Meet Lynne Baer | Co-Founder / GM / Event Manager

We had the good fortune of connecting with Lynne Baer and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Lynne, can you talk to us a bit about the social impact of your business?
Through years of changing ideas leading to The Pad, one always remained constant: to be as socially & environmentally responsible as possible. We want to inspire not only our guests, but our colleagues and community as well, by showcasing how a business can create a positive impact for people & the planet through thoughtful consideration of employee equality & wages, product procurement, waste & recycling, and support for local artisans and businesses.

We have thoughtfully selected everything in The Pad. Our private rooms feature bamboo products – our linens are all produced in Oeko Tex certified facilities, we have low-flow toilets, all of our lights are LED, we compost in our bar and guest kitchen, and recycle. We’re working on becoming a Certified B Corp – we are currently in “pending” status, as you have to be in operations for a year to actually show that you’ve taken the steps to follow the triple bottom line of People, Planet, Profit.

Every day we’re improving and striving to be a better steward in a traditionally wasteful industry. We really try to be a place for our community as well, not just our guests. We have Colorado artists exhibiting their art on our walls, we donate portions of sales to local charities for events we host – we are becoming a hub for groups to meet and have happy hour at A-BAR – and will host the Blue River clean up on our site this year…I love that we’re in a position to do this.

It’s embedded in our mission and our day-to-day actions that we do everything we can to lessen our impact on the environment and do the right thing for our community, our employees, our partners and our planet to mindfully balance profit and purpose.

What should our readers know about your business?
My husband and I are owner-operators of The PAD, and I think that brings a personal touch that you don’t find in a lot of places. We are involved in every aspect of The Pad – and I think it shows through the culture and vibe when you are inside. Our team is not only working at the bar and the front desk, but has unloaded all of the mattresses, assembled furniture, hung hooks – we all have put so much effort into bringing The Pad to life – so it creates a warm atmosphere to have everyone vested into its success. I think our location and our team separate us from other spots – we genuinely care.

We’ve had every challenge you could think of – but through that, we’ve also learned that almost any business has encountered as many challenges as well trying to get off the ground. One of the largest struggles was in the beginning – when we were trying to raise money and get financing to pursue building The Pad – but there was no comp set. Although hostels are popular worldwide, they are relatively newer to the US. Especially a hybrid-hospitality model like ours. Trying to get people to envision our concept and that we were combining the amenities of a boutique hotel with hostel-style accommodation was challenging. We did find people who believed in us and shared our vision. We joked that it eventually became a numbers game. We just kept meeting and talking to people and never gave up, which paid off ultimately, but was no light task.

Once we were financed and under construction – we overcame the issues with design and coordination, and then we encountered our site being shut down due to COVID. The County closed offices, which means the inspectors could not come out – so we did as much work as we could, but ultimately had to stop because there was no one to inspect. This was devastating as we were building in the mountains so timing with weather and everything else is so important.

Once things opened back up it was never the same, crews would come down with Covid stopping work dead in its tracks. We were always optimistic and never gave up, but then once people seemed to be well and work resumed, we ran into all of the cost increases and lack of supplies which caused delays, and then we had to raise more money. It seemed like we were never going to be finished, but we finally did. And again – tried to find the positive and silver lining in that it wasn’t just us that was delayed, every single construction project in the mountains was suffering through the same thing – so it provided that little bit of comfort that it wasn’t just us. Becoming part of the Women Business Owners of Summit County group (picture) has been wonderful – being able to share the challenges and wins of owning a business in a supportive environment has been instrumental to continuing to move forward effectively. Thankful for this great group of women!

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
Oh wow, there’s so much I love about this community, that’s a tough one! If I was miraculously granted a week off work, I would fill my itinerary with morning coffee at Red Buffalo Cafe or House of Vibes, skiing at Arapahoe Basin or Bluebird Backcountry, taking a fun outing with Colorado Adventure Guides and hitting the trails nearby like Lily Pad Lake, Ptarmigan Trail, Cataract Lake, or maybe even bag Buffalo Peak if the weather were cooperating. Outside of outdoor rec, I always love pastries from Colorado Marketplace and Bakery – aprés at Saved by the Wine & Angry James Brewery. Aprés can mold into dinner real easy at Timberline Craft Kitchen, Sauce on the Blue or Kucu, and I would ABSOLUTELY carve out a night for dinner and drinks at Bistro North. Of course, I’d cap each night at A-BAR before retreating to my room at The PAD 😉

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
I would like to recognize the wonderful women over at Saved By The Wine, Erin & Allison. They are young entrepreneurs who started something in the midst of the pandemic that, in my opinion, our side of Summit County was in dire need of! Their space is chic, hip and they are super mindful about the wine and food they serve. On top of that, they donate a percentage of their sales every month to the local animal shelter. Being a huge lover of both wine and dogs, this is a no brainer shoutout from me 🙂

Website: https://thepadlife.com/silverthorne/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thepadsilverthorne/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/ThePadLife

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thepadsilverthorne

Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/the-pad-silverthorne-silverthorne-3

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCyxQbRNQwuzpfXPKfsefoFw

Other: https://app.eventcalendarapp.com/editor/b89e7059-d45e-4dba-8794-169ee94fde3e

Image Credits
Stacy Gillespie, David Lauer