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JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2018
Contents
THE MAGAZINE FOR GROWING BUSINESSES IN SOUTHERN MINNESOTA
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BUSINESS PERSON OF THE YEAR 2018
Dennis Terrell
Re/Max Dynamic Agents
8
Art Director/Staff Photographer: Kris Kathmann Contributing Photographers: Art Sidner Contributing Writers: Anna Vangsness, Hannah Bretz, Tom Slunecka Production: Becky Wagner
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Circulation: Becky Wagner Printing: Corporate Graphics, N. Mankato
Prairie Plans Asset Management
Mailing: Midwest Mailing, Mankato
From his small town in Southern Minnesota, David Milbrath has a big impact as his firm is now responsible for $500 million of wealth for his clients.
The Redig Family
Nordaas American Homes
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Cover Photo: Kris Kathmann
CIRCULATION
22
From their dream location in Minnesota Lake, the Redig family helped turn Nordaas American Homes around, helping folks across the region build their dream homes in the process.
9,400 for January/February 2018 Published bimonthly
CORRESPONDENCE Send press releases and other correspondence: c/o Editor, Connect Business Magazine P.O. Box 176, Nicollet, MN 56074 E-mail: editor@connectbiz.com (please place press releases in email body)
COLLABORATION CONNECTION – SPECIAL REPORT
Web: www.connectbiz.com
Grassroots Effort Comes to Fruition in New Ulm
ADVERTISING
Community, city and state collaborate to find solution to housing crunch.
Phone: 507.232.3463
34
Call: (507) 232-3463 E-mail: sales@connectbiz.com
ABOUT CONNECT
COLUMNS
Editor’s Letter Cownie Connection Opinion
5 30 48
IN EVERY ISSUE
Connecting with Community A Day in the Life Bulletin Board Hot Startz! Ask A Professional
4
Publisher: Concept & Design Incorporated Editor: Lisa Cownie
Our 2018 Business Person of the Year winner, Dennis Terrell, says nurturing and lifting up those around him are the keys to his success. Recruit the best, and the rest will follow.
David Milbrath
STAFF & CONTRIBUTORS
CONNECT Business Magazine
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JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2018
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Locally owned Connect Business Magazine has ‘connected’ southern Minnesota businesses since 1994 through features, interviews, news and advertising. Connect Business Magazine is a publication of Concept & Design Incorporated, a graphic design firm offering print design, web design, illustration and photography. conceptanddesign.com
Copyright 2018. Printed in U.S.A.
EDITOR’S LETTER
Celebrating True Leaders Well, if you’ve reached this page in the magazine you’ve no doubt seen that this year’s Business Person of the Year is Dennis Terrell, owner of Re/Max Dynamic Agents. This is only my second year involved with this promotion, but I can tell you entries doubled from last year! All the nominees certainly could have fit the bill. I’m sure glad I didn’t have to choose. Speaking of choosing, I want to let you know how the winner and two runners-up were decided. For the selection team, we started with a diverse group of five business leaders in the nine-county region. They were joined by two votes from the Minnesota State University Mankato College of Business and our three-person editorial board. All on the selection team ranked their top five and we tabulated the results. Close, close, close this year! Thanks to all who nominated...I’m already looking forward to next year. In the meantime, enjoy their stories in our pages as we kick off a new year learning about and celebrating the characters that make Southern Minnesota such a great place to live and do business. Happy reading, and hopefully, learning!
Lisa Cownie Editor
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Graphical Gurus Nicollet-based trio have been creating graphics and imagery to help companies market their products for over 20 years.
T
echnology changes rapidly, causing many companies to strain to keep up. But for the creative minds of Concept & Design in Nicollet, Minnesota, keeping current with technology in the visual media field is less about changing and more about expanding capabilities. As the first graphic design and illustration studio in the area, Concept & Design remains a pioneer in using cutting-edge methods, according to Graphic Designer and Photographer Kris Kathmann. “Being a small company, to thrive you have to push the boundaries and learn new skills,” he said. “New tools and techniques open up new possibilities for what we can deliver to our clients. They allow more creativity and freedom in visually communicating value to our client’s potential customers.” When Jeffry Irish started Concept & Design in 1979, much of the technology that the design studio uses today seemed futuristic. However, the early days involved some influences from science fiction, according to Illustrator and Photographer Jonathan Smith, who has worked at Concept & Design since 1984. Smith remembers creating special effects photography modeled off film compositing techniques used in Star Wars before computer imagery became ubiquitous. “It was an attitude of innovation and experimentation, and of creating styles that practically no one else was doing. We still do that, but obviously with different media nowadays,” Smith said, adding that they adopted desktop publishing software in the late ’80s. The company specializes in a range of services, including a variety of illustration styles,
3D modeling and rendering, product photography, advanced retouching, branding design, and product and packaging design, among others. Possessing a wide mix of skills also helps them produce print publications, such as Connect Business Magazine, which Concept & Design has published for more than two decades. The studio can still produce in traditional media, such as paint or pen and ink illustrations, if it fits a client’s aesthetic, but practically every company logo, 3-D rendering or corporate brochure takes shape digitally without appearing on paper until it goes to print. The rise of computers, tablets and smartphones has changed how designers create graphics and the ways that people encounter them, said Kathmann who started working for the company in 1994. “It’s all digital to the very endpoint,” he said. “And sometimes it’s all digital; there’s absolutely nothing physical.” After Irish retired in 2015, the three employees — Kathmann, Smith and Office Manager Becky Wagner, who has worked there since 1985 — took ownership of Concept & Design. They’ve served a varied clientele including Avery Weigh-Tronix, Kato Engineering, TRAC Outdoors, August Schell Brewing Company, and Compart Family Farms. Each graphic design or illustration project, according to Smith, should do two things: show the client’s aesthetic and convey a message. “It’s not just about making it pretty,” he said. “It is designed to be pretty and to attract the eye, but also to communicate a message and a feeling, something specific about who the company is
and what they are, and the features and quality of their products.” This requires the design team to meet with each company and learn about its unique identity and market. On occasion, clients will already have in-house design or marketing teams to oversee their branding, but Kathmann and Smith offer specific services to help them realize their visions. “We enjoy working with them rather than looking at them as competition,” Kathmann said. “We supplement their skills when they can’t produce illustrations and photography on the level that we’re doing here. We like to work with them, including when they have their own ideas and ask us to use our expertise to flesh them out.” Companies often lack the ability to create high-quality, compelling illustrations, photos, and enhanced or “virtual photos,” which Kathmann says is a mix of photography and computer generated objects, scenes and effects. Since both he and Smith possess those skills, Concept & Design can produce dynamic imagery for clients. “We visually tell our clients’ stories with our artistry, which helps them to reach their customers and communicate the value that they offer.” After nearly 30 years in business, the team at Concept & Design looks forward to facing new challenges, working with new methods of creating, and taking on new clients in any field. “We’ve focused on manufacturing and outdoor recreation,” Kathmann said. “But our talents translate well to any field.”
CONCEPT & DESIGN Location:
208 Pine Street Nicollet, MN 56074 Inception: 1979 Employees: 3 Phone: (507) 232-3462 Web: conceptanddesign.com A specialty of Concept & Design is using 3D illustration to create promotional product imagery.
When it comes to your to-do list, put your future first. To find out how to get your financial goals on track, contact your Edward Jones financial advisor today.
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Financial Advisor
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By Lisa Cownie
Photo by Kris Kathmann
Dennis Terrell Owner, Re/Max Dynamic Agents BUSINESS PERSON OF THE YEAR 2018 Eagle Lake’s Dennis Terrell leads a team of 20 agents through Mankato’s dynamic residential real estate market.
Forty plus years farming the land near Eagle Lake taught Dennis Terrell a thing or two. He learned if you plant a seed and nurture it, it will grow to reap good reward. He learned that cultivating the land with care will keep it productive for many years. And he learned that there are ups and downs due to circumstances out of his control. Today, he uses all of those lessons learned in the field to pursue his second career. Those nuggets of understanding helped to fertilize Terrell’s other passion; real estate. The “field” is now his office on Adams Street. The seeds he sows are his agents. He cultivates relationships. And he helps those in his charge navigate the ups and downs of the economy and housing market. Lesson one: Just like when he planted seeds and watched them grow, he now recruits agents and nurtures their growth by supporting their efforts. “If you asked any one of his Realtors what separates him from the rest, it is his generosity and selflessness that stands out the most,” says an agent, and his daughter, Kelly Terrell. “Denny’s office is the place everyone goes to for advice about real estate or just life in general. He is the first one at your door when he knows you need help, and will continue to help until he knows you can take care of it on your own. He has a heart of gold and genuinely cares about each and every agent that works for him.” Lesson two: He cultivates relationships, handling them with care so that they continue to be productive through referrals and repeat business. Jake Kennedy, an agent who works for Terrell, says this, “Winston Churchill once said, ‘We make a living by what we get, we make a life by what we give.’ I couldn’t find a better quote to sum up everything Denny stands for. The hours of volunteering, the thousands of continued > Business Person of The Year winners are selected by a panel of business leaders and the editorial board from nominations submitted.
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Dennis Terrell | Business Person of the Year 2018: 1st Place
dollars donated, and the constant words of advice and encouragement have not gone unnoticed in the community and lives surrounding him. It is comforting to see Denny use his platform for good, always. As the owner of Re/Max Dynamic Agents, he is constantly going above and beyond. Sponsoring community events, donating time and money to charitable causes, organizing fundraisers and community feeds during the holidays, and engaging in business networking and functions. Outside of work he is no different.’... we make a life by what we give.’” Lesson three: Because of what is mentioned above, he and his team can weather the ups and downs in the market. “As a full-time Real Estate Agent at Re/Max Dynamic Agents I get to work with Denny every day,” says Christine Gerber. “He goes above and beyond to provide us with the tools we need so we can provide top service to our clients making us a top real estate company in the Mankato area. You can
always count on him for a friendly hello and smile. He finds time for his community that he loves and his family. I am happy to have my real estate license held at Re/Max Dynamic Agents and that has so much to do because Denny is the owner.” Growing up, Terrell didn’t think he would end up owning a real estate brokerage. But that’s the direction life took him after his dad and owner of the family farm passed away. With that part of his livelihood in the past, he embraced new opportunities. And just like in farming and community work, Terrell has now earned high respect in the real estate industry and Business Person of the Year. You are proud of your roots in farming. How/why did you make the move to real estate? I started in real estate back in 2003. Farming was a little tougher at that time and I wanted to add to the family income. I have always loved real estate so decided
at that point to pursue it as a second career. I initially was an agent with HomeStar Realty working with Dan Wingert. He was great and I learned a lot from him. I had a friend in real estate that moved his license to Re/Max and he asked me to come over and work with him so I did. That was in 2008, then in 2009 we had the opportunity to purchase the franchise. I understand this office has grown quite a bit since you purchased it? At that time there were a lot of vacant offices here in this building. We had nine agents at that time, if that many even. Now we are up to 23 agents with two full-time office employees. That’s been the key to our growth. We just recruit good Realtors. As a result, we’re not doing too bad. (He chuckles.) And the numbers show it. In the nation, any real estate company that has more than 500 transactions a year is considered a big company. Truly, we don’t pay a lot of attention to that. We just
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From Farmhouse to Family Home | Re/Max Dynamic Agents
“So the success of my company all comes down to the people. That’s what it is based on and their relationships with people. That’s how you stay successful, through referrals and repeat business.” do what we do. I know a lot of companies will go after big numbers and stuff, but we just do our work and the numbers happen. So out of the top ones in the nation that have had 500 transactions or more we are number 25! There were 1,705 on the list and we were number 25. That’s pretty good! How do you achieve those numbers in this market? It’s not that we are here cracking the whip. We just have agents that want to do well, and that makes it happen. We averaged 34 transactions per agent, the average in Min-
nesota was 20.4 within the Re/Max brand. I cannot say enough about the agents we have here. They are great people to work with, they are successful, they want to be successful, and they know what they are doing. So we try to recruit the best of the best. We can find that by seeing reports from Realtors Association of Southern Minnesota (RASM) on who is selling what. We are able to attract top agents because really it’s known that when you reach a certain point as an agent, Re/Max is where you want to be because you get the most back. It’s all based on percentages. We have
agents that do very well here. So the success of my company all comes down to the people. That’s what it is based on and their relationships with people. That’s how you stay successful, through referrals and repeat business. What is your advice for recruiting good agents...or just good employees in general? Your employees have to feel supported. So here we try to do a lot of things that are outside the norm. For instance, I feed them lunch here quite often. We have a deck with
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Dennis Terrell | Business Person of the Year 2018: 1st Place
JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2018
a grill so I have garnered the name Grill Master. Also, I had them out to the lake this summer. We treat our people well. I try to do what I can to help them out. It’s as simple as that. Our success is on our agents and keeping them happy. Plus, Re/Max is a well-known franchise, so that helps. There are a lot of choices for home buyers and sellers when it comes to picking an agency to work with. You have a lot of marketing choices. How do you navigate that? We have the trailer! A while back, I had the idea to buy this trailer and put our signage and branding on it. Our clients will use it for moving. You can’t miss it driving down the road. People spend so much money on billboards that are static, but this is a “billboard” going up and down the street that everyone notices. And I like that. In fact, I should get another one. (Editor’s Note: Since the interview for this story, Terrell did indeed, buy another trailer!) Otherwise, marketing is so much on the Internet now. It’s really transformed, even just since I first started in the industry. At one time, before the Internet, clients met with agents and they would go through a book full of pictures of available properties. Literally, agents would carry around a book! But now 85-90 percent begin their search
Dennis Terrell | From Farmhouse to Family Home
Family Man Family is a big part of Terrell’s life. He and his wife Colleen have four children; a son and three daughters. They have two grandkids. They all cherish their time together. “Fortunately, all of my kids live close so we get to see them often. And my grandkids live just down the street. So basically I go home at night, my dog is waiting for me, I grab the grandkids and we go for a long Ranger ride. Sounds silly, but it gives me peace of mind. During the summer we might mix it up with the Pontoon on a slow cruise around Lake Washington.”
