Tuni Schartner is an energetic facilitator and unapologetic cheerleader in growing the state’s economy, especially in southern Rhode Island, where she lives and works.
Having branded herself “Rhode Island’s economic gardener,” the moniker resonates, she said, as it is both figurative and literal.
“I do my part to grow the Rhode Island economy,” she said, hyper-focusing on small businesses – work that has earned her local and state accolades.
But if businesses need actual gardening advice? She also happens to be a landscape enthusiast, able to offer opinions on plantings and bushes for the exterior of an office building, for example. Whatever it takes to help small businesses, she says.
It’s this kind of wide-open perspective on her strengths and the strengths of others that has helped Schartner serve entrepreneurs and startup business clients of her North Kingstown marketing firm, TS Consulting/TRS Strategies. It’s just one of her many roles: Schartner is chief marketing officer at North Kingstown’s The Mill at Lafayette, as well as director of The Hive co-working space in the mill – the first such space in southern Rhode Island – which she founded with mill owner Mike Baker and Larry Zevon of Zevon Media LLC.
In helping to create The Hive about five years ago, Schartner had to research, gather information and pivot from an original plan.
At the time, she was working individually out of a coffeehouse, as was Zevon. It was not always a conducive setup for things such as conference calls, she said. Wheels began turning, and their attention shifted to the mill area as a potential small-business incubator space the community could use.
“I invited friends and professionals. I’d walk them through the mill and say, ‘What did you think?’ ” she said.
Ultimately, the idea of a business incubator morphed into a co-working space proposal.
“We are southern Rhode Island,” said Schartner. “It’s different down here; it’s not downtown Providence. For an incubator, we were not ready, but we did need a co-working space … it was the perfect alternative: space to work alone, together.”
More frequent faces at The Hive, which also functions as an art gallery, include an attorney, a health consultant, a video-production company, a virtual assistant, and Schartner and Zevon.
Awareness of market factors and the willingness to shift course when needed are tied in with another one of Schartner’s strongly held beliefs: the need for continuous education. She advocates for constant professional development to ensure business owners are aware of trends and advances in their field.
‘Business owners can absolutely empower themselves.’
TUNI SCHARTNER, TS Consulting/TRS Strategies owner
Social psychology is another area of focus. Having studied English and psychology at the University of Rhode Island, she said both play a role in what she does now as a strategizer and communicator for her clients.
Schartner helps small businesses – generally those with under 50 employees – grow from the inside out but also from the outside in, peeling back the layers of who their customers are. Variants are very individualized for small businesses.
“It’s about the audience you’re trying to reach, how they like to receive communications. Now more than ever, people are paying attention to that; they are bombarded with messaging,” she said, whether via text, social media, television or other content channels. “It’s more and more important … the human side of business.”
Rhode Island naturally stands to benefit from the state’s geography and vast economic resources, says Schartner. The state is, after all, between urban hubs of New York and Boston.
She likes what Gov. Gina M. Raimondo is doing for businesses, much of which is not as known as it should be, she says, and is working to spread the word.
“We have so many resources available that didn’t even exist two years ago,” said Schartner, many of which she has used for her own business and recommended to clients. “I shout it from the mountaintops. They’ve done so much for small business, this administration. Many small businesses don’t know how much heavy lifting has been going on at the state level.
“Utilize your portal,” she tells business owners, whether The Hive, the state’s Small Business Development Center, or myriad other resources around them. Businesses also accomplish more together, cross-pollinating as she calls it, by partnering, networking and learning from one another. “I promote going out there and finding your tribes.”
Having been honored with awards or accolades from the Southern Rhode Island Chamber of Commerce, Raimondo and Rep. Jim Langevin, D-R.I., Schartner is now embarking on another way to make a difference: as co-chair of programming for the board of Advertising, Marketing & Public Relations of RI.
Ultimately, Schartner says, being aware of change and able to be agile, banding together, using small-business resources, maximizing educational opportunities and knowing one’s customer base will position small businesses for growth, and grow the Rhode Island economy even more.
“Business owners can absolutely empower themselves,” she said.