JA N UA RY 23 - JA N UA RY 29, 2015 | T H R E E D O L L A R S
FLOR IDA’S NE WSPAPER FOR T HE C - SUI T E
Apparel | To win market share in retail, you have to stand out from the crowd. PG.10 P A S C O • H I L L S B O R O U G H • P I N E L L A S • M A N AT E E • S A R A S O TA • C H A R L O T T E • L E E • C O L L I E R
INCENTIVES:
dissected Governments spend millions to lure companies to the Gulf Coast. Are these incentives worth the gamble? PAGE 14 <<SPECIAL REPORT>>
Mark Huey | ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT CORP. OF SARASOTA COUNTY STRATEGY
FINANCE
STRATEGY
Fast Casual Growth
Florida Benefits
Market Entrance
Bob Basham and Nick Reader proved their model with PDQ. Now they’re coming for pizza and burger joints. PAGE 7
A top strategist at Raymond James says the forecast for Florida real estate looks more than good — his clients think they can’t lose on that investment. PAGE 9
COMPANIES
Big Fish
When a venture capital firm bought an aquaculture park recently, it wanted more than caviar. It sought facilities to get in on the sustainable food revolution. PAGE 8
RETAIL
TECHNOLOGY
Fabric of Success
Lead Machine
It can be tough to stand out in a crowded marketplace. Roy Smith plans to do it with an unconventional design. PAGE 10
Ryan Tremblay designed software to help Realtors find potential clients on the Internet — and track them effectively. PAGE 12
Tulsa private equity firm buys Sarasota’s Lake Osprey Plaza. 20 Naples’ Tanglewood Marketplace sells for $10.5 million. 21 Westshore office building purchased for $20.9 million. 22
PAGE
3 An economics lesson even Obama can understand. 146235
DON’T MISS
FDA approval is costly in time and money. So one Tampa firm started with animals to get its cancer treatment into the market more quickly. PAGE 11
TOP DEALS
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BUSINESS OBSERVER | JANUARY 23 – JANUARY 29, 2015
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JANUARY 23 – JANUARY 29, 2015 | BUSINESS OBSERVER
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What’s more, when capital gains are taxed at high rates, guess what? It stays locked up; investors don’t cash out; tax collections decline. There is also this wellunderstood truism — well, understood by capitalists, anyway — that no matter how hard it tries, government does not create or produce wealth — ever. The late Milton Friedman, a Chicago University graduate who actually learned something, explained that concept very clearly: “What government gives to one, it must take from another.” In other words, raising tax rates — on capital gains, estates or corporate or personal incomes — will not produce economic growth or increased wealth. But you can afford it, Obama says to those who have accumulated wealth and property (as a result of their hard work and ingenuity!). Perhaps they can. But that’s not the point. Forcing them to pay higher taxes is the equivalent of theft, albeit legalized. It’s Obama wanting to use “the law” to force one American to serve another man’s (his) purpose. To take one man’s property and give it to another because this particular politician believes more in collective equality than he believes in individual liberty. One more example: The corporate income tax. Obama and other altruistequality-ites have no qualms about taxing corporate profits. But they refuse to accept another simple economic truism: Corporations do not pay taxes. They never pay taxes. They may physically send tax payments to the federal government. But that tax money doesn’t come from the corporation. It comes from the corporation’s customers and consumers — in the form of higher prices. Just imagine what would happen in the U.S. economy if the corporate income tax rate were cut in half. Think of all of the capital suddenly freed up to be invested in expanding successful businesses. Think how that would help the middle class. It’s so simple. Econ 101.
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For a guy who graduated from Harvard and “taught” at the University of Chicago, Barack Obama sure didn’t “larn” much about economics or capitalism. In fact, you could say he didn’t larn nuthin’. President Obama, of course, continued his assault against liberty in favor of mandating material equality Tuesday night in his State of the Union address, Obama’s annual version of a “I Have a Dream” speech. This is his dream of taxing and confiscating every possible dollar out of successful Amerians who legally, ethically and fairly earned their property. Indeed, in spite of American voters telling him with bullhorns in November they don’t want his policies, he ticked off his list of proposed tax increases Tuesday night. Seriously? Just as his economy is finally gaining traction, he wants to confiscate more of Americans’ property and redistribute more unearned benefits? Give the guy an “F” in economics. As Steve Forbes tries to remind every politician who calls for tax increases, it’s pretty simple: When you raise the price, you get less of what you want. When you raise taxes, you get less economic growth, fewer jobs. Maybe the president — and his fellow redistributionists — could understand a simple diagram of how economics, capitalism and human behavior works. We chose to illustrate with the capitalgains tax because we figured even the Chicago University and Harvard graduates could understand. Of course, knowing what we know about President Obama’s understanding of economics, he likely would think in our example that the additional $13,000 that goes to Washington with a 28% capital-gains tax would fuel economic growth. That’s money Washington would inject into the economy, so his thinking goes. But let’s debunk that: In whose hands would that $13,000 be put to better use — say, Bill Gates, America’s great job creator, or Congress? Case closed.
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BUSINESS OBSERVER | JANUARY 23 – JANUARY 29, 2015
BusinessObserverFL.com
topstories from BusinessObserverFL.com CHARLOTTE-LEE-COLLIER
Hodges names business dean
Hodges University named three new deans, including Aysegul Timur as the dean of the Johnson School of Business. Timur succeeds Nancy Wyant, who will return to teaching. Timur earned her doctoral degree in economics from the University of South Florida and has been teaching at Hodges since 2000. A native of Turkey, Timur earned her bachelor’s and master’s degrees in business administration from the University of Istanbul. Hodges also named William Griz as the dean of the School of Allied Health, replacing Carlene Harrison who retired. In addition, Hodges appointed Mary Nuosce as dean of the Nichols School of Professional Studies, succeeding Karen Locklear who will retire April 30.
quote of theweek
Naples home prices keep rising
The median price of homes in the Naples area continued to rise in December by doubledigit annual-percentage increases, even as experts cautioned prices are stabilizing. The median price of an
“”
If anyone wants to offer us incentives to grow the business, we will certainly take it ... we’d be silly not to. Pat Redmond | CEO, Tervis, on economic development incentives. SEE PAGE 14
A n n u A l
SARASOTA-MANATEE
Pest control business makes seven mergers Environmental Pest Service closed seven merger deals in December. The Sarasotabased company completed 21 mergers and acquisitions in 2014 and has now merged with 53 companies in Florida and Georgia since August 2010. The firm’s brands and entities combined for $35.1 million in 2014 revenues, according to a release.
Formerly named Arrow Environmental Holdings, EPS is the parent company of Arrow Environmental Services in west and central Florida, Bug Out Service in Jacksonville and Skyline Pest Solutions in Atlanta.
Former Allstate exec to run LWR firm Gulfstream Property and Casualty Insurance Co. named industry veteran Douglas Reynolds president and CEO. Reynolds replaces Kerry Ford, vice president of underwriting at Gulfstream, who was interim president. Reynolds has held executive leadership positions for several insurance and financial services companies, including AIG and Allstate Insurance Co. Founded in 2004 and based in Lakewood Ranch, Gulfstream is a regional property insurance carrier that provides homeowners, renters, condominium and fire coverage. TAMPA BAY
Sunforest undergoing $5M renovation Commercial real estate firm
Do you agree with giving companies economic development incentives?
what do you think? 1 5 t h
existing single-family home rose 14.5% in December compared with December 2013, to $378,000, according to the Naples Area Board of Realtors. In addition, the association reported the median price of an existing condominium rose 14.9% to $239,000 in December compared with the same month one year ago. “Even though the report shows that the overall inventory decreased 6% in 2014, it increased in several price categories including the very high end,” says Coco Waldenmayer, managing broker at John R. Wood Properties, in a statement from the association.
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S o u t h w e S t
Lazydays has completed an expansion and upgrades to its RV Resort near its Seffner headquarters. The 300-site RV park features upgraded amenities, including a pool area with a resurfaced heated pool, hot tub and renovated pool bathrooms. The tennis court has been resurfaced and two half basketball courts have been added. The Lazydays RV Resort is located on part of its 126-acre dealership, which also contains a 220-bay service facility and a driver’s confidence course.
Are your customers spending more compared with last year?
86% Yes 14% No
F l o r i d A
to register go to:
Outlook Conference
7:30 am to 12:30 pm
Lazydays grows, upgrades RV Resort
Last week’s question:
R e a l e S tat e Thursday, January 29, 2015
Avison Young is spearheading a $5 million capital improvement project at Sunforest I, a 107,000-square-foot, threestory office building in Sunforest Business Park. Home to Bristol-Myers Squibb, the building, at 5130 Eisenhower Blvd., Tampa is being renovated with upgrades to the common areas, landscaping, restrooms and elevator cabs. The work will also create a new parking deck, add a new roof and modernize the HVAC controls.
Harborside Event Center
1375 Monroe Street, Fort Myers
www.outlook2015.org Prepay Rates: CCIM Members: $40 Non-Members: $50 For more information, please contact Bev Larson, CCIM (239) 281-1290
Conference Schedule:
Presented By:
7:30 AM 8:00 AM 8:10 AM
Florida Chapter
Southwest District flccim.com
Registration Welcome International Commercial Real Estate: An Inside Look
Moderated by Gerald Hendry, CCIM
William Flynn, Buchanan Ingersoll & Rooney | Fowler White Boggs
8:40 AM
National Forecast
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Dr. Lawrence Yun, Chief Economist and Sr VP of Research at the National Association of Realtors
9:35 AM
How CCIM Works for You
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Realtor Association of Greater Fort Myers and The Beach
Maxwell, Hendry & Simmons, LLC
Business Observer
Wells Fargo Private Bank
Naples Area Board of Realtors
Biovation
First Citizens Bank
1031 Tax Free Strategies, LLC
Achieva Credit Union
LandQwest Commercial
Southwest Florida Business Today
DryZone
CRE Consultants
Photography by David Michael
University Park
Coldwell Banker Commercial NRT
Grandbridge Real Estate Capital, LLC
Catylist
CBC National Bank SBA Lending Group
The Birch Company Commercial Realtors
Suite Life Magazine
City of Cape Coral Economic Development Office
Colliers International Southwest Florida
iCore Global
Valbridge Property Advisors | Armalavage Valuation, LLC
Office Furniture & Design Concepts
Naples Square
Florida Gulf Coast Chapter of the Appraisal Institute
Gulfshore Business Magazine
RE/Max Realty Group
The Law Offices of Kevin F. Jursinski & Associates
Lee & Associates | Naples - Ft. Myers
Busey Bank
Danielle Squires - Wells Fargo Bank Todd Barfield - Wells Fargo Private Bank
10:35 AM Market Analysis
Moderated by Adam Palmer, CCIM Chuck Taylor - Madison Marquette Matt Price - McGarvey Development Co. Michael Manno - Steelbridge Real Estate Services Brett Ellis - RE/MAX Realty Group
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Presented by Enn Luthringer, CCIM
Tourism Review
Presented by Tamara Pigott - Lee County Visitor & Convention Bureau
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JANUARY 23 – JANUARY 29, 2015 | BUSINESS OBSERVER
CoffeeTalk
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5
industry insights BY KATIE NIELSEN | INDUSTRY INSIGHTS
Martin Wasmer is well known in money management circles, but now his name will be associated with great fishing and scuba diving, too. The CEO of Wasmer, Schroeder & Co. was the first to contribute $100,000 to the artificial reef project off the coast of Naples. Now, Wasmer Reef will be reported WASMER on all future nautical charts in perpetuity, 10 miles west of Gordon Pass and 12 miles from Marco Pass. Wasmer, Schroeder & Co. in Naples manages $4.9 billion in assets, specializing in fixed income for high-net-worth individuals, wealthmanagement groups and institutions. The firm is particularly well regarded for its skilled investment in municipal bonds, consistently ranking above its peers in this category.
The artificial-reef program is the largest in the western hemisphere. Using $1.3 million from the BP oil spill, a loosely knit group of Collier County volunteers called the Economic Recovery Task Force launched an ambitious plan to deliver tons of concrete beams, pipes and other construction debris on six reef areas each containing six football-field-sized locations. It started building the reef this month and organizers expect marine life to proliferate where there was only sandy bottom before in 30 to 60 feet of depth, generating business for the tourism industry. Now that Wasmer has named one reef area, there are five $100,000 reefs left. The group is accepting the money through the Collier County Community Foundation so that the donations can be tax deductible. Organizers hope to eventually raise another $1.7 million in total from private sources to complete the $3 million project.
First Watch serves up substantial move East Manatee County-based breakfast-brunch-lunch chain First Watch was in business more than 20 years before it opened its first franchise location. That was in 2008. The past six-plus years have seen some noteworthy successes in that area, including expansions into North Carolina and Kentucky. But the firm’s latest agreement, for 15 locations in the Dallas/Fort Worth area over the next five years, is its biggest franchise move to date. It’s the largest in number of stores, and will mark the debut in fastgrowing Texas. Even more significant: The new franchisee is a subsidiary of Dallasbased Sun Holdings, one of the largest franchise firms in the country, with 400 multibrand restaurants and nearly $450 million in annual sales. Sun Holdings, just like its First Watch franchise unit, Best Choice Restaurants LLC, is run by prominent Latino-American franchisor Guillermo Perales. Burger King, Popeye’s and Golden Corral are among the brands in the Sun Holdings portfolio. The deal’s heft isn’t lost on First Watch executives. “There’s certainly a level of validation with this,” First Watch Chief Marketing Officer Chris Tomasso tells Coffee Talk. “(Perales’) competitors might take a look at what he’s doing and say ‘we should take a look at First Watch.’” Those firms would find one of the fastest-growing daytime-only chains in the country, both through company-owned locations and franchises. First Watch, with corporate offices in University Park, has more than 120 locations in 17 states. The company also operates 19 restaurants
CONSIDER DROPPING HEALTH INSURANCE Whether you have five employees or 45, providing health insurance is complicated and expensive for any small business. Here’s an idea for companies that have fewer than 50 employees: Think about dropping your health insurance coverage altogether and providing a new buying experience for your employees through an individual exchange. Here are 10 reasons why it might be a good idea: 1. Reduce your costs. The Affordable Care Act mandates the amount of coverage businesses are required to provide their employees, which may be a much higher amount than is currently being offered. If you have fewer than 50 employees, you can do away with health insurance altogether without paying a penalty, and you’ll no longer have to worry about annual increases. 2. Cut out paperwork. If employees are going to shop online for insurance, you might as well save yourself the effort of maintaining an insurance program. “It’s getting to be too much paperwork for us to administer the plan, especially if workers are going to decline anyway and go to the exchange,” Laura Land, co-owner of Empire Cell Phone Accessories in Riverside, Calif., told the Wall Street Journal. Land’s company has 38 employees; it plans to cut its employee health insurance.
PERALES under the Good Egg name in Arizona and one Bread & Co. restaurant in Nashville. The company had $100 million in sales in 2013. Perales and his Sun Holdings team met First Watch franchise officials at a trade show in early 2014. Conversations went hot and cold for a few months, says Tomasso, but things got serious late last year. Tomasso says other deals are in the works with potential franchisees, but, like in the last six years, the firm isn’t in a rush. The right fit, he says, is more important than finances. “We’ve actually turned down a lot of candidates who were well-capitalized,” says Tomasso, “who we didn’t think fit our vision and culture.”
See COFFEE TALK page 23
LEE COMMERCIAL RECOVERS Commercial construction is coming back to Lee County, an area hit hard by the economic downturn. Permit data from the Lee County Department of Community Development shows that the value of commercial permitting in 2014 was $154.5 million, up 54% compared with 2013. Big commercial-construction projects in Lee County included $30 million for the Hertz global headquarters, $19 million of the renovation of the Minnesota Twins baseball team stadium and $13.5
10 REASONS SMALL EMPLOYERS SHOULD
million for a new Walmart store in Estero. Meanwhile, Lee County issued commercial-addition permits worth $159.4 million, a 28% increase over 2013. Much of that consisted of the addition of the Golisano Children’s Hospital to the HealthPark campus worth $150 million. Residential permits didn’t slack off last year, either. In fact, the county issued permits for 663 multifamily units last year, up 84% over 2013. And the 993 single-family permits in 2014 represented a 16% increase over 2013.
