Inside Columbia's CEO Winter 2013

enTRePReneuRs and deVeloPmenT PRos sHaRe THeIR GRoWInG TIPs

Economic

GARDENING →

bRANT bUKOWSKY Founder and Co-Owner, Veterans United Home Loans

→

TONY MARRERO Founder and Online Operations Director, SoccerPro.com

GEORGE PfENENGER CEO, Socket

bROCK bUKOWSKY Founder and Co-Owner, Veterans United Home Loans

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www.ColumbiaCeO.com

CONTENTS

Inside Columbia’s CEO • www.ColumbiaCeo.com • Volume 4, Issue 2

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Opening Bell: the Buzz On CoMo Biz

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regional roundup

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economic Gardening: Cultivating A Crop Of Homegrown entrepreneurs

Columbia regional Airport Updates Its Flight Plan

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CeO roundtable: Startup talk From Local entrepreneurs

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exit Interview: Don Laird

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Oh-So-nice wintertime Accessories

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westminster College Connects with the Downtown Incubator

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networking

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Publisher’s note

entrepreneur Chase Daniel Branches Out with Apparel enterprise

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Closing Quotes

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INSIdE COLumBIa’S CEO STaff Publisher Fred Parry fred@insidecolumbia.net

Meet OUr eDItOrIAL ADVISOrY BOArD

Associate Publisher Melody Parry melody@insidecolumbia.net Editor-in-Chief Sandy Selby sandy@insidecolumbia.net Copy Editor Kathy Casteel kathy@insidecolumbia.net

RANDY COIL President, Coil Construction

TOM ATKINS President, Tom Atkins Investments

GARY DREWING President, Joe Machens Dealerships

BOB GERDING President, Gerding, Korte & Chitwood CPAs

Editorial Assistants Ren Bishop ren@insidecolumbia.net Morgan McCarty morgan@insidecolumbia.net Contributing Writer Anita Neal Harrison Photo Editor L.G. Patterson Creative Director Carolyn Preul design@insidecolumbia.net

DIANNE LYNCH President, Stephens College

PAUL LAND Principal/Owner, Plaza Commercial Realty

BOB PUGH CEO, MBS Textbook Exchange

GEORGE PFENENGER CEO, Socket

Graphic Designers Casey Loring casey@insidecolumbia.net Kate Moore kate@insidecolumbia.net Director of Sales Bill Bales bill@insidecolumbia.net Director of Marketing Kevin Magee kevin@insidecolumbia.net

GREG STEINHOFF President of Strategic Operations, Veterans United Home Loans

JERRY TAYLOR President & CEO, MFA Oil Co.

TIM WOLFE President, University of Missouri System

Please Recycle This Magazine.

Inside Columbia’s CEO magazine 47 E. Broadway • Columbia, MO 65203 • Office: 573-442-1430 • Web: www.ColumbiaCEO.com Inside Columbia’s CEO is published quarterly by OutFront Communications LLC, 47 E. Broadway, Columbia, Mo. 65203, 573-442-1430. Copyright OutFront Communications, 2013. All rights reserved. Reproduction or use of any editorial or graphic content without the express written permission of the publisher is prohibited.

Postage paid at Columbia, Mo. The annual subscription rate is $19.95 for four issues.

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Marketing Representatives Dinah Alfaro dinah@insidecolumbia.net Whitney Davis wdavis@insidecolumbia.net Kyle Gross kyle@insidecolumbia.net Crystal Midkiff crystal@insidecolumbia.net Bobby Remis bobby@insidecolumbia.net Marketing Assistants Jessica Card jessica@insidecolumbia.net Kalie Clennin kalie@insidecolumbia.net Director of Customer Retention Gerri Shelton gerri@insidecolumbia.net Assistant Finance Manager Brenda Brooks brenda@insidecolumbia.net Distribution Manager John Lapsley

OPENING BELL

the buzz on como biz

MACHENS DEALERSHIPS DRIVE ONTO PRESTIGIOUS LIST

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here were 17,767 car dealerships in the United States at the beginning of 2012, according to the National Auto Dealers Association. To own a dealership that ranks among the Top 500 dealerships on the annual WardsAuto Dealer 500 list is a proud achievement for anyone. To own four dealerships on that list is nothing short of phenomenal.

That’s just what Gary Drewing accomplished this year. Four of his Joe Machens dealerships landed in the WardsAuto Dealer 500, which ranks 8

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dealerships by total annual revenue. Joe Machens Ford Lincoln raced to No. 26 on the list with total revenue of $169,765,950 and 6,438 units sold.

Joe Machens Toyota Scion appears on the list at No. 249, with revenue of $79,059,155; Joe Machens Nissan is No. 407, with revenue of $56,692,259; and Joe Machens Automotive Group made the list at No. 432, with revenue of $53,621,284.

“We are very proud to have four of our stores recognized as being leaders in the automotive industry, in the top 500 automotive dealers,” Drewing says. “Our recognition is a direct result of taking care of

customers, which is the most important job any of us has to do every day. We believe by taking care of our customers in all aspects of their vehicles’ needs, we earn their trust and confidence to be their preferred choice when it’s time to purchase their next vehicles.”

The impressive quadruple feat caught the attention of WardsAuto Dealer Business’s editors, who featured Drewing and his son, Rusty — owner/president of Joe Machens Capital City Ford Lincoln, general manager of Columbia’s Joe Machens Ford Lincoln and director of pre-owned operations — in the magazine’s November 2012 issue.

OPENING BELL

the buzz on como biz

a STraTEGIC WIN

A New C&I Focus

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he Callaway Bank has promoted Brian Cox to a commercial lender for the Columbia market. His focus will be to assist small and medium-sized businesses. Commercial and industrial loans, or C&I, as they are known in banking, are the business loans that cover just about everything outside of commercial real estate.

C&I loans have always been fundamental to community banks, as the bank needs to know its customer well to properly underwrite that type of loan. For instance, a dentist might pursue a loan for a new X-ray machine, but a bank has no need for an X-ray machine should the loan fail, so a relationship built on familiarity and trust is important.

Cox says he enjoys working with small businesses because it’s an opportunity to help them succeed. “The goal is to grow their business long term and develop a strong relationship with the owner,” he says.

mu’S CrOSBy mBa: GOOd fOr BuSINESS

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he University of Missouri’s Trulaske College of Business is celebrating a new achievement. Its Crosby MBA program has made its debut on the Bloomberg BusinessWeek list of top business schools for 2012. The list, which recognized 82 programs worldwide, placed the Crosby MBA program at No. 24 for public institutions and 56th among all U.S.-based programs. When cost of the programs was factored in, Crosby proved to be an unbeatable bargain — No. 1 among all ranked schools.

“We are incredibly pleased to be ranked in Bloomberg BusinessWeek,” says Dean Joan

Gabel. “We continuously strive to facilitate student growth and are particularly proud of the demonstrable evidence of the value we offer. This recognition reflects much hard work on behalf of our students, faculty, the university, our alumni and our employers.”

The Bloomberg BusinessWeek ranking is based on surveys of recent MBA graduates, feedback from corporate recruiters and an evaluation of faculty research. The MBA surveys and the recruiter polls each contribute 45 percent to the final ranking, with the intellectual-capital ranking contributing the final 10 percent.

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tephens College’s master in strategic leadership degree is the third-best buy among online degrees from accredited universities that offer MSL degrees, according to GetEducated.com, an online education expert and leader in distance learning. A “Best Buy” ranking indicates that the degree program has been independently reviewed and found to offer a highquality online degree at a cost well below the national average.

The Stephens master in strategic leadership program is a 100 percent online master’s degree designed for innovative leaders who want to advance their critical thinking, communication and leadership skills in strategic and organizational management. The MSL prepares students to become highly skilled problem-solvers who manage change, teams and whole organizations with confidence.

“Stephens College has long had a reputation for providing our students with an outstanding education,” says Annette Digby, vice president for academic affairs. “Our highquality online curriculum derives its strength from knowledgeable faculty within the School of Organizational Leadership and Strategic Communication, and we are honored to have been named the No. 3 Best Buy by GetEducated.com.”

Share your business news with Inside Columbia’s CEO. Email the editor at sandy@insidecolumbia.net.

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OPENING BELL

the buzz on como biz

They're Great!

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olumbia’s own Veterans United Home Loans appears as No. 21 on Fortune magazine’s supremely prestigious Great Place to Work 2012 list. With just a bit fewer than 1,000 employees at the time of its nomination in the Best Medium Workplace category (the company has since grown into Large Workplace contention) Veterans United made the list because of its exceptional workplace culture.

CEO Nate Long gives credit to the entire team at Veterans United. “The driving force behind this recognition is our employees and the commitment they each have to building a workplace with a great culture,” he says. “I love coming to work every day because this team makes it fun and rewarding to be here. Employees focusing on veterans, active-duty military and each other brought us this honor nationwide.”

The company was selected among hundreds of companies competing for a place on this year’s list. The process itself helped narrow the field with a required employee survey and an in-depth questionnaire about each nominee’s programs and practices. Great Place to Work evaluated the company based on credibility, respect, fairness, pride and camaraderie.

Great Place to Work evaluators were particularly impressed with the company’s employee-driven charitable arm Veterans United Foundation, which was founded in November 2011. In the first year, 80 percent of employees pledged 1 percent of their annual salaries to the foundation, resulting in $1.25 million in donations to enhance the lives of veterans and military families nationwide.

On July 27, 2012, Veterans United Foundation, which is supported entirely by employees of Veterans United Home Loans, presented $65,000 to the Gary Sinise Foundation to help build a smart home for mid-Missouri native and paralyzed veteran Tyler Huffman. Veterans United employees Amanda Good, Pam Swan and Charles Neville joined Sinise (far left) and Frank Siller (far right) on stage following a benefit concert Sinise played in Centertown, Mo. Siller is chairman of the Stephen Siller Tunnel to Towers Foundation, established in honor of his brother Stephen, a New York City firefighter killed on Sept. 11, 2001.

