Elements Massage studio closure in Hadley stiffs clients with thousands in gift cards - Amherst Bulletin

[SCOTT MERZBACH]

Elements Massage in Hadley’s Hampshire Mall closed on May 22 due to a state stop-work order.


HADLEY — Weekly massage client Debra Morin went all in on a two-for-one holiday season promotion in 2023 at Elements Massage studio.

Just months after buying $1,800 worth of gift cards in the buy one, get one sale though, Morin found that she could no longer use them, after the 379 Russell St. business, located in a small plaza in front of Hampshire Mall, closed on May 22, the result of a stop-work order. That order, issued to Marmich LLC by the state’s Department of Industrial Accidents Office of Investigations, came after officials determined the business didn’t have workers’ compensation for its employees.

Now, a year after making the purchases from Elements, franchised to Michele Cornelius of Agawam, Morin, who’s from Palmer, is hoping there’s some way she can get back the money, despite learning that each of the 24 Elements studios in Massachusetts are independently owned and operated and that the next closest location, in East Longmeadow, will not accept the gift cards.

Morin contends that Cornelius knew the business was in trouble when the promotion was launched. “For her to run the sale when she was already being hounded by the state, it was about taking in as much money as she could before she closed the doors,” Morin said.

She said it’s frustrating that other Elements studios won’t honor the gift cards. “They’re selling their name, but not backing it up,” Morin said.

Cornelius couldn’t be reached for comment. The business phone was full and not accepting messages, while a call to her home went unanswered before disconnecting.

What recourse might be available is uncertain, but the state attorney general’s Consumer Advocacy and Response Division received at least 42 complaints against the business between May 17 and Oct. 24, 2024, with residents in Amherst, Northampton, Belchertown, Hadley, South Hadley and Sunderland among those making the complaints. The exact nature of the complaints is unclear, though all but one of those came after Elements closed.

When the stop-work order was issued, fines were to accrue at $100 per day until insurance coverage started for employees, according to information from the Executive Office of Labor and Workforce Development. Those fines had more than doubled due to the stop-work order being appealed, and the business was then found in default as of June 12 because no one representing the studio showed up for an appeals hearing scheduled that day.

Another Elements client, Cassia Hession of Amherst, is sitting on $1,000 worth of gift cards for 90-minute massage sessions. She isn’t sure what happens next. “We will continue with legal action soon, assuming she doesn’t file bankruptcy,” Hession said.

In addition to the 24 studios in Massachusetts, Elements is a nationwide chain with massage studios in 32 states and British Columbia, according to its website.

The Hadley studio opened in 2015 and was distinct from Elements Hot Tub Spa in Amherst, which is an independent business.

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