3. Avoid premium increases. When you shift to health plans that meet all the mandatory requirements, you’ll face a big initial price hike, but you may also see that price continue to rise each year. Some companies face an increase of double the former premium amount, if not more. 4. Pre-existing conditions not an issue. One major reason employers might be concerned about dropping group health plans is because they’re worried certain employees might not qualify for health insurance on their own because of pre-existing conditions. Not so under the Affordable Care Act. People must be covered regardless of their medical history. 5. Subsidies are available. Health-insurance premiums might be higher for some people, but not everyone under the Affordable Care Act. Employees making up to 400% of the poverty level can qualify for government subsidies on their insurance, but only if insurance is not provided by their employer. As a result, employers might well want to step back and let employees seek subsidies.
6. Individual plans tend to be cheaper. Individual plans can be 20% to 30% less costly than comparable group plans. If you think you’re obligated to provide health insurance because it’s the least expensive option for your employees, that is not the case. 7. Young employees don’t want it. Since young adults can stay on their parents’ insurance plans until age 26, many choose to hang on, even if their own job offers insurance. Those who have no insurance may not feel the deterrent of paying 1% of their taxable income (or $95 per person) as a penalty is enough to persuade them to pay a monthly insurance premium. 8. No need to tie up a key employee. Health-insurance administration can be such a nightmare that you must divert a key employee from his main task, which means less work is getting done. 9. More cash for employees. One way employers can still be involved in providing insurance to their employees is by encouraging them to get their own insurance and then increasing their pay by some amount to help offset the cost of paying their own way on the exchange. While there are some technical nuances to this concept, it does appear to be the emerging trend. 10. Exchanges allow options. Some top consultants offer individual private exchanges, which are technology platforms that can be used to search, compare and ultimately purchase the plan that is best suited to fit an employee’s individual needs. An employee can search multiple carriers and plans at once. He or she can also search by deductible, price, network and other plan specifics. With a private individual exchange, a person can select a plan that is specifically tailored to his needs and ability to pay, rather than paying a high price for one offered by his employer. While all of the above may be incentives for small businesses to discontinue their plans, employers still should consider the consequences. For instance, employer-sponsored health plans still serve as an effective recruiting perk in a competitive marketplace. And some employers may find an insignificant cost savings between subsidizing employees who find their own health plans versus offering a company plan. The best option is the one that works best for your company. The key, however, is understanding every option.
941.747.7975 Industry Insights allows brands and businesses to connect directly with the Business Observer’s readership — and participate in the conversation — by creating engaging content on the Business Observer’s digital publishing platform. For more on Industry Insights, look for the Industry Insights tab on BusinessObserverFL.com or email us at industryinsights@BusinessObserverFL.com. ADVERTISEMENT
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Set course for Wasmer Reef
6
BUSINESS OBSERVER | JANUARY 23 – JANUARY 29, 2015
BusinessObserverFL.com
BY THE NUMBERS
economicsnapshot
3 Business investment
Three areas of the Gulf Coast posted higher annualpercentage growth in business investment in October than the state’s 9.2% gain: Punta Gorda (18.5%), Sarasota-Bradenton (13%) and Cape Coral-Fort Myers (10.9%).
2
Two areas of the Gulf Coast trailed the state’s 9.2% annualpercentage growth in business investment in October: TampaSt. Petersburg (7.9%) and Naples (5.1%).
4
Among large metro areas of Florida, the Tampa-St. Petersburg area’s 7.9% annualpercentage growth in business investment in October ranked behind Jacksonville (13.6%), Miami (11.2%) and Orlando (9%).
$5.6 billion (Florida statewide) 5.4 5.2 5.0 4.8 4.6 Oct. 2013 Nov. ’13
Dec. ’13
Jan. ’14
Feb. ’14
March ’14 April ’14
WHAT THE DATA SHOW Taxable sales in the business-investment category include office equipment, computers, hotel and restaurant supplies, transportation equipment, paper and packaging, medical supplies and industrial machinery. The latest data are for October.
May ’14
June ’14
July ’14
Aug. ’14
Sept. ’14 Oct. ’14
OCTOBER BUSINESS INVESTMENT AREA TampaSt. Petersburg
WHAT IT MEANS Companies throughout the region from Tampa to Naples boosted investment spending in October, the latest data show. Areas such as Punta Gorda, Sarasota and Fort Myers were especially strong in October, exceeding the statewide 9.2% jump in taxable sales in the business-investment category on an annual-percentage basis. While the Tampa-St. Petersburg and Naples areas lagged the statewide increase, they still posted solid growth.
% ANNUAL CHANGE
RETAIL INDEX
$645.6 7.9%
SarasotaBradenton
$168.4 13.0% $25 18.5%
Punta Gorda Cape CoralFort Myers
FORECAST A strong tourism and real estate winter season will likely result in continued increases in taxable sales in the businessinvestment category. Second-home markets with strong tourism sectors such as Sarasota and Fort Myers will likely see taxable sales in this category exceed the statewide average on an annual-percentage-change basis. Other areas such as the Tampa-St. Petersburg will continue to post moderate growth in taxable sales in business investment throughout the year.
$145.8 10.9% $79 5.1%
Naples
Source: Florida Legislature Office of Economic & Demographic Research
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AN EXCLUSIVE Japanese Hibachi Grill Sushi restaurant available for Grill acquisition. Japanese Hibachi Sushi Japanese Hibachi Grill Sushi Hibachi dining room has 6 tables, restaurant available for Grill acquisition. Japanese Hibachi Sushi restaurant available for acquisition.
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Profitable Outdoor Kitchen, hearth and bar-b-que grillKitchen retailer. , Profitable Outdoor Profitable Outdoor Kitchen Well established store offers a wide,, hearth and bar-b-que grillKitchen retailer. Profitable Outdoor hearth and bar-b-que grill retailer. range of outdoor store kitchen and a wide Well established offers hearthestablished and bar-b-que grill retailer. Well store offers a wide fireplace solutions, including rangeestablished of outdoor store kitchen and a wide Well offers range of outdoor kitchen and refrigerator and grill accessories. The fireplace solutions, including range of outdoor kitchen and fireplace solutions, including company takes you from design to refrigerator and grillincluding accessories. The fireplace solutions, refrigerator and grill accessories. finished outdoor kitchen. SarasotaThe company takes from design refrigerator andyou grill accessories. company takes you from design to toThe $825,000 finished outdoor kitchen. Sarasota company takes you from design to finished outdoor kitchen. Sarasota finished outdoor kitchen. Sarasota $825,000
HVAC, Plumbing & Contractor business. Well established HVAC, Plumbing Plumbing & Contractor Contractor HVAC, & relationships municipal, school business. Wellwith established HVAC, Plumbing & Contractor business. Well established
Great Family Restaurant featuring pizza andRestaurant wings located out Great Family Great Family Restaurant east. 2,600 sf with 100 seats, full out featuring pizza wings Great featuringFamily pizza and andRestaurant wings located located out
$365,000 $365,000
district and retirement facilities. relationships with municipal, school business. Well established relationships with municipal, school Natural gas, LP and medical gas district and retirement facilities. relationships with municipal, school district and underground retirement facilities. along with pollution Natural gas,retirement LP and medical gas & district and facilities. Natural gas, LP and by medical gas piping are provided the company along with pollution Natural gas,underground LP and medical gas & along with underground pollution & from 4,300 sf facility in Manatee. piping are provided by the company along with underground pollution & piping are provided by the company $800,000 from 4,300 sf facilitybyinthe Manatee. piping are provided company from 4,300 sf facility in Manatee. from 4,300 sf facility in Manatee. $800,000
Every team includes a
Professional Golfer
$825,000 $825,000
Benefiting
sports package and100 great craftfull beer east. 2,600 sf with seats, featuring and100 wings located east. 2,600pizza sf with seats, full out selection. Business has a great sports2,600 package and great craftfull beer east. sf with seats, sports package and100 great craft beer location inBusiness an active strip center selection. has a craft great sports package and great beer selection. Business has a great surrounded byactive numerous residential location inBusiness an strip center selection. has a great location in an active strip center neighborhoods in Manatee County. surrounded by numerous residential location in an strip residential center surrounded byactive numerous $195,000 neighborhoods in Manatee County. surrounded by numerous neighborhoods in Manateeresidential County. neighborhoods in Manatee County. $195,000
Monday - February 16, 2015
The Ritz-Carlton Members Club 15150 70th Terrace East (off Lorraine Road) - Lakewood Ranch Chair Person - Jay Logan - Robert W. Baird & Co.
swiss automation, inc. Thanks to our Birdie Sponsors
Executive BBQ lunch & beverages* included at driving range
• Shotgun Start .......................................................... 12:00 pm • Post Event Celebration ............................................. 5:00 pm
$195,000
For more information, contact $195,000
Ken Swan, Ken Swan Swan,, REALTOR REALTOR®® Ken Ken Swan, REALTOR
Special Thanks to Our Eagle Sponsor
• Registration ............................................................. 10:00 am
Cocktail reception, cash bar TO REGISTER, for more information or sponsorship opportunities contact:
941-840-1721 941-840-1721 941-840-1721 941-840-1721
For more contact ® For more information, information, contact REALTOR For more information, contact ®
• Kristin Schreiner at: kristin.schreiner@ja.org or • Jay Logan at: jlogan@rwbaird.com
Ticket Pricing • Birdie Sponsor ................................................................... $6,000.00 Includes: 2 foursomes, return for a free corporate day at the Ritz-Carlton Members Club for 8 players
• Par Sponsor ....................................................................... $3,000.00 • Foursome ........................................................................... $2,000.00 • Individual Golfer .................................................................. $600.00 • Reception & Awards ONLY ..................................................$100.00
Concept & design courtesy of:
Payment accepted by: Check, Visa, MC and AMEX *Beverages: Beer, wine, soft drinks and water. Tax deductible to the full extent of the law.
143820
11121 SR 70, East 11121 SR 70, 70, East Lakewood Ranch 11121 SR East 11121 SR 70, East Lakewood Ranch Office: 941-756-7800 Lakewood Ranch Lakewood Ranch Office: Office: 941-756-7800 941-756-7800 Office: 941-756-7800
Includes: 1 foursome, return for a free corporate day at the Ritz-Carlton Members Club for 4 players
161173
$800,000 $800,000
PRO-AM EVENT
JANUARY 23 – JANUARY 29, 2015 | BUSINESS OBSERVER
infocus | strategy |
7
BusinessObserverFL.com
BY TRACI MCMILLAN BEACH | TAMPA CORRESPONDENT
flashy FRESH
MARK WEMPLE
Former Carrabba’s VP BILL KADOW and Wow! That’s Fresh Operating Director DJ HOOD stand in front of the restaurant’s first location in Brandon.
Bob Basham and Nick Reader partnered with Bill Kadow, a former VP at Carrabba’s, to open their latest fast casual concept. They hope it will follow in the footsteps of its big brother, PDQ.
B
ob B a s h a m a nd Nic k Reader wanted something “flashy” for their next restaurant concept. So when Basham, an Outback cofounder, and Reader, former CFO of the Tampa Bay Bucs, put their heads together with former Carrabba’s VP Bill Kadow to diversify the PDQ empire, they came up with pizza and burgers. Pizza and burgers might not sound that f lashy, with more than 71,000 pizza stores and nearly 51,200 burger joints in the United States, according to industry publications. But the idea had been brewing for some time. “Bob Basham and I always talked about doing something with pizza,” Kadow says. If you ask 1,000 people to name the top three food items they go out for, Kadow is willing to bet that burgers and pizza would make the top two. So last July, Basham and Kadow went on a trip to California to evaluate restaurant concepts. They visited Habit Burger and were impressed by how well received and busy the chain was. “They also just went public, so that was intriguing,” Kadow says. For pizza, they were inspired by Mario Batali’s concepts. After viewing the success of the West Coast restaurants, they
“”
created Wow! That’s Fresh, and opened the chain’s first restaurant in Brandon last October. The restaurant attracts 6,000 to 7,000 customers weekly, surpassing the company’s expected targets. Wow! That’s Fresh follows a similar model to PDQ, which focuses on fresh fried chicken. Wow! That’s Fresh has 40 employees, including full time and part time, similar to PDQ’s standard 35 employees to location. PDQ’s journey has proven that Basham and Reader have what it takes to quickly scale a fast casual restaurant. The duo opened the first PDQ in South Tampa in late 2011 and now have 34 locations, with several more in the works from Las Vegas to Texas and from Florida to North Carolina. Just as they weren’t worried entering t he chicken restaurant world with competitors like Chick-fil-A, they don’t seem concerned about making an impact with burgers and pizza. A restaurant is successful “if you are confident and different enough,” according to DJ Hood, Wow! That’s Fresh’s operating director. Hood says the brand differentiates itself by providing all of its options with fresh ingredients, at the speed of a drive-thru. The pizzas are made with olive
oil from Spain, a blend of four cheeses, seasoning, and hand tossed dough—“the freshest produce,” Hood insists. Hamburger meat is never frozen and neither are the fries, which are punched on spot. Burgers are expected to be served as soon as they come off the grill; if they cook too many, they’re not used. Brandon was the perfect location to start the chain, according to Hood and Kadow. They built right on State Road 60, where there is a lot of traffic and the area continues to grow. There are also a lot of families and schools in the area, bringing them a decent amount of customers at night. Just like PDQ, lunch tends to be busiest. The restaurant started a pizza and drink happy hour from 3 to 5 p.m. to attract the after-school crowd when things are quiet. Though the restaurant in Brandon is surrounded by a Steak n’ Shake, Five Guys and Papa John’s Pizza, and countless other restaurants, Kadow and Hood insist it is a good thing to be next to other options. If you squeeze a bunch of concepts together, generally everyone wins because it becomes the go-to spot for food, according to Hood. You just have to work to be the top choice out of
the selection. To help get noticed, Basham and Reader designed the building to catch the eye. “The building stands out itself,” Kadow says. The building has a tall tower with lights that change color. “You can see it from a mile away. If you put this building on a strip in Vegas it would fit right in,” he adds. The company plans to test out the location before expanding to other areas. “We’re getting everything ironed out to see if there are changes needed to the building,” Kadow says. So far there are some small items like rearranging some kitchen equipment and perhaps downsizing the building, Hood says. The idea is to continue to build from scratch, like they did in Brandon, because “sometimes that’s less expensive,” Kadow says. “Otherwise you’re handicapped with what you started with,” Hood adds. The next Wow! That’s Fresh location is expected to open this summer in Carrollwood. The company is also looking at one more location in north Tampa. “We’re not thinking past Tampa right now,” Kadow says, but once they feel they’ve saturated the market a bit, they’ll look to Fort Myers and Sarasota for expansion.
If you put this building on a strip in Vegas it would fit right in. Bill Kadow | Wow! That’s Fresh
8 infocus | companies |
BUSINESS OBSERVER | JANUARY 23 – JANUARY 29, 2015
BusinessObserverFL.com
BY MARK GORDON | DEPUTY MANAGING EDITOR
LORI SAX
Seven Holdings, where CHRIS COGAN, right, is a general partner, bought a Siberian sturgeon and caviar operation from Mote Marine Laboratory in Sarasota late last year. JIM MICHAELS, left, is the sturgeon program manager for the facility, while JEFF SEDACCA is a venture partner with Seven Holdings.
Sustained Vision The sustainable food industry has few national firms with large scale and a known brand. Some ambitious entrepreneurs plan to change that.
