2017 Women in Business

WOMEN Jennif

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2017

Alicia

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A supplement to the Daily Record

2017

WOMEN IN BUSINESS 3

6

8

ALICIA WAGNER

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MANGOS SALON

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PROFESSIONAL MENTORS

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LEAP TO FREELANCING

Pita Pit

JENNIFER STIEFEL Heritage Distilling Co.

DIANE EWING UPS Store 2112

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en

tions olu

Left to Right: Kelly Carlson, Becca Sandnes, Carrie Danielle, Emily Wilson, Genine Pratt, and Karen Galbraith

No matter what, our customers come first.

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509-962-8299

210 E Mountain ViEw aVE • EllEnsburg, wa 98926

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l to r: Jaclyn Johnson, tEri PhilliP, ViViana MEndoza, Kiann toMPKins

1400 Vantage Highway • Ellensburg, WA Ellensburg | 509-933-7200 • Cle Elum | 509-674-2790 • KittitasPUD.com

2017 WOMEN IN BUSINESS

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prehensive care • E m o xp C

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Safe en vir on m

HealtHy teetH • Better living

JENNIFER STIEFEL

HERITAGE DISTILLING CO. Age: 42 Community: Roslyn via Gig Harbor How many years in Kittitas County: Opening November 2017 Business: Heritage Distilling Company Title: President

Q A

How did you get started in your business?

My husband, Justin, and I were sitting around a campfire with some friends drinking scotch.

The discussion began: “we can do this, but with a Pacific Northwest twist.” A year later our business was born. After drafting a full business plan and with the help from our family and friends we opened the first Heritage Distilling Co. location in Gig Harbor. Five years later we now call that our flagship location. Since then we’ve opened two additional locations, one on Gig Harbor’s waterfront and the other in Eugene, Oregon. Our fourth location is opening in mid-November in Roslyn. It has been a long time coming and we are very exciting to be part of the community. Roslyn has one of the longest and most fascinating history’s in Washington. My husband calls it “Washington’s most authentic historic small town.”

Q A

What career steps led you to your current position?

Before we developed career steps we had life experiences. I had the opportunity to be raised in an entrepreneurial family. My family owned several businesses in Alaska: from laundromats to an ice packing company to a cannery. During high school and college I worked in our family business. My first job outside of the family businesses was at Nordstrom, where I learned about customer service and attention to detail.

After earning my degree in elementary education from the University of Idaho, I went to work for my national sorority in Evanston, Illinois. My role was to travel the U.S. and visit Alpha Phi chapters on various college campuses to help with recruitment and other needs of each chapter. While that was a great adventure, I was missing my fiancé, Justin, and was eager to start our lives together. I decided to change course and we flew off to Las Vegas with a few family and friends and got married. see Jennifer on page 4

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JENNIFER

What have you learned from owning or running a business?

continued from page 3

Justin and I took off for Washington, D.C., where I began working for the United States Senate Appropriations Committee. While living in the D.C. area I earned my master’s degree in education while working full time. After teaching for several years in Fairfax, Virginia, Justin and I started our family. We have three children:

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Q A

Tanner, age 14, Hudson, age 11, and Kendall, age 8.

My journey to President of Heritage Distilling Company has been long, joyful, hard and rewarding. The journey has just begun for me in my current position and I look forward to growing and evolving with the company.

First, hire great people. Give them clear expectations, and then get out of the way. If you hire the right people, and give them to tools to succeed, then you don’t need to micromanage.

Learn from those you hire and be willing to evaluate your company with a critical eye.

Second, set clear company goals. When everyone on your team understands the goal and vision of your organization, then all efforts at every level are focused on the tasks at hand.

Third, ask your team, “how can we make an idea bigger?

How can we scale? What additional steps can we take to turn this idea from a small kernel into an enormous win?” With the right inspiration and thinking outside the box you can achieve big things.

Fourth, you can’t manage through fear or intimidation.

You need to build a culture that gets all employees engaged and bought into the same vision.

Anything less creates a breeding ground for cliques, gossip and wasted time and energy.

Fifth, respect is earned, not granted. A person who is treated with respect will give that same respect back.

Sixth, whatever our competition is doing, we want to do the opposite. Don’t enter a crowded field. Instead, create your own domain and work to dominate that area.

Seventh, my husband likes to say, “If you walk into a fair fight, your strategy was bad to begin with.” Don’t enter a fair battle; enter a battle with overwhelming odds on your side. Bring a bazooka to a spit wad contest.

Last, and most importantly, it is imperative to have a balance

2017 WOMEN IN BUSINESS

between work and home.