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OPENING BELL

regional roundup

TySON fOOdS ExPaNdS SEdaLIa PLaNT

St. Mary’s Earns ‘Top Performer’ Distinction

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t. Mary’s Health Center has been named one of the nation’s Top Performers in Key Quality Measures by The Joint Commission, the nation’s leading accreditor of health care organizations. St. Mary’s is one of only 244 hospitals nationwide to achieve this Top Performer distinction two years in a row.

Recognition is based on evidence-based clinical processes shown to improve care for certain conditions, including heart attack, heart failure, pneumonia and surgical care.

Inclusion on the list is based on measures reported to The Joint Commission during the 2011 calendar year.

“Safe care for our patients is the most important thing we do here at St. Mary’s,” says hospital President Brent VanConia. “We are committed to exceptional care and are honored to be added to this distinguished top-quality performers list by The Joint Commission.”

To be recognized as a top performer on key quality measures, an organization must meet two 95 percent thresholds. First, it must achieve a composite performance of 95 percent or more after the results of accountability measures reported to The Joint Commission were factored into a single score. Second, they must meet or exceed a 95 percent performance benchmark for every accountability measure for which they report data, excluding any measures with less than 30 eligible cases or patients.

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yson Foods Inc. is completing a multimillion-dollar improvement and expansion project at its poultry complex in Sedalia. The expansion will create as many as 200 additional jobs in the next two years. The complex currently employs about 1,450 people.

Improvements include state-of-the-art processes and technologies designed to benefit animal handling, food safety, environmental quality, workplace safety and production. The project also upgrades parts of the plant that have been in operation since 1994.

The company plans to hire about 150 people before March 2013. Another 50 people likely will be added to the payroll by mid-2014, according to Tyson officials.

The Sedalia poultry complex contracts with more than 125 poultry farmers in seven counties in central Missouri.

Complex operations include the poultry processing plant, hatchery, feed mill, live haul operations, wastewater treatment facility and a rendering operation. The plant produces fully cooked chicken for grocery customers, including fully cooked patties, nuggets, wings and breast strips. Annual payroll for the complex for fiscal year 2011 was more than $46.3 million; total family farmer pay to grow chickens for the complex was approximately $27.4 million.

arEa COLLEGES OPEN JOINT LOCaTION aT LaKE Of ThE OZarKS

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tate Fair Community College and Central Methodist University celebrated a ribbon-cutting in November at SFCC’s new location in the upper level of Stone Crest Mall in Osage Beach. Representatives from both institutions were on hand to discuss

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programs and services offered at the Lake, and enroll students in spring classes.

The new 24,000-square-foot location features twice as much classroom space as the institutions had previously, a larger computer lab, a commons area for students,

more administrative room, additional parking and better visibility.

Through an agreement with SFCC, Central Methodist University provides bachelor’s degree programs at SFCC-Lake of the Ozarks and online. Students can earn four-year degrees in

accounting, management, business, child development, criminal justice, early childhood education, elementary education, psychology, nursing, special education, middle school education and sociology.

CMU has moved upstairs to the new space with SFCC.

TraNSPOrTaTION

hELLO, amErICaN ...

GOOdByE, dELTa

Columbia Regional airport updates Its Flight schedule

by KATHY CASTEEL photo illustration by CAROLYN PREUL

CHICAGO

COLUMbIA

DALLAS/ fORT WORTH ORLANDO

“Leavin’ on a jet plane Don’t know when I’ll be back again”

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he plaintive refrain of Peter, Paul & Mary may be niggling at the back of the minds of Columbia travelers this winter, now that Delta has announced plans to discontinue service at Columbia Regional Airport next February. But city officials and community boosters are touting new connections to Columbia as a net gain for air service in mid-Missouri.

Delta’s anticipated departure comes on the heels of a series of celebratory news for Columbia air travelers. The city recently welcomed Frontier and American airlines to the airport’s flight schedule, and opened a new overpass at the U.S. 63/Route H interchange that, along with other highway improvements, provides upgraded access to the airport south of town.

Frontier Airlines began flying from Columbia to Orlando, Fla., on Nov. 20.

The single flight on Tuesdays and Saturdays offers nonstop service to central Florida on a 138-passenger A319 Airbus.

Frontier plans to add a third weekly Orlando flight to the schedule in April.

American Airlines begins daily direct service on 50-seat jets from Columbia to Chicago and Dallas on Feb. 14 — a single afternoon flight will go to Chicago O’Hare International Airport every day; morning and evening flights are scheduled to Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport Sunday through Friday with a single morning flight on Saturday.

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TRANSPORTATION

Nov. 2, announced the decision to leave Columbia after voicing concerns over the incentives offered to American Airlines.

A public-private consortium provided a $3.3 million revenue guarantee fund to help lure American to Columbia; neither Delta nor Frontier received such a guarantee. Delta sent a letter to the city in October asking for a comparable package. After a conference call between Delta and city officials, Columbia City Manager Mike Matthes responded with an offer Nov. 2 that included up to $3 million in revenue guarantees over two years, a waiver of landing fees and assistance with advertising in return for two daily flights to Atlanta’s Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport. On Nov. 6, Delta refused the city’s offer and announced it would begin reducing its Columbia-toAtlanta flight schedule in January. Delta will be down to one daily Atlanta flight by the first two weeks of February; no Delta flights are scheduled after mid-February.

Losing the Atlanta flights is a blow to University of Missouri athletic team

The tradeoff offers more options for Columbians, McDavid adds. “Last year, we averaged 126 airplane seats a day available,” he says. “By April, we’ll have 202 seats a day available. That’s a 59 percent increase in capacity.”

Greg Steinhoff sees the new arrangement as a net gain for Columbia travelers. Steinhoff, who serves as chairman of the Columbia Chamber of Commerce’s airport steering committee, has no regrets about offering revenue guarantees to entice airlines into providing service here.

“It’s clear that, on balance, we are in a much better position now than with Delta being our sole air service provider,” Steinhoff says. “[With American] We have connections to two major hubs — as opposed to one — and the potential to attract additional service. Chicago and Dallas are without question the two most attractive hubs servicing our area.

We’ll have greatly enhanced connectivity to the West and significantly improved international service.”

Travel Tip As Columbia’s travel options continue to evolve, travelers would be wise to check airport and airline websites for updates. Current flight schedules for Frontier and American are available at www.flymidmo.com.

Check www.delta.com for updated Delta Air Lines schedules.

Additional flight information is available for American Airlines at www.aa.com and for Frontier Airlines at www.FlyFrontier.com. travel in the university’s first year as a member of the Southeastern Conference.

Matthes’ letter to Delta cited the Atlanta connections as a boon in easing athletic department travel within the SEC, noting that “any improvement or reduction in air service affects all 14 institutions” of the SEC across 11 states.

“I’m disappointed we lost Delta,” says Columbia Mayor Bob McDavid. “It’s the biggest airline, and Atlanta is the nation’s busiest airport. But frankly, we didn’t have much of a relationship with Delta — not one where we could talk with anyone in the company. And Atlanta as a sole destination wasn’t adequate for our needs.

We wanted additional destinations for travelers, but Delta wasn’t interested in flying anywhere else out of Columbia.”

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Columbia will continue to seek additional airlines to service local travelers, Steinhoff says. “It’s a fluid industry with different providers coming and going all the time.”

And revenue guarantees will be part of that effort, he says.

“What we have to realize is that we’re the size of community that has to continually scratch and claw to attract more air service. We have to focus on increasing the number of enplanements (airport market share) and be competitive with incentives. Over time, we will attract additional air service.”

The current revenue guarantee fund is locked up in the agreement with American, McDavid points out. The mayor wants to focus efforts on making sure

those new flights get off the ground in a smooth startup next February.

“We want to get the marketing in place, the tickets sold and people in the seats,” he says. “We’ll be pushing for additional flight times — an early morning departure and a late-night arrival — that are important for business travel. But we have to demonstrate the market is there.”

American has shown a willingness to increase flights where demand warrants it, McDavid says. In Manhattan, Kan., for example, a revenue guarantee brought that city two daily American Airlines flights to Dallas-Fort Worth. Traffic has since increased to three daily flights each to Dallas and Chicago.

McDavid does not think the uncertainties surrounding American Airlines’ current bankruptcy proceedings bode ill for Columbia.

“Bankruptcy has been an unfortunate fact of life for airlines these days,” he says.

“They’ve all gone through it — maybe it’s just American’s turn. But it does have some advantages. Bankruptcy has nullified pre-existing union contracts that limited the use of regional jets — like the 50-passenger jets American will use to fly in and out of Columbia. So it gives the airline more flexibility.”

Frontier is also in the city’s sights in the effort to expand Columbia Regional Airport’s repertoire of destinations. “We are very interested in growing our relationship with Frontier Airlines,” Steinhoff says. “It is a quality national provider that represents some attractive opportunities for our market. With both Frontier and American, we communicate frequently; it’s a feeling of a true partnership where both parties are interested in the success of the other.”

Planned improvements to Columbia Regional Airport — including a rebuilt taxiway, lengthening of the main runway, a larger passenger holding area, relocation of the baggage claims area, controlled ramp access and another parking lot — will continue as funds become available, McDavid says.

“What we really need is a new terminal,” he says, “but we’ll keep applying Band-Aids as we explore options. It’s on the wish list.”

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the conference room

Exit Interview Don Laird Looks Back At 24 Years With The Chamber Of Commerce

by KATHY CASTEEL photos by L.G. PATTERSON

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olumbia Chamber of Commerce President Don Laird will retire at the end of 2012, capping a 24-year career here.