A
wide-ranging and successful business career has taken Chris Cogan everywhere from water pollution control to software design to venture capital. He started his first company at 18. He later ran a business that provided design, purchasing and construction management for hotels, a company that grew to $100 million in sales in five years. One of his most recent stops was Morgan Stanley, where he oversaw day-to-day operations of a Sarasota-based investment and wealth management office with more than $600 million in assets under management. But Cogan thinks his latest business venture, a foray into the nascent sustainable food industry, could be one of his biggest hits ever. His entry is Healthy Earth, a company run out of the Sarasota-based venture capital firm he helps oversee, Southeast Venture Holdings, or Seven Holdings. “We see the dynamics changing in the food industry,” says Cogan. “We think it’s equivalent to a sustainable food revolution.” Seven Holdings and Healthy Earth officials took their first shot
“”
in the revolution late last year, when they bought a Siberian sturgeon and caviar operation from Mote Marine Laboratory in Sarasota. The operation, on 8 acres on a rural part of Fruitville Road east of Interstate 75, is one of the largest facilities in the country that harvests and packages caviar eggs in-house. Mote’s caviar sells for about $55 an ounce, and is sold in Costco and Whole Foods, among other locations. T he faci l it y, t he St u rgeon Aquaculture Program at Mote, has struggled for years to make a profit. One obstacle is it costs about $500,000 a year to operate the facility. Another hurdle was a 2006 fire destroyed around one-third of its caviar-producing sturgeon stock, in addition to eight years and $3 million in research work. But Cogan says Seven Holdings didn’t buy the caviar operation for its profit margins. It bought it for its systems, processes, talent and ability to quickly expand into new areas of aquaculture and sustainable fishing research. Mote and Seven Holdings officials decline to disclose the sale price of the facility, but Cogan calls it
significant. The deal includes an agreement for Seven Holdings to invest in Mote’s land-based and freshwater aquaculture research that takes place inside the 200acre aquac u lt u re pa rk t hat houses the caviar operation. “We are ready to make a seven-figure investment into the operation,” Cogan says. T he S e v en Hold i ng s a nd Healthy Earth sustainable longrange v ision goes past Mote, both in geography and scope. The idea behind Healthy Earth, Cogan says, is to develop a largescale commercial sustainable food operation that makes and sells everything from vegetables to seafood. That means using agriculture and aquaculture practices that use current resources without compromising future needs. Seven Holdings has invested in a portfolio of life-sciences companies, some of which are in sustainable food and related sectors. Seven Holdings a lso recently signed a partnership agreement w it h A nna Ma ria Fish Co., a sustainable fishing business run by prominent area restaurateur Ed Chiles.
Seven Holdings, finally, is supported by several sustainable food industry stars through its adv isor y boa rd a nd venture partners. The list includes Whole Foods Chairman John Elstrott and Jeff Sedacca, president of the shrimp and aquaculture division at supply firm National Fish & Seafood Inc. More Seven Holdings star power comes from its managing director of investor relations: former Florida Secretary of State Katherine Harris, who also served in the Florida Senate and U.S. House of Representatives. One overall challenge, says Cogan, is to make the sustainable venture last the team needs to build something with size and a brand that resonates with restaurant chains and food supply companies. But since sustainable food is such a new concept, there are few examples of successful businesses to emulate, at least not in this country. “The sustainable food sector is growing by leaps and bounds, but the United States isn’t in the game,” Cogan says. “It’s critical for us to gain scale.” Follow Mark Gordon on Twitter @markigordon
We see the dynamics changing in the food industry. We think it’s equivalent to a sustainable food revolution. Chris Cogan | Seven Holdings
JANUARY 23 – JANUARY 29, 2015 | BUSINESS OBSERVER
infocus | finance |
Raymond James Chief Investment Strategist Jeffrey Saut says investors favor real estate, and Florida will continue to be a big beneficiary of this trend.
ED CLEMENT
JEFFREY SAUT, the managing director of equity research and chief investment strategist at Raymond James in St. Petersburg, says clients have a positive outlook for Florida. publicly traded homebuilders. Among other favorable developments, the gov-
ernment recently announced lower mortgage-insurance premiums and
other initiatives to lower financing costs, particularly for first-time and entry-level buyers. Raymond James’ positive outlook for homebuilders included Bonita Springsbased WCI Communities (symbol: WCIC; recent price: $19). While WCI targets more upscale buyers, the investment firm says WCI has a nimble balance sheet, a solid earnings outlook of 40% three-year compound annual growth and its stock trades at a discount relative to its peers. Raymond James says WCI has “industry best” Florida land positions. Commercial real estate is attractive, too. Saut says Standard & Poor’s is considering adding real estate investment trusts (REITs) as one of its major sector groups along with energy, financials and health care. If that were to occur, institutional investors such as mutual funds would likely add publicly traded REITs to their portfolios, boosting demand and prices for such stocks. Meanwhile, the drop in oil should attract more visitors and prospective real estate buyers to Florida. “Every penny drop in gas puts $1 billion to $1.5 billion in the hands of consumers,” Saut says. Saut isn’t concerned about the consensus for rising interest rates later this year. He believes rates will rise incrementally from drastically low levels, especially when viewed by historical context. “Interest rates will be going up for the right reasons,” he says. Follow Jean Gruss on Twitter @JeanGruss
Florida is still cheap. Jeffrey Saut | Raymond James O V E R
6 5
Y E A R S
E X P E R I E N C E
IF YOU EMPLOY PEOPLE, EMPLOY PAVESE.
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BY JEAN GRUSS | EDITOR/LEE-COLLIER
Favored class I
nvestors are coming back to Florida. As the chief investment strategist and managing director of equity research at St. Petersburg-based Raymond James, Jeffrey Saut talks to the brokerage firm’s clients every day. What they tell him should be good news to anyone in the real estate business. “They don’t think they can lose money in real estate over a long cycle,” clients tell Saut. Never mind the real estate collapse during the last decade or the threat of rising interest rates. Saut cites a recent Wells Fargo survey of its wealthiest clients that showed 40% of their portfolios were invested in cash. And some of that cash is making its way to Florida, where buyers are purchasing homes without financing, even as borrowing rates remain ultra-low. In addition, investors have been taking recent stock market gains and putting that money into real estate. “The individual investor believes the stock market is only up because of the Fed,” he says, referring to the perception that the Federal Reserve’s easy-money strategy has artificially inflated assets such as stocks. The recent run-up in real estate prices in Florida doesn’t worry investors because they’re still lower than other desirable places such as California and Europe, where Saut says he recently paid $12 for a Coke in Geneva, Switzerland. “Florida is still cheap,” he says. “I’m pretty bullish.” Indeed, Raymond James research analysts recently upgraded the stocks of
BusinessObserverFL.com
Christina Harris Schwinn
Employment Law affects every business differently, but it does affect every business. If you have employees, you need a resource such as Pavese Law Firm to help you navigate the myriad of employment laws that govern the employer-employee relationship. The number of employees employed by a business determines what employment laws apply to any given business. Let us help you develop a custom plan that will work for your business.
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www.PaveseLaw.com
10 infocus | retail |
BUSINESS OBSERVER | JANUARY 23 – JANUARY 29, 2015
BusinessObserverFL.com BY JEAN GRUSS | EDITOR/LEE-COLLIER
W
hen you sell 10,000 shirts a month, you’d better have enough yarn. Just ask Roy Smith, a Naplesbased entrepreneur whose previous experience includes two decades manufacturing in China. “I just ordered six tons of fabric,” he says. Smith’s company, Snikwah, makes and sells outdoor sports shirts that feature a patented convertible neck that protects the head and face from the sun’s rays and is made from a special wicking textile called Drirelease. “We went to China where the yarn is knitted,” he says. Snikwah is riding high from a recent appearance at the Surf Expo in Orlando, where it spent $30,000 on an elaborate booth and models. “We got 80 new dealers,” Smith says. At t he expo, Snik wa h a lso announced it had signed upand-coming professional surfer Jazmine Dean to develop her own clothing line. It introduced a new Snikwah Hydro line, rash-guard shirts designed for use in the water by surfers, divers and swimmers. “The challenge is to get attention,” says Smith, who, with an unnamed investor, has invested “several million” dollars in the venture. “We’re adequately capitalized,” he says. Snikwah has humble roots. Smith acquired the patented shirt company from North Fort Myers hairdresser Michell Hawkins (Snikwah is her last name spelled backwards). “We fell in love with the product,” says Smith. Smith is also managing director of AmDev International, a management consulting firm with high-profile offices on Fifth Avenue in Naples. “We take an idea from the cocktail napkin to the cash register,” Smith says. “We have five projects in the pipeline.” Smith has no plans to open Snikwah retail outlets. For now, the company sells shirts on its website, Snikwah.com, on Amazon.com and in specialty shops and resorts (prices range from $59 to $89). Half of sales now are to customers like Stuart Cove’s shark-diving resort in the Bahamas that order shirts with custom designs and logos. “We didn’t start with a cheaper fabric,” says Smith, showing off a newly designed shirt with pink cammo. “It costs me five times more than polyester.” Smith traced a complicated manufacturing path to create the shirt. Various parts come from 20 different sources, from the tag to the box in which each shirt is packaged. “In today’s world, everyone is specialized,” Smith says. Although the shirts have a patented convertible neck and the Drirelease material is more effective than polyester at blocking out the sun and wicking moisture, Smith says the way to stay ahead of copycats is by delivering top-quality shirts quickly. “Speed to market is the new intellectual property,” he says. “It’s measured in the fashion industry in weeks.” Smith says Snikwah is working on other products, including hats and short-sleeved shirts. “We have plans for international expansion,” he says. Snikwah’s shirts can be used for more than just water sports. Its moisture-w ick ing properties keep snow-sport enthusiasts warm and lawn workers cool. “We support whatever activity you’re doing outside,” Smith says. Follow Jean Gruss on Twitter @JeanGruss
ED CLEMENT
ROY SMITH raised “several million” dollars in capital to grow Snikwah, a line of performance shirts for outdoor enthusiasts.
a good
Yarn
Outdoor shirt maker Snikwah stands apart from competitors with its patented convertible neck that protects you from the elements.
JANUARY 23 – JANUARY 29, 2015 | BUSINESS OBSERVER
infocus | strategy |
11
BusinessObserverFL.com
BY TRACI MCMILLAN BEACH | TAMPA CORRESPONDENT
curing
CANCER
MARK WEMPLE
Morphogenesis genetically alters cells to help the body detect and fight cancer, according to CEO PATRICIA LAWMAN.
After 19 years of building up its biotechnology company to provide cancer therapies, Morphogenesis is on the verge of a big market entrance.
G
etting its cancer-fighting technolog y to a place where it could be licensed has always been the goal for Tampa-based Morphogenesis. But along the way, the research and development company has morphed into a services company, and it’s even beginning to manufacture. In 1995, Patricia and Michael Lawman were working as cancer researchers at the Walt Disney Cancer Institute when they decided to start a company. They had no idea the long road for which they were signing up. Fast forward 19 years, and their 10-person biotechnology company, Morphogenesis, is providing cancer treatment services to cats, dogs and horses, and progressing on a clinical trial for humans. The company has received grants from the National Cancer Institute, the National Heart Lung Blood Institute, the Pediatric Cancer Foundation and Qualifying Therapeutic Discovery Project totaling about $2.3 million. Including private investors and grantors, it has received about $9 million in support. With more than 20 patents and FDA approval for personalized cancer treatments for animals, the company is finally starting to generate revenue. Morphogenesis focuses on cell and gene therapy, “the epitome of biotech, using the intelligence
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of the body in fighting cancers,” says Patricia Lawman, CEO of the company. The company finds ways to genetically engineer tumor cells to trigger an immune response from the body. Slow but steady progress is part of the game for the firm, which spent its first three years writing a business plan, securing patents and winning Small Business Innovation Research grants from the National Institute of Health. Over the years, it has kept costs as low as possible, leveraging partnerships for people, facilities and equipment. Up until 2.5 years ago, the company was working in borrowed facilities from St. Joseph’s Children’s Hospital in Tampa. Since inception, the company has spent around $10 million, investing nearly all of the money into its lab. “The amount of money burned is a thimble compared to other folks trying to survive in this field,” according to Morphogenesis’s Chief Operating Officer Joseph Scanlan. Realizing how expensive it would be to dive directly into cancer treatments for humans, the Lawmans decided to first work on pets. In 2010, the company founded Veterinary Oncology Services to provide treatment for more than 20 cancers in more than 60 breeds of dogs, cats and horses. The company doesn’t deal directly with treatment of the
animal, but it uses a piece of the animal’s tumor tissue to create an individualized vaccine. Morphogenesis treated its first cases in May 2012, and now works with vets in California, Colorado, Arizona, Florida, Ohio, Connecticut, New York, Virginia and Texas. The company has delivered more than 1,000 doses. There are 315 board-certified veterinary oncologists in the U.S., according to Patricia Lawman. Over the last two years, the industry has taken off — people have started to view their pets as family members, and spending $5,000 to $8,000 on chemotherapy or other options to treat cancer is not out of the question, she says. One out of every four dogs and one out of every three cats die of cancer. People find the Veterinary Oncology Services treatment attractive because there are no side effects from the vaccine. The cost ranges from $4,000 to $8,000, depending on the kind of cancer and number of doses. One of the biggest challenges is finding a way to market to the 20,000 general practice veterinarians who could prescribe the treatment, without undercutting the veterinary oncologists. To this point, most of the company’s business has been through pet owners finding it on the Internet. In September, the company started its first equine clinical
trial that allows the DNA plasma vaccine to be injected directly into the tumor, without requiring a tissue sample. The vaccine is called ImmuneFX; it’s the “first and only personalized vaccine able to be widely commercialized,” Scanlan says. The vaccine is currently in a clinical trial treating horses with melanoma in Kansas. Leveraging research from the equine trial, the company is planning to submit its application to the Food and Drug Administration for human use of the vaccine in the next couple weeks. It expects its human clinical trials to begin in the next two to three months. Although last year Morphogenesis treated 60 cases, it is prepared to ramp up business quickly, with the ability to handle about 1,000 cases with the equipment in place. The company estimates it’ll see demand for thousands of cases in the next few years. Though it declined to share details, Morphogenesis says a lot of things could change in the next two to three months — pending a contract with a big company. “We’re just on the verge of a lot of things right now,” Scanlan says. “But big pharma does not move quickly.” For Patricia Lawman, despite achieving this step, there’s still a long road ahead. “We just want to save them all.”
The amount of money burned is a thimble compared to other folks trying to survive in this field. Joseph Scanlan| Morphogenesis
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BUSINESS OBSERVER | JANUARY 23 – JANUARY 29, 2015
BusinessObserverFL.com
TECHNOLOGY
BY JEAN GRUSS | EDITOR/LEE-COLLIER
ED CLEMENT
MICHAEL HUGHES with Downing-Frye Realty, left, and MICHAEL BURKE, right, with Keller Williams Elite Realty, are using software created by RYAN TREMBLAY of Refindly, center, to manage their residential real estate businesses.
REAL
software
Software developer Refindly is building a system for residential real estate agents to make it easier to manage prospective customers as buyers and sellers shift to the Internet.
W
ith 650 agents and $1.9 billion in closed transactions last year, Naples-based real estate brokerage firm Downing-Frye Realty is a vast enterprise. But w hen it s e x e c ut i ve s searched nationally for a software company to support its agents and track their performance, they didn’t have to go far to find one: Refindly, based in Bonita Springs. Lead generation is the lifeblood of the residential real estate business as agents seek to connect
buyers and sellers to generate transactions. Software development firm Refindly’s edge is that it provides a complete package, from website design to lead generation. It also offers a robust customer-relationship management system to track agents’ performance and help them be more successful. With customers turning to the Internet for real estate searches, speed is key. “One of the things we noticed is we were getting a lot of Internet leads, but at times agents weren’t moving on them quickly enough,” says Michael Hughes, vice president
of Downing-Frye and the newly elected president of the Naples Area Board of Realtors. Refindly developed a sophisticated system t hat distributes leads to agents: If an agent doesn’t respond immediately, the lead is automatically sent to another agent. “What we want is for people to move quickly,” says Hughes. “If you don’t get them in 15 minutes, they’re usually gone.” Refindly has created hundreds of websites specific to a local area. When prospective buyers search for real estate and fill out a form requesting more informa-
tion, Refindly sells those leads to agents in $100 increments. The number of leads per $100 varies by area, but in Naples, for example, agents can get 10 to 15 leads. What’s more, agents can buy more or fewer leads depending on how busy they are. The leads are just one extra part of a total package for real estate agents. Starting at $149 a month with a $499 setup fee, Refindly will provide an agent with a website, access to an area’s multiple-listing service to list homes for sale online and a customer-relationship management system that helps agents
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Company. Refindly Industry. Software services Key. Focus on what’s important to your customers.
