May-June 2017 by Connect Business Magazine

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Contents

THE MAGAZINE FOR GROWING BUSINESSES IN SOUTHERN MINNESOTA

STAFF & CONTRIBUTORS Publisher: Concept & Design Incorporated

COVER STORY

Editor: Lisa Cownie

Captain Costume

Art Director/Staff Photographer: Kris Kathmann

Contributing Photographers: Art Sidner

There’s no disguising Tom Fallenstein is a model character who is now wanting to help others grow their businesses, just as he has his own Fun.com.

Contributing Writers: Erin Dorney, Cory Genelin, Tim Penny

PROFILES

Circulation: Becky Wagner

Happy Camper

Production: Becky Wagner Printing: Corporate Graphics, N. Mankato

Kim Kroubetz has been helping people find their perfect “home away from home” for almost 20 years now. While her dealership continues to grow, and multiply, she is making sure all the pieces and people will be in place when she is ready to let go of the steering wheel.

Making Waves in Mapleton

Mailing: Midwest Mailing, Mankato

6 22

Phone: 507.232.3463 Fax: 507.232.3373

ADVERTISING Call: (507) 232-3463 E-mail: sales@connectbiz.com

The heart and soul of rural communities and their economies.

ABOUT CONNECT Locally owned Connect Business Magazine has ‘connected’ southern Minnesota businesses since 1994 through features, interviews, news and advertising.

IN EVERY ISSUE

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CORRESPONDENCE

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COLLABORATION CONNECTION – SPECIAL REPORT

9,400 for May/June 2017 Published bimonthly

E-mail: editor@connectbiz.com (please place press releases in email body)

Jim Schull, along side his first mate and son, Josh, continues his journey at the helm of Mapleton Marine. They tell us why they believe the boating industry is able to survive amidst the ebb and flow of the economy.

Editor’s Letter Cownie Connection Connect with Community Business Briefs Chamber Connection Opinion Hot Startz! Ask A Professional

CIRCULATION

Send press releases and other correspondence: c/o Editor, Connect Business Magazine P.O. Box 176, Nicollet, MN 56074

Community Festivals

Cover Photo: Kris Kathmann

5 20 34 38 42 53 55 58

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Connect Business Magazine is a publication of Concept & Design Incorporated, a graphic design firm offering print design, web design, illustration and photography. conceptanddesign.com

EDITOR’S LETTER

Land of 10,000 Ways to Enjoy Life In general, dictionaries peg the word recreation as meaning a ‘resource affording relaxation and enjoyment’. Relaxation and enjoyment. Hmmm, two words not generally associated with the business world. Yet this issue we’ve managed to find a few in our region combining their passions in play with their passions in business. There’s no disguising our cover story feature is someone who has grown his business at astonishing speed, Tom Fallenstein of Fun.com. You may think you know his story, starting way back with renting costumes out of his garage with Costumes Galore. But I encourage you to read more on this man of high character...who just loves characters of all sorts! And has grown that love into an $80 million company and counting. Kim Kroubetz grew up camping and loving the outdoors, so when she was ready to open a business of her own, it was only natural she pursue that passion. Camping is such an integral part of life for families in this region, and Kroubetz Lakeside Campers in Lake Crystal has helped many of them find their perfect place to enjoy it. Jim Schull’s love of boating started with a simple gesture from his dad, that eventually led to the creation of Mapleton Marine. He has passed that passion down to his son. Together now, they ride the waves of the economy as boats get bigger, faster and more expensive. But, especially here in the Land of 10,000 Lakes, their products remain in high demand. Recreation is a big part of our lives in Minnesota year round and, as you’ll read in these pages, a big part of our economy. So, happy reading...and hopefully, learning!

Lisa Cownie Editor

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By Lisa Cownie Photo by Kris Kathmann

Tom Fallenstein and his cast of characters at Fun.com used the World Wide Web to grow a Halloween costume business from $5,000 to $80 million and beyond. For a company whose business is driven by pop culture, movie characters and superheroes, its own storyline has all the makings of a blockbuster script: entertaining characters on an incredible journey, jumping on this thing called the Internet early and going for a thrill ride. The movie trailer might go something like this: The Fallenstein family turns their obsession with Halloween from a hobby into a business. The scene opens with mom, a seamstress named Jenice, sewing costumes and her three daughters, Julie, Lisa and Heather, renting them out from the family garage. Then the youngest sibling, Tom, starts getting involved with the business called Costumes Galore. It is a huge seasonal success in the region. Tom coming of age just as a somewhat futuristic tool known as the WORLD WIDE WEB starts to emerge. Tom, intrigued by what it could do, began learning about its capabilities, teaching himself how to build websites. Tom followed his hunch to move the business online, selling costumes through a website. With just $5,000 to invest in a small inventory of costumes at first, within a couple of years he did $40,000 in sales. By 2005 he expands the inventory to fill the entire garage. That year, the business earns $250,000 only because Tom had to stop taking orders, as all family members scramble to fill the orders coming from the websites. The third year, 2006, shows the family, and by this time a few employees, moving from the garage to a 10,000sf facility in downtown Mankato. And the costume business hits the million dollar mark. Small town makes it to big time. And in a hurry. The script follows the journey of this family and the costumes over the next decade. A journey that shows the company growing in every way; inventory, people, domain names… at one time Tom owned hundreds of domains. Then the movie climaxes, when Tom decides to buy one domain that would encompass all the costumes his company had to offer. Halloweencostumes.com, which he purchased for one million dollars. But would his hunch work this time? This is not a movie script but a true story. In real life Tom Fallenstein is now CEO of what has evolved into Fun.com. And the real story at this point isn’t where the company’s been, but where it’s headed. continued > MAY/JUNE 2017

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Captain Costume

“We acquired the Fun.com domain just a few years ago. It’s really our expansion into product outside of Halloween... We have all this great infrastructure that we don’t use 11 months out of the year. We hope to change that under the domain Fun.com.” “We’ll do 80 million in sales this year,” says Fallenstein. “And will likely be expanding to multiple locations.” The Fallensteins have taken it from that small, family-run business operating out of a garage a couple months out of the year, into a business that now employs 160 year round as well as 1,700 seasonal staff. It occupies a 200,000 square feet facility in North Mankato at the corner of Highway 13 and Carlson Drive. Fun.com is the parent company that owns the domains halloweencostumes. com, and shirts.com.

According to Fallenstein, 80-90 percent of sales still come from Halloween costumes. But with millions of dollars in infrastructure and automation invested in the North Mankato facility, Fallenstein is focused on expanding his business growth beyond that season. “We acquired the Fun.com domain just a few years ago,” he says. “It’s really our expansion into product outside of Halloween. Right now we have a really big infrastructure that is truly meant for about two weeks out of the year leading up to Halloween. That’s really the only time we use it to its

capacity. That’s our peak right now. So, we have all this great infrastructure that we don’t use 11 months out of the year. We hope to change that under the domain Fun.com.” Right now, Fun.com is license heavy, based on pop culture products, mostly costumes. The biggest sellers are Star Wars and superheroes. “If you love Star Wars, we’ll have every type of product you can think of on Fun. com,” he says. Shirts.com was Fallenstein’s first attempt to expand the season a bit, but it tends to

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Fun.com | Mankato

Expert Surgeons Personal Care Tom Fallenstein’s 1988 Halloween costume made by his mother Janice hangs on the wall near his office.

also have spikes. For instance, at back to school and Christmas time. “So Fun.com expands that even more,” he says. “That’s where we are creating pool inflatables, winter coats, men’s and women’s suiting. We have products now that allow us to hit every season.” While Fallenstein tries to manage those ups and downs, he also manages another key part of his business success. The culture! “Culture is very big for us,” says Fallenstein. “One of our core values is be humble. We don’t hire people who are show boaty or like to tell everyone how good they are. With us, it’s more that we find people that may have been passed over by other companies because they are, for instance, too nerdy, quirky or eccentric. But we can see that nerdiness and see what they are passionate about and take that as an opportunity. We try to find a way they can use that passion in our workplace.” It’s a value system Fallenstein has developed over the years of pursuing his own passions. “We came up with the core values maybe five or six years ago,” Fallenstein recalls. “Instead of me saying ‘these are the core values’ they just sort of happened over time. We looked at our employee base and these are the best features of our employee base. It makes recruiting so much easier. We hire and fire based on our core values.

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Captain Costume

This is who we are so now it’s just finding people that fit into that group. We are laid back, but at the same time we’re not. We have the typical work hard play hard atmosphere.” In this interview, he talks about his personal mission to help others find the success he has and the challenges he faces even with a powerful tool in the Internet.

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Entrepreneur is a word being thrown around a lot in business these days, but I would argue back in the early 2000s you were one of the pioneers of entrepreneurship in this region. I had that drive, some of it came from my parents. They were both entrepreneurs. And although I may not have realized it at the time, I was definitely surrounded by that way of thinking. So without even knowing, I was learning. My mom was always figuring out the most efficient way to do a task. One that comes to mind is she would have to do all the billing for her garbage and recycling company. And instead of doing it one at a time, she would lay out all the different envelopes, put them in order, fan them out, wet them all at once and just go. I was just surrounded by that and now I take that mentality to everything I look at. I always look at a task and think ‘what is the most efficient way to do this’. I was born into it. I think with entrepreneurship part of it may be born, but I think a lot of it is taught too. Plus, I was just always thinking of new things to try. As I was growing up I started selling baseball cards when I was 7, I sold glow sticks at Fourth of July. Those were my first entrepreneur adventures. I started a lot of businesses early. I started a band in college, I fixed people’s computers. I’ve always tried new things.

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Captain Costume

Giving Back to Community An important role Fallenstein plays in the community is as a board member for the Miracle League of North Mankato. The Miracle League manages Fallenstein Field, which is a barrier free handicapped and wheelchair accessible softball/baseball field located next to Caswell Park. The field allows children and adults with all types of disabilities to participate in softball/baseball activities, including competitive wheelchair softball. The field was built according to National Wheelchair Softball Association Specifications.

Fun.com | Mankato

One of them finally exploded! And at that time, late 90s/early 2000s, people were just starting to realize the potential of the Internet. You just seemed to embrace it. It was becoming something already so it was more I was just at the learning stage in my life. I graduated with a computer science degree from MSU Mankato, but also a graphic design minor, mostly because I find more reward in creating products. That visual component is important to me.

Captain Costume

Fun.com – More Than a Name, It’s a Culture “I don’t know the turnover rate exactly, but it’s a third or less than what it was five years ago. We’ve got full health care coverage for individuals, an open PTO plan and vacation policy, plus fun events. We took our entire staff to the latest Star Wars opening. We are constantly doing things based around our culture. We even have a fun committee that’s going around and doing something every month. We all think similarly so it just works. And together we are seeing growth in the business so that’s always fun and allows us to offer opportunities. So our turnover rate is quite low.”

