March-April 2021 by Connect Business Magazine

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1457 Lookout Drive North Mankato, MN 56003 507-387-2008

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Jill R Berdan

Financial Advisor

1660 Commerce Drive Suite 2 North Mankato, MN 56003 507-625-8452

1400 S Riverfront Dr Suite 100 Mankato, MN 56001 507-385-0305

108 North State New Ulm, MN 56073 507-354-4243

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Mike Leary

Financial Advisor

551 Belle Avenue Suite A Mankato, MN 56001 507-625-7280

1111 E College Drive Ste 1 Marshall, MN 56258 507-532-7306

edwardjones.com Member SIPC

Chris Jensen CFP® AAMS® 700 N Minnesota St Suite C New Ulm, MN 56073 507-354-1234

Financial Advisor

Chris Hoffman CFP® CLU® Financial Advisor 340 Belgrade Ave North North Mankato, MN 56003 507-388-7786

CONTENTS

March | April 2021

6 COVER INTERVIEW

COMPANY PROFILE

Scott Weilage

Midwest IT Systems, Inc.

Schroepfer Inc.

FEATURES

HOT STARTZ!

DEPARTMENTS

Man on a Mission 18

22 31

Leaderboard

Leslie Vermillion, United Prairie Bank

Focus On the Marshall Area Special Collaboration

The Need for Speed: State Task Force Looks for Connectivity for All

For Your Eyes Only NORTH MANKATO

Menari Bodyworks

A True Family Business 28

PEMBERTON

Inspire Health & Wellness MANKATO

The Blue Boat

Connecting Southern Minnesota Business People Since 1994

5 15 47

Editor’s Introduction Connecting Back Ask A Professional

The Canopy Group: Independent Insurance Agencies Providing Options

Connect Business Magazine www.ConnectBiz.com

STAFF & CONTRIBUTORS

CIRCULATION

ADVERTISING

Publisher: Concept & Design Incorporated

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Editor: Lisa Cownie

Published bimonthly

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Art/Photography: Jonathan Smith Contributing Writers: Lauren Deutz, Ashley Hanley, Paul Borchert/Josh Sitzmann/ Cara McCann

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March | April 2021

Information: connectbiz.com/advertising 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, brand design, illustration and photography. Learn more at conceptanddesign.com.

INTRODUCTION

We Made It! As you are reading this, it will be a year since COVID impacted us all, throwing us head first into a year full of starts and stops and uncertainty. As we enter March 2021, though, one thing is for sure…we are stronger than we were in March 2020. Helping people and communities highlight their strengths is Scott Weilage, of Wealth Centers of America. He has been on quite the crusade in both his personal and his professional life. Another profile, Schroepfer Inc., is another story of how very personal experiences propel the business. You won’t want to miss the story of Midwest IT Systems, there seems to be several little surprises sprinkled throughout the story. Hope you are all hanging in there. Onward!

Lisa Cownie EDITOR

Lisa Cownie

M A S C H K A , R I E D Y, R I E S & F R E N T Z L A W F I R M Abbie Olson and Joe Bromeland are experienced lawyers who are here to help with all your business and personal needs. Business Formations Business Disputes Estate Planning Probate Real Estate Matters Land Use/Zoning Issues

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By Lisa Cownie Photos by Jonathan Smith

He’s a man on a mission to be sure. A mission to help others, whether it’s through his professional endeavors or personal relationships. Scott Weilage is a community leader in a number of areas. Weilage hopes to spread a positive message and always hopes to inspire others, while at the same time leading his company, Wealth Centers of America, to new heights. It’s Weilage’s unique perspective that helps him to help others define their own wealth. “It’s much more than money,” Weilage explains. “It is also about health, friendships, community and the spiritual.” With that in mind, Weilage has spent the last 30 years helping folks throughout the region build their own wealth, whatever "wealth” means for them. “We also seem more and more focused on multigenerational planning. Sometimes people think they have to be wealthy before connecting with us but perhaps the opposite is more true. When I am asked ‘Scott, what does Wealth Centers really do?’ My reply is we help people accumulate and grow wealth, then we help families preserve it. With never-ending political uncertainty, economic uncertainty and tax-related uncertainty, people realize like never before the need for an advisor beyond a 1-800 number in the back of your company benefit booklet. You really need a team of a advisors just like your employer in many cases. We can provide that team.” Continues

March | April 2021

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Man On A Mission

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March | April 2021

Weilage’s own journey came from very humble beginnings. “My history begins pretty normal through about sixth grade, when it becomes very humble. That’s when my family moved to an abandoned home – not empty and for sale – but abandoned. Fast forward to me leaving college, and wanting to go to work with my father, who had a background in insurance. At that time, he was right out of a 30-day inpatient alcohol treatment, facing foreclosure, the IRS just cleaned out all his bank accounts and we had no office. I so admire that he didn’t quit and even went on to 40 years of sobriety and counting. At that time we began again with the business by negotiating a lease for a one-room office above the old Phoenix Restaurant in Mankato. I refer to all this as starting at less than zero.” Not deterred by that, Weilage found he had a knack for perhaps knowing how to get his family out of the hole. He learned by doing and now uses what he’s learned in life to pay it forward. “Along the way I have not had many mentors in a traditional sense and had to learn a lot from scratch from trial and error. Perhaps as a result, I’ve tried to reach out to help students better understand entrepreneurship and our industry in particular,” he reflects. “We maintain a great relationship with Minnesota State University-College of Business. While the road often has seemed very long, the blessings continue to outweigh the challenges. I do have to mention a few people, though. I’m certain the compassion and caring I have comes from my mother. My father taught me to never quit no matter what. Looking back, my longtime assistant, Kathy Langdon, gave me perhaps the biggest compliment and boost of confidence one could have starting in business by agreeing to work with me at then age 32. She left a support role with the upper management of a very prominent company at the time called CWC. She bet on me and we have both won for almost 25 years! I’m blessed with a pretty amazing life, in a wonderful relationship, and have a great team at work, a life full of countless and incredible friends, and two great children that I’m so very proud of.” Weilage has fond memories, but is always looking forward. “We are excited about how we might grow the brand even further and expand

Scott Weilage | Mankato the reach of the services we provide. That will be our next very exciting chapter.” You were born and raised in Mankato and I think your love of the community really shows in all your endeavors. I do love the community, as many do. It's just kind of the best of all worlds. I did leave for one year to attend college at the University of Minnesota, Duluth. It was really fun and just a great experience, but after a year I came back home. Let’s just say I didn't get a lot done academically my freshman year, but it was an important time in my life because it was really a confidence-building year for me and my first time stepping out of the smaller community I grew up in. At college no one knew your history and it didn't matter who your parents were and those kind of things. I gained more than you can imagine from just that one-year stint up in Duluth. I grew up really quite humble and poor. At college everyone lived in the same housing for the most part and it leveled the playing field a little bit.

Local partnerships and a sustainable approach to connecting people with parks and trails across the greater Mankato area.