From Farmhouse to Family Home | Re/Max Dynamic Agents
Dennis Terrell | From Farmhouse to Family Home
History of a Hero Terrell talks a lot about relationships in his life and how they have shaped and continue to shape who he is and how he does business. But there is one relationship he’ll always cherish. The one that laid the foundation for all he is today, his father Lee Terrell, who passed away in 2014 at age 89. Lee was born in Janesville and grew up on a farm Northeast of Madison Lake. He enlisted into the United States Marine Corps in December of 1943 and served his country during WWII. Lee spent 36 days on the island of Iwo Jima and received two Purple Hearts. Lee was also in one of the initial groups of Marines that occupied Japan. In April of 1946, Lee was honorably discharged. He continued to serve however and was very involved with the American Legion where he was Commander of Eagle Lake Post 617, Commander of the 2nd District, and Vice Commander of the Department of Minnesota. He also enjoyed volunteering at VA nursing homes around the state. Today, Dennis flies three flags on poles right in front of his office, in honor of his dad’s and all soldiers’ service. “We got to take him out to Washington DC for the 65th anniversary of the landing of Iwo Jima,” says Dennis. “They have a reunion every year but this was the first time he ever got to go out there. He went there and was able to talk to others that went through the same experience as himself. One cannot imagine what these guys went through. On an eight square mile island there were 22,000 Japanese killed and 6,800 Marines in the 36 days. “It was just so good for him to be able to talk to other people and it meant a lot to him. In fact, later when he started the onslaught of dementia he asked about that trip over and over and said he wanted to go back. That trip was his chance to face reality and share it with others who experienced it because he could never talk about it with us. I am so proud of him and proud of flags waving out front. And I am just so thankful to all the service men and women.”
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on the Internet. Facebook is the number one marketing tool for real estate. And there are ways to work with Google to get placed higher on the search list. It’s an investment though, you’ve got to spend money to get the leads. We have a lead generation system that goes right to our agents and they take turns. ReMax.com is another tool available to us. We certainly have things in place to help the agents. Your home, for most people, will be the biggest investment they will make in their life time. This is why buyers and sellers come to Re/Max. We have experienced agents. I am not in the industry obviously, but it appears to me just from being out and about in the community, that there are so many agents in our region. The market can bear it right now, and truth is that 10% of the agents are probably doing 90% of the work. They come and go a lot of them. Not only a lot of agents, but a lot different franchises for home buyers and sellers to choose from. Yes, there are even two Re/Max’ now in Mankato. But it’s important to point out that we are the only locally-owned Re/Max. The other one sold out to a firm in the cities that wants to get their foot in the door here. So we are the only locally-owned Re/Max franchise in Mankato.
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Are they wanting to get their “foot in the door” because the market here is so hot? It was a sellers’ market not long ago, but I think it’s slowed down a little bit. The last couple of years, there just weren’t enough homes available. It looks like inventory this spring will increase so it’s a good market right now. We move homes whether it’s slow or not because we have agents that have experience and are always busy. What about the new-home market. There is a lot of building going on. There appears to be a lot of building, but there are probably not enough new homes right now. And in Mankato we are down to just a few new home builders. They keep the developments to themselves primarily...
From Farmhouse to Family Home | Re/Max Dynamic Agents
Dennis Terrell | From Farmhouse to Family Home
Terrell Around Town In His Daughter’s Words Although number of entries wasn’t officially part of the ranking criteria, we did receive nine nominations for Dennis Terrell. Here is one that wraps all the others up in one: “It is with great pleasure to nominate Dennis Terrell (Denny), for consideration of the Connect Business Person of the Year. I am lucky enough to not only call him my dad, but also work alongside him each day, learn from him, and one day- hope to be even half the person he is. Denny began his real estate career in 2005 and has now owned Re/Max Dynamic Agents in Mankato for nine years. He has led a team of highly successful Realtors year after year to consistently sell the most homes in Southern Minnesota. In 2015 his realtors had over 700 transactions for the year. His goal for the following year was to close even more deals and his team did just that. Last year (2016), Denny’s company was given an award for the Most Transactions of Medium Market – with nearly 750. Real Trends 500, ranked his team of realtors #25 in the nation for Closed Transactions Per Sales Associate (out of 1,705 of the largest brokerages). His realtors averaged 33.5 transactions in 2016 and are on pace to have another record year. Although his success as a realtor/owner is incredible, if you asked any one of his realtors what separates him from the rest, it is his generosity and selflessness that stands out the most. Denny’s office is the place everyone goes to for advice about real estate or just life in general. He is the first one at your door when he knows you need help, and will continue to help until he knows you can take care of it on your own. He has a heart of gold and genuinely cares about each and every agent that works for him. You will often see him pulling his Re/Max trailer to and from different homes in the area, helping Re/ Max clients move to their new home, assuring their experience is a positive one from start to finish. He is
the owner that will make sure you get to work in a snow storm, because he will show up at your house to plow your driveway or jump your car to be sure you can still make it to that showing. If all that fails, he will just give you a ride, but still manage to make sure the entire office parking lot is cleaned of snow before that first agent arrives to work. His agents refer to him as the Grill Master. The easiest way to get the entire group to the office at the same time is to announce that Denny is grilling lunch. Any sunny day is an excuse to grill out and he often grills for his realtors. He also takes the team out to eat from time to time when a milestone is achieved or just to thank his team of agents for their hard work. He makes work an enjoyable place to be and makes everyone want to be a better a person and work hard each day. Denny volunteers his time at numerous events and encourages his realtors to do the same. Last year, Re/max Dynamic Agents had their 1st Annual Toys for Tots Pancake Breakfast in Eagle Lake. Denny and his realtors offered a pancake breakfast for those who brought a toy in for Toys for Tots. He also arranged for Santa to be there, so families and children could have their photo taken with him. Year one was a success, and our group is anxiously waiting for year two. Re/Max Dynamic Agents is also a big sponsor of the Mankato Marathon, offering the trailer for the clothes left behind. Denny and his agents pick up the clothes along the entire course. They are then washed and dried and donated to the Salvation Army. He is also known for donating Hot Air Balloon Rides at fundraising events, most recently the March of Dimes Auction. Besides all the volunteering I mentioned above, Denny is serving his seventh consecutive year on the City Council in Eagle Lake and is currently on the Economic Development Committee and President of the Cemetery Association in Eagle Lake. He also served for nine years on the Eagle Lake City Council previously. I saved the best for last. Most importantly, he is a husband, a dad of four, and a Grandpa of two and he puts his family (& German Shephard) above anything else. It’s hard to believe that one person’s efforts could make such a difference in this world, but without a doubt, he has made that difference and he makes us all want to be a better person because of it. Denny is well deserving of this award! Thank you!” –Kelly Terrell JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2018
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so that hurts us a bit. But boy, with all of the apartments going up around town, you just wonder where all the people are gonna come from to fill those. So, you purchased Re/Max in 2008. That would seem like a risky time to get in real estate. Yes it was! And you know rent comes due every month...every month...recession or not. So, yes, it was a risky time. I’m not really sure what I was thinking. (He chuckles.) Quite frankly, when we started off we had some sleepless nights. Definitely not a strong economy, but we made it through. There was a lot of stress, a lot of sleepless nights. But having the Re/Max name has helped. How has that helped? Since 1997, Re/Max has held number one market share in both the United States and Canada every year. It is a true American success story. Re/Max started in Denver in 1973, co-founded by Dave and Gail Liniger and everyone involved at the beginning came from modest backgrounds, and just worked really hard. Mirrors my life and my beliefs. Hard work and helping agents make their dreams become a reality. So Re/Max has always been based on what they call an innovative agent-centric philosophy, that goes in answer to your earlier questions. By being agent focused, Re/Max has always been able to attract the industry’s top performers and has earned a solid reputation with both home buyers and sellers. The Re/Max franchise in Mankato was established here already, how did you come to buy it? Sadly, the original owner was killed in a car accident. His wife tried to keep it going but she lived in New Prague and it was just hard for her to keep it up. Finally, she decided to just sell it. My former business partner and I bought it from her.
BUSINESS BANKING
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Your title is Agent/Owner, but you are not a broker yet? I am not a broker yet, but I plan to get my broker’s license shortly. Lisa Fitterer is my broker. She took that role when I bought out my partner two and a half years ago. My eventual plan was always to sell out of this and just farm. But that didn’t work out.
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And turns out that’s okay. In order to farm I always had to work two jobs all the time. Now as I get older and closer to retirement, I just have one job. Now I can go home at the end of the day and enjoy the grandkids at night. And my brother-in-law and I own a lake home together, so I now have some time to enjoy that with the grandkids. This business is becoming a family operation too. Yes, one of my daughters works here, she is on the Kim Walletich Team. My son also works for me but he is in the cities doing some projects there. Both are doing very well and I am very happy to see that. I do get phone calls during the day from them asking for advice. I love that. I enjoy working with my kids. It’s rare these days. There are a lot of big companies taking over everybody. Besides owning this franchise, you are also on the Eagle Lake City Council. What are some things you are working on there. I have lived in Eagle Lake my whole life, so it’s important to me. We have several issues we are dealing with. One, I’d like to see more business in Eagle Lake but Eagle Lake is just too close to Mankato. It’s always been more of a bedroom community. But people are starting to realize, ‘hey, I can get to the Hilltop area and shopping in three minutes. If you live anywhere in Mankato it would take that long. Lake Crystal and Nicollet are the same way. Here in Eagle Lake with the new road, Madison Lake is just 6 or so miles away and there we have access to three lakes and a restaurant. So people enjoy living in Eagle Lake and easily having access to other things Eagle Lake doesn’t have quite yet. I love my family and my community. Putting those first helps everything else just fall into place in my business. Lisa Cownie writes from Mankato.
