MERRILLVILLE — McColly Real Estate has named a new president as founder Ronald F. McColly transitions to a chairman role.
The firm, which is the largest independent residential real estate company in Northwest Indiana, named General Manager Tracy Parus as its new president.
“This will be my 48th year selling real estate, starting in 1974 when I founded the company,” McColly said at a gathering of agents at the Innsbrook Country Club in Merrillville. “Tracy Parus has been there 28 of my 48 years. What I’ve seen is I’ve seen a person that is a listener and a winner.”
McColly started the company that was long based out of the Twin Towers in Merrillville with four agents in 1974. It has grown to 500 sales associates and 23 offices in Indiana and Illinois, also serving the Chicago Southland and Central Illinois.
Parus started her real estate career after graduating from the McColly School of Real Estate in 1995. She first worked out of the Highland office and then moved to the Lakes of the Four Seasons office. She became managing broker of the Lakes of the Four Seasons office in 2002, moved it to a larger location and rebranded it as the Winfield office to encompass the wider area.
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“Under her tenure, the office grew from a handful of agents to a thriving location where agents felt comfortable with her knowledge and management style,” McColly said. “Realizing her love for management, Tracy managed many McColly locations in Porter County and Lake County from 2010 to 2017.”
She became general manager in 2017 and was the company’s No. 1 recruiter of new agents.
“I just want to thank everyone here,” she said. “You guys are the reason why McColly is able to provide superior service that your clients have grown to know and trust. Whether you’re a broker working for us or a manager of one of our brokerage offices or an administrative employee at one of our offices, you are valued more than you know.”
Parus said she couldn’t do the job without the entire staff.
“They do an awesome job, all the managers do,” she said. “All of us here have supported each other, during good times and tough times. We’ve had good deals. We’ve had bad deals. We’ve learned from one another and given encouragement to one another. We’ve gotten better every day. We’ve supported one another. It’s truly amazing. This is a very competitive business and I’ve seen the willingness to help one another over and over again. And I have to thank you for that.”
McColly plans to continue working for the company he founded as chairman. Parus will take the helm of the day-to-day operations.
“I want to thank the McColly family for their support,” she said.
She thanked McColly for his mentorship.
“Your mentoring and guidance have helped me grow into what I am today. I continue to learn from you every day,” she said. “I appreciate the opportunity to work under you and to not only call you boss and to call you my friend. I know we’ve had good days and had bad days over the last 28 years or so. And we’ll continue to have good days and bad days. That’s life. As I’ve said to you, if we agreed on everything, one of us isn’t needed. However, if we are surrounded by great people like those here today, we will have more good days than bad.”
NWI Business Ins and Outs: Parlor Doughuts, Domino’s, Gyros Bar and Grill and Captain’s Seafood opening
Open
Parlor Doughnuts is now baking something sweet in Valparaiso, after celebrating its grand opening Saturday.
But Parlor Doughnuts Valparaiso is not your conventional doughnut shop. The Evansville-based chain specializes in craft doughnuts, specialty coffee and artisan baked goods.
Lifelong Valpo residents Marissa and Wes Barnes opened the franchise at 255 Morthland Drive in Valparaiso. It’s a prominent space on U.S. 30 that was previously home to Jordy N Jax BBQ, Petey’s Gyros and Dicky’s Dogs.
The franchise is Parlor Doughnuts’ third in Indiana and first in the northern part of the state.
It serves layered doughnuts that combine yeast and cake doughnuts. It also has vegan, gluten-free and keto-friendly doughnuts, as well as Doggie Doughnuts for good puppies. The menu also includes acai bowls, avocado toast and breakfast tacos.
“We are thrilled to bring Parlor’s products, brand and mission to Northwest Indiana — a region that celebrates with delicious comfort food and coffee, and appreciates top-notch customer service,” Marissa Barnes said. “One of our key values is to create a place that facilitates conversation and community where friends and families of all ages can gather in a vintage American space that feels like the ‘Parlor,’ a conversation center of 1900s Victorian homes but with a modern twist. My husband, Wes, and I are lifelong residents of Valparaiso and are excited to bring a business to our community that values giving back, including a passion for active military, veterans and first responders.”
Craft doughtnuts and coffee
Parlor Doughnuts was founded in Evansville in 2019 by Darrick Hayen, his son Noah and restaurateur Josh Tudela. Hayden toured the country with his son’s band, sampling local doughnuts everywhere he went while Noah developed a passion for craft coffee.
