Platinum Suites has already been in place at 102 Thompson Drive next to Big Lots for a little while, but owner Cory Groves was still just as excited as the first day at the official ribbon-cutting on Thursday morning.

“We had another salon called Platinum Salon and I wanted to just expand. There was no way to expand in the space that we were in, so we found a 9,000-square-foot space,” Groves said. “Each suite is a different room. There are 22 rental rooms and each is a different business. It allows business owners to have a small store,” Groves said.

The response was immediate.

“We had so many people that wanted to rent, I kept having to turn people away, so it just made me want to do something different and give them their own freedom,” Groves said. “It allows injectors, tattoo artists, hair stylists, estheticians, lash decks, any kind of business, really, that can be in a smaller space, to come and open up their own business with much less overhead.”

And be a one-stop shop for customers.

“We have injectors. We have people who do Botox, Daxify, things like that. We have tons of hairstylists, I want to say 28 in total, specializing in extensions for the most part,” Groves said.

Groves was pleased with the support of the state and the Harrison County Chamber of Commerce during the process.

“The state makes it a lot easier because they offer a lot of financial help,” Groves said. “I own a beauty school, too, called Blush Academy, that’s just a few doors down. It’s great because I get to give them a separate space to come to my commission salon and grow, then they get to come to one of the rental rooms and grow even more before they get to the next thing. So I get to be with them from the beginning to the end.”

Groves has been in styling for 15 years after starting cosmetology school in Morgantown at the age of 18.

“I always wanted to own my own business. I always wanted to open a salon and a beauty school based on my experiences,” Groves said. “I wanted people to have their own experience and be able to rent space so that they could have their own rules. They wouldn’t just have to work for somebody else. I wanted to make it easier for them since it was so hard for me.”

Customers may register online for appointments from 8 a.m. to 9 p.m., Monday through Saturday.

“It has every practitioner, every type of stylist listed there. They can check out their bio and book through their booking site,” Groves said.