It’s about this time of year that many folks, myself included, start looking at holiday travel destinations.
Luckily, Budafly Travel, an international travel advising firm, is now open in Columbus at 402 Wilkins Wise Road to help you choose the perfect vacation destination, among all other travel needs.
Owner LaNise Frison told me she originally opened Budafly Travel in 2014 in Georgia before moving to Columbus and opening her business at a location off Highway 69 in 2018. She later closed that office in 2020 to do some traveling of her own while looking for a better location.
“At my other location, I just wasn’t around other businesses, and it wasn’t really a commercial area,” Frison said. “I also have more agents with me now so I don’t have to travel so much for my job.”
Frison said she moved into her new space on Oct. 14 and has already seen new clients. Her services include finding and booking popular weddings, proposals, vacations and honeymoon locations.
Her business hours are Tuesday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Saturday from 9 a.m. to noon.
Moving to Starkville, Belles Nail Salon, located at 500 Russell St., Suite 35, will soon undergo an expansion to increase its salon stations from 12 to 20 and go from 1,400 square feet to 2,900 square feet.
Owner Devan Ho said since opening in March, his business has increased so much that to keep up with demand, he started working to expand the salon into the vacant unit next door in September.
Construction is expected to begin in just a few weeks and end by Thanksgiving. Ho said the salon will have to close the last week of the project for finishing touches on flooring and paint but will reopen as soon as possible.
“We need the extra space for more nail and salon technicians that we want to recruit,” Ho said.
Just next door, Two Flamingos Gift Shop, located at 500 Russell St., Suite 27, moved into a new space Sunday after needing more room for its products, going from 900 square feet to 1,800 square feet.
“We opened in November of 2022, and it was a very small space, and we just outgrew it and couldn’t put anything else in it,” Co-owner Alicia Harwell said. “So me and my partner just talked about it, and when we saw this location open up, we decided to go for it to make the shop bigger and better.”
Harwell said she and her partner, Morgan Stonecypher, began looking for a new location in August once they ran out of room for several brands of candles, jewelry and accessory items at the store, located just four doors down at Cotton Crossing Shopping Center.
With the new space, Harwell said she hopes that customers will enjoy the extra room and have the opportunity to see more of her products.
“We are basically just trying to get everything in order while being very busy at the new location,” she said. “But we’re excited.”
Finally, my friends, The First Bank, located at 657 Commerce St. in West Point, is looking to help members of the public rid themselves of unnecessary documents and paperwork.
The bank will hold a paper shredding event Friday, in partnership with Shred-It, a paper shredding company, from 9 to 11 a.m. in the parking lot.
According to a press release issued Wednesday morning, anyone is welcome to come and shred legal documents, old tax returns, receipts and even credit cards they no longer need.
“Our bank has offered this free service to many communities in previous years, and we hope community members in West Point take full advantage of the opportunity,” The First Bank Executive Vice President and Chief Community Officer Jerome Brown said.
I don’t know about y’all, but I know I have more than a few loose pieces of paper I no longer need. Here is hoping the event sees a good turnout.
Well, that’s all for now. Make sure to check back in next week for more goings on in business.
Dispatch reporter Grant McLaughlin writes about business openings and closings, as well as other unique business news. Send business tips to [email protected].
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You can help your community
Quality, in-depth journalism is essential to a healthy community. The Dispatch brings you the most complete reporting and insightful commentary in the Golden Triangle, but we need your help to continue our efforts. In the past week, our reporters have posted 30 articles to cdispatch.com. Please consider subscribing to our website for only $2.30 per week to help support local journalism and our community.
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