A native of Grand Forks, N.D., Laird is a graduate of the University of North Dakota and holds a master’s degree in geography from the University of Missouri. A Vietnam veteran and Army Reserve commander, he worked for 3M Corp. and owned a home improvement store in Iowa before becoming a chamber professional. Vermillion, S.D, was his first chamber post, followed by Garden City, Kan. Laird arrived in Columbia in 1988. During his tenure in Columbia, the local chamber became accredited with the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and membership increased from 700 to 1,200. The Columbia chamber celebrated its 100th anniversary in 2005.

Laird and his wife, Joey, plan to remain in Columbia. A search is under way to hire a new chamber president.

Selection task force co-chairman Kee Groshong says the chamber expects to have a new chamber president onboard no later than the end of 2012.

In this exit interview, Laird reflects on his two dozen years at the helm of the Columbia Chamber of Commerce.

The Columbia business landscape has evolved during your years with the Chamber of Commerce; the ebb and flow has seen dominant industries shift as new ones emerged. What sticks out in your mind as the most dramatic changes to the economic base of the city?

There are so many key changes since I first joined the chamber 24 years ago.

In no particular order, they include: the large growth of Mizzou enrollment; key interaction of MU/UM system leadership with economic development in Columbia and the entire state of Missouri; the strengthening and expansion of Columbia College, and the revitalization of Stephens College; health care sector evolution and growth; improvements in service at Columbia winter 2013

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the conference room

Regional Airport; the beginning of Regional Economic Development Inc. and its new emphasis on entrepreneurship; the expansion of State Farm, Kraft Foods, MidwayUSA, and the formation of Missouri Employer’s Mutual; Quaker Oats (now PepsiCo) opening here along with IBM; and the recent growth of companies like Veterans United Home Loans and others that add so much to our business community.

“I will miss meeting businesses, new and old, and learning their goals, dreams and expectations.”

— Don Laird The chamber has grown tremendously under your watch. To what do you attribute this growth? How has the impact of the chamber organization changed?

Due to great volunteer leadership, the chamber has continued to prosper. If you look at chamber leadership since I arrived, you see unique styles, interests and focus, and you always see a desire to do what is best for the Columbia/Boone County/ mid-Missouri business community. The chamber evolves constantly and strives to stay current and relevant.

What has been the effect of this long economic downturn on the local business climate?

Don Laird's Chamber of Commerce legacy includes a larger and more politically energized membership.

Columbia and Boone County did feel this last recession, and yes, we didn’t get hit as bad as other communities, but look at the downturn in the construction industry and how we were impacted by the auto industry slowdown. There are many local jobs that were affected, and therefore, many homes and families that felt that change.

Swings in government employment impact our area. Columbia is very dependent upon a strong state economic situation. Local and state politicians were forced to address pension issues that had been continually pushed forward. Our

local politicians are to be commended for addressing these issues and making the promises sustainable.

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Has the chamber assumed a responsibility to speak for business in local government? Was the decision to become more proactive in local politics — such as issuing political endorsements — a deliberate change in focus for the chamber?

This is a deliberate change brought about after many years of discussion at the chamber’s board level. The chamber’s board of directors chose to be involved in

endorsements to bring attention to the need for balance on the Columbia City Council.

Sure, it came with some controversy, but it energized many dormant feelings on what was happening at the council level that seemed to not include the business community, a key source of funds that help make our community prosper.

Now that the University of Missouri has a few months in on its Southeastern Conference membership, how would you say reality has measured up to

expectations for local businesses in reaping benefits from the SEC? It may be too soon to say the financial expectations have been met, but there is no doubt that it brought energy and interest to our community and the Mizzou campus. MU is in this for the long term and I personally believe Chancellor Brady Deaton and Athletic Director Mike Alden made the right choice. Columbia is benefiting from their positive actions.

What will you miss most about working at the chamber? What are you looking forward to in retirement?

I will miss the interaction with the dedicated staff and leaders of the chamber. They really do have the best interests of Columbia in their hearts. I will miss meeting businesses, new and old, and learning their goals, dreams and expectations. Columbia is a dynamic community and someone is always interested in establishing a new business.

Interacting with the political leaders of Columbia/Boone County has been enjoyable. Overall, our political leaders do what they can to make our area more competitive and the best place to live.

In retirement, I guess I will start with a few months of “goofing off � and then decide what to do in the next phase of my life. There will be no sudden moves but for at least one year, I will disengage from a lot of chamber activities to allow my successor to establish his or her way in the organization. Because I enjoyed my job, that will be tough for me, but I respect the chamber and the individuals who have worked hard to make it strong.

I have been fortunate to work for an organization like the Columbia chamber.

It has been a great opportunity.

The Columbia Chamber of Commerce will celebrate the career of Don Laird on Thursday, Dec. 20, at a reception in the Kimball Ballroom on the Stephens College campus. The event runs from 4 to 7 p.m.; tickets are $20 per person. Register online at www.columbiamochamber.com or call Victoria Brees at 573-817-9113. winter 2013

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innovators

Entrepreneurship And Existentialism Why A Westminster English Professor Is At Columbia’s New Downtown Incubator by ANITA NEAL HARRISON photo by L.G. PATTERSON

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t’s a space dedicated to innovation, so, really, one should expect the unexpected at Columbia’s new Downtown Incubator. Still, it seems a little odd that among the entrepreneurs drawn to the incubator’s startup resources is one Westminster College professor of English.

Matthew Murrie has been a professor at the liberal arts college in Fulton since 2009. He will be taking Westminster students to the Downtown Incubator — launched through a partnership between Regional Economic Development Inc. and The League of Innovators — for a program in the college’s Center for Engaging the World. This center oversees Westminster’s global education efforts, and the program Murrie is coordinating, CEW Innovation, will provide students with hands-on entrepreneurship experiences that emphasize global understanding.

The fact that Westminster has a global entrepreneurship program makes perfect sense. After all, this is a college where 15 percent of students are from abroad and where a point of pride is producing leaders of character. The fact that an English professor is in charge of the program — that takes a bit more explaining.

Murrie’s interest in entrepreneurship began in 2008, with his launch of an English school in Macedonia; he’d been in Macedonia from 1999 to 2001 as a Peace Corps volunteer. While starting the school was a rewarding experience, Murrie’s passion for entrepreneurship didn’t fire until he read Tim Ferriss’ The 4-Hour Work Week. This national winter 2013

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innovators bestseller guides readers in using entrepreneurship as a tool in “lifestyle design.”

“One of the things we cover in English quite a bit is existentialism,” Murrie says. “Tim Ferriss’ book really connected with me because he uses existentialism as an explanation for why we should all be entrepreneurs, or why we can use entrepreneurship to increase the satisfaction we get out of existence.”

Murrie liked the book so much that when given the chance to teach a seminar course on any topic, he chose entrepreneurship. At the seminar’s end, Murrie began talking to other people on the Westminster campus about how to infuse the college with an atmosphere of entrepreneurship.

Meanwhile, REDI and The League of Innovators were working to develop such a climate in the Brent and Erica Beshore Downtown Incubator, which not only provides startups affordable access to 24-hour space featuring meeting rooms and Wi-Fi, but also gives entrepreneurs access to mentors from REDI and The League of Innovators while facilitating peer collaboration.

Murrie applied for a spot at the Downtown Incubator with a couple of goals.

“One of the main things we want to get out of the incubator is a way to network with people in Columbia, both for what we’re doing on an administrative level with CEW and to get our students in direct contact with entrepreneurs and businesspeople in Columbia,” Murrie says, adding he hopes those contacts lead to formal and informal internships.

The other benefit Murrie hopes to reap is to see students launch their own businesses. In September, he took two teams of students to Startup Weekend Columbia, an event for entrepreneurs presented by The League of Innovators and Veterans United Home Loans. One team’s idea was to start a totally studentrun coffee shop. Not only would the business provide students with practical education but it also would serve as an 26

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entrepreneurial incubator to the city of Fulton by providing workshops, free Wi-Fi and projects such as a farmer’s market. And there would be a global aspect, as the coffee shop would facilitate collaboration between Fulton’s residents and Westminster’s international students.

“"One of the greatest things we can teach our students is … how to think like entrepreneurs.”

— Matthew Murrie “We’re trying to encourage people to think business doesn’t have to be all local,” says CEW director Kurt Jefferson.

“There are good ideas going on outside the borders of the United States, and we want to bring international partners and international capital into this area.”

For Murrie, entrepreneurship education includes more than teaching students how to succeed in business; it also teaches them how to lead fulfilled lives.

“Going forward in the 21st century, one of the greatest things we can teach our students is not just how to be entrepreneurs but, most importantly, how to think like entrepreneurs,” he says. “Because entrepreneurs are very interesting people, I’m finding out.

These are people who are fully invested in their work, and when you consider we spend a third of our lives or more working, it’s sad that most of us do things we’re not passionate about, where we’re counting the clock down until we can leave.

“I’m asking, what if we can generate students and future leaders and future workers who are passionate about what they’re doing? Not only will it produce better workers but also better products, and I think a healthier society because so many of the negative things in our lives from depression to obesity to war stems from just an inherent unhappiness or an inherent disconnect with one’s own existence, and I think entrepreneurship is the key.” winter 2013

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entrepreneurial spirit

Dressed For Success

Chase Daniel Branches Out With Apparel Enterprise

by KATHY CASTEEL photos by l.g. patterson courtesy of university of missouri trulaske college of business

For professional athlete Chase Daniel, screen passes are all in a day’s work. For entrepreneur Chase Daniel, screen prints hold the same cachet.

Daniel, who thrilled University of Missouri football fans in his years as the Tigers’ quarterback, now spends his days as backup to Drew Brees on the New Orleans Saints. When he’s not working on building his NFL career, he’s building his new business, 10Star Apparel, a custom clothing manufacturer.