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Core Values at the Core of Success:

”

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1) Find Your Passion. 2) Focus on the Positive. 3) Build Strong Relationships. 4) Embrace Nerdy, Goofy Fun. 5) Be Humble. 6) Know the Value of Your Time.

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Captain Costume

“What helps us stay ahead is we have a very good team that is nerdy and loves their comic books and pop culture stuff. So we are on top of every new thing that’s going to be coming out before everyone else is.” So, at that time, I wanted to learn how to build a website. I saw it as a way to merge my two passions of computers and creativity. It just so happened that my family had this local costume company, so it was a learning thing for me to go and say let’s see if I can build a website for Costumes Galore. Then I started a band so I’m like oh, I’ll build a web site for the band. So it all really just kind of expanded

Captain Costume

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Fun.com does manufacture some of its own products in China, but mostly it buys licenses to sell others’ wares. Fun.com carries licenses for Disney, Paramount Pictures, Universal Studios, Sony and more recently Marvel. “We just signed a contract with Marvel and launched that product line in January. So we are producing and manufacturing winter coats and dress coats that have Marvel and Batman references on the inside of the coats and suits. To visualize, it’s a typical black suit on the outside, but the interior would have comic references.” Fallenstein says they expect to be constantly launching cool new products that no one else can offer. Some of the more popular products center on the Star Wars franchised merchandise.

Fun.com | Mankato

from me wanting to learn things. I didn’t even have to invest much money. It was $20 for a domain name and $20 for hosting, so the biggest investment was my time. It is hard to believe that was just 13 years ago. Look where you’ve taken it! You always seem to be one step ahead. We are trying to stay ahead by developing Fun.com and our expansion there. By now we know how to pick and pack items like apparel and clothing really well so the next step as a company is to expand into the other seasons. We already have the infrastructure in place, so it won’t cost us any more in that regard. What helps us stay ahead is we have a very good team that is nerdy and loves their comic books and pop culture stuff. So we are on top of every new thing that’s going to be coming out before everyone else is. We mirror our customer base so we are creating products around that. With your sales figures, is there more room in the market? Yes, there’s a lot of opportunity internationally for us still, both in Halloween and with Fun.com. And we are actually testing out 3 pop up retail stores this year. Knowing we want to continue to expand on Halloween and beyond, the question is how do we get our brand in front of more people who maybe aren’t shopping online yet or want to see something first. We have great return and exchange policies, but sometimes people need to see it before purchasing. Anything we can do to get in front of more people we are willing to try.

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Captain Costume

Fun Outside the Office Fallenstein spends as much of his free time as possible with his wife and one-year-old son James. He lists skiing and golf among his activities. But his favorites revolve around his passion, that also happens to be work-related. “I’m a huge movie buff. I have a theater room in my house and that’s where I relax and partially work because I have to know all about the industry and pop culture stuff,” says Fallenstein. “And I love business so much that often when I’m not at work I’ll still read about business!”

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Captain Costume

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You just mentioned wanting to expand internationally. Will you stay in North Mankato as you grow? Yes, but we’re getting to the limits of our building here so next year we have to do something. It might be additional off-site space. We’re looking at another location in the United States asking ourselves if that makes sense from a shipping perspective. Or does locating internationally make sense? That’s where we are trying to expand so maybe we move some distribution or shipping of products over there for a third party to handle. We don’t know yet, that would likely mean reducing what we need here in certain areas. That said, it would also allow us to grow here in other ways. It’s crazy to think about, I learned a lot from my parents, but not how to expand internationally or have multiple locations and how to handle that. So I am to the point of needing more mentors myself and people to lean on for support. Where do you turn for advice? I have a couple of people. I have a personal mentor who has bought and sold three different businesses and I have a good friend in private equity. I’m actually starting to look at developing a board and getting more advice that way. Now I find I like developing people as well.

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What would you say to young entrepreneurs, or what do you wish you would have known? The first thing I always tell people is I think most people overvalue ideas and undervalue execution. So people hold their ideas close to them and say ‘this is worth a million dollars’ but it’s really only worth a million dollars if you can go do it and take that first step. It takes action. People are even afraid to share their ideas for fear people may steal them. From my perspective, I’ve got a thousand ideas myself. So while others may focus on their idea to make a million dollars, well, I’ve got to focus on things that make 10 million dollars. Don’t be afraid to share, I’m glad to help you and show you how to make a million dollars. I would love to make more millionaires in Mankato!

Fun.com | Mankato

I think I’m guilty of that. I have a million ideas a day, but none of them get out of my head. People need to share and talk through their idea and get people behind it. Use mentors and get different expertise to get a business started. And then it’s all about actual execution. I’m really good at day after day relentless work. I can see the value in doing each step in the process. I even used that mentality when I started a band. A lot of people have the idea of ‘I want to be in a band’, but they don’t take any action to get it started and it ends there. For me, with my ideas, I think ‘what would the first step be?’ With the band I thought, well, I’ve got to create a poster, then I’ve got to put up posters, then I have to think about where should I put up posters. Just break it down to all those little steps that need to happen. So just think about, ‘this is what I need to do today’ rather than just thinking, ‘this is a cool idea’. I think you proved that you don’t need a large monetary investment to get started. For that first website I built I had $5,000 I borrowed from my parents. I didn’t need huge investors. I spent $5,000 on my initial costumes and figured worst case, I’m buying this at wholesale, I can at least sell it at the price I’m buying it for so I’ll break even. It wasn’t risky at all. People think you need to be really risky, but you don’t. You don’t need financial backers. Just think, what would be a small step you could do without needing a ton of money? And get started. Do you see your role now as more of a teacher? Yes, and I see myself trying to reach out more and find more opportunities where I can do that. I just spoke at MSU and am now looking for other engagements like that where there are young entrepreneurs out there looking to start a business that I can help with or invest in. I am really eager to teach more people and help Mankato grow. A personal life core value for me is helping people in a way they couldn’t help themselves. Teaching is kind of a major piece of that.

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Captain Costume

Rock Star in Business and in Life In college, Fallenstein formed an alternative rock band with three friends, called Faully. The guitar proved to be another outlet for Fallenstein’s creative tendencies. The group started out playing mostly for family and friends in their community. But soon they became a force in the Midwest underground music scene. Traveling to Indiana, Illinois, Iowa, Missouri, Nebraska, Oklahoma, Texas and Wisconsin to play for a faithful following. “It was great! We did a three song EP at first and eventually a full length album,” he reflects. “We traveled and did two week tours from Minnesota

to Texas and back. It was actually a big decision at one time. I had to decide do I stick with the band full time and try to make it work, or my business is starting to take off so which do I pursue? This one seemed more logical! Now Fallenstein says the only time he picks up a guitar really is to play for his son, who may be following in his father’s footsteps. “He is only 1 but he literally doesn’t like watching TV. However, he loves if the TV is playing music, or singing songs. Then he is happy. He’ll jump up and down. It’s pretty cute.”

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Fun.com | Mankato

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Captain Costume

“But now I have a great team so it’s actually probably less work than when I started. Saying that, it’s a lot more stressful. If anything goes wrong, it now impacts 160 people and not just myself. So the stress level is definitely higher but my workload is probably lighter.” Is this a good environment for entrepreneurs? I think it may be a little limited in resources which is why I want to help more, because I think I can be a great resource for those starting out. In fact, that can be the first action step that I mentioned. Asking for help shows me they take action and are willing to do it. I’m actually working on a book right now to talk through some of that stuff. It’s important for me personally to talk through it, and a lot of my employees want to know about that stuff too. I am just getting started, it may take

a year yet to finish it. It’s made me think about where did I learn these skill sets and what skill sets do I really want to teach people? You are running an $80 million company, looking at expanding... and now writing a book. Aren’t you exhausted? (He chuckles) Well, I have a really good team. So to be honest, that takes some of the work off me. Over the years I have learned to let go of certain aspects. I used to have to do everything myself, especially when we first started. But now I have a great team so

it’s actually probably less work than when I started. Saying that, it’s a lot more stressful. If anything goes wrong, it now impacts 160 people and not just myself. So the stress level is definitely higher but my workload is probably lighter. Was it hard to let go though? Yep! But you kind of find over time that it is necessary. I always felt like if I was doing it, it could be done a little bit better. But I have come to realize if I can get 10 people doing a task at 90 percent of what I was doing, well that’s okay. By including

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Fun.com | Mankato

Commercial Industrial others I can get ten times the work done. So I’ve kind of just learned that 90 percent of what I would do is better than it not getting done at all. Over time I’ve learned that these people I passed things off to actually end up doing it better than I ever would. And you have some pretty high tech automation here, I’m sure that has helped? It has built on itself step by step. With the motors and automation, we brought in consultants to show us how it all fits together. They showed us options at different price points so we could run through it: here’s how many orders we’d get out of this type of system, and here’s how much time we can save with this one. We just look at time saved versus how much it cost. So if the machine costs a million dollars, but we can save $250,000 in labor, then okay it’s paying for itself in four years. Three years if we are growing. You have 160 employees year round, but at the peak season, which is what now? July through October? You hire over 1,700. Would you say that is the biggest challenge finding bodies to get the work done? It’s always a challenge, but we’ve started to get a good reputation for just being a really great place to work. One part of that is we can offer great training for new people. For example, we get a bunch of college students to help us with recruiting. Where else are

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they going to get an internship where they try to hire 2,000 people? It’s just great job experience. Even in the shipping and warehouse departments there are great opportunities. We’re doing 40,000 orders in a day and a brand new high school student may come in and within 3 weeks we are saying, ‘you are going to be lead and start teaching others’. We also see retired people join us for extra Christmas money, or to just join the atmosphere. We really have a great array of employees who join our team. Plus we offer a different working environment. For example, a lot of us run around on scooters. So, we add fun into the work environment. Because of all of that we are getting a lot more repeat people back year after year. Word of mouth has gotten better too. I would say 1,700 is peaking on what we can get out of Mankato, I mean, 40,000 people live here and we are getting 3% of them. Our vice president of human resources is relaxed for like one day: Oct. 31. Then he has to start worrying about the next year!

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Editor Lisa Cownie writes from Mankato.

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COWNIE CONNECTION

There are so many things I look forward to this time of year! Warmer temps, brighter sunshine, longer days, oh, and greener grass. Those are all things we can see and feel. And they can be found just about anywhere. But this is the time of year we here in the Greater Mankato region celebrate something that can’t be found just anywhere, the sounds of summer. Sure, there is the joy that comes each spring with the sounds of neighborhoods once again coming to life. I enjoy that immensely. But it’s the other sounds of summer in southern Minnesota I’m talking about.