JANUARY 23 – JANUARY 29, 2015 | BUSINESS OBSERVER
manage leads and prospects. The man behind Refindly is technology entrepreneur Ryan Tremblay, whose father was a real estate agent in Naples. Tremblay grew up helping his dad with open houses on the weekends. “I had to go to those when there was no one to look after me,” he chuckles. After earning a degree in information systems, Tremblay made his way back to Naples, where he started RT Design Group in 2006 and grew it to more than 20 employees with $1 million to $2 million in annual sales. He sold the software company in 2014 to a Colorado firm for an undisclosed sum. RT Design Group provides custom software programs for corporate clients of all stripes, from local television stations to boat builders. Tremblay sold the business because he saw an opportunity to create a sophisticated software platform for residential real estate agencies, so he used the proceeds of the sale to fund Refindly. “I wanted to focus on a specific niche,” he explains. “It’s all self-funded.” BRINGING IT TOGETHER Because the technology for residential real estate is so fragmented, Tremblay says he saw an opportunity to consolidate various services under one roof. “There are too many systems and they don’t talk well together,” he says. For example, agents might pay one vendor for a website and another for management software and yet another for leads. Domain Realty Group, part of Downing-Frye in Bonita Springs, agreed to help
test the new system last year and word quickly spread. “We let them mold the product,” Tremblay says. By the end of this year, Refindly hopes to have at least 1,000 agents and be profitable. “We’re in seven states,” says Tremblay, whose staff has grown from three people to 15. “It’s built for individuals and teams of Realtors.” Michael Burke, who sold mainframe computers in the past and now leads Keller Williams Elite Realty in Bonita Springs, says Refindly’s contact manager software is especially robust. “I come from a technical background, and it caught my attention,” Burke says. “We looked under the hood and said, ‘Wow, an agent built this contact manager.’” Burke says he’s working with Refindly to create a function that would allow it to manage marketing campaigns to more than 50,000 email addresses he has in his database. For example, a buyer would get a different marketing message than a seller. “I want to be able to turn on a campaign specific to them,” says Burke, who anticipates having as many as 100,000 email contacts in the next six months. Fact is, agents are becoming sophisticated online marketing professionals. “There’s still some people who do the old-school stuff,” says Tremblay. But even his father was impressed: “When he saw our lead generation product, he was blown away.” At Downing-Frye, Hughes says Refindly has been especially responsive. “They’re wonderful at acting on our suggestions,” he says.
BusinessObserverFL.com
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“”
What we want is for people to move quickly. Michael Hughes | Downing-Frye Realty
“Having the ability to sit down face to face and show that desire is so much better than shooting emails back and forth.” For example, Hughes says Refindly was especially sensitive to the firm’s request for websites that load quickly. “You want to make sure that things move very quickly,” Hughes says. “If they have to wait 20 seconds, you’re aggravating them.” Simple, clean Web pages work best. “In the old days, you would go to a home page and it was cluttered,” Hughes says. “What we’ve all figured out is that more often than not the consumer just wants to search for property. The easier you make that process, the more likely you’re going to get a favorable result.” PERSONALIZED BY COMPUTER One of the holy grails of residential real estate sales using the Internet is personalizing the agent’s interaction with buyers and sellers with an automated system. The key is to find the right balance between providing useful, relevant information without appearing like spam. “The challenge is making it so the Realtor doesn’t look bad,” Tremblay
says. One way to do that is to give agents the tools they need to control how they contact prospective customers. For example, an agent might be alerted if a potential customer views more than five homes on his website. “The agent will develop their own rules,” Tremblay explains. Refindly allows agents to understand what their prospective customers are interested in by tracking what they’ve viewed on the agent’s website. This information helps agents prepare their pitch. “It makes a better Realtor,” Tremblay says. To help develop this sophisticated software, Tremblay has hired some top talent. For example, Refindly data scientist Matt Crowson earned a degree in predictive analytics, an area of research that consists of analyzing data to predict trends and behaviors. This is particularly important for large organizations such as Downing-Frye. “You can monitor everything,” says Hughes. “You can track whether or not an agent has a good close rate with leads. When you’re doing as much as we are, you need something that can help you keep the finger on the pulse.”
calendar
of JANUARY 26
PRE-LEGISLATIVE LUNCH: The Chamber of Southwest Florida will host an event with Southwest Florida state legislators to discuss the upcoming session. The event will run from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. at the City Pier Building, 1300 Hendry St., Fort Myers. Cost is $30 for members and $40 for others. For more information visit chamberswfl.com.
JANUARY 27
WINNING TIPS: The Greater Tampa Chamber of Commerce will host a panel discussion with executives of awardwinning small companies. The panel includes Bruce Kitzis of Shooters World, Pete Slade of Nitro Mobile Solutions, Brian Murphy of ReliaQuest, Ted Abrams of Joffrey’s Coffee & Tea Co. and Madelyn Butler of The Woman’s Group. The event will run from 11:45 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. at the chamber office, 201 N. Franklin St., Suite 201, Tampa. Cost is $35 for members and $50 for others. For more information visit tampachamber.com. BUSINESS SYMPOSIUM: Jeff Vinik, owner of the Tampa Bay Lightning and head of developer Strategic Property Partners; Gordon Johnson, president and co-owner of the transportation technology company Highway Safety Devices; and Charlotte Baker, co-founder of technology security firm Digital Hands, will speak at a University of Tampa business symposium. The event will run from 7:45 a.m. to 9 a.m. on the ninth floor of the Vaughn Center, 401 W. Kennedy Blvd., Tampa. There is no cost. For more information, contact Laura Randall, director of community relations for the university at 813-253-6200 or lrandall@ut.edu.
JANUARY 29
REAL ESTATE TRENDS: Tampa Mayor Bob Buckhorn will make opening remarks at the Urban Land Institute Tampa Bay
emerging trends conference. The event will run from 1:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. at the Tampa Theater, 711 N. Franklin St., Tampa. For more information call 813262-2742 or email tampabay@uli.org. REAL ESTATE OUTLOOK: Lawrence Yun, the chief economist for the National Association of Realtors, will be the keynote speaker at the CCIM Southwest Florida Real Estate Outlook Conference. The event will run from 8 a.m. until 12:30 p.m. at Harborside Event Center, 1375 Monroe Street, Fort Myers. Cost is $60. For details and to register, visit outlook2015.org WOMEN IN SCIENCE: Kerriann Greenhalgh, founder and CEO of KeriCure; Grisselle Centeno, associate professor of industrial and management systems engineering at the University of South Florida; and Lee-En Chung, engineer and contractor at Ivy Ventures, will discuss science, engineering and math careers at a Greater GREENTampa Chamber of ComHALGH merce’s Women’s Series Lunch. The event will run from 11:45 a.m. to 1:15 p.m. at Mastro’s at the Straz, 1010 N. W.C. MacInnes Place, Tampa. Cost is $50 for members and $60 for others. For more information visit tampachamber.com. LESSONS LEARNED: Association for Corporate Growth Tampa Bay will hold a meeting focused on lessons learned from business deals gone bad from 5:30 p.m. to 8 p.m. at the University Club of Tampa, 201 N. Franklin St., unit 3800, Tampa. Cost is $55 for members and $80 for others. For more information email acgtampabay@ acg.org or call 813-205-0776.
FEBRUARY 2
ECONOMIC FORECAST: David Altig, executive vice president and director of
events
research at the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta, and Mine Yucel, senior vice president and director of research at the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas, will discuss monetary policy, the economy and energy at an event hosted by New College of Florida. The meeting will start at 5:30 p.m. at the Mildred Sainer Pavilion, 5313 Bay Shore Road, Sarasota. Cost is $25. For more information visit donate.ncf. edu/events or call 941-487-4888.
FEBRUARY 5
AG CHIEF: Commissioner of Agriculture Adam Putnam will be the keynote speaker for the Gulf Coast Builders Exchange’s annual meeting. The event will run from 5:30 p.m. to 9 p.m. at the Hyatt Regency Sarasota, 1000 Boulevard of the Arts, Sarasota. Cost is $135 for members and $185 for others. For more information visit gcbx.org.
FEBRUARY 7
OUTLOOK CONFERENCE: Rick Baker, the former mayor of St. Petersburg and president of The Edwards Group, will be the keynote speaker at the commercial real estate CCIM Tampa Bay Outlook Conference. The event will run from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Wyndham Westshore, 700 N. Westshore Blvd., Tampa. Cost is $99 for members and $139 for others. For more details and to register, visit tampabayoutlook.com.
FEBRUARY 10
STARTUP MARKETING: Art Fyvolent, CEO of marketing company SyncPointe, will present marketing tips for early stage entrepreneurs at the Tampa Bay Innovation Center’s February Tech Talk program. The event will start at 8:30 a.m. at Microsoft Headquarter offices, 5426 Bay Center Drive, Suite 700, Tampa. There is no cost. For more information visit techtalkfeb2015.eventbrite.com or email weitlaufd@tbinnovates.com.
FEBRUARY 11
ETHICAL SUCCESS: Frank Bucaro, senior ethics adviser and content provider for the Automotive Institute of Ethics, will be the speaker at the February Gulf Coast CEO Forum. The event will run from 7:30 a.m. to 9 a.m. at The Francis, 1289 N. BUCARO Palm Ave., Sarasota. There is no cost. For more information visit gulfcoastceoforum.com.
FEBRUARY 13
FUTURIST SPEAKS: Futurist David Houle will be the keynote speaker at the Greater Sarasota Chamber of Commerce’s annual breakfast. The meeting will run from 7:30 a.m. to 9:15 a.m. at Polo Grill, 10670 Boardwalk Loop, Lakewood Ranch. Cost is $38 for members and $50 for others. For more information visit sarasotachamber.com.
MARCH 25
TECHNOLOGY AWARDS: David Trimm, the executive vice president and chief information officer at Hertz, will be keynote speaker for the Southwest Florida Regional Technology Partnership’s awards gala. The event will run from 5:30 p.m. to 9 p.m. at the Pelican Preserve Clubhouse, 9802 Pelican Preserve Blvd., Fort Myers. Cost is $75 per person. For more information visit swfrtp.org.
APRIL 8 ENGAGING EMPLOYEES: Bob Kelleher, author of the book “Louder Than Words,” will be the presenter for the April Gulf Coast CEO Forum. The event will run from 7:30 to 9 a.m. at The Francis, 1289 N. Palm Ave., Sarasota. There is no cost. For more information visit gulfcoastceoforum.com.
14
BUSINESS OBSERVER | JANUARY 23 – JANUARY 29, 2015
BusinessObserverFL.com
GOVERNMENT WATCH
BY MARK GORDON | DEPUTY MANAGING EDITOR
OTHER PEOPLE’S
MONEY Sarasota County is five years and a little more than $5 million into a project to use county funds to recruit and retain businesses. Has it worked?
T
he decision Atlanta investment banker Jim Westman made in 2010 is right out of the riskit-all entrepreneurial American Dream playbook. Westman gave up a successful and lucrative career to return with his wife and family to Sarasota, where he bought a manufacturing business. In the heart of the recession he bought Octex Corp., which specializes in making customized plastic components using a precision injection process. Clients range from consumer products to aerospace firms. Octex had about $8 million a year in annual sales and 48 employees when Westman bought it. The firm has since grown to 85 employees and more than $20 million in annual sales. “Things are going really well,” says Westman. “We are putting the pieces together. We are at the beginning of our next great leap forward.” Octex is also a small piece of a complicated and controversial economic development strategy on the Gulf Coast: incentives and subsidies used to woo companies to town and get others to stay. Proponents of incentives say their benefits are twofold. One, they help the county attract investment, which boosts its tax base and provides a return to taxpayers. Two, they help diversify the economy, making it more stable during fluctuations in its pri-
MARK WEMPLE
JIM WESTMAN bought Octex Corp. in 2010. Since then, he has grown it to $20 million in annual sales.
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Industry. Economic development Trend. Counties across Florida have different approaches to economic development incentives. Key. Sarasota County revamped its incentives program in 2012.
INCENTIVES DISSECTED: SARASOTA COUNTY
CODE NAME
Sunovia Energy Osprey TechBiotechnics nologies
Access USA Shipping
Universal Insurance
Tervis Tumbler
Sarasota Senior Living
DwellGreen
Project Good Bugs
Project Box
Project Spin
Project Cup
Project Forget Me Not 7/14/10 7/14/12
AWARD DATE 02/10/10 JOB CREATION 02/10/16 DEADLINE
Project Light Bulb 3/16/10 3/16/13
6/8/10 6/8/15
6/8/10 6/8/13
6/8/10 & 9/29/10
6/8/13
LexJet
Sanborn Studios
Sarasota Medical Products
Adams Quality Brothers Enclosures Cabinetry
Mode Fashions
RND Automation
PGT
Camphor Technologies
Resource One
Octex
Project Go For the Green
Project Save
Project Waterboy
Project Care
Project Glass
Project Mott
Project 10-10-01
Project 10-10-02
Project Impact
Project 10-11-02
Project 10-11-06
Project Cup
7/14/10 7/14/11
7/14/10 7/14/13
9/2/10 9/2/13
9/29/10 9/29/15
9/29/10 9/29/13
11/30/10 11/30/15
11/30/10 11/30/13
11/30/10 11/30/13
12/2/10 12/2/15
12/8/10 N/A
12/8/10 12/8/15
6/29/11 6/29/16
$600,000
Camphor was $450,000 originally $360,000 allocated $300,000 and paid $250,000 $87,000 $165,000 $150,000 $139,000 $125,000 projecting $76,000 $62,500 $50,000 $50,000 $12,000 to create 24 new jobs with an average projected PROJECTED 719 wage of NUMBER 400 actual $50,000. OF JOBS On Dec. 19, 361 VS. JOBS 2013, CREATED 214 Camphor TO DATE informed 175 the county 117 136 103 102 and EDC 95 68 74 61 50 0 35 that it was 100 43 25 71 0 7 30 12 39 unable to 19 2 5 5 2 meet the job creation requireINCENTIVE $2,171 $735 $1,650 $3,521 $2,103 $357 $25,000 $5,000 $5,556 $5,902 $2,780 $2,941 $2,000 $6,000 $1,500 ments and $ PER JOB wanted to PROJECTED reimburse TO BE the county the CREATED $87,000. $6,603,295 $9,500,000 $46,643,720 $41,779,078 $61,318,427 $13,567,176 $3,156,607 $62,860,544 $164,203,552 $29,146,423 $13,363,737 $30,847,314 $7,363,608 $3,769,237 $229,924,764 *TOTAL Check was IMPLAN received on OUTPUT Feb. 3, 2014. *Total implan output is the software program used by the county that determines the economic impact of projects. It factors in hires, multiplier effects from those hires and more sales generated from the hires, among other factors.