“I always wanted to own a company,” says Daniel, CEO and co-founder of 10Star. “I’m a big-time believer in goal-setting, and setting yourself up for life after sports is so important.”

D

aniel’s company manufactures custom clothing and promotional items for businesses and schools. The 300,000-square-foot production facility, located in Arlington, Texas, churns out custom corporate apparel worn by more than 30,000 workers at businesses around the world, and logo clothing for students and staff at 10,000 schools. The company offers a large selection of customized winter 2013

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entrepreneurial spirit

10Star Apparel CEO Chase Daniel’s formula for success calls for dedication, hard work and persistence. “We believe in hitting singles all day,” he says. apparel and other textile products, inhouse screen-printing and embroidery, graphic design, customer service, inventory control and competitive pricing all under one roof.

“It’s a one-stop shop,” Daniel says proudly. “And it’s all done at the factory in Texas. We don’t outsource our services. That was a big deal for us.”

10Star is a division of B&E Industries, an Arlington manufacturer of school spirit items. “B&E started out with those plastic mini footballs with the school logo on them that kids throw around at a game,” Daniel says. B&E inventory has expanded to foam fingers, car flags, 30

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concession cups, megaphones, pompoms, seat cushions, umbrellas and other spirit items. Daniel has known B&E founder Bryan Elliott since his high school football days in Southlake, Texas.

The relationship that developed with the B&E CEO evolved over the years until Daniel was offered an opportunity to partner with Elliott — and he jumped at the chance.

“What sparked my interest was the chance to start from the top instead of working up from the bottom,” Daniel says. “That was a huge selling point.”

B&E had the facilities and the employees to turn Daniel’s vision of a

corporate clothing company into reality.

In turn, Daniel and his executive team offered niche-marketing expertise that filled a void in B&E’s business plan.

“B&E was having trouble getting into the specialized market,” Daniel says. “We partnered with them — and each got what we wanted.” The two companies share employment expenses; more than 300 employees work in the 10Star production space.

Since founding 10Star in June 2011, Daniel and his executive team — Chief Operating Officer Aaron Luna, Chief Marketing Officer Rachel Duitch and B&E Vice President Mike Chaffin — have honed their B2B strategy and developed a client list for corporate apparel that includes Verizon, Major League Bowhunters, the Pro Football Hall of Fame, rapper Lil Wayne and others. This fall, 10Star picked up its first Columbia customer, the university’s Trulaske College of Business.

Marketing products to his alma mater brings Daniel full circle to where he started out as a muchheralded football recruit from Texas who declared after a 2004 visit to Columbia that Mizzou “felt like home” to him. But the roots of the 26-yearold CEO’s business philosophy go back to Southlake, Texas, a suburb in the Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex. How he was raised by parents Bill and Vickie Daniel, and the relationships he built at Southlake Carroll High School prepared him to take the next step into college and preparation for his professional life, he says. “ ‘Invest’ is a word that is very important to me,” Daniel says. “I’ve learned to invest in new relationships, invest in my future and invest in myself. It started with my high school coach, Todd Dodge. I ate lunch with him every day in high school. I was dialed in; I was focused. My decision to invest in my relationship with Coach Dodge turned out to be invaluable. It led me to the University of Missouri — the best decision I ever made — where

entrepreneurial spirit I could be a part of building something special. ” In Daniel’s three years as Mizzou’s starting quarterback, the Tigers were 30-11. He led the team to two postseason bowl wins in three appearances, rewrote Mizzou’s record books and was a Heisman Trophy runner-up. A recognized leader on the field, he credits relationships with both athletic coaches and business school professors for preparing him for professional life.

“It’s all about relationships,” he says.

“Investing in my relationships here laid the groundwork for learning how to be a leader, not only on the football field but throughout the university as well.”

Daniel graduated from MU in 2009 with a bachelor’s degree in business finance. An undrafted free agent, he first signed with the Washington Redskins and then was picked up by New Orleans the day before the 2009 NFL season started. Initially relegated to the Saints’ practice squad, Daniel was activated for 13 weeks of the ’09 season and earned a Super Bowl ring in his rookie season.

Two years out of college, the entrepreneur bug struck. Daniel cofounded 10Star Apparel with B&E’s Bryan Elliott and began building his executive team.

“You have to have the time to build a business, and my first two years in the NFL the time demands were so great that football was all I had time for,” he says.

“Now I have a schedule I can manage and I can make time for business.”

In business for the past year and a half, 10Star has really taken hold in the last six months, boasting growth figures that are 50 to 75 percent greater than the founders expected. Daniel has set a goal of $1 million in revenue this fiscal year.

“It took us a good year to strategize — and make mistakes,” Daniel says. “We had ideas that worked on paper but were not what our customers wanted. This last half-year has been about implementing our strategy. We’re just now seeing accounts where the strategy is finally paying off and cash flow is good.”

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10Star Apparel 912 113th St. Arlington, Texas 76011 972-809-2772 www.10StarApparel.com On Facebook: www. facebook.com/10StarApparel On Twitter: @10StarApparel The strategy includes an active social media presence. Digital marketing expert Duitch maintains customized social media strategies for 10Star’s business-to-business and business-tocustomer markets.

“It’s all public and in real time,” Duitch says. “Twitter is an especially great outlet. Social media helps supply and push sales.”

The company also touts the star power of its CEO in its marketing strategy. “With Chase as CEO, we can leverage relationships,” Duitch says.

“Anything that can get us through the door. We are connecting to the brands.”

Running a fledgling business from 500 miles away has been a challenge for Daniel and his team. “Communication is a big factor,” he says. “I can’t just drive over to the factory after a day at work — I’m 7½ hours away in the next state.

I talk to my team every day by phone. I have to trust my executive team.”

When he is on-site, the CEO is not averse to rolling up his sleeves and winter 2013

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entrepreneurial spirit pitching in. “If I have to, I’ll go through the factory and watch a screen get reprinted,” Daniel says.

Time management is crucial, he says, for accomplishing his company’s goals.

“Chase makes the time,” Duitch says.

“Not a single day goes by that he doesn’t make cold calls. He does everything he needs to do and brings more to the table than is required.”

Daniel defines his management style as a delegator, “but I allow free reign.

They know my vision.”

Luna nods. “Yes, we do,” he adds.

“The team I have around me is a blessing,” Daniel says. “I chose to surround myself with the right people.

That’s how my parents raised me.”

Luna, 10Star’s chief operating officer, is a partner in the company.

A graduate of Rice University, where he was a baseball All-American, he played professional ball in the St. Louis Cardinals system. Luna brings expertise to negotiating deals, client relations, and product and service development.

Duitch, who serves as chief marketing officer, attended the University of Missouri School of Journalism. She specializes in social strategy, community management and brand development.

At 10Star, Duitch runs custom social media programs with an emphasis on orchestrating an easy, data-driven user experience.

Chaffin, who serves as a liaison with parent company B&E Industries, is also the business manager for rapper Nelly.

He has more than 20 years’ experience working with apparel lines, celebrities and corporations.

“There’s a reason these people are on my executive team,” Daniel says. “I trust them.”

Daniel is hoping to expand his business into the mid-Missouri market and easily slips into the role of pitchman as he ticks off the advantages of buying corporate clothing from 10Star Apparel.

“We offer competitive pricing, bestin-class graphic design, ease of ordering, fulfillment and shipping, inventory 34

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Tips From No. 10

Entrepreneurial advice from the real-world experience of 10Star Apparel CEO Chase Daniel: ◗ Success requires dedication, hard work and persistence. ◗ Confidence is built through preparation. ◗ Develop a checklist of short-term goals. Meeting those short-term goals will lead to accomplishing your long-term goals. ◗ Don’t be afraid to shake hands, look people in the eye, have a conversation with a stranger. ◗ Be willing to do anything to get the job done. warehousing, quick turnaround and awesome customer service,” he says.

“You just can’t beat it.”

Business school Dean Joan Gabel agrees she couldn’t find a better deal anywhere else.

“We like to work with people we have a relationship with, and he is a graduate,” Gabel says. “But we are a public institution and have to look at cost when we consider bids. 10Star has a unique purchasing model where it maintains the inventory, and that is very attractive. The basics of product choice and price were very good, and that’s why we went with them.”

Daniel returned to the Mizzou campus in October to participate in a speakers series hosted by the business school. He exhorted his audience to believe in themselves and invest in themselves.

“He’s a very driven, very focused young man,” Gabel observed after that weekend. “He’s doing a fantastic job of hitting the ground running.” winter 2013

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how does

YOUR GARDEN

GROW COMO

?

columbia cultivates a crop of homegrown entrepreneurs

KATHY CASTEEL illustrations by KATE MOORE by

eep down, Mike Brooks is still an Indiana farm boy. For this Hoosier, economic development and farming go hand in hand — the agricultural metaphors just roll off the tongue as he winds up for a discussion of “economic gardening.”

“Ever done any gardening?” he asks with a tilt of his head and a knowing smile. “There are two ways to go about it: you can plant a seed or you can transplant a plant. What’s important is how you take care of your garden and maintain it. It has to be cultivated, weeded, watered and fertilized.”

Brooks looks at economic development the same way he looks at gardening. As president of Regional Economic Development Inc., he considers a broad spectrum of ways to stimulate economic activity and support entrepreneurship in Columbia.

“REDI’s job is to create wealth in the community,” Brooks says. “We do that by attracting companies to the area (as if we were transplanting a seedling, a bush or a tree); by supporting existing businesses we already have here (similar to maintaining and nurturing perennials and established plants); and by encouraging entrepreneurship (where we are planting a seed and incubating it for growth).”