Yes, some may call the months of May through September the summer season. I call it the “let’s spend as much time as we can at the Vetter Stone Amphitheater” season. Big sounds, big boost for our local economy. Vetter Stone Amphitheater opened in Riverfront Park in 2010. If you haven’t been there, picture this: a beautifully crafted venue made from more than 1,500 tons of Minnesota Stone from the The Vetter Stone Company. It sits on the banks of the Minnesota River and is truly a rare gem with its tiered seating made of limestone slab. A sprawling grassy area at the back is the perfect location for food and drink vendors. Adding to that picture perfect setting are musical lineups that just get more and more varied each year. Artists of all sorts are now gracing the stage, enough variety to cover whatever interests you musically. I love Vetter Stone Amphitheater so much that I’ll go see whoever is playing there even if I don’t know any of their music. I’m a junkie, I admit. In fact, most of the acts coming this summer would not typically interest me at all..yet I have tickets to every single one of them. You see, often times it’s just about the experience, the people, the camaraderie of all of us being together. And we are lucky to have a nice stroll through City Center and Old Town on our way to the show where

there are numerous options for food and drink. I don’t have figures, but I’m willing to bet businesses along Riverfront Drive see a bit of a boost during the summer concert season. Vetter Stone has been host to many, many well-known musical artists such as Rick Springfield (you knew I would list him first), Willie Nelson, George Thorogood, and Pat Benatar. This summer Alice Cooper, The Funkadelics and Travis Tritt, among others, will take the stage. See what I mean? Variety! When a new performance is announced, it always makes me wonder how the acts are chosen? As luck would have it, I know just who to ask; Eric Jones, marketing manager for the Verizon Wireless Center complex, of which Vetter Stone Amphitheater is a part. One of the premiere events in Mankato each summer is RibFest. Acts for this year’s celebration in August were just announced, but when I caught up with Jones in his downtown Mankato office, he was already working on next year’s lineup. “We plan out as far ahead as we can to secure some of these acts,” he explains. “Especially with RibFest. It’s a fixed weekend so there isn’t any flexibility. Plus we know who we have had play the event before so can plan around that. We know who plans to be on tour next summer so we are already in the works.”

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“I love Vetter Stone Amphitheater so much that I’ll go see whoever is playing there even if I don’t know any of their music. I’m a junkie, I admit. In fact, most of the acts coming this summer would not typically interest me at all..yet I have tickets to every single one of them.”

For the other “stand alone” acts, Jones says they have a couple of promoter partners they work with. “We just look for different opportunities as artists are coming through the state or the Midwest. We want to make sure we get our name out there, throw our hat in the ring and get them. We do get a lot of competition from the Twin Cities.” Indeed there are numerous venues both indoor and outdoor in the Minneapolis/ St. Paul area. But as more and more artists discover the stage here, Vetter Stone is making a good name for itself. “It’s a lot easier now than it was a few years ago when we were an unknown commodity and were just trying to get our name out there and just prove ourselves. Well, we’ve proven ourselves now. We’ve had some really successful shows, Willie Nelson, Prairie Home Companion (even though it ended up being moved inside due to weather), Old Crow Medicine Show. So

now we are definitely in the conversation when artists are looking at where to play.” Jones says once he sees who is interested, his team has several things to consider. “We look at the act’s promote ability,” explains Jones. “Mankato is a smaller market than Twin Cities yet close enough that we have to learn how to best co-exist. So when we starting talking to an artist, we think about ‘is it something that we can market without having to rely too heavily on Twin Cities?’” Jones says often people will ask him to book an artist in Mankato the night after they’ve been in the cities. That makes sense in theory but Jones says that hardly ever works. “If someone is going to go see an artist in the Twin Cities, they are not going to pay to go see them the next night in Mankato,” he says. “And some of the acts can’t sell a couple of thousand tickets one night and a

couple of thousand the next night, too. So we really are in a lot of competition with Minneapolis and St. Paul.” Another consideration, of course, is the price tag associated with some of the acts. “We take the target price the act is looking to make, estimate the expenses, and figure out the ticket price that we feel the market can bear (within the acts guidelines),” says Jones. “From there we determine how many tickets it would take to break even, and if we feel it is a good or bad risk. We have no certain amount of profit we need to make, only that we don’t go backwards. Plus, we make money off of concessions and food.” Tickets, concessions...I am probably single handedly keeping the place open. Ticket price, $50. Drink, $4. The chance to spend an evening at Vetter Stone Amphitheater, outside listening to live music among hundreds of friends: priceless.

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By Lisa Cownie Photo by Kris Kathmann

With an almost two decade-old business in tow, founder Kim Kroubetz takes new roads toward expansion from Lake Crystal to Greater Minnesota.

Even after 18 years in business, Kim Kroubetz says she still has “pinch yourself ” moments. “I go outside and look out at my lot and just think, ‘wow’,” she reflects. “When I think back to what I started with...well, a lot has changed.” It was back in 1999 when Kroubetz and her husband Paul, both not even 30 years old yet, purchased a plot of land along Highway 60 as you enter Lake Crystal. When she reflects back, she is filled with gratitude. The two hadn’t even been married three years, when Kim wanted to pursue this dream and she says she couldn’t have done it without Paul’s unconditional support. With the land secured, Kroubetz figured she had enough money left over to buy 12 campers to sell from that spot. It proved to be an exercise in persistence, though, to snag her first inventory. “Every Fall there is a big show called ‘Louisville’, down in Kentucky,” Kroubetz explains. “They can fit all manufacturers under one roof. It’s pretty incredible. So I grabbed my brother Jeff and we flew down there. We were young and new to business, so it was harder than I thought it was going to be to be taken seriously!” She chuckles, adding “I finally wore the Gulf Stream rep down, and he sold me 12 RVs. I had a few cocktails that night because I’m like, what if no one buys these?” But those 12 didn’t last long. Now Kroubetz Lakeside Campers and Motors has an inventory of nearly 400 units available between new and used. Her number of employees has grown too. She started out with just herself, her brother and another salesperson. She just recently crossed the 20 mark for number of employees and expects that to almost double this year. continues > MAY/JUNE 2017

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Happy Camper

“We are going to hire at least 12 to 15 more people here,” she says. “More so in service and a few in sales. Everyone thinks this is a seasonal business and I guess it is to a point. But in 18 years, I’ve never had to lay anyone off in the winter. That’s because we try to have products for all seasons. For instance, we sell a lot of fish houses during the winter.” With the high volume of campers moving off the lot (Kroubetz

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Kroubetz realized the road she was on in business could be a bumpy one at times. She also realized she needed to find others who had gone over those bumps to get their insights. So seven years ago, she sought out others in her industry. “I’m smart enough to know I don’t know everything,” she says. “So I joined a 20 group. It’s a group with 19 other dealers across the country. We meet four times a year and we share everything. We even rotate through and tour each others’ dealerships.” In addition to that, Kroubetz Lakeside Campers and Motors belongs to the ROUTE 66 RV Network. ROUTE 66 started in 2003 as a way for dealers to hold each other accountable and elevate industry standards. The network quickly grew to over 150 locations throughout the United States. ROUTE 66 member dealers are handpicked by their peers based on their reputation for integrity, customer service and after-sale support. It benefits the RV community by offering over 1,200 service bays staffed with nearly 2,000 RVDA Certified Technicians. Kroubetz says her affiliation with Route 66 and other organizations like it, help keep her at the top of her game. “Our solid relationships with our manufacturers and being nominated as the area’s only Route 66 Dealer have proven to be a great asset for the enjoyment and service of our customers!! We are also an accredited member of the Minnesota Better Business Bureau to help insure customer confidence and our commitment to providing the best service possible,” she says.

Kroubetz Lakeside Campers and Motors | Lake Crystal

“We, as an industry, are floored because every year we say it can’t get any bigger and then it does. Last year was a record year for the RV industry and this year they are already forecasting, and we are as well, another record year.” declined to give an exact number) she says it’s time to bring in a whole sales crew. “During the first 15 years, I’ve always done most of the selling,” she says. “I love helping people find just the camper to fit what they are looking for. But it’s time for me to step away from that day to day selling. Now I am in more of a support role for the sales team and focused more on growing the business.” Kroubetz Lakeside Campers and Motors currently has inventory spread across four different lots in Lake Crystal, which prompted Kroubetz to look for more land, where she can continue to grow. “I had just about started to give up on being able to find 30 or 40 acres in Lake Crystal,” Kroubetz says. “But a dear friend who I’ve done business with before asked ‘if you want to stay in town would you be interested in purchasing my piece of land?’ It is located right across the highway from us now and it was just an incredible thing

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Words of Wisdom “Everybody says this but I think a lot of businesses forget how true it is, your customers allow you to be here or not. Period. So, if I could give any piece of advice to any business it would be to keep your customers happy, truly care about them. And keep your employees happy and truly care about them. If you do only those two things and make them your 100% ultimate focus in the world, everything else just falls into place and the money follows. If you are chasing money you forget about taking care of the people.” “If you get stuck in the mentality of ‘its my way or it’s no way’,then you never get to experience what success can be. Success just means you’ve learned to help other people and not care more about yourself than you do about others.” MAY/JUNE 2017

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to be able to do. It’s 80 acres total. I don’t know if we really need 80 acres, but that’s what we got! In a perfect world I would like to time our move to that location with our 20th anniversary.” Kroubetz has seen steady growth over her almost two decades in business. She expects that to continue in her business and the industry as a whole. “The RV industry is just always open to new ideas,” Kroubetz says. “It has also realized that adults and children alike want technology. So camping is vastly different in some cases then it used to be. Every year I think there is no way it could get bigger, but it does. Even when I started I thought ‘can this area support another RV dealer?’ We, as an industry, are floored because every year we say it can’t get any bigger and then it does. Last year was a record year for the RV industry and this year they are already forecasting, and we are as well, another record year.” Another bonus is that there is an RV to fit just about any budget. Kroubetz has campers on the lot ranging in price from $995 to over $100,000. She says manufacturers have a knack for being able to make RVs that can appeal to all types of camping enthusiasts. “If you want five flat screens and two fireplaces and a dishwasher and garbage disposal and central vacuum and a touch screen device that you can control every mechanical function on your camper...

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Kroubetz Outside The Office Her out of the office activities seem to focus on family, and animals, which she considers an extension of her family. One of her latest prized possessions: an African Gray Congo name Murray. “I have always had a weird bird thing,” she muses. “Finally as we grew here and added office space, I found I had room for a bird. So now he comes to work with me, although he does tend to talk a lot!” Horses are another hobby. A hobby she feels fortunate to share with her daughter, Ashley. “My daughter is actually able to fulfill my lifelong dream,” says Kroubetz. “She and her boyfriend purchased a house on a beautiful hobby farm just south of Mankato. So she has her horse there and my horses there as well as chickens and dogs. I’m too old to tackle that anymore, but she is doing it and it’s fun to watch.” 26

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Kroubetz Lakeside Campers and Motors | Lake Crystal

Happy Camper

Growing Pains Before starting Kroubetz Lakeside Campers and Motors, Kim had a background in sales and marketing, primarily in real estate. But all of that experience didn’t quite prepare her for one aspect of her business, managing people. “My dad has a human resources background, so during our growth spurts I would hire him on a very part time basis,” she explains. “I wanted him to find out what the employees were happy about and what I needed to work on.” Not cutting her any slack, he came back with some answers. “He came back and said they are all happy, but...there’s always a but isn’t there?” She smiles. “He said you are growing and doing a bunch of new, cool stuff but you need to work on communicating all of that with them. He really drove home the importance of communication with my team. So that’s been probably the biggest challenge as we grow, making sure that I am communicating with everyone positively and effectively.”

