Quality Orthopaedic Care Since 1957 Paul H. Gislason, M.D.
1925-2012
Dr. Paul Gislason had a vision for providing quality care in Southern Minnesota. That vision has become a state-of-the art practice that encompasses 14 orthopaedic surgeons, 10 physician’s assistants, 12 physical therapists, and over 80 support staff. In addition to the Mankato location, we currently have offices in Faribault, Hutchinson, and Northfield. We also see patients in 14 additional communities in conjunction with their local health care systems. Our surgeons are board certified or board eligible as set out by the guidelines of the American Board of Orthopaedic Surgery (ABOS). All are members of the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons (AAOS) and meet or exceed the standards for continuing education and recertification as outlined by the Academy. They currently have over 230 years of combined experience, making them one of the most experienced orthopaedic groups in Minnesota.
Mankato, Faribault, Hutchinson, Northfield and 14 outreach clinics. 14 physicians and 110 employees.
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Contents
THE MAGAZINE FOR GROWING BUSINESSES IN SOUTHERN MINNESOTA
STAFF & CONTRIBUTORS Publisher: Jeffry Irish
INTERVIEW
Editor: Daniel J. Vance Associate Editor: Carlienne Frisch
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Kyle Smith, Tailwind Group
Loquacious and mentally quick Kyle Smith is only 34 and already co-owns the future sevenstory Profinium Place in Downtown Mankato, a 60-unit student housing apartment complex in Rochester, retail projects in Owatonna, two General Nutrition Centers, 65-house RentMSU, 114-bed College Town, The Lofts@1633, the College Station apartments, four retail centers in Mankato and North Mankato, three Waseca group homes, and other projects. Along with his sister, he used to co-own 20 Anytime Fitness franchises and eight additional General Nutrition Centers.
Art Director/Staff Photographer: Kris Kathmann Advertising Manager: Steve Persons Contributing Photographers: Art Sidner Contributing Writers: Diana Furchtgott-Roth Production: Becky Wagner Josh Swanson Circulation: Becky Wagner Printing: Corporate Graphics, N. Mankato Mailing: Midwest Mailing, Mankato
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SPECIAL SECTION
Cover Illustration: Kris Kathmann
CIRCULATION 8,800 for March 2014 Published bimonthly
20-Year Anniversary Review 28
CORRESPONDENCE
For new and old readers alike, this special 20year edition is our unique way of retelling the established story of where we have been and what we have done. But really it’s more about you. Southern Minnesota has hundreds of incredible people that have grown businesses here and our 20-year mission has been to shine a spotlight on some of them.
Send press releases and other correspondence: c/o Editor, Connect Business Magazine P.O. Box 452, Nicollet, MN 56074 E-mail: editor@connectbiz.com (please place press releases in email body) Web: www.connectbiz.com Phone: (507) 232-3463 Fax: (507) 232-3373
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ABOUT CONNECT 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
Diana Furchtgott-Roth takes on a Princeton professor who believes the American financial sector is made up of “wheeler dealers.” 4
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512 South Front Street
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EDITOR’S LETTER
20-Year Celebration! With this issue, Connect Business Magazine marks 20 years in business. In the inaugural March 1994 issue, Publisher Jeff Irish said, “If we do our job well, the information contained within the pages of this magazine will strengthen your own local business connections and provide tangible benefits to your organization.” It’s now 2014, Old Man Irish is still here, and we’re still plugging away at our long-standing mission of connecting businesses in nine southern Minnesota counties through features, news, interviews, and advertising. Much has happened these 20 years. Rather than snippets from the more than 100 people gracing our cover since 1994—similar to what we offered up for our tenth anniversary—this time, we chose to feature in-depth only one special person from each year. Some of our readers weren’t even born yet in 1994. While putting together our first issue that year, the hot national news items of the time were Tonya Harding’s bodyguard attacking Nancy Kerrigan, Lorena Bobbit being declared temporarily insane for chopping off her husband’s appendage, and 100 FBI agents demolishing a Branch Davidian compound in Waco, Texas. Our kinetic world in 2014 seems light years from relatively static 1994. One exception is Connect Business Magazine. We’re still standing in Nicollet, still working feverishly at our mission, and still connecting business decision makers in nine southern Minnesota counties through features, news, interviews, and advertising. We are your old friend. Enjoy another issue. See you again in 2034. Sursum ad summum,
Daniel J. Vance, Editor
DOING MORE
Tailwind Development City Center Mankato
ARCHITECTS • ENGINEERS • PLANNERS • LAND SURVEYORS • SCIENTISTS 6
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www.is-grp.com
This page: Kyle Smith in the common room of College Town student housing in Mankato. Facing page: Architectural rendering, downtown Mankato Profinium Place.
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Mankato-based, high-flying Tailwind Group has become a fully integrated property development, leasing, and management firm.
By Daniel J. Vance Photo by Kris Kathmann
Loquacious and mentally quick Kyle Smith is only 34 and at such a young age already co-owns the in-progress seven-story Profinium Place in Downtown Mankato, a 60-unit student housing apartment complex in Rochester, retail projects in Owatonna, two General Nutrition Centers, 65-house RentMSU, 114-bed College Town, The Lofts@1633, the College Station apartments, four retail centers in Mankato and North Mankato, two Waseca group homes, and other projects. Along with his sister, he used to co-own 20 Anytime Fitness franchises and eight additional General Nutrition Centers. He built all this while employed as a corporate airplane pilot. In 2001, at age 22, after 9-11 caused a downturn in aviation, Smith initiated a chain of events leading to his involvement in all the above by buying, fixing up, and selling a Mankato rental property using only $2,500 down and his credit card. That started everything. End of story. Not quite. This feature story can’t—and won’t—be just about Smith. He readily admits he would have accomplished but a fraction of the above without his parents, Uncle Mark Smith, sister Karmen, and fellow Tailwind Group partners Reggie Reed, Michael Sather, and brother Landon Smith. In our Connect Business Magazine interview, from a stylish conference room at College Town in Mankato, Smith repeatedly said “we” rather than “I” when answering questions about business accomplishments. Think of Kyle Smith as southern Minnesota’s business version of the Top Gun character played by Tom Cruise, Lt. Pete “Maverick” Mitchell—a shoot-from-the-hip, spontaneous, go-by-his-gut, risk-taking, high-flying pilot. Smith plays that leading role as well as any business decision maker in our reading area. He flies fast. But without his squadron partners—“Goose” Reed, “Jester” Sather, and “Viper” Smith—covering his wing and mopping up after his sorties, Smith today by himself would own merely a flyspeck of Tailwind Group’s current real estate assets. Unlike the cocky movie character “Maverick,” Smith realizes every day his need for and dependence upon others. continued > MARCH/APRIL 2014
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“Happiness for me is staying busy, having fun, and doing what I’m passionate about. Happiness is having a work environment where people want to work. It’s giving your customer a special experience.” What is happiness to you? Happiness for me is staying busy, having fun, and doing what I’m passionate about. Happiness is having a work environment where people want to work. It’s giving your customer a special experience. I don’t think a correlation exists between happiness and material possessions. How were you raised? Conservative—in a conservative farming community in northern Iowa. Where I grew up, you better do what you say you are
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going to do and you better be accountable for your own actions. From there, I learned not to forget where I came from. Dad has been a row-crop farmer since the mid1970s, and my mom has been a long-time supporter of the farm. My parents taught us we could do whatever we wanted in life. All we had to do was put our minds to it. I also learned growing up what it meant to work hard, take risks, and be rewarded. You had better get going in the morning. My dad was a hard worker from when the sun rose until it set.
What do you remember best about growing up in Hartley, Iowa? I graduated in a class of 50 and had the opportunity to know everyone and everyone’s family. It was no different than what life is probably like in Nicollet, Minnesota. I would raise my family in a small farming community like that—if I could. However, Mankato is where we have our business, so we’re here. Your uncle Mark Smith co-owns Northstar Aviation at Mankato Regional Airport. Your relationship with him must have been excellent in order for you to move here to school and later pursue a career with him. When I was in high school, we would always throw around the idea of me moving up there. He would fly us up to see all the opportunities and fly us around Mankato. I remember doing aerial photo shoots when Hubbard Milling had a plane in Mankato. My Aunt Vivian and Uncle Mark literally
Kyle Smith | Tailwind Group
drove me up to Mankato for school. I went to Minnesota State Mankato in 1998 and never left town, majoring in aviation, with a business minor. I give Aunt Vivian and Uncle Mark credit for helping me—so here is a shout out to them. I went through the MSU flight program, worked for Mark all through college, and after receiving my private pilot’s license in 2002 stayed on working for him. Because of Mark I landed my first corporate flying job. I was also a flight instructor a few years for him. What came out of working for Mark was I began seeing a bigger world. I was flying for corporate clients into all 50 states, and the rest of North America and the Caribbean. After flying clients to their destinations, instead of sitting in a hotel room waiting to return home, I would rent a car and drive, drive, drive. I saw what other people were doing. I believe you don’t have to have good ideas to succeed. You just have to have the guts to copy people that have good ideas. So that’s what I did.
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What ideas did you glean from flying around North America? We took the idea for College Town (in Mankato) from a project in Columbia, South Carolina. We saw student housing that had more amenities. Besides a bedroom, many college kids now want a place with a hot tub, swimming pool, basketball court, and volleyball court. They are demanding more. It’s a technology-driven generation, too. College Town was a concept that defied a traditional location. It’s not close to campus What about ideas from other places you’ve flown? I’ve learned a lot about retailers by flying to other parts of the country. We learned about Dickey’s Barbecue by flying into Dallas, Texas. They occupy part of our retail space (along with Jimmy John’s and Cherry Berry) at Victory and Madison. We knew Dickey’s was coming north and were in Minneapolis already. We reached out to them. We told them that if they ever had a franchisee wanting to site in Mankato to let us know.
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Where did you get the money for all this? I started in 2001 buying one rental property. After 9-11, and the ensuing decrease in air traffic, a lot of pilots were being furloughed. I thought I better not depend on flying my whole life or put all my eggs in one basket. So I bought a duplex on Fourth Street. I had only $2,500 to my name, but qualified as a first-time homebuyer with
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Kyle Smith | Tailwind Group
Wells Fargo. I bought the house, used my credit card to fix it up, found renters, and sold the property. I parlayed the profit from that sale into doing the same with two more properties. When selling that first company in 2004, I took all the money and became involved with my sister Karmen in Wisconsin. At the time, she was a municipal bond underwriter with Piper Jaffray and working
in downtown Minneapolis. She had an idea to start a business and wanted to know if I had any money to invest. I had just sold part of my housing business. The timing couldn’t have been better.
and were still in their infancy. Nearly all the franchises for Minnesota were already taken, so we bought every franchise from Northern Milwaukee all the way to the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, about 20.
The economy was doing well in 2005. She and I met with executives from Anytime Fitness in the Twin Cities. At the time, they had sold only 120 franchises
How did you pull that off financially? I leveraged cash along with the remaining real estate assets to get the first five clubs operating. We started with five fitness
2013 • 2014 NAIFA Board Members
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Gloria Butler State Farm Insurance
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Tamera R. Phillips Gretchen Rehm CSA, CLTC, LUTCF LUTCF Midwest The Gretchen Rehm InsuranceGroup Agency
Members not pictured: MEMBERS NOT PICTURED: LARRY ANDERSON • MARVIN N AUGUSTIN, CLU • LOUIE AUSTVOLD, CLU, CHFC • DIANE BECKMANN • LONNIE BRISTOL • RICHARD CHAMBERS, CLU, CHFC, LUTCF • THOMAS DEIKE • JANET DOYLE • JAMES FEDSON • ANGIE GODE • GORDON L. GRAHAM, CLU, CHFC • NANCY HANSEN, CLU, LUTCF, FICI • DOUGLAS HEIGET, CLU, CHFC • STEVEN HELGET • MARSHALL HERFINDAHL • JAMES HOFFMAN, LUTCF • JOEL JENKINS, CLU, CHFC, LUTCF • GLENDA JEWISON • LISA JOHNSON • MATT KEARNEY • SHIRLEY KRENIK, LUTCF • MARY MCCLURE • KIM MERTZ, LUTCF • CHRISTINA MEYER • JOSEPH MICHALETZ • BRENT PATTISON • PAULA PETERSON • RAYMOND PETERSON • BRADLEY PRATT, CLU • ANDREW ROOS • RONALD D. SERMON, CFP, CLU • MARK W. SEXTON • THAD SIMPSON • COLBY STALOCH • CYNTHIA STEINER • RICHARD STOLP, CLU, CHFC • JOHN TELZLOFF • SUE VAN BOENING, FIC • ROGER VERSTEEG, CLU, CHFC, CFP • LANCE WAKEFIELD, CLU, CHFC, CASL • PAUL WEBER • DON WENDEL, CLU • MARK WINDSCHITL, LUTCF • JOSHUA WILLOUR
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clubs, and over the next year did five more. We ended up doing all 20. Looking back, the timing could not have been better. You were only 26 when you started as an Anytime Fitness franchisee. Yep.