They combined their interests to open Parlor Doughnuts, which has been growing fast across the country. It now has more than 24 locations open or in development from coast to coast.
The Valparaiso doughnut shop plans to employ around 20 people and is still hiring for a variety of jobs, including baristas and bakers.
For more information, visit www.parlordoughnuts.com or email parlordoughnutsvalpo@gmail.com.
Coming soon
Domino’s, America’s largest pizza chain, is headed to Munster.
The Ann Arbor, Michigan-based pizzeria, which already has an extensive footprint around the Calumet Region, signed a lease to open in the strip mall on Main Street that’s anchored by Anytime Fitness.
“This will be an excellent location for Dominos and is a win-win for both the tenant and landlord. The center is now 100% occupied with strong, well-known tenants,” said Brett McDermott of Crown Point-based commercial real estate firm Latitude Commercial, which represented the landlord.
Domino’s has recently opened many new locations in Northwest Indiana, including in Highland and Griffith.
Open
Gyros Bar and Grill opened in Valparaiso.
It’s a family-friendly restaurant with a 21-plus lounge at 391 W. U.S. 6.
The 5,300-square-foot restaurant serves fare like gyros, burgers, hot dogs, chili dogs and ribs in a sit-down casual dining environment. It took over a former Pepe’s that had been vacant for at least 20 years.
Gyros Bar and Grill seats about 150 diners. The menu includes chicken, fish, steak sandwiches and many Chicagoland favorites like Polish sausages and Italian beef sandwiches.
It’s located along a busy stretch of U.S. 6 that 22,000 cars pass by weekly. Given its locations, it’s expected to draw from Valparaiso, Chesterton, South Haven and Portage.
For more information, call 219-254-2351.
Coming soon
Captain’s Seafood is coming soon to Michigan City.
The seafood market at 5360 Franklin St. will offer shrimp, fish, crab legs and lobster tails.
New owners
New owners took over the NutriHub Nutrition shop on U.S. 30 in Merrillville.
Jasmine Wade and Sheva Robinson bought the health food store at 536 E 81st Ave. in Merrillville. It specializes in meal replacement protein shakes packed with vitamins.
NutriHub sells a number of products like protein shakes, protein bars, herbal teas, energy teas, thermogenic teas and aloe. The 1,900-square-foot business employs five and has seating, including comfortable couches, for people who want to enjoy their shakes there.
“It’s different things for health in general,” Wade said. “We’re registered nurses and the major health issues we’ve seen is one of the reasons we want to help everybody health-wise. We’ve seen unhealthy eating. We’ve introduced these products to our family. I don’t want my family to be part of a statistic.”
Focus on nutrition
The pair aims to educate the public about health, such as by posting about nutritious eating on social media.
“We’re out here to help our community,” Robinson said. “These products help people lose weight. They help with obesity. They’re low in sugar, so diabetics are able to take them. They can be used to built muscle for those struggling with gaining weight or maintaining weight. It’s got minerals, vitamins and protein. It helps with digestion, skin and hair.”
NutriHub aims to offer healthy fare that also tastes good. Shake flavors include many varieties of chocolate, fruit and candy such as Almond Joy, Peppermint Patty and Rootbeer Barrel.
“If you have a sweet tooth, we have cake and cookie flavors to satisfy that craving,” Wade said. “We have a shake of the month that’s lemon pound cake this month. It’s healthy but sweet and it targets that craving.”
‘Trying to make a difference’
People can try samples of the products on a trial basis. NutriHub also offers body scans to help clients meet their weight loss and wellness goals.
Wade and Robinson have been passing products at neighboring businesses like Athletico and Planet Fitness as outreach. They hope to eventually expand and open more franchises, including potentially in other states.
“We’d like to be able to get word out mouth going out,” Wade said. “We’re driven African-American women trying to make a difference in our community.”
NutriHub is open from 6 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Friday and from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday. For more information, call 219-472-8488 or find the business on Facebook.
Open
Brass Valley Vapor Company opened a few months ago on U.S. 30 in Valparaiso.
The vape shop is located at 1354 W Morthland Drive in Valpo Valparaiso. It offers a wide selection of vaping supplies, including “disposables, mods, salts, e-liquids, batteries and chargers, pods, coils, and delta products.”
Brass Valley Vapor Company is open from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday, from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Wednesday and 12-6 p.m. Saturday.
For more information, call 219-242-8335.
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