Jon Jamieson Owner, ACE Certified Personal Trainer JP Fitness, Mankato
Contact the Small Business Development Center to develop a personalized plan myminnesotabusiness.com or call 507-389-8875 MSU Strategic Partnership Center, 424 North Riverfront Drive, Suite 210, Mankato, MN
Funded in part through a cooperative agreement with the U.S. Small Business Administration, Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development and regional support partners. All opinions, conclusions or recommendations expressed are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the program sponsors. Programs are open to the public on a nondiscriminatory basis. Reasonable accommodations for persons with disabilities will be made if requested at least two weeks in advance. Contact the SBDC at 507-389-8875.
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Mankato Randy Knutson of Knutson + Casey was recently inducted into the Minnesota Chapter of the American Board of Trial Advocates–one of the top Trial Lawyers Organizations in the country. Habib Sadaka of BankVista was named a Minnesota Housing Top Producing Loan Officer at the Gold Level for his loan production during the first half of 2017. Sadaka has been a Top Producing Loan Officer every award cycle since 2013. Farrish Johnson Law Office is pleased to announce the addition of Kenzie J. Corrow to the firm. She will be focusing her practice in the area of family law. Mayo Clinic Health System website earns three 2017 eHealthcare Leadership Awards. Winners of the 2017 eHealthcare Leadership Awards were recently announced at the Healthcare Internet Conference in Austin, Texas, and mayoclinichealthsystem.org twice received the highest level of recognition possible. The website received Platinum Awards for Best Overall Internet Site and Best Healthcare Content in the Healthcare System class. The site also received a Gold Award for Best Doctor Directory, a category where there were no Platinum Award winners. This is the first time Mayo Clinic Health System has received Platinum eHealthcare Leadership Award recognition. True Real Estate adds several new agents to their team. Beth Leonard, Jamie DeAtley, Sonja Zoet, Tamara Mulligan and Michael Mulligan will all join the Mankato location. City Center Mankato has become the eighth designated Main Street Community in Minnesota, joining Faribault, New Ulm, Owatonna, Red Wing, Shakopee, Willmar and Winona in gaining the designation.
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JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2018
Wes Otto, a local entrepreneur from Mankato, was recently a speaker at The Minnesota Association of Government Communicators (MAGC) annual state wide conference. Otto spoke on social media algorithms and analytics. Otto was named a Young Entrepreneur of the year in 2015 by Minnesota Business Magazine. Still in Mankato, his advertising agency OMG – Otto Media Group operates as a team of 5 talented individuals. Presently the agency serves clients in the professional services, government, and hospitality industries. U.S. Bank in Mankato has named Todd Stromswold as trust advisor for U.S. Bank Wealth Management in Mankato. As Computer Technology Solutions enters its 15th year in business, it announces the latest addition to the sales staff, Jason Fast. Jason’s sales experience and familiarity with Southern Minnesota make him a great asset to the CTS Team. CTS provides a foundation of hardware, software and professional services. Morken, Eckberg and Steiner announces new staff. Amanda Burrows and Phil Carter have joined the Mankato office. More than $22,000 was raised for the five 2017 Mankato Marathon Charities: Camp Sweet Life Adventures, Mankato Family YMCA LIVESTRONG, the Children’s Museum of Southern Minnesota, Project for Teens, and Open Door Health Center. The Mankato Marathon Charities Program has been the perfect way for the Mankato Marathon to give back to the community that has generously supported its races. For more information about the Mankato Marathon, visit mankatomarathon.com. The Consolidated Communications Community Fund is pleased to present a $5,000 grant to Life-Work Planning Center in Mankato, a pre-employment program for displaced homemakers and women transitioning to the workforce.
Life-Work Planning Center’s services include workshops, one-to-one selfsufficiency counseling, computer tutoring, resources, referrals and advocacy, aimed at increasing a woman’s emotional and economic self-sufficiency. The Mankato Clinic Foundation has awarded several grants. Junior Achievement of Greater Mankato has received a $1,500 grant from the Mankato Clinic Foundation to be used for JA BizTown. Camp Sweet Life has received a $5,000 grant from the Mankato Clinic Foundation to be used for Camp 2017 which was held in August 2017 at Camp Patterson on beautiful Lake Washington. And MRCI WorkSource has received a $1,800 grant from the Mankato Clinic Foundation to be used for Adventure Education within the Bridge to the Future and Track to Success programs. The Mankato Clinic Foundation provides grants once a quarter to organizations and endeavors that promote and improve community health and wellness in the communities they serve. Nortech Systems Incorporated (NASDAQ: NSYS) and Panasonic have collaborated on a new, total-line-solution installation of integrated hardware and software. It provides enhanced Surface Mount Technology (SMT) component placement capability and quality while increasing efficiency and Statistical Process Control (SPC) at Nortech’s manufacturing facility in Mankato. The law firm of Maschka, Riedy & Ries is pleased to announce that Nick Frentz will join the firm. Frentz joins current partners of Maschka, Riedy & Ries, Jerry Maschka, Chuck Peterson, Marc Christianson, Renee Rubish, Jed Chronic & Nick Maxwell. As of January 1, 2018, the firm will be known as Maschka, Riedy, Ries & Frentz Law Firm and located at 151 Saint Andrews Court, Building 1010 in Mankato. David Krause, CEO of Pioneer Bank, recently announced the promotion of three employees. Jen Winkelman is promoted to Vice President, David Paul is promoted to Assistant Vice President and Jenn Mathistad is promoted to Assistant Vice President.
Hire Image LLC, a nationwide background screening, drug testing, and employment verification services company, headquartered in Rhode Island with regional offices in Pompano Beach, FL, Mankato, MN, and Milwaukee, WI has earned reaccreditation from the National Association of Professional Background Screeners (NAPBS®) Background Screening Credentialing Council (BSCC). The Consolidated Communications Community Fund is pleased to present a $15,000 grant to Partners for Affordable Housing, a local nonprofit organization that provides emergency shelter to families and individuals experiencing homelessness, while helping them to secure economically viable long-term housing. The Consolidated grant provided funds for PAH to upgrade shelter beds, mattresses, dressers and nightstands, helping to provide a more comfortable experience for shelter guests. Southern Minnesota Initiative Foundation (SMIF) announces CliftonLarsonAllen Foundation’s (CLA) $25,000 grant to support 10 new minority-owned business leaders for a new cohort of its Prosperity Initiative. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, 29% of Minnesota’s population in 2040 will be people of color, an increase from only 4% in 1980. In response to this rapid growth, The Prosperity Initiative was designed as a SMIF pilot project to provide education and business resources to minority business owners and educate resource partners of the barriers and opportunities these individuals encounter. U.S. Bank announces its second round of Community Possible grants, donating $11.2 million in Work grants to nonprofits across the country focused on workforce development, higher education, small business development and financial education. U.S. Bank’s Community Possible corporate giving and engagement platform focuses on economic development through three pillars – Work, Home and Play. Earlier this year, the bank donated $6.6 million in grants focused on Play. This round of Work grants includes donations to five nonprofits in the Mankato area totaling $11,500: Junior Achievement,
Call Karla VanEman today! (507) 345-4040
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Todd Kruse begins Ownership of Wenger Physical Therapy. Wenger Physical Therapy has been independently owned by Ron and Linda Wenger for the last 39 years, providing rehabilitation services to the Mankato area. Ron and Linda have decided to pass the company into the hands of one of their colleagues, Todd Kruse. Kruse is a native of Mankato and has been a physical therapist at Wenger for the past ten years. Dean K. Toft, President and CEO of Redwood Financial, Inc. and CEO of its wholly owned subsidiaries, HomeTown Bank and Community Insurance Brokerage, Inc., announced that he will retire effective January 1, 2018. He will continue to serve on the Board of Directors of Redwood Financial, Inc. and its subsidiaries. The Board of Directors of Redwood Financial, Inc. and HomeTown Bank named Timothy Grabow as President and CEO of both entities effective January 1, 2018. Grabow joined HomeTown Bank as Chief Operating Officer in 2006 and was promoted to President of HomeTown Bank in 2014. He also serves as a director of Redwood Financial, Inc. and HomeTown Bank. Grabow has worked in the banking industry for over 37 years. Douglas Schweim will be named CEO of the insurance company as of January 1, 2018. Navitor Specialty Products expands its full color production with new equipment arrivals. Navitor specializes in custom printing, stamps and laser production. NSP’s plans for expansion by enhancing their product line and acquiring new technology also means new positions will be generated in all divisions of the company. NSP has purchased four new state-of-the-art presses. They are expanding their abilities to match and extend their customer’s growth. Purchases include the Canon Arizona 6170. This is a flatbed press with 42 heads. This press prints as large as 8’x10’, doubling
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the size of the company’s other machines. Another purchase was the Esko Kongsberg C64, which is three times as fast as the company’s existing cutters. And the HP 570’s, two additional flexible media presses entering NSP’s production floor. “We believe that with the addition of these presses, we’re able to increase our capabilities, expand our growth by adding new customers and ultimately creating more opportunities within Taylor Corporation and the Southern Minnesota business community.” said General Manager, Chad Fitterer.
Region Nine The Federal Economic Development Administration has awarded Region Nine Development Commission funding to develop and implement the first ever South Central Minnesota Agriculture Resilience Plan. The project will build on completed regional planning initiatives previously done by Region Nine and work toward creating a cohesive strategy for resilient agriculturally based communities across the region. This will lead to the capitalization on new opportunities and creation of jobs to diversify and strengthen the local economy. “Agriculture is undoubtedly a major player in economic development in our region,” stated Nicole Griensewic Mickelson, executive director of Region Nine. “This project will provide insight into how the region can become more sustainable. Resiliency is key in ensuring the nine counties of south central Minnesota continue to thrive.” The funding award was matched by local partners to complete the planning project. Local partners who provided matching funds or in-kind match include Minnesota Department of Agriculture, Minnesota State University, Mankato and the Southern Minnesota Center of Agriculture/South Central College. Region Nine Development Commission has appointed Doug Trytten and Laurel Remund to serve on the commission alongside 37 others. Commissioner Trytten will represent cities under 10,000 for Faribault County and Commissioner Remund will represent Townships for Waseca County.
CONNECTING BACK
5 YEARS AGO
JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2013 After being runner up just five years before, our Business Person of the Year in 2013 was Wayne Kahler of Kahler Automation. Kahler founded the company in 1989 and has guided its growth in Fairmont ever since. Runners up that issue were Brian Fowler, owner of Quality 1 Hour photo and SPX Sports and Designs and Paul Wilke, with General Growth Properties which owned River Hills Mall in Mankato. 10 YEARS AGO
JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2008 Jeff Thom, founder and co-owner of All American Foods graced our cover as Business Person of the Year in January 2008. Thom was quick to give due credit to a number of people for his success. As mentioned above, Wayne Kahler, founder of Kahler Automation in Fairmont, was a runner up as was Clint Brown of Industrial Construction Services (ICS) in St. James. 15 YEARS AGO
JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2003 Fifteen years ago, Connect Business Magazine hadn’t yet started its Business Person of the Year honors. But the man on the cover certainly would have qualified, Dan Gislason of Gislason & Hunter LLP. Also featured that issue were Joanna Hocker who operated New Hope Counseling & Mediation Center in Blue Earth, and Lyle Jacobson of Mankato’s Katolight Corp. 20 YEARS AGO
JANUARY/FEBRUARY 1998 JO Guck Bailey general manager of what was then known as Pro Radio Group, was our cover interview. Also featured were Duane and Karen Bergemann of Baroda Auction Realty and Hickory Tech Corp.
Read the entire articles at connectbiz.com
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David Milbrath in his conference room. In the foreground is a White Buffalo Club award; one of a dozen that David has earned for being one of Investment Centers of America’s top 10 representatives.
Rural Asset David Milbrath is responsible for cultivating $500 million of wealth for his clients. By Lisa Cownie | Photo of David Milbrath by Kris Kathmann
Springfield, Minnesota sits quietly on the edge of Brown County in the southern part of the state, surrounded by prime agricultural land. It is a rural community, population of 2,200... give or take. But in the heart of this small town is a giant talent, David Milbrath of Prairie Plans Asset Management. Milbrath founded the company in 1992 and today it manages $500 million for households throughout the country. “David Milbrath’s accomplishments are nothing short of extraordinary,” says his business partner, John Mueller. “David’s story is that hard work, passion for service, and the grit and determination of a farm boy, can make for BIG results anywhere, even in small towns.” Milbrath grew up on a family farm south of Okabena, Minnesota. He was one of five siblings who all attended Lutheran country school in Rost Township and later graduating from Heron Lake-Okabena high school. But he wasn’t like most high school students his age.
