Pulp Juice and Smoothie Bar opens in Hartville

The Lake Township Chamber of Commerce held another ribbon cutting for a new business in Hartville on Wednesday, June 3.

This time, the MorningCONNECTIONS Road Trip went to Pulp Juice and Smoothie Bar, located in Hartville Centre Plaza at 841 W. Maple St., Hartville. Arielle Kenyon, owner of the new business location, was the host, making the presentation followed by a brief tour. The phone number is 330-777-2220. Hours of operation are seven days a week, 10 a.m.-8 p.m. The menu can be accessed at pulpjuiceandsmoothie.com/location/hartville.

Kenyon may not be the typical franchise owner. She grew up in the Brimfield-Kent area and worked at the Pulp Juice and Smoothie Bar in Kent starting in 2011 while she was pursuing her education in nursing. As she said, "I loved coming to the store knowing everything is made fresh! It had a clean environment and was such a positive atmosphere."

Although she completed her nursing degree requirements, she had the opportunity to run the Kent Pulp store for three years and then opened her own store in Woodmere-Beachwood in 2018. She decided that nursing was not her career path. She wanted to take care of people's bodies by giving them food to make them healthier through eating healthy, natural foods.

Pulp markets its stores by saying, "If you love people, thrive in a fast-paced environment, and believe healthy living should taste amazing, we want you on our team! At Pulp, we're all about energy, teamwork, and growth. Bring your positive attitude, and we'll bring the training, flexibility, and fun."

That's exactly how Kenyon felt about Pulp.

Hartville is her second store. The Hartville location had its grand opening May 12. Arielle has a love of community that makes Hartville a natural fit. Lake Township Chamber President Chip Weisel remarked that Arielle contacted him before coming to Hartville. She feels welcomed here and has had a very positive experience locating in Hartville.

The menu highlights real fruit, no added sugar and real vegetables, making the smoothies consistently good. In addition to smoothies, which constitute 90% of the business, Pulp features fresh juice, wraps and bowls. The focus is on using only healthy ingredients and never compromising on the quality and flavor of products. The company says, "We make it easy for our customers to get what they want when they want it!" Kenyon's favorite smoothie is the Mango Tango.

What can be expected at this new Pulp? More than 30 smoothies, fan favorites and bold blends made with real ingredients; fresh juices and shots made fresh and packed with flavor; wraps and blended bowls; and fresh options to fuel your day. Whether you're grabbing lunch on the go or just craving a smoothie that actually tastes like fruit, Pulp is ready.

Pulp Hartville's drive-thru is open. Stop at the menu board and place your order. Pull up to the pick-up window, pay and go. Fast and easy!

Pulp Juice and Smoothie Bar was created by Thom Knepp in Kent in 2005. He opened his first store near Kent State University. Thom always had the desire to open something of his own, but it wasn't until his first smoothie that he figured out what that "something" was. He was instantly in love with the idea of a smoothie as a quick, healthy meal and loved the fun vibe many smoothie shops gave off.

He immediately set out to find the perfect smoothie franchise to bring to Ohio. After visiting many different locations across the country, Thom liked a lot of what he saw but couldn't find a single concept that he loved everything about. To create his idea of the perfect smoothie bar, Thom decided he would need to develop the concept himself. Soon after, Pulp was born. Today, Pulp is more than a smoothie bar; it's a community hub for healthy, tasty meals on the go.

Pulp Juice and Smoothie Bar is blending up something big. The company is expanding with new locations opening across multiple states, bringing its fresh smoothies, juices, wraps and bowls to even more communities. Pulp has been in business for 20 years.