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When you went into bankers for funding, did they doubt you because of your age? I think they doubted me. Sometimes in life you are probably too naïve to know better, but the one thing we had going for us was our work ethic. We don’t take no for an answer. If it takes 20 hours a day to get a job done, we get it done. I use the word we, because really my sister was the one who did it. She did a great job making everything from nothing. In 2009, she was “Operator of the Year” for Anytime Fitness. When you talked to a banker, you had to make a sales pitch. What were your top selling points. I still had a stable flying income and I had liquidity. As the fitness clubs evolved the story became more sellable. Community Bank (Quentin Beadell and Jon Kietzer) were very influential in the early years. We didn’t have much of a story and those two seemed to listen. What about RentMSU? Between the four partners, we have today about 65 rental homes. The four partners of RentMSU are my brother Landon Smith,
Reggie Reed, and Michael Sather. Reggie used to fly for Delta, and now flies for the same company I fly for. Not only do we work together at Tailwind Group, but we also sit in the cockpit next to each other about six days a month. Landon, Reggie, and I built the company up, and then we became associated with Michael, who was buying property from us. He bought four or five homes from us before we decided to merge our companies in 2005-06. That’s when we started calling the company RentMSU. Is Michael related to the Sather Candy company family? Yes, he is the son of one of the owners. Has the Sather family had a hand in the success of Tailwind Group? Absolutely. What’s it like at age 34 to be the most active developer in our reading area? That’s your opinion, but I don’t look at it that way. I don’t get out of bed in the morning thinking I have to be the biggest developer in Blue Earth County. I just want to return a fair profit to my investors and the people who back me, build a successful product, and do what I say I am going to do with my tenant base—and everyone from the general contractors all the way through. It’s more important for me to get out of bed in the morning making sure bills and employees are paid. Keep an eye on Mike Drummer because
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Getting to know you:
Kyle Smith Born: August 22, 1979. Hometown: Hartley, Iowa. Education: Minnesota State Mankato, ’02, aviation major. Family: Wife Abbie, and three children. 14
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Kyle Smith | Tailwind Group
his company has a large number of projects in the works. What about the different roles of your partners? Reggie takes care of all the employees and is in charge of operations, Landon and I do leasing and development, and Michael does all the finance. There is some overlap. We all have a common financial interest in the company in terms of management and development income, and income off deals. As we have brought in outside capital over the last 12 months, I have challenged all of the partners to ask the question: Are you going to ask someone for a dollar when you don’t have any money in a project yourself? That’s my hard-line stance. We are going to be involved in every deal going forward, not only as investors, but also all the way through the project. You have been heavily invested in
southern Minnesota, with projects in Owatonna, Rochester, and St. Peter, too. (The St. Peter project was recently sold.) In 2001, you were worried about having all your eggs in one basket. Are you putting all your eggs into one basket again? That’s only because we were here in southern Minnesota already. We see lots of opportunity here.
for rental rates, we took a rent barrier in Mankato and completely broke through it by 20 percent because of the pent-up demand for quality space. What business opportunities remain for you in southern Minnesota? They are primarily in the retail sector. We have put up over 60,000 sq. ft. of retail over the last four years. When we were in Wisconsin, we made connections with retailers there, and some of them have leased retail space here for us. We know all the players, brokers, and franchisees. In addition, Greater Mankato is now a metropolitan statistical area, and that new designation attracts some companies. Also, student housing is our passion and how the company started. Opportunities still exist. There is a pent-up interest for good, quality retail space, especially from national players, who are coming into this market. It’s one thing to build a retail center or
But there has to be a limit to your exposure. Many of our deals start two years before we break ground. Right now, we are already planning projects in other cities, such as Rochester, for example. We are planning in a city in Iowa right now, too. As for Profinium Place, some of the investors in the building are also leasing. They have the same vision for the property that we have. Having some of your owners rent space eliminates much of the risk. As
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provide an opportunity on the retail level, but now you’ve got people willing to pay for it. This is the first time Mankato has seen this kind of demand from national players since River Hills Mall began.
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Did you approach Profinium, your anchor tenant? It was mutually done through Turning Point Management. Profinium was
Profinium Place, Mankato (architectural rendering) 16
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L i t i g at i o n · B u s i n e s s · Fa r m · P e r s o n a L
Explain more about the planned, much publicized, $15 million, sevenstory Profinium Place building downtown. Construction is underway. In order to begin building that project, I’m sure you had to have most of it leased before moving ahead. We had 72 percent of the building leased. In this new financial world, a project isn’t getting done unless it’s coming out of the ground at a break-even point. The project probably would not have been accepted by the tenant base had it not been for the successes of other downtown projects, such as those led by Mike and Cathy Brennan, Rob Else and Tony Frentz, the Dave Schooff/Fisher Group’s Northwestern Building remodel, and all the other successful downtown repositions. Many businesses had left Downtown Mankato, but because of these projects and others we are seeing businesses gravitate back downtown again. Downtown is becoming more popular.
Kyle Smith | Tailwind Group
looking for space in Mankato and we had purchased the Miller Motors property. We always thought an opportunity would exist there. We were challenged to think bigger on that (Profinium) building. We started out with the project being a corner freestanding opportunity, similar to what MinnStar Bank had across the street. The project ended up becoming bigger and bigger. Before realizing it, we had Abdo, Eick, and Meyers, Lidstrom Commercial Realtors, Turning Point Management, Met-Con, Profinium, and others all there. When you are putting any deal together, what are the things you have to have in place before moving forward to completion? Number one is a good gut feeling. Number two is sustainability. Give an example of a project that made sense on paper, but you didn’t have a good gut feeling about it? One thing we won’t do is spec build, which is build a building without tenants. That sort of project happened a lot in the early 2000s. People got away with it because the economy was good. Banks today would never let that happen.
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Everyone has a bad deal. What was your biggest failure? I bought a piece of property on the northwest part of Mankato and was going to do a
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group home there. But I was premature and too aggressive on the site. We acquired the property in 2004-05 without city approval and that was a big mistake. The zoning was there, but they couldn’t get a license in Blue Earth County. Define sustainability in terms of your projects. Sustainability involves how a project changes in five or ten years, from traffic patterns to the tenant base to the building. In defining sustainability, we would be ignorant in not also mentioning our return on capital. Sustainability refers to longevity, such as whether it’s a one-hit wonder or will it be an equally good or better asset 25 years from now.
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Would you give us a dollar figure in terms of your size? We have between $50 million and $100 million in owned/managed real estate assets. Tell me about your relationship with your sister. Karmen is married, and working for herself now—and should be. She works hard and is being rewarded for it. We talk over the telephone about once or twice a week. I’m proud of her. When we were developing the Anytime Fitness franchises, she stepped outside the box and lived hotelto-hotel while we built the company. The fitness business isn’t like a fast food place where people walk in and start ordering product immediately. It took about eight months or more to break even on some of those locations. You do all this and you are still a corporate pilot. Why? I get more done on the road than here. Reggie and I fly together and talk a lot about business over dinner—especially student housing. Then we will get in a car and drive through student housing projects just to see what is going on and to get ideas. The idea for a project is one thing, but the operational and management pieces are key, too.
SUBMITTED PHOTO
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Review for our readers all your projects. In Rochester, along with another local company, we just purchased a 60-apartment student housing complex. Many of our deals have occurred through scraping capital together from one deal to finance the next. We also have created capital through partnerships. It’s not like our family involvement has been on a large scale. We have retail projects in Owatonna. I’m also still involved with my sister in two Complete Nutrition (General Nutrition Centers) franchises, in Green Bay and Grand Rapids, Michigan. In Mankato, we’re involved with RentMSU, College Town, College Station, and The Lofts@1633. On the retail side, we have retail space at Monks and Stadium, Madison and Victory, near Madison and Highway 22, and Commerce Drive in North Mankato, which has the Erbert’s and Gerbert’s.
We sold a development in St. Peter. We did the Dollar Tree in the former Ray’s Market. We’re doing Profinium Place in downtown Mankato, and we have two group homes with Phoenix Recovery Programs. We have other developments coming soon. My sister and I have four retail centers in Wisconsin, with tenants such as Jimmy John’s.
www.katoroofing.com • 507.388.4112
Retail development at Madison Avenue and Victory Drive, Mankato. 18
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Kyle Smith | Tailwind Group
You found a template for building College Town, but where did you find one on how to operate it? You get good people. Reggie does a phenomenal job. Having so many 18-year-old clients isn’t easy. At that age, the world tends to revolve around you. As for communicating with 18-year-olds today, it has reached the point where many of them no longer want to talk face to face. If unable or unwilling to text or talk into your telephone or do something electronically, you will have difficulty communicating with that age group. So we now allow them to pay their rent and send maintenance requests online. It’s all technology driven. You mentioned earlier the importance of copying or tweaking the ideas of others. Why do it that way? We haven’t copied everything. We have developed or pioneered many great processes regarding student housing. But as for copying some ideas, by taking a proven, outside-the-box concept, we eliminate much of the risk. It’s not easy being first to market. Tell me more about your partners. I met Reggie at flight school in Mankato. He is detail oriented. He loves the process. Good partnerships involve people with different strengths and weaknesses—and I don’t like the process or the details, such as with human resources. If not for my partners, I would simplify everything by only building and selling projects. I can’t imagine managing the whole process, such as all the expenses, payables, and receivables. What about your brother, Landon. He has his niche. He started with us while going through college here in Mankato. At the beginning, he was paid per diem by the amount of property he rented. He would get out of school in the afternoon to lease apartments for us. Landon has done an extremely good job of finding a way to fit in and has a great relationship with Reggie and Michael. He really understands student housing. When you are doing so many other things, like I am, you sometimes get removed from the reality of what’s going
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on in day-to-day operations. In that way, Landon isn’t removed. And Michael? He also is detail oriented. He comes from a background of not being afraid to get things done and he understands the big picture. He understands risk, and has seen what his family (Sather Candy) has done. You have to commend the family for what they have accomplished. He is very good at risk management, which includes making sure we come out of the ground on budget, staying on budget, and positioning ourselves with low-interest loans.
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What strikes me as odd about you is that you came from a conservative farming background and you are now this guy flying jets all around the country and doing deals left and right. What do your parents think of you? I think they think we are pure-bred crazy. My dad is ultra-conservative. When we went through down times because of the economy, he thought we were nuts for what we were doing. However, he has seen our business evolve to where he invests in some deals and now picks up the phone to ask about the next opportunity. What about housing opportunities in downtown Mankato? That seems to be another opportunity. We have two apartment projects slated because we are big believers in downtown. We have done our research and feel comfortable about what downtown can support. You are developing, owning, and managing property. That sounds a lot like what Curt Fisher began doing 40 years ago. He went to MSU, like you. He began his real estate career by buying one property, like you. And you both started at a young age. I respect Curt. Though not really knowing him, I did have lunch with him once. He was way ahead of his time and I commend him for what he has done. Most of your investments are in Mankato. Name one thing you believe Mankato could do to get to the next
Kyle Smith | Tailwind Group
Bill LeDuc Broker/Owner Mankato, MN (507) 995-9311
www.agri-realty.com THE ESSENTIALS
Tailwind Group Address: 530 South Front, #100 Mankato, MN 56001 Telephone: 507-388-4722 Website: thetailwindgroup.com
level with St. Cloud and Rochester. What’s missing here? You travel a lot and see cities all over the country. That’s a complicated answer. For one, I don’t think we are any less than St. Cloud. I’m not convinced of it. Secondly, I don’t think we will ever be able to duplicate what Rochester has done. That said, the biggest missed opportunity Mankato has is in not utilizing the Minnesota River. I have never in my life, ever, been to a river town where the town has almost completely ignored the river. However, we have seen a change or two in that regard, mainly with the new Riverfront Park and its success. I’ve been to Pittsburgh, Cincinnati, Chicago—where do you want me to stop and start? The river in all those river towns is a primary focus. Can you imagine what downtown would be like if the Mankato Moondogs moved downtown near the water? It’s a missed opportunity in Mankato. Incorporating the river more into the town would do so much for the bar and restaurant trade, for entertainment, for the quality of life. Anything else? My wife is an amazing and understanding women who has sacrificed so much for our business. Her help has made the company growth that much more enjoyable. And I want to thank all the many people who have helped make our success possible, such as our great staff, Fisher Group, Lidstrom Commercial Realty, a network of great local banks, a network of great local bankers, and all those who have partnered/shared in the same daily risks. I give a special thanks to Jon Kietzer, our partner at College Town, and all those investing initially to make that project a great success.