Mustering an image from his dairy farm days, Brooks calls this strategy for job creation “a three-legged stool. The stool is sitting on the ground. That ground is the business climate. We cultivate the ground with investment, workforce development and training, and a regulatory environment that helps rather than hinders.”

The term “economic gardening” refers to an economic development model based on the notion that entrepreneurs drive economies. Job creation comes about by supporting existing companies or assisting homegrown startups in a community. The idea is to cultivate a vibrant entrepreneurial climate by connecting entrepreneurs to resources, developing infrastructure and providing information — if the community can provide the right nourishment for growing businesses locally, the businesses and the jobs stay in the community and add to the economy.

The concept gained traction in the Denver suburb of Littleton, Colo., in the late 1980s as Colorado slid into recession. City leaders there determined that the 3 to 5 percent of local companies considered “high growth” were the companies creating the majority of new jobs in town. Littleton’s economic gardening initiative provides local entrepreneurs with community support, resources and access to information on markets, customers and competitors — intelligence that traditionally has been available only to large companies with deep pockets. Adherents point to the 15,000 jobs created in Littleton (population 41,000) in the past 23 years as evidence that nurturing entrepreneurs can make a community’s economic garden flourish.

Columbia’s economic gardeners are sharpening their focus on entrepreneurial efforts, too. New opportunities for entrepreneurs are popping up all over town — incubators, networking, investment, training, conferences and pitch competitions.

The timing has never been better for someone with a great idea …

the gardeners Like those who till the soil in hopes of an abundant harvest, several Columbia organizations and colleges actively support and invest in entrepreneurs.

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REDI Regional Economic Development Inc. is a nonprofit, public/private organization that works to provide increased economic opportunities for the area. REDI acts as a local point of contact for companies requesting information about Columbia and Boone County, and offers information and support to existing companies and entrepreneurs. A year ago, REDI moved into new downtown offices; the space includes meeting rooms, a training center and a business incubator.

“The value of REDI is our ability to connect entrepreneurs with financial, legal and marketing resources in town,” says REDI President Mike Brooks. “We identify needs and find ways to help by leveraging those connections.”

REDI provides a range of services to feed the entrepreneurial climate in Columbia — hosting dinners and receptions for potential investors, sponsoring networking events, organizing an annual entrepreneurial summit and pitch contest, and providing local links to national movements such as Startup Weekend.

“If someone comes in and asks for our help, we’re going to give it to them,” Brooks says.

Sharing space with REDI is the Small Business & Technology Development Center. SBDTC counselors assist entrepreneurs with pre-venture, startup or existing business issues, including financial management, marketing, technology, product development and commercialization. The center offers classes in REDI’s training room, exploring such topics as entrepreneurship, business plans, contracts, financials and marketing. Winter/spring classes begin Jan. 16; call 573-882-7096 for details.

REDI also houses the regional office of the U.S. Small Business Administration, where specialists meet with entrepreneurs and small-business owners seeking assistance. Last year, SBA hosted a Columbia matchmaking event, a type of small-business “speed dating” where entrepreneurs could talk one-on-one about financing needs with commercial lenders.

find out more 500 E. Walnut St. 573-442-8303 (REDI) www.columbiaredi.com 573-884-8087 (SBTDC) www.missouribusiness.net 573-256-1794 (SBA) www.sba.gov

League of Innovators The League of Innovators builds relationships with entrepreneurs and organizations through support of startup activity. Housed in the Museao building on Buttonwood Drive, it operates under the umbrella of Brent Beshore’s AdVenture, which supports startups.

The League also manages the Downtown Incubator in collaboration with REDI and the SBTDC. Museao is a co-working space for creative communication and tech-oriented companies, offering collaboration opportunities for projects, new business ideas and community workspace.

“We want to help build an entrepreneurial ecosystem in our community,” says Director Heidi Fuhrman.

The League of Innovators’ signature event is Columbia Startup Weekend, a 54-hour event in the fall where participants bring business ideas and spend a weekend developing those ideas with teams of participants.

“This year we had 125 participants,” Fuhrman says.

Other networking events include a monthly CoMo Coffee Club where entrepreneurs may gather to meet other entrepreneurs and discuss new business ideas or projects. Coffee Club meets the second Wednesday of each month, from 8 to 9 a.m., at Kaldi’s, 29 S. Ninth St. A monthly pizza party at the Downtown Incubator moves to the fourth Wednesday evening of each month beginning in January. The 5 to 6 p.m. event is an opportunity for incubator members, prospective members and others interested in entrepreneurship to meet up, discuss developing business and learn practical skills for building a startup.

find out more 3500 Buttonwood Drive 573-447-4443 www.theloi.com www.museao.com

Innovatd Randy Minchew is passionate about business. And he’s looking for entrepreneurs passionate about starting a business.

“I love business. I love the art of business. I love building business,” he says.

“It’s really about the passion.”

Minchew, owner of Swift Companies,

has started several small businesses including hobby shops, restaurants, construction companies, mobile couponing services and Internet social networking sites. He and co-founder Corbin Umstattd offer entrepreneurship expertise and investment in ideas through Innovatd.

“We’re looking for individuals with Main Street ideas to invest in,” Minchew says. “We’ve funded four new startups since we launched Innovatd a year ago.”

“We look at the business concept and the competition, conduct a needs analysis and estimate how long it will take to bring the idea to market,” Minchew says.

Minchew and Umstattd are also partners in CoMo Incubator, housed in Minchew’s offices in the Diggs Building.

find out more 501 Fay St., Suite 120 573-777-6711 www.innovatd.com www.randyminchew.com

University of Missouri Trulaske College of Business The University of Missouri encourages entrepreneurship through many programs and courses in the business school, says Dean Joan Gabel.

“We offer a safe place for students to test the waters with their ideas,” Gabel says. “It even appeals to students who may not have ‘the big idea’ but want to be in that entrepreneurial climate.”

The business school offers an area of concentration in entrepreneurship through a three-course curriculum. “We bridge the research and applied knowledge with experiential programs, student organizations and competitions,” Gabel says.

“It’s our own three-legged stool of theory, practice and mentorship.”

The Entrepreneurship Alliance, sponsored by St. Louis businessman Dave Spence, is an elite program for undergraduate students designed to develop entrepreneurial characteristics. The program offers coursework enhanced by experiences outside the classroom.

“One of the key aspects of the EA is the network of people that it brings together,” says Director Greg Bier, an associate teaching professor of management at MU. “We have worked with several local entrepreneurs — Brant Bukowsky, Brent

get ready for the

big boom

BOOM, Columbia’s third annual entrepreneurial summit, takes place Jan. 25 in the Reynolds Alumni Center on the University of Missouri campus.

“We want to create an event that gets us on the national scene,” says organizer Sean Siebert, an adjunct professor of business administration at Columbia College. “We’ve created the Twitter hashtag #BOOM and will be working with CATV on a Google Hangout.”

Former KOMU-TV broadcaster Sarah Hill will emcee a program of 11 speakers at the conference, representing national, regional and local success stories. Admission to the all-day conference is $35, or $15 for students.

IdeaBounce, the entrepreneurial summit’s pitch contest, is a separate event this year. The competition is slated for April in Cornell Hall on the University of Missouri campus. Admission to the IdeaBounce audience is free and open to the public. Contact Regional Economic Development Inc. at www.columbiaredi.com for updates.

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Beshore, Brian Null and Kat Cunningham, to name a few. Our students have the opportunity to really engage with the flavor of the ‘culture of entrepreneurship’ right here in CoMo.” Bier calls The Entrepreneurship Alliance a “talent incubator.” Students come from all over campus with diverse venture interests, he says. “We build pitch skills, self-confidence, a tolerance for risk and team-building skills in our members.”

The Entrepreneurship Alliance sponsors two idea pitch competitions: the student-run CLIMB (Collaboration, Leadership and Innovation for Missouri Business) Seed Grant Competition each fall and the Entrepreneurship Summit IdeaBounce each spring. EA students also participate in StartUp Columbia, a weekend that Bier says allows students to network and build relationships with like-minded entrepreneurs from Mizzou, Columbia College, Stephens College and the larger regional community.

find out more 339 Cornell Hall, University of Missouri 573-882-9026 entrepreneurship.missouri.edu www.climbmizzou.org climbmizzou@gmail.com

Columbia College Sean Siebert believes the time is ripe for entrepreneurship in Columbia.

“There’s a culture cultivating in Columbia for entrepreneurship,” says the Columbia College adjunct professor of business administration. “There are two climates: the traditional banking-based, business mindset that focuses on investment, and the younger entrepreneurial mindset that looks at different ways of funding ideas through angel networks and capital venture funds.”

Siebert teaches a 32-week curriculum in entrepreneurship at Columbia College.

The two-semester course takes students from ideology to execution, Siebert says.

Open to students and nonstudents, the class vets ideas and covers the basics of business plans, forming a limited liability corporation, financial plans and contacts. The course will become part of the Steven and Barbara Fishman Center for Entrepreneurship next year. Funded by a $500,000 donation from Big Lots CEO Steven Fishman, a Columbia College 40

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alumnus, the center will encompass an academic unit in the college’s business curriculum and provide funds to students both as scholarships and seed money for startups.

find out more Sean Siebert 573-875-7735 spsiebert@ccis.edu web.ccis.edu/en/Departments/ BusinessAdministration

the greenhouses Seedlings require lots of TLC, and three incubators in Columbia offer varying levels of help to entrepreneurs.

MU Life Science Business Incubator With an overall objective of forming a technology industry cluster in midMissouri, the MU Life Science Business Incubator opened in May 2009. Owned by the University of Missouri and managed by Missouri Innovation Center, the 29,000-square-foot facility at Monsanto Place offers state-of-the-art wet labs and engineering suites, meeting and office space, an event room and various support amenities.

