ALUMNI NEWS
Facilitating Wellness in Northern New York In the foothills of the Adirondacks, Shelby Connelly ’91 pursues her passion for enabling healthy lifestyles.
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desire to share her interest in healthy living prompted Shelby Connelly ’91 to build a multifaceted business focused on wellness.
Its hub is a combination boutique inn and wellness center, “Five Elements Living,” located on eight acres in the foothills of the Adirondacks. The center is located about 10 miles south of Potsdam in Connelly’s hometown, Colton, New York. The inn includes five guest rooms. The center provides spaces for wellness activities such as yoga, massage therapy, an organic salon, and a commercial kitchen for health-driven cooking classes. The commercial kitchen is also where Connelly, working with a chocolatier, developed Apothecary Chocolates, a line of hand-crafted chocolates featuring all natural and organic
ingredients. The chocolates are sold in gift shops and stores throughout New York and are also available as part of the offerings at CazMade in the Cazenovia College bookstore. Connelly’s business ventures also include a line of Five Elements Living branded lotions and soaps, and women’s health products marketed under the Voluptuous V brand. Connelly attended Cazenovia College as a softball player and lived in Hubbard Hall. Back then as a student, and now as the owner of multi-faceted businesses, her penchant for keeping busy was evident. She worked at the College bookstore, gave campus tours, and was a driver for the vans shuttling students to and from the Syracuse airport and train station. She majored in Fashion Merchandising and credits her studies as having contributed to her business success, particularly with her line of chocolates.
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Cazenovia College Magazine: Winter/Spring 2021
Photo: Tim Greene
“I was able to apply what I learned to the packaging, retail displays and marketing,” says Connelly. She also credits her