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Editor Daniel J. Vance writes from Vernon Center.
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Comment on this story at connectbiz.com MARCH/APRIL 2014
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OFF-THE-CUFF
This issue marks our 20th anniversary profiling southern Minnesota’s most interesting business decision makers. What a perfect opportunity to give a shout-out to Enventis and Manpower, businesses that have advertised (pgs. 3 and 51, respectively) with us every issue since March 1994. They believed in us. Thank you. Not many magazines—or media outlets, for that matter—can say they have had two nonstop advertisers for 20 years. As editor, I’ve been with Connect Business Magazine 18 of the 20. I really believe Connect Business Magazine has lasted and succeeded two decades—a span during which many, many print publications in our reading area have come and gone— because Publisher Jeff Irish has a business model emphasizing quality of product. Nearly all magazines in Minnesota have full-time salespeople working feverishly to pull sales in. We don’t. Perhaps 85 percent of our advertisers contact us first. Our part-time sales manager, Steve Persons, works with us only about one day per week. We like to believe the quality of our photography, graphic design, and writing has been our top salesperson most of these 20 years. You might think this business model different. But it works. Our magazine staff has nearly 125 years of combined publishing experience just with Connect Business Magazine, from Publisher Jeffry Irish, Office Manager Becky Wagner, Art Director Kris Kathmann, Graphic Designer Josh Swanson, Proofreader Dave Maakestad, Illustrator/Photographer Jon Smith, and Sales Manager Steve Persons, to my part-time role as editor. Everyone above except Steve Persons and this editor work for the magazine’s parent, Nicollet-based 22
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Concept & Design, which began in 1979 under Irish. It continues today as a quality graphic design studio with satisfied clients locally and nationally. See conceptanddesign.com. As staff, we have to remind ourselves each issue that we continually have new readers. In fact, we have some readers right now who weren’t even born yet Daniel J. Vance Editor when our first 1994 issue arrived hot off the press. So occasionally, we have to retell our growth story. A 20th anniversary issue is one great venue. A bit off topic: Not long ago, I finished writing a short book on the advantages of counties not only merging more of their services with other counties for the purpose of saving taxpayer dollars and improving service delivery, but also of two or more counties physically merging to become one, counties merging with cities, or two cities merging. This issue is relevant to businesses. We help pay the bills. We receive government services. As Baby Boomers retire—and by 2030 every Baby Boomer alive will be over age 65—citizens and politicians may need to think more outside the box in terms of helping make governments in general become more productive. Relatively soon, the Baby Boomers—and I count myself as one—will be taking far more from the money pot than we will be anteing up. Over the last ten years, a quiet movement has been gaining steam across America to consolidate counties—if such consolidations lead to savings and efficiencies—in much the same way many school districts have consolidated. It makes sense in larger states dominated by rural counties, such as Minnesota. Georgia, Nebraska, Oregon, and Kentucky have active movements. Several states have bills pending that would allow counties to merge. If anyone would enjoy reading the e-book, email editor@connectbiz.com to receive a free copy.
Back on topic: Nowadays, 20 years is a long time for anyone to do anything. Again, as editor, I’ve been around 18 of those years, and have witnessed an evolution in how readers relate to this magazine, and vice versa. In March 1994, no one in southern Minnesota was using the Internet except a few college geeks. In 1996, when I started, the fax machine kept us busy. During the first six years of the magazine, we received feedback from readers primarily in the form of hand-written letters. I still have every letter. By 2000, the societal switch-over to email for communicating was nearly complete. Today, we receive only two or three hand-written letters a year. Most readers communicate with us through our connectbiz. com website, email, by telephone, through Facebook or by visiting our Nicollet office in person, roughly in that order. I will say, though, the hand-written letters the last ten years have been the most memorable due to their rarity. For the last three years, I’ve been your part-time editor, a part-time free-lance writer (such as with the book above), and a part-time licensed professional counselor, with the latter job eventually garnering more and more of my time. In 2011, after finishing a master’s degree in mental health counseling at Minnesota State Mankato and getting licensed, I started my own small business. As many of you know, the starting of a business can demand a great deal of time, hard work, and persistence. The learning curve has been steep—not just for starting the business, but also in further learning my profession. Recently, I moved my counseling offices to Lake Crystal, where I continue helping people overcome or manage anxiety, depression, work or family relationship issues, grief, abuse, and adjustments to life, such as career decisions and more. In rural Minnesota, professional counseling as a career has one major point working against it, and one for. Many rural Minnesotans feel a stigma towards receiving counseling services. They are used to handing problems alone. That’s the point against. The point for is that most people under age 40 don’t perceive a stigma. They are the future.
As my business grows, I gradually will cede bits and pieces of creating the written parts of Connect Business Magazine over to capable associates and freelancers, but intend on staying involved in future years—perhaps over time just doing the cover story and overseeing. So be prepared for seeing some new names. Finally, thank you readers, for putting up with us 20 years. We can’t even begin telling you about all the hundreds of times we grew and changed because of your feedback. You have encouraged, prodded, cajoled, thanked, connected with, equipped, congratulated, and occasionally spanked. Your overall acceptance of our efforts has made everything worthwhile. Again, thanks for reading southern Minnesota’s first and only locally owned business magazine, since March 1994, the only one reaching 8,800 business decision makers in nine counties.
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LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
RE: Henry Busse Jr. After reading your online article about Henry Busse Jr. (November ‘01), I was very sad learning of the passing of this great Brown Institute teacher, a mentor, and a role model that I missed the chance to go back and thank enough. Henry’s rich baritone was so powerful you almost thought he could rattle the plaster off the walls when he laughed. And Henry Busse laughed quite a bit. Short and stocky, almost resembling Fred Flintstone, Henry had a terrific sense of humor and a kind and endearing “bedside manner” employed while training young greenhorn kids behind the microphone. Henry had a knack for getting and holding your attention. He was a master at employing rich verbal imagery. I will always appreciate his generosity and kindness as a teacher. He will be missed greatly.
Mankato Office: 507.625.2525 Madelia Office: 507.642.3141
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Jeff H., California. (Received via connectbiz.com.) MARCH/APRIL 2014
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LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
RE: Michael Tanner I’m responding to Michael Tanner (National Opinion, January 2014), who wrote: “It is said the road to hell is paved with good intentions. Big government apparently uses the same road crew.” One mantra of us preachers is we’re to comfort the afflicted and afflict the comfortable. It’s as if Tanner was saying: “Darn it, we’re rich and all efforts to share our wealth have failed. We’re just going to continue getting richer. Don’t trouble yourselves with high idealism. Government only wastes our hard-earned money offering healthcare and relieving poverty. Churches teach a counterproductive morality of sharing and caring. Deal with it.” In the mid-'60s, a ‘big government’ project called Head Start changed my life. Not because I needed the schooling, but Mom was hired to teach. Her modest Head Start compensation that summer furnished the living room in our ‘modern’ house. We joined the middle class! Tanner is more certain than I of the (government’s) failures (along with most anti-poverty federal programs: “an almost unblemished record of failure.”). After 35 years in ministry, I’m less certain than he to define the road to hell. We may each be on it. But bravo for him—his isn’t littered with good intentions.
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Dean Wolf, Retired United Methodist Pastor, Mankato
BULLETIN BOARD
Any chamber of commerce, convention and visitors bureau, or economic development organization in our reading area—large or small, from Amboy to Waterville— can post on our free bulletin board. For details, email editor@connectbiz.com.
Thinking about starting or expanding your business?
Blue Earth Cindy Lyon, Blue Earth Chamber Get out from under cabin fever and visit the annual KBEW Better Living Show from March 15-16 (from 10-5 and 11-5, respectively). Up to 30 Vendors. Also, Blue Earth citywide garage sales occur April 25-26. Giant clean-up/fundraiser is May 3 from 9:00 a.m. to noon. For more information, see blueearthchamber.com.
Fairmont Bob Wallace, Fairmont Area Chamber Come dine with us. The city of Fairmont has 35 dining options now, including fine dining, ethnic, family-owned, fast food, and bars and grills. Whether you prefer to sit inside and enjoy the ambience and conversation or outside (in the summer) and enjoy the view and lakeside atmosphere, the choice is yours. When you dine in Fairmont, it’s more than exceptional food. It’s about the experience and hometown hospitality. Visit us soon at visitfairmontmn. com and enjoy!
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Lake Crystal Julie Reed, Lake Crystal Chamber Lake Crystal Area Recreation Center invites the gals to Ladies Night Out at The Lake’s on Thursday March 6 from 6-10 p.m., where businesses will show off new in-style and pampering items for women. The evening will include drinks and appetizer specials. Also, start your training for the 3rd Annual LCARC Duathlon scheduled on June 7. Start with a 3.1-mile run, then a 13-mile bike ride, and a two-mile run. See lcarc.com or telephone 726-6730.
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Le Sueur Julie Boyland, Le Sueur Chamber
Our Retail & Business Expo is Friday March 21 in the Valleygreen Mall downtown area, a new location. Le Sueur Chamber invites all businesses to come and showcase and connect with our local area Businesses and Community. There will be many demonstrations, including the 3rd Annual Wine Tasting. Playing during the wine tasting will be Mankato Harpist Amy Kortuem. Call Le Sueur Chamber of Commerce today for your application at 507-665-2501.
SALES • INVESTMENT • DEVELOPMENT • LEASING Tim Lidstrom, CCIM Broker Karla Jo Olson, Broker Dan Robinson, Agent
121 E. Main St. Suite 311 Mankato, MN 56001
507.625.4606 www.lidcomm.com
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BULLETIN BOARD
Madelia Karla Grev, Madelia Chamber
The Chamber is sponsoring two business workshops: “Navigating Facebook” offered by Krystal Spinler on March 10 from 6-8 p.m. at La Plaza F!esta; and an iPad workshop in April by Danna and Art Ellingson. The Annual Chamber Ag Night is March 18 at the American Legion, featuring Brad Schloesser of Southern Minnesota Center for Agriculture. For this, RSVP by March 14 by telephoning 642-8822 or chamber@madeliamn.com. Also, Madelia Park Days Celebration July 10-13. See visitmadelia.com.
Mankato Julie Nelson, Small Business Development Center
Driving financial performance in your business is crucial. Join us for our next offering of Profit Mastery: Creating Value and Building Wealth, April 8, 15, and 22 in Waseca. This 16-hour, nationally acclaimed course shows you how to get useful information out of your financial statements and provides action steps to improve profitability. Attend at a reduced fee of $289 ($595 value) thanks to a grant from U.S. Bank. Details and registration at my minnesotabusiness.com/workshops-clinics.
New Ulm Terry Sveine, New Ulm CVB
As in many towns, March is the “dry floor” show month and New Ulm features the Farm Show on March 7-8, Camper Show on March 11-16, and Home and Health Show on March 21-23. Come visit with vendors and exhibitors and learn about things you never imagined. There’s a City-Wide Garage Sale on March 29, a craft show on April 5, and an old-fashioned circus on April 25. These are not your typical festivals!