New Location Opening Now that she has grown her Lake Crystal location, Kroubetz is expanding to other parts of the state. “This is kind of out of the blue,” she says. “But some land became available in Walker, Minnesota so we purchased a lot up there. We just got our dealer’s license for that location and campers start arriving in April. My dad is actually coming out of retirement to help manage that office.”

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well, we’ve got it,” she says. “But then there are a few people that say ‘hey! but what about our carbon footprint, this is getting ridiculous!’ So now in the last few years the industry has seen a renaissance in the vintage retros and the little R-Pods where they are purposely stripping out a bunch of that stuff and getting back to the basics of camping. The RV industry is just so ahead of what people think they need and is great at reading what people want year after year.” And Kroubetz says there are other indicators that camping is alive and well in southern Minnesota. “In our region, every campground I know has added on multiple times over the past five years,” says Kroubetz. “And new ones are popping up. It’s just cool to see.” Kroubetz says although the RV industry is able to adapt with changing times, the core of what camping can offer will always be a strong foundation. “I grew up RVing with my family, I don’t think I was in a hotel til a high school band trip,” reflects Kroubetz. “We went camping, and that was what we did. It was, and it still is for many people, a total family affair with parents and grandparents and cousins all taking part. Just to have those memories is special. Camping and RVing is something that is for everyone, babies to grandparents, everybody likes it; the campfire, the comraderie, it’s a safe environment for kids, adults have other adults around to interact with. It’s just something kids and parents truly enjoy. They can be together but also have opportunities to be apart.” That’s one reason Kroubetz believes her industry seems to be insulated from the ups and downs in the economy. “Five years ago people were saying, ‘well, baby boomers are driving this growth in the industry and when they all are not camping anymore then maybe it will take a decline’,” she says, “But now we are seeing the baby boomers’ kids are finally at a point where their kids aren’t out of the house quite yet, but they’ve paid off student loans and some of their other bills, so they have some disposable income. If they camped growing up, then they’ll want to give that experience to their kids as well. Plus there is the follow my neighbor effect. Everyone goes camping now and often they go on vacations together, so I don’t see it ever ending. “

Kroubetz | Lake Crystal

THE ESSENTIALS

Kroubetz Lakeside Campers & Motors Phone: (507) 726-6454 Address: 351 E Highway 60 Lake Crystal, Minnesota Web: kroubetz.com

Kroubetz says locating in Lake Crystal has been a very special part of her journey. “I think southern Minnesota understands, more than most, the importance of keeping dollars in the local economy and I think our agriculture and farming communities have a lot to do with that. I think folks here will always give the local person the the first chance. Anytime you are dealing with the services industry whether its boats, cars, RVs, most will need to be serviced at times. So if a buyer can get a fair shake with a local dealer, they’ll also be saving money on the backend because they’ll have someone locally when and if they have to go in for service.” At 18 years of age, Kroubetz says she still feels like her business is young. She is looking forward to its next stage in life, not only for her business but for her community and her family. Kroubetz says her daughter Ashley and her brother Jeff have been crucial in helping grow the business, and she wants to be able to provide a good foundation once she is gone. Her dream is to have other family and grandchildren join in, but she says she understands sometimes their plans take them in other directions and dreams of their own. “I am toying with the idea of putting in a campground along the creek on the back side of our 80 acres,” says Kroubetz. “I think it would be cool for Lake Crystal. One thing we are missing in this community is there is not an overnight stay here. When people stay overnight they can explore the community, so then cute shops pop up, other businesses move in because people will want to meander through town. I would like that to be one little gift I could give to Lake Crystal.”

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Editor Lisa Cownie writes from Mankato.

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Catch the new Hometown Business Connection on KEYC News 12! KEYC News 12 and Connect Business Magazine editor Lisa Cownie will bring you the stories of area local businesses and how they impact Southern Minnesota. • First Wednesday of the month on KEYC News 12 at 10 • Repeats Thursday on KEYC News 12 Midday • See all previous episodes on keyc.com

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IT Isn’t Capable of Solving the Problem

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Technology is very complex and it is impossible for one person to be an expert on every aspect of IT, so it’s possible that your IT department or provider doesn’t have the knowledge, experience or skill set to diagnose and remedy your problems. This can also happen if the situation lies outside of the core of what your IT company usually provides. Putting out urgent IT fires is essential to making users happy but typically IT becomes consumed by it. If your ongoing issue isn’t a priority, it is taking a back seat to the day to day fires. As your company grows in people or reliance on IT, or the provider adds more clients this only worsens. If you get recurring reports of applications dragging, problems connecting with your network or random errors, it could be a sign that hardware or software is misconfigured. Configuration (another word for setup) can affect the performance of PCs, wireless networks, switches and routers, firewalls, and software. Improper setup can be the result of a lack of IT expertise, but often it’s because IT doesn’t have a documented best practice for the installation.

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BUSINESS BRIEFS

Mayo Clinic Health System Plans Major Expansion in Mankato Mayo Clinic Health System has announced plans for a $65 million hospital surgical suite expansion in Mankato. Construction is expected to begin later this year. “Mayo Clinic is committed to the needs of patients in Mankato and the surrounding communities we serve,” says James Hebl, M.D., vice president of Mayo Clinic Health System in Southwest Minnesota. “The projects are an investment in our patients, our staff and the needs of our communities. Providing access to outstanding care in state-of-the-art facilities closer to where patients live is of paramount importance, and is the driving force behind the decision to dedicate substantial resources to these initiatives.” The expansion and modernization project is part of a comprehensive plan to transform the Mankato campus into a major Mayo Clinic regional medical center that

is fully integrated with the Mayo Clinic practice in Rochester. The new surgical and procedural suite expansion will take place on the second floor of the Mankato hospital and will include 14 ultramodern operating rooms, a new sterile processing department, 43 private pre- and postoperative patient rooms, an interventional pain medicine procedural room and a new gastrointestinal (GI) endoscopy center. Completion of the surgical suites and GI endoscopy center is expected by late 2018. Mayo has also announced that an additional $5 million investment will include an expansion and renovation of the Mayo Clinic Orthopedic and Sports Medicine Clinic on the first floor of the Mankato hospital campus. The project will more than double the current footprint of the Mayo Clinic orthopedic practice, increasing the total space to nearly 10,000 square feet. The new space will house up to 20 patient exam rooms, a minor procedure room, a specialized cast room, on-site radiology services devoted to orthopedic patients

and an expansive lobby and patient waiting area. The Mayo Clinic Health System in Mankato Department of Orthopedics and Sports Medicine will soon be expanding to six orthopedic surgeons and five physician assistants providing orthopedic trauma care, hip and knee surgery, hand and wrist surgery, foot and ankle surgery, joint replacement and sports medicine expertise.

Edward Jones Earns Another Top 10 Ranking in Fortune magazine Financial services firm, Edward Jones makes its 18th appearance on Fortune 100 Best Companies to Work For list. In 2017 Edward Jones ranks No. 5 on the prestigious list, according to global research firm Great Place to Work and Fortune magazine. Edward Jones, which is headquartered in St. Louis, has 15,000 plus financial advisors and more than 7 million clients. The rankings for the list

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are based on feedback from more than 232,000 employees at Great Place to Work – Certified companies with more than 1,000 employees. There are numerous Edward Jones advisors in Southern Minnesota. Topping the list at No. 1 was Google, followed by Wegman’s Food Markets, the Boston Consulting Group, and No. 4 was Baird.

Wells Fargo & Company Invests Billions, Helps Bridge Gap in Affordable Housing Wells Fargo & Company has been named the largest investor in affordable multifamily housing in the United States, according to research conducted by accounting firm, Cohn Reznick. In a press release, the firm says with increasing demand for affordable rental options across the nation, Wells Fargo is helping to bridge the affordability gap as the number one investor in low income housing tax credits for affordable

multifamily housing in the United States, with $9 billion in investments over the last five years.

Augsberg Makes Name Change Reflects Program Changes at Institution Augsburg College will become Augsburg University effective September 1, 2017. The change comes to reflect Augsburg’s nine graduate degree programs, including Minnesota’s first program for physician assistants, in addition to its more than 50 undergraduate degree programs.

United States ranks No. 4 on the Global Innovation Index According to the ranking, America’s strengths are knowledge and technology outputs. In fact, in 2016 the U.S. spent more than $500 billion on research and development. But a recent study by WalletHub shows

that not all states are pulling their weight when it comes to fostering innovation through investments in research, education and business creation. WalletHub’s analysts compared the 50 states and the District of Columbia across 18 key indicators of innovation-friendliness. WalletHub used data regarding a range of issues from share of STEM professionals to R&D spending per capita to tech-company density. Minnesota ranked No. 20 on the list. District of Columbia, Maryland and Massachusetts were the top three in that order. West Virginia was last on the list. Some key stats to take away: • The District of Columbia has the highest share of STEM professionals at 9.4 percent. • Virginia has the highest share of technology companies at 7.52 percent. That is 3.9 times higher than in West Virginia, which has the lowest at 1.95 percent. • New Mexico has the highest research and development (R&D) intensity.

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BUSINESS BRIEFS

• The District of Columbia has the fastest average Internet speed, 22.47 Mbps, 2.1 times faster than in Idaho, which has the slowest at 10.65 Mbps. • The District of Columbia has the highest share of public high-school students who completed advanced-placement (AP) exams, 60.2 percent, 4.4 times higher than in North Dakota, which has the lowest at 13.8 percent. To see the full list visit Wallethub.com.

Xcel Energy Proposes Expansion, Major Investment in Wind Energy Xcel Energy has proposed 11 new wind farms in seven states which would make it the largest multi-state investment in wind capacity in the country adding a total of 3,380 megawatts of new wind generation to its system. The proposed plan significantly increases the amount of wind energy in the company’s energy mix by 2021,with wind fueling nearly 35 percent of its total energy mix. “We’re investing big in wind because of the tremendous economic value it brings to our customers. With wind energy at historic low prices, we can secure savings that will benefit customers now and for decades to come,” said Ben Fowke, chairman, president and CEO of Xcel Energy in a press release. Also according to the release, the company says it anticipates investing a significant amount in wind generation over the next five years to build company-owned wind projects. Xcel Energy is using federal

production tax credits to secure low wind energy prices as part of the company’s ‘steel for fuel’ strategy.