INCENTIVE AWARDED
$650,000
$200,000 $50,000
35 0 $1,429
80 25
$2,500
$16,958,706 $23,265,201
JANUARY 23 – JANUARY 29, 2015 | BUSINESS OBSERVER mary driver: the housing market. “The free market won’t diversify our economy by itself,” says Economic Development Corp. of Sarasota County President and CEO Mark Huey. “So by definition we are inserted into the free market.” Yet that assertion has multiple critics. In 2012, prominent urban studies economist Richard Florida wrote a book, titled “The Uselessness of Economic Development Incentives.” Florida probed into national and state data originally published by the New York Times in a series of articles on incentives. “There is virtually no association between economic development incentives and any measure of economic performance,” writes Florida. “We found no statistically significant association between economic development incentives per capita and average wages or incomes … and none between incentives and the state unemployment rate.” More locally, Rich Swier Sr., an entrepreneur, former chairman of the Sarasota Better Business Council and conservative freelance columnist, calls the theory that incentives create jobs a false narrative. “The problem when government at any level pulls tax revenue to support one business over another,” Swier told the Business Observer, “is it automatically picks winners and losers.” Despite the critics, economic development incentives are used in one form or another in many communities nationw ide. The state, through Enterprise Florida, has its own fund. On the Gulf Coast, from Pasco County through Lee County, incentives are a multimillion-dollar high wire act of trying to spend the money on the right companies. That’s true in Sarasota County, where Octex is one of 28 companies since February 2010 to receive subsid ies f rom t he cou nt y ’s Economic Development Fund. The ordinance that created the fund dates back to 2009 — a time when the county had double-digit unemployment. “In a perfect world, we wouldn’t need incentives,” says Sarasota County Commissioner Christine See INCENTIVES page 16
WHAT COULD GO WRONG? The battle of words between a company and Sarasota County is hot. At stake: the biggest payout in the history of the county’s economic development fund. Sanborn Studios is a leader among the 28 Sarasota County companies that have received a portion of $5 million in public funds in exchange for job creation. That starts with the money — at $650,000 it’s the richest incentive for a single company in the history of the five-year program. That also goes for lawsuits and counterclaims, with three since July 28. The situation, to many Sarasota-Manatee business executives, is a symbol of what can go wrong when government entities dole out money to businesses for projected growth. The crux of the county’s legal claim is simple. Sanborn Studios, a Lakewood Ranch-based movie and TV production studio founded by area entrepreneur Ken Sanborn, was given the $650,000 in September 2010. The contract called for the firm to add 117 jobs, at an average annual wage of $72,029, by September 2013. The firm failed to create the jobs and therefore breached its contract, the county alleges. The remedy: Sanborn Studios, per the contract, must reimburse the county $2,992 for every job it failed to deliver, the county says in the suit filed in Sarasota Circuit Court. That would cover $350,000. The county also asks the judge to consider damages in the case that would make Sarasota whole on its $650,000 investment. Sanborn Studios and Sanborn himself deny the allegations. The firm filed a countersuit Aug. 25. The suit makes several claims against the county, including breach of duty of good faith and fair dealing; slander of title; disparagement of property; and trade libel. The suit also contends the county violated its ethics codes, disregarded its own audit reports; and, most damningly, deliberately undermined Sanborn Studio’s business. Ken Sanborn, according to his spokesman, Scott Sobel, was out of
Hoveround
Resource One
5D Composite
Octex
Aso
Project 10-11-06
Project Cup
Project Green
Project Green Composite Products
Project Top Gun
12/8/10 12/8/15
6/29/11 6/29/16
6/29/11 6/29/16
6/29/11 6/29/16
6/29/11 6/29/16
Tube Dude
15
BusinessObserverFL.com
KEN SANBORN founded Sanborn Studios in 2009.
the country and not available for comment. Sanborn retained Sobel, president and founder of suburban Washington, D.C.-based crisis communications firm Media & Communications Strategies, earlier this year. “The studio’s reputation has been severely damaged by the county’s malicious actions and the studio expects to recover millions of dollars, in an amount yet to be fully determined, in damages, including punitive damages,” Sobel writes in an Aug. 25 statement. “A focal point for the counter suit against the county is the indisputable fact that county representatives acted in bad faith and undermined Sanborn Studios’ reputation in the county and in the film industry, and specifically in front of an existing client who wanted to hire the studio to produce a film.” On that last point, Sanborn, in court documents, says the company was set to work with Bradenton-based Sweet Tomato Films on a movie in Sarasota. But Sweet Tomato went in another direction after Sarasota County officials badmouthed Sanborn Studios. “We were told by
folks at the County that our association with Sanborn Studios was creating a prejudice against our production company,” Sweet Tomato Films producer Dori Sperko writes in the letter. Another contention from Sanborn is the county’s contract had no definition of what constituted a full-time job. Ken Sanborn, in previous interviews with the Business Observer, says the company did hire people for short-term positions, both in and out of Florida, for production projects. Sarasota County officials, in another series of court filings, responded to Sanborn Studio’s allegations Sept. 12. The county denied all the claims. The cases, filed in Sarasota County Circuit Court, are currently in the discovery phase. Ken Sanborn, whose father owned a cable TV station in Lakeland, founded Sanborn Studios in 2009. The firm, still in business today, was once based out of a 27,000-squarefoot studio in Lakewood Ranch. The company vacated that building after a little more than a year. That space has since been converted to an indoor trampoline park.
Florida HMA Regional Service Center
Global Oraganic Specialty Source
Datum Corp.
Intertape Polymer Corp.
Beacon Aviation Services
MobileBits
(Unnamed (Unnamed (Unnamed company 1) company 2) company 3)
Voalte
Laser Rite
Enzymedica VistaServ
Project Smile
Project Bell
Project Cloud
Project Full Spectrum
Project Dish
Project Man
Project Pinapple
Project Ice
Project Can
Project Sky
Project Berry
Project Fowl
Project Mason
Project Wire
7/27/11 7/27/14
7/27/11 7/27/14
10/26/11 10/26/14
10/26/11 10/26/16
11/9/11 11/9/16
1/11/12 1/11/14
5/9/12 5/9/16
7/11/12 7/11/17
12/11/12 12/11/14
1/9/13 1/9/16
1/9/13 & 12/11/13 1/9/16
5/20/14 5/20/19
9/23/14 9/23/19
10/8/14 10/8/17
$80,000
$90,000
$80,000
$100,000
Tube Dude was allocated $100,000 but was only $250,000 $250,000 $200,000 paid $125,000 $100,000 $56,000 for $50,000 the purchase of capital equipment and pending job orders. Tube Dude later notified the county that the equipment had been 120 122 113 returned and 80 64 12 100 35 the pending 50 25 49 orders had 0 not materialized. Tube Dude $1,429 $2,500 $2,551 $833 $2,500 $5,000 agreed to reimburse the county the $56,000, which is to be repaid by $16,958,706 $23,265,201 $21,134,202 $27,313,155 $222,770,923 July 2016. $16,650,571 $18,666 has been paid to date. Source: Sarasota County
$216,000 $40,000
12 9 $3,333
$2,376,715
72 10 $3,000
$237,747 $120,000
$124,000
$225,000
$200,000
217 129 30 9 $4,000
$1,096
$30,000
62 34
50 35
20 4
30 2
40 0
50 0
75 0
$2,000
$4,000
$4,000
$3,000
$2,000
$2,000
$3,000
$14,596,594 $11,733,184 $15,266,527 $72,495,923 $15,076,762 $19,981,314
$6,447,945
$6,823,451 $21,829,922 $259,266,707
Graphics by Nicole Thompson
10 0 $3,000
N/A
16
BusinessObserverFL.com
INCENTIVES from page 15 Robinson, who helped overhaul the county’s incentives approach in 2012. “But now we have a seat at the table so that if a Hertz or some other big company wants to come here, we are ready.” Octex doesn’t have the clout like Hertz, the car rental giant that’s building an $85 million headquarters in Estero. But Octex is on track to become a Sarasota County incentive success story. The f irm received $200,000 in summer 2011 from the fund, which is overseen by count y commissioners. Octex, in return, is contractually obligated to hire 80 people by June 28, 2016, at an average annual salary of $37,300. Through October, records show the firm had hired 25 people, at an average annual wage of $41,989. Westman says the company is growing so fast it will easily hire 55 more people by the deadline. Octex, mostly through financing, has invested $10 million on technology and equipment over the last four years, especially in automation. The $200,000 from Sarasota, Westman says, while small, was a key boost that went directly toward the overall equipment purchases. “We are a capital intensive business,” Westman says. “The way our industry works, you have to build the infrastructure then go get the customers.” Westman says Octex would have expanded regardless, even if there weren’t any incentives. But the support, both in dollars and in expanding relationships with county economic development officials, is helpful. Sarasota County’s incentive fund started w ith $2 million. County commissioners have since added more than $14 million over three intervals, for a total of $16.68 million. About $6 million comes from the county’s general fund, and the rest is proceeds from escheated lot sales in North Port. The county, records show, has paid companies $5,045,314 for a total of 2,183 created jobs in the history of the program. That’s about $2,300 per job. Those jobs pay an average annual salar y of $38,857, a drop less than the county average of $39,041. The total jobs created figure is 85% of the projected total, according to county records, and comes in more than $5,000 under the projected annual average wage. MONEY BACK Some companies, like drinkware manufacturer Tervis and impact-resistant window manufacturer PGT, both based in Venice, have been spectacular successes on new jobs. Tervis was awarded $450,000 in 2010 for a projected 214 jobs, and it blew past that for 361 hires. PGT received $600,000 in 2010 for 400 projected jobs and it had more than 700 in three years. With annual revenues at each well into the hundreds of millions, those firms are a pair of Sarasota County corporate stars. Executives at both firms say the funds weren’t a necessity to support growth, but are part of the bigger process that plays out when any expansion decision is contemplated. “There are states and counties that throw ridiculous things at you,” PGT Chairman and CEO Rod Hershberger says. “So you have to listen.” He r s h b e r ge r s a y s M a r ion Cou nt y i n nor t h-cent ra l Florida, for exa mple, has a n aggressive incentives approach See INCENTIVES page 18
BUSINESS OBSERVER | JANUARY 23 – JANUARY 29, 2015
INCENTIVES: DISSECTED The Business Observer breaks down incentive strategies used by counties on the Gulf Coast outside of Sarasota.
PASCO COUNTY HAGEN
Pasco County has an identity problem in the race to hand out government incentives to growing or relocating businesses. “No one outside of Tampa really knows where Pasco County is,” says Pasco County Economic Development Council President and CEO John Hagen. Hagen hopes to address that challenge this year with a renewed sense of urgency. His source: Penny for Pasco, a one-cent sales tax with proceeds directed to schools and economic development. The tax was initially approved in 2004, and voters countywide
approved it again in 2012 for another decade. The latest approval, with money starting to come in Jan. 1, will give the Pasco EDC $4.5 million a year for a decade. A large portion of that, says Hagen, will go toward incentives. A pot of money like that is a major increase in available funds for incentives. In the last fiscal year, for example, the county invested $117,00 in 12 companies, says Pasco County Senior Planner for Economic Development Melanie Kendrick. Those companies, says Kendrick, added 180 jobs in return for the incentives.
Hagen plans to use some of the funds to work with developers on building so-called “padready” sites. A pad-ready site is a location that’s already gone through the zoning and preinfrastructure process. With a site like that ready, says Hagen, the only thing left to do is get a company to utilize it. That’s partially how Hagen hopes to land the next Amazon or some other supersized facility. “We have land available to do a project like that,” says Hagen. “But we don’t have the whole project ready to go. We want to correct that problem.” — Mark Gordon
HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY HOMANS
Tampa Hillsborough Economic Development Corp. executive Rick Homans takes a power point presentation titled “Think Big, We Do” to just about any conference where promoting Tampa is on the agenda. And when Homans says big, he means it. So big that Homans’ top priority for the next three years is to persuade one, or even two, brand name corporate headquarters to relocate to Tampa. “The impact of that will be great,” says Homans, named president and CEO of the EDC in 2012 after a stint running the New Mexico Spaceport Authority in Las Cruces, N.M. “It will trigger many positive economic consequences.” Homans says a multitude of factors go into the hunt for a corporate headquarters. The amount of incentives a government entity can offer is on the list, he says, but it’s not at the top and many times it’s not in the middle. Factors more important to a CEO at the helm of a Fortune 1,000 company, says Homans, include workforce availability in the new city, air transportation to other major cities, and whether senior executives support the move. “When you are talking about a corporate headquarters,” he says, “you are at the top of the pyramid.” Homans concedes incentives are part of nearly every corporate headquarters relocation process. Incentives, for example, were in play when car rental giant Hertz relocated to Lee County from New Jersey last year. Hertz can receive up to $4 million in performance-based incentives from Lee County and more than $14 million from the state if it meets new jobs requirements. Incentives aside, Homans is excited to hone in on a corporate headquarters target. He says the process starts at companies in the Fortune 1,000, with a concentration on the Northeast. Next the EDC will look at the boards of those companies, to see if there are people with connections to Tampa, be it family or school. Officials will also look for companies that have had a fundamental
A CLOSER LOOK Hillsborough County has several programs that utilize incentives for growing business that commit to new jobs. One of the most prominent programs is the qualified target industries tax refund program, which Enterprise Florida also uses. The QTI program in Hillsborough County pays a maximum of $3,000 in tax credits per job. Payments are made in 25% increments of the total incentive over four years, says Company
Hillsborough County Economic Development Director Lindsey Kimball. The payment system, says Kimball, protects the county against companies that only hire people for a short period of time. “We only do postperformance incentives,” says Kimball. “There are no companies that get the money first.” Here are some examples of recent companies in Hillsborough County that have received incentives.
Jobs
Expenditures
Coca-Cola Enterprises
200
$30,000
FY ’11–’12
Depository Trust & Clearing Corp.
$12,500
100
FY ’11–’12
Ernst & Young U.S.
$500
25
FY ’12–’13
Nortrax
$20,799
110
FY ’12–’14
Pricewaterhouse Coopers
$11,669
395
FY ’11–’12, ’13–’14
Notes: • Nortrax and PricewaterhouseCoopers received payments in multiple years. • Nortrax is a John Deere construction and forestry equipment dealer based in Tampa with 54 locations in the United States and Canada. Total expenditures $80,000 $70,000 $60,000 $50,000 $40,000 $30,000 $20,000 $10,000
Jobs created and maintained
$79,753
1,200
1,060
1,000 800 $37,508 $23,769
610
600 400
285
200
FY ’11-’12 ’12-’13 ’13-’14
FY ’11-’12
’12-’13
’13-’14
Source: Hillsborough County Economic Development
change in business, through a sale or some other event. Homans says he’s prepared to wait it out for the right fit. “We will collect all the data and ap-
proach this like a rifle shot,” says Homans. “We know this will take some time. We will kiss a lot of frogs before we find a prince.” — Mark Gordon
JANUARY 23 – JANUARY 29, 2015 | BUSINESS OBSERVER
17
BusinessObserverFL.com
We know this will take some time. We will kiss a lot of frogs before we find a prince.
Rick Homans | Tampa Hillsborough Economic Development Corp.
PINELLAS COUNTY FILE PHOTO
Pinellas County Economic Development Director MIKE MEIDEL says incentives “won’t make a bad deal good.”
Pinellas County might share a border with Pasco County, but its economic development philosophy, and use of incentives to lure companies, is fairly different from its neighbor. The focus in Pasco is to rely on large swaths of available land to woo businesses to open large facilities, like warehouses and distribution centers. Pinellas County has few undeveloped land sites, so its strategy, according to Economic Development Director Mike Meidel, is to go small, but with volume. Pinellas County targets deals for space that can be 100,000 square feet, not 1 million square feet like in Pasco County. “We are looking at smaller deals with long-term impact,” Meidel says. “It might not make a big splash, but it helps us build our base.” Pinellas County’s governance of incentives is also different from Pasco — and most other Gulf Coast counties. For one, the Pinellas County EDC is an office within county government. In most other counties, including Hillsborough, Lee, Manatee and Sarasota, the EDCs are separate organizations. Those EDCs don’t control what companies get incentives and how much, but the organizations do handle marketing and networking of relocation and expansion opportunities. Pinellas County incentives, says Meidel, with a few exceptions, follow Enterprise Florida, the state’s economic development arm. So Pinellas County will sometimes match the performance-based incentives the state offers companies, but even then it’s not typically at high-dollar amounts. Pinellas County doesn’t have a multimillion-dollar incentive specific fund set aside for projects. Meidel, who has run the county’s economic development office since 2004, says the approach works because incentives are many times an overrated aspect of economic development. “We want to stay in the running and make sure people take us seriously,” Meidel says. “But (incentives) won’t make a bad deal good. We are not going to buy a deal.” Looking ahead, Pinellas County will have one more incentive it can use to assist a relocating or expanding company: a 10-year property tax exemption in exchange for a new jobs commitment. Voters countywide approved the measure, sometimes called an ad valorem tax exemption, in August. Similar incentives are already available in more than 35 counties and 20 cities in Florida, including Hillsborough and Sarasota counties and Tampa and St. Petersburg. “It gives us another tool to work with,” says Meidel. “It won’t work for everybody. But for the right project it could be a very good incentive.” — Mark Gordon
FILE PHOTO
NORM WORTHINGTON founded Manatee County-based Star2Star, a telecommunications and software firm, in 2006. The firm had about $22.5 million in revenues in 2012.