David Milbrath Prairie Plans Asset Management 2ND PLACE: BUSINESS PERSON OF THE YEAR 2018
“Growing up, we had a typical family farm with grain and livestock,” explains Milbrath. “It was labor intensive. But I developed a passion for trading commodities in high school and then later that expanded to stocks, bonds, mutual funds, and real estate.” After high school he attended Worthington Community College and then South Dakota State University in Brookings where he graduated with a degree in Commercial Economics in December of 1989. continued >
Business Person of The Year winners are selected by a panel of business leaders and the editorial board from nominations submitted. JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2018
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David Milbrath | Business Person of the Year 2018: 2nd Place
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“After college the first priority was a steady job,” Milbrath says. “That led me to Lamberton, Minnesota and a start with Land O’Lakes as a livestock production specialist. I was assigned to Meadowland Farmers Coop.” “After college the first priority was a steady job,” Milbrath says. “That led me to Lamberton, Minnesota and a start with Land O’Lakes as a livestock production specialist. I was assigned to Meadowland Farmers Coop. During that time I joined a basketball league and was introduced to a financial advisor from Springfield. Within two years of that introduction he decided to move on and asked if I wanted to take over his position.” He then started building a career that combined what he learned in school with the personal values he learned from growing up in a midwestern, tight-knit family. “I have learned that trust and experience go a long way when you’re dealing with people’s hard earned money,” he says. “We treat our clients like family members. When we sit down, we make sure to understand what’s important to them.” Milbrath’s mission and approach is to help his clients understand the opportunities and potential rewards that are available when they take a proactive approach to their personal financial situation. “Our clients are individuals and businesses with excess funds to invest,” he says. “Also employee benefits in the way of retirement plans and executive bonus plans. Most clients share a similar goal. They want to save wisely and invest for the future. These assets allow
David Milbrath | Rural Asset
Numbers at Home SALES • INVESTMENT • DEVELOPMENT • LEASING Tim Lidstrom, CCIM Broker Karla Jo Olson, Broker Dan Robinson, Agent
100 Warren Street Suite 708 Mankato, MN 56001
507.625.4606 www.lidcomm.com
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Just as Milbrath works with numbers in his professional life, his personal life also has some pretty significant figures to deal with. 27 The number of years he has been married to his wife, Lori. 6 The number of children he has. 26 The age of his oldest. 8 The age of his youngest. “We are proud of all of our kids and soon will be grandparents for the first time!”
Rural Asset | Prairie Plans Asset Management
them to retire, educate their children, be charitable, and leave a legacy for the next generation. All of this takes careful planning and products that we provide.” Education is a key piece to his business model, striving to help all who walk through his doors to gain a better understanding of the financial concepts behind insurance, investing, retirement, estate planning, and wealth preservation. “Most important,” he stresses, “we hope people see the value of working with local, skilled professionals that provide a comprehensive approach in helping people and organizations during all life stages make intelligent decisions about their finances.” While his business includes individuals and businesses from across the entire country, he maintains his Springfield office as “headquarters.” But Prairie Plans has expanded to have offices in
David Milbrath | Rural Asset
Entrepreneurial Spirit “I have a passion for the outdoors mostly fishing, hunting and farming. While I love working outdoors, most days my job keeps me indoors. However, occasionally they let me out for a while to work on a different business,” says Milbrath. That other business is Red Rock Quarry, located south of Sanborn, Minnesota. He started the quarry with a friend in 2006. At just over a decade old now, Red Rock Quarry is successful in its own right. “It’s always fun for me to drive a pay loader around a bit or help out at the Quarry. It’s amazing how years and years ago glaciers deposited tons and tons of quartz rock in places along the ridge that run through Brown and Cottonwood counties. This wonderful resource is mined and used in several applications throughout southwest Minnesota. I have to admit I have a bit of an entrepreneurial spirit; my wife doesn’t always appreciate it either. It has led me to be involved in various companies and boards over the years related to Agriculture, such as Suntava, Inc., Brazil Iowa Farms, and others.”
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David Milbrath | Business Person of the Year 2018: 2nd Place
Since 1883 Nicollet County Bank
Morgan, Wanda, and Lakefield, Minnesota as well as Spencer, Iowa. Milbrath is quick to share the credit for his success with others. “While Prairie Plans may only have two shareholders (Milbrath and Mueller), our success is achieved through the efforts of the entire team. The ‘team’ is six registered representatives and six assistants,” he says. Staying close to home has proven to be the right move for Milbrath, who says Prairie Plans’ creation in Springfield was due in large part to the vision of another area business team. “In 1989 owners of the F & M Bank in Springfield (Mike & Paul Pieshel) had courage and foresight to bring investment services to the community,” he explains. “This was accomplished through a small Midwestern broker dealer known as Investment Centers of America, Inc. (ICA). ICA’s business model was setting up an office in the bank; something most community bankers would never have agreed to. However, the bank realized financial services are more than loans, checking, and savings accounts. Full financial services also include annuities, mutual funds, stocks, bonds, Life and LTC insurance. It wasn’t long before the Pieschel’s theory was proven right and nearly thirty years later I am still renting space from the Bank.” Milbrath affiliated with Investment Centers of America (ICA). Over the years, Milbrath’s office has received national recognition as a Top 5 Independent Office across Investment Centers of America. That’s no small order considering it consists of more than 400 advisors nationwide. An acquisition of a firm in Spencer, Iowa in April 2017 propelled Prairie Plans into the #1 Independent Office across ICA. “Even more astonishing is Prairie Plans now ranks in the top 100 offices at number 61, nationwide across ICA’s parent company, National Planning Holding (NPH). NPH has more than 3,200 advisors nationwide,” says his business partner Mueller. “Think about
David Milbrath | Rural Asset
Community Contributions 220 South Third Street St. Peter, Minnesota Phone: 931-3310 nicolletcountybank.com
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Milbrath has been recognized by Rotary International as a Paul Harris Fellow, has been active in Gideon’s International for over two decades, and has always served as a leader at his church. Twice he has been named by Investment Consultant magazine as one of the nation’s top 50 Representatives based in a financial institution.
Rural Asset | Prairie Plans Asset Management
Jay Weir
David Milbrath | Rural Asset
Mike Donohoe
ICA: An Overview ICA is based in Bismarck, North Dakota. It was founded in 1985 and has been a leading provider of investment and insurance products through community banks and independent offices ever since. Milbrath was drawn to ICA because it uses a client-focused approach to support independent financial institutions in meeting their customers’ goals. ICA serves over 200 financial institutions with an array of sales and marketing tools designed to help client needs including services ranging from securities and mutual funds to life insurance, long-term care, and annuities. Editor’s note: In August, ICA was purchased by LPL Financial LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ: LPLA). LPL is the nation’s largest independent broker-dealer (based on total revenues, Financial Planning Magazine June 1996–2017). After the sale of ICA, Prairie Plans spent the next several months preforming due diligence on LPL Financial. They have decided to join LPL Financial. This took place on December 1. Prairie Plans believes their clients will benefit from LPL’s scale, strength of services, and selfclearing platform.
The James R. Weir Insurance Agency has merged with Arthur J. Gallagher, one of the worlds largest insurance brokers. We both share the same philosophical commitment that puts our clients first and now we can offer our clients a greater level of specialized insurance and risk management insurance expertise. The merger represents the coming together of two well known companies to better enhance our client relationships.
Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Phone: 507-387-3433 208 N Broad Street | Mankato, MN 56001 3600 American Blvd. West, Suite 500 Bloomington, MN 55431
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David Milbrath
MORE THAN DETECTION
PARTNERS IN PROTECTION SINCE 2003
“Think about that, there are over 1,000 more advisors in NPH than people who live in Springfield and yet David has built a firm that ranks in the top 2% of NPH advisors across the country.” – John Mueller
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that, there are over 1,000 more advisors in NPH than people who live in Springfield and yet David has built a firm that ranks in the top 2% of NPH advisors across the country. Most of these NPH offices are in cities much larger than Springfield.” Location hasn’t been a challenge, but the financial services and asset management industries have changed dramatically over the past three decades since Milbrath started Prairie Plans. Most notably, famed investment companies like Bear Sterns and Lehman Brothers filing bankruptcy in 2008, Bank of America buying out Merrill Lynch, and many of the nation’s largest banks and insurance companies accepting government loans during the financial crisis. Mueller says Prairie Plans has thrived though, largely due to the leadership Milbrath shows by adhering to his core value of treating clients as family. “David is especially passionate about working with farmers and small business owners to make wise financial and estate planning decisions in order to preserve the family farm and business for the next generation,” explains Mueller. “In doing this, he believes it will help preserve the future way of life in small agricultural towns throughout this country.” Milbrath admits his success has not come without its challenges. “I believe all employers in rural communities share similar concerns,” Milbrath
Rural Asset | Prairie Plans Asset Management
THE ESSENTIALS
Prairie Plans Asset Management Phone: (507) 723-4811 Address: 101 North Marshall Avenue Springfield, Minnesota Web: prairieplans.com
reflects. “That is finding enough qualified people to hire, paying for increases in health insurance, and complying with ever more regulation. As baby boomers retire in larger numbers the demand for retirement planning is great. Most Certified Financial Planners (CFP’s) don’t believe there is enough business out here though and that is a mistake.” With top accolades and a growing business, Milbrath says his job satisfaction is found in other ways. “Nothing is more satisfying than implementing a financial plan and watching it play out successfully. I like to think of financial planning as a puzzle with multiple pieces. As clients age they accumulate assets; IRA’s, 401k, bank accounts, mortgage, insurance, real estate, social security, etc. It’s our job to help clients organize those pieces in a way that completes the puzzle. If you do this one investor at a time it’s amazing the results. In the 90’s I used to dream what it would be like to run an office with $100 million in assets under management. It took time but we did reach our goal and today we are well beyond that.” Milbrath says he is humbled by the nomination for Business Person of the Year but, as is indicative of his character, wants to share the accolades with others. “It wouldn’t be right to claim any success myself,” he says. “I am confident there are other more qualified candidates too. Yet here I am. By the grace of God, a good wife, a host of good employees, clients, and friends this has become possible. I thank you all: God willing there are more years to come.” Milbrath hopes the success at Prairie Plans carries on to the next generation. Recently he added two of his sons to the team of financial advisors.
georgemassad.com
STR ATEGIC PARTNERSHI PS SERIES RETURNS IN MARCH PRESENTED BY:
SPONSORED BY:
Lisa Cownie writes from Mankato.
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COWNIE CONNECTION
Embrace Your Inner Blogger Countless times in a day people will tell me they are terrible writers or they don’t know how to write. Some even describe it as a painful experience. While I can’t reLisa Cownie late to the angst that Editor a writing assignment or task may bring people, I can relate to having to do things you don’t want to do for the good of the cause...which in the case of this particular column, is your business. I don’t want to bring up what you might deem a bad word but I’m going to talk to you today about blogging. Or should I say Blogging! It’s all in the attitude, right?
Research has shown that there are several benefits to adding a blog to your business website. Blogs allow for more reader engagement because they are updated regularly, they are a great search engine optimization (SEO) tool, they allow you to keep your customers and prospects up to date on your business or industry and that in turn allows you to build trust and rapport with those visiting your site. Basically speaking, having a blog for your business can be a great marketing tactic that will get your business more visibility online... where let’s face it, a lot of people aka your prospects, spend a lot of their time. Here’s a short list of why, perhaps, you should start a business blog. 1) It helps drive traffic to your website. How, you ask? You probably don’t have a lot of pages on your website, especially ones that need updating. (I mean really, how often can you really update your
About Us page?) Writing a weekly or even monthly blog will give folks a reason to regularly visit your website. Every time you write a blog post, it’s one more indexed page on your site, which is one more opportunity for you to show up in search engines. 2) Blogging can also help you give your social media presence a boost. Every time you write a blog post, you’re creating content that people can share on social networks like LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest – which may help you reach a new audience that may not know you yet. By having blog content to share regularly on social media sites, the reach possibilities are vast. So, the first benefits of blogging? It helps drive new traffic to your website and works closely with search engines and social media. 3) If done correctly, it may help
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turn that web site and social media traffic into leads. Now that you have traffic coming to your website through your blog, you have an opportunity to convert that traffic into
leads. To do this, you need a call to action in every blog post. These calls-to-action can be “click here for a giveaway” of some sort. As a trade off for the giveaway, they would provide some basic contact info.