17. Centennial Lakes

Minnesota’s Safest Cities Identified. Three In Our Region Are In Top 50

20. Lino Lakes

The National Council for Home Safety and Security recently ranked the safest cities in Minnesota. To identify the safest cities in Minnesota, we reviewed the most recent FBI Uniform Crime Report statistics along with their own population data and internal research. National Council for Home Safety and Security eliminated any cities that failed to submit a complete crime report to the FBI and removed cities with populations under 5,000. 2017 Top 50 Safest Minnesota Cities 1. Shoreview 2. White Bear Township 3. Arden Hills 4. Vadnais Heights 5. Little Canada 6. Orono 7. Cold Spring/Richmond 8. Minnetrista 9. Montevideo 10. Wyoming 11. Crookston 12. West Hennepin 13. Farmington 14. Glencoe 15. South Lake Minnetonka 16. Jordan

18. Chaska 19. Northfield 21. Lakeville 22. Dayton 23. Big Lake 24. New Ulm 25. Belle Plaine 26. Rosemount 27. Champlin 28. Medina 29. Ramsey 30. Plymouth 31. Falcon Heights 32. St. Francis 33. Eden Prairie 34. Kasson 35. Maple Grove 36. Stillwater 37. New Prague 38. North Mankato 39. Lakes Area 40. Rogers 41. East Grand Forks 42. St. Anthony 43. Minnetonka 44. North St. Paul 45. St. Peter 46. Prior Lake 47. Cottage Grove 48. Eagan 49. Worthington 50. Woodbury

Minnesota Tech Industry Employment Ranks High Minnesota’s technology industry added an estimated 2,226 new jobs in 2016, according to an annual analysis of the nation’s tech industry released by CompTIA. With an estimated 140,970 workers, Minnesota ranks 17th among the 50 states. The tech sector accounts for an estimated 7.4 percent of the overall Minnesota economy. 40

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CONNECTING BACK

5 YEARS AGO

MAY/JUNE 2012 Five years ago a man once dubbed “the most interesting man in southern Minnesota” graced our cover. How did Stevens Vaughn get that designation? Read our May 2012 cover story to find out! Also featured that issue was Elder Care Services in Madison Lake. 10 YEARS AGO

MAY/JUNE 2007 Art Olsen president and co founder of Beacon Promotions in New Ulm was our cover story back in May of 2007. He outlined all of the experiences that led him to start his own company. We also profiled DayPort, an Internet video pioneer at the time based in Mankato. The other profile story featured On The Wall, an art gallery and gift shop that quickly became a part of the fabric of Fairmont’s downtown district. 15 YEARS AGO

MAY/JUNE 2002 In 2002, Brown Printing in Waseca had 2,700 employees and did $380 million in sales. The man steering that ship at the time was Tom Engdahl. He told us about the challenges and opportunities that came with his position in our cover story. Profiled companies were Timeless Images in Metal and Meter Man out of Winnebago. 20 YEARS AGO

MAY/JUNE 1997 May of 1997 featured Starr Kirklin on the cover. Along with spending 17 years as president of First Bank in Mankato, Kirklin was instrumental in the growth of other Mankato entities such as the Mankato Civic Center, Immanuel-St. Joseph’s Hospital and Mankato State University. Profiled companies that issue were Southern Minnesota Construction and Emerald Travel Management, both of Mankato.

Read the entire articles at connectbiz.com

CHAMBER CONNECTION

Fairmont

Lake Crystal

Stephanie Busiahn, Fairmont CVB

Julie Reed Lake Crystal Area Chamber

Celebrate summer with amazing events and unforgettable festivals in the Fairmont area. Interlaken Heritage Days fills the streets with activity and entertainment June 9-11, engaging visitors and residents alike in a celebration of community, history, and summer fun! From live music, food vendors and collectible cars, to historical displays and rubber duck races; this is one community celebration you won’t soon forget! Be sure to register for the Fairmont Triathlon and Duathlon, Saturday, June 10.

The Lake Crystal Chamber is excited to be hosting the NEW “Cruz ‘IN Lake Crystal” Classic car roll in’s beginning May 25th. The Lake Days celebration (formerly Duck Days) will be held June 15th -18th. Events will include Car roll in on Thursday, the Battle of the Bands parade competition, and fireworks on Friday. There will be kids’ events and street dance on Saturday and ‘Concert in the Park’ on Sunday – hosted by the Crystal Waters Project.

Fairmont Margaret Dillard, Fairmont Area Chamber

Region Nine Nicole Griensewic-Mickelson, Dev. Com.

Our 2017 Area Career Exploration (ACE) took place on April 12 at the Fairmont Jr/Sr High School. Approximately 650 high school sophomores attended this free event, raising awareness for local job and career opportunities and helping area students to develop their plans for career success. Area businesses, organizations and post-secondary institutions occupied nearly one hundred booths, offering insights into careers with local employment prospects. To get your business involved in next year’s event, visit FairmontChamber.org!

Region Nine Development Commission, in partnership with the YWCA Mankato, Greater Mankato Diversity Council, Blandin Foundation, and the Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Minnesota Foundation are holding It’s Time to Talk: Forums on Race across the region. It’s Time to Talk: Forums on Race is a YWCA trademarked racial dialogue facilitation process utilizing trained facilitators to lead small table discussions on race. To find a forum being held near you, visit rndc.org.

Le Sueur Julie Boyland, Le Sueur Chamber

Happy Spring! Nicollet City Wide Clean up Day is May 6th. Place all items curb side by 6am. Friendship Days will be held June 16th to 18th. The chamber is sponsoring the Wendinger Band in the Friendship Days parade at 1pm and they will play in the city park following the parade. The Nicollet Conservation Club will be celebrating their 75th Anniversary in July. Visit nicollet.org for all local happenings.

The Farmers Market opens in Le Sueur on Saturday, June 3rd. It’s held each Saturday morning from 8:00am until items are sold out. The market is held on the eastern edge of the Municipal parking lot at the north corner of Bridge Street and Second Street. Contact the Chamber for more information. The Chamber Golf Outing will be held on Monday, May 22nd at the Le Sueur Country Club. The event is open to all. Shot gun start at 1:00pm, 18 holes best ball, followed with a picnic supper. Call the Le Sueur Chamber to register.

Mankato Rosi Back, Greater Mankato Growth Greater Mankato Leadership Institute has provided the area’s only comprehensive leadership training program since 1983. This program helps individuals grow personally and professionally, offering an interactive glimpse of the Greater Mankato region through monthly sessions from September to May. Don’t miss this opportunity to learn the leadership skills necessary to take your career and organization to the next level! Applications will be accepted until June 1, 2017. 42

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MAY/JUNE 2017

Nicollet Alesia Slater, Nicollet Chamber

St. James Jamie Scheffer, St. James EDA St. James is happy to announce that South Fork Creek Golf Course has been purchased by Scott Greenseth of Greenseth Golf, and will be open for the 2017 season! Greenseth Golf Inc. has rehabbed and constructed over 40 golf courses. Visit St. James and play a round of golf this summer! Don’t forget–St. James is “Open 4 Business!” during Highway 4 Reconstruction.

St. James Joe McCabe, St. James Area Chamber The St. James Area Chamber of Commerce AgriBusiness Committee in 2017 will be awarding its 17th Agriculture Future of America scholarship to senior students in Watonwan County as they pursue higher education related to agriculture. The Chamber welcomes

Local Chamber & Economic Development News

Mankato

New Ulm

Julie Nelson, Small Business Development Center

Sarah Warmka New Ulm Chamber/CVB

We have moved! Visit us in our new location at 424 N. Riverfront Dr., Suite 210, in Mankato’s Old Town commercial district. We are excited to be a part of the University’s presence downtown, to create more opportunities for students and businesses in the region. The SBDC has been hosted at Minnesota State Mankato since 2011. We serve nine counties and provide no-cost, professional services to approximately 400 emerging and established businesses annually.

The New Ulm Area Chamber of Commerce welcomes these new members: Superior Mobility, The New Ulm WELLness Collective, Peace Counseling Services, Edward Jones – Jason Engstrom, Theresa Keaveny – Sustainable Farming Association, Cricket Wireless, doTERRA Essential Oils, and New Vision Tech Solutions. New Ulm attractions will begin their summer hours Memorial Day weekend. Save the date for New Ulm’s largest party of the summer: Bavarian Blast, July 14-16.

three new members: Collage St. James, Center for Specialty Care, and Tri-County Seed. Highway 4 Reconstruction is underway and the majority of the business district are not directly affected by the project, so come Shop St. James!

Leasure, Diamond Dust Bakery, Harmon Agency—American Family Insurance, The Cheese and Pie Mongers, Newton Properties LLC, and Saint Peter Cab Company. Read about summer music festivals on the Chamber’s website.

St. Peter Ed Lee, St. Peter Chamber

Waseca Kim Foels, Waseca Chamber

River’s Edge Hospital is planning a $31.25 million expansion, which includes eight new rooms among many other upgrades. The St. Peter Chamber welcomes new members Go! Therapy, Century 21 Atwood Realty, Atwood Property Management, Simply Green Lawn Service, True Realty—Lynn O’Brien, RE/MAX Realty—Aubrey

MN Job Match tool is hosted by Minnesota Chamber of Commerce through its Grow MN! program in partnership with RealTime Talent. The Waseca Chamber is a Grow MN ! partner. Any job seeker that has signed up for an account and submits information about their skills and interests etc. will be evaluated to assess the potential fit for a job posting. When a business posts a job on MN Job Match, it is disseminated to over 5,000 job boards.

Sleepy Eye

Waseca Gary Sandholm, Waseca EDA

Kurk Kramer Sleepy Eye EDA

Looking to attract more travelers, the Waseca EDA is having a feasibility study conducted for another hotel. The relocation of Highway 14 has increased traffic on the road, but the present hotels are now at some distance. The study will help determine if there is a sufficient market to capture that is not being reached. BEST of Waseca County will hold a Spring Business Summit April 25 at the Southern Research Outreach Center.

In the coming year, the Sleepy Eye EDA Board will focus on the downtown district and the need for rehab work, or the determination of other possible pathways for those buildings that have been neglected. One other exciting bit of news involving the EDA and members of the community is the upcoming luncheon involving a Twin Cities company called The Better Pillow. They will be involving members of the Sleepy Eye community in a trial use of their pillow product.

Any chamber of commerce, convention and visitors bureau, or economic development organization in our reading area—large or small, from Amboy to Winnebago—can post on our free bulletin board. For details, email editor@connectbiz.com.

MAY/JUNE 2017

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Mapleton Marine founder Jim Schull with son and General Manager Josh Schull, at their annual boat show in Mankatoâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Madison East Mall.