MANATEE COUNTY
Manatee County has had an incentives program for economic development since 2009. Here are some examples of companies that have received funds and the outcomes. Oliphant Pierce Feld Company Financial Manufacturing Gettel Toyota Entertainment IMG Star2Star Date awarded
9/29/10
12/29/10
Projected vs. actual jobs created
80/155
133/18
Incentive paid
$80,000
$18,000
5/27/11 175/209
$224,876
9/26/11
2/2/12
5/2/12
235/221 120/100
$125,460
65/47 $815,334
$47,000
Note: Pierce Manufacturing, a subsidiary of Oshkosh Corp., laid off around 130 employees from its Bradenton ambulance production plant in 2013. The firm had received more than $2 million in grants from Manatee County and Enterprise Florida going back to 2007. Source: Manatee County Neighborhood Services Department/Economic Development Division
CHARLOTTE COUNTY Count Tom Patton among the large group of people in economic development on the Gulf Coast who believe the media often overscrutinize the ability of incentives to land a deal. But Patton, director of economic development for Charlotte County, mostly wants to keep his opinions to himself. “It’s a zero sum game that I can’t win, so why would I talk to a reporter?” asks Patton. “I’ve seen my colleagues (in other counties) get beat to death over incentives and they were trying to do the right thing. And I’ve seen Enterprise Florida get beat to death and they were trying to do the right thing.” Adds Patton: “There are a lot of great incentives that really work out. Some don’t work out.” Patton declined to discuss Charlotte County’s strategy with incentives or any other aspect of the county’s approach in that area. “Incentives,” says Patton, “are really only a solution to a problem.” Incentives have mostly been used sparingly in Charlotte County. A recent example is Aviation Partners Group, which builds, repairs and services airplanes and helicopters out of a hangar at the Punta Gorda Airport. The airport is in a state-designated Enterprise Zone, so the firm can receive up to $7,000 in tax credits per job under the agreement. The state covers 80% of that and Charlotte County pays the rest. APG has 35 employ-
Above: Punta Gorda-based Aviation Partners Group recently won a contract to build 45 airplanes for an Italian company. Left: Charlotte County entrepreneur BRUCE LAISHLEY, left, sits with Charlotte County Economic Development Director TOM PATTON. ees, up from around 25 a year ago. “The investment is well worth it because it provides key foundational support for Charlotte County’s emerging aerospace cluster,” Patton says in a November 2013 press release from Florida Gov. Rick Scott’s office. One of the biggest incentive packages in Charlotte County, not a strict money-for-jobs scenario, is with food distribution firm Cheney Brothers. The Riviera Beachbased company is building a $40 million regional warehouse and
distribution center near the Punta Gorda Airport. The firm broke ground on the facility in March and is projected to eventually hire 380 people there. Incentives for Cheney Brothers come from both the state and Charlotte County. State incentives include a transportation grant and a Brownfield Redevelopment tax refund. Charlotte County will provide a 10-year exemption on property taxes. That’s an incentive worth at least $1 million. — Mark Gordon
18
BUSINESS OBSERVER | JANUARY 23 – JANUARY 29, 2015
BusinessObserverFL.com
INCENTIVES from page 16 to woo companies, especially manufacturers. “Did I have to take the dollars? Honestly, no,” says Hershberger. “But when I’m sitting in front of the board of directors and they are asking me about all these incentives out there, I have to tell them something.” Tervis CEO Pat Redmond says he’s grateful for the funds, but “it’s quite literally a drop in the bucket.” The company recently spent at least $200,000 to recruit a senior business development execut ive. A nd t he f ir m has spent millions on equipment and infrastructure in the last five years. “It’s not so much about the money,” says Redmond, “as it is the community supporting our growth.” Redmond, like Hershberger, says any business of any size has to consider all the options when incentives are in play. “We’d be silly not to,” Redmond says. “If anyone wants to offer us incentives to grow the business, we will certainly take it.” Others companies, such as Sanborn Studios, a movie production studio that received the largest payout ever in the program — $650,000 in September 2010 — have been spectacular failures, at least from a jobs perspective. Sanborn Studios and Sarasota County are currently in litigation over the funds. (See story on page 15.) At least two other companies in Sarasota County have had minimal success in job creation. One is Evolucia, an LED lighting firm that was named Sunovia Energy Technologies in March 2010 when Sarasota County gave it $50,000. The incentives came with great fanfare for what county officials said would be 68 jobs. The company was required to create those jobs by March 2013. But Evolucia has had numerous issues. The firm has lost $25 million over the last four years, and has gone through multiple CEOs. It never hired a single person, county records show. Evolucia hasn’t repaid the county for not creating the jobs. But county officials intend to press the firm for a refund. “We have had contact with the officials and will continue to do so,” says Sarasota County Economic Development Coordinator Lisa Damschroder. Another firm, Resource One, an environmentally friendly cleaning products manufacturer, received $50,000 in December 2010 for a projected 35 jobs. That firm, according to the contract it signed with the county, planned to move to Sarasota from Pinellas County. It was going to bring 15 jobs and hire 35 people by Dec. 7, 2015. But county records indicated the firm had not hired anyone through mid-October. Resource One owner Duncan Yull tells the Business Observer the firm recently hired four people, and he needs to update the county on that. The firm did move 15 jobs from Pinellas to Sarasota, he says, and business has been good in 2014. “Regardless, we know we will have to pay some of the money back,” says Yull. “We’ve been talking to them about that.” JOBS BEFORE MONEY The county’s incentive program has been reva mped over t he past t wo years, most ly to do away with up-front payouts. The overhaul came from Huey at the
LEE COUNTY SALYER
Some Gulf Coast counties, like Manatee and Sarasota, aim for high volume on incentives, so subsidies are spread to dozens of companies far and wide. The strategy in Lee County, at least with one major funding initiative, trades volume for big scores from a small group of companies. That program, Financial Incentives for Recruiting Strategic Targets (FIRST), has handed out $16.7 million to six companies since 2008, Lee County officials say. Those companies, in turn, have created 528 jobs through November. That’s around $31,600 per job. The six Lee County firms that received funds from FIRST are required to hire 2,898 people, says Lee County Economic Development Office Executive Director Glen Salyer. At that point, if all the job guarantees are met, the total amount of incentives doled out will be $22 million, or $7,591 per job. Salyer, in an email response to questions about the program, says some of those firms are “projected to hire more jobs than originally anticipated,” which could lower the per-job figures. Some prominent Lee County businesses have been successful job creators under the FIRST program. The list includes Fort Myers-based women’s retailer Chico’s FAS; Fort Myers-based Algenol Biofuels, which, aims to commercialize the production of ethanol from algae; and Stamford, Conn.-based information technology consulting firm Gart-
ner, which has a large corporate campus in Fort Myers. Other companies in the program lag behind. Bonita Springs-based Source Interlink, for example, received $250,000 for what was eventually 51 jobs, according to a 2013 audit on Lee County economic development from Lee County Clerk of the Courts Linda Doggett. That was far less than the initial plan to hire 350 people with $1 million in incentives. Even worse: Source Interlink, a magazine distribution firm, shuttered operations in early June and laid off thousands of employees, including 240 in Lee County. Another company that’s struggled to meet the job requirements, according to the audit and Lee County officials, is Fort Myers-based botanical extract and herbal drink company VR Laboratories. Former Florida Lt. Gov. Jeff Kottkamp was CEO at VR Labs from October 2011 through early 2013. The company has long been on the cusp of major breakthroughs, but that promise hasn’t translated to jobs: VR Labs, which received $4,694,548 from Dec. 6, 2011 through June 26, 2012, had created a total of eight jobs through 2012, the Doggett audit reports. Lee County filed a lawsuit in the 20th Judicial Circuit Court in Fort Myers earlier this year to recoup its investment. “Lee County is making every effort through the court system to recover the approximately $4.9 million of incen-
COST OF A JOB Sarasota County has paid 28 companies $5,045,314 for a total of 2,183 created jobs in the five-year history of its economic development incentives program. That’s about $2,300 per job. Lee County, under its Financial Incentives for Recruiting Strategic Targets (FIRST) program, has paid six companies $16,694,848 for a total of 528 jobs since 2008. That’s $31,619 per job. The total hires could increase in the next few years in both counties, per the original agreements with companies. Lee County officials project the average cost per job in the FIRST program will ultimately be around $7,600 per job, and could go lower.
Cost of a job in ... $31,619 $7,600
$2,300 Sarasota
Lee
Lee*
*projected under FIRST program
tive funds,” Lee County Attorney Richard Wesch says in a statement emailed to the Business Observer. VR Labs executives didn’t return calls seeking comment. — Mark Gordon
COLLIER COUNTY REAGAN
Unlike neighboring Lee County, Collier County doesn’t have a $25 million pot of cash to hand out to choice companies. While Collier can provide incentives upon special request from a targeted industry, it hasn’t really needed to make big corporate handouts. To be sure, the Naples area suffered during the recession, but it has recovered more quickly than its neighbors. Indeed, state employment figures show the Naples-Marco Island area consistently outpaced its neighbors in job growth on an
EDC and Robinson, the county commissioner, who is also on the EDC’s Business Climate Committee. Changes also stem from a 2012 audit of the incentive process conducted by Sarasota County Clerk of the Circuit Court Karen Rushing. The report found a few issues, including that contracts lacked provisions to: measure performance, require companies to submit documents and submit financial data to document if the business was viable. The elimination of incentives before jobs, says Robinson, was a key change. Other important steps, she says, is the county no longer uses incentive funds for nonprofits or onetime events. The changes were made in conjunction with the county’s Office of Business and Economic Development, run by Jeff Maultsby.
annual percentage growth basis in recent years. The real estate and hospitality industries have led the rebound in business, boosting ancillary services. “There hasn’t been any need because there’s been such incredible growth, primarily stimulated by construction and development,” says Michael Reagen, who retired last year as the president and CEO of the Greater Naples Chamber of Commerce who helped found a new economic development organization called the Partnership for Collier’s Future Economy.
“The idea behind the incentive fund is for it to be a continuing improvement process,” Maultsby says. “It has become a better program, but if something comes along that would make it better, we would be open to that.” EVERYONE DOES IT Huey, named head of the Sarasota EDC in June 2011, also acknowledges the changes were necessary. But so too, he says, are incentives. He says incentives, flaws and all, will remain an imperative element of economic development in Sarasota and beyond. That’s partially because everyone else does it. Hue y a l so empha si z e s t hat incentives, even with the publicity and controversy, aren’t a magic potion. “Incentives are a tipping
Historically, Collier County’s economy has long been a servicebased one that didn’t chase corporate expansions or relocations. Because of its focus on residential growth, Collier has been more focused on issues such as congestion and street beautification than economic diversification. That could change, however, as Collier seeks to diversify its economy. It recently agreed to join a partnership with Lee County and Florida Gulf Coast University to promote the region. — Jean Gruss
point,” Huey says. “It’s not the tool. It’s a tool. They end up being icing on the cake” for a company considering all its options. Huey, in an interview with the Business Observer, says incentives are part of a broader risk-reward continuum. The more money in the overall pot, the greater the chances that a company that comes to town will spawn off into other businesses and provide a multiplier effect boost to the region’s economy. Says Huey: “It’s about how much risk a community is willing to take on.” Robinson adds that changes to the program have helped her become more comfortable with what she calls the “good, bad and ugly” of economic development. “There will always be a risk in this,” says Robinson. “This isn’t fool-proof.”
There will always be a risk in this. This isn’t fool-proof. Christine Robinson | Sarasota County Commissioner
JANUARY 23 – JANUARY 29, 2015 | BUSINESS OBSERVER
corporatereport | BayCare reaches agreement to use Clarifire technology
designed to save the business time and money. The expansion project received assistance from the Tampa Hillsborough Economic Development Corp.
BluePearl Veterinary Partners plans $1 million headquarters expansion BluePearl Veterinary Partners announced plans to expand its Tampa headquarters with the construction of a 4,800-square-foot building to accommodate the company’s needs for additional office space for its support services team. The company expects to invest $1 million in the project, which it says could result in up to 50 new jobs within three years. SHAW “We’re very excited to be adding more talented people and a brand new building at our headquarters,” Darryl Shaw, BluePearl Veterinary Partners CEO, says in a press release. “Tampa has always been our home, and we are happy to be creating new jobs and opportunities with our support services team as we continue opening veterinary hospitals across the United States.” In 1996, Darryl Shaw and his brother, Neil Shaw, founded BluePearl Veterinary Partners in Tampa. BluePearl currently employs 50 people at its headquarters at 3000 Busch Lake Blvd. and more than 1,800 at 40 other veterinary hospitals in 14 states. Hillsborough County will assist BluePearl in the expansion through an expedited permitting process
Clarke Advertising, Public Relations renames itself C•Suite Communications Clarke Advertising and Public Relations in Sarasota has changed its name to C•Suite Communications. Along with name change, several members of the team have changed roles. Patricia Courtois is now president and CEO, Heather McLain is vice president and director of public relations, Harriett Hritz is senior art director and Amanda Parrish is a senior account manager. In addition, the firm recently hired Guy Vilt as the creative services manager and Amy Grossman as a senior counselor for public relations.
19
BY SEAN ROTH | RESEARCH EDITOR
“Our new name encompasses everything that we are about — comprehensive communication strategies in an increasingly personalized marketplace,” Courtois says in a press release.
BayCare Health System reached an agreement with Clarifire to use the St. Petersburg-based company’s mobile health technology and software. BayCare plans to have its nurse managers use the Clarifire Health mobile technology on handheld tablets to record discussions with patients. Previously, its nurse managers would record those conversions in handwritten notes. “The ability to send a request in real time to another hospital department such as environmental services or social workers is transformational to the process and provides the nurse manager additional time to focus on interacting with the patient and their family,” Lisa Johnson, vice president of patient services for Morton Plant Mease and the executive leader for the project, says in a press release.
BusinessObserverFL.com
First Watch Restaurants opens new Largo location The Bradenton-based franchise First Watch Restaurants has opened its 45th restaurant in Florida — and its 10th in the Tampa Bay area. Located across from Largo Mall, the 3,425-square-foot restaurant features an updated new prototype design. “We continue to seek growing communities to expand locally and Largo is one of the neighborhoods that appealed greatly to us, and one that we believe will embrace our unique approach to breakfast, brunch and lunch,” Chris Tomasso, chief marketing officer for First Watch, says in a press release. The restaurant group has existing Tampa Bay area locations in downtown Tampa, South Tampa, new Tampa, University of South Florida/ Fowler, Carrollwood, Clearwater, Palm Harbor, Tyrone and Brandon.
Florida Agency Network hires new CFO The Florida Agency Network hired Rick Mueller as its chief financial officer. Mueller has more than 20 years of accounting, financial forecasting, and analysis experience. He worked for companies including First American Title, Universal Land Title and Attorneys Title Guaranty Fund. “We have seen a tremendous amount of growth this past year; we acquired and partnered with several companies, and teamed up with Trident Title and Title Management LLC on the East Coast to spark the creation of the Florida Agency Network,” Aaron Davis, the Florida Agency Network’s president and CEO, says in a press release. “It was time to hire a qualified, experienced CFO to keep us moving forward, and Rick Mueller is the man to do it.” The Florida Agency Network is the largest network of independent title agencies in Florida.
Neal Communities’ 2014 breaks sales records Lakewood Ranch-based Neal Communities announced it reached a new company sales record in 2014, selling 864 new homes, earning $276 million in revenue. Neal Communities opened nine new communities in 2014 from Manatee to Collier counties and expects to unveil eight in the first quarter, starting a five-year expansion plan. Last year the builder also launched Neal Land Ventures, which acquired $34 million in land assets.
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20 commercial real estate | SARASOTA–MANATEE |
BUSINESS OBSERVER | JANUARY 23 – JANUARY 29, 2015
BusinessObserverFL.com
Beker State Park
301 275
43
Palmetto Holmes Beach
Lake Manatee Lower Watershed
Bradenton
64
41
Bayside 45 Gardens
1 Tulsa private equity firm buys Lake Osprey Plaza
789
301
3
Upper Myakka River Watershed
93
1
Sarasota
780
2
2 Firm led by Canadian businessman buys Global Court industrial building BUYER: Wini Holdings LLLP (principal: William Boris Petron), Oshawa, Ontario SELLER: MacPhail Family Holdings LLC PROPERTY: 1451 Global Court, Sarasota PRICE: $1.7 million
Myakka City
72
45
Osprey Myakka River State Park
681
93
Venice
75
41
776
45
North Port
Myakka State Forest
Engelwood
PLANS, DESCRIPTION:
Private equity firm GBR Properties Inc. purchased the 32,600-square-foot Lake Osprey Plaza retail strip center for $3.68 million. The price equated to $113 per square foot. That figure is lower than the twoyear average price per square foot for retail space ($129) in the Tampa Bay area, according to the CoStar Group. Built in 2004, the Lakewood Ranch shopping center features a coastal beach theme. The property was roughly 80% occupied at the time of the sale. Mike Concilla of Equity Inc. handles all of the management and leasing for GBR Properties’ real estate along the west coast of Florida. “They are always looking for valueadd opportunities along the west coast of Florida from Spring Hill to Marco Island,” he says. “They’ve purchased three properties in the last month. They bought a shopping center in Tampa and one Bonita Springs.” Wells Fargo foreclosed on Lake Osprey Plaza in April 2014 for its commercial mortgage holders. “They plan to come in, stabilize the tenancy and do anything they can to increase rental rates and provide a more stable occupancy,” Concilla says. GBR Properties currently own more than 2 million square feet of real estate and seven Advance Auto stores. The firm’s Gulf Coast holdings includes Imperial Bonita Plaza in Bonita Springs, Palm Pointe Shoppes in Fort Myers, Shoppes of Port Charlotte in Port Charlotte and Shoppes at Cloverplace in Palm Harbor.
