Brookfield Business Women Join Forces

To Strengthen A Weak Economy

By Nancy K. Crevier

Camille Sage, along with Rosanne Keller and Patricia Bossio, and two silent partners, owns Country Kids Play Farm at 107 Old State Road in Brookfield, a child daycare facility that has been serving families for 23 years.

Danielle Durgy owns Fitness Revolution, a spinning and Pilates gym. She has been in business for 15 years in Brookfield, most recently at 4 Sand Cut Road, across from the Golf Quest complex, and just across Gray’s Bridge Road and around the corner from Country Kids.

The two business women’s lives have intersected in more than one way over the years, most recently in a joint venture that they hope will benefit their businesses during sluggish economic times, and the people that they serve.

Ms Sage has been taking spinning classes at Fitness Revolution for more than six years. She felt an immediate connection with Ms Durgy, “and we had an on-going conversation about how we could help each other,” recalled Ms Sage. Because her own business is the result of five women who needed a way to balance their home lives and work lives, she has always been supportive about “women helping women,” she said.

It was not until December 2011, though, that the two women realized they had the means to support each other right in front of them.

“I was standing in the lobby talking with Danielle, when a mom who had just adopted a baby suggested to her that it would be great if she had a babysitting service,” said Ms Sage.

The two business women looked at each other and the light bulbs went on over their heads. “It was right in front of us, how to help each other,” Ms Sage said.

Fitness Revolution is housed in a compact space that allows for a large room to accommodate the Pilates equipment, another room packed with flywheel spinning bicycles, and a small lobby area.

“There really isn’t any space for child care,” said Ms Durgy. “If kids accompany parents, it is not an ideal situation. The parents are worrying about the kids [in the waiting area] and there’s not much for kids to do [while they wait],” she said.

On the other hand, the nearby Country Kids consists of two buildings with a combined space of 22,500 square feet. It is jam-packed with ways to occupy children, from an indoor gym to an outdoor playground. It is set up to accommodate children of all ages and is staffed by state certified child care providers.

Country Kids has always provided half-day and full-day care for working parents. “I suddenly realized that offering hourly service could help with the economic decline in business. Every business person has to be creative in how to create more revenue for business,” Ms Sage said.

She and Ms Durgy believe that parents who belong to gyms — or want to belong — want good child care.

“They don’t want to drop off their kids in a room where they don’t know who is watching the kids, or if that person is certified. Parents know about Country Kids’ good reputation. They know their kids are in a healthy, safe environment,” said Ms Sage.

Ms Durgy thinks that more people will take advantage of the lifelong benefits of spinning and Pilates at her facility if they know there is great child care close by, so as of January 1, the two women are promoting the idea at both of their businesses.

“So far, we have spread the news that we are working this out together mostly by word of mouth,” Ms Durgy said. “Everybody I tell is saying what a good idea it is. We’re excited to get this going. Working out helps parents get a little relief and they feel comfortable knowing that their kids are in a good environment,” she said.

“By having my staff members care for more children, on an hourly basis, I’m keeping someone employed and it uses space at Country Kids that would otherwise be empty,” Ms Sage said, adding that job losses in the surrounding communities have affected business. “More parents who would be working are home, and they don’t need day care,” she said.

Children who are dropped off at Country Kids will be required to provide health records, and parents will be charged in 30-minute increments, Ms Sage said. “The health records are required by the state, and by charging by the half-hour, I think parents will not feel rushed, or like they have to leave the class early in order to get back to pick up their children,” she added. Parents whose children are already enrolled at Country Kids will receive a discount on hourly care.

By helping each other, both women believe that they make it that much more likely that they will survive the downturn in the economy.

“Piggybacking on each other’s businesses is new for both of us,” Ms Durgy said. “We’ll try to create programs to make it work for everybody, and we will try to be flexible to see what works best,” she said.

For those parents who are not sure if Fitness Revolution is the best fit for them, Ms Durgy offers a free half-hour session on the Pilates equipment, and the first spinning class is free. If they love it, she hopes that parents will decide to take advantage of Country Kids’ services, as well.

Both businesses service families in Brookfield and the surrounding towns, with many clients coming from Newtown, they said.

“The thing is, [our businesses] are closer than you think,” Ms Durgy said. “We’re only ten minutes from the flagpole in Newtown.”

Fitness Revolution is ed at 4 Sand Cut Road, Unit 8, across from the Golf Quest complex, off of Gray’s Bridge Road, in Brookfield. For more information visit www.fitnessrevolution.info or call the studio at 203-740-0282.

Country Kids Play Farm is at 107 Old State Road, off of Gray’s Bridge Road, in Brookfield. Visit www.countrykidschildcare.com for more information or call 203-775-2126.