What was your plan when you returned to Mankato after a year? I attended Minnesota State University-Mankato for one more year of college. During this year, my parents were really dealing with a tough period of time. My dad had just gotten out of alcohol treatment, looking at losing their home. There was no office, there was no anything. And back then there were no wealth management-related course curriculum as there is now. I then asked my father, "What do you do again?" He had a strong background in insurance going back to the '60s. So I started facilitating things, really at a young age, always with an interest in business. We brought my mother in, who had a nursing background; she helped clients ultimately with health insurance and Medicare solutions, which we continue with yet today. I helped review the lease of our soon-to-be one-room office. Then we just started to layer on different services for folks and growing the business in various areas. How many years has it been since you started in that one-room office? We just celebrated our 30th year. We started as Weilage Advisory Group. Then

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Man On A Mission two years ago we went through a brand change: Wealth Centers of America. To me, I think it's one of the best brands in our industry. From our one-room office, along the way, I purchased our 7,000-squarefoot office building to help us grow. Asset management is really at the core of what we do. We’ve been fortunate to witness and work with a very large “family office” over the years. A family office is defined as providing a vast array of resources for the very wealthy. We’ve witnessed the resources and teams of advisors and folks around them in such a way where they truly are succeeding on purpose. It's been really the goal for us with Wealth Centers to create that team of advisors that really look at comprehensive planning and the “big picture” well beyond just asset management. Our goal is to provide that same team environment for all clients, not just the super wealthy. What have you seen over 30 years? What's been key to weathering ups and downs of the economy? I wish I knew, but being fairly diversified in our business model has been a great asset. I love our business model. Whether it's the stock market up or down, people need more help, not less. We've certainly endured different periods of time, like 2008s. What we're dealing with now is the craziest thing we've ever witnessed, but we seem to be doing reasonably well and the future looks pretty bright. I think people are more mindful of the planning and needs that they have, especially as they get closer to retirement. If you're a business owner, we do a lot of employee benefit-related work as well, to not only attract employees but to retain them is no easy task. We get involved in a lot of those areas, as well. Team work makes the dream work for us all.

...and so much more.

Pursuing a higher level of excellence every day.

sschwickerts@tectaamerica.com | 507-387-3101 Mankato | Savage | Rochester, MN | Lawrence, KS

www.schwickerts.com 10

March | April 2021

Who would come to you at Wealth Centers of America? Who is your target in that? It's really three target markets. It's individual families, business owners, and even other advisors. We're even doing more and more multigenerational family planning. The super wealthy certainly try and leverage family assets to help set the next generation up for continued success. I think more families need to think like this. Then it's business owners with employee benefit-related needs, 401(k)-related support that they're looking for. Then we have a B2B channel or a wholesale channel working with independent advisors, CPAs, banks, and property casualty firms providing them resources and expertise they may not have. How many people do you have here? We're a boutique firm; we’ve learned bigger isn’t necessarily better. We seem to get a lot done specific to asset management with three to four team members. Beyond asset management there are another seven more providing different skillsets with comprehensive planning in mind. We get a lot done for folks. Yes, a one-stop-shop. That is certainly overused, but I’m amazed how many issues we can get handled for clients at our office. We are aware many people don't wake up in the morning and spring out of bed going, "Hey, I've got to work on my asset management, get my will completed," and that type of thing. It's through plate crowding, if you will, that we help people get some really critical planning issues accomplished for clients.

Scott Weilage | Mankato

The Do Good Bus The Do Good Bus has lived up to its name. “We always wanted to direct our energy to literally mobilizing our ability to help nonprofits and get better engaged helping community-based activities.” To date these are some of the groups and causes the Do Good Bus has been involved in: • United Way Leadership Kayak Trip • United Way Film Set for Fire and Ice Event • Mankato SymphonyArts Tour Live Auction • The Solstice ConcertsVIP Seating • Mankato Marathon Cheer Squad • Small Business Support-Bringing customers in and raising awareness (during flooding and COVID): The Roadhaus-Henderson Knotty Bar Bar and Grill-Elysian Spinners Bar & Grill-North Mankato Big Dog-North Mankato • COBRA Attack Helicopter installed for Fairmont Veterans Memorial Parade

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• Veterans Auxiliary Parade Float for Eagle Lake Tater Daze Parade

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understand exactly what your project needs

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• Pheasants Inc. Fall Tour • North Mankato 150th Birthday City Tours • Float for the College of Business in MSU 150th Downtown Homecoming Parade • Stuff the Bus for Partners for Housing (with Santa and the Grinch aboard; brought in hundreds of pounds of household items for those in transition)

apxconstructiongroup.com 507-387-6836

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Man On A Mission My standard joke is, Prince should have called us back in the day, we could have helped save his estate millions of dollars. It's amazing that people, even of that level, don't have estate plans and didn't do the right planning from an estate perspective. Yet that is more common than not. I think it might be intimidating to people, who might not even know how to get started. I get that even with our name, do you have to be wealthy to go to Wealth Centers of America? The answer is no. Again, coming from my humble background, we're really passionate about helping the smallest of investors because they're going to be tomorrow's leaders and that’s where I came from. We hope that really prompts even the smallest of investors, the youth, to be starting to think about saving money and the importance of investment. You don't have to be wealthy. I'm often asked, "What do you really do, Scott?" Fundamentally, we help people accumulate money and then we help them hang on to it. It's critical planning decisions along the way, like when to start social security payouts and no one wants to run out of income, so there's some real critical decisions to make along the way. The best time to start is now. For business owners, there's again more challenges than ever on how to attract and retain employees, key person issues, and succession issues. Whether you're a small startup or you've got 1,000 employees, we're able to help people in a lot of those different capacities.

What made you decide to rebrand? That's a long story, too, but from kindergarten my last name has been misspelled and mispronounced. The good news is, if somebody could pronounce it and spell it, you knew your marketing was effective, but nevertheless, always an uphill battle, and again, we really intend to continue to grow. We certainly want to continue growth in a regional capacity, maybe even a national capacity. How would that work, like, a franchise sort of thing in this industry? Might we have Wealth Centers offices in every small town like Edward Jones, time will tell. I think there's a natural fit and the need continues to grow. Perhaps there is a Wealth Centers “help desk” potentially in various bank locations, many of them struggle with continuity and consistent levels of service with a turnover of advisors. We're playing around with some of those models, which remain intriguing. How fun for you, after 30 years of doing what you're doing, now you have a new innovative approach; you probably feel energized? It makes me excited to come to work every day. Yes, growing into a large brand like that continues to intrigue me and makes it fun. What kind of people are you looking for? There's a really strategic arrangement that I see long-term with

United Prairie’s on featuring Novak Companies &

Underground Supply Company of Montgomery, Minnesota Watch our video

March | April 2021

Scott Weilage | Mankato MSU. MSU is one of few universities that have a financial planning track. They're producing students that want to enter into our industry, but in the day of no landlines, I don't know how anyone starts from scratch in our business. They really need to be matched up potentially with an existing wealth management firm, financial institution, CPA firm, or a large property-casualty firm, basically a firm that has an existing book of clientele. There may be an opportunity for us to make those connections. I've always really enjoyed identifying problems and figuring out solutions and really facilitating some of those processes. I love seeing people find their passion. Our industry isn't shiny and a fancy new car kind of stuff. I think it's a sleepy industry full of potential. And mentoring people, I feel like you'd be good at that. I love Minnesota State University and there's just a good bunch of energy and students that seem to come out of there. Not to take away from colleges in the area. I continue to be fairly involved speaking to MSU groups like their marketing clubs, financial planning and entrepreneurship clubs. As a community we likely take for granted the MSU presence we have, but I can't imagine Mankato without MSU. I think they might continue to provide a component of our future success. I really am fond of the underdogs, and really applaud small business in particular; just knowing what it's like to sign the

front of a paycheck is something missing for most. Yet, I've been signing the front of my paycheck since college, which is really weird to some. Maybe as a result, this is why I've got so much compassion for business owners and entrepreneurs. It's thrilling to see colleges or universities like MSU with entrepreneurial-focused classes and curriculum. And finally, let’s talk about your community involvement. Particularly in this year, I feel like you’ve tried to rally people to come together and support each other. Tell us about the Do Good Double Decker Bus and its history. How does one come up with this idea remains a big question even in my mind. We first began looking for something unique to market our business. MetLife used to have a blimp. We wanted something fun to make us stand out. But along the way it turned into something else. This became almost a personal crusade to see if we could get something as outrageous as a double decker bus completed. It was purchased as a regular city bus then I found a welding shop in Owatonna that added the upper level. My incredibly sharp accountant thinks I’m a genius for the additional tax deductions and losses, yet my even more awesome banker thinks I’m crazy. Both may be correct! I never had the goal of going into the transportation business or making money with it. It’s sure been a fun mobile billboard, supporting some great community causes and events along the way.