Mankato Nicole Griensewic, Region Nine Dev. Com. Want to learn more about current grant opportunities? Join us on Thursday March 27 for Region Nine’s spring Grant Opportunities Forum at South Central Service Cooperative, North Mankato. Registration is at 8:30 a.m. and breakfast will be provided. Presentations will run from 9:00 a.m.-noon and will cover both local government and nonprofit opportunities. This event is free but registration is required. To learn more and to register visit rndc. org grant-opportunity-forum.
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Mankato Amy Linde, Greater Mankato Growth Greater Mankato Growth is proud to host the Southern Minnesota Economic Summit and Business Showcase on April 29-30 at Verizon Wireless Center in Mankato. Come and connect with business leaders, economic experts, valuable regional resources and industry specialists. The Summit includes four different business focused tracks including: Entrepreneurial Bridge (brought to you
Local Chamber & Economic Development News
by Southern Minnesota Initiative Foundation (SMIF) and GMG), Growing Your Business, Business Leadership, and Alignment of Talent & Workforce. Register online at economic-summit.com.
Mapleton RoxAnne Gosson, Mapleton Chamber The Mapleton Chamber has been hosting After Hours events at various business locations. They have been great opportunities for networking. The annual Chamber dinner was a huge success, with more than 55 in attendance. Upcoming events hosted by the Mapleton Chamber include the Annual Easter Egg Hunt at the Mapleton Community Home on Saturday April 19 and the Annual Fun Run on Saturday June 7 during Town & Country Days in Mapleton.
New Ulm Audra Shaneman, New Ulm Chamber New Ulm Area Chamber of Commerce welcomes three new Chamber members: Altmann Repair, Farm Bureau Financial Services/Tony Sowder, and Flying Buttress Media. We are looking forward to Farm Show on March 7-8, which is sponsored by the Farm-City Hub Club, and the Home & Health Show on March 21-23, sponsored by the New Ulm Business & Retail Association. The Chamber on May 9 will again host the Leadercast leadership seminar from Atlanta.
Nicollet Alesia Slater, Nicollet Chamber Thinking spring, we will be hosting an Easter Egg Hunt, Sunday April 6, following the Nicollet Fire Department’s Pancake, Egg and Sausage Breakfast: 9a.m. to 1p.m. at the Nicollet Fire Hall. Other upcoming events include Nicollet City Wide Garage Sales Friday and Saturday, April 25 and 26 and Nicollet City Wide Clean Up Day on Saturday, May 3. For more information about these events please visit
nicollet.org or email the chamber at chamber@nicollet.org.
St. Peter Russ Wille, City of St. Peter Twenty single-family homes were permitted for construction in 2013 at a value of $3.7 million, which was an increase over the nine homes permitted in 2012 at $2.2 million. Year 2013 commercial/ industrial building permits totaled $12.5 million versus $7.8 million in 2012. The first roundabout in Saint Peter is planned for the Old Minnesota Avenue and St. Julien Street intersection. Construction begins in 2014 and will be coordinated with MNDOT’s Highway 169 flood mitigation project.
Sleepy Eye Trista Barka, Sleepy Eye Chamber The Sleepy Eye Chamber of Commerce held its Annual meeting on January 22. We celebrated the evening with fun, games, networking, and presented three Awards: The Big Chief went to Mark Kober, City of Sleepy Eye; the Shining Star, to Mary Hoffmann and the Sleepy Eye FFA and Extraordinary Volunteer to Kathy Haala of First Security Agency. In March 2014, Miss Sleepy Eye and her attendants will be crowned as goodwill ambassadors for Sleepy Eye.
Waseca Kim Johnson, City of Waseca Waseca Area Chamber hosts the annual community awards event on January 25 at Starfire Event Center. In part, the Chamber is honoring Drs. Rodney Kolpin and Rebecca Thompson as 2013 Bosses of the Year, and Waseca Boy Scouts for the James J. Donahue Community Development award. The chamber completed its move to 112 North State. See the new conference room, available for business use, and the Chamber resource and visitor center. See wasecachamber.com for more.
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MARCH/APRIL 2014
St. James 507-375-3201
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Thanks for your avid support these last 20 years. For new and old readers alike, this special 20-year edition is our unique way of retelling the established story of where we have been and what we have done. But really it’s more about you. Southern Minnesota has hundreds of incredible people that have grown businesses here and our 20-year mission has been to shine a spotlight on some of them. Rather than review all 100 or so decision makers gracing our cover since 1994, we have chosen, for the sake of space, only one from each year. Each person picked has fresh information to share. Before you ask, our 2006 choice, CEO Glenn Stolt of Sleepy Eye-based Christensen Farms, never appeared on our cover. He agreed to fill in best he could for Founder Bob Christensen, who passed away in November 2012. Christensen Farms for years has been one of the world’s largest privately owned pork producers. To help provide some context for each year’s feature, we 28
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mined our own press release section over the years for select news tidbits. Each year has one, beginning with the happy announcement in 1994 of Great Lakes Aviation offering three daily round trips from two airports in our region to Minneapolis. Finally, you are the reason we exist. You have read our magazine, supported our advertisers, and responded with your feedback. Many magazines in our reading area have come and gone since 1994. We remember at least six. Ours has survived only because of your continued support. We appreciate you. – Daniel J. Vance, editor.
Special Anniversary Section
Sarah Richards in 2011
and Jessica, were gradually purchasing their mother’s stock in the family business. Richards’ goal was to become president/CEO by 2012. The transfer of ownership was completed September 2011, and Richards assumed her new title on January 1, 2012. In a recent interview, she said, “My co-owners, David and Jessica, with the support of the board of directors, including three independent members, decided it was a good time to make that shift. I chose my successor for sales and marketing, and now an inter-departmental committee does training and recruitment. My mother, Marcia Richards, still helps with company events and has an office.” She added, “It has been the most challenging and rewarding two years I’ve experienced and will continue to be. Decisions I make can affect everyone who works here and their families. I also don’t want to disappoint my co-owners. It’s rewarding to realize the company’s successes, which are sometimes hard to recognize when they happen. I have pride in continuing the family legacy.”
KRIS KATHMANN
Ted and Jodi Marti in 2011
1994 Sarah Richards Sarah Richards was head golf pro and general manager of Cannon Golf Club in Cannon Falls in 1994. She didn’t appear on our cover then, or even in the inside photo, but her family’s business was featured in our third issue, in May 1994, and also in 2011. Now a once-a-week golfer, she dreamed of playing on the LPGA Tour and tried it out on the Futures Tour. She said, “I quickly realized that for every time I shot par, there were 100 women who could shoot as well. The lifestyle is a lonely grind. My favorite thing was teaching and coaching as a club professional.” When re-interviewed for the May/June 2011 issue, she was director of sales and marketing at Jones Metal Products and training and recruitment director. She and her siblings, David
IN THE NEWS
1994
Great Lakes Aviation, operating as a United Express Carrier, began in February offering three daily round-trip flights from Mankato and Fairmont to Minneapolis.
KRIS KATHMANN
Jones Metal Products
1995 Ted and Jodi Marti Schell’s Brewing Company
Like Sarah Richards, Ted and Jodi Marti never appeared on our cover. But their business, Schell’s Brewing Company of New Ulm, was featured in our August 1995 issue. Since then, the company bought the Grain Belt label, built a visitor’s center, updated machinery, hired more employees, and substantially increased production. In a recent telephone interview, Jodi Marti said, “In 1995 we made MARCH/APRIL 2014
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seven beers. Slated for this year are 29.” Schell’s Brewing Company, operated by Marti and husband Ted, great-great grandson of founder August Schell, garners a barrel of awards each year—14 last year alone. The biggest winner over the last five years has been Pils, a Pilsner that has earned five awards now displayed at Schell’s. Pils has been a personal favorite of both Martis, Jodi said, though, “My favorite depends on the weather and activity of the day.” When Connect Business Magazine featured the Martis again in September 2011, their son Jace had recently completed a beer-making course in Berlin. Two other sons served in the military. Today all three are involved in the company. Jace shares brewmaster responsibilities with employee Dave Berg, Franz is in charge of the gardens and works with his mother on special events, while Kyle is in sales and marketing and continues serving in the National Guard. “We’re fortunate they came back and they wanted to do that,” Marti said. “Jace came up with two new beers made in our 1936 cyprus wooden tanks. Last year we also added two beers in the Stag series: Barley Wine and August Bock.” Beers made by a brewery that has been around since 1860 garner national attention. Marti said, “We get requests to expand the territory, but we’re still just Midwest. We feel we haven’t filled the capacity in the Midwest market.”
IN THE NEWS
1995
At the annual meeting of Valley Industrial Development Corporation (Mankato), Executive Director Louise Dickmeyer reported on business expansions at Abdo Consulting Group and Kaye Corporation in North Mankato, and Atlantis Plastics, JWA, and Winland Electronics in Mankato.
1996 David Minge and Gil Gutknecht U.S. Congressional Representatives
The much-photographed faces of these two Congressmen were the very first to appear on our cover, in September 1996: U.S. Reps. David Minge and Gil Gutknecht. Democrat Minge went on to serve as a Minnesota 30
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IN THE NEWS
1996
1996: Techno-Village Internet Coffeehouse, the Prairie Lakes Internet demonstration site and walk-in computer center at 611 North Riverfront in Mankato, opened a conference auditorium that provided closed-circuit satellite video presentations. Court of Appeals judge for ten years, while Republican Gutknecht hit the speaker’s circuit and wielded his auctioneer’s gavel. Appointed to the bench by Gov. Jesse Ventura in 1993, Minge found judicial responsibilities less taxing than Congressional work. He said in a telephone interview, “As a judge, I worked within a legal framework with commitment to the rule of law. In the 300
Appointed to the bench by Gov. Jesse Ventura in 1993, Minge found judicial responsibilities less taxing than Congressional work. cases in which I was involved, the law was fairly clear in 275. In maybe 25 cases you think ‘if the legislature had only known when the law was made how this would play out.’ He continued, “The more difficult role was serving in Congress because of our highly polarized political process and the frustration of having a significant number of public policy issues that require Congressional action. Things were polarized in the 1990s when I served in Congress, but I see more significant issues today. Some actions directed at President Obama show disrespect and there’s no reason for that. Yet we look back on previous decades and remember we succeeded. The Civil War was a challenge that eclipsed anything we’re seeing now. A possible solution is renewed acceptance of a sense of community, where we all pull together to make compromises to resolve problems and issues.”
IN THE NEWS
1997
Larry Haugen became executive director of St. Peter Area Chamber of Commerce. MARCH/APRIL 2014
Special Anniversary Section Former U.S. Rep. Gutknecht was able to email an update. At age 62, he has despaired of ever breaking 90 as a golfer, but he’s still auctioneering, a vocation he had before serving in Congress from 1995-2006. He recently reached the halfway point in his goal of reading the entire Bible. In October, Gutknecht spoke at a historically black college in Montgomery, Alabama, which he termed “an enriching experience for me, and a chance for them to see and hear from a Republican.” He’s involved in a couple of businesses, including Transparagov, a privately-held company helping state and local governments improve management processes by providing analytical management and outcome measurement software and services. Gutknecht’s take on Congressional gridlock: “It’s not necessarily bad. We have two diametrically opposed points of view, making it very difficult to find common ground. But success leaves clues. Presidents Reagan and Clinton found ways to work with the other side.”
1997 Karl Johnson
K&P Johnson Farms When running unsuccessfully last year in the DFL primary for House District 19A seat, Karl Johnson had substantial political experience, much of it on the national scene. His reason for running: “The farm sector is not very well represented in the legislature and I’d hoped to improve that. I’ve supported local candidates and been involved in politics for a long time. I might run again.” Johnson, along with brother Paul, co-owns K&P Johnson Farms, a Nicollet County hog operation. He served on the National Pork Producers Council for seven years, one year as president. He has worked with various national trade associations and rubbed shoulders with three U.S. presidents and other dignitaries. “I met President Reagan at a brief meeting,” Johnson said. “President George H.W. Bush and I spoke and shook hands. He’s a very personable man. President Clinton is also quite personable. Pork producers were active in promoting his NAFTA program, which has been very good for us. Now Mexico is the biggest importer of U.S. pork, alternating with Japan. What we started back then has been a tremendous asset for the pork industry, which now exports about 25 percent of its production.” When appearing on our July cover, he planned to produce 35,000 hogs in 1998. He succeeded, but the farm has since changed from farrow-to-finish to farrow-to-feeder, with 12,000 sows producing under contract with Protein Sources of Mapleton. Johnson’s brother, sister-in-law, and three full-time employees are involved. No longer an Equity Supply owner, Johnson foresees no difficulty if he were elected to political office. He said, “I can be at the farm part-time doing bookwork on weekends.”