By Erin Dorney Photo by Kris Kathmann

The Schull family finds that family time and family values can be found on the water and in their business, Mapleton Marine. The boating industry in Minnesota is making all sorts of waves these days. According to data from the National Marine Manufacturers Association (NMMA), Minnesota ranks fourth when it comes to new-boat buying nationwide (behind Florida, Texas, and Michigan). In 2015 approximately 11,000 new boats were sold in Minnesota. At an average of $34,427 per boat, that’s $379 million coming in. Estimates put the number of used boat sales around 44,000 for the same year. Maybe not surprising statistics, after all, we are in the land of 10,000 lakes. Boating is ingrained in the culture. “It’s part of what you do as you grow up,” says Josh Schull, General Manager of Mapleton Marine. “People here, that’s what they’ve always done. They go to the cabin, or they have a friend or an uncle or a relative who has a lake home.” That’s the way Josh grew up, on the lake and surrounded by boats off the water as well. Thanks to his father, Jim, who started Mapleton Marine when Josh was just a kid back in 1986. At that time it was just Jim and a single helper. Today, the company employs 10 people and has expanded beyond what he ever thought was possible. It stems from his deep belief that boating can bring people together, and being out on the water is an experience you can’t put a price tag on. Jim says, “My boat’s my psychiatrist. When I have things buzzing in my head, I go jump in the boat. It’s something about the solitude of the waves—whether you’re catching your fish or not is not important. It’s getting in touch with nature more than anything, what God has made. It makes you humble.” With a year-round location in Mapleton, each January through March, the Schulls take their show on the road. For 27 years now, Mapleton Marine has hosted its winter boat show at the Madison East Center in Mankato, nestled among medical supply stores and Mayo Clinic offices. The mall hallways are stuffed with gleaming watercraft, party pontoons, and boat lifts. The trek to Mankato each winter is an important part of Mapleton Marine’s business plan. Even though lakes are almost always frozen over that time of year, stats from NMMA say 36 percent of powerboat owners decided continued > to purchase a boat after attending a boat show. MAY/JUNE 2017

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Since 1883 Nicollet County Bank

220 South Third Street St. Peter, Minnesota Phone: 931-3310 nicolletcountybank.com

C B

Nicollet County Bank

Making Waves in Mapleton

Mapleton Marine is a full service boating dealership, a one-stop shop when you’re heading out onto the water. They do new and used sales from their showroom and warehouse, detailing, service and parts, storage, and more. Mapleton Marine is one of the largest dock and lift dealers in the entire state of Minnesota. Holding their boat show at Madison East Center each winter helps the company stay visible to Mankato-area residents (Mapleton is located 15 miles south). Plus, the beginning of the year is the perfect time to purchase a boat, with many manufacturers offering declining rebate programs. This means that a boat purchased in January would be eligible for the highest rebate amount, with rebates decreasing through March. Once April 1st rolls around, boaters want to be ready to get out on the water and not waste a single second of the nice weather. It’s the way Jim was raised and it’s what fuels his business decisions. He credits his love of boating to his father, who bought him a boat when he was just 15 years old. “I was raised on a farm (and we still live on the farm). My dad came home from an auction with a 12-foot cedar strip boat with a 25hp motor, and he said, ‘There you go, boys.’ I have two brothers and a sister. All we knew back then was that if you pulled on it long enough, it would start, and to the lake we went.”

Making Waves in Mapleton

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All Aboard: How They Got Started In vocational school, Jim switched from the auto line to the marine line. “An outboard motor does not drip on you when you’re underneath it working on it,” he explains of his decision. For Josh, it was a little different. “I started full time during my sophomore year of college in 1998 as the parts manager. From there I moved into the sales portion of the business in 2002 with my dad and then our sales manager Gary Reise. From that point I worked as a salesman until 2011 when I moved into the Sales Manager position after Gary passed away and now currently act as General Manager for the entire business.”

Mapleton Marine | Mapleton

“I was always involved in some form of the business growing up. Cleaning boats, sweeping floors, going to boat shows with my dad.”

Every bolt and joist. Every permit and approval. It all needs to come together, quickly and efficiently. Choose a partner who will make each connection a strong one.

– Josh Schull It’s a love Jim immediately passed on to his son Josh. Making him his first mate on the water and in the business. “I was always involved in some form of the business growing up,” reflects Josh. “Cleaning boats, sweeping floors, going to boat shows with my dad. When my dad first started he was the only person that handled the sales and sometimes at boat shows when it

Making Waves in Mapleton

All Work And No Play? “Of course we all like to go boating,” says Josh. “Unfortunately, when it’s nice enough to go out, that means other people are boating, and we need to be taking care of customers. I usually have to go on vacation to get on a boat for fun.” “I do a fishing trip on Father’s Day week, that’s been a tradition for the last 10 years,” says Jim. “This year I’m getting into more of a family style boat instead of just a fishing boat, because I’ve got grandkids to play with.”

Best Boating Around Mankato:

• Lake Washington (on week day) • Madison Lake • Lake Jefferson • Duck Lake (Jamestown Township) • Lake Francis “Wherever your friends are at, I think, is the lake that you choose.” —Jim

Expanding Our World for Greater Value. Willard and Williams Insurance Agency has joined Kato Insurance Agency to offer you better coverage. Not only will you still receive the same great service, but you will have an increased knowledge base with additional agents and more coverage plan options. You will still find your former Willard and Williams Insurance Agents at Kato Insurance, located on the second floor of the Profinium Place building in downtown Mankato. There is free two hour parking on the first and second levels of the ramp.

Profinium Place 100 Warren Street, Suite 204 Mankato, MN 56001 MAY/JUNE 2017

507.387.4081 800.767.7120 www.katoins.com CONNECT Business Magazine

Making Waves in Mapleton

“The technology of the engines and the quality of the boats is going up. Of course, that technology has driven the price up. In 2005 you could buy a pontoon with a 60 horse motor for under $10,000 whereas today, it’s $7,800 just for the motor.” was super busy it was hard for him to talk with everyone that came by. So when I was a kid, 7, 8, 9 years old, I would go to the shows with him; my job was to talk with customers that were looking at boats until my dad was able to finish up with his customer and help the customer I was talking too. He would tell me to ‘just talk about boating, fishing, hunting, the weather whatever will keep them around until I can get to them’. I guess this is maybe how I got my introduction to sales.” The State of Boating According to Jim and Josh, boating is slightly on the rise these days. “The technology of the engines and the quality of the boats

is going up,” says Jim. “Of course, that technology has driven the price up. In 2005 you could buy a pontoon with a 60 horse motor for under $10,000 whereas today, it’s $7,800 just for the motor.” The boating industry relies on disposable income as new boats typically sell for between $10,000 and $200,000. But, there also has to be a desire. “People have to want to boat in order to buy a boat,” says Jim. Josh admits that it’s difficult to get younger people into boating, particularly those who might be starting families and graduating from college with student loan debt. This particular issue is one the entire industry is currently struggling with. Although the industry is still predominantly male-driven, Mapleton

Making Waves in Mapleton

Boating Helps Anchor Schull Family “My earliest memory of boating was being at our cottage on Duck Lake and riding in my dad’s Baja boat,” remembers Josh. “A little back story on that boat. My dad sold that boat to a customer across the lake in 1988 and then the boat got passed on to his daughter and son-in-law years later. Since 1995 I’ve tried to purchase the boat back but I never was able to get it done. In 2013 I was finally able to buy the boat back. I completely restored the boat back to original condition, new upholstery, new paint job, and new motor. This was my dad’s first boat he purchased when he started Mapleton Marine and the first boat that I truly remember growing up in. It was special to both of us. After keeping my purchase a 48

secret from my dad I gave it back to him on Father’s Day of 2013. Now my kids get to enjoy the very same boat that I did when I was kid, something that is super special to me. We spent every weekend at the lake along with our friends, family and loved everything about the lake. Being at the lake and boating is one of my fondest memories growing up as a kid. “ This connection between family and boating is one that has strengthened Mapleton Marine over the years. “Boating is one of the most rewarding experiences a family can have together. It’s hard to get people to even sit down and eat dinner today at the same time,” he says. “But with a boat you do things together all day or all afternoon long with the family.”

Mapleton Marine | Mapleton

Making Waves in Mapleton

Off The Water And Into The Wild In 2004, Josh took a brief hiatus from Mapleton Marine to start his own business, “Wild Excursions” which he still operates today. Through Wild Excursions, Josh traveled the world to film and edit big game hunts for television and personal clients. “Growing up in a small town farming community, I was taught that if you work hard, good things will come,” he says. “When I started, I didn’t know anybody in the outdoor industry. I just brought a camera and started calling people and going to shows and shaking hands—the same way he [his father] started Mapleton Marine. You work hard, earn your customers, and continue to work hard to keep them.”

Marine sees lots of female boaters. “With some customers, the wife likes to fish and the husband doesn’t,” says Jim. The NMMA reports that fishing is the number one reason for owning a boat in Minnesota. The state ranks second in the U.S. for fishing participation according to the DNR, with nearly a third of residents age 16 or older holding a fishing license (behind Alaska, at 40%). Josh says the reason for boating, though, really should come down to one thing. “I guess I would ask them… do you like to have fun? It’s pretty simple. If you’ve never done it, why not try it? If you like to have fun, you’ll have fun going out boating. You just will.” In addition to technology improving over time, safety in boating has significantly increased over the years Jim has been in the business. The NMMA regulates safety standards as far as flotation, motor size, wiring, and general construction. “When we first started, how do I say this… When I first started, you had a lot of noise, a lot of smoke. Engines coughing, spitting, and sputtering was the norm.” Today, all boaters really need to know is how to turn a key. “If you can turn a key and fill it up with gas, you’re good to go,” says Josh. The Mapleton Marine Difference “We’re probably one of the only Marine dealerships in southern Minnesota with a master technician on staff,” says Jim. The body that certifies these master technicians is Mercury Marine®. Master status is the highest qualification a technician can achieve in the Mercury Marine Dealer Network, demonstrating outstanding performance and professionalism, and a commitment to provide only the highest standards of service. The master certification process can take anywhere from two to five years of trainings and product-specific courses. Mapleton Marine currently has one master technician on

Making Waves in Mapleton

Lines Sold At Mapleton Marine • Crestliner • Premier Pontoons • Hewitt (based in Nicollet, MN) • Pier Pleasure (based in Mankato, MN) • Mercury Marine MAY/JUNE 2017

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Making Waves in Mapleton

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staff and a few others on their way. Another thing Mapleton has focused on over the years is building customer loyalty by providing help at every step along the way. “We have their trust,” says Jim. “We pick up their boat and bring it to our store, winterize it, store it. In the spring they’ll call and we’ll meet them at the landing. They get to enjoy their boat for another summer.” “We always tell people that we can do as much or as little as they want us to do,” adds Josh. They encourage people to shop around. In some cases, Mapleton Marine will be most cost effective. Even if they’re not, the company sets itself apart through great customer service. “The one thing I can guarantee that we will have above anybody else is our customer service and how we take care of our customer before, during, and after the sale. I think that’s been proven for 30 plus years,” he says. This makes sense because what Mapleton Marine is selling is fun incarnate. A boat isn’t a necessity—it’s not something that anyone has to have. Mapleton Marine appreciates that. “You’re coming to us to in order to let us help you to go out and have fun. We want to take care of those people that take care of us. It’s kind of a mutual respect that we have,” Josh says. Jim says it was important to him to include “honesty” as one of Mapleton Marine’s company values. “We do what we say. We treat people like we want to be treated. Fairness is the only way that works,” he says. “We have to make a profit, but we’re not greedy. That’s how I was brought up.” Erin Dorney writes from Mankato.