70
75
41
BUYER: 2014 Lake Osprey LLLP, Tulsa, Okla. SELLER: Wells Fargo Bank NA as trustee for the Registered Holders of Credit Suisse First Boston Mortgage Securities Corp. Commercial Mortgage Pass-Through Certificates Series 2005-C PROPERTY: 6251, 6257, 6255, 6287, 6285, 6283, 6279, 6277, 6273, 6271, 6265, 6263, 6293, 6291, 6247, 6245, 6243, 6241, 6253, 6249, 6289, 6259 and 6239 Lake Osprey Drive, Sarasota PRICE: $3.68 million PREVIOUS PRICE: $7 million, July 2005 LAW FIRM ON DEED: Windstead PC, Dallas
Developers building Mirabella on Village Green golf course
62
Parrish 75
BY SEAN ROTH | REAL ESTATE EDITOR
PREVIOUS PRICE: $305,000, May 2003 LAW FIRM ON DEED: Williams Parker Harrison Dietz & Getzen, Sarasota PLANS, DESCRIPTION:
A company led by William Boris Petron, owner of Ontario-based Magnus Logistics Solutions Inc., purchased a 31,034-square-foot office and warehouse building for 1.7 million. The price equated to $55 per square foot. That figure is higher than the two-year average price per square foot for flex space ($46) in the Tampa Bay area, according to the CoStar Group. Built in 2004, the facility features 6,544 square feet of office and showroom space with conference rooms, a kitchen and break rooms. The warehouse space covers 19,608 square feet. The sale also included a 5-ton crane in the warehouse. The 2.44-acre industrial property is also fenced in and includes 3,920 square feet of covered outdoor workspace. Brian Seidel of American Property Group of Sarasota Inc. handled the transaction. “Being that they were in the marble and granite business, the office is above and beyond [in terms of finishes],” Seidel says. “It is also fully furnished at this point. The seller built it be the hub of their business. But with the housing market shifting they no longer needed a building of that size.” The buyer is described as an investor and Seidel is marketing the building for lease. The asking rate is $8 triple net.
3 Real Estate investor buys Main Street building BUYER: Big Main Street LLC (manager: Christopher Brown), Sarasota SELLER: Bridgestone Retail Operations LLC PROPERTY: 1710 Main St., Sarasota PRICE: $1 million PREVIOUS PRICE: $11,000, February 2014
PLANS, DESCRIPTION:
Business owner and real estate investor Chris Brown purchased a 7,386-square-foot auto repair shop at the corner of Pine Place for $1 million. The price equated to $135 per square foot. That figure is near the two-year average price per square foot for retail space ($129) in the Tampa Bay area, according to the CoStar Group. Firestone Complete Auto Care previously operated from the building. The 0.38-acre parcel is immediately adjacent to the IberiaBank building and across the street from Main Street Square and Il Panificio. Brown owns a number of other Main Street buildings. He purchased the three-story, 27,461-square-foot IberiaBank building at 1718 Main St., Sarasota in late 2012 for $2 million. More recently, he purchased the former Tropical Thai space at 1410 Main St., Sarasota for $1.4 million and leased it to Fit2Run. Brown and his business partner Mike Granthon have also been expanding their holdings on Siesta Key. They now own almost all the commercial properties at the intersection of Ocean Boulevard, Canal Road and Avenida Messina. — additional reporting by Alex Mahadevan, correspondent
Real estate developers Marshall Gobuty and David Koral have announced plans to construct 160 homes on the 42-acre former Village Green golf course. The new community, called Mirabella at Village Green, will also feature an amenity center with a pool and spa, fitness center and movie theatre. The units are envisioned as two- or three-bedroom attached villas. Construction on infrastructure is scheduled to begin in early January, and an official groundbreaking ceremony is planned for the first quarter of 2015. • Seventh Avenue West LLC purchased a four-unit multifamily apartment complex at 516 W. Seventh Ave., Palmetto from Joseph Tallariti for $160,000. Sam Watkins of Coldwell Banker Commercial NRT represented the seller and Eve Joy of Tierra Verde Realty Inc. represented the buyer. • NDC Construction Co. of Bradenton, Florida plans to break ground on Manatee County’s Southeast Water Reclamation Facility early this year. NDC will build a 14,500-square-foot pre-engineered metal building at 3333 Lena Road, Bradenton. The new facility provide a central area to house offices, support functions, maintenance, and storage spaces. • Kevin and Leslie Dunn purchased vacant land at 915 S. Tamiami Trail, Venice from Mairauk Inc. for $270,000. Adam Seidel of American Property Group of Sarasota Inc. represented the seller and Cherie DeHay of Century 21 Almar & Associates represented the buyer. • 3449 Technology Drive LLC purchased a 1,633-square-foot office/ warehouse building at 3449 Technology Drive, unit 210, Nokomis from Cal Ventures Inc. for $117,000. Janet Lincoln and Janet Robinson of Coldwell Banker Commercial NRT handled the transaction. • Sherry Grooms, the 2014 president of the Manatee Association of Realtors, has been selected as the 2014 Manatee Association of Realtors’ Realtor of the Year. Grooms is director of e-business for Re/ GROOMS Max Alliance Group.
ETC… • Caldwell Trust Co. has moved into its new headquarters at 1400 Center Road, Venice. The 11,500-square-foot building is set on 4 acres of a 10-acre park with a courtyard and two parking lots. The $3 million headquarters was built to withstand winds of up to 180 miles per hour and features a concrete-encased vault to protect records. It also includes a conference room, library, catering kitchen, print shop and workout room. The independent trust business manages $800 million. • The Sarasota Association of Realtors (SAR) recognized Michael Bruno of Michael Saunders & Co. as the association’s 2014 Realtor of the Year. The award is chosen based upon the member’s lifetime contributions to the association, Florida Realtors and the National Association of Realtors along with service to the BRUNO community and business accomplishments. Bruno served as SAR President in 2011, and was the District 13 vice-president for Florida Realtors in 2014.
The Concession home sales grow by 70% over 2013 The gated golf-course community The Concession sold 55 home sites in 2014, an increase of more than 70% compared with 32 sales in 2013. Total sales volume was $13.96 million last year with an average home site sales price of $253,800. • Kevin and Lynette Locher purchased a 4,411-square-foot office/ warehouse building at 752 Commerce Drive, Suite 3, Venice from TWG Global LLC for $200,000. Janet Robinson of Coldwell Banker Commercial NRT represented the seller and Bobby Lawrence of Exit King Realty represented the buyer. • CPA firm Kerkering, Barberio & Co. is relocating its Lakewood Ranch office to 9423 Town Center Parkway, Lakewood Ranch. The firm will be sharing the space with the affiliated company, KB Pension Services Inc.
JANUARY 23 – JANUARY 29, 2015 | BUSINESS OBSERVER
BusinessObserverFL.com
commercial real estate | CHARLOTTE-LEE-COLLIER |
BY SEAN ROTH | REAL ESTATE EDITOR
45
Port Charlotte
776
Rotonda West
35
Punta Gorda 771 17 75
Fort Myers Shores
80 78
1
Fort Myers
Lehigh Acres
Cape Coral
1
867
82
93 45
Charleston Management Co. buys Tanglewood Marketplace
Sanibel
San Carlos Park Immokalee 41 29
Bonita Springs
BUYER: Downtown Mini Storage LLC, Marblehead, Mass.
3
Naples Park
2
SELLER: Naples Tanglewood Holdings LLC PROPERTY: 4910 Tamiami Trail N., Naples PRICE: $10.5 million PREVIOUS PRICE: $6.15 million, November 2011 LAW FIRM ON DEED: Coleman Yovanovich & Koester PA, Naples
Golden Gate
93
75
Marco Island
45
Ochopee 41
PLANS, DESCRIPTION:
Charleston Management Co. LLC, a Naples company affiliated with Marblehead, Mass.-based financial holding company S.J. Lockwood & Co. LLC, purchased the 48,735-squarefoot Tanglewood Marketplace for $10.5 million. The price equated to $215 per square foot. That figure is higher than the two-year average price per square foot for retail space ($150) in Southwest Florida, according to the CoStar Group. Prominent tenants in the retail center include an Outback restaurant and Chesterdales’ Home & Garden, a consignment and furniture and accessory antique market. The center, which occupies a 4.35-acre parcel, was 97% occupied at the time of the sale. The sale was completed as part of a 1031 tax-deferred exchange. David Stevens of Investment Properties Corp. handled the transaction. The seller, an affiliate of the private equity fund Halstatt Real Estate Partners, purchased the property in late 2011 when the real estate market was still depressed and real estate lending was tight. It was 87% occupied at that time. “They were able to come in and stabilize this asset,” says Stevens, who also handled the prior sale in 2011. “There weren’t a whole lot of physical changes, they just did some deferred maintenance and got some new leases done.” Stevens says the price ultimately came down to the strength of that section of U.S. 41 and a value-add opportunity of eventually raising some rents that are slightly below market.
PREVIOUS PRICE: $1.92 million, May 2008 LAW FIRM ON DEED: Goede Adamczyk & DeBoest PLLC, Naples PLANS, DESCRIPTION:
The Fort Myers law firm of Aloia Roland & Lubell LLP purchased the 6,112-square-foot Doc Plaza office building for $1.3 million. The price equated to $213 per square foot. That figure is higher than the two-year average price per square foot for office space ($112) in Southwest Florida, according to the CoStar Group. The building features five large offices and a central lobby. The 0.37-acre parcel in downtown Fort Myers is adjacent to city hall and near the county and federal courthouses. The personal injury law firm had not replied to a request for comment as of deadline. It has a main office at 2254 First St., Fort Myers and a second location at 1716 Cape Coral Parkway E., Cape Coral. Bob Pekol and Bryan Myers of LandQwest Commercial represented the seller, and Rokki Rogan and Mike Doyle of LandQwest Commercial represented the buyer. The purchase entity, ARL Holdings LLC, mortgaged the property to Edison National Bank for two loans totaling $1.51 million.
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LLC purchased 25 lots in a private culde-sac in the Esplanade Golf and Country Club of Naples for $6.08 million. The price equated to $243,000 per home lot. The residential developer plans to use the estate lots to build homes larger than 3,000 square feet. The lots were finished with roadways and infrastructure already in place. “This will be a complement to the existing home product that’s there,” says Keith Gelder, vice president for land at Stock Development. “We will be the semi-custom builder there at a higher price point; not necessarily competing with the existing homes. We will be the only builder other than master planner Taylor Morrison.” Stock Development expects construction to start on model homes later this month. The purchase entity, SD Esplanade LLC, added the property to an existing mortgage with Wells Fargo Bank National Association. That mortgage included $70 million in original principal and additional future advances up to a cap of $200 million.
ETC… • Denny Grimes & Co. relocated its offices to the Bank of America Building in Bell Tower Shops at 13099 S. Cleveland Ave., Suite 500, Fort Myers. • Bonita Old 41 LLC purchased a 6,590-square-foot restaurant building at 27080 Old Highway 41, Bonita Springs from FCB Restaurant Holdings LLC for $390,000. Mike Migone and Clint Conway of Sperry Van Ness
Commercial Advisory Group represented the seller and NAI Realty represented the buyers. • Divine Tomatoes Inc. purchased 102 acres of land at 5160 Pringle Lane, Immokalee for $517,400. Carlos Acosta and Chuck Smith of LandQwest Commercial represented both the buyer and seller in this transaction. • AALand Enterprises LLC purchased Bar Games, a 5,400-squarefoot bar and restaurant in Edison Park Plaza at 2245 Winkler Ave., Fort Myers for $80,000. Carlos Acosta and Chuck Smith of LandQwest Commercial handled the sale. • Florida Fire Systems LLC purchased a 7,123-square-foot light industrial building at 17430 Alico Center Drive, Fort Myers for $425,000. Steve Cunningham of LandQwest Commercial handled the transaction. • Chief Pride Judo Club Inc. leased a 2,475-square-foot retail space at 55135519 Eighth St., unit 8, Lehigh Acres from Lehigh Management Group Inc. Jim Boback of Boback Commercial Group handled the transaction. • Livin Large LP purchased 1.9 acres of land in Benchmark Corporate Park at 4663 Elevation Way, Fort Myers for $110,000. Steve Cunningham of LandQwest Commercial handled the transaction. • RDB Ventures Inc. leased 3,200 square feet of retail space at 13040 Livingston Road, units 12-13, Naples from Livingston and Pine Ridge LLC. Tara Stokes of Investment Properties Corp. handled the transaction. • Crown Linen LLC purchased a 7.71acre light industrial tract at 3307 Hanson St., Fort Myers from Richy Road LLC for $490,000. James McMenamy of the Re/Max Realty Group Commercial Division listed the property and Stan Stouder of CRE Consultants sold it. • Sonia Rocha purchased a 1,947-square-foot turnkey dental office with equipment and furnishings at 18070 Tamiami Trail, Fort Myers for $319,000. Adam Palmer of LandQwest Commercial represented the seller. • Millennium Physician Group leased 2,237 square feet of office space in North Point Office at 3434 Hancock Bridge Parkway, Suite 308, North Fort Myers from Cheyney Enterprises. Michael Frye and Hal Arkin of Frye Commercial Group at Re/Max Realty Group Commercial Division handled the transaction. • Crunch Fitness is opening its 10th franchise location in Florida, Crunch Ft. Myers. The new 21,000-squarefoot fitness center is located at 12630 Summerlin Road Suite 212, Fort Myers in The Village Shops at Health Park. Crunch Ft. Myers, will be the second Crunch location opened by franchisee CorpoMente LLC.
FEATURED PROPERTY
3
FOR LEASE
PARKLAND CENTER - Sarasota, FL
Stock Development buys estate lots in Esplanade
Aloia Roland & Lubell law firm buys Doc Plaza building BUYER: ARL Holdings LLC (manager: Frank Aloia Jr.), Fort Myers SELLER: Doc Plaza LLC PROPERTY: 2222 Second St. and 1713 Hendry St., Fort Myers PRICE: $1.3 million
BUYER: SD Esplanade LLC (manager: Brian Stock), Naples SELLER: Taylor Morrison Esplanade Naples LLC PROPERTY: a portion of a community north of Immokalee Road three miles east of Interstate 75 also known as lots 1000 to 1024 of Esplanade Golf and Country Club of Naples PRICE: $6.08 million LAW FIRM ON DEED: Gray Robinson PA, Tampa PLANS, DESCRIPTION:
Naples-based Stock Development
2280 Trailmate Dr. #103
13,580 SF Warehouse, loading dock, 24’ ceiling $5.50 SF NNN
6408 Parkland Dr. #101
6,000 SF Warehouse, 3 phase power, all a/c $5.00 SF NNN
For information call Jon P. Kleiber at (941) 756-5599 Email: jkleiber@high.net • www.WarehouseBroker.com
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22 commercial real estate | TAMPA BAY |
BUSINESS OBSERVER | JANUARY 23 – JANUARY 29, 2015
BusinessObserverFL.com
BY SEAN ROTH | REAL ESTATE EDITOR
1 Westshore 500 office building purchased for $20.9 million BUYER: ROC III Fairlead Westshore 500 LLC, Atlanta SELLER: 500 WS Owner LLC PROPERTY: 500 N. West Shore Blvd., Tampa PRICE: $20.9 million PREVIOUS PRICE: $20.1 million, February 2009 LAW FIRM ON DEED: Driver McAfee Peek & Hawthorne PL, Jacksonville
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PLANS, DESCRIPTION:
Atlanta-based Fairlead Commercial Real Estate and equity partner Bridge Investment Group Partners purchased the 129,728-square-foot Westshore 500 office building for $20.9 million. The price equated to $161 per square foot. That figure is higher than the two-year average price per square foot for office space ($119) in the Tampa Bay area, according to the CoStar Group. Westshore 500 houses Geico, SunTrust and several smaller tenants. The building was roughly 80% occupied at the time of the sale, but its new owners say they are close to a deal to lease 17,000 square feet. J.J. Conners, senior managing partner/principal with Fairlead Commercial Real Estate, says the company is also considering a number of upgrades and improvements. Cosmetic improvements are being considered for the exterior, lobby, elevator lobbies and common areas. “We need to keep pace with the quality of the market,” he says. “We have a laundry list of items. We know we can’t do them all, but we’re exploring our options to make the building more pleasant to be a tenant in.” Fairlead acquired the 19-story, 281,187-square-foot Fifth Third Center office building in downtown Tampa for $47.25 million in mid-2014. The company is looking at other opportunities in the Tampa Bay area, Conners says, particularly those in the downtown central business district or Westshore. The company’s development arm, Chestnut Hill Investments, is also looking at sites for future industrial development. Fairlead Commercial Real Estate expects to acquire another $400 million to $600 million worth of industrial and office assets over the next 18 to 24 months in the Southeast and Texas. Christian Lee, Dale Peterson, Charles Foschini and Marcos Minaya of CBRE’s Capital Markets group represented the seller. Fairlead hired Colliers International’s leasing team of Claire Calzon and Joanne LeBlanc to lease Westshore 500. The purchase entity, ROC III Fairlead Westshore 500 LLC, mortgaged the property to BOKF NA dba Bank of Arizona for $18 million.