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1998
Maureen Today
Jerry Johnson
Clear with Computers to Superior Edge Jerry Johnson, founder of Superior Edge, a Mankato software company, spends much of his time on airplanes. In a telephone interview while in Washington, D.C., he said, “Superior Edge has 50 to 100 clients nationally. I’m out of town 100 days each year.” This trip was to Washington, D.C., to speak with U.S. Department of Agriculture officials about the company’s products. It’s not Johnson’s first start-up software company. As founder of Clear with Computers in 1983, he appeared on Connect Business Magazine’s May 1998 cover. He said of CWC, “Our customers, many of them global, used our product to help them sell their products and services more effectively.” He and a partner offered an IPO in 2000. Once CWC began trading on NASDAQ, Johnson left the company, but remains in contact with many of the people.
“I keep up with many of them and attended the 30th anniversary party,” he said. “They’re still a significant presence in Mankato, working with large and small customers in an expanded customer base.” After CWC, Johnson founded software company Anlon, which he was involved with for six years. Next came Superior Edge, an enterprise-level software and data company focused on providing technology-based solutions to large organizations. Johnson said, “We’re focused on agriculture, helping analyze data for farmers to help them understand what is going on with their crop—fertility, diseases and other issues that limit yields. The most satisfying aspect is filling a need for customers by inventing new approaches in software.” There also are the personal connections. The Superior Edge team includes Johnson’s daughter, Anne, who develops the company’s patent portfolio, and several former CWC employees.
IN THE NEWS
1998
Lori Hirschboeck began as executive vice president of the Sleepy Eye Chamber, replacing Deb Moldaschel, who became director of development for Sleepy Eye St. Mary’s Schools. 32
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KRIS KATHMANN
The Superior Edge team includes Johnson’s daughter, Anne
1999 Maureen Gustafson Greater Mankato Growth to Gislason & Hunter
When Maureen Gustafson, now marketing director at law firm Gislason & Hunter in New Ulm, graced our January cover, she was president and chief executive officer of Mankato Area Chamber & Convention Bureau, which became Greater Mankato Growth. In 2000, she left there for Mankato Clinic, which provided the largest challenges of her career. Gustafson said over the telephone, “Healthcare is personal and emotional. There are bizarre challenges and image management is difficult to control. When Korey Stringer died of heat exhaustion during Vikings’ training in August 2001, one of our physicians was the team doctor. Sports media were interested, and the doctors who treated him were interviewed.” Gustafson said that after that terrorist attacks on Sept. 11, 2001, “everyone was encouraged to wear red, white and blue.
Special Anniversary Section
IN THE NEWS
1999
Bolton & Menk celebrated 50 years in business. One supervisor insisted an employee remove a red, white, and blue ribbon corsage because it didn’t meet dress code. That made national news, and I answered 1,000 email messages.” In 2005, Gustafson joined Coughlan Companies, marketing books nationwide through book launches, author events, and library conventions. Three years later, Gustafson, whose adult daughter has Down syndrome, began managing a St. Paul program and obtaining funds in cooperation with State Sen. Kathy Sheran to mentor, coach, and arrange internships for people with mental and physical disabilities. When the economy affected grant funding, Gustafson moved to Gislason & Hunter, where she handles corporate entertaining, educational seminars, corporate giving, and image management for four Minnesota offices and one in Iowa. She said, “My current job is the most fun, but my favorite was my time with Mankato Area Chamber and Convention Bureau— the right people, the right time, and a good economy.”
2000 Jeanne Votca Carpenter
Shandwick International to Perception INK Mankato native Jeanne Votca Carpenter dreams, lives, and breathes public relations. After a public relations and advertising stint at the Star-Tribune, she was senior vice-president of business development in Bloomington for Shandwick International (now Weber Shandwick), the world’s number three public relations firm. As the brand ambassador, she told the agency story, partnered with sister agencies, and developed new national business. She appeared on our November cover. In 2003, she became executive vice president and public relations director for Twin Cities ad agency Preston Kelly, but left to hang out her own shingle in 2005 with Perception INK, in the Minneapolis warehouse district, near the Twins’ ballpark. She said in an interview, “I work with a former Shandwick colleague, Dixie Berg. She was my cheerleader, leaving my voice mail messages saying I could do this.” Perception INK’s public relations services and corporate marketing specialty is executive visibility, such as profiled articles in print and arranging for CEOs to do public speaking. Votca
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IN THE NEWS
IN THE NEWS
2000
An initial public offering of Firepond stock occurred February 3.
Carpenter’s classic success story of executive visibility has been her work for Dan and Angie Bastian of North Mankato-based Angie’s Kettle Corn. Votca Carpenter said, “We took it all the way to the Martha Stewart show in New York. You need a good story with three cylinders to share and they have it. The business began in their garage. It’s an all-natural product made in a dairy- and nut-free environment, with four basic ingredients. The third cylinder is it’s gluten-free. The product was launched (2010-11) when the gluten-free issue was in the public eye. Dan and Angie told their story so well, showing Martha Stewart how to make kettle corn.”
2001
United Farmers Cooperative in Lafayette built the world’s largest wireless Internet network by placing radio dishes atop cooperative grain bins in Nicollet and Le Sueur Counties. Dennis Today
2001 SUBMITTED PHOTO: JANA HINOSA
Dennis Miller
Midwest Wireless to Consulting In our March cover story, Dennis Miller, then Midwest Wireless president/CEO, said he didn’t think wireless phones would replace landlines. His opinion hasn’t changed over the last 13 years. “It’s still true,” he said while speaking over a wireless telephone. “Wireless phones and landlines are not mutually exclusive. Voice communication is becoming an application. There will always be hard-wired connections and wireless connections. There will never be an end of the landline as we know it, because it’s more expensive to move a large amount of data through wireless networks.” Describing himself as semi-retired, Miller gave a telephone interview from his winter home in Palm Springs, California. His current activities keep his fingers in the telecommunications pie through Mavericks Wireless, his solely owned limited liability company. He said, “I’m doing consulting in the telecommunications industry with telephone companies and wireless companies. I also sit on several boards of directors, including New Ulm Telecom, Coughlan Companies, Jordan Sands, which is a division of Coughlan Companies, Luma, which is a Twin Cities technology company, and several non-profit boards.” Semi retirement provides Miller with time to enjoy friends and family while allowing him to stay current in the telecom34
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munications field, remaining a part of the industry by working more in strategy than operation. None of this, however, replaces the excitement he had helping grow Midwest Wireless through 2005. That’s the year industry consolidation began rapidly occurring. Miller and the Midwest Wireless board realized they would have to gain scale, be part of something larger, or sell. And that’s when his adrenalin rush ended. Miller said, “If I could stop the clock at 2005, I’d do it in a minute.”
2002 Bob Gunther
MN Representative When appearing on our March cover as “Mr. Whipple goes to Washington,” State Rep. Bob Gunther (Fairmont) co-owned two grocery stores. Both have closed since Walmart arrived in Fairmont.
Special Anniversary Section
IN THE NEWS
2002
Groundbreaking occurred for a new Harvest States soybean processing plant in Fairmont. His wife, Nancy, manages the family business, Martin County Express, and they employ 16 bus drivers. The Republican “Mr. Whipple,” representing House District 23A since 1995, is second in seniority in the Minnesota House. Gunther, who served on the Chicano Latino Affairs Council in the 1990s, counts among his legislative successes the passage of last year’s bill to help minorities develop small businesses. He said despite extremes on both sides of the legislative aisles, state politicians are more cooperative than those on the national scene. For our 20th anniversary special, Gunther said, “During a 15day bus trip last year, Minnesota Democrats and Republicans got along when they toured prisons, state colleges, and state-owned land together. When I was chairman of the Jobs Committee and the Human Services Committee, which merged for two years, I assigned members of my committee according to their interests and abilities, regardless of party affiliation. I asked Democrat Tim Mahoney of East St. Paul to be in charge of bioscience and bioenergy. Another Democrat, Nora Slawick, who knew and cared most about the ECFE program and sliding-scale childcare, was in charge of that.” Gunther favors balancing the state budget by creating jobs so more people pay taxes—rather than increasing existing taxes or cutting government spending. He believes despite party differences, the Minnesota legislature works. He said, “Most economic development programs I had Republicans work on, the Democrats could vote against anything I brought up, but we (still) got a lot accomplished.”
2003 Louise Dickmeyer
Nonprofit Innovations to People Driven Performance Louise Dickmeyer describes her career as eclectic. Her story began in 1988 with Dickmeyer employed by Valley Industrial Development Corporation. As executive director five years later, she focused on attracting the wireless industry to the Mankato area. She became the national marketing director of Scholarship Management Services (division of Scholarship America) in 1998, helping the organization gain visibility and MARCH/APRIL 2014
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IN THE NEWS
2003
Snell Motors opened an indoor auto center at 1900 Madison Avenue. increase its client base of large corporations that developed scholarship programs for employees’ children. In late 1999, she was recruited to merge the rival Minneapolis and Bloomington Chambers of Commerce into the Minneapolis Regional Chamber of Commerce—and to coordinate “life after merger.” Dickmeyer founded Nonprofit Innovations in 2003. She appeared on our cover in July. Her new company helped nonprofits increase revenue, reconstitute leadership, and focus on taking their work to the next level. Working with what is now Greater Mankato Growth, she helped establish Vikings Training Camp. She had been with Taylor Corporation’s Strategic Accounts Group two years when she received a 2006 telephone call from Denny Dotson, now retired from the Dotson Company.
“When Denny initially talked to me about People Driven Performance, it was a challenge to leave Taylor Corporation for a start-up company,” “When Denny initially talked to me about People Driven Performance, it was a challenge to leave Taylor Corporation for a start-up company,” said Dickmeyer. She became one of four partners in a system of internal communication for non-desk employees. She said, “We use software and touch screen hardware. We have 40 client sites in nine states in manufacturing, healthcare, banking, auto dealership, etc. It’s a different job every month, and I’ve always enjoyed doing something different.”
2004 Mary Ellen Domeier New Ulm Area Catholic Schools to Retirement
At 72, Mary Ellen Domeier of New Ulm has left the workforce. After her May 2004 cover interview, she completed a threeyear stint with New Ulm Area Catholic Schools and served on the boards of American 36
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IN THE NEWS
2004
Wells was one of only two Minnesota cities named by Federal Home Loan Bank of Des Moines as a “Capital Community” for its “forward thinking and unique approaches to remaining viable.” Artstone, New Ulm Telecom, and Bank Midwest. Now she serves only on a Bank Midwest advisory board. In her career, she was a long-time Frandsen Bank & Trust executive, Minnesota Bankers Association president, and U.S. Federal Reserve advisor.
Relationships have jumped to the top of my priority list. It’s all about savoring. I spent my life tasting and experimenting with this and that, which gave me a wealth of knowledge and experience. Now I’m trying to use that knowledge and experience in a different way. In a telephone interview, she said, “At first, I felt a sense of loss (in retiring). When having a career, you sort of identify yourself with your corporate achievements or work. After a transition, I found I’m doing just fine. I love savoring time I have with elderly siblings, family members, friends, children, and grandchildren, including some grandchildren going to college. Three years ago, I nearly lost my spouse of 52 years. Relationships have jumped to the top of my priority list. It’s all about savoring. I spent my life tasting and experimenting with this and that, which gave me a wealth of knowledge and experience. Now I’m trying to use that knowledge and experience in a different way. I’m volunteering with New Ulm Retail Development Corporation, New Ulm Chamber, Oak Hills Memorial Foundation, and numerous church and diocesan commissions. Besides people she knew in business, she said, “I miss the adrenaline rush that came with being involved in new projects, such as a purchase or merger. The biggest adrenaline rush has been Bank Midwest coming to New Ulm. I still do consulting for them. They are an ESOP (employee-owned). About ten years ago, when I started working with them, I realized the culture they had and their commitment to communities was exactly would I would be doing if I were starting a bank.”