The incubator’s resident clients focus on technology entrepreneurship, says president and CEO Jake Halliday. The facility is currently full with 24 tenants and a waiting list for occupancy.

Admission to the incubator carries two requirements: a feasible business plan and a qualifying collaboration with the University of Missouri. Ventures are assessed in terms of economic impact on the region — new jobs, wealth creation and investment attracted.

“It’s a way to keep startup activity spliced in with academic activity at the university,” says Halliday, who teaches an MBA course each fall at MU’s Trulaske College of Business. The 24 students in the class form six simulated businesses around inventions to develop a business plan and investor presentation.

“One of the most pleasing developments in this class is how inventors work with these students and at class end, they engage these MBAs in the company as CEOs and chief financial officers,” Halliday says. “When these students graduate, they don’t have to leave Columbia to find a

technology job. They stay here and keep their talent here.”

Halliday says the economic gardening cycle at the incubator is an eight-step process of innovation, startup, capital acquisition, research and development, product development, market placement, hiring and investment attraction. To date, 12 companies are at the job-creation stage, and one — Equinosis — has brought its product, a system for evaluating lameness in horses, to market. Another client — Value Ag, an economic, market and financial consulting company — has “graduated” from the incubator and moved to a commercial office property in Columbia.

Not all of the incubator’s clients are homegrown entrepreneurs, Halliday says, but the incubator’s presence in Columbia and its relationship with MU provides a strong attraction for companies to locate here and retain talent at the university.

“It’s a way to keep them in our garden,” he says. “They won’t jump the fence if our grass is just as green here as elsewhere.”

find out more 1601 S. Providence Road 573-884-0496 www.muincubator.com www.missouriinnovation.com

Downtown Incubator The Brent and Erica Beshore Downtown Incubator offers workspace, collaboration and resources for startups. Located next to the REDI offices on Walnut Street, the 1,400-square-foot facility provides workspace in a variety of configurations and 24-hour access to three meeting rooms, a training room and a teleconferencingequipped boardroom for presentations.

To keep costs down, tenants are expected to bring in their own computers and cellphones; Wi-Fi is available.

“It gives client companies an air of professionalism they’re not going to find in their garage or bedroom,” says REDI President Mike Brooks.

Managed by The League of Innovators, the incubator operates in cooperation with REDI and the SBTDC. Other amenities include business consulting, business development classes and connections to area mentors.

“Many startups working out of that space will be individuals who have a full-time job and are seeking to build a

business on the side,” says League of Innovators Director Heidi Fuhrman.

Incubator tenants must join The League of Innovators to gain access to the incubator. Membership is $150 a month.

Six companies are currently occupying the incubator, and 26 applications are pending. At any given time, 30 companies can occupy the co-op space, Brooks says.

find out more 500 E. Walnut St., Suite 105 573-442-8303 www.columbiaredi.com www.theloi.com/downtown-incubator

CoMo Incubator CoMo Incubator provides space for prelaunch startups to spend 90 days getting their ideas to gel into businesses. Run by Randy Minchew and his associates — Innovatd partner Corbin Umstattd, marketing professional Trent Poage and information technology specialist Pat Concannon — the private incubator facility offers workspace, collaboration venue and a pitch room. Consulting services include formulating a business plan and deal flow.

“We ask applicants, ‘What is the problem you want to solve and what is your idea for solving it?’ ” says Minchew.

Incubator tenants may choose to pay for services or allow investment into the business. Applications are available online.

find out more 501 Fay St. www.comoincubator.com

the arbor A supportive framework calls for financial resources and mentoring for the entrepreneurial community.

Centennial Investors Centennial Investors is an angel investment network that helps address the capital needs of startup entrepreneurs to stimulate economic development in midMissouri and generate attractive returns to member investors. Members also provide feedback and advice to entrepreneurial company founders and management.

Although Centennial Investors focuses primarily on technology- or science-based startups, the group has considered and invested in startups outside these two areas, says CI President Bruce Walker, a professor and former dean of MU’s Trulaske College of Business.

“The primary rationale for this focus is that these types of startups have the greatest likelihood of a very substantial return — perhaps 20 or 30 times the original investment — to the early investors,” Walker says. “Of course, angel investments are very risky. To use a baseball analogy, 20 atbats in angel investing typically result in perhaps 15 strikeouts, along with a single or two, a double, a triple, and hopefully a home run. The home run is needed to offset all of the strikeouts.”

Applicants are screened for funding feasibility, Walker says, and both successful and unsuccessful applicants are referred to other sources of funding.

find out more 1601 S. Providence Road 573-884-0467 www.centennialinvestors.com

Mizzou Student Angel Capital Program The Student Angel Capital Fund is a crossdisciplinary, student-managed angel investment fund that allows undergraduate and graduate students of the University of Missouri the opportunity to learn capital investment strategies through first-hand experience of investing in high-growth Missouri startup companies.

Funded by a grant from the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation and contributions from MU’s Trulaske College of Business alumni, the SACP fund seeks to invest in high-growth startup companies by cultivating deal flow, performing pre-screening duties, completing due diligence, and structuring investment contracts. Entrepreneurs may apply online.

find out more 573-882-5759 business.missouri.edu/sacp

Advocacy-Mentoring Program A statewide program of the University of Missouri system matches mentors with minority- and women-owned small businesses. Mentees learn to strengthen core business competencies while networking and learning how to bid competitively for business with the University of Missouri.

find out more Minority Business Development Jacqueline Kelly 573-882-2707 kellyjh@umsystem.edu

Find more resources for entrepreneurs and read about other hometown success stories at

www.ColumbiaCEO.com.

hometown

hustle

success stories from our own backyard

Dan Vande Voorde, Clint Matthews and Raymond Troy came up with a novel way to hang refrigeration manifolds using a magnet and strap rather than the steel hanger currently used in the HVAC industry. The trio took second place at the 2012 IdeaBounce competition. Their company, AmiraLin Innovations LLC, is in the process of writing a business plan and testing prototypes. Follow their progress at www.amiralin.com.

Brynne and Bailye Stansberry took their fondness for fashionable footwear to a new level after they won the first IdeaBounce competition at Columbia’s 2011 Entrepreneurial Summit. The twin sisters’ patented product — clear plastic boots with interchangeable liners — will hit the market in February 2013. The 2012 Columbia College graduates have formed the company TwoAlity LLC and hope to have an online store ready soon. Follow their progress on www.facebook.com/ TwoAlity and Twitter (@StansberryTwins). winter 2013

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bumper CEO ROUNDTABLE

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crop

LOCAL ENTREPRENEURS REAP A HARVEST OF OPPORTUNITY IN COLUMBIA

by SANDY SELBY photos by L.G. PATTERSON

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hOW FErtilE is thE EntrEprEnEurial sOil in COluMBia?

Ask any of the successful businesspeople at our recent CEO Roundtable on economic gardening, and they’ll praise the growing conditions here in mid-Missouri.

Gary Meyerpeter, Boone County market president for The Callaway Bank, which sponsors the quarterly CEO Roundtable luncheons, greeted the group. The Callaway Bank opened in Fulton in 1857, so Meyerpeter understands the economic value of homegrown businesses. In his welcoming remarks, he announced that, even after all these years, the bank continues to change and grow. “We’re now going to have a designated lender on staff to make smallbusiness loans in Columbia, which are called C&I loans.” (Learn more on Page 10.)

The CEO Roundtable Luncheon attendees represented a cross-section of the business community — retailers, manufacturers, service providers, technical wizards, lending professionals and sandwich makers. Some employ a handful of people; others employ hundreds. They all have one thing in common, though. They planted the first

the largest dedicated provider of VA loans in the country and one of the city’s top employers.

Veterans United relies heavily on the talent pool coming out of the University of Missouri, and Brant is pleased that REDI and the chamber are exploring ways to get the best and brightest college graduates to stay in Columbia. “As Columbia is growing, people are looking at it more than they have in the past. We started building an internship program and a lot of those turn into full-time positions after graduation.”

Tony Marrero launched his online soccer gear and apparel business, SoccerPro.com, in 2004, and marvels at the evolution that has taken place in Columbia’s business community since then. He said that when it comes to Webbased businesses like his, the thinking has shifted dramatically in the past eight years.

“There’s a much better understanding of e-commerce and validity of it than there was in 2004. The online business was not very common to a lot of bankers. They didn’t really understand what I was doing so it was hard to get funding. Now, it’s a much easier conversation. The world has grown to love online commerce.”

seeds of their successful businesses right here in Columbia.

cultivating success Brant Bukowsky, who founded and coowns Veterans United Home Loans with his brother Brock, says he has seen a lot of improvement in Columbia’s entrepreneurial environment since the online lending company was founded in 2002.

“It’s quite a bit different than when we started,” Brant said. “I’m sure there were a bunch of resources out there to help entrepreneurs to start their own business but we weren’t aware of what was out there, so we really went at it on our own, learning as we went. Especially in the last four or five years, we’re seeing a lot of organizations — the university, city, county, REDI (Regional Economic Development Inc.), the chamber — doing a lot of things to get businesses here going with everyone trying to invest resources to provide support for entrepreneurs in the community.”

Veterans United employs about 1,000 people in Columbia, which represents 80 percent of its overall workforce. In its first decade, the company grew from startup to

rOunDtAbLe rOll Call →

brant bukowsky Founder and Co-Owner Veterans united Home Loans

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brock bukowsky Founder and Co-Owner Veterans united Home Loans

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JaMi Jones Director of Strategic management Fresh Ideas management

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tony Marrero Founder and Online Operations Director Soccerpro.com

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doug stritZel Founder & Owner pickleman’s Gourmet Café

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Joedy lenZ Vice president and Chief technology Officer Carfax

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george pFenenger CeO Socket

grant toellner purchasing manager Gold Crest Distributing/ Songbird Station

bob prusha Vice president of Operations beyond meat

SpOnSOr repreSentAtIVe:

gary Meyerpeter president, boone County market the Callaway bank

varun singla Supply Chain and Logistics manager beyond meat

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mODerAteD bY:

Fred parry publisher Inside Columbia’s CEO magazine

Like the Bukowskys, Marrero relies heavily on university students to staff his business, but he admits he has difficulty retaining them.