4) And last, but certainly not least, regularly blogging helps you establish authority. The best business blogs I have found and then actually read, answer common questions prospects or current customers may have. If you’re consistently creating content that’s helpful for your target customer, it’ll help establish you as an authority in their eyes. It can be quite impactful to write an educational blog post that clears things up for a confused client. Prospects that read your blog posts will typically find themselves being more educated on your place in the market, your industry, and what you have to offer. It empowers them and they will give you the credit! So start with a topic that interests you in your industry that is also one you think others may be wondering about. Research it and just let the words spill out as if you were having a conversation with a potential client. Blogging! Go have fun with it.
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A DAY IN THE LIFE
A Day In The Life There are self-help books, motivational blogs and leadership symposiums to help the business and entrepreneurial-minded make the most of each day to maximize productivity. Connect Business Magazine, though, recognizes we have great resources right in our own communities. So we are going right to local business leaders to give all of you a glimpse into how they manage their days. The goal is that readers may be able to take away little tidbits to incorporate into their own lives to be at their best in and out of the office!
to arm them with the tools they need to communicate effectively. On a given day I might be working with internal stakeholders to launch a new service offering, develop a new Cloud Wifi promotion, or create messaging for a customer portal that helps customers manage their account when and where they want to. Every day is unique and fast-paced. What I love most is working with a diverse, knowledgeable team across a wide geography, the only caveat to that is working with three time zones and spending lots of time on video conference calls. Technology sure helps us all feel connected.
Deedra Vosburg Senior Marketing Manager, Consolidated Communications – Mankato Our next spotlight in our Day in the Life series, shines on Deedra Vosburg, senior marketing manager for Consolidated Communications. That’s her official work title. But as many around the Greater Mankato area know, she is also a busy mother of three and a passionate civic leader who lends her time and talents to others every chance she gets. As I do so often with people I meet around Southern Minnesota, I marvel at “how she does it?” all with such grace, kindness and always a job well done. So I just thought I would ask her! Let’s start with work, what is it you do in your job? I lead the marketing efforts for medium and enterprise business segments across an expansive Consolidated Communications market geography of 24 states. I work closely with our Commercial Product marketing team to help synthesize the benefits of our solutions and share that message with our customers and prospects. I also work closely with our Sales teams 32
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You also have three active kids...what would you say are some things that help you manage both home and work? This question reminds me that I should hire someone to clean my home! I think it’s hard to do everything well so you have to prioritize what’s most important to you. My husband would agree that we sacrifice an immaculate kitchen and sometimes enjoy scrambled eggs for dinner in order to make it to all the kids’ activities. We rely on text messages and email to manage the daily schedule and we have yet to leave a child waiting after practice (so far!) I access my work calendar easily from my phone and generally check my agenda first thing when I wake each day to be prepared for what I have happening when I arrive in the office. A quick review of the following day is also important so if I need to prepare for a meetings or projects I can do so remotely during the evening. You are a very active community member. What are some things you are involved in? After serving on the Board of Directors for Feeding Our Communities PartnersBackPack Food Program for the last 6
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years I recently took on the role of past chair. With that I am still involved with large fundraising efforts including our flagship event the Climb 2 Feed Kids as well as special projects where I can lend strategic expertise as well more handson fundraising, community engagement and the like. I like to stay connected to the program and the amazing staff who is doing such great work in the community filling hunger food gaps for more than 900 students. I also serve on the board of directors for the Mankato Area Youth Baseball Association. My boys have played youth baseball and I see the great character building that happens when being a part of a team. As a part of the MAYBA board I can help ensure programs continue to service all students with the opportunity to enjoy the great sport of baseball. Why do you personally feel it is so important to be involved in the community? Aside from the fact that it feels great to give back and share some of my talents I have had the opportunity to expand my network of friends and colleagues who also have a like-minded view in supporting the community. In my opinion, serving with nonprofit organizations in our community helps improve the quality of life for the greater Mankato area. Do you have a mentor or someone you bounce ideas off of? It’s hard to name just one. It really depends on the project or idea. If it’s a really difficult situation my dad is who I would look to for advice. He’s built enough life experience and just seems to have the right perspective on everything. Professionally, I have numerous colleagues I trust as advisors at Consolidated
Communications having worked with a variety of strong leaders during my 12 years here. I think that is what makes our organization unique, the great people. I also have three children ages 11-16 and if you know anything about kids you’d agree they have an opinion about everything and I like to get their perspectives on personal dilemmas. Biggest challenge you face? I am connected to technology all day every day for work and play. I find it challenging
to stay in the present and disconnect from everything when I know I should. I also struggle making time for myself. What puts a smile on your face? In my “free” time I like to take photos. My husband bought me a camera about 7 years ago and I have enjoyed using it to take sports photos of my kids’ teams and family photos for friends and relatives. I smile when I see the photos I have been able to capture as they bring back the greatest memories.
Becki Steier
What is the first thing you do when you wake up in the morning to make sure you are prepared for the day? First… Coffee… lots of Coffee. Second, but most importantly I check email and messenger first thing in the morning. Most of my communications with clients occur via email. It’s the last thing I do at night and the first thing I do in the morning. I try to be as accessible and respond to business clients as quickly as possible. Being self employed means not punching a time clock. And I try to answer questions on nights and even weekends if I need to. What is your advice to other women considering starting
●● Consolidated Communications ●● 221 East Hickory Street Mankato, Minnesota 56001 ●● (507) 387-1151 ●● About: Husband Steve; Children Sam (16), Maddie (14), Will (11); Community Concerns: Feeding Our Community Partners, MAYBA, YMCA
There are times as a business owner when you need to know your limits and sometimes saying no is ok. Knowing my limits as a designer and being able to point my customer in the right direction to find the person who can help them is important. I would rather point them to another professional that can help them instead of struggling through a project I’m not completely familiar with. Lastly, not putting up with anyone’s BS. Hence the logo.
Owner, BS Studio – Blue Earth Becki Steier has a motto she believes in that has served her well personally and professionally. In fact, it’s the tagline for her business, BS Studio: Life is too short to live with a bad design! And she knows design. Graduating from the Art Institutes International of Minnesota with an Associates Degree in Graphic Design and Print Production, Becki eventually returned to her hometown of Blue Earth and opened her own design firm. BS Studio offers graphic design, photo editing, marketing pieces and more for businesses of all sizes. Here she gives us a glimpse into her creative mind and how it helps her be her best each and every day.
BIZ BRIEF
their own business? Go for it! If you are hard working and passionate about something and love what you do, starting your own business is the ultimate achievement. It’s the reward you give yourself after years of working for others. You have to be willing to put in the hours though. Warning: If you like to have a social life… Starting a business might not be for you. 9-12 hour days and 6-7 days a week are pretty normal for me. You will now find yourself worrying about things like, “Did I get toilet paper for the studio?” at 10pm the night before an event. Or “Did I leave the lights on in the window?”, and driving back up there at 11pm to double check. You have to be prepared to be the hired help, the book keeper, the maintenance man and the marketing department of your business. What are some habits you have during the week day that are key to your success? I don’t have habits so much as rules. The first one is learning to say “No.” to a job.
What community organizations or causes are you involved in? I lead a group of knitters and crocheters into creating hats for babies in hospitals and to cancer patients going through treatments. Last year we donated over 300 hats! This year we will be doing the same thing. The ladies are ready to start knitting and crocheting! Which means I need to find a pattern! What is your favorite thing about owning your own business? I call the shots. I get the reward for my hard work. I get to make people happy doing what I love. Some people think I’m crazy but I love helping others and being able to use my artistic talent to do that. Whether it be designing a logo for a new business or crocheting a hat for a baby in the NICU. To me it’s all giving back and I love it.
BIZ BRIEF ●● BSStudio ●● (507) 525-3363 ●● Beckisteierstudio.com
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COLLABORATION CONNECTION — SPECIAL REPORT
Grassroots Housing Efforts in New Ulm State, City and Local Task Force of Community Members Collaborate to Solve Housing Issue Over the past few years, community leaders in New Ulm began noticing a troubling trend; like many cities, New Ulm was seeing a steady erosion of Lisa Cownie affordable housing Editor supply as properties that were originally developed using federal subsidies started being converted to market-rate housing. “The latest housing study has identified only 19 remaining tax credit, income-based rental units within our community. The study goes on to state that a community of New Ulm’s size should have at least 100 such units to adequately meet the demands in this segment of the housing market. This deficit is due to most of the tax credits expiring on existing units over the last several years which has caused these apartments to be converted to market rate rental properties,” says Dan Braam of Alliance Bank and chair of the Housing Needs Task Force. The task force was formed after the need for affordable housing was identified during a 2016 New Ulm 2020 Visioning Conference.
“During this conference, housing was a common and reoccurring topic at various conversations during table discussions,” says Braam. So, a group convened to cooperatively plan for the creation of new workforce housing in New Ulm. They felt the benefits would be far reaching. For instance, the task force concluded that increasing affordable housing will aid local employers’ efforts to recruit and retain workers. But they also knew they couldn’t do it alone, and that’s when Minneapolis-based Community Housing Development Corporation (CHDC) stepped in. Community Housing Development Corporation is a nonprofit Minnesota affordable housing developer, specializing in fulfilling the affordable housing goals of neighborhoods, communities, and nonprofit organizations. The agency approached the task force about converting the former middle school into affordable apartments by applying for tax credits with the Minnesota Housing Finance Agency, which is the agency tasked with approving affordable housing tax credit projects throughout the state. “The old middle school building has changed hands several times in recent years,”
State Street Apartments “The State Street Apartment project is important for the City of New Ulm because we are in dire need of quality, affordable housing. Since 2000, New Ulm has had a net loss of 185 affordable rental housing units from various programs as they met their regulatory requirements and converted to market rate units. Even with the addition of 55 new affordable units, the city has a remaining deficit of 130 affordable units. Local employers are having difficulty recruiting and retaining an adequate workforce due to the lack of available affordable housing. The State Street Apartment project will also preserve an historic building.” – Heather Bregel, Housing Coordinator 34
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explains Brian Gramentz, New Ulm City Manager. “When CDHC decided to purchase the building from the current owners earlier this year, they approached the city for support with their tax credit application.” Early in 2017, the New Ulm City Council and New Ulm Economic Development Authority passed resolutions to show their support for the project. The group then went to work gathering all the needed information. “But in August we received devastating news,” says Braam. “We were notified from the proposed middle school developer, the Community Housing Development Corporation that the Minnesota Housing Finance Agency was not going to further consider the project. “According to MHFA, the Community Action Plan failed to demonstrate that the proposed middle school development was part of the community’s overall housing plan. We at the Housing Needs Initiative Task Force took this news to heart. It appeared to us our action plan that had consumed so much of our group’s time and efforts didn’t measure up to the acceptable standards set forth by MHFA. “ But the group pulled together, persevered and tried again, appealing the decision.