Special Anniversary Section
IN THE NEWS
2005
Gov. Tim Pawlenty helped dedicate the Southern Minnesota Educational Campus in Fairmont, which houses Presentation College and other institutions.
2005
Jay Weir
Glen Taylor
Taylor Corporation Our September cover story has a life today that “just keeps rolling on into the future and I never know where that will lead me,” said Taylor Corporation Founder Glen Taylor in a Connect Business Magazine interview. Today, North Mankato-based Taylor Corporation oversees more than 100 companies worldwide and about 8,800 employees, with 4,000 in Minnesota. He said, “At one time, I thought perhaps I would be spending more time in retirement, but in fact found I love all the work I do, such as with my businesses, helping with the Minnesota Timberwolves, and helping others in need. I love being with my grandchildren. I have a very happy and busy life, one that has so many different things that keep my life interesting at all times.” As for helping others in need, he said, “We have done a number of missions trips through Starkey, the hearing aid company, and owner and friend Bill Austin. We have taken free hearing aids over to schools for the deaf, with the most recent being a trip to China, where we were able there to help thousands of children and senior adults. In China, we had university students as interpreters and assistants. Because of the Internet, by our second day, these students knew who I was, that I had the Minnesota Timberwolves, and they knew everything about the Timberwolves. Of course, so many of the young women were talking about Ricky
IN THE NEWS
2006
Mark Davis of Davisco Foods International earned the National Cheese Institute’s Laureate Award.
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Rubio. The young men knew all about professional basketball and the players on the team—and here I was in China, on a missions trip, on the other side of the world. In the evenings, the students wanted to learn more about the United States and some still communicate with me. Even though I’m in my 70s, I’m still continually learning. No matter where I go or what I do, there is always more to learn.”
Glenn Stolt, CEO, Christensen Farms
2006 Bob Christensen Our May 2006 cover prematurely passed away of a heart attack in November 2012, while hunting in Kansas with friends and his 14-year-old son. Bob Christensen enjoyed spending time with his son, who was involved in competitive marksman tournaments across the country, and his daughter, who participated in horse riding competitions. Glenn Stolt, now chief executive officer of Sleepy Eye-based Christensen Farms, one of the world’s largest privately owned pork producers, said, “When I first heard the news (about Bob), I was in shock, but I also realized we needed to act. With a company our size of 1,000 employees, we have customers, lenders, contract growers, employees, and a whole host of stakeholders that would hear this news rapidly. It was important to convey
7yrs
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Christensen Farms
our sincere condolences to the family and to communicate the business was going to move forward. At the end of the day, people didn’t have to worry about their job security or the supply
64yrs
34yrs
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76yrs
Special Anniversary Section of pork. They could just focus on their recognition of Bob as a legendary and visionary leader within Christensen Farms and the industry. We are one of the nation’s largest family-owned pork production companies.” A few days after Bob’s passing, the Christensen family and company board asked Stolt to assume the role of interim chief executive officer. He said, “I am blessed with a supportive and capable management team. We’re focused on driving the business forward and never forgetting and recognizing Bob’s contributions and leadership. The Christensen family, from the start, has not wavered in their commitment to move the business forward. We have a collection of industry veterans that know the pig business very well.”
Jerry Bambery Today
2007 Jerry Bambery
BAMCO to Retirement
KRIS KATHMANN
In March, we featured founder Jerry Bambery of Mankatobased BAMCO, which owned (and still owns) five McDonald’s franchises, including ones in Northfield and Faribault, and three in Mankato. In an interview, Bambery said, “When selling BAMCO, I said I’d retire when my mind would start to go. Then someone said my mind had started to go some time ago. I have told people I haven’t retired, only re-treaded, which occurred after Marilu and I passed our (BAMCO) holdings on to our daughters Colleen
Matthew C. Berger
Gislason & Hunter LLP is pleased to announce
has been named a partner with the firm. Mr. Berger received his Juris Doctor, magna cum laude in 2007 from the University of St. Thomas School of Law. Prior to joining Gislason & Hunter as an associate in 2008, he served as a law clerk for the Minnesota Supreme Court. He will be practicing in the New Ulm office focusing on agriculture Law, banking and appellate and civil litigation. Matthew C. Berger 507-354-3111 mberger@gislason.com www.gislason.com MARCH/APRIL 2014
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and Keri in 2009. Since then, I’ve been on a journey to better discover who I am, my true self. I’ve been getting good feedback from others, making appropriate adjustments, and continuing to discover who or what I was meant to be.” He said his life’s passion hasn’t changed since growing up. “My parents and siblings, both professionally and personally, were about service to others, each in their own way. I’ve been involved with the founder of Kids Against Hunger, who has demonstrated a passion could be put into practice to make a difference. I’ve joined a new company, Linked Cause, which has the basic goals of feeding starving and hungry people, and providing clean water and shelter for those needing it. These are fundamentals all people need for a dignified existence. All of these are part of Richard Proudfit’s passion. I’m an under-the-radar advocate for Linked Cause and have a passion for these causes.” Is he intense and driven? “People say I am,” he added. “My true intentions don’t always come out the right way, which is why I can upset people. I try to be better each day. There was a time when I was with McDonalds when I didn’t think I could do well without feeling guilty about something. I’m different now. I challenge the
IN THE NEWS
2007
Kim Foels of Interiors Plus Decorating Center was named the new Waseca Chamber president.
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status quo and have made a commitment to change.”
2008 Brian Paulsen
Paulsen Architects to I&S Group In March, our cover story featured Brian Paulsen, whose Mankato architectural firm had designed some of southern Minnesota’s most high-profile buildings. On October 10, 2013, Paulsen Architects
“We had a successful firm. It wasn’t like we had a for-sale sign on our door. Chad (Surprenant, with I&S Group) approached us out of the blue.” merged into I&S Group. Everyone wants to know why. He said to Connect Business Magazine, “We had a successful firm. It wasn’t like we had a for-sale sign on our door. Chad (Surprenant, with I&S Group) approached us out of the blue. I was a bit apprehensive at first, but the more I thought, the more I realized this was an opportunity for us to be with a larger
WHERE BUSINESS PEOPLE CONNECT
Special Anniversary Section organization that had a regional presence.” In the year prior, Paulsen and wife Tami had already been discussing possible exit strategies. Paulsen said, “And we were looking at those alternatives when Chad called. A metro area firm had been interested in acquiring us. I had killed that idea because there were no guarantees the jobs would stay here. Joining I&S Group allowed my staff members better opportunities for not only creating great architecture and interior design, but also for professional growth. I am now director of architecture, and a principal, and will be at I&S Group five years. When the sale became final on October 10, after signing the papers, we hit the send button to Red Door Creative to transmit the press release. Within minutes, my inbox had about 30 supportive responses.” Paulsen Architects designed Midwest Wireless corporate headquarters, Mankato Public Safety Center, Blue Earth County Justice Center, Rosa Parks Elementary, and the renovations of Old Main and Mankato Depot. Now with I&S Group, former Paulsen Architect employees are continuing to move forward with Kyle Smith and Tailwind Group, especially on the new Profinium Place project. He added, “Finally, my wife Tami was one big reason for
IN THE NEWS
2008
Bizjournals named Greater Mankato a “dream town,” ranking it seventh among 140 micropolitan areas.
Paulsen Architects’ success. She has moxie at marketing, brand recognition, and strategic planning. And she encouraged our staff to become more involved in the community.”
2009 Tom Rosen
Rosen’s Diversified In 2009, Fairmont-based Rosen’s Diversified was No. 184 on the Forbes 500 list of private corporations, just ahead of Taylor Corporation. It was the nation’s fifth largest beef processor. In a telephone interview, Chief Executive Officer Tom Rosen shared his concern about what he believes has been hurting the Minnesota economy. He said, “Our company has been in business in Minnesota since 1946. We’ve grown a lot over the last few years and now have more than $3 billion in annual revenues. However, I’m very concerned about the future of doing business in Minnesota and where the state is heading, especially Greater Minnesota. We don’t have a good business climate, and the climate became worse last legislative session. We are 48th now in overall business climate. It’s going to be rough in this state moving forward.” He added, “I like Minnesota, but we are not competitive because of all the taxes and estate taxes they are pushing on us. I never thought I would see it. A lot of my friends have left the state. I worry about what this state will look like in ten years. It’s
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IN THE NEWS
Jennifer Pfeffer Today
2009
hard to get businesses here and harder to keep businesses here. When they talk about taxing the rich, the rich will just leave. I get calls and letters from South Dakota, Iowa, and Wisconsin. We don’t need to be the No. 1 state for business, just No. 25 or 26. We can’t be No. 48 because it’s a competitive world.” Rosen’s Diversified has facilities in Ohio, Nebraska, Iowa, Wisconsin, Minnesota, South Dakota, Oklahoma, Texas, Missouri, and Kansas. Of all those states, Rosen said South Dakota had the best business climate, followed perhaps by Wisconsin, which has improved lately. Rosen said, “(Wisconsin has) become pro-business and is willing to work with you. These states around Minnesota are becoming more aggressive. They realize companies can move.”
2010 Jennifer Pfeffer Pathstone Living
She was executive director of 225-employee Pathstone Living in Mankato and regional director of $120 million Ecumen in 2010. Now in 2014, and still in those roles, she has some exciting news. In a telephone interview, she said, “It’s exciting what our company has done the last three years. We started a program called Awakenings, which has been a huge initiative in fifteen of our sixteen facilities to decrease the use of anti-psychotic medications among residents. As a company, we have discontinued over a thousand anti-psychotic medication prescriptions. These drugs don’t work well on the elderly and we have found wonderful alternatives to those medications, such as aromatherapy, more exercise, different activities, and trying to get to know the person better and listening to what’s important to them.” As an example, she said, “One resident before taking her bath would always get extremely anxious, to the point we had been almost unable to bathe her. Then we learned she loved classical music. So a half hour before her bath, we started playing classical music in her room and then taking that music along with her to 42
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Southern Minnesota Advocates and Mankato YWCA established the “Kathie Davis Scholarship,” which will be awarded to selected participants in the Elizabeth Kearney Women’s Leadership Program.
her bathing room. She was calm during the bath, so much so we no longer needed medication. The side effects with anti-psychotic medication can be significant and the alternatives have proven much better. Our residents are doing fabulous. It’s the right thing to do. We started this program with a Minnesota Department of Human Services grant and have received national attention for our work.” Personally, both her sons will be married in 2014. One son works for US Bank in commercial loans and the other started SendHub, a business in Palo Alto, California. Pfeffer has been working on a national committee with the National Administrators Boards, and will be the Mankato YMCA president in 2014.
2011 Marty Davis Cambria
Marty Davis in November was featured as president/CEO of Le Sueur-based Cambria, and with the Davis family team that owned Davisco Foods International and Sun Country Airlines. Davis has deep St. Peter roots. In a telephone interview, he talked about his high school reunion: “I graduated from St. Peter High class of ’83 and we had our 30th high school reunion last July. The most interesting part was realizing people really don’t change that much. It was refreshing seeing people that had been a big part of my life. At the reunion, I met up with an old
Special Anniversary Section
IN THE NEWS
NON-EMERGENCY MEDICAL TRANSPORTATION
2010
New Ulm Medical Center won a $250,000 federal grant for its Health Initiative. classmate and ultimately hired him. We hadn’t seen each other in twenty years. With some people you picked up right where you left off thirty years ago. I visited with Wanda Tate, Denny Blaschko, John Brekke, Chris Burg, and others. Jeff Leonard hosted the event. We played golf, and had dinner at Shoreland and a bonfire.”
“We hadn’t seen each other in twenty years. With some people you picked up right where you left off thirty years ago.”