Call: 507-345-SOLD or visit

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GeorgeMassad

| REALTOR®

BROKER | OWNER |REALTOR®

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Man On A Mission Contrary to what some may think, this was a very carefully thought-out project over a period of a more than a year in advance of purchasing this. After much research, I wanted to do this. I happened to be on eBay. It was like 10 o’clock at night. A private party in Portland, Oregon was selling this 1995 Gillig Phantom city bus as an auction item. It took some nerve and two glasses of cabernet, but I bid on it and went to bed not knowing how it would turn out. I’ve never purchased anything on eBay before, but I woke up the next morning owning a bus in Portland, Oregon! Then reality sunk in and the crusade began on working on a really outrageous goal. Life is generally hard for all of us for various reasons. 'Dream Big-Reach Higher' is what we want to encourage everyone to do; families, businesses, communities, our youth, and especially our clients. With our logo, it seemed like a fitting statement. Also, "Forward" is the directional sign on the front of the bus. We want to always move Forward and Pay it Forward. It's not all hype for Weilage, though, who backs it with genuine caring for the community he grew up in. I think what makes life interesting for me is, each day, thinking about how I can help others. There's nothing but smiles with this bus, which is just amazing. It's all centered around delivering happiness and creating not only a corporate culture that is positive, but community cultures and a sense of community, people coming together. The bus seems to indeed do all that.

THE ESSENTIALS Wealth Centers of America

The locations of our fully staffed offices allow us to respond quickly and in person to help keep projects on schedule and on target. Contact our team of professionals in Mankato, Fairmont, or Sleepy Eye today for your public infrastructure needs. Bolton-Menk.com 14

March | April 2021

40 Good Counsel Drive Mankato, MN 56001 Phone: (507) 625-4810 Web: wealth-centers.com Facebook: Wealth Centers of America Securities products and advisory services offered through Park Avenue Securities LLC (PAS), member FINRA, /SIPC . OSJ: 920 2nd Avenue South Suite 1100, Minneapolis, MN 55402 Phone # 612-746-2000 PAS is a wholly owned subsidiary of The Guardian Life Insurance Company of America® (Guardian), New York, NY. Wealth Centers of America is not an affiliate or subsidiary of PAS or Guardian. Guardian, its subsidiaries, agents, and employees do not provide tax, legal, or accounting advice. Consult your tax, legal, or accounting professional regarding your individual situation. 2021-115606 Exp 01/23

CONNECTING BACK 5 YEARS AGO

15 YEARS AGO

MARCH/APRIL 2016

MARCH/APRIL 2006

Five years ago, Walmart’s new distribution center was up and running, bringing with it many jobs to the area. The general manager at the time, Mark Carlson, was our cover story. Also profiled was family-owned Wilcon Construction. Eagle Lake’s Micro-Trak Systems rounded out the issue.

You’ll find the woman on our cover 15 years ago, in the pages of this issue! Dr. Yvonne Cariveau continues to be an internet pioneer in southern Minnesota. Today, sitting on a state task force on broadband. Also featured were Larkspur Market in New Ulm and Kenway Engineering in Fairmont.

10 YEARS AGO

20 YEARS AGO

MARCH/APRIL 2011

MARCH/APRIL 2001

Ten years ago, the woman on our cover was using history as way to move her New Ulm community forward. Anne Makepeace moved to town and began transforming downtown New Ulm. Also featured were Le Pre Shel Salon & Spa and Sleepy Eye Stained Glass.

Twenty years ago Dennis Miller graced our cover. We learned about how his company, Midwest Wireless, a high-profile, private, Mankato-based company rose so high, so fast. Also featured were Schmidt’s Bakery of St. James and Kiesler’s Campground of Waseca.

CONNECT Business Magazine

FEATURE

We asked folks from all reaches of our coverage area to share with us businesses they are excited about in 2021. Come take this tour to see how these small businesses are the backbone of our region and can be found in towns big and small. We present 21 To Look For in ‘21.

Orthopedic Institute

FF24 (Functional Fitness)

104 W. Redwood St., Marshall 888-331-5890

621 E Bridge St., Redwood Falls 507-312-9348

Mustang Truck & Trailer

Prairie Hemp Products

1507 Superior Road, Marshall 507-337-9725

702-481-0507 info@prairiehempproducts.com

Harrison Truck Center

ROE Defense

1501 North, US-59, Marshall 866-496-6695

710 N 3rd St., Nicollet 507-225-9975

trū Shrimp

Sleepy Eye Brewing Co.

330 3rd St., Balaton 844-220-7574

121 Main St. W, Sleepy Eye 507-794-2739

SecondwindCPAP

Powerhouse Nutrition

Sleepy Eye Coffee Co.

117 3rd St., Tracy 855-263-2727

135 Main St. W, Sleepy Eye 507-766-1753

121 Main St. W, Sleepy Eye 507-794-2739

March | April 2021

Lisa Cownie EDITOR

Michael Foods 120 Tower St. S, Gaylord 507-237-4600 Mankato | Amboy | Vernon Center

Neisen’s Riverside Sports Bar

WHERE YOUR POLICY COMES WITH AN AGENT

cimankato.com

(507) 385-4485

34166 State Highway 99, St. Peter 507-931-7966

e-LuLu 209 W Nassau St., St. Peter 507-550-4115

LMH Quality Products 336 E Industrial St., Kasota 507-386-2468

Great New York Pizza 308 Pine St., Nicollet 507-225-9864

Performance Diesel of Nicollet 205 Pine St., Nicollet 507-429-7706

Ignition Fitness & Sports 1960 Commerce Dr., North Mankato 507-519-2481

Gem Den 508 1st Ave. S, St. James 507-375-4755

Chasing Our Tails, Inc. Recently purchased the Seneca Foods plant in Sleepy Eye

Chankaska Creek Ranch & Winery 1179 E Pearl St., Kasota 507-931-0089

We’ll create eye-catching original artwork which expresses your company’s brand identity, and which conveys the quality of your products and services. We’re Concept & Design, and we’re centrally located in Nicollet. We’ve been serving clients in South Central Minnesota for 40 years, and we’ve been producing Connect Business Magazine for 25 years. We’d love to explore what we can create for you: great art at reasonable rates. Give us a call today!

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Leaderboard

Leslie Vermillion United Prairie Bank Leadership: its meaning, its importance, its role in our lives, has been front and center in the past year. There are differing styles of leadership, but the meaning of the word doesn’t waiver. It is defined as guiding or showing the way; commanding, controlling; a leader is someone in authority. We recognize there is more than one way to lead. We also recognize that being a leader doesn’t necessarily mean you have the top spot in a company. Leaders shine no matter what their role. We have some 18

March | April 2021

awesome leaders in southern Minnesota and northern Iowa. We’ll use this section to introduce you to some of them and perhaps you can learn from their leadership style. Leslie Vermillion is one woman leading the way in her field. Coming up on 13 years with United Prairie Bank, Vermillion has led the bank’s marketing efforts as it expands geographically and into new markets. Let’s get to know the UP’s marketing director a little better. As a busy mom of two boys, what is one key to help you balance everything? The biggest key for me, to balance my work and home life while raising two elementary-aged boys, is routine. If you followed me around for a week, you would

see I am doing the same thing at the same time almost to the minute the following week. I can definitely embrace flexibility and spontaneity, but falling back into routine is a comfort. We’ve got a busy household, and it helps me keep on top of all of the most important things. If it doesn’t get done, it probably wasn’t that important in the grand scheme of things, so I let it go. My husband is an amazing partner, as well. We team up on the household responsibilities. I’m a lucky lady. What do you do in your "free" time to destress? I love to cook, which is incredibly convenient. I can spend some time every weekend doing some meal prep for the work week ahead, listen to a podcast and

Lisa Cownie EDITOR

be a little creative all at the same time. I am looking forward to getting back to traveling again (hopefully soon). What is your number one organizational tool? I live and breathe by my Outlook Calendar at work, so much so, that I schedule my own “work time” within my days to keep on track. At home, meal planning is the biggest helper. My pantry door is a chalkboard, and I write out our meals for the week ahead. My mom was a fulltime working professional, and she always made delicious homemade meals every night. I strive to do the same. It’s our time to sit down together, have that time to talk about our day and enjoy some good food.