Their second effort was a winner. “We believe the combination of the community’s involvement in contacting MHFA to hear the appeal as well as the action plan being fully read and reviewed, played an important role in ultimately getting the project approved,” says Braam. State Street Apartments Coming Soon Plans are now underway for the development. The building, which is listed on the National Register of Historic Places, was constructed in 1918, with later additions in 1932 and 1955. It served as a school until 2005 and then housed administrative offices for the school district. With the exception of the former school auditorium space, which houses the State Street Theater Company, the building has been vacant since August, 2016. City and community leaders tout the importance of this project to the region. First, the $15 million project will provide 55 affordable apartments. “First and foremost this project will provide 55 affordable rental units to the City of New Ulm. When reviewing our housing study and in conducting our public meetings we saw that senior citizens were being particularly impacted by the lack of affordable rental housing,” Braam explains. “The study had indicated that nearly fifty percent of seniors renting in our community
were paying rents deemed to be unaffordable (over 30% of their monthly incomes). At our public meetings we heard from a number of seniors that were hoping to sell their single family homes but were unable to because they lacked any affordable rental alternatives. “So it is our hope with the addition of the State Street Project we can see some movement of our senior population into these units thus freeing up both single family homes and market rate rental units to provide more alternatives to our workforce housing needs.” While the project has community support overall, there are some that remain skeptical. That, according to New Ulm Housing Coordinator Heather Bregel, may be due to misunderstanding. “There is a local misconception that the renters at this property will be households with little to no income. The rents at State Street Apartments will not be based on the household income, but a percentage of the area medium income. Rents are projected to range between $570 and $760/month. In order for those rent ranges to be considered affordable, annual household incomes would range from $22,800 to $30,400, or a full time job of roughly $11 to $14.50/ hr.,” Bregel explains. Braam says the second reason this project is important is it will be saving a historic and valuable community asset.
“The Middle School includes an 800 seat theater which has provided our community a venue to offer a number of different types of plays, shows, and musical concerts over the years. Its walls also contain artistic murals. Preserving this building is in complete alignment with the city itself which has a good number of historic buildings with both architectural and historic prominence,” he says. The CHDC says that is a big reason for their involvement in the project. “This project reflects New Ulm’s deep community values by preserving a historic asset while increasing housing opportunities for families at a variety of income levels.” says Heidi Rathmann, senior vice president at CHDC. With a $15 million price tag, Braam says the community couldn’t have pursued it without collaborating with CHDC. “The cost of this project will be quite expensive. It is inconceivable that our community alone would have been able to raise those kind of funds. We are extremely thankful the folks at the Community Housing Development Corporation offered the vision and expertise to make this happen,” Braam says. The project will be primarily financed using the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit Program, federal and state historic tax credits, the Greater Minnesota Housing Finance Agency, and local resources. The rehabilitation is expected to begin in mid-2018 and last about 12 months.
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CHAMBER CONNECTION BULLETIN BOARD
Any chamber of commerce, convention and visitors bureau, or economic development organization in our reading area—large or small, from Amboy to Winnebago—can post on our free bulletin board. For details, email editor@connectbiz.com.
Blue Earth Cindy Lyon, Blue Earth Chamber
We ended 2017 with giant progress. Ringing in the new year, with three new board members and a new look to the Chamber. One new feature is utilizing “Constant Contact”. The Chamber’s 77th Annual Banquet will be held Friday, January 26th inducting the new board, chairman and honoring the Business of the Year, Community Service and Rising Star awards. The new “Giant Welcome Center” bids will be opened and plans are to break ground in April of 2018.
Fairmont Margaret Dillard, Fairmont Area Chamber
The Fairmont Area Chamber of Commerce will be holding its annual banquet the last week of February. We will honor area businesses with Large, Small, and New Business of the Year (Rising Star) Awards as well as Nonprofit of the Year. Last year, our honorees included 3M Fairmont (Large Business), D&S Trophies & Embroidery (Small Business), Fairmont CrossFit (Rising Star), and Red Rock Center for the Arts (Nonprofit). Visit FairmontChamber.org for nomination guidelines and information.
Le Sueur Julie Boyland, Le Sueur Chamber
The sure sign of spring is the unveiling of the Le Sueur Retail and Business Expo. Due to Easter being early, the Expo will be Thursday, March 22. The Expo is held at the Valley Green Square Mall. Expo will offer many fun demos, plus exhibitors from construction, landscaping, new vehicles, health & wellness, education and much more. It will be open from 4 – 7 p.m. Welcome to new business and chamber members Alice HQ Photography and Toppers and Trailers Plus.
Madelia Karla Angus, Madelia Area Chamber
Madelia Area Chamber announces new members: Super 8 in St. James and Stepping Stones Mental Health Center in Madelia. Congratulations Pioneer Bank, finalist for the Extraordinary Bank of the Year Award for the second year in a row and Noble RV wins top 50 dealers award for a fourth consecutive year. La Plaza F!esta awarded best appetizer, Mexican food and server and Shellee’s Greenhouse, received honorable mention as best green house in the SouthernMinn Scene. Fox’s Pizza Den - Jerimiah Forster and Ethan Teske, FIRST duo to take down the massive 30” pizza in under 20 minutes, making it a new record.
Mankato Rosi Back, Greater Mankato Growth
Greater Mankato Growth, Visit Mankato and City Center Partnership are looking forward to sharing their accomplishments from this past year and exciting plans for the future at the 2018 Annual Meeting. Our recent initiative, moremankato.com, has a robust marketing campaign supporting this virtual tours website – showcasing our vibrant and diverse community in an immersive way. In addition, as a big milestone approaches we will be celebrating our Sesquicentennial – 150 years of serving the Greater Mankato business community. The Annual meeting will be held on Thursday, March 8, 2018. Look for more information about this event and many more to come.
Mankato Julie Nelson, Small Business Development Center Join us in welcoming the Better Business Bureau of Minnesota and North Dakota! BBB is partnering with SBDC to serve south 36
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central Minnesota. A BBB representative will be co-located with the SBDC in the MSU Strategic Partnership Center in Old Town, Mankato. BBB programs promote trust and consumer confidence while encouraging sound industry self-regulation practices. In addition to monitoring the marketplace, BBB offers accreditation, events, tips and education on scams, fraud, reputation management, cyber security, advertising standards and much more. Visit BBB.org for Mankato office hours starting in January.
Nicollet Alesia Slater, Nicollet Chamber
The Nicollet Chamber of Commerce would like to wish you Happy Holidays and a safe and blessed New Year. We are busy finalizing our 2018 events. Some of the events that we will be hosting will be as in previous years and we will also continue to explore additional options. If you are interested in becoming a member of the Nicollet Chamber of Commerce I encourage you to contact the chamber at chamber@nicollet.org or visit our website at nicollet.org. We would like to thank you all for a great 2017 and we look forward to seeing you all in 2018!
New Ulm Sarah Warmka, New Ulm Chamber/CVB
The New Ulm Area Chamber of Commerce recognized the New Ulm Medical Center as the 2017 Business of the Year. The Chamber’s Annual Meeting will take place January 19th with entertainment by comedian Scott Novotny. The Chamber welcomes new members: Pizza Ranch, Horace
Local Chamber & Economic Development News
Mann/Denny Waloch Agency, Horejsi Graphics, My Eye Photography, GnomeMade Market, and New Ulm Basketball Association. Upcoming events include: Newcomer’s Event, Feb. 8; Fasching, Feb. 10; Schell’s Bock Fest, March 3; Farm Show, March 9-10; Home and Health Show, March 23-25; New Ulm Quilt Show, March 23-24.
Sibley County Amy Newsom, Sibley County Development
The City of Arlington is pleased to announce two new businesses in town. The Pilot Travel Center Diesel Exhaust Fluid (DEF) terminal was recently completed in Arlington and Aly’s Art By Hand, Etc. recently opened on Main Street. Aly’s Art By Hand, Etc. carries art, antiques, music and more. Prints in pencil or leather, hand-tooled leather, art and accessories. Also, congratulations to the Arlington Area Chamber of Commerce. They were awarded a $2,000 Prairie Lakes grant for Arli-Dazzle and a $7,000 Explore Minnesota Tourism Marketing grant!
Waseca Kim Foels, Waseca Chamber
Waseca Area Chamber of Commerce and Ambassadors will honor citizens working hard to help better our community. The chamber’s annual Community Awards Event is January 27. The awards offered that evening are Rotary Service Above Self, Exchange Club Book of Golden Deeds, Community Development Award, Boss of the Year, Young Professional Distinguished Service Award, Waseca County Distinguished Agricultural Leadership Award, Human Rights Award and Don Eustice Community Service Award. The public is invited. For ticket information RSVP by January 19, 2018 to 835-3260 or info@wasecachamber.com.
Waseca Gary Sandholm, Waseca EDA
Building Waseca’s future is moving on two fronts. The Vision 2030 project is indicating a very strong desire in the community to aggressively take strides to improve the prosperity and quality of life in the community. With input from a very wide cross section of the community, an impressively consistent focus is emerging. Next up – crafting and executing the plans to make the vision reality. As a start, construction is beginning on a Burger King restaurant.
Waseca Gary Sandholm, Waseca Tourism
The Sleigh & Cutter Festival rolls out its 68th edition starting in late January and running through February. Tundra golf, a parade, curling, the Kruger Memorial Race and fireworks, ice sculpting, snowmobile and 4 wheeler rides, card tournaments, a hockey tournament, and more fill the schedule. Additionally, local clubs and bars will have events. By the way, some new things may be on the schedule too. Stay tuned.
Winnebago Jean Anderson, Winnebago City Council
ATL/Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport has selected Winnebago-based Green Energy and Development, Inc., to develop a facility the airport calls “Green Acres” on 30 acres of property on the south side of the airport. This will be the first fully enclosed recycling and composting facility at an airport. They expect to be up and running in early 2019. Green Energy was awarded a 20-year contract with renewal options. The focus of Green Energy is Organics and Recycling Management. In other news, Winnebago has a new 60 x 100 foot portable skating rink located by City Hall. The skating rink will be open daily from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m.
Fairmont
Sleepy Eye
Stephanie Busiahn, Fairmont CVB
Kurk Kramer, Sleepy Eye EDA
Get your fill of excitement in Fairmont this winter season! Start things off with the NSSR and Ice Kahana snowmobile races, taking place on January 13. Next, the Southern Minnesota Pond Hockey Championship heats things up January 19-21, drawing scores of hockey aficionados from across the region. Is your head reeling? Hit the Fairmont Lakes Foundation Annual Ice Fishing Tournament on January 27. Find more winter fun on our Facebook page or go to VisitFairmontMN.com!
The Sleepy Eye EDA is continuing to focus on two areas within the community; the Snow Additions and the Downtown District. Currently three businesses are located on the First Addition, with another couple of possible projects to take place in the near future. In the Downtown District we have seen the rehabilitation work done on numerous buildings with new facades, signs, and awnings, as well as the demolition of a 20 year-old vacant gas station property. Plans are currently being made for the redevelopment of that property as well.
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By Anna Vagsness
By Anna Vangsness
Photo by Kris Kathmann
Photo by Kris Kathmann
Mike, Pat and Todd Redig
Owners, Nordaas American Homes 3RD PLACE: BUSINESS PERSON OF THE YEAR 2018
Family-run business spends decades helping build the American dream from Minnesota Lake.
It was 68 years ago, back in 1949, that a Norwegian immigrant found his way to Minnesota Lake, Minnesota. Building a life there, by designing and building homes for others, as Nordaas American Homes. “Haakon’s story was almost a rags to riches to almost back to rags story. He was on the downside of business when we got involved. It’s taken a lot of years to bring it back. His thought and idea was that you work hard and when you do something, you do it right. And that’s how we’ve continued to do it,” says Mike Redig, a long time Nordaas employee who purchased the custom home builder in 1989. His resurrection of the business has helped him and his partners, which also happen to be family members, earn a spot in this year’s Business Person of the Year issue. “Looking back on it, it was a really bad business decision,” says Todd Redig, Mike’s son. “When dad bought Nordaas, it wasn’t in good shape whatsoever. He brought it back from nothing.” But Mike will tell you, he didn’t do it alone. Family ties are embedded deep within the roots of Nordaas American Homes. As now owners Mike, Pat and Todd Redig have made it their mission to stay to true to their family values while designing and building custom homes throughout the upper Midwest. The dedication and commitment the Redig family has given to their Minnesota Lake-based business to ensure that it thrives has awarded them the title of Business Person of the Year runner-up, which should come as no surprise once you get to know this tight-knit family. As president of the company, Mike provides leadership to his employees while maintaining customer satisfaction; Pat manages the retail portion of the company, which includes everything from flooring to home furnishings and décor; and Todd is a district sales representative and serves in a management role within Nordaas American Homes. continued > Business Person of The Year winners are selected by a panel of business leaders and the editorial board from nominations submitted.
