Chelsey LaForge, the current owner and operator of The Business Connection, is ready to pass the business along to a new owner. She publicly listed the business for sale this week.

LaForge, who also owns and operates The Mountain Pages and The Mountain Neighbor, acquired all three businesses in 2017.

LaForge bought The Business Connection because of the connection she felt with the local community. She had worked there since 2014 and had witnessed for a few years how much the community appreciated that was there for them. The Business Connection was saving customers a tremendous amount of time from driving up and down the mountain to drop off a FedEx or UPS package, send a fax, or make some prints.

Alice Freeman wanted to retire and she could see how much LaForge cared about the business, so she offered it to LaForge first.

LaForge had savings built up for a down payment on a home, but decided to use it to buy the business instead.

Service with a smile For over seven years, Chelsey LaForge has greeted locals with her infectious smile. Laforge is looking for the next entrepreneur to take on The Business Connection, so she can focus on other endeavors. Don’t worry, she’s not going anywhere. She’ll still be a neighbor and run The Mountain Pages. PHOTO BY BARBARA HARDT[/caption]

Freeman, building owner Dorothy Emerling and LaForge all agree on how important having the Business Connection available to our local communities has been. LaForge says, “I am so grateful (and lucky) that these were the women who helped me keep The Business Connection going for the community. Dorothy even gave me a preference to buy the building in the future, but then Covid happened and it wasn’t possible for me anymore.”

In 2020, LaForge received an offer from a franchise interested in buying the business. And while the offer eventually fell through due to complications on the franchise end, it made her think about what would happen if she did sell.

While she wanted to purchase the building herself, the financial hits she took during Covid have made it impossible for her to do so.

For her, these businesses have been more than just economic endeavors. They’re an important part of the community she calls home. She plans to continue operating The Mountain Pages, but still feels internally torn about selling The Business Connection.

She loves that The Business Connection has been completely community driven, with everything sold there being asked for by Peak to Peak residents and business owners. And that many people have thanked her and the other employees for saving them a trip to Boulder, just to buy objects like office supplies.

On the one hand, she recognizes that she wants to find the time to reprioritize the things she finds important in her life right now. She wants to focus on her true dream of starting a family.

On the other, she has gotten to know so many people from across the Peak to Peak community who have thanked her for the pleasant experience of visiting or working at the Business Connection.

Despite this bittersweet departure, she looks forward to continuing her connection with the community through The Mountain Pages and visiting the businesses as a customer and fellow member of the community.

The business and the building are currently being sold separately, and another offer for both has since fallen though. LaForge hopes that both can be sold to the same party so that the business can be held in the same place and continue to serve as a community hub.

The building is located in a premier spot in the downtown Nederland area and includes 1825 square feet inside with a 7962 square foot lot. It has nine designated parking spots with ADA accessible parking and entry. Inside there are three private offices, a small break room, plenty of retail space, a back work room, and ADA accessible restroom. It was built in 1962. It was built as a post officeand was used until they built the new post office building. It also housed The Mountain-Ear newspaper for a few years.

The building and business sales are handled through separate entities. For complete information on purchasing The Business Connection, please contact Ross Haymes by calling 303-594-8295 or emailing rhaymes@tworld.com.

For more information on purchasing the building and a brochure on the sale, please contact Dorothy Emerling by calling 720-233-7630 or emailing emerlingdesign@gmail.com. You can also call Charles Ryan at 949-500-7560.