SARATOGA SPRINGS — Riham LaRussa has always wanted to run her own business, and thanks to a local connection, she’s made it happen.
LaRussa recently acquired Small Packages, an online shop selling gift packages featuring a variety of items. She was connected to the company by Catherine Hover, founder and CEO of Palette, a co-working space where LaRussa is a member.
“I actually met the owners of Small Packages through an acquaintance of mine. I invested in it through a special purpose vehicle,” said Hover. “The founder reached out to me and said, ‘Hey, we’re interested in selling, do you know of anybody?’”
This led to Hover introducing the initial owners to LaRussa.
“This past October, Small Packages was for sale, and Katherine said, ‘You do e-commerce for your current job, why don’t you buy an e-commerce company?’,” LaRussa said. “I honestly laughed, because I don’t even know where to start, how that happens. But I took that first phone call, she sent me the contact information and I spoke to the previous owners of the company.”
Early on, LaRussa was assisted by Hover, who has experience running a business with Palette as well as Saratoga Paint and Sip Studio.
“She just walked me through the process of what you need to do to open a new business. I wouldn’t have known where to start,” said LaRussa. “She really just coached me through all of that.”
This is part of the goal for Palette, who aim to support their members in a professional setting.
“So that’s really what our claim to fame is, that we really go above and beyond to demonstrate ROI for our members’ commitment to being a part of the community,” Hover said. “We really have a lot of accountability, a lot of networking opportunities, and overall support for our members, in addition to the physical locations that our members can hop into for meetings and to get work done.”
LaRussa described Small Packages as “a curated gift package site,” and said she aims for the company to give back to local communities as much as possible.
“We really want to elevate women-owned companies and BIPOC-owned companies,” LaRussa said. “My goal, eventually, is to really make sure that everything in some way gives back to some kind of community. I really want to work with small businesses that give back to their communities.”
She said that giving back brings “true joy and fulfillment out of this.”
“I love setting a great example and being a good role model for my two daughters, who are six and nine. Just showing them that little things can make a big impact,” said LaRussa. “I want to show people that you can give back and help build up your community in small ways and everyday ways.”
LaRussa said that much of the current selection on the website was curated by the previous owners, but said they hope to have local offerings from the Saratoga area by the time Valentine’s Day shopping approaches. She also said the company is considering offering a quarterly subscription box, and mentioned her excitement to begin working with the local community.
“I’m really excited to see who we’re going to meet, who we can end up working with, and just the ways that we can give back, not just to our community, but to communities of all the people buying the products,” LaRussa said. “Just finding ways that we can help them give back to their communities as well.”