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The Redig Family | Business Person of the Year 2018: 3rd Place
Catch the Hometown Business Connection on KEYC News 12! KEYC News 12 and Connect Business Magazine editor Lisa Cownie will bring you the stories of area local businesses and how they impact Southern Minnesota. • First Wednesday of the month on KEYC News 12 at 6 • Repeats Thursday on KEYC News 12 Midday • See all previous episodes on keyc.com
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“I had my resume out to apply for marketing jobs when a sales rep for dad retired and Mike said, ‘Craig’s retiring. Do you want a territory?’” – Todd Redig So, how did the trio become owners of the company, which has been in existence since 1949? It all starts with Mike. After he got out of the Marine Corps in 1972, Mike began working for Nordaas American Homes at the insistence of his peers, who were either employed, or knew someone employed, by the company. “My father was a farmer, but also worked with concrete and masonry so I grew up around this type of work,” Mike says. “It was a good fit. I started working in sales management for Nordaas and it’s like the old saying goes, I liked the company so much, I bought it.” Mike was approached by founder Haakon Nordaas’ son-in-law to buy a portion of the company in 1989. He maintained a 30 percent share for years, until becoming sole owner with Pat and Todd. Mike was joined at the business by his wife Pat in 1994 when the company decided to expand the retail side of Nordaas. “I had my own business previously and I came to Nordaas because we hired a woman who was in charge of flooring and Mike said, ‘you should come down here and help get this going,’” recalls Pat. “I started working part-time for the first year and became fulltime in 1995.” And get it going, she did. Expanding over the years, Nordaas now offers floor treatments, blinds, home décor, furniture, rugs, shingles, doors and windows, to name a few. The husband and wife were later joined at the company by Todd, one of their three children. Todd received his bachelor’s degree in marketing from the University of Minnesota, Duluth and had no intention of joining his parents at Nordaas American Homes. “I had my resume out to apply for marketing jobs when a sales rep for dad retired and Mike said, ‘Craig’s retiring. Do you want a territory?’” Todd says. “I thought, ‘well, I’ll give it a try’ and the rest is history.” Todd began his career at Nordaas as a sales representative based out of St. Paul. Two years ago when a territory opened up based out of the home office in Minnesota Lake, the younger Redig was able
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A Surprise Past Minnesota Lake Since 1949, Nordaas American Homes has designed and built custom homes in the upper Midwest, including Minnesota, Iowa, Wisconsin, South Dakota, North Dakota and Nebraska. Situated on Highway 22 just outside of the Minnesota Lake, the dynamic of Nordaas American Homes comes as a surprise to people. “Our facility is crucial,” says Todd. “We’ve completely revamped it over the years. We have a guest house for our out of town customers to stay in and a model home right here in town. Dad’s always called it his little three ring circus out here.” Pat refers to their location as “the south of the middle of nowhere” and says people are always surprised when they come out and see what they have to offer. “People don’t expect it,” she says. “We’ll go to home shows and later have people come out to Nordass in Minnesota Lake and they say ‘wow! I had no idea what you had out here.’” Their must-see showroom services include window treatments and blinds, countertops, home décor, fireplaces, stone, furniture, bridal registry and memorial gifts.
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| Business | Business Mike RedigFamily PersonPerson of the Year 2018: Place The Redig of the Year3rd 2018: 3rd Place
The Redig Family | Dream Builders
About the Family O PP O R T U N I T Y. L I V E S . H E R E .
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Residents of Minnesota Lake, Mike and Pat Redig are parents to Michael, Robyn and Todd, and grandparents to seven. Michael and his wife are parents to two children and reside in California; Robyn, her husband and their two children live in Stillwater, Minnesota; and Todd and his wife live in Mankato and have two sons, with another baby on the way. Todd says he is thankful he had the opportunity to grow up in a larger family because it’s instilled in him the importance of family. “It’s the way I was raised,” he says. “Christmas is a huge gathering … birthday parties are a huge gathering.” In their spare time, Mike and Pat enjoy traveling to California and Florida to spend time with their family and friends.
Dream Builders | Nordaas American Homes
to move back to the area with his wife and children. “You know Todd just loves working with his mom and dad,” Pat says with a big laugh. “Don’t you, Todd?” “It’s fantastic to be home again,” Todd says with a smile in his voice. “Before, I was gone at least two to three nights a week and now I’m not traveling nearly as often as I was.” Those words ring true for Mike and Pat, too. It was not so long ago that it was Mike working as an out-of-state salesman for Nordaas while Pat stayed at home with Todd and his siblings Robyn and Michael. “You need a lot of spousal support to be able to do that,” Mike says. “You have to give the spouses a lot of credit,” adds Pat. “There has to be a good base at home, that’s half of it right there. It wouldn’t be as successful otherwise. I think that’s why Todd does so well –
The Redig Family | Dream Builders
Giving Back to the Community Because of their support of the local community and school district, Mike and Pat were recently inducted into the Maple River Hall of Fame. “Haakon Nordaas was a huge community contributor,” Pat says. “It’s just awesome. It’s very rewarding. No matter what, when we took the company over, we want to continue doing the same thing.” Nordaas American Homes is proud to help support the Sugar Plum Fund, a student assistance fund operated through the Maple River School District. “We like to give back to the school through the program,” Pat says. “It helps kids that may not have a lot. Maybe they’ll get a pair of new tennis shoes so they can play basketball, or be able to pay for their jersey. It could also mean that a parent has a gas gift card so they can visit their child at the hospital.” As residents to the area (as well as having grown up there), the Redigs find enjoyment being able to help out such a crucial program. “What it gets down to is being able to give back to the community we grew up in,” says Mike.
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The Redig Family
#EIDELIKE I’D LIKE TO CALL THE SHOTS WHEN IT COMES TO MY FUTURE
The Redigs are in agreement that what makes their work fun is seeing the faces of their clients light up when they’re shown blueprints on their custom built home, or they are choosing the final touches on paint colors and tile that will eventually go inside.
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because Hannah [his wife] is so good at handling everything.” Putting three immediate family members in one business and asking them to work together for years would seem to present itself with some rocky moments, but the Redigs have seemed to figure it out. “When I first came to Nordaas and knew I’d be working next to Mike, I thought ‘oh boy,’” says Pat. “But, he was on one side of the building and I was on the other. It’s funny; we don’t really see each other at work that often, and as many years as we’ve been here, we’ve never had a problem.” Mike equates the ability to work so closely with his wife and son to one thing: “What’s ironic, is that I stopped at a Chinese food restaurant the other day and I saved my fortune,” he says. “It said something like ‘you can either think of work as being a drudge or think of work as being fun.’ It comes down to your attitude. For me, work has always been fun.” The Redigs are in agreement that what makes their work fun is seeing the faces of their clients light up when they’re shown blueprints on their custom built home, or they are choosing the final touches on paint colors and tile that will eventually go inside. “For me, the design aspect has always been my favorite part of this job,” Mike says. “To be able to sit down and take people’s ideas and build a customer profile based on a half a dozen house plans … that’s the rewarding part. We get customers who like parts of one plan and parts of another and they have pictures on pictures on pictures.
Dream Builders | Nordaas American Homes
It’s up to the sales reps, like Todd, to gather up all of this information and come up with a quarter-inch black line drawing that mirrors that. Once you have a plan really close and you figure out what the customer wants to use, you’re able to build their house.” “For a lot of people that I’m working with, this is their dream,” Todd says. “They’ve been dreaming of building their own house for 15-20 years. It’s rewarding to sit there with someone who’s had this dream for so long and I get to help them create it and make it happen. It’s pretty awesome that way. It makes you want to do the best job that you can.” There are nearly two dozen employees at Nordaas American Homes that help turn client’s visions into reality and although the Redigs are family, they consider everyone else to be, as well. In fact, some of them are. Pat’s niece, Shannon Wegner handles the marketing and advertising for Nordaas, and sisters of both Pat and Mike have helped out at the company on occasion. Remaining a family owned and operated business was a vital piece of being business owners to Mike and Pat, who both come from large families. They enjoy being able to offer flexible scheduling and a relaxed atmosphere at their business. “When our accountant started, she was younger and had a baby, so we set up a whole nursery for her because she couldn’t find daycare,” says Pat. “For six months, she would bring the baby here. Everybody loved it; she was a good baby and there were 20 of us here to help out. Being able to do things like that just lessens the stress for everyone.” Todd says it’s natural to bring the family atmosphere to the rest of the employees because, as far as the Redigs are concerned, they’re also family. “We operate on a family-run atmosphere, if you will,” he says. “We have the flexibility that people need and we all understand the needs of family. It can’t go unsaid that we have really good employees. It’s crucial. They care and take pride in what they do.” Looking back at his career at Nordaas American Homes and reflecting on what has surprised him the most, Mike jokingly says it’s that he has been married for 43 years. Pat easily recalls the time in her and
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Mike’s life shortly after purchasing Nordaas that a lot of time and energy went into marketing the company. “We went on the road doing home shows and going to anything we could to get the word out that Nordaas American Homes never closed and that we were still in business,” she says. “For the first five years of owning the business, it was a struggle.” Resiliency and perseverance have helped the Redigs remain a successful and flourishing business. They’ve found great success over the years with word of mouth marketing. “I’ve built houses for the kids of parents we’ve built houses for and the grandkids of grandparent’s who have Nordaas houses,” Todd says. “If you track our sales over many, many years, the number one generator of our sales is always referrals. When you get out and build houses 500 miles away, you have to have a good reputation behind you. That’s been our number one thing: keeping people happy and word of mouth.” Being able to thrive among economical and technology changes has helped reap success at Nordaas, too, Mike says. “When I started, everything was handdrawn,” he says. “The system Todd and these guys are operating on today has come a long ways. You can virtually walk through the house and see what it looks like before you even build it.” A new business model of having all of their plans, paperwork and leads digitalized has allowed the business to work smarter and more efficiently. With the increase of technology shining light on the direction that custom home building is going, the Redigs are also finding themselves looking for new talent to join them. Mike says there are a lot of challenges yet to come, with the biggest being older
Dream Builders | Nordaas American Homes
employees transitioning out of Nordaas American Homes, leaving the question of how to bring people out to work in Minnesota Lake. With their own retirement showing itself on the horizon, Mike and Pat have begun to slowly hand the reigns over to Todd. “Mike and Todd run the business, but Todd has begun to run more of the business than Mike,” Pat says. We’re getting to be
retirement age, so he’s having to take on more responsibility. I still oversee the retail/ flooring/blinds/home décor side of things. That’s my baby … I created it, but I know I’ll have to give it up someday.” Pat says she and her husband have worked hard to get where they’re at and she finds solace knowing that their own son will take it over one day and continue what they started.
“We’ve worked our whole life to get where we’re at,” she says. “We took it from Haakon Nordaas’ son-in-law and eventually we’ll pass it on. We took the same risk back when we were younger.” “There’s a pressure to keeping the business where it’s at,” says Todd. “They’ve set it up really well. I just have to take the torch.” Anna Vangsness writes from Mankato.