COLLABORATION CONNECTION: COMMUNITY FESTIVALS

Community Festivals

Nicollet Friendship Days parade.

By Lisa Cownie

Creating Buzz and Boom Right about this time of year, every year, Minnesota can be known not only as the Land of 10,000 Lakes, but also the Land of 10,000 Festivals. It seems every small town found in every nook and cranny of the state holds some type of summer celebration. The festivals have not only social benefits, but great economic benefits to communities as well. Most of these festivals are rooted in some type of tradition. But no matter how they started, these events are growing forms of tourism, especially in rural areas that are struggling. Community events can be a way to revitalize local economies. Drawing people to these areas for a few days each summer can have huge benefits. Fairs and festivals bring in outside dollars to the region, and the events give communities a chance to show off, give visitors a glimpse of what they have to offer in hopes it prompts a return visit during the off-season. St. Peter is a prime example. By many opinions, St. Peter is a quaint, special community with a special look and specialty shops that add to the ambiance of the town. Getting outsiders to notice it, is one aim of the many festivals it holds each summer. The city features music festivals, such as Ambassadors’ Blues and the Rock Bend Folk Festival, but also traditional gatherings like the Old-Fashioned July 4

celebration and the Nicollet County Fair. “St. Peter’s festivals help elevate the community’s ‘cool factor’ that is communicated all over the state and region,” says Ed Lee, president of St. Peter Chamber of Commerce. “Gathering places like the Food Co-op, Arts Center of St. Peter, Treaty Site History Center, along with dozens of unique, aesthetic businesses, blend together to create the St. Peter feeling. It’s difficult to describe, but everyone knows it. We’re flattered that St. Peter is getting noticed on tourism lists like “the top 10 places to visit in Minnesota” and the “the top 10 places to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day in Minnesota.” Summer festivals play into the cool factor.” But the many gatherings create more than just buzz, they also create a boom for the local economy. Lee estimates that nearly 35,000 people visit St. Peter each summer. “We are positive these festivals generate dollars for businesses and organizations, so there are direct benefits,” he says. “Tens of thousands of dollars are spent making the festivals attractive with investments ranging from popular musicians to giant inflatable obstacle courses to groceries for concessions all the way to a large number of porta-potties. So, the events themselves represent mini economies serving the broader community economy. More than

St. Peter 4th of July Celebration.

anything, we get a thrill out of hosting festivals because we love parties and making memories. The community very much appreciates the support from attendees and sponsors, because dollars are part of the big picture. Festivals are pieces of the grand quality of life puzzle. All of the pieces represent strategies to keep St. Peter financially strong, hoppin’ and happenin’.” It’s a similar phenomenon in Nicollet. With a population of just over one thousand people, the town triples that for three days each summer. By the time the event concludes with a Grand Parade on Sunday afternoon, nearly 3,000 people are in attendance. “Friendship Days is the biggest town event of the year, that the entire greater Nicollet area supports 100%. The impact on town businesses is huge, including the Nicollet American Legion as it is one of MAY/JUNE 2017

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COLLABORATION CONNECTION: COMMUNITY FESTIVALS

Fairmont Interlaken Heritage Days.

our major fund raisers that enables them to provide community and school support, keeps the Friendship Hall open for benefits, meetings, dances, and other civic events,” says Del Vulcan, organizer of the event. In Fairmont, the community holds an annual celebration known as Interlaken Heritage Days. It is a three-day event that takes place throughout the community with a variety of attractions and events. This year’s Interlaken Heritage Days celebration will take place June 9-11. The specifics change somewhat from year to year, but there is always a parade, a street dance at least one night, games, and food vendors. There are also thousands of people attending, spending thousands of dollars at local establishments. “Although I don’t have specific dollar amounts, I do know that it certainly is an economic driver for our community,” says Visit Fairmont executive director Stephanie Busiahn. “Locals are out and about taking in the festivities, we have out of town guests and family members here visiting, all doing business at local shops, restaurants, gas stations. Festivals take a lot of time and

man power to pull off, but the economic impact they have on communities usually play a big part in their success and life span.” Every second weekend in July thousands of people converge on the city of Blue Earth. Cindy Lyons with the Blue Earth Chamber says, like Fairmont, Giant Days is an event that attracts outsiders as well as people who just want to come home for a bit. “It’s the time when schools plan for their class reunions and families plan around the event as well,” she says. “Another big attraction is the 5K. We have runners coming from everywhere.” For communities wanting some data to guide them, there are many ways to measure the economic impact of a special event. Start with evaluating the costs and benefits to the host community, that would include measuring direct costs and revenues to organizers. Although it is sometimes just an estimation, it is important to effort to try to measure total attendance, visitor expenditures, vendor expenditures and revenues, plus organizers’ expenditures. Also, keep track of any employment bumps that happen during the festival or event. There are a variety of industries that can be impacted by the introduction of new money into the economy, even on a short term basis. Those include bars and restaurants, general merchandise stores, souvenir shops, hotel lodging or other accommodations, purchases from vendors present at the event, as well as gasoline. Explore Minnesota did an economic impact study for every county in the state, and the southern Minnesota region had some good numbers. According to the

study, in the nine-county region Connect Business Magazine covers, Blue Earth County had the highest economic draw from tourism. The figures, from 2015, show gross sales of $192,778,355 for Blue Earth County. Even the lowest in our area, Sibley County, brought in $8,187,971. Explore Minnesota pegs the total economic impact of tourism for our nine-county region in 2015 at $203,618,103. (Sources: Minnesota Department of Revenue and Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development.) The social benefits of festivals are less visible, but they are just as important. Festivals can strengthen relationships by fostering community pride and teaching people new things. Planning and conducting festivals involves many volunteers and is truly a community effort. Experts say among the social benefits is hometown pride. Hometown pride can be a critical factor in the development, sustainability and improvement of any community. Residents with community pride are more likely to volunteer with organizations and activities that support the common good and to speak positively about their town to others. Festivals promote communities and hometown pride by celebrating things that make a town special and evoke good feelings. Those things can be as “big” as ethnic heritage, or as “small” as a piece of pastry. “There are some great things that happen to a community during a community festival. It provides the community a reason to celebrate and brings people together,” says Busiahn.

How to Organize Your Own Community Event A community festival is a great way to connect local citizens, it is a big undertaking and requires numerous volunteers which adds to the community bonding. Tip number one is to start early. Planning really needs to begin months ahead of time. Next, decide what type of community festival you want. That will be based on the goal or mission of the festival. Is it just to get residents more involved? Or is it to raise money for a specific cause or project? A clear goal will aid in planning and marketing the event to others in the community and beyond. Third, form a citizen committee. Keep in mind you will need people from a variety of backgrounds and can bring 52

varied skillsets to the table.For instance, some will need to be good at the big picture, while others will need to be more detail oriented and organized to carry through on the smaller tasks. Developing a public relations and marketing plan for the event will also be key. Make local media your ally to get publicity for the festival. And finally, as you get started, find out what permitting or other requirements there are for holding a community event. There may be city or county requirements for parking, security, or if you sell food or alcohol there will likely be permits and guidelines for you to follow.

OPINION

Whether you prefer small government or big government, perhaps the better conversation is around what smarter government could do. Smart government requires collaboration and a long-term vision. It helps when you can start from a place of shared interest. An op-ed in the Star Tribune on March 9 talked about ending the current “hodgepodge approach to early education in Minnesota.” Amidst all of the areas of disagreement happening at both state and federal levels, our children - our next generation - continue to be a topic where legislators can find common ground. At Southern Minnesota Initiative Foundation (SMIF), smart investments in kids have been part of the Foundation’s 30 year

history. It makes sense that if you want a long-term competitive global advantage, you start young. From our experience, we know this to be true, and studies prove this out. University of Chicago Professor and Nobel Laureate in economics James J. Heckman’s newest analysis shows that “high-quality birth-to-five programs for disadvantaged children can deliver a 13 percent per year return on investment.” In our rural communities, SMIF has advocated against any sort of “silver bullet” approach to providing early childhood care. However, this does not mean that as a state we can’t find some efficiencies in how early childhood investments are allocated. The proposed bill for an Early Childhood Access Fund, with a special director to provide oversight, could cut back on the current piecemeal approach. However, the issue is complex and the answers will not come without a lot of collaborative discussion with child care providers, trainers, certifiers, educators and funders. We’ve seen what happens when a bill gets proposed with-

out affected partners getting a chance to weigh in. Starting with the achievement gaps in early education can help address other issues facing MinTim Penny nesota. Again, going back to research, we know that while Minnesota often leads the way in education, we are near the bottom when it comes to the achievement gap between white children and children of color. Forty thousand lowincome kids in our state don’t have access to affordable, quality early learning programs. Given the 400,000 worker shortfall Minnesota is facing by 2030, we’re not in a position to be letting any children fall behind. Furthermore, we are in the midst of an early childhood care crisis that has become an economic development threat. Current child care providers are retiring, there’s a gap between what providers are paid and

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Current child care providers are retiring, there’s a gap between what providers are paid and what parents can pay, and businesses are struggling to recruit workers because they can’t promise access to affordable care. what parents parents can can pay, pay, and and businesses businesses are are what struggling to to recruit recruit workers workers because because they they struggling can’tpromise promiseaccess accessto toaffordable affordablecare. care.This This can’t anotherarea areawhere whereaashort-term short-termfix fixwon’t won’t isisanother be enough; enough; we we need need smart, smart, long-term long-term apapbe proaches and lawmakers who understand proaches and lawmakers who understand the many many variables variables involved. involved. the SMIF’s role role isis just just one one of of aa much much larger larger SMIF’s effortto toaddress addressthese theseissues. issues.SMIF’s SMIF’sQuality Quality effort Child Care Care Program Program has has been been providing providing aa Child model to to get get our our child child care care providers providers on on the the model path to to higher higher quality. quality. Another Another bill bill pending pending path inthe theMinnesota MinnesotaLegislature Legislature(SF (SF2090) 2090)would would in appropriate $1.5 million to the Minnesota appropriate $1.5 million to the Minnesota Initiative Foundations Foundations that that would would help help us us Initiative continue to to work work within within the the 80 80 Greater Greater continue Minnesotacounties counties--52.4 52.4percent percentof ofchildren children Minnesota live in in Greater Greater Minnesota Minnesota (Minnesota (Minnesota Kids Kids live