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The St. Peter alums reminisced about teachers and coaches, including Ed Rundell, one of Davis’ favorites. “Mr. Rundell had a very strong personality,” said Davis. “With him, you had to turn in your daily algebra assignments on time. Hardly anyone crossed that line. One kid, a good student and one you wouldn’t expect, didn’t do his homework one day. Mr. Rundell had no patience and dismissed him in front of the class. He was kind enough to show the kid where the door was by assisting his exit from the room. You didn’t come to his class late or without your homework completed. He was teaching algebra and you were going to learn. Mr. Rundell, Mr. Miller, Mr. Harvey, and others, sometimes scolded us harshly. They were uncompromising in their discipline. They don’t let teachers now discipline with any contact, but in our day they could. The way they disciplined helped us get with it, and certainly helped me grow into the person I am today—the good parts anyway.”
2012 Dan and Angie Bastian Angie’s Kettle Corn
This couple began in 2002 making and marketing tasty popcorn cooked in a kettle. It became Angie’s Kettle Corn of North Mankato. By 2012, they were sharing the honor MARCH/APRIL 2014
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IN THE NEWS
BRAVO JEFF ON 20 YEARS OF SUCCESS AND COMMITMENT Congratulations Jeff on your vision, leadership and commitment to the success of a publication that adds great value to Southern Minnesota. Experience the Eide Bailly difference—visit our website to learn more. www.eidebailly.com
Forbes ranked HickoryTech No. 83 on its “Best Small Companies in America” Top 100 list. of being our Business Person of the Year. In a Connect Business Magazine interview, Angie recently shared one of their company’s proudest moments. She said, “Last year, we created a special Pink Ribbon bag, like many food companies do, to honor breast cancer awareness month. We donated a portion of the proceeds of the sale of every bag of Angie’s Kettle Corn. What was important to me in creating the campaign was in trying to donate the money raised as close to the research or healthcare piece as possible. Often, food companies create these campaigns and the money goes to a foundation to raise awareness. Bastian was on the Mayo Health System Foundation board. A Foundation development officer directed her to a Mayo Clinic research team working on the genetic mapping of breast cancer. Said Bastian, “I met with a researcher, who explained in an hour what Mayo Clinic was doing to understand aggressive breast cancers and provide individualized treatment to each patient. What I came to understand about their work was it would be monumental if they were successful. It would change the way breast cancers were treated.” She continued, “There was a moment of pride when we cut a $25,000 check to the BEAUTY project of the Center for Individualized Medicine at Mayo Clinic in Rochester. Every single Angie’s Kettle Corn employee had a role in creating this charitable donation, everyone who touched, checked, and filled those bags. We have 200 employees now. They all knew what we were doing and why, and could all celebrate with us the fact we had been able to give. In terms of our business, last year (our twelfth) our revenue grew by 96 percent. We added about 40 employees in 2013. It was incredibly challenging growing by that much.”
2013 Mary Jeanne and Gary Jernberg Mary Jeanne and Dr. Gary Jernberg landed on our July cover. Mary Jeanne and her son co-owned nine Subway franchises, and Gary, besides owning Southern Minnesota Periodontics, had invented the 44
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2012
Special Anniversary Section
IN THE NEWS
2013
A 162,000 sq. ft. Menard’s Mega Store opened near the Walmart Super Store in New Ulm. antibiotic Arestin and been involved with Boston Scientific. In an interview, Gary said his projects have been progressing well, but not all his projects over the years have been success stories. He said, “For example, my wife and I had an MSU student from the People’s Republic of China live with us about 20 years ago. This was when Mary Jeanne was the graduate school director. This young man was getting his MBA and was an electrical engineer. After graduating, he wanted to return to China to help elevate people’s standards of living there. He asked me, Is there anything you can think of that might help me do this? We talked some
We had really needed a person based in China. I learned a lot from the experience, including that what we perceived as important to them in many cases was not.
yo
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more, and came up with the idea of setting up a company that could involve technology transfers of everything from low-grade technology, pharmaceutical, and consumer products to energy and pollution products to help with their developing pollution problems. We set up a small company in the early ‘90s and then went to China, where we met with business and government leaders. The Chinese really wanted investment from our end, but we just weren’t able to do it. We tried hard getting the company going, but the effort failed, and we closed the corporation. We had really needed a person based in China. I learned a lot from the experience, including that what we perceived as important to them in many cases was not. It was a humbling experience. As a follow-up, the Chinese student ended up becoming a successful businessman in China, heading up an international investment company. He learned from the experience, too.
IN THE NEWS
2014
Former President Jon Rippke retired after 40 years with Bolton & Menk. Comment on this story at connectbiz.com MARCH/APRIL 2014
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HOT STARTZ!
Very New or Re-formed Businesses or Professionals New To Our Reading Area
Mankato Career Solutions In November 2013, 44-year-old Mary Beth Sinclair began Mankato Career Solutions at 515 North Riverfront Drive. She graduated from Mankato Loyola, and learned her work ethic from her father, a Blue Earth County prosecutor’s office attorney, and her mother, an assistant over 20 years to three science and engineering deans at Minnesota State Mankato. In a Connect Business Magazine telephone interview, she said, “After graduating from St. Cloud State as an English major in 1992, I decided after student teaching that I really didn’t want to teach.” She went on to major in criminal law at the University of Baltimore School of Law, where she had hopes of turning a law degree into a long career as an FBI field agent. She said, “After I passed the Maryland bar, the FBI said I needed to work a year before applying with them because they wanted me in the real world for a year. I fell into recruiting that year and never looked back.” She took a position working in the legal division of Robert Haft International in Minneapolis, a staffing company, where she worked from 1998-2009. She then started her own attorney recruiting company, LawgicSearch, and LawgicResume & Career Solutions. Mankato Career Solutions is her third company. Her local business has two emphases: “First, I help area businesses find mid- to senior-level talent. I’m a recruiter in all business areas, including accounting, finance, engineering,
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sales, legal, human resources, and general business. The other aspect is helping professionals and college students with job search strategies, including resume writing.” Asked what she enjoyed most about her business, she said, “The most satisfying thing is helping people find jobs and companies find talent—particularly exposing companies to people who might not have been actively looking for work. That’s where I add value.” She said companies in this area right now are particularly searching for engineers. MANKATO CAREER SOLUTIONS Telephone: 507-469-9846 Web: mankatocareersolutions.com
ART SIDNER
MANKATO
Comment on Hot Startz! at connectbiz.com
SLEEPY EYE
Farm Bureau Financial Services
ART SIDNER
Sister and brother team Randi and Mike Wise, ages 26 and 33, respectively, became Farm Bureau Financial Services agents at 135 Main Street West in October 2013. Both Randi and Mike graduated from New Ulm High. In a telephone interview, Mike said, “We grew up in Lafayette, where my grandfather owned the bank. My father worked there, and still does. It was purchased by Citizen’s Bank Minnesota.” After high school, Mike earned in 2000 an associate’s degree in computer programming. He worked for Mankato-based Norsoft four years and Ad Associates in New Ulm another four years. In 2009, he went full-time with his own company, Notion IT, in which he became the IT department for smaller companies that didn’t have one. He has sold that company to Thriveon. Randi graduated from Minnesota State Mankato in 2009 with a bachelor’s degree in finance. She worked for the co-op in Hanska before joining an independent insurance agent for two years. Randi and Mike had always gotten along well and had kicked around the idea of working together. Mike said, “Then a long-time Farm Bureau agent in Sleepy Eye passed away. We knew the Farm Bureau agent in New Ulm and he approached me. We officially opened our office on October 1, 2013, after our training.” According to Mike, Farm Bureau Financial Services is a multi-line company providing all kinds of insurance, including home, auto, life, health, business, farm and ranch, and invest-
ments, from mutual funds and retirement funding to estate strategies. He said, “People often think we do only farms, but we insure people in town. In fact, I was a Farm Bureau policy holder a few years before I became an agent.” Of Randi, Mike said, “I admire her dedication. She always has been one to go to bat for you, going above and beyond what duty calls. In insurance, things happen all hours. We are available all hours, not just 9-5.” FARM BUREAU FINANCIAL SERVICES Telephone: 507-794-4421 Websites: michaelwise.fbfs.com or randiwise.fbfs.com
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Very New or Re-formed Businesses or Professionals New To Our Reading Area
WASECA
Amy Borneke Amy Borneke has lived in Waseca her entire life. At 41, in August 2013, she earned her real estate license and began with Century 21 First Choice. In a telephone interview, Borneke said, “I grew up with three siblings and we always had a busy household. The basics of family and love carried us through all of life’s good and bad times. Everyone—neighbors and family friends—liked to congregate at our home because it had a positive atmosphere.” Her father worked various manufacturing jobs in town, and her mother was a stay-at-home mom who had cleaning jobs on the side. From them, Borneke said she learned to believe in herself. After graduating from Waseca High in 1990, she worked in retail management for seven years, including being the manager of a Levi’s store at Medford Outlet Center, where she enjoyed the fast-pace environment and meeting new people. Knowing she eventually would have children, she switched careers to office jobs, including working for ProStaff and later Waseca County, as a financial worker. While at the latter, she had one child and had another on the way when deciding to become a stay-at-home mom. She said, “Then I started doing some management work on the side with rental properties I had. That led to me being con-
tacted by Century 21 First Choice and I earned my real estate license this summer. I really enjoy helping people who have a dream of finding or purchasing a home. Mainly I’m in it for the people. I also really enjoy interior design and decorating, and seeing the different characteristics of homes. The flexibility of this career is wonderful in terms of being a mom.” She advised people selling their homes to de-clutter and organize to make spaces seem bigger and more open. She said smaller updates—not necessarily full remodels—are always good to consider, as well as paint colors. AMY BORNEKE, CENTURY 21 FIRST CHOICE Telephone: 507-390-5241 Office: 217 Elm Avenue East
FIRST CHOICE
To be considered for one of three spots in the March Hot Startz!, 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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SUBMITTED PHOTO
HOT STARTZ!
PRESS RELEASES
To submit a press release for publication:
Email: editor@connectbiz.com Fax: 507-232-3373
www.jetterclean.com Roots
Fairmont Bryan Sweet, Sweet Financial Services, and his team were named the #1 Raymond James Financial Services office in Minnesota. Brandon J. Edmundson is an associate attorney at Kramer & Shaffer, Ltd. The City of Fairmont, Bolton & Menk, and Southern Minnesota Construction received the 2013 Merit Award for Bituminous Surfacing in the Key Airport Category from the Minnesota Department of Transportation. From the Chamber: new members include Wendt Photography (Sherburn), 2SmartWomen, Lori Henning and Mary Iliff, owners, (Lakefield), Hugoson Pork (Granada), Align Chiropractic & Acupuncture, Dr. Zephanie Skow, and Green Plains LLC, John Richardson, plant manager; Eunoia Family Resource Center is partnering with
FAIRMONT
3M In November the 3M site reached one million hours without a lost time incident, nearly four years in the making
a telemedicine company to provide mental health care services; Marco was selected as a 2013 Elite Dealer by The Week in Imaging and acquired Trust Technology Services, Bemidji; and Courtney Cutler, SPHR, joined HR Advisors as a human resources consultant.
Lake Crystal Greg Dunker is manufacturing manager at Crysteel Manufacturing. Daniel Vance MS, LPC, opened a counseling practice in the Deal Family Chiropractic building at 101 West Robinson.
Le Sueur From the Chamber: The Retail & Business Expo runs 3-8 p.m., Friday March 21 at Valleygreen Square Mall; the Le Sueur News-Herald won first place for editorial page and for general excellence in the 2012-13 Minnesota Newspaper Association Better Newspaper Contest; Kacie Karels joined the Le Sueur News-Herald as customer service representative and media sales consultant; new business is Haemig Family Dentistry, Karl Haemig, DDS, 304 Valleygreen Square; John Kissock is manager at Verizon Wireless; Groggy’s Liquor Store moved to 601 Slack Drive; and the Chamber Golf Outing begins 1 p.m., May 19, at Le Sueur Country Club.
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Commercial Industrial Agricultural Properties MARCH/APRIL 2014
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PRESS RELEASES
Madelia Luther Memorial Home named Rana Nelson as the new Director of Social Services. Mackenzie Alberts is an intern at Sturm Funeral Home, Pilgrim Chapel.
