1-13-11 - Dakota County Tribune Business Weekly

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JESSICA HARPER T.W. BUDIG JOHN GESSNER

Lakeville software consultant partners with MnSCU 2A First bill of new session aimed at business tax relief 9A LivInn to get new sign that pokes over noise wall 39A

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DATE ##, 2009 JANUARY 13, 2011

VOLUME 30, NUMBER # VOLUME 31, NUMBER 46

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Recipes for success by Stacey Ackerman Do you have a favorite recipe that everyone compliments you on? Do you have a passion for cooking? Have you always dreamt of turning your culinary love into a meaningful business? We’ve profiled three south-metro women who have discovered recipes for success. These women have turned homemade salsa, cookies and lefse into tasty goods that consumers are willing to pay a premium for. While traditionally home-based businesses haven’t been thought of as “real businesses,” that attitude is quickly changing. According to the Journal of Small Business and Entrepreneurship, “home-based entrepreneurship, or operation of an independent income-generating business venture based in or from a business owner’s place of residence, is the small-business ownership choice of over 27 million fulltime and part-time workers in the United States and Canada.” Meet Nancy Peterson, otherwise known as The Salsa Lady. She began marketing salsa and chips in June 2008 at the White Bear Lake farmers’ market. The salsa and chips were originally sold as a two-ounce concession-stand item, but customers kept requesting salsa to take home. Peterson reworked her business model and came up with the perfect homemade jarred salsa recipe. “I played around with different ingredients (at first), but I’ve kept my recipe consistent from the beginning,” said Peterson. She finally came up with four top sellers that she markets today: mild, verde (medium), chipotle (medium) and habanera (hotter). She says that mild is the most popular flavor among Minnesotans, but the habanera customers are the most loyal. Peterson has always had a love for food. She worked at a hotel for 11 years as a server and bartender. She also managed a Taco Bell restaurant. She currently works with a talented chef at a catering company who inspired her to turn her passion for salsa into a business. Peterson is in a risky venture. Since her

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INSIDE BIZ FORUM

So many groups promote high school sports and varsity athletics. But how about promoting “varsity academics? JOE NATHAN 4A

Homemade creations make a splash in the marketplace DAKOTA COUNTY TRIBUNE

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salsa is made fresh, it has a one-day shelf life. Therefore it takes careful forecasting of sales so she doesn’t throw away profits. “I have to sell it or eat it,” she said. Peterson originally started making her salsa at home, but she has grown enough to rent kitchen space at The Corner Bar in Minneapolis. She had to obtain a commercial license to work out

FORUM

The stakes are high for state-funded health and human services. Seniors should pay attention to where cuts are proposed DON HEINZMAN 4A

See Recipes, Page 40A

BEST PRACTICES

Counterintuitive as it might seem, redos can actually be a good motivation to improve quality and client relations. RYAN ZAKARIASEN 2A BUSINESS 101

Photo by Rick Orndorf

Nancy Peterson

Photo by Rick Orndorf

Penny Dee Brevig

BOB VOSS

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The process of planning is an investment in your success. Make ongoing education part of your business plan. 5A

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General 952-894-1111 Distribution 952-846-2070 Advertising 952-846-2011

Please join us for a luncheon as we honor our 2011 Exceptional Businesswomen Thursday, February 3, 2011 at noon

LaGrand Event Center 7083 153rd Street West Apple Valley, MN 55124

Dakota County Tribune BUSINESS WEEKLY

Keynote speaker: Darlene Miller, President and CEO of Permac Industries

To register for the event, please visit www.ThisweekLive.com and click on Exceptional Businesswomen Luncheon


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