Savannah Smithereens opens downtown spot for smashing, breaking and therapeutic violence

It’s your lunch break, and so far Monday morning has delivered nothing but an unrelenting litany of unreasonable customers riddled with bad attitudes — if only you could just break something before going back to the office.

You got called in last-minute to cover a rowdy Friday night shift on River Street, and you really want to smash some bottles to relieve a little angst before facing the evening’s inevitable onslaught of zealous revelers.

If you can relate — just want to break something and blow off steam — wait no more. This Friday, Smithereens celebrates the grand opening of their downtown brick-and-mortar location, where you can legally smash a wide range of items in a fun and safe environment.

Previous writing: Savannah Smithereens wants to help you smash your stress and frustrations out in a fun, safe way

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Smithereens is the small business brainchild of Tiffany Noelle, Becky Thompson and Suzanne Nelson who joined forces last summer to create a mobile version of the experience.

Together, they worked with SCORE to develop a plan and move the idea forward into a full-fledged business. The women sourced breakables from local establishments, including bars and restaurants for empty beer and wine bottles as well as the Salvation Army for non-working electronics and glass and ceramic bric-a-brac.

Curious smashers would then call to book an appointment. The Smithereens team would show up, sometimes outside at a bar or special event but mostly at people’s private residences, to set up their air conditioned, 10 X 10 smash tent complete with hammers, baseball bats and all the appropriate protective gear.

But that was a lot of work, especially in the sweltering heat of summer.

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“We are so glad we got into this space. It’s 3,000 square feet and climate controlled,” emphasized Noelle. “Now, instead of us battling the elements each time during a smash, we have this great space that can comfortably accommodate 50 people.”

The new location at 410 West Jones Street sits across from Rancho Alegre Cuban Restaurant in a recently renovated, multi-business commercial building.

The Smithereens space contains two smaller smash rooms that can hold up to four people each and a party room large enough for eight. There’s also a snack room and gallery area to feature local and regional artists.

A typical smash session costs $25 for 20 minutes of pulverizing a sizable box of assorted electronics, glass bottles, ceramics, and more, making it totally doable on a lunch break or before going to work.

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Since last summer, the Smithereens team has traveled to as many as 20 different locations, gaining valuable insight into the people they work with through each experience. One especially memorable smash involved a church youth group that booked them expressly for some senior high school girls.

In addition to wrapping up the college application process, taking the SAT, and making it through high school amidst a pandemic, the girls had recently lost a couple friends to suicide. The church viewed a smash session as a healthy way to help them process some of their grief and anger.

“It wasn’t anticipated, but we’re definitely providing a service that is therapeutic,” considered Noelle. “To me, that’s been another benefit of what we’re doing, and the word-of-mouth response because of that has been amazing.”

Another memorable mobile session involved a woman who had had a falling out with a family member over an estate issue. She printed an image of the person and attached it to the items she smashed. The experience was cathartic and seemed to help as she worked through her emotions.

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“We’re definitely not advocating violence towards people,” emphasized Nelson. “But time and time again we see how this helps people process their feelings, especially rage and anger. Smashing things in a safe, controlled environment really seems to provide relief for some people.”

For their new space, the Smithereens team has given much thought to what they bring to the community. They are planning smash specials for service industry workers, teachers and office staff. There’s even a “frequent smashers” card and package in the works.

One question they are often asked is what they do with the broken bits and pieces. And they have an innovative approach in how they handle some of the debris.

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Local artist Elizabeth Evans has partnered with Smithereens and incorporates broken chunks into her multimedia works of jewelry and birdhouses. And this has inspired more ideas.

“We’ll also have art nights where you can take the smashed stuff and create something with it, which is yet another metaphor of transformation,” said Noelle.

“Repurposing the broken parts and creating something new and beautiful speaks volumes about healing and self empowerment. We’ll be reaching out to different groups, like veterans, to assist in working through trauma. We’ve found that we offer more than entertainment and escape. We’re providing meaningful yet fun ways for people to connect with the power within and let that out in a way that doesn’t harm others.”

For more information, visit savsmithereens.com.

This article originally appeared on Savannah Morning News: Smithereens smash room opens in downtown Savannah Georgia