First Stark County Batteries Plus location opens in the Belden Village area
JACKSON TWP. – A Batteries Plus franchise has opened in the Belden Village shopping district.
The store opened by Rushil Patel is stocked with batteries ranging from AA to automobiles, as well as specialty light bulbs. The store also offers repair service for cellphones, smart pads and key fobs.
Located at 4652 Belden Village St. NW, the store is open daily. Hours are 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Saturday, and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Sunday.
Patel, a Jackson High School graduate, grew up in a family that owned and operated different retail stores and hospitality businesses. He researched opening a franchise and went with Batteries Plus after determining the area could support a business offering a wide range of batteries and related services.
"It's a very good niche market," Patel said. "We have a lot of products that people are going to need."
Services include free testing for car batteries, as well as help keeping cellphone, laptop and tablet batteries operating longer and more efficiently.
In addition to automotive batteries, the store is stocked with batteries for all-terrain vehicles, boats, motorcycles, snowmobiles, golf carts, motorized wheelchairs and toy vehicles. Repair services include replacing broken screens on phones and tablets, and cutting new key fobs.
Patel said there is a strong commercial side to the store, as it supplies local businesses with battery, lighting and related needs.
Batteries Plus started in 1988 in Green Bay, Wisconsin. The operation has grown to an nationwide chain with more than 800 locations. Before Patel's store opened, the closest location was in the Montrose shopping district.
Canton Chamber adds vice president
The Canton Regional Chamber of Commerce has named Melissa Coultas vice president for development.
Coultas joins the Chamber after serving as chief advancement officer for Child & Adolescent Behavioral Health. She brings a strong advancement and fundraising background to chamber, along with skills in marketing and public relations, as well as government relations.
A Kent State University graduate, Coultas serves on the adviser's committee for the Stark Community Foundation Women's Fund.
Timken technology, equipment used in solar energy project in South Africa
The Redstone Solar Thermal Power project in Northern Cape, South Africa, has selected Timken Co. to supply the precision drives developed by its Cone Drive business.
Solar-tracking technology developed by Cone Drive will position Redstone's heliostat mirrors to reflect the sun's rays. The facility will store thermal energy in molten salt and convert the energy into electricity.
Plans are for the Redstone facility to begin operating at the end of 2023. It will be South Africa's largest renewable energy project, and is entirely emissions-free.
Timken has been investing in research and development, as well as manufacturing for its solar and wind energy business segments. The company's renewable energy business segments has been its single-largest end-market, with revenue generating approximately 12% of sales in 2021.
Alliance Walmart makes changes
Walmart last weekend celebrated changes at it supercenter in Alliance with a grand re-opening.
The store completed remodeling that involved changes in several departments and improvement in services added during the pandemic.
The dairy and produce offerings in the grocery department have been expanded, a grab-and-go deli section was added at the front of the store, a "dollar shop" opened at the general merchandise entrance, and improvements were made in the checkout area with installation of additional self-checkout equipment.
Changes also were made to the customer pickup and pharmacy pickup departments.
This article originally appeared on The Repository: Batteries Plus franchise opens in Belden Village