Q A

What challenges did you have to overcome?

Capital is a continuing challenge – working capital.

Every small business faces issues of how to allocate resources. Our business has three resources: employees, raw ingredients, and cash. Today’s banking environment is not set up to make small business growth easy. Every month involves planning for cash flow, investing and sales. Huge companies have mounds of cash sitting idle. Most small companies are focused on survival month to month to month, and year to year. Develop a good plan and then execute to that plan.

Also distilling is a new industry in the state of Washington. HDC is continually working to make good policy for the industry and to continue to work with legislators in Olympia.

Our industry is very competitive.

Huge players control vast swaths of the spirits market and they have lots of cash to throw around. We have to fight every day to get access to the market, and that requires being nimble, creative and making a superior local product.

Q A

What advice would you give other women interested in starting or owning a business?

Ensure that home life and work life is in balance. Seek help on both fronts, whether it’s with your family or work.

Acknowledge you can’t do everything. No person can do it all or have it all. 80 percent of life is just showing up. If you show up you will be surprised how much

you can accomplish.

And those things you can’t get done every day, tomorrow is still available. Being able to delegate is important.

Keep a sense of humor. Keep things in perspective. End the day with a cocktail.

Q

How do you balance family demands with work responsibilities?

A

Setting up a support network with your family is key. My mom and dad live five houses away — a life saver! Justin and I have been married for 20 years. It’s important to communicate, ask for

help when you need it, and learn to take each day as they come. Days can be long, but the years are short — don’t rush time. As your children grow, grow with them. Instill more responsibility on your children so they can contribute more to the family — don’t be afraid to give them responsibilities.

Q A

What was your first job?

My very first job was at Costco at age 10! My parents had a seasonal “booth” at Costco in Anchorage where we sold “sausage on a stick”… reindeer sausage! So, when you

see someone eating a sausage or hotdog at Costco, it all started in Anchorage, Alaska, circa 1985 by my family.

Q A

What did you learn?

Life takes hard work, balance, determination, and capital. Most importantly, you can’t do it all yourself. Hire great people, support them, encourage them and get out of their way.

Over 40 years combined experience in the home furnishings industry OPEN

Monday to Friday 8:30 am to 5:30 pm Saturday 9:30 am to 5:00 pm

509-925-1475

512 N. Pearl St., Ellensburg, WA

www.shawsfurnitureandappliance.com

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2017 WOMEN IN BUSINESS

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DIANE EWING UPS STORE

Q How did you get started in your business?

A My husband and I have always wanted to own a business locally. We were researching opening a UPS Store in Yakima and the Ellensburg Store was for sale.

Q What career steps led you to your current position? been many different types of accountant for many businesses.

A IIthave was a change in jobs that brought us to the UPS Store.

Q What have you learned from owning or running a business?

A Hire great staff! They will save you.

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Q What challenges did you have to overcome?

A Learning a brand new industry with no background.

Age: 52 Community: Ellensburg How many years in Kittitas County: 21 Business: UPS Store 2112 Title: Owner

Q What does the future hold for your business? have opened another store in Yakima about a year ago, and A We potential could open more in the Yakima area.

Helping families like you protect wHat is important.

Mandy is more than just an insurance agent to us. In fact, it is the first time in our lives that we feel like we have an agent that guides us in decisions in a respectful manner.

Not only do we save money through Allstate we have gained an advocate by doing business with Mandy Hamlin.

- Simon B B.

the most awarded craft distillery in north america...

is women owned

and coming to roslyn grand opening november 18th

Erin Larsen

Mandy Hamlin

Allstate Insurance Company 1320 S. Canyon Rd. (Behind Los Cabos & McDonald’s)

Ellensburg, WA 98926 Phone: 509-925-1700

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Fax: 509-925-1707 mandyhamlin@allstate.com www.allstate.com/mandyhamlin 24-Hour Customer Service

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Sarah Rolston

Heritage Distilling Co. Roslyn 101 E Pennslyvania Ave, Roslyn, WA HDCRoslyn@HeritageDistilling.com

2017 WOMEN IN BUSINESS

Q What advice would you give other women

interested in starting or owning a business?

Brave. Find a mentor. Build a support system.

A Be And go for it.

Q What was your first job?

A Coffee server at a Royal Fork Buffet in Yakima.

Q What did you learn?

A Patience.

