As a massage therapist, Ashley Ferrell, of Buchanan, is in the business of alleviating stress. In a fast-paced, deadline driven world, such a commodity can be hard to find — but not for those in the Niles-Buchanan area.

On Thursday, Ferrell celebrated the opening of her business Natural Instinct Massage Therapy at 999 W. Front St., in Buchanan.

During a grand opening ceremony, Ferrell snipped through a red ribbon at the building’s threshold and posed for photographs. In attendance were dozens of family, friends and customers, as well as Mayor Brenda Hess and members of the Buchanan Chamber of Commerce, who congratulated Ferrell on the business.

It is exactly the hometown welcoming that Ferrell expected from her hometown.

“I have always wanted to open a business in my hometown,” Ferrell said. “I love Buchanan and I can’t imagine being anywhere else.”

Ferrell co-owns the building with her fiancé Matt Sayer. The couple opened Natural Instinct in May, with the aim to help customers achieve total relaxation.

“It is a good place to come to get away from the world,” Ferrell said. “We are constantly stressed. We are on our cellphones all the time and we are in a hurry. My number one thing is for them to feel like they are not in a hurry and do not have to rush.”

Ferrell offers 30- to 90-minute massages. Customers can get a blend of deep tissue and relaxation massages to relieve stress and help remediate pain. There is also the option of various massages, including Swedish, hot rock and couple’s, to name a few. Spa facials and sugar scrubs are also available.

“[I] try to help everybody in the community that I can with muscle tension and stress relief,” Ferrell said.

Ferrell also seeks to provide individualized attention to her customers. Her massages are by appointment only.  While with a client, a sign is placed on the door to tell other customers to come back when the massage is through.

Ferrell earned an associate’s degree in massage therapy and has received national certification and state licensing for massage therapy. She has almost seven years of massage therapy experience, three of which were served at Tranquility Mist Massage & Bodyworks in Niles.

While working at Tranquility, Ferrell said she started thinking about the possibility of running her own massage therapy business. Around that time, Sayer and Ferrell found out that the 2,200-square-foot property at 999 Front St. was for sale.

“We thought, ‘this [the building] is perfect for what we want to do,’” Ferrell said.

The couple spent a year remodeling the building. The facility is painted a butter-yellow color on the outside. Inside the building, relaxation rooms are decorated with candles and flower shaped lights in a lilac shade.

Ferrell said she hopes to expand the building within the next year. So far, she will be the only employee operating the business, but this could change with growth of the facility.

Since opening Natural Instincts in May, the response to the new business has been positive, Ferrell said.

The business is located about a mile from Buchanan’s downtown. This initially made Ferrell a little skeptical about being visible enough to customers. However, the location has so far not seemed to hinder customers from visiting.

“I am just amazed at the response we have had,” Ferrell said. “I feel very blessed.”

It helps that through her work at Tranquility, Ferrell created a dedicated following of customers, some of which will now be visiting her at Natural Instincts, she said.

As a native to Buchanan, Ferrell said she was happy to run a business in the city she calls home.