2 Housing Trust Group developing Whispering Palms Apartments BUYER: HTG Pinellas 2 LLC (principal: Matthew and Randy Rieger), Miami
SELLER: Heartwood Partners 3 LLC PROPERTY: 601 16th Ave. S.E., Largo PRICE: $1.1 million LAW FIRM ON DEED: Greenspoon Marder, Fort Lauderdale PLANS, DESCRIPTION:
Housing Trust Group purchased a 4.4-acre site just east of Seminole Boulevard in Largo for $1.1 million. The price equated to $250,000 per acre. The Coconut Grove-based developer has already started construction there to create a 63-unit affordable housing community called Whispering Palms Apartments. The community will include a mixture of two- and threebedroom townhomes and gardenstyle apartments. It will also include four units specifically for special needs families. Community amenities will include a multipurpose clubhouse, large pool with pergola, fitness center, playground and computer lab. Residents will also have opportunities for afterschool children’s programs, literacy training, employment assistance and skills workshops. “Housing Trust Group is always attracted to markets such as Largo, where there is a need for additional affordable housing, based on demand stemming from the underlying strength of the area’s employment base and associated income-eligible households,” Matthew Rieger, president and CEO of Housing Trust Group, wrote in an email to the Business Observer. “In this particular case for our 63-unit Whispering Palms development, we saw the opportunity to provide for a unique family-style development product featuring a mix of townhomes and garden-style apartment homes.” The project is scheduled for completion in the fourth quarter. In December 2013, Housing Trust Group completed the $7.8 million renovations of a 145-unit affordable housing development called 540 Town Center, at 540 Second Ave. S., St. Petersburg.
3 TradeWinds Island Resorts buys land for parking, future development BUYER: RIA-Coral Reef Inc., St. Pete Beach SELLER: 5800 Gulf Holdings LLC PROPERTY: 5800 Gulf Blvd., St. Pete Beach PRICE: $9.5 million PREVIOUS PRICE: $7.3 million, November 2004 LAW FIRM ON DEED: Shutts & Bowen LLP, Orlando PLANS, DESCRIPTION:
The TradeWinds Island Resorts purchased a 4.4-acre parcel, known as the Coral Reef property, for $9.5 million. The price equated to $2.16 million per acre. The land is located adjacent to the TradeWinds Island Grand Resort. TradeWinds Island Resorts includes TradeWinds Island Grand and Guy Harvey Outpost — A TradeWinds Beach Resort, as well as the new Guy Harvey RumFish Grill that opened earlier this year. The property will initially provide additional parking for hotel employees, which should free up parking for Guy Harvey for RumFish Grill patrons. The new ownership says its future development plans for the site have yet to be determined. “We’ve enjoyed a very high level of patronage at Guy Harvey RumFish Grill since opening about six months ago, so the extra parking will be a welcomed addition,” TradeWinds Island Resorts CEO Tim Bogott says in a press release. “Beyond the expanded parking, this acquisition opens the door to future development options for TradeWinds depending on what the city plan will ultimately allow.”
ETC. • iConstructors has completed construction of Keller Williams Tampa Properties’ new 10,700-squarefoot offices in Ashlyn Park at 5020
W. Linebaugh Ave., Tampa. HTG Architects designed the open floor plan and breakroom areas. • Max Fomitchev-Zamilov purchased a 5,198-square-foot industrial building near the entrance to Billy Creek Commerce Center at 5900 Enterprise Parkway, Fort Myers for $155,000. Rokki Rogan of LandQwest Commercial handled the transaction. • Retail property owner Simon has started construction on the Tampa Premium Outlets in Wesley Chapel. The multimillion-dollar project will create 441,000 square feet of leasable space for more than 110 retailers. The development, located at the intersection of Interstate 75 and State Road 56, is scheduled to open in October. It is projected to create 300 to 500 construction jobs and more than 800 full-time and part-time retail jobs. • Thomas Karpenske in CBRE’s Tampa office represented the seller, the Florida Department of Environmental Protection’s (DEP) Division of State Lands, in its sale of the former G. Pierce Wood Mental Health Facility near Arcadia in DeSoto County to Power Auto Corp. for $2.5 million. CBRE’s Lee Ann Korst in Tallahassee and Ann Rossini in Orlando also assisted the seller. • Standard Pacific Homes has opened Sago Village, a gated home community within Trinity Lakes, a Pasco County master-planned development. Homes in Sago Village will range from 2,400 to more than 4,400 square feet, and offer up to six bedrooms and five and one-half baths. • Omni Communications LLC leased a 10,731-square-foot office space in Northport Business Park at 8509 Benjamin Road, Suite E., Tampa from FGHP Properties Limited Partnership. Mary Clare Codd of Colliers International Tampa Bay represented the tenant and Steve Swann of Pembroke Realty represented the landlord. • Michael Mele and Luke Elliott, both in Marcus & Millichap’s Tampa office, handled the sale of Safe and Sound Storage, a 797-unit, 82,949-square-foot self-storage facility in Jensen Beach for $8.6 million. The price equated to $135 per square foot. The buyer was an institutional investor.
Colliers’ Park Tower improvements earn it Outstanding Building of the Year award The Building Owners and Managers Association of Greater Tampa Bay recognized Colliers International Tampa Bay’s Real Estate Management Division for changes to Park Tower with the Outstanding Building of the Year 2014 Earth Award. A variety of changes, including replacing a 34-year-old chiller, variable frequency drives on all motors and air handlers and high-efficiency light bulbs, allowed the 36-story, 472,462-square-foot office building to reduce its annual energy bill by more than $900,000. “As more companies embrace green building and environmentally respectful operations, our team is working to help clients develop an awareness of new environmental policies,” John Scott, senior executive managing director of Florida for Colliers International’s Real Estate Management Division, says in a press release. “Backed by our team of LEED-accredited professionals, our goal is to deliver energy-efficient buildings in our office, retail, industrial and medical tenancies.” Today, Park Tower is LEED Gold certified, with an Energy Star Rating of 97.
JANUARY 23 – JANUARY 29, 2015 | BUSINESS OBSERVER
CoffeeTalk
Entrepreneurial group seeks growth
Southern expansion pays off When Sarasota homebuilder Pat Neal was scouting land in Lee and Collier counties in 2011, the recovery was far from a sure thing. Foreclosures still swamped the Fort Myers and Naples areas, keeping many builders on the sidelines. But Neal Communities expanded into the region anyway, snapping up real estate at bargain prices in what Neal told the Business Observer then were “times of enormous opportunities.” The bold move south proved prescient. Neal recently reported that it sold 182 homes in Lee and Collier counties last year, a 300% increase over 2013. Total volume in the two-county area in 2014 was $66
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million with an average home price of $362,556. The Lee and Collier dollar-sales volume represented nearly a quarter of Neal’s total sales for 2014 of $276 million. Its 182 home sales represented 21% of the total 870 sales.
NEAL
BusinessObserverFL.com
The area chapter of Entrepreneurs’ Organization, recently named one of a dozen organizations entrepreneurs need to join by Entrepreneur magazine, has dream-large plans for the Gulf Coast in 2012. The Central Florida chapter, which covers Orlando and the entire Gulf Coast, seeks to grow its membership base by at least 50% in 2015, says EO Central Florida President Jane Bolin. The group doubled its membership count last year, and now has 25 people in the chapter. The chapter was founded in 2008 and expanded to Orlando in BOLIN 2012. “We are looking for entrepreneur leaders,” Bolin tells Coffee Talk. “We are looking for people who are willing to push it.” Entrepreneurs’ Organization is similar, in some ways, to groups like the Gulf Coast CEO Forum in the Sarasota-Bradenton market and the CEO Council of Tampa Bay. EO holds meetings and seminars where it
If you could do it all over A large majority of entrepreneurs, 86%, would remain entrepreneurs if they had a chance to start over, according to a new survey — but they would invest their time and money differently. Conducted by The Alternative Board, a Westminster, Colo.-based consulting firm, the survey shows business owners would put more emphasis on sales, strategic planning and marketing if they could do it again. “We found that entrepreneurs are confident in their products and services, but feel they would have benefited from better planning and more guidance,” The Alternative Board CEO Jason Zickerman says in a release. For example, 24% of respondents say better coaches and mentors would make the single biggest difference in their businesses if they did it over, the survey found. That’s against 2% who say a better product would be the difference maker. Another change entrepreneurs would make: Invest more money in brings in national leadership speakers. The chapter also has confidential executive roundtable sessions, called Forum, where members chat about business issues with their peers. EO meetings and sessions, like some other organizations, aren’t for sales and lead generation. Founded in 1987, Entrepreneurs’ Organization has more than 10,000 members spread through 142 chapters in 46 countries. “This isn’t a networking group,” says Bolin, an attorney and co-founder of
their business, and put it in different places. More than one-third would increase budgets for marketing, sales and lead development, the survey reports, while 20% would invest more in hiring and training employees. At least one-fourth, 27%, would put more hours into strategic planning. One more if-I-knew-then-what-Iknow-now nugget:
38%
Nearly four out of 10 survey respondents, 38%, wish they had delegated more to others. PeytonBolin, a real estate law firm with offices in Fort Lauderdale, Orlando and Tampa. “It’s a people-who-want-to-bebetter-entrepreneurs group.” While the Central Florida chapter total membership is on the small side, the group has clout: The 25 members oversee firms with 788 employees and average annual sales of $6.71 million, according to the EO Central Florida chapter website. Industries represented range from advertising to waste management and architecture to manufacturing.
More than 18,200 manufacturing companies are driving innovation in Florida.
PASCO HILLSBOROUGH PINELLAS MANATEE SARASOTA
Manufacturing
Find out about the key players on the Gulf Coast in this special manufacturing issue. Read it: February 6, 2015 | Advertising Reservation Deadline: January 29, 2015
CHARLOTTE LEE
A Better View of Business
BusinessObserverFL.com
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For advertising information and opportunities, contact Donna Condon at 941.366.3468 or dcondon@yourobserver.com.
COLLIER
BUSINESS OBSERVER | JANUARY 23 – JANUARY 29, 2015
BusinessObserverFL.com
RICHARDSON KLEIBER WALTER KLEIBER BUTTON INC. Lic Real Estate Broker
Jeff Button RICHARDSON Jennifer Kleiber-Button KLEIBER Nicole Button WALTER 941-378-2328 KLEIBER BUTTON MANAGEMENT INC. Lic Real Estate Broker www.SarasotaWarehouses.com Industrial & Office Properties For Sale or Lease Multi-Unit Industrial Complex 66,348 Sq/Ft Total
High Occupancy Frontage on University Pkwy 3 Building Complex
$26.38 Per Sq/Ft $1,750,000
3,500 SF Flex Warehouse Condo For Sale / For Lease Storefront Entry, Two 12’ x 12’ Rollup Doors, 20’ Clearspan Warehouse.
Call for Pricing
RICHARDSON KLEIBER WALTER KLEIBER BUTTON INC.
2012 58th Ave Cir E
9,750 SF Clean Warehouse Like New Building Zoned Light Industrial 20 Ft Eave Height, Insulated Ceiling, 3 Phase Capable Clear-Span Warehouse
For Lease $6 / SF Gross
Lic Real Estate Broker
7,962 SF Office/Warehouse/Service 1107 Tallevast Road, Sarasota
REDUCED
1.16 Acre Corner Located Property, 3 Phase Power! Concrete Block Construction with 16’ Interior Clear Height Drive-Thru and Drive-Around Facility! Two 20 Ft Wide by 16 Ft Tall Automatic Roll-Up Doors 39 Parking Spaces
FOR SALE $995,000
10,000 SF Office/Showroom/Warehouse 1631 & 1635 W University Pkwy
780 Apex Road
For Lease $1,150 per month per unit
Fruitville & I-75 Corridor 2,000 SF Office/Showroom – 3 Phase 2 Grade Level Doors
Up to 31,850 SF in Tampa
10,000 – 40,000 SF A/C DISTRIBUTION 6791 28th Street Circle East
2,000 SF Flex Space Light Industrial – Office / Showroom
For Lease $6,800/mo. Gross
15,610 Sq/Ft Clearspan Warehouse w/2,000 Sq/Ft Office 20’+ Eave Height, Loading Ramp, 3 Phase
3 PHASE AVAILABLE 2 LOADING DOCKS CLIMATE CONTROLLED
FOR LEASE $7.00 / SF Gross
FOR LEASE – NEGOTIABLE
SOLD
Fruitville Rd & I-75 Corridor 9,000 SF Office/Warehouse
1,175 SF Office / Flex Space I-75 / Fruitville Rd Corridor 1943 Barber Rd
20’ Eave Height / Paved Fenced Yard! Loading Dock & Grade Level Doors DON’T MISS THIS OPPORTUNITY!” UNDER CONTRACT”
4 offices - Reception - Storage Closet
FOR SALE $117,500 OR LEASE $1,150 /mo
SOLD: $650,000
7,425 SF Multi-Tenant Investment Property 2001 Whitfield Park Ave High Visibility / 3 Phase / Ample Parking A/C Storage Warehouse Area – Nice Office Loading Dock & Grade Level Doors
SOLD
FOR SALE $556,900
FOR LEASE $2500/month NNN
15,200 SF FENCED & PAVED STORAGE YARD
Disbtribution, Insulated Warehouse, 6,500 SF Insulated Space Available, 36,408 SF Office / Manufacturing / Warehousing - 3 Phase Power Available - 14’ - 25+’ Ceiling Heights - 6 Dock-High Loading Doors
FOR LEASE - NEGOTIABLE - WILL DIVIDE
Cattlemen Road / Bahia Vista St Corner Office Site For Sale Preliminary Site Plan Approved for Two-Story 12,100 SF Professional Office! Zoned OPI – Lot Size 33,191 Sq/Ft
SOLD
Professional Office is FULLY FURNISHED and includes Open Reception Work Area, 3 Private Offices, Computer Server Area, Kitchen/Break room.
SOLD: $110,000
1856 Apex Rd
2,375 SF Professional Office with Lake View! Professional Office with Conference Room, 4 offices, Open Area, Reception, and Copier Area Private “Owner’s Suite” w/ separate entrance
863 SF Office Condo Lakewood Ranch 7365 Merchant Ct, Suite 7
SOLD
2077 58th Ave Cir E
9,750 SF HM Zoned Office / Whse with Yard! 2,000 SF Office, Mezzanine, Four Roll-Up Doors Paved, Fence Storage Yard Clear-Span Warehouse w/ 20 Ft. Eave Height
SOLD: $670,000
1,176 SF Office Showroom Storage Unit 7353 international Place Unit 311 Lakewood Ranch Nicely Finished Space All air-conditioned
FOR SALE $139,900
1,750 SF – 5,000 SF – 7,500 SF Units 59th Drive East, Bradenton 20’ Eave height - New Building Common Loading Well Includes water/sewer/trash
FOR SALE $499,000
Call for Info
7,500 Sq/Ft Multi-Tenant Office Building w/Storage
1,440 SF and 1,680 SF Units 1715 Independence Blvd
3 Units – Partially Leased Less than Replacement Cost
SOLD: $550,000
Various Floor Plans Office Units Flex Space Units
FOR LEASE – GREAT RATES!
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