37 Years of service

The women of ~the Driver House~ home of the Kittitas County Chamber of Commerce and the Ellensburg Rodeo are proud to support Ellensburg and Kittitas County’s growth and vitality.

in the Kittitas valleY – shannon agencY

Serving the Insurance Needs of Kittitas Valley for 36 years

509-933-3000

302 N. Pearl St., Ellensburg, WA • 301 Railroad St., Suite C, Cle Elum, WA

609 N. Main Street Ellensburg, WA 98926

www.ellensburgrodeo.com 509-962-7831 • 800-637-2444

2017 WOMEN IN BUSINESS

www.kittitascountychamber.com 509-925-2002 • 800-925-2204

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Left to right: (Standing) Monica Cumiskey, Amy McGuffin, Amy Kaiser, Left to right: (sitting) Sarah Truglio, Megan Meeks

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ALICIA WAGNER PITA PIT

Age: 27 Community: Ellensburg How many years in Kittitas County: 8 Business: Pita Pit Title: Store Manager

Dance & fitness classes for everybody: Dance classes Kids classes by Happy2move.org Ballet classes (teens & adults)

by ArtsbySarah

g n i v Gi you s n o s a re to

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509.925.6553

www.pearlcaredental.com 2401 W. Dolarway Rd. Ellensburg

Non-profit dance groups Indian and Bollywood by Sunflowers Peruvian and Latin by TusuyPeru 2060 Vantage Hwy #34 Call or text: 509-952-3395 www.rhythmsdf.com

BRING THIS ADD AND GET A FREE FITNESS CLASS

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Fitness classes Zumba Toning 速 by Jessica McKean PiYo 速 by Kari Linnell Zumba fitness 速 by Fabiola Serra Strong速 (HIIT) by Fabiola Serra

Back Row Left to Right: Kaycee Lowe, Jody Tucker, Tonya Rowbotham, Shannon Simpson, Cristina Bender, Jody Thayer, Jenny Arnold, Robin Cole, Ashley McIntosh, Front Row Left to right: Cindy Anderson, Cara Thayer, Jenny Bray, Shannon Bland, Tammy Brack, Tammy Olexsy.

Q A

How did you get started in your business?

I started working at Pita Pit my sophomore year at Central Washington University. I became interested because my older sister was employed here at the time while attending Central as well.

Q A

What career steps led you to your current position?

What led me to my current position was working hard and proving that I was a dedicated employee for my first three years in the store along with obtaining my degree in Information Technology and Administrative Management.

In 2013 the management position was opening up and I was ready to take on the opportunity.

This was also my senior year at Central and at the time I was taking many business and leadership classes. My classes lining up with my transition into the Store Manager Position was very helpful.

Q A Q A

What have you learned from owning or running a business?

From running a business I have learned that you never know what is going to come your way and be prepared for whatever it is.

What challenges did you have to overcome?

When I first took over the management position I think my age was probably the biggest challenge. This is because most of my employees were of similar age and I worked alongside some of them for years. It was also the same challenge with the community. I had to prove that I was prepared for the position. I am now going on four years and have built great relationships with my customers and staff.

see Alicia on page 10

Grebb, Johnson, Reed & Wachsmith, L.L.P.

CERTIFIED PUBLIC ACCOUNTANTS

Evergreen celebrates Women in the Workplace We were recognized by Fortune as a Best Workplace for Women in 2016 and we’ve made a commitment to continually support and encourage diversity in our workplace. While we’re honored to be nationally recognized, we also believe in helping our communities with highly personalized service and special insights into the local market.

Calls us or apply online today, so we can help you #ShowYourKeys®.

Back (L-R): Judy Roberts, Melanie Rosecrans, Kelsey Roseberry, Amy Bayne, Felicia Persson,TinaWall, Janet Riggin

209 E. 5th Ave. | PO Box 460 ELLENSBURG, WA 98926 (509) 925-9876

• Integrity • Commitment • Experience

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Front (L-R): Jacqueline O’Connor – Partner, Marie Riegel – Partner

Ellensburg Branch

409 N. Water Street | Ellensburg, WA 98926 Branch NMLS: 1391360

(509) 925-5800

www.evergreenhomeloans.com/ellensburg

© 2017 Evergreen Home Loans is a registered trade name of Evergreen Moneysource Mortgage Company® NMLS ID 3182. Trade/service marks are the property of Evergreen Home Loans. All rights reserved. Licensed under: Washington Consumer Loan Company License CL-3182.

2017 WOMEN IN BUSINESS

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ALICIA continued from page 9

Q A

What advice would you give other women interested in starting or owning a business?

Advice that I would give other women would be to have confidence and knowledge for what you do. Keep working towards your goals until you succeed. There are many ups and downs that come with running a business. So just be prepared and deal with each situation as it comes.

