Moving the High Style of Tile to Main Street
by Stephanie Dennee
“If we were ever going to leave our space on the corner of Tracy and Mendenhall, I knew it could only be back onto Main Street where the business began in 2000 as Fantasia Showrooms.”
–Ashley Hertz, Owner & Curator, Onyx Studio
Tile is a rising star in mountain design. Twenty years ago, timber and stone, the darlings of a rustic western aesthetic, were the focal points of finishing materials, with tile selection further down on the decision checklist. Today, the desire for vivid, layered design palettes has shifted the spotlight to tile. With striking applications, unique textures, patterns, and styles, and boundless potential, tile is taking its rightful place in mountain west homes. While tile takes the main stage in design, it’s only fitting that Bozeman’s Onyx Studio should take to Main Street, opening a new, elegant design space in the historic Hathhorn Building.
Over the last six years, Onyx Studio has grown from two women in a stylish, though small, design studio on North Tracy to a team of eight women, curating dozens of thoughtfully designed kitchen and baths not only in southwest Montana, but also across the nation. While her team and inventory grew, Onyx’s owner, Ashley Hertz, found herself looking, with aspiration, just one block south to Bozeman’s Main Street. She says, “If we were ever going to leave our space on the corner of Tracy and Mendenhall, I knew it could only be back onto Main Street where the business began in 2000 as Fantasia Showrooms.”
“I knew it had good bones and I could envision what it could become. It was an intuitive process all along the way, each step confirming my first impressions about the building.”
–Ashley Hertz, Owner & Curator, Onyx Studio
As a Montana native, Ashley watched with interest as nearby downtown restoration projects like the Gallatin Laundry and US Bank buildings took shape. She began to conceptualize what she could do to restore and add to the vibrant downtown Bozeman scene. When the Hathhorn Building retail space, originally built in 1911 and the long-time home to Cactus Records, went up for sale in 2021, it went under contract almost immediately. Ashley says, “I was discouraged that the space sold so fast because I had a vision for what could be done there, but I also took it as a sign that I needed to pay attention for the next opportunity.” A few months later, after the initial sale of the property fell through, Ashley did not hesitate, purchasing the storefront immediately.
As with any historic building renovation, there were challenges, but Ashley saw each step as further affirmation of her instincts. “I just knew we were headed in the right direction and leaned into that, even through decisions that felt complicated,” she shares. With the help of Bind Interiors and Graphic Haus, Onyx peeled back a century’s worth of layers from the building over the course of a year. They found brick walls behind drywall, 14-foot-tall, tin-tiled ceilings hidden above drop ceiling panels, and the original maple flooring hidden under carpet. The lower level was structurally reinforced and restored, adding much-needed office space, MFGR created customs stairs, and, of course, many beautiful tile details were added with the fabrication and installation help of Artisan Stone. “I knew it had good bones and I could envision what it could become,” Ashley says, adding, “It was an intuitive process all along the way, each step confirming my first impressions about the building. We couldn’t be prouder of how it came together.”
“We work with an incredible, curated collection of tile vedors. Our new, larger space allows us to show more of their lines and offer a greater sample selection to our clients.”
–Ashley Hertz, Owner & Curator, Onyx Studio
The new space has a light-filled gallery quality. Floating in front of the original brick walls, now cleaned and restored, are backlit, white panels, a crisp backdrop that showcases the many exclusive lines that Onyx carries, including Artistic Tile, Ann Sacks, Tabarka Studio, New Ravenna, and Sonoma Tilemakers. Ashley says of the transformation, “We work with an incredible, curated collection of tile vendors. Our new, larger space allows us to show more of their lines and offer a greater sample selection to our clients.” The Onyx team also seeks out small-scale tile artisans like Clay Daisies or handmade Moroccan Zellige by Bespoke Studio. Now, they can give those tile artisans all the spotlight they deserve throughout the multiple alcoves built into the space for design consults.
“For the past nearly 20 years, Erin Beaudoin and I have worked closely together. More than Onyx Studio’s CEO, she’s a friend, sounding board, and inspiration to me, our team, and all our clients who interact with her.”
Left: Ashley Hertz, Owner & Curator
Right: Erin Beaudoin, CEO
–Ashley Hertz, Owner & Curator, Onyx Studio
The bustling Main Street Bozeman traffic has also brought a greater reach to Onyx’s clientele. Ashley says of the increased foot traffic, “We have already had people strolling downtown Bozeman from places as far away as Tennessee come out of our showroom with a tile order for their bathroom back home.”
The bold intuition that Ashley tapped into for her company’s move to Main Street is an attribute she often sees Onyx clients lean into as they select tile for their homes. “We like to think of ourselves as librarians, the knowledge base from which designers and homeowners can pull. Ultimately, what we so often see, and what we strive to create, is an environment where our client’s tastes and personality naturally guide them toward the tile that speaks to them and tells a very personal story in their homes,” Ashley says.
Few building materials boast as much originality and potential as tile, giving home-owners a nearly unlimited ability to express their personal brands. “It’s the jewelry of the home—a place to make the ultimate individual statement. For instance, I don’t think we’ve ever supplied the same wall, floor, shower pan design in a bathroom. Every single space is a statement of the home and homeowner.” She adds, “With many home-owners, you can see the tile they’ll choose in the colors and textures they wear; that’s how connected tile can be to a person’s identity.”
As Onyx Studio settles into its new tile gallery and design space, Ashley is grateful to have followed her first instincts about the move. In the same way she leaned into the awesome task of purchasing and renovating a nearly sight-unseen Main Street property, she sees clients who lean into their first impressions with tile. “Interestingly, clients will immediately gravitate toward something bold, iconic, and truly unique that speaks to them,” she says. “Then, they will often want to see more traditional options, equally beautiful but less intimidating. I can’t count the number of times I’ll hear back from them that they want to go with that first tile that they saw, the one that spoke to them. Sometimes it takes seeing it all to confirm that your instincts are right.”
“With many home-owners, you can see the tile they’ll choose in the colors and textures they wear; that’s how connected tile can be to a person’s identity.”
–Ashley Hertz, Owner & Curator, Onyx Studio
