Business Buzz
Believe it or not, it’s August already! But that doesn’t mean there aren’t still more new businesses to explore here on Seven Mile Beach. This month, as you’re perusing the shops or heading out for a nice meal, make sure to pop into these just-opened offerings. Whether you’re looking for some hearty Italian fare, a healthy sweet treat, a cute summer outfit, or someone to take care of all of your home needs, Avalon and Stone Harbor truly have it all, especially with the addition of these new businesses.
Croce Pasta To-Go co-owner Rob Croce.
Croce Pasta To-Go
6740 Ocean Drive, Avalon • 609-796-5801 • crocepasta.com
When Joseph Croce wanted to start selling fresh pasta out of the original Croce Pasta storefront in Cherry Hill more than 30 years ago, he went to Italy to acquire the best pasta machines.
“He started making fresh pastas,” says Rob Croce, his son and co-owner, “and little by little he grew through making sauces and then sandwiches and all kinds of specialty items. Now it’s like an Italian supermarket.”
Now these authentic Italian goods are available right here in Avalon at the new Croce’s To-Go location on Ocean Drive. Homemade ravioli and tomato pie, two of their most popular products out of the Cherry Hill location, are on the menu, as well as vegetables, stuffed pastas, and more. It is open from 11am to 9pm daily.
“The one thing we’re super excited for here, though, is something we don’t have in Cherry Hill,” Rob Croce says. “We have restaurant-style takeout, instead of just prepared foods.”
Their pasta, chicken and seafood dinners are perfect for beachgoers who need an easy meal at the end of the day, and are also available for catering.
A shore location was seen as the ideal place to expand the business. They came across the space on Ocean Drive via a fellow Avalon business owner and were able to open in time for the bulk of the summer season. Croce’s To-Go has been busy nonstop since.
“I’m just looking forward to meeting and building the relationships down here,” Rob Croce says. “Here, everybody’s from somewhere else, and their reactions to how good the food is are really, really cool – it’s like getting approval from all over the country.”
Jeremy Lennon and Taylor Brittain, Your Home Concierge
Your Home Concierge
2606 Dune Drive, Avalon • 609-402-9210 • yourhomeconcierge.com/7mile
Your Home Concierge CEO Jason Mangone acquired Your Home Concierge from its founder last summer. After success with hundreds of customers so far, he knew he wanted to expand.
When choosing a next location, local ties were what drew him here to Avalon. “But what probably tilted the scales is that I’ve been going out to Avalon, with my wife and her family who have a home there, for about 15 to 20 years now,” says Mangone.
The concierge service covers a wide range of homeowner needs, from checkups over the offseason to full-scale renovations.
Monthly and annual membership includes a weekly house check report, a reduced management fee and access to a 24/7 member phone number, among other benefits. A tranquility membership is completely customizable for those who don’t want to worry about cleaning and maintenance services on their shore home.
“We basically do two things,” Mangone says. “First, we watch your home for you when you’re not there, and send you a weekly written report. Then second, sort of more importantly, we allow you to completely outsource the care of your second home.
“The average homeowner, to manage a home, is probably dealing with anywhere between 12 and 20 subcontractors. So rather than managing all those relationships, we allow you to build one long-term relationship with a single company to take care of your home.”
Your Home Concierge serves the Jersey Shore from Stone Harbor up to Brigantine from two locations – their newest, here in Avalon, and the original base in Ventnor.
“We define hospitality as making other people feel like you can see things from their perspective – like you’re on their side,” Mangone says. “We hold ourselves accountable, and we sort of live and breathe hospitality.”
Vanessa Scarani of PureTwist
PureTwist
9410 Second Avenue, Stone Harbor • 609-830-5436 • thepuretwist.com
Pure Juice + Kitchen, the health-food location supplying Stone Harbor with pressed juices, superfood smoothies and more, now has a sibling!
Owner Vanessa Scarani has opened PureTwist, a non-dairy soft-serve ice cream shop, right next door to her Pure Juice + Kitchen business located at the corner of 95th and Second Avenue in the heart of Stone Harbor.
“It’s ‘healthy-ish,’ is what we like to say,” Scarani says. “We started this to change it up a little bit and do something different – thinking outside the box of ice cream. It’s just about being able to serve things that are kind of good for you.”
The soft serve is made in-house with a base of oat milk, cashews, raw sugar and other natural ingredients. It comes in a variety of flavors, including oat vanilla, matcha, strawberry, pineapple and more, which can be paired with any number of gluten- and dairy-free toppings. PureTwist also carries the coconut-based soft-serve Coconut Bliss.
“It’s just about serving something with clean ingredients,” Scarani says. “We don’t use any gums, any additives or preservatives in anything. Even our rainbow jimmies are dyed with fruit and vegetable juice, so there’s no artificial colors or flavoring.”
Scarani’s passion for the clean-food industry was sparked from her interest in fitness – she had a career teaching Zumba classes before she began focusing on nutrition and the benefits of fresh fruit and vegetable juices.
“This area was really lacking in terms of food that was really healthy for you,” she says. “People say they’re healthy, but they’re really not. So, for me, it was about giving the community something that’s a safe place for them, for people with allergies or whatever.”
PureTwist is open from 4-9pm Monday-Thursday, 4-10pm Friday-Sunday. It will also be hosting live music every Sunday from 6-9pm so customers can enjoy their dairy-free ice cream with a performance!
Tracey Gerhart and Kelsey Hoff of Soleil Bae
Soleil Bae
9502 Third Avenue, Stone Harbor • 267-254-6951
Tracey Gerhart has always had the concept of Soleil Bae in her mind, even before she made the career switch to retail work in 2020 with the opening of So Soleil in Stone Harbor. When a space opened on Third Avenue, she snapped it up.
“It was always in the works,” she said. “When I got the first store, I was combining Bae with So Soleil – which is more like a beachy, preppy women and baby store. I always had this little section of Bae in there, just to kind of get people’s reaction.”
Soleil Bae offers a different, more urban look than the typical beachy apparel found in shore-town shopping (although it does stock a selection of affordable swimwear as well).
The store is focusing on growing its personal branding with a stock of more than 750 items and 300-plus labels represented.
“I think right now it’s a little bit less about like brand names and more about the look that we want here,” says Kelsey Hoff, Gerhart’s assistant and Soleil Bae ambassador. “It’s one of the only stores in Stone Harbor that’s more edgy and city, and a lot of people notice that and like that.”
She adds: “We’re looking for cool new brands that we can kind of grow with, too, because we’re a cool new brand, so we want to give other people an opportunity.”
Gerhart says she hopes to have a site or page for e-commerce and online shopping up before the summer ends, to continue to spread the word about the business.
She also says Soleil Bae might eventually move over to a space on 96th Street currently occupied by her third store, Simply Soleil, which also opened this summer, to take advantage of the additional floor space and foot traffic.
“Every week we’re tracking what’s moving out, what sales are like, and we’re 100% growing,” Gerhart says.
Soleil Bae is open 10am-10pm daily.