Q A

How do you balance family demands with work responsibilities?

Balancing work and family is not difficult for me at this time.

My family lives on the west side of the mountains and I make time to visit them often.

Q A

What was your first job?

Working at Pita Pit was my first job besides babysitting when I was younger. I am currently still in the same store that I started in. I just worked my way into the management position.

Q A

What did you learn?

I learned that putting in the hard work and time will help you grow for future success in the business.

L to R: Kelli Kopczynski, Jody McClure, and Janet VanLeuven-Kern

414 N. PEARL, ELLENSBURG, WA | (509) 925-1514

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Brad & Burke Heating & Air Conditioning Great Service Quality Installations Fair Prices Free Estimates

2017 WOMEN IN BUSINESS

Kelli Thorpe, Office Manager

962-9871

604 W. University Way • Ellensburg

1659457

“Your Comfort Is Our Top Priority!”

We are very Proud, and lucky, to have our pharmacy technicians Kelli Kopczynski, Jody McClure, and pharmacy assistant Janet VanLeuven-Kern. Together they have 40 years of experience in providing excellent customer service and keeping the pharmacy running smoothly.

M

angos Salon in Ellensburg was notified in September that the salon won Salon Today’s Total Makeover competition, according to a news release from the business.

The prize package is valued at more than $30,000 and includes a complete salon management system including hardware and software, a new front desk and furniture for another area of the salon, design consulting services from Takara Belmont, a full retail collection, fully stocked backbar, full Color Therapy product portfolio and a comprehensive marketing and education package from Keratin Complex.

Mangos manager Stephanie Castillo said the makeover will allow her to bring her business up to 2017 technology standards.

"We're not even online," Castillo said.

"This will allow us to do online booking, email blasts, stuff like that."

Castillo said she's talked to her customers who are excited to have that type of service offered.

“This will allow us to do online booking, email blasts, stuff like that.”

— Stephanie Castillo, owner generation, if it's not on their phone, they're not doing it."

Castillo said she originally tried to enter the contest on her phone wasn't able to, and then forgot about until she saw notice of the contest again.

"I typed it up on my phone and pushed send. I'm sure it had typos," Castillo said and then added with a laugh, "They probably thought, "this poor lady needs serious help.'"

MANGOS SALON

Castillo they have ordered some of the pieces and will probably start work on the upgrades in January.

The salon, located at 300 N. Pearl St. Suite 203 in Ellensburg, is owned by Keith Riexinger.

"Some of my clients are of the generation that they haven't done that before," Castillo said. "The younger 2017 WOMEN IN BUSINESS

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Shining stars from the beginning.

Whether it’s 22 years or 3 years of service, the women at the Daily Record have always been driven, creative and hardworking. We appreciate all the years of dedication.

HEATHER HERNANDEZ Publisher 4 years

JOANNA MARKELL

Editor & General Manager 7 years

PAM SHUART

Advertising Processes Manager 22 years

CAIT DALTON

Lead Designer & Print Coordinator 12 years

MEGAN WOODRUFF

Legals Specialist & Advertising Assistant

5 years

ROBYN SMITH

Sales Manager 4 years

PATSY TENNEY

AMY JENKINS

Business Office 14 years

Outside Sales Consultant 3 years

Not pictured:

DailyRecordNews.com • 509-925-1414

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GABBY RAMOS

Reporter August 2017

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PROFESSIONAL MENTORS

E

xecutives “at the top” of your industry didn’t get there on their own; they had a whole network of people who advised, guided and supported them on their journey to success. More than likely, they had a professional mentor.

BENEFITS OF MENTORSHIP Mentors offer a range of benefits that make it infinitely easier for you to succeed in your chosen profession.

and provide a new and useful perspective on a situation.

Remember they bring with them not only an outside opinion but a wider experience from which to draw.

Knowledge and contacts: A professional mentor offers knowledge of the industry (if they work within your field) and plenty of interesting — and often influential — contacts.

Support and solidarity: Success can be a lonely endeavor. But it doesn’t have to be. A professional mentor provides emotional support and a sense of “peer partnership.”

Skill and insight: You can learn many useful skills from having a professional mentor, including appropriate behavior, protocols and best business practices.

FINDING A MENTOR

CULTIVATING A HEALTHY RELATIONSHIP

It is important to remember not to get too focused on your own path to success; a mentorship is a relationship — a respectful connection between two parties in which both can learn from the experience of the other and grow professionally.

While there are services available to match you with a mentor, you can always find one yourself. There is the possibility that someone will approach you.

But if no one has, think of whom

The key to a successful mentorship is cultivating and maintaining a healthy relationship with your mentor.