“That’s really more a function of the size of the company we have,” he said.

“I know that what I’ve got is essentially an environment where we’re very successful in the marketing aspects of what we do. We train these young people and continually get new ideas from them and send them out and they represent SoccerPro in that way.”

Carfax, a company that is wellknown for its vehicle history reports, was established in Columbia in 1984 by entrepreneur Ewin Barnett III. Barnett has since retired, but the company he created continues to thrive. Although the Carfax headquarters moved to Virginia in 1993, the company operates its main data center in Columbia, and filling those high-tech jobs can be a challenge for Vice President and Chief Technology Officer Joedy Lenz.

“I think we face a lot of the same things that other technology companies face,” Lenz said. “That’s being able to continue to grow our staff and grow our company here in Columbia. For lack of a better term, there’s a shortfall in Columbia for seasoned, talented technical people. So we either rely on recruiting from outside and try to get people to move here, or we do a very similar thing that Veterans United does by forming internships with the university to build our own pool of future employees.”

Bob Prusha’s experience with starting a business in Columbia is much more recent. He has spent the last five months setting up the new manufacturing facility for Beyond Meat, a company that produces a plant-based chicken substitute that is such a good mimic, it fooled the luncheon attendees who enjoyed the product in the “chicken” alfredo entrée prepared by Inside Columbia’s Executive Chef Dennis Clay. The product was born from technology developed at the University of Missouri.

“The fact that so much of our technology came from the university, it opened the door,” Prusha said. “That was sort of foundational.”

Prusha also worked closely with REDI, who assisted him as he maneuvered through Columbia’s zoning regulations

Top, Doug Stritzel (left) said Columbia was a great place to launch his Pickleman’s Gourmet Café business because of the resources available to businesses through the University of Missouri. Below, Bob Prusha (left) and Varun Singla (right) of Beyond Meat are both newcomers to Columbia and have been impressed with their new community so far. and City Council meetings. “They want to make it easy for you,” he said, “but not so easy that it becomes political or anything like that. There was support that was appropriate. The zoning took us through about four weeks of public hearings and there was a lot of nervousness, but we went through the proper channels. There was a good balance and we felt very comfortable with that.”

Doug Stritzel started Pickleman’s Gourmet Café in 2005 and has built a lot of turkey sandwiches since then. He’s also built a successful company with franchise restaurants in four states, but his success didn’t look like a sure thing at first: “When you go to the bank and say you want to open a restaurant, they say ‘Slow down.’ ” Stritzel admits he could operate his business from anywhere, but he’s happy

to stay put in Columbia. “It provides a great family experience for us,” he says.

“And having the university here, there’s a wealth of talent. We’ve also found that the university does an exceptional job getting involved, if you want them to.

The college of business, they actually approached us and said, ‘Hey, we’ll write your business plan so you can get franchises off the ground.’ There’s a lot of nurturing and a lot of assistance that you can get from different schools at the university. This is one of the better college towns in the country from a support standpoint.”

“I don’t want to forget Stephens College and Columbia College,” said Jami Jones, director of strategic management at Fresh Ideas, a food service management company. “They’re often overlooked in Columbia and I don’t think that’s

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necessarily a good thing. Stephens College is one of our accounts and that school has provided some excellent student workers.”

Jones said that many people don’t understand what she means when she describes Fresh Ideas as a food service management company, so she defined the business for the group. “You go to college, you go into a dining hall, and you take for granted that there’s going to be good food there. That’s usually us.” Fresh Ideas was founded in Columbia 13 years ago by John Orscheln and Matt Clervi, and specializes in servicing small, private schools. “We have accounts all over Missouri and Arkansas,” Jones said.

The personnel needs at Gold Crest Distributing are quite different. “Our warehouse facility has 60 full-time and 10 part-time employees,” said Grant Toellner, who is the company’s purchasing manager and the son of owner/founder Mel Toellner. “We do a lot of work with the votech out there. We don’t get into the talent pool at the university that much.”

Gold Crest, which includes the Songbird Station retail store in Columbia, distributes birdseed, feeders and other items for backyard birding enthusiasts from its warehouse in Mexico, Mo. The business continues to expand in other areas, including gifts and pet care products.

There was general consensus around the table that Columbia is a great place for families and a wonderful place for college students, but not so much for the young professional.

A new Fresh Ideas account has propelled the company into some rare air.

“We have a business account in Florida: the Kennedy Space Center,” she added.

“We are now contracted with NASA, which is really good.”

When Socket opened in Columbia in 1994, dial-up Internet service was all the rage. The company has remained nimble enough to respond to a rapidly evolving industry, but it was firmly rooted in Columbia, thanks to some mentoring help from another technology company.

“Datastorm was almost like an incubator for us,” said George Pfenenger, Socket’s CEO. “There were three entrepreneurs who were successful in what they were doing and took interest in what we were doing. I remember one guy was helping us get our articles of incorporation done, another guy was looking at marketing logos and helping us with that, so they couldn’t have been any more supportive.”

Today, Socket faces the same personnel challenge as other high-tech companies in Columbia, but Pfenenger looks at it with glass-half-full optimism.

“It’s been a little challenging with the growth of other companies in town and IBM coming into town and things like that but in the long-term, it will increase the pool of talented technical people in the city.”

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Because Gold Crest provides wholesale distribution in smaller quantities than are normally required in the industry, it has become the go-to provider for “mom-andpop stores,” according to Toellner.

A Rough Patch Brock Bukowsky of Veterans United credits his company’s growth to the quality of people involved. “It’s just a different feel than in Chicago or Boston or New York,” he said. “I think with everybody at our company, work isn’t their priority — it’s their family.”

There was general consensus around the table that Columbia is a great place for families and a wonderful place for college students, but not so much for the young professional. Columbia’s social landscape is a bit barren for the single 20-something who has matured out of his old college haunts, or the DINCs (doubleincome, no children) whose idea of fun doesn’t yet involve play dates to Chuck E. Cheese.

“Speaking to the young professional, who has been out of school a couple of years, if they were at Mizzou, their perception of Columbia is that it’s a college town and it’s probably a little bit blurry for them,” Marrero said. “There’s so much more to Columbia beyond the collegetown experience, but it’s hard for them to get perspective on that. That young

professional environment just hasn’t developed enough yet to hold some of these people in Columbia.”

Varun Singla, Beyond Meat’s supply chain and logistics manager, recently moved here from St. Louis and understands firsthand how difficult it can be for a young professional to find a niche in Columbia’s social scene.

“Trying to socialize is very difficult,” he said. “If you’re not associated with the university, then there’s a very small group of people with whom you can socialize from an age perspective and from a similar interest perspective.”

Singla’s colleague, Prusha, shares that concern. “We’ve hired two recent graduates from the university who are very good for our business, and I’ve been worried. Do they feel like this is an extension of the university because they worked on the development with our technology? Do they feel like they’ve made the escape from college life to something that’s professional? I’m starting to wonder if in two or three years they will feel like it’s time to move on. I’m worried about retention of individuals that I hire from the university and hope they will figure out that the city has something to offer them to fulfill their lives and that it’s not just an extension of their college years.”

“We actually hear that a lot,” Lenz said.

“It’s like, ‘Oh, that’s where Mizzou is. I’m 27 years old. What’s there for me? What do I do with my evenings or on my weekends?’ ” For Lenz and his family, though, Columbia has been a great fit.

“I actually moved here from Memphis, and it was a very welcome change.

Columbia is a phenomenal town. The town offers everything a family could want, from nature and outdoors to fastpaced and slow-paced. It’s got a great religious community and it’s got a great school system. I have a high-schoolaged daughter, and for us it was a very nice transition. It’s not a very cliquey community like a lot of other towns are.”

Advice For The Next Crop CEO Roundtable moderator Fred Parry asked the Roundtable participants to offer a piece of advice to future entrepreneurs.

“If you go into it, you have to do everything you can do to make it happen and sometimes that’s not pretty and it takes a lot of hard work,” Stritzel said.

“If you start out thinking you’re going to work 40 hours a week, or even 50, it’s not going to work.”

Toellner, who knows how much time and effort his father has poured into launching Gold Crest Distributing and Songbird Station, has paid attention to his dad’s advice. “He tells me, ‘If you have the passion and the drive, you can make it happen.’ ” Jones says an entrepreneur needs to bring in The A-Team, and she’s not talking about hiring Mr. T. “It’s important for entrepreneurs to surround themselves with the best A-team possible and to let that A-team do what they do best. It has to go beyond that one person to make the critical decisions to advance the company.”

Prusha speaks from the perspective of an A-team member. He appreciates the faith his company’s CEO has placed in him, and rewards that faith with complete dedication. “There are other people who probably would not have delivered the passion I have for the product. You know it’s not going to happen unless you do it, and you have that complete ownership.”

Singla said that, especially with a new startup, entrepreneurs have to be prepared for anything. “One should be

From left to right, SoccerPro.com’s Tony Marrero, Veterans United’s Brock Bukowsky, Socket’s George Pfenenger and Veterans United’s Brant Bukowsky discuss the challenges of staffing their high-tech businesses. very open to unstructured problems.

There won’t be a support system that will guide them through the mechanism.

And one should stay focused on the final vision, because during the journey there will be a lot of frustrations.”