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Contact the Small Business Development Center to develop a personalized plan. myminnesotabusiness.com or call 507-389-8875 MSU Strategic Partnerships Center, 424 North Riverfront Drive, Suite 200, Mankato, MN POWERED BY

Funded in part through a cooperative agreement with the U.S. Small Business Administration, Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development and regional support partners. All opinions, conclusions or recommendations expressed are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the program sponsors. Programs are open to the public on a nondiscriminatory basis. Reasonable accommodations for persons with disabilities will be made if requested at least two weeks in advance. Contact the SBDC at 507-389-8875.

What is your leadership style? I’d put myself into the “cheerleader” category as a leader. I really enjoy opportunities to help my team members stretch their skillsets. It’s fun to see them succeed, and even fail, too. Failures aren’t a big deal, since they provide a moment to learn that almost anything “broken” can be fixed or done right the next time. What do you love about southern Minnesota? I love the small towns and the bigger communities, as well. One thing I think is so unique is the variety of landscape. Even in Mankato alone, you have bluffs, valleys, water, plains. It’s beautiful in all seasons. And, I appreciate how our area is so committed to continuous improvement of our communities and how giving people are. THE ESSENTIALS

United Prairie Bank 10 Firestone Drive, Suite 300 Mankato, MN 56001 Phone: (507) 344-1450 Web: unitedprairiebank.com CONNECT Business Magazine

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Partnering for Inclusivity in the Greater Mankato Area Diversity and inclusion are vital aspects in curating welcoming communities, but what steps can we take to put diversity and inclusion at the heart of our organizations? How do you serve as a leader in dedicating yourself to these efforts to better serve your community? The Greater Mankato Diversity Council exists to do just that- by enhancing the Mankato area’s commitment to creating an inclusive and welcoming community through diversity education. Bukata Hayes, Executive Director of the Greater Mankato Diversity Council (GMDC) shared that part of the GMDC’s role is to work with and be a lead for the community on diversity, equity, and inclusion matters. “The Greater Mankato Diversity Council serves as a resource - a local resource, a regional resource - that can come in and provide assistance, insights, and trainings that have a local flare,” shared Hayes. “It allows us to have what we feel is a pretty accurate pulse on how our community is shifting and

identify areas that we need to focus and improve upon.” In Fall of 2020, Minnesota State University, Mankato’s Center for Workforce Professional Education partnered with the Greater Mankato Diversity Council to launch the Diversity and Inclusion Academy- a four part, highly interactive series dedicated to providing diversity education reflective of the Greater Mankato Area. Hayes highlighted the need for providing this training for the community in sharing, “The Diversity and Inclusion series was a way for us to put into a sequence and order the many requests that we were getting from community about trainings and assistance around diversity and inclusion.” These requests come from a variety of industries, organizations, and individuals, as communities continue to pursue building more inclusive practices to better meet the needs of the communities they serve. The series begins with a session on implicit bias, where participants gain an understanding of the lens that they view their world through, and how preconceived notions impact relationships. The second session, Diversity 101, explores the everchanging terminology surrounding diversity and inclusion. After building foundational knowledge surrounding diversity and inclusion, participants are guided into session three on Cultural Competence, where attendees are challenged

LEARN MORE: https://link.mnsu.edu/maverickacademy

to look at their own community and explore the shifting demographics of the Greater Mankato area. While the first three sessions lay the foundation in providing tools and strategies, session four is a call to action. In the final session of the Diversity and Inclusion Academy, participants have a conversation regarding policy, and how steps can be taken in their personal and professional lives to drive change. Hayes, who facilitates the Diversity and Inclusion Academy, emphasized, “Ultimately, and through all of our programming at the council, from the work we do in K-12 schools, the work we do with businesses, the events that we have in the community, always have a central call to action- how do we apply this?” Minnesota State University, Mankato, in partnership with Hayes and the Greater Mankato Diversity Council, will be offering a second round of the series beginning April 2, 2021. There is no cost for registration, though seats are limited. If you are interested in learning more about professional development opportunities offered through Minnesota State University, Mankato and the Center for Workforce Professional Education, please reach out to Hannah Hollingshead, Outreach Coordinator at the Strategic Partnerships Center, 424 North Riverfront Drive, Mankato (hannah.hollingshead @mnsu.edu or 507-389-1479).

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TO SIGN UP, OR FOR MORE INFORMATION: https://link.mnsu.edu/courses-and-programs Sessions are offered in virtual and in-person settings. Please visit our registration site for details on a specific program. 424 North Riverfront Drive, Mankato, MN Phone: 507-389-1094 CONNECT Business Magazine

By Lauren Deutz

Giving New Life To Old Businesses Matt Schnoor Invests in Marshall When Matt Schnoor moved to Marshall in 1990, he admits he didn’t know what direction he was heading. He was 20 years old, living in New York, when he was recruited to play basketball at SSU, what is now Southwest Minnesota State University. Standing at 6 feet, 5 inches tall, Schnoor started his career in hospitality more humbly than most, working as a bouncer at the local gentlemen’s club. He continued to work his way up to server, then bartender, and eventually became the manager. “It was a tremendous learning experience in terms of responsibility,” Schnoor explained. “Each position played a role in my future business endeavors.” Now, 30 years later, Schnoor owns several businesses throughout the region and is proud to call Marshall home. “Marshall has been a special place for me,” Schnoor

March | April 2021

said. “It has presented me with opportunities, both professionally and personally, that I never imagined I’d find.” Schnoor has made his career in giving new life to businesses that are struggling. Since 1997, Schnoor, along with his partners, has purchased and renovated five regional restaurants: the Lyndwood Lounge and Ballroom in Lynd, Varsity Pub/ Extra Innings and Wooden Nickel in Marshall, Woody’s in Wood Lake, and Pizza Ranch in Willmar. In addition, they built a new Pizza Ranch in Marshall from the ground up, and own several commercial and residential properties. “I have always considered my niche in the business arena as being able to identify, stabilize, and eventually revive struggling businesses and real estate opportunities,” Schnoor explained. In 1997, Schnoor and his partner, Kevin Niemann, made their first major purchase, buying the Lyndwood in nearby Lynd. The duo quickly learned that the venue had its limitations but used the investment opportunity to work towards their goal of getting back to Marshall. “Despite its challenge, I appreciate everything I was able to learn,” Schnoor said.

“It was by far the most impactful experience I’ve had in the industry.” After selling the Lyndwood, Schnoor and Niemann purchased Rumours Bar in the heart of downtown Marshall and started renovation work on what is now the Varsity Pub and Extra Innings. Now, 21 years later, the “Pub” has become the cornerstone of their business holdings and a staple of Marshall’s dining scene. The restaurant’s specialty Panino, a unique rolled sandwich made on a delicious homemade flatbread, is known around the region. But Schnoor and his partners didn’t stop there. In 2006, Schnoor purchased the Wood Lake Municipal Liquor Store and transformed it into a successful small-town watering hole, known as Woody’s. He has since sold that establishment to his business partner, Kelly Timm. From there the group built their first “new” restaurant, the Marshall Pizza Ranch. “This was our first big move that involved bank financing, location selection, and construction of a facility,” Schnoor said. “That experience was quite different from what we had done previously, but was worth the investment.”

Then in 2013, four days after the birth of Schnoor's daughter, the partners bought the struggling but iconic Wooden Nickel Saloon. With help from restaurant manager and partner Tim Clausen, the team slowly brought the restaurant back to life and in the black for the first time in years. The business’ success allowed for the group to purchase Marshall’s American Legion, which will be cobranded into the Wooden Nickel operations. Although not always easy, Schnoor and his team have helped keep the hospitality industry thriving not only in Marshall but around the region. His vision for revitalization and commitment to the community can be seen in the neon on lights of main street Marshall.