Mankato
Call Karla VanEman today! (507) 345-4040
Mankato Marathon Charities added Camp Sweet Life to its list of recipients. Cold Stone Creamery, franchise operators Nate and Tara Kasprowicz, celebrated 10 years in Mankato. I&S Group was recognized with an “Honor Award for Engineering Excellence” for the Sibley Park Apartments from the Minnesota Chapter of the American Council of Engineering Companies. Eide Bailly audit associate Brandon Zabel passed the CPA exam; recent hires include Michelle Jacobson, tax manager, and Maureen Eustice, accounting services; new interns are Anthony May, audit department, and Kyle Krause, Skyler Stensrud and Sara Ptacek, tax department. Enventis board of directors declared a quarterly dividend of 15 cents per share on HickoryTech common stock; Darren Peterson is product marketing vice president; and the company gave Ecumen-Pathstone Living $2,000 for an electronic library and $2,500 to the Mankato YWCA for Walking in Two Worlds-Ready to Learn program. New partners in Farrish Johnson Law Office are Patrick J. Casey and Daniel L. Bellig. Feeding Our Communities Partners
MANKATO
Manahan & Bluth Law Office Joseph Bluth was selected to be in Best Lawyers in America 2014 edition and has been designated a “Super Lawyer” by Minnesota Super Lawyers each year since 2003.
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distributed more than 500 boxes of food to students in five elementary schools for winter break through the BackPack Food Program. YWCA Mankato is partnering with Fusion Life & Leadership, owned by Sara Sinnard, to bring programming to girls in grades 3-12. I&S Group Director of Architecture Bryan Paulsen is the first Greater Minnesota president of the American Institute of Architects Minnesota Minneapolis Chapter; and environmental scientist David Kuhlmann joined I&S. Junior Achievement of Greater Mankato chose MinnStar Bank Vice President David Thompson for the Bronze Leadership Award. New owners of the Kato Entertainment Center are Tania and James Cordes. Adult Basic Education Program Coordinator Bev Mountain, Mankato Area Public Schools, received the Martin Luther King, Jr. Commemorative Board Pathfinder Award; and the Mankato East Student Council Executive Board received the Young Pathfinder Award. Jan Eliot, creator of the Stone Soup comic strip, created an illustration for Habitat for Humanity’s Cars for Homes donation program; Habitat received $10,350 from Modern Woodmen Fraternal Financial. Leonard, Street and Deinard was named one of the “2014 Go-To Law Firms at the Top 500 Companies” by legal news outlet ALM. The Mankato Symphony Orchestra received a National Endowment for the Arts grant to support its May concert featuring music from Central America, Spain and Brazil. Minnesota Business named Marco, Inc. CEO Jeff Gau a finalist in the 2014 Community Impact Awards; and Marco acquired Twin Cities-based TelePro Communications, Inc. James H. Dauk, CPA and shareholder at Milbrett, Dauk & Co., passed the Series 7 and Series 66 exams and is a registered representative with Cetera Financial Specialists. Kari Suzuki, Otto Bremer Foundation director of operations, is Minnesota Council of Foundations vice chair. Chris Harstad is a PresenceMaker marketing advisor.
MANKATO
Edward Jones For the 19th time, Edward Jones ranked #1 in WealthManagement.com/REP magazine’s annual survey of the nation’s six largest financial services firms. Michael Schulenberg, Prosthetic Laboratories, is now an ABC Board Certified Prosthetist/Orthotist. John Rozalez, S&S Thermo Dynamics, received the Mankato Area Council for Quality Above and Beyond award. Snell Power Sports & Equipment was selected by Bombadier Recreational Products to carry Sea-Doo personal watercrafts and Spyder roadsters, making Snell PSE a full-line BRP dealer. Southern Minnesota Initiative Foundation gave a small enterprise loan to KM&R Snow Removal, Good Thunder, to provide snow removal for churches, businesses and private home driveways in the Mankato/ North Mankato area. Barbe Marshall Hansen, Twin Rivers Council for the Arts executive director, resigned as of February 28. Joel Eckberg joined the United Prairie Bank as a senior credit manager. Video Services has moved to 211 Mohr Drive, Suite 100. VINE received $1,700 from Mankato and Key City Sertoma Clubs’ “Celebrate Sound—Don’t Walk in Silence” event. YWCA Mankato 2014 Women of Distinction are Susan Frost, Cheryl Hamond and Julie Hawker; the Distinctive Difference Award goes to Eide Bailly; and the awards event is March 20 at Verizon Wireless Center. From Greater Mankato Growth: New members include Unique Specialty & Classics, Thrivent Financial, Planet Fitness, and Mankato Area 77 Lancers Marching Band Parent Association; and new marketing and communications team members are Amy Linde, director, and Amanda Weldon, assistant; and GMG economic development was featured in
Heartland Real Estate Business Magazine. From Minnesota State Mankato: A new jet training flight simulator will be installed on campus through flight training partner North Star Aviation.
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From the Chamber: new members include Wakefield Pork and Discover Chiropractic. New Chamber board members include Rhonda Ganger, ProGrowth Bank; Nora Wilking, Schmidt’s Meat Market; and Julie Hendrycks, Hendrycks’ 5th Street Apartments.
New Ulm The Area Business Expo will be April 9 at New Ulm Civic Center. Matthew Berger was named a partner in Gislason & Hunter law firm. August Schell Brewing Company’s ale Snowstorm received a gold medal from the Beverage Testing Institute; and Schells released Schell’s Bock and Schmaltz’s Alt in January. From the Chamber: new members include Altmann Repair, Darin Altmann, owner, Farm Bureau Financial Services, Tony Sowder, and Flying Buttress Media video production, Jack Beranek and John Guggisberg, owners; Mike Wise earned the Registered Representative designation with Farm Bureau Financial Services; and the Chamber will host a Leadercast event May 9 at Martin Luther College.
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PRESS RELEASES
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Dr. Susan Tarnowski is South Central College vice president of student and academic affairs. Jordan Sands Director of Project Development Brett Skilbred will serve on the joint Rulemaking Advisory Panel for silica sand rules being considered by the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency, the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources and the Environmental Quality Board. Amanda Gerdts (LMFT) of Footnotes Family Counseling Services addressed the Bethany Lutheran College Psychology Club and will be a featured speaker at the college’s annual Women’s Day.
St. James Tim Krueger is a new emergency department nurse practitioner at Mayo Clinic Health Systems. Marissa Hennen is a reporter for the St. James Plaindealer. From the Chamber: Pioneer Bank acquired Farmers State Bank of Madelia.
St. Peter Dr. Mikkel Haugen has joined St. Peter Family Dental. From the Chamber: new members include Dandelion Rose/The Branch, florist and gift shop, Le Sueur.
Sleepy Eye From the Chamber: Winners in the Christmas Light Decorating Contest were Ed Berkner, first place, and Mary Baumann, second.
Waseca From the Chamber: Winners of the Chamber’s community awards were Kent Schultz, Waseca Boy Scouts Troop #85, Michael Mulcahey, Larry Johnson, Rodney Kolpin, D.D.S., and Rebecca Thompson, D.D.S. 52
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HEINTZ TEAM MEMBER PROFILE
Paul Irmiter Assistant Service Manager
Assistant Service Manager Paul Irmiter began working for Heintz Toyota in 1996. He was raised in Ringsted, Iowa, in a family of 17 children, which included 11 boys and 6 girls. His father was a repair manager in a local John Deere dealership, and his mother, a newspaper columnist.
He said, “Just after 5:00 p.m. recently, I received a telephone call from a long-time Mankato customer who said her car wasn’t starting. I drove over, jumpstarted her car for her, and brought her Toyota Camry back to our dealership in order for our mechanics to make repairs the next day. Then I gave her a ride to where she needed to be that night. We got her car in the next day and made repairs. She told me we had gone above and beyond the call of duty. I have another customer who says we’re like family, like her brother or uncle. That goes for everyone here, including the Service Technicians.”
“I have another customer who says we’re like family, like her brother or uncle. That goes for everyone here, including the Service Technicians.”
Personal: Forty-year-old Paul and wife Ingrid have a daughter, who attends Mankato East. Paul likes being with his family and ice fishing at a number of different lakes—Washington, German, Jefferson, Duck or even Iowa Lake or Spirit Lake.
387-1148 heintztoyota.com Serving Southern Minnesota drivers for 50 years.
NATIONAL OPINION
Does Princeton University professor Paul Krugman have a bank account, check book, credit card, mortgage, or retirement account? In a January New York Times he characterized those who achieve success in the financial sector as “wheeler-dealers, men who push money around and get rich by skimming some off the top as it sloshes by.” But if he is like most Americans, he uses the financial sector every day.
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Of the wheeler-dealers, Krugman writes, “They may boast that they are job creators, the people who make the economy work, but are they really adding value? Many of us doubt it...” Krugman may doubt the financial sector adds value, but government agencies that track the data conclude otherwise. Financiers help the economy at the same time as they help Krugman. According to the Bureau of Economic Analysis, the Finance and Insurance sector contributed $1.1 trillion in value-added to the economy in 2012, or 7 percent of GDP. This includes $435 billion from Federal Reserve banks, credit intermediation, and related activities; $185 billion from securities, commodity contracts, and investments; $413 billion from insurance carriers and related activities; and $46 billion from funds, trusts, and other financial vehicles. Americans had $21.9 trillion in retirement savings at the end of the third quarter of
2013. Of this, $1.9 trillion was in annuity reserves, $5.4 trillion in government plans, $2.9 trillion in private defined benefit plans, $5.6 trillion in defined contribuDiana tion plans, and $6.2 Furchtgott-Roth trillion in individual retirement accounts. To say, as does Krugman, that those who manage funds are less important than “captains of industry,...men who make stuff ” makes little sense. To make stuff, captains of industry need venture capitalists and bankers. For instance, angel investor Mike Markkula brought $250,000 in loans and equity investment to Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak at Apple in 1977, and then arranged for further financing as the company grew. Small companies with big ideas need funding. When US Air wanted to buy American Airlines the company asked investment advisors. When Twitter went public, it went to an investment bank that specialized in initial public offerings. Investment advisors and financial service organizations such as Fidelity, Vanguard, and TIAA-CREF are all in competitive businesses. None has a monopoly. Such competition is one reason Krugman’s description of financiers and venture capitalists as Masters of the Universe does not accord with reality. Treasury data show the Masters do not stay at the top for very long. A study published last month in the National Tax Journal by Treasury economists Gerald Auten, Geoffrey Gee, and Nicholas Turner found that individuals in the top one percent in one year were not the same as those in the top one percent in successive years. Using Internal Revenue Service data from 2000 to 2010, the authors found that about 42 percent of the top 1 percent dropped out after one year. After 6 years, only 27 percent of the original group were still in the top 1 percent. A similar result comes from a separate annual Treasury Department study of the top 400 richest individuals from 1992 to 2009,
last updated in 2012. Just as in the Auten study, the list shows substantial turnover. Data show 3,869 taxpayers were on the list of the top 400 returns from 1992-2009. Only 87 returns, or 2 percent, appeared in 10 or more years. Twenty-seven percent of taxpayers are represented more than once on the list. On average, each year 39 percent of those in the top 400 were not on the list in any other year. Just as it is a myth the same top one percent control America’s economy, it is a myth there is little upward mobility. People move around income quintiles when they start working, when they marry, and when they retire. The movement of women into the workforce has widened the income distribution: the majority of households in the top quintile have two earners. Auten and his coauthors show that 70 percent of dependents of families in the bottom fifth of the income distribution in 1987 were in higher fifths in 2007. Eleven percent jumped to the top fifth, and 20 percent moved to each of the three middle fifths. Historically, in times of economic difficulty, there is resentment towards people who are successful, especially when they are successful for reasons people do not understand. If someone is rich because he is good at making automobiles, then people believe income is deserved because they can see the cars and use them on a day-to-day basis. But financial instruments are different because it is harder to understand how they work. People may not realize the creation and marketing of automobiles requires a financial system. Just as does Krugman, they assume the automobiles and other stuff are made by the captains of industry without any help from banks. In February Krugman will turn 61, a time when some begin thinking about retirement. As with many other universities, Princeton University offers retirement plans to faculty through Vanguard and TIAA-CREF, and a Tax Deferred Annuity Plan and a Life Insurance Plan. Let us hope for Krugman’s sake that some “wheelerdealers” have done a good job managing the funds.
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Diana Furchtgott-Roth writes for the Manhattan Institute. This column first appeared on realclearmarkets.com.
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