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OPINION
Minnesota Beans in a Class by Themselves “Beans have a soul.” Try wrapping your head around that phrase, which is attributed to the Greek philosopher Pythagoras, who lived more than 2,000 years ago. Some theorize that he was a vegetarian, but no hard evidence exists that is the case. As one would expect in dealing with ancient history, many theories abound. In comparison, the phrase stands far above the somewhat tired “bean” idioms we’ve heard for years: • Bean counter • Amount to a hill of beans • Don’t know beans You get the point. In Minnesota, beans are serious business. Soybeans, that is. And we put our heart, and yes, soul into the
By Tom Slunecka CEO, Minnesota Soybean
crop. Soybeans are Minnesota’s No. 1 agricultural export, more than a $3 billion industry in the state. Soybean farmers in our state are justifiably proud of their product. They consistently produce quality soybeans that are high in essential amino acids (EAA), the best measure of the true nutritional value of animal feed. Why are essential amino acids so important? Time for a brief science lesson. Amino acids are the components of protein molecules. Animals can only absorb amino acids in specific ratios to
build their muscle and meat mass. Essential amino acids help monogastric animals, such as chicken, swine and aquaculture, build muscle mass and produce more meat and eggs. In the past, soy products have typically been valued based on their crude protein content, which puts northerngrown soybeans at a disadvantage. However, research has shown that the amino acid profile is a better indicator of soybean value. The EAA measure of soybeans provides the most accurate profile of product quality and value. The EAA value allows nutritionists to optimize animal diets and potentially eliminate the need for costly synthetic amino acid supplements. Minnesota farmers are continually looking at ways to improve the nutrient content of their soybeans. The University of Minnesota, aided by checkoff funds through its partnership with the Minnesota Soybean Research & Promotion Council (MSR&PC), is sending out soybean sample kits to farmers in the state in order to conduct a free analysis of the crop. Among the
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refine variety selections. We’re fortunate to have a stellar research partner in the University of Minnesota (U of M). The U of M has one of the nation’s top soybean research and breeding programs. Scientists, technology educators and farmers work together to continually improve soybean yields and quality, focusing on the success of livestock producers, both at home and abroad. So let’s move beyond science, and ponder the beans-and-soul quote. I recall the marketing campaign decades ago, with the California Raisins dancing to the soul classic “I Heard It Through the Grapevine.” Maybe envision a soybean grooving to Al Green’s “Tired of Bean Alone,” or James Brown’s “Papa’s Got a Brand New Bag” (of Soybeans). Nah. Bean There. Done That. items that will be included in the testing are moisture, amino acids, fatty acids and sugars. The results are important to farmers for a variety of reasons.
A quality analysis enables them to be able to market their soybeans according to specific traits the end user needs. When it comes to production, it helps a farmer
Tom Slunecka has been the chief executive officer of Minnesota Soybean since August of 2012. Before joining the Minnesota Soybean team, Slunecka had a long history in the biofuels and agriculture industries. Slunecka’s career has been dedicated to furthering agriculture and understanding all aspects of the industry and what it takes for all branches of agriculture to be successful.
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HOT STARTZ! STARTZ!
Bronzers Tanning and Boutique Although Sue Carrigan had a good job, more and more she found corporate America dull and unfulfilling. Her partner Jamie Streett, who is an entrepreneur himself, told her “Maybe we should think about owning our own business. There’s nothing like being your own boss. When you are ready, I’ll help you.” The idea intrigued Carrigan, but she didn’t really know what she wanted to do as a business of her own. Then one day she heard about a tanning salon for sale and felt right away that might be what she was waiting for. “So we looked into buying it and here we are! Jamie and I are co-owners,” she explains. Formerly Ultra Tan in the Belle Mar Mall, her first order of business was to change the name and start mending the former’s reputation. Now called Bronzers Tanning and Boutique, it offers UV tanning in four different levels of beds as well as sunless spray tanning. By adding on the boutique, she hopes to attract even more customers. “The store has the space and we just figured why not add more?” says Carrigan. “The boutique gives customers something to do if they have to wait a couple minutes for their favorite bed. We hope to expand the boutique in the near future.” The biggest challenge, she admits, is trying to get Bronzer’s name out there and reaching people from all ranges of ages and lifestyles. Opening in June, it was a slow start. But with the cold, winter months now upon us, Carrigan hopes business
will pick up as the Mankato area becomes more aware of what they have to offer. “Ultimately everything depends on a lot of variables,” she says. “We enjoy making people smile and making someone’s day because of our hard work. We like them smiling and having fun. We want to create a warm and welcoming environment where they can relax and leave with a smile and a healthy, bronze glow.” Streett adds, Carrigan’s personality is another reason folks should stop in to Bronzers. “She really adds to the experience with her funny demeanor and will have people laughing.” BRONZERS TANNING AND BOUTIQUE Address: 201 North Victory Drive, Suite 327 Telephone: 507-344-0826
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Timeless Interiors Beth Fasnacht has had many past business lives. “My business journey began in the travel industry then moved into owning a retail store and finally landed on where my passion lies, interior design,” says Fasnacht. “ After going back to school and earning my interior design degree, I started as a commercial interior designer for a local architectural firm 10 years ago. Although I’ve done some residential design over the years, including helping to develop an interior design division for a local business, my heart lies in commercial design.” Following her heart, she created Timeless Interiors in August of 2017. “I’ve always had an entrepreneurial bug and decided to make the leap and become my own boss. I like the flexibility of being able to work directly with contractors, architects and clients. I am able to have a nice variety of both commercial and residential projects,” she says. Her target clientele are business owners looking to renovate or build, general contractors who need help with finding finishes and materials within their set budget, and architects who do not have in-house interior designers. One specialty she brings to the table is proficiency in REVIT, an architectural drafting program. “I can offer drafting services in addition to my interior design services,” says Fasnacht. “The program gives me the capability of showing my clients 3-D views of their designs. This additional service helps my clients visualize their space before
construction has even begun. I also offer cabinet drafting services for custom cabinet makers. Computer drafted cabinet layouts offer their clients elevations and 3-D views that they are not able to offer when hand-drawing the cabinet layouts.” Another specialty for Fasnacht is her ability to visualize right alongside her clients. “My number one promise to my clients is to fully listen to their wants and needs. They have a vision in their mind of what they want the space to look and feel like, it’s my job to figure out what that vision is and bring it to fruition. It is very important to me to be open and honest with my clients throughout the design process. I strive to make sure they are completely comfortable and in agreement with my design before moving forward with it.” TIMELESS INTERIORS Telephone: (507) 594-8366 Web: timelessinteriorsmn.com
Very New or Re-formed Businesses or Professionals New To Our Reading Area
MANKATO
Chainbreaker Financial, LLC Bruce Walters is a numbers guy. He likes to look at numbers, discover what’s behind them and how to use them best. It’s part of what drove him to become a CPA. Recently, though, he discovered some numbers that disturbed him. “I have a passion for helping people work through financial storms. I realized a need for this when listening to various national statistics; for instance, seven out of 10 people live paycheck to paycheck, the average credit card debt is $16,000 up 10% from a year ago, half of American households have no retirement savings at all, and 60% of American households could not pay for a $500 emergency without putting it on credit card. “The student loan debt crisis, the unsustainability of the healthcare industry and the crucial connection between finances and divorce propelled me into action.” That action was to start Chainbreaker Financial in October of 2017. Walters is a certified Dave Ramsey Financial Coach, training he says allows him to provide
common sense education and empowerment tools that give people the skills they need to change their lives as it relates to finances. Along the way, he strives to instill hope of taking back control of one’s money. “My target demographic are folks who are ready to tell their money where to go instead of wondering where it went,” he explains. He says the biggest challenge so far is creating an environment that allows people to feel confident enough to ask for help. “Money topics aren’t always fun. Meeting with a financial coach can be going far outside someone’s comfort zone. The thought of opening up and sharing their mistakes and misfortunes with money can be pretty scary. They may be skeptical or even cynical about a coach that claims they can help them.” Tackling this challenge is where his business plan begins and ends. “Breaking the chains of financial frustration by connecting with people to educate and encourage them as they walk through changing their journey. I want to instill confidence so that they know that where they are is not where they need to stay.” CHAINBREAKER FINANCIAL, LLC Facebook: Chainbreaker Financial Phone: (507) 340-6027
To be considered for inclusion in a future issue of Connect’s Hot Startz! section, email the editor at editor@connectbiz.com.
Businesses considered must have started—or changed greatly in form—within one year of our publishing date. Professionals chosen must be new to our reading area.
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ASK A PROFESSIONAL
Hannah Bretz Consultant, Small Business Development Corporation, Mankato
It’s a new year, and your business is ready for a fresh start. Why not try something different to market your business online and reach new customers? Every business has its own unique approach to marketing, but is your business taking advantage of all the internet has to offer? Here are five ways to market your business online in 2018: Google My Business If your business isn’t on Google yet, it should be. Google My Business is the fastest and cheapest way for your business to appear in local search results. Having a listing with Google is especially important for retail businesses who rely on street traffic or local customers because it puts your business
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do if your business isn’t currently engaging its customers on Facebook. First, you need a Facebook business page. This is different from a personal Facebook account, which is for sharing personal content only. A business page is Facebook’s version of a website, and it can be managed and monitored by multiple people. Your business page should contain business contact info, products and services, a description, and photos which include a profile and cover photo representing your business brand. You’ll want to create a custom URL which is also representative of your brand, for example @bobsburgerbarn, so your business is easy to find. The key to business success on Facebook
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is regularly sharing consistent content that your target audience will want to see and engage with. Many businesses make the mistake of trying to hard sell their customers on social media by only posting promotional content. This often fails, as consumers on social media want to engage with brands that are helpful, informative, responsive, and personal – not brands that try to force them to buy. Businesses can take advantage of the demographics data that Facebook makes available through its advertising platform. If you only want a certain audience to see your advertisements, you can create an ad that will only be seen by that particular group of people. Facebook makes it easy for small businesses to spend advertising dollars on only the types of customers and clients they want to connect with. Start an email newsletter Email is one of the best ways to consistently communicate with your target audience.
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There are few other marketing methods that allow you to send a message directly to your customer. MailChimp and Constant Contact are two great email marketing
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platforms that allow you to create an email list and start sending regular newsletters and promotions direct to customers. These email tools also provide analytics data such
as open rate, click through rate, and even sales data that can help you determine the effectiveness of your messaging. LinkedIn If your business is a professional service business (B2B), then LinkedIn could be an effective social media channel for you. LinkedIn provides a diverse online network of professionals through which you can present your business as an authoritative provider of services. Update your personal LinkedIn profile to showcase your skills, and create a LinkedIn company page to market your business. You can use your company page to share important articles and content that will resonate with your target audience. Make sure your business’ employees are followers on your company page, and include links to your company page on your website, emails and newsletters. Sponsor your best content with advertising dollars and watch your network grow.
Host Your Corporate Event in the New Event Center
The perfect business, the perfect experience starts right here at Chankaska Creek Ranch & Winery. Enjoy a private tasting, wine and cheese pairing or a wine blending class for a truly unique experience. Call 507-931-0089 or email Karen at karenb@chankaskawines.com to book your corporate event today!
Start a blog One of the best ways for a business to demonstrate the quality of its products or services is to consistently provide fresh content on its website. In addition to creating trust and authenticity with your customers, the content on your blog also sends keyword signals to Google and other search engines that can boost your website’s rank in search results. The more consistent, quality articles you create on your website’s blog, the more likely you will reach customers who are searching for your specific products and services. For more information on how your business can create an effective and efficient marketing plan, contact the Small Business Development Center at Minnesota State University. The SBDC provides no cost one-on-one professional business consulting services, training, access to capital, and other resources. Visit myminnesotabusiness.com to learn more.
Nick Smith Mankato, MN (507) 625-5649
Stacey Johnson Owatonna, MN (507) 455-5299
Jay Horner Owatonna, MN (507) 455-5200
Jessica Grayson Owatonna, MN (507) 455-5358
Imagine how much easier it would be to handle your business insurance with just one insurer. Federated coverages range from property to liability to group health to IRAs to business life and disability income. That means your Federated marketing representative can help design an insurance plan that takes care of almost every aspect of your business. Just pick up the phone and call. What could be more convenient than that?
Hannah Bretz is a speaker, trainer, and consultant on digital marketing, technology, and other topics that are crucial for small business. She facilitates a peer network of food entrepreneurs through the Southern Minnesota Initiative Foundation, and is a business consultant at the Small Business Development Center at Minnesota State University, Mankato. Federated Mutual Insurance Company - Federated Service Insurance Company - Federated Life Company 121 East Park Square • Owatonna, MN 55060 • (507) 455-5200 • www.federatedinsurance.com
JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2018
CONNECT Business Magazine
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