Ice on the Prairie Voted “Best Hockey Rink” by WCCO in 2016, the Red Baron Arena & Expo isn’t what you’d expect to see on the prairie. The 78,000-square-foot facility features two indoor ice sheets, 10 locker rooms, two meeting rooms, a club room, a 26-by-14foot video screen, and a capacity to seat 1,400 spectators. The main rink also transforms from an ice arena in the winter to an indoor convention and sports center in the summer. From October to March, the Red Baron hosts thousands of hockey players from across the Midwest with players as young as 4 years old. For the remainder of the year, the arena is home to a wide range of events, including community fundraisers, weddings and trade shows. The rink, with the support of the Marshall Amateur Hockey Association, has made the sport of hockey explode in southwest Minnesota. In the past five years, MAHA’s numbers have more than doubled across a majority of the age groups. It also caught the attention of the Minnesota Wild, playing host to both the Little Wild Learn To Play Camp and the Youth Hockey Spotlight Game. The multiuse arena and expo center not only boosted Marshall’s hockey status, but it is also a strong sales tax generator for the city. Not only did it drive visitors into the community, but increased food, beverage, and lodging tax for several years before the COVID shutdowns. Since opening in 2014, the arena, along with the continued growth in the community, has played a role in bringing new development to Marshall, including Ashley Furniture, Hobby Lobby, and Aldi.

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Although restrictions are still in place at the arena, due to the pandemic, the Red Baron is learning how to adapt to its “new normal.” In fact, the facility was able to capitalize on travel restrictions that threatened the season of a North American Hockey League team 47 hours away. The Fairbanks Ice Dogs have been calling the Red Baron Arena home for the first portion of their season. This opportunity not only allowed Marshall to bring events back to the arena, but to test the waters for what a new level of hockey could be at the Red Baron Arena & Expo in the future.

WWW.REDBARONARENA.COM | 507-537-1865 WWW.VISITMARSHALLMN.COM | @REDBARONARENA.EXPO CONNECT Business Magazine

Focus On the Marshall Area

Strength in Partnership In southwest Minnesota, agriculture creates the cultural and economic foundation for the region. This is evident not only in the fields that surround Marshall, but in the businesses headquartered within the city, including Ralco Nutrition. So, when Southwest Minnesota State University sought opportunities to promote the university’s agronomy program in 2006, Ralco was happy to lend a hand. The concept pitched by the SMSU athletics department was a day dedicated to celebrating agriculture and the local food industry during a Mustang football game, known simply as the Ag Bowl. The vision behind Ag Bowl was to bring students on campus and build SMSU’s reputation as an agriculturecentered university. The event is an opportunity for potential students and the community to engage with ag-focused games, activities, and foods. “At the time, Ralco did not have an agronomy-related business,” Ralco President Brian Knochenmus said. “But what compelled us to get involved was the university’s energy around the agronomy program and their desire to keep our agriculture students in the area.”

Competitions are judged by local ag industry leaders and community members, providing valuable feedback to students to help them grow in their skills and talents. The Invitational has grown from roughly five schools competing in six different skill competitions in the inaugural event in 2013, to nearly 600 students on campus with upwards of 20 different competition categories in 2020. “The event gives students the chance to not only compete, but to experience SMSU, connect with faculty, and discover future employment options,” Knochenmus said. In addition to Ag Bowl, Ralco continues to develop collaborations with SMSU, creating hands-on experiences for the students. This includes providing students agronomy internships working with the company’s Agnition business, and laboratory internships through SMSU’s biology and chemistry departments.

From its inception in 2007, Ralco has served as the title sponsor for the Ag Bowl. However, Ralco had a longterm vision to bring the event to the next level, leading to the incorporation of an offsetting FFA competition as part of the Ag Bowl outreach.

Ralco recently purchased a 17-acre farm north of Marshall that will be the future home of Ralco’s innovation and research initiatives and will showcase many of its technologies. This Farm sits adjacent to cropland that is owned by the SMSU foundation and is used for small plot research trials. The long-term vision is to include the farm into the university’s curriculum.

Seven years later, what started as a celebration of agriculture, the Ag Bowl Scholarship Invitational has blossomed into one of SMSU’s largest recruiting days.

“The opportunity for students will be pretty incredible,” Knochenmus said. “They get to use their learning life to work on projects that will truly make a difference.”

The Invitational is a day of competition and learning opportunities for FFA students at SMSU. Students can compete against fellow FFA participants in hopes of earning a scholarship to the university. High-scoring schools are also able to win monetary prizes for their FFA chapters, helping enhance programming.

This research farm will provide a true win-win situation for both Ralco and SMSU. It can serve as an excellent example of how industry and education can collaborate to provide real-world applications in the development of experienced and well-prepared leaders and professionals for the agriculture industry.

March | April 2021

FROM PURCHASE TO SERVICE | REPAIRING THE DENTS TO MAKING IT SHINE

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CONNECT Business Magazine

Cultivating Together – Six Feet Apart

Catch the Hometown Business Connection on KEYC News Now! KEYC News Now and Connect Business Magazine bring you the stories of area local businesses and how they impact Southern Minnesota.

• First Wednesday of the month on KEYC News Now at 6 • Repeats Thursday on KEYC News Now at noon • See all previous episodes on keyc.com

"Social distancing" was a popular phrase in 2020. But in the tight-knit community of Marshall, residents don’t need to stand side by side to show their support for local businesses. So, when the executive orders issued in March forced businesses to close their doors, Marshall rallied. It started with a simple T-shirt fundraiser hosted by a locally owned promotional company, AP Design. The #HereForGoodMN fundraiser allowed residents to purchase T-shirts from their favorite establishments and for every shirt sold, $10 went back to the business. By the time the campaign wrapped, AP Design had raised $36,000 for 100 businesses across the state. These collaborative efforts continued to pop up around the community.

March | April 2021

It is not uncommon to stroll through the retail shops of Marshall and see local products on the shelves. The Marshall downtown district– Coco Avenue, Tattle Tales, Noble Woman, Treasured Times, and Columbia Imports–all sell products from local vendors ranging from baby blankets to baby back ribs. You can also stop by the Varsity Pub & Extra Innings or Brau Brothers Brewery for meals from local meat producers or have a beer inspired by the city’s recent branding efforts, Cultivate Pale Ale. At ACE Hardware, you can purchase fresh baked goods from Kornerstone Bakery in Canby, and during the winter months grab lunch from the local hotdog stand, Frankie’s Hot Dogs, right inside the store.

When restaurants were closed, the local Hy-Vee invited restaurants to sell premade meals in the store. Lockwood Motors, State Farm Insurance, and other businesses supplied meals to frontline workers. And the local chamber of commerce hosted a gift card rally that raised $50,000 for businesses throughout the community.

Action Manufacturing, the creators of the Action Trackchair and other mobility products, has also prided itself on creating local partnerships. This includes having all of their seat covers custom made at Tiger Tough out of Vesta. They have partnered with trū Shrimp, an aquaculture company based in Balaton, to create custom shrimp feeders for their “harbors.”

But the tradition of collaboration in Marshall started long before the pandemic hit.

In Marshall, the culture of cultivating the best in community, growth, and each other is demonstrated daily.

Focus On the Marshall Area

< 18 18-34 35-45 46-64 65+ 0

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Schwan’s Avera Marshall US Bancorp Turkey Valley Farms Marshall Public Schools Hy-Vee SMSU ADM Walmart Runnings 0 100 200 300 400 500 600 700 800 900

Action Manufacturing Ralco Nutrition Runnings Schwan’s

The population of 13,706 residents grows to 25,000 daily due to employment, education and retail opportunities.

Marshall is bringing in 58% more sales than expected based on population.

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CONNECT Business Magazine

HOT STARTZ!