Marrero, who knows that success often comes with trial and error, emphasized the importance of bouncing back. “You have to have the passion, you have to have the plan, an amazing set of advisers and friends, but don’t be afraid to make a mistake. Learn from it. It’s not a failure to do something wrong. The analogy with soccer is that as a coach, I would measure a player’s ability by what they do when they fall down. Do they get up quickly or do they stay down? It’s important to make the mistake and see what you have to do to get back up.”

Most entrepreneurs choose a business they know a lot about, but Pfenenger reminded the group that entrepreneurship often requires reaching beyond your area of expertise. “When you start a business, all of a sudden you’re

thrust into doing a lot of things that may be unfamiliar — the marketing side if you’re a technical person, the technical side if you’re a marketing person — and you have to willing to go outside your comfort zone.”

“I know Brant and I would agree on this,” said Brock Bukowsky. “It’s about surrounding yourself with quality people.

It’s not so much about finding someone who has experience, but in finding a quality person — their values, their integrity. Those are the types of questions we ask in our interviews. What motivates them to go to work in the morning?”

“Brock hit on the main point,” Brant said. “In addition to that, the advice I would give is to take action. I heard a quote: ‘Aiming isn’t hitting.’ There are people who plan and talk and think about starting their own business and other people who take action and try something.

People need to be mindful that when you try something, it’s likely to fail, but you’ll learn a lot about what you need to do to succeed.”

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SPEC I A L A DVERTI S ING S ECTI ON

Executive gift guide 2012

Treats Unleashed

1400 Forum Blvd.

573-234-2275 www.treats-unleashed.com

Treats Unleashed is the Natural Place for Pets! It’s the spot to find the perfect gift to put under the tree for your furry family member. From personalized big bones ($3.95), to yogurt-dipped holiday shapes, our fresh-baked treats are made in-house. Our festive collars are the perfect way to spruce up your dog or cat for the holiday season. If your pet asked Santa for a toy, we have a variety of sizes and levels of durability to suit your pet’s needs and fulfill their wish list this year.

l.c. betz jewelers

601 E. Broadway 573-449-1070 www.betzjewelers.com

Known for exceptional service and value, as well as its unique location upstairs in the Executive Building, L.C. Betz Jewelers has been a gem in Columbia for almost 30 years, offering timeless designs and traditional jewelry while always on the lookout for the industry’s hottest styles and lines. EncoreTM from Cordova allows her to select diamonds, birthstones and initials, or combine your favorites to tell her unique story. With every stone added, every memory marked in time, her EncoreTM jewelry grows ever more dazzling.

SPEC I A L A DVERTI S ING S ECTI ON

Executive gift guide 2012

Massage Envy

2703 E. Broadway 573-446-3689 www.massageenvy.com

Give the gift of relaxation this holiday season with a gift card from Massage Envy. As an added bonus, if you purchase three, you will receive one gift card for free!* The professional massage therapists at Massage Envy offer customizable massage sessions to fit a variety of needs. With Massage Envy’s flexible hours, a massage therapy session will fit into anyone’s hectic schedule.

Professional massage therapy provides peace of mind and can have a profound, lasting effect on the body and mind.

*See clinic for more details. Valid only at participating locations thru 12/24/12. Not valid online. ©2012 Massage Envy Franchising, LLC.

European Wax Center 2703 E. Broadway 573-442-8554 www.waxcenter.com

Located in the Broadway Shops, European Wax Center of Columbia provides world-class waxing services for men and women. This season, luxury waxing services are available for less! You, or someone you know, can enjoy 13 months of unlimited waxing for the price of 12.

Or, purchase nine treatments and receive three for free! Offering “the Ultimate Wax Experience,” European Wax Center offers guests smooth, consistent results in a chic, upscale and comfortable environment.

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executive style

Small Wonders

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Treat yourself or someone else To some oh-so-nice Wintertime accessories

by Morgan Mccarty photos by l.g. patterson

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Winter may be cold, dry and dull, but your style doesn’t have to be! Accessories are the fashionable way to warm up your wardrobe. Necessary winter accoutrements — such as insulated gloves, thick socks and warm scarves — will keep you warm and stylish. An elegant watch invigorates any suit, and one-of-a-kind, handmade jewelry with warm metals and gemstones is a chic wintry complement to any corporate wardrobe. A trendy, yet clean manicure can perk up winter-weary hands (or toes!) and a cool gadget is always a fun toy to take on winter trips and adventures.

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1. Men’s Tissot Couturier silver chronograph watch with leather band, available at KT Diamond Jewelers ($495); 2. Brown and orange men’s silk-cashmere scarf

by Tallia, available at Binghams ($95); 3. Ananda Khalsa 22-karat gold bezel with rose-cut pink tourmaline earrings, available at PS:Gallery ($660); 4. Mint green, 100 percent alpaca wool scarf from Bolivia, available at Mustard Seed Fair Trade ($22); 5. GoPro–Hero 2 HD camera, available at the Alpine Shop ($199.99); 6. Warm orange-burgundy metallic nail lacquer in “Shag,” by Butter, available at Makes Scents ($14); 7. Green and yellow cotton-cashmere blend socks by Scott Nichol, available at Binghams ($15); 8. Men’s insulated work gloves by the North Face, available at the Alpine Shop ($32.97) wInter 2013

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networking

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Joe Machens BMW wine & beer tasting Joe Machens BMW recently unveiled the new 2013 BMW Gran Coupe 6 Series and X1 vehicles. Guests enjoyed sampling new brands of wine and beer. The event raised more than $5,000 for the Buddy Pack program of The Food Bank of Central & Northeast Missouri. (Photos by Ren Bishop)

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1. Larry and Anna Gross 2. Tom and Debbie Bradley 3. Seth and Melanie Hickox 4. Mike Flanagan and Gary Drewing 5. Niema Velia, Richard Miller and Courtney French 6. Courtney Jost and Greg Vim 7. Tracy Davis and Marcia Thrasher 8. Jill and Jim Orr

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CELEBRITY APPRENTICE

Sixteen local businesspeople competed in four teams in the third annual Local Celebrity Apprentice to raise awareness and money for Job Point. The four teams competed in a street challenge on Oct. 23 and a talent show hosted at Deja Vu on Oct. 25, raising a record $30,000. Kat “The Boss” Cunningham selected Nelly Roach of the green team as this year’s winner. Job Point specializes in preparing individuals to enter the workforce through career planning and job placement assistance.

(Photos provided by Job Point) 1. Jamie Doss, Chris Harrison, Vicki Lynch and Frank Higgins 2. Kim Cayce and Anne Farrow 3. Rob Stretch and Brant Bukowsky 4. Anne Farrow and Kat Cunningham 5. David Coil, Nelly Roach, Lisa Pilkington and Dean Runyan 6. Alex Perry, Rob Stretch, Nancy Allison, Crystal Midkiff and Becki Schnell 7. Diane and John Warner, Scott Bell, Tiffany Oetting, Gary Taylor, Micki Marrero and Bill Costello

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ADVERTISING INDEX Accounting Plus................................................. 32 American Shoe...................................................34 Ashland Industrial Park.................................... 32 Beckett Taylor Insurance................................. 23 Bluestem.............................................................. 27 Boone County National Bank............................3 Cancer Research Center..................................34 Central Trust & Investment Company.........28 City of Columbia Water & Light....................56 Coil Construction.............................................. 52 Commerce Bank.................................................15 Creative Surroundings......................................20 D&M Sound......................................................... 13 European Wax Center......................................49 Gary B. Robinson Jewelers..............................54 Hawthorn Bank..................................................60 Inside Columbia’s Subscriptions................ 33,54 Inside Columbia’s Culinary Adventures............2 Inside Columbia Custom Publishing............... 52 Image Technologies............................................ 9 Kilgore’s Pharmacy............................................ 31 Landmark Bank.....................................................7 L.C. Betz Jewelers..............................................48 Les Bourgeois Vineyards..................................19 Makes Scents.....................................................54 Manor Metal Roofing.......................................28 Massage Envy....................................................49 MayeCreate........................................................56 Nate’s Computer Repair.................................. 35 MU Health Care................................................... 4 Plaza Commercial Realty...................................11 Smart Business Products................................. 26 Starr Properties.................................................. 35 Stephens College............................................... 33 Steve Twitchell Productions............................50 Stifel Nicholaus.................................................. 27 Suit Yourself........................................................ 24 The Callaway Bank......................................16, 20 The District..........................................................19 The Trust Co.......................................................50 Treats Unleashed...............................................48 UMB Bank........................................................... 59 Waddell & Reed................................................. 26 Wilkerson & Reynolds......................................30 Williams Keepers.............................................. 24 56

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PUBLISHER’S NOTE

Now Departing: Delta Air Lines

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ast November, Delta Air Lines didn’t want any other airlines sniffing announced it would end around for a piece of the pie it had found commercial air service to Columbia here.

Regional Airport in mid-February.

Casual observers were unaware of the Delta’s departure comes more than four frustration city officials were experiencing years after it first arrived in Columbia as with Delta. For more than two years, Northwest Airlines. While some may view they made attempts to meet with Delta Delta’s departure as the latest chapter in a representatives to discuss service issues long saga of setbacks for our small airport, and other opportunities. Delta refused I believe the airline’s exit is to meet. To add insult to a much-overdue blessing injury, Delta would cancel in disguise. or temporarily suspend The city of Columbia’s daily flights with little or relationship with Delta no advanced warning. during these past four As has been reported in years might best be this column on multiple described as tortuous. occasions, Delta would Prior to Delta’s arrival, charge astronomical fares Columbia was without for tickets to destinations daily service after the that could be purchased exit of St. Louis-based for a fraction of the price Trans State Airlines. through airports in St. After years of poor service Louis or Kansas City.

“Even with due to canceled flights The airline milked the Delta’s departure, and mechanical issues, monopoly it had in the Columbians will