptop,” she Ross. “So, a lot of people have a lot of neck and shoulder pain that I can help with, and a lot of them don’t realize until I say, ‘Have you been on the computer today? Do you do a lot of typing?’”
With the start of her business this year, Ross decided to join the Chamber of Commerce after connecting with other business owners in the community.
“I got to talking to some other owners, and they were like, you know, it’s a great opportunity,” Ross said. “You get to kind of get in with some other businesses and kind of network a little bit more.”
Ross’ first official event under the Chamber was the ribbon-cutting ceremony. With all the work she has put into starting the business, she believes it is “surreal” to witness the ceremony.
“It’s awesome because it’s kind of like one of those things where you feel like you are dreaming,” she said. “It’s a happy moment.”
As president of the Madison-Morgan Chamber of Commerce, Shey Daniel is happy to welcome R3 Salon into the community. With many small businesses in the county, she believes the chamber has helped the members succeed.
“Oh, it is great,” said Daniel. “We’ve got a lot of one-owners; for them to join, it is incredible.”
According to Daniel, networking meetings in the chamber are an excellent way to promote fellow small businesses in the community.
“If you come to our networking meetings and meet new people and hand out that business card, you’re going to grow your business just like that,” she said. “People are going to remember you versus someone else.”
With R3 Massage’s addition to the Morgan-Madison Chamber of Commerce, Daniel looks forward to promoting the business.
“[I look forward to] getting the name out there and growing her business,” she said. “That’s what I would like to see.”