NORTH MANKATO

Menari Body Works When Olivia Hageman moved to southern Minnesota from California, she loved it– but found one thing missing. The certified massage therapist, traditional style Lomilomi instructor, certified personal trainer and injury prevention specialist was used to working in a luxurious day spa. She wanted to recreate that experience in Mankato. “I wanted to bring my experience and vision to everyone here. My desire is to pair luxury with holistic care, working with clients to find the source of the issue and have them feel better on a daily basis, not just in the treatment room,” says Hageman. She brought her dream to life, opening Menari Body Works in 2016. It started out as a small, private practice, and is now housed in its own building with two treatment rooms, a staff of four therapists, sauna and salt room. “My biggest challenge so far has been navigating COVID,” she says. “We had to move our facility due to COVID operational guidelines in the middle of the pandemic. It was a very busy and challenging October.”

But that was followed by Hageman seeing just how supportive the community around her can be. “My happiest surprise was this holiday season, when we sold out of gift cards for the first time ever! It was so heartwarming to know that our community is invested in supporting small businesses during COVID.” The passion Hageman has for her work is evident. “Being a traditional style Lomilomi instructor, I have a responsibility to keep Lomi alive, to share with others this

ancient healing tradition and perpetuate part of Hawaiian culture,” she says. “I continue to grow Menari in order to serve the community, to bring them a beautiful place to relax, unwind, and attend to body and spirit.” Menari Body Works 237 Belgrade Avenue Phone: (507) 388-8315 Website: menaribodyworks.com Facebook: Menari Body Works

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March | April 2021

To be considered for Hot Startz, tell us about a new business or new professional in the area by emailing editor@connectbiz.com.

PEMBERTON

Inspire Health & Wellness Like so many others, business woman Tina McClain had to pivot when COVID-19 hit in March. McClain opened Inspire Health & Wellness in downtown Mankato five years ago, but due to COVID restrictions, she moved her popular cooking and meal prep classes online. “People are actually doing Zoom classes now, so I prep everything. I deliver it to the houses or the house of the host and we Zoom meet. Everyone can have their own drink and we have neat aprons and do some fun stuff, so it’s been fun doing those too,” McClain says. Another pivot during COVID was taking her cooking show, of sorts, on the road. “I have a dual license in the state of Minnesota to prep my meals at a local commercial kitchen, and then I store my meals in my local commercial trailer, so I can sell right out of there,” McClain says. “I have some different pop-ups planned for different towns around the area, and I'm getting going and restructuring from that point, much like how everyone is working their business to make it work right now.”

Working out of her home office, for now, McClain has plans to build her own facility on her hobby farm just outside of Pemberton. “It will be a commercial kitchen with a full classroom. It will also have some amazing features like picnic tables for people to come out for a peaceful, well-being, calming effect. If there is anything this year has taught me, it is not just balance with what you eat, but it’s about the emotional part of everything, too. I always hand out my balance wheel to everybody. If we don’t learn to find balance and peace, we aren’t going to be successful in changing our eating habits.”

One thing that hasn’t changed, though, is McClain’s passion for the business, a tribute to lessons she learned in her own weight loss journey. “I wanted to be able to do more one-onone coaching with people to help people learn about emotional eating and healthy eating combined,” she says. Inspire Health & Wellness 15612 631st Avenue Phone: (507) 381-5948 Web: inspirehealthcoach.us Facebook: Inspire Health & Wellness

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HOT STARTZ! MANKATO

The Blue Boat A unique, new dining experience is now open in Mankato, meant to take your tastebuds on a tour of the world. The Blue Boat’s menu is inspired by Dan Buettner and National Geographic’s work 15 years ago that identified blue zones around the world. These blue zones were where people lived the longest, by studying their environment, lifestyles and diet. The Blue Boat basically offers food and recipes that are considered longevity foods, with featured recipes from the blue zone they are highlighting at the time. The Blue Boat will spend two months in each zone. It initially docked in Costa Rica, before moving on to Italy. The food is only part of the journey. “The Blue Boat is a gallery/retail and café,” explains owner Julie Johnson Fahrforth. “We highlight artists and musicians from the area - and one could call The Blue Boat an arts bar.” The Blue Boat is located in the former New Bohemia space in the downtown mall.

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March | April 2021

“The Blue Boat is a metaphor for the earth and I just wanted to keep it that theme about going around the world. I’m passionate about the arts, music and good food. Things that are good for you. Things that inspire you,” says Fahrforth. It really is a journey around the world, filling all of your senses with whatever area they are “docked in” at the time. “We are going around the world to the five blue zone areas,” says Fahforth. “From Mankato you can get immersed in the food, art and culture of the area right here at The Blue Boat.” The Blue Boat 12 Civic Center Plaza, Suite 1710 Phone: (507) 720-0462 Website: blueboat.earth Facebook: The Blue Boat

FEATURE: Special Collaboration

The Need for Speed: State Task Force Looks at Connectivity for All Access to high-speed internet is no longer considered a luxury. As Minnesotans work and study from home amid the pandemic, access to high-speed internet has become more important than ever. In these times, it is a utility, a necessity in both our personal and business lives. Just like so many other things, the pandemic has shed a light on disparities between different communities. In the case of broadband, it has highlighted a great divide between the haves and the have nots, a.k.a. city and rural. While COVID shutdowns opened a renewed discussion around the need for broadband in the last year, it was certainly not a new problem. It’s been at the forefront of state and federal efforts for years. In 2011 Gov. Mark Dayton created the Governor’s Task Force on Broadband. Since then,

speed needs have increased and COVID has emphasized that need in rural areas even more. Most recently, on March 29, 2019, Gov. Tim Walz issued an executive order continuing the Governor’s Task Force on Broadband. The task force is a multi stakeholder body of 15 people that advises the executive and legislative branches on broadband policy, and tries to find a path to universal access to broadband for all communities in Minnesota. Dr. Yvonne Cariveau, a Mankato businessperson, was recently named to that task force. “I was asked to join the task force because of my background with entrepreneurs and small businesses. As a greater Minnesota person I can also bring that perspective to the team. I joined because I founded one of

Lisa Cownie EDITOR

the first internet service businesses in the country back in 1993 and even then, we were troubled by the rural/urban divide. I went to conferences on broadband access back in the '90s. So this is a full circle kind of thing for me,” says Cariveau. The taskforce meets monthly for most of the year with occasional extra meetings. For example, they had three or four meetings in December to prepare for the end of year report. “I only came on board recently, and just as the taskforce was engaging in the work

CONNECT Business Magazine

FEATURE: Special Collaboration Nicollet

2020 Provider Broadband Service Inventory

Searles

Blue Earth County, Minnesota Wireline Broadband of at Least 100M/20M

Madison Lake

North Mankato Mankato

Lake Crystal

Eagle Lake Janesville

Madelia

Saint Clair

Underserved Area

(Wireline Broadband of at Least 25M/3M but less than 100M/20M)

Unserved Area

(No Wireline Broadband of at Least 25M/3M)

Mapleton Lewisville

Permberton

Good Thunder

Vernon Center

Waldorf Amboy

This map was prepared by Connected Nation under contract with the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development. The map represents areas of broadband service availability based on provider data submitted to and analyzed by Connected Nation. This data is current as of December 31, 2019.

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March | April 2021

of writing up their end of year report. The report is an update to the governor, legislature and public about the work of the taskforce,” she says. Among their findings: far more rural households still struggle with higher speeds and are still considered “underserved” or “unserved.” For years, making sure everyone gets connected has been a priority for rural areas at the state and national legislative levels. However, three scenarios emerge: utter inaccessibility, inadequate speeds or lack of affordability. According to the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development, 16 percent of rural Minnesota households don’t have access to wire line internet service with download speeds of at least 25 megabits per second. That is the speed DEED identifies as adequate and can typically be enough to watch videos or participate in teleconferences, depending on how many devices are online. Those who don’t have at least 25 megabits per second are

considered “unserved” by state standards. One reason for the rural/urban divide is that rural populations tend to be spread out, with only a few customers in one area. That lack of density makes it not economically viable for private internet companies to invest in building infrastructure or trenching fiber into the ground. One encouraging note, the state legislature did approve a $40 million Border to Border Broadband bill to give grants to local communities to beef up broadband. It was authored by Rep. Rob Ecklund, DFL-International Falls, with bipartisan sponsors. Cariveau is thrilled to be a part of the task force, because it means she can be a part of the solution. “I found the process and discussions to be interesting and very respectful of everyone’s opinions and input. The resulting report has just a ton of work behind it. During the discussions, topics were raised that we agreed we needed more input about to make good, data-driven

Dr. Yvonne Cariveau

recommendations about. For example, our subcommittee had started to explore the idea of higher bandwidth goals for the state, perhaps 100/100 symmetric service as a goal. During our 2021 meetings, experts will come in to help provide more information to support our December 2021 report,” says Cariveau. To find out more about the task force, the year-end report and to see a county-by county breakdown of broadband, visit mn.gov/deed/programs-services/broadband/task-force.