Count 2016) 2016) -- to to align align resources resources for for quality quality Count early learning learning opportunities. opportunities. early SMIF works works with with partners partners like like the the five five SMIF other Minnesota Minnesota Initiative Initiative Foundations, Foundations, other FirstChildren’s Children’sFinance, Finance,Child ChildCare CareAware Aware First of Minnesota, Minnesota Department of of Minnesota, Minnesota Department of Education, multiple multiple task task forces, forces, local local care care Education, providersand andbusiness businessleaders leadersand andelected elected providers representatives to to bring bring these these issues issues to to representatives light and and start start working working for for collaborative, collaborative, light creative solutions. solutions. SMIF’s SMIF’s Quality Quality Child Child creative Care Program Program has has already already worked worked with with Care hundreds of providers across 13 counties hundreds of providers across 13 counties in our our 20-county 20-county region region to to get get them them on on aa in path to to quality quality through through the the state’s state’s Parent Parent path Aware rating rating system. system. Aware SMIF’s Early Early Childhood Childhood Initiatives Initiatives are are SMIF’s another approach, approach, underscoring underscoring the the need need another

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for many many voices voices to to be be at at the the table, table, from from for educators to providers to families to the educators to providers to families to the business community. community. Our Our Vice Vice President President business ofEarly EarlyChildhood, Childhood,Rae RaeJean JeanHansen, Hansen,is ison on of the Minnesota Minnesota Committee Committee of of the the National National the Academy of of Sciences Sciences to to lend lend aa national national Academy perspective to to SMIF’s SMIF’s work work in in rural rural MinMinperspective nesota, as as well well as as the the Start Start Early Early Funders Funders nesota, Network. These These conversations conversations inform inform the the Network. needs and SMIF’s response. needs and SMIF’s response. As early early childhood childhood education education bills bills go go As forwardin inthe theState StateHouse Houseand andSenate, Senate,IIask ask forward electedofficials officialsto tomake makesure surethat thatsimilarly, similarly, elected allvoices voicesare areat atthe thetable. table.We Wecertainly certainlyhave have all room for for growth, growth, and and the the state-level state-level is is aa room good place place to to push push for for aa more more equitable equitable good education agenda. agenda. Smart Smart early early education education education investments are vital to Minnesota’s future investments are vital to Minnesota’s future success. success. As always, always, II welcome welcome your your comments comments As and questions. questions. You You can can reach reach me me at at timp@ timp@ and smifoundation.org or or 507-455-3215. 507-455-3215. smifoundation.org TimPenny PennyisisPresident Presidentand andCEO CEOof ofSouthern SouthernMinnesota MinnesotaInitiative Initiative Tim Foundation(SMIF). (SMIF). Foundation

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Very New or Re-formed Businesses or Professionals New To Our Reading Area

MANKATO

Kato Music Lessons

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For Stacy Berkner, known as Stacy K, the art of music has been a life-long journey. “My experience with music has alternated between educational and real-life training throughout the years,” says Stacy K. “It was after my time playing in the Johnny Holm Band that I attended McNally Smith College of Music.” Shortly after that, her teaching career began. She taught at various locations in Minneapolis while playing in original and cover bands. She has even opened for Brandi Carlile and Grace Potter. Then in 2016, she moved to Mankato and her dreams really started coming true. “I had always envisioned myself owning my own space to teach and share the gift of music,” she says. “This opportunity came to fruition after hearing a space was available in Old Town. I am so happy Kato Music Lessons is a part of the Old Town Mankato culture!” Kato Music Lessons offers private instruction for any age and level in: voice, guitar, piano, ukulele, bass, performance, and songwriting. “I feel that music is a skill you can use in all aspects in life,” says Stacy K. “I foresee Kato Music Lessons becoming involved with many community projects such as the Solstice Talent Show, student performances at local music venues, farmers market performances, and starting community youth, teen, and adult bands through Kato Music which will offer local

performance opportunities as well.” Growing up in Sleepy Eye, Stacy K says there wasn’t much opportunity for those who were interested in music. Now she strives to be an advocate and a mentor. “I would like to involve Kato Music with local school music programs by being added to their curriculum as a professional musician guest speaker. With this I would like to inspire and educate students about the many benefits of music by telling my story and bringing in instruments and using our voices for interactive musical activities.,” she says. One of her favorite things is experiencing genuine excitement from her students. “I once heard a student tell their parent, ‘I was BORN to do this!!’ These are priceless. Meeting and getting to know all of my students is such a blast and I am humbled and excited to be a part of their musical journey.” KATO MUSIC LESSONS Address: 630 North Riverfront Drive, Suite B Web: katomusiclessons.com

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Pinnacle Business Solutions After years of varied business experiences in his own professional life, Joe Paulsen was ready to help others. Partnering with his wife, Rita a CPA, he opened Pinnacle Business Solutions in 2016 with a mission of enriching the lives of entrepreneurs by enhancing their business experience. He’s doing that with a tool called Entrepreneurial Operating System (EOS). A tool that helps businesses take stock of what they are doing by focusing on six main areas: vision, people, data, issues, process and traction. “EOS is really the highlight of Pinnacle’s offerings due to its surging popularity,” says Paulsen. “This system is revolutionizing small businesses by providing owners and their leadership teams with a proven system that will reduce the amount of stress that is common to business ownership by giving them more control over their businesses. EOS began in 2005 and is becoming popular with small/medium business owners because it has given them a viable solution to regain control of their businesses. Over 3,200 companies are now using EOS to operate their businesses and that number is growing by over 30% per year.” While the tool is becoming more and more well known, Paulsen says his challenge is to get his name associated with it regionally. “The biggest challenge has simply been to get my name out to area business owners as a local Professional EOS Implementer resource,” he says. With his wife’s expertise, Pinnacle also offers Business Valuations. Both have their CVA (Certified Valuation Analyst) certifica-

tions and can provide business valuations to clients looking to buy or sell a business or for succession and estate planning. “Our goal is to be a resource to area business owners at every stage of their business progression – EOS to assist them in improving their current operation and strengthening their leadership teams and Business Valuations to assist them when they are ready to sell or transition their business.” Pinnacle’s target market is southern Minnesota and Sioux Falls, South Dakota with a focus on small/medium entrepreneurial businesses with 10-250 employees. “The interest in EOS/Traction has been very positive. I am working with several clients in the area that have created a nice base of businesses Lindsay Window & Door, Blue Star Power Systems, Winnebago Mfg., Jones Metal Products and Exposure Creative,” he says. PINNACLE BUSINESS SOLUTIONS Address: 301 Webster Avenue Telephone: (507) 382-9610 Website: pinnaclesolutionspro.com

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NORTH MANKATO

Christy Bode Photography

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Nicollet native Christy Bode has always enjoyed taking pictures, capturing moments from big events but also just from everyday life. When her three boys came along, that love intensified. But it wasn’t until she started taking pics of other people’s kids that something clicked. “A friend asked me to take pictures of her children, and the rest is history,” says Bode. “I officially had my first paying client in February of 2012, went full time April of 2014 and opened my first ‘real’ studio in September of 2016.” Her studio is located in the historic Brandt Building on Belgrade Avenue in North Mankato. “Moving my business into an official ‘storefront’ was a big decision,” reflects Bode. “I had a great little spot in my home right inside my garage, and even though working out of the house was very convenient, the size of the space was limiting, I wanted to be able to do more full length portraits, etc., and also needed the space for prop storage. I have a minor prop purchasing addiction, from new headbands and bonnets for babies to painted chairs, and my husband was getting tired of props taking up his precious garage space.” Being a busy mom of three boys, nights and weekends were hard on her schedule. That’s when she discovered a specialty and a passion photographing newborns. “I started because moms are home on maternity leave, and

can hold sessions during the weekday,” she says, “Now newborn photography is my absolute passion and love. Second to that are maternity portraits and baby’s first year. I love capturing these incredible moments, from a little babe growing inside a beautiful mama-to-be, to those precious newborn moments, to the big milestones that happen in baby’s first year. Knowing that the photos I’m taking will make people smile for years and even generations to come, makes me so happy.” As she grows her business, she is excited to see referrals and word of mouth grow too. “It is the highest and most amazing compliment to have past/current clients refer their friends and family to me,” she says. “There are many talented photographers in the area and every time someone chooses me, I am so honored. I don’t take that for granted.” CHRISTY BODE PHOTOGRAPHY Email: info@christybode.com Telephone: (507) 327-3487 Website: christybode.com

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Cory Genelin Partner, Gislason & Hunter Chair of the Employment Law Group

“I did some work for a guy (or sold some product to a guy) and now he won’t pay... I know I should have got something in writing ahead of time, but I didn’t. Am I Sorta-Outta-Luck? Do I need to hire an attorney right now?” Well, not necessarily. First of all, not all contracts have to be in writing. It’s possible to prove a contract without writing. Of course, if you’re bothering to call an attorney, you probably have some doubt about whether your customer will admit to owing you money. There are also legal theories that will allow collection with no contract at all. (Your industry might also have a lien statute governing it. If that’s the case, you have some other remedies that I don’t have the space to discuss here. Call your attorney.) You can recover under quantum meruit if you’ve conferred a benefit to another and haven’t received reasonable compensation. Under quantum meruit, the court will only enter judgment for “reasonable value,” which may or may not be the price

Collection Conundrum What To Do When Customers Don’t Pay you charge. Quantum valebant is a similar theory which applies to goods rather than services. Unjust enrichment is another; it holds that if one party has enriched himself at the expense of another, and it would be immoral to allow him to avoid paying for it, the enriched party can be made to pay. Under any of these claims, you are simply arguing “look, I spent four hours fixing your copier. My services are worth $75.00 per hour. Whether you understood those terms or not, it isn’t fair that you got a fixed copier and I got nothing.” Another legal theory is “account stated.” In short, if a customer fails to object to a bill in a timely manner then her silence is evidence of agreement. In our copier example, if you send invoices indicating the amount due, and if the customer does not object in a reasonable time, then the amount stated on the invoices becomes the amount due regardless of the original agreement. There is no solid rule for what is a “reasonable time.” Sending one bill and waiting one week probably won’t cut it; sending three bills over three months and

getting no response probably will. Even if there is some doubt as to how many hours you worked, if you send a bill for four, and if there’s no objection, then the account stated is for four hours. (Of course, there are limitations. You can’t just send out bills at random in hopes that someone fails to object; you must have had an existing relationship with the recipient of the bills.) So now that you understand some possible claims, where and how do you bring those claims? You start by building and sending a good bill. Make your invoice both detailed and simple—something that even someone unfamiliar with your industry (like a judge) can understand. You never know, lack of payment may simply be because your customer doesn’t understand what you did. If that doesn’t work, pick up the phone. Better yet, if you’re on civil terms, make arrangements go see the customer in person—it’s harder to say “no” in person. At some point, simply ask, “I’m wondering if you received my bill and if there’s some reason you haven’t paid yet.” You might

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