Be sure that both parties clearly communicate their expectations

A successful and effective mentor relationship strengthens the industry as a whole through knowledge sharing and the development of leadership qualities.

Perspective: A good mentor will point out your blind spots

you would like to approach. Who do you admire? Who does what you want to be doing?

Don’t be afraid to look outside of your industry. You are looking for someone who cares about passing along what they’ve learned along the way — someone who wants you to have an easier path to success than they did.

2017 WOMEN IN BUSINESS

of the relationship — such as how often you plan to check in or meet in person to discuss current projects, future goals and other topics of professional development.

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LEAP TO FREELANCING Y

ou might have thought about it: taking the leap and quitting your 9-to-5 to freelance, consult or start your own business. There are some very real struggles — such as learning to live on a less-than-dependable regular income — but the rewards are deep if you love what you do.

Think about how you will transition from your current position to a new position, and actually write it down. It might sound dull, but putting the words on paper can help you feel the full weight of the decision.

Serving Our Community Since 1940

There is no force equal to a woman — W.E.B. Dubois determined to rise.

Shannon Stankiewicz, Lana Smith, Cindy Waters

Friendly Reliable Customer Service 209 W. Tacoma Avenue P.O. Box 336 Ellensburg, WA 98926 509-925-6108 An Independent Agency Toll Free 1-800-727-3986 www.blueridgeinsurance.net

Front L to R: Cindy Knudson, Cheryl Brown, Nikki Puhich, Tracie Russell, Emily Hade, Tina Griffin Back L to R: Jack Stanley, Wendy Flowers, Lisa Brost, Renee Kraft

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1791 Vantage Hwy Ellensburg, WA 98926 509-962-4000 • www.knudsonlumber.com

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Meet the Women of Blue Ridge

Before you jump in head first, take the following necessary steps to build a solid professional foundation and avoid feeling sore from a very hard fall.

CREATE A FINANCIAL PLAN When you transition from a full-time job to freelancing, you are essentially starting a business. You will quickly learn that taxes are a pain when you are a freelancer. There are things you can do to make it as easy on yourself as possible.

For example, set up a separate checking account, savings account and credit line solely for business expenses. This makes it easier to track expenses for tax purposes.

BUILD YOUR PROFESSIONAL NETWORK

necessary steps to get your face and work out there in front of other people.

This means crafting and updating your social media channels, such as LinkedIn, but it also means setting up lunches, attending professional mixers and perfecting your “elevator pitch” — being able to sell yourself in just a few minutes — so that you come off relaxed and confident.

WORK “DOUBLE” In order to perform the above previous three steps, you will inevitably need to begin freelancing before you leave your full-time position.

It will take time to begin earning a livable wage from freelancing alone, so you will need to work incredibly hard and boost your savings before taking the leap.

Networking is an invaluable professional skill — especially when you are a one-person show. Take the

YOUR DREAM TEAM

At Umpqua Bank, you’ve got an entire team dedicated to your banking and home lending needs.

Top Row (L-R): Kami Dashnea, Shelly Turner, Kathy osborne, Schiree Minor, Anna williams BoTToM Row (L-R): Hannah Hall, Sidney Martin, Laura woodiwiss, Janet Vaughan, Haley Duke

Laurie Armstrong

Jamie Johnson

Home Loan Officer NMLS 120778 CELL 509-899-1732 TEL 509-933-5484

Ellensburg Store Manager NMLS 609547 TEL 509-933-5450

LaurieArmstrong@UmpquaBank.com UmpquaBank.com/LArmstrong Member FDIC Equal Housing Lender

101 W. Fifth Ave. • Ellensburg, WA 98926 • ellensburg@amerititle.com Phone: (509) 925-1477 • Fax: (509) 962-3111 SBA Preferred Lender NMLS 401867

HLD17.816

2017 WOMEN IN BUSINESS

www.amerititle.com

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JamieJohnson@UmpquaBank.com

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Thank you ladies for all your years of exceptional service.

Top row L-R:

Not pictured:

16 Irene Weidert

MILY BUS I FA

~ 2016 ~

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Sarah Reid

4th & Main Downtown Ellensburg 509-925-9828 www.fitterersfurnitur2017 e.com www.fitterersfurniture.com WOMEN IN BUSINESS SS AWAR NE

Bottom row:

Open 6 Days A Week HINGTON AS

Kelcie Russell, Amanda Stark

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Second row L-R:

Free Free delivery delivery in the heart heart of Washington

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Isabella Weidert, Cheryl Salta, Amanda McDougall