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March | April 2021

By Lisa Cownie Photos by Jonathan Smith

Blue Earth’s Midwest IT Company Makes Use of Owner’s CIA Background There is a hacker attack in the United States every 39 seconds. Forty-three percent of cyberattacks target small businesses. The global average cost of a data breach is $3.9 million. During the COVID-19 pandemic, the FBI has reported a 300% increase in reported cybercrimes, according to trustwave.com. Now more than ever, businesses, small and large, can’t afford to NOT invest in cybersecurity. “There are just more and more threats that are coming up,” says Allen Aukes, founder of Midwest IT Systems in Blue Earth. “With the internet there is always a threat. We’ve seen businesses in our area fall prey to some of the cybersecurity threats. One that comes to mind could have potentially lost upwards of $250,000. Fortunately for them they had some smart partners in the banking industry to help them stop wires that were going out. So it has really hit close to home. The threat is real and small businesses are a target.” Allen Aukes and his wife, Morray Aukes, take the responsibility of protecting businesses in their community very seriously. As owners of Midwest IT Systems, they face the challenge head on with a team they trust. Continues

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For Your Eyes Only “Businesses like Midwest IT are also heavily targeted because we take care of a lot of companies and have the keys to the kingdom for those companies with the passwords we store and that sort of thing. So if Russia or China or North Korea can get into the back door of a managed service provider like ourselves, then it opens up a whole new world of access for them. It’s a constant challenge and we have a very good team of information technology experts to keep everyone protected. There is a lot of responsibility, but we make sure we dot our i's and cross our t’s. We are very process driven. With the training I had at the CIA we make sure we get the things done that need to be done,” Allen Aukes says. Yes, you read that right: the CIA. Allen Aukes took a unique path to owning an IT services firm. He says, “I grew up on a farm south of Kiester. Growing up, my dad was a crop duster and we had an airstrip right on the farm, so I grew up around aviation and just had a love for aviation. I tried to join the

United States Air Force, but when I went career in the CIA and Morray could pursue to take the physical I found out that I was her career in travel. Allen Aukes worked color blind. The Air Force said, ‘You are undercover with the highest top-secret not touching an airplane for us.’ So I asked, clearance you could get in the CIA. ‘Then what can I do for the Air Force?’ “I still had a desire to fly though, so I They offered me a desk job and that just went ahead and got my commercial pilot’s wasn’t for me.” license,” he says. “I left the CIA after six Still in high school when he took the Air years and moved to Arkansas to crop dust. Force physical, he announced to his dad My brother had a business down there. that he wanted to be a crop duster. His I tried it for two years and decided my dad told him to get his education and try dad was right, it was a lot of long hours something else first. So he enrolled in techand just wasn’t for me. So we packed up nical school in Austin to study electronics. and moved back to Minnesota. It was From there he got hired by the CIA and at that time we started Midwest IT. We moved out East. just saw a need for computer support in “It was unnerving and a little stressful the area. At that time, I was pretty much being undercover,” he says. “It was kind of self-taught. I obtained certifications on weird when I left Minnesota to interview my own through Microsoft.” with the CIA; I came back and my folks That was in 2001, when PC-based server asked if I got the job. And I said, ‘Well, not networks were just emerging. So the with the CIA, but with another organization.’ Aukes entered the field at just the right That is the story we were supposed to tell time. It’s been a high-speed learning curve everyone.” ever since. Allen and Morray got married and “Early on, the internet was a way for moved out East so Allen could pursue his and fulfilling companies toawaits do some An exciting lifestyle at research, to look up Siesta Hills. Amazing lots and home plans to match are available now.

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Midwest IT Systems, Inc. | Blue Earth

Morray and Allen with team members, Anna and Ben.

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For Your Eyes Only things. Whereas now a lot of your systems are being hosted in the cloud and a lot of people are becoming more reliant on the internet every day. If the internet goes down, you’ve got everyone sitting around wondering what to do because you can’t get to your systems anymore. That’s probably been the biggest change: where systems are located. They are not locally at the business site anymore but in the cloud and you use the internet to get to them,” says Allen Aukes. Though they can do their work remotely, the Aukes prefer to focus on businesses within a 60-mile radius of Blue Earth. “We find it’s hard to build relationships if we don’t come face to face with our clients. It’s true that 90% of what we do we can do (remotely), but we still like to build that relationship. We like to work with them one on one when needed, we sit in on board meetings, help with IT budgeting and strategizing. We want to help them be as efficient as they can (be) with their IT expenditures,” says Allen Aukes. Morray Aukes adds, “We only succeed if our clients succeed and we just really want to do what is best for them. We aren’t going to try to sell them something or do anything unless it’s going to improve their business and make things better for them.” Besides the focus on a 60-mile radius, the Aukes are also focusing their business in a different way. “Our growth has been primarily word of mouth,” explains Morray Aukes. “We currently have clients in a wide variety of business categories. We recently started to focus more on the medical industry, specifically nursing homes and medical clinics. Their need

Allen Outside the Office “I still like to fly and I keep my pilot’s license current. Golf is a big passion of mine, along with serving the community. I am involved in my church, planning and zoning for Faribault County, and I am on the airport commission."

Morray Outside the Office “I try to keep up with Allen!” she laughs. “I keep things going at home and I love to garden. Allen built me six big box gardens and they are full every summer. I really love being in sunshine. There is something about putting seeds in the earth, and watering them and seeing them grow. What comes up just never ceases to amaze me. Plus, I have dealt with health issues so growing my own food as much as I can means a lot to me. Healing through food is a passion of mine.”

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Midwest IT Systems, Inc. | Blue Earth for security is huge and they also have regulatory compliance requirements that we help with. We’ve learned so much assisting our current clients in that group, and our focus is keeping them secure and efficient, as it is with all our clients." The Aukes are also going to try some educational, direct response-type marketing where they help educate prospects on IT services, prequalifying them to work with MIT. While going from their small towns of Kiester and Bricelyn to Washington, D.C. was a culture shock, the Aukes are thankful to be back in southern Minnesota to grow their business and their family. “As far as smaller towns being (a) good place to grow a business, it’s great,” says Allen Aukes. We have access to city council members and county commissioners. We know the people on the EDA. So we have all kinds of resources available to us, whereas if we were in a bigger city we might not have that.” MIT has seven employees and counting. The Aukes say workforce is another challenge. “When I was in high school the last thing I wanted to do was stay in this area, so I had to go out, figure it out myself that this is a great place to raise a family and you can make a decent living. We want to find people that want to be back here to raise their family,” says Allen Aukes. The Aukes lead by example, with Morray Aukes stepping in to fill whatever role is necessary day to day. She says people are the key to their success. “We have a great team that buys into our culture,” she says. “We have core values: to tell the truth, be fair, keep your promises, respect the individual, encourage intellectual curiosity and maintain profitability. "We are committed to those things and we only have people on staff that are committed to those things. Our team of people are loyal and faithful and they genuinely care about those core values as much as we do. Having the right people makes such a difference.” The Aukes have also found that having the right perspective makes a difference. “Allen has always been entrepreneurial and I have been that same way, but it always made me nervous. When I thought about Allen starting a business, I remember just really praying about all of that when he talked about starting Midwest IT. We prayed about it and I had a peace about it that I never had before, so I knew it was right,” says Morray Aukes. They also found the right location. “We love Blue Earth,” she says. “This whole region is a great place to live and raise a family and we are sure thankful to be here.”

THE ESSENTIALS Midwest IT Systems, Inc. 411 South Grove Street, Suite 2 Blue Earth, MN 56013 Phone: (507) 526-5979 Web: itsystemsinc.net Facebook: Midwest IT Systems, Inc.

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By Ashley Hanley

In 1999, at the age of 25, Jason Schroepfer lost his father. Six weeks later, he started his own business, Schroepfer Inc., out of Sleepy Eye. “As a young man I had the notion to do what my father did, or what I thought he might want me to do. At the time I did not want to lose any more of him than I already had. I thought that if I drove a truck, which is what my dad did, I would keep him alive in some way.” Thus began the businessman journey for the New Ulm High School and North Dakota State College of Sciences graduate. “I went to the bank and took out a second lien on my pickup for down payment money to purchase a truck and trailer. I started out leasing my truck with Brown Transfer out of Springfield, Minnesota, which hauled feed ingredients into Christensen Family Farms in Sleepy Eye.” During that time, Schroepfer continued to use his experience as a diesel technician. “My father told me to never throw my schooling away, so I worked on customers’ trucks at night and on the weekend in a Quonset building on the farm I bought in 1998 outside of Comfrey.” Then another milestone came in Schroepfer’s life. Continues

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A True Family Business “In 2000 I married my wife and business partner, Amber. She is my sounding board for the business and takes care of all the paperwork aspects of the business.” Like all businesses, they sometimes hit a bump in the road. When 2007-08 rolled around and the world was in a financial crisis, things slowed up with hauling feed. "I decided to purchase my first refrigerated trailer and go over the road. (Because everyone has to eat, right?) That’s when my brother Jake started to work for us. At that time, I put a hold on fixing customers’ equipment. My brother and I were both over the road trucking and with gas $4 a gallon and higher for diesel prices, it was hard to make a profit. If it wasn’t for driving reliable, older equipment and maintaining them myself, I was able to save every penny I could. I’m not sure if we would have made it if I didn’t do that." Through perseverance and a bit of wisdom from his late father, Schroepfer was able to continue his trucking business. “One of my last trips over the road, I had been out nine days, unloading in Chicago;

Jason and Amber Schroepfer and family.

that trip was the moment I realized I missed my wife and three young children too much to keep doing this. That is when I decided I

would hire a driver for the truck I was driving and open the shop back up to full time. Like dad had said, never give up your schooling.

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Schroepfer Inc. | Sleepy Eye At that unloading dock in Chicago, I started calling all the customers I knew and told them, starting that Monday morning, the truck shop will be open full time." However, Schroepfer didn't want to lose one important connection. "I also did not want to give up the trucking connection with my father, so keeping the trucks going was the only option. Shortly after getting out of the truck, I needed to have an office in the shop. Sharing a desk with my wife was not working. At that time, the internet was not as accessible and the old silo on my farm site was in the way of the signal for the internet. One weekend my brother and I decided to take the silo down, which, for the record, did not end well. I ended up with a helicopter ride to the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, not what you need when you are already strapped with making ends meet, and are now laid up and cannot work. I guess what I’m trying to say is: for everyone out there trying to get their business going or keep their doors open, it’s in these trying times when we find out what

we are made of, willing to not accept failure when life throws us roadblocks, looking at it as a learning opportunity instead. Maybe you need to branch out to different avenues to find a different path. It will not be easy, but it can be done,” Schroepfer said. He said those challenges helped him formulate a successful business plan, as well. “This is also why we are so diversified. In the repair side of the business, running our own trucks, we know firsthand that down time is one of the costliest. So being able to work on all parts of the equipment is like being a one-stop shop and is more efficient for the customers." From there, the business continued to grow. "We would add a truck and trailer when needed, and the shop continued to grow and eventually my brother Jake stepped out of the truck and into the shop. As things grew and I saw a need for something, I tried to seize that opportunity. Continuing to grow, we ended up hiring a dispatcher full time to take care of freight/drivers. The dispatcher we hired is also my cousin, Scott Schroepfer."

By about 2014-15, it became a challenge to park all of their trucks, along with the customers’ trucks, in their yard. The shop was bursting at the seams. That is when Schroepfer started looking at properties and drawing up plans. He said it took about two years to find the right property. "Definitely worth the wait, the location has worked out great.” In April 2017, they moved into the new facility in Sleepy Eye, known as Schroepfer Inc. The company is family owned and operates 17 trucks and 29 Reefer trailers that haul food products from Minnesota to Colorado and Texas. They operate a freight brokerage to assist with their freight customers. They also have a diesel shop that has many options for repairs, including engine overhauls, computer/engine diagnostics, transmissions, clutches and rear-ends, air conditioning, any trailer repair, department of transportation inspection, aluminum/ steel welding, over-the-counter part sales, truck tires, and ag tires and service. It’s a true labor of love for Schroepfer

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and his family. “Starting and growing a business takes a lot of time and sacrifice. Once you have grown the business and poured your heart and soul into it, it becomes like one of your children, you want it to grow and become successful in whatever it does. It is a blessing to work with family – even though you are working, you are still spending time with them. Although most of the people you work with are not family, they become like family in a way. We spend a lot of our life at work, so it is good to be surrounded by great people.” Schroepfer also credits his wife with her business background and support in helping to keep the business afloat. “She would help with all of the business things, plus being a mother and taking care of the kids. I couldn’t do it without her.” Schroepfer Inc. employs 25 people, another key ingredient to the company's success, Schroepfer says. "I feel the key to our success is hiring the best of the best and putting the correct people in the correct positions. I have learned early in my career that you need to pay people what they are worth to the company; I can sleep at night knowing I am not underpaying my help. One other key to our success is that no matter the roadblock in front of you, there is always a detour or another path we can take." That positive attitude has helped Schroepfer during the challenge of a work/ life balance. "The biggest challenge is being able to remove the business hat and replace it with the family hat, especially since the trucking industry is a 24/7 job. There is a real balancing act between them. More often than not, the phone rings with a problem that needs to be dealt with. Sometimes they

Schroepfer Inc. | Sleepy Eye are easy fixes, sometimes not. At times it’s just challenging to put the family hat back on after those calls. You can’t just close the doors at 5 p.m. and go home. Regardless of the time of day, sometimes life is interrupted in more ways than one." Yet, through it all, Schroepfer Inc. remains a family affair. "Three of our children have taken an interest in helping out at the shop/office. Jadon, our oldest, at age 17, spends a lot of time at the shop working with the other techs. His passion for the business has grown more and more over the years. He works at the shop every day, plus trying to keep up with school work. He’s even taken responsibilities with the fuel station and is considering following in my footsteps someday. Jenica and Jaclyn, 15 and 12, also help out in the office and shop when needed. Our youngest son, Jaxon, is 7 and his job is to remind us to live like our youth and not worry." A true family business in a family-oriented community. "We enjoy being able to provide our services to Sleepy Eye and the surrounding area. Sleepy Eye has a great community. The people who live and work in Sleepy Eye care about their community and want to see their community thrive. When the community works together and has the same goal, great things can be accomplished." And they’re not done growing. “What is next is we are planning on adding onto the repair shop in Sleepy Eye. We feel that to service the community, and surrounding area, we need to add two additional bays and, in addition, two more techs. We will also be adding an additional truck or two in the near future to keep our freight customers' relationship satisfied.” There's no telling where the future will take Schroepfer and his company, but with the right tools, the right people and the right road map, there's no doubt that they will keep on truckin'.

THE ESSENTIALS Schroepfer Inc. 22071 State Hwy 4 Sleepy Eye, MN 56085 Phone: (507) 794-7452 Web: schroepferinc.net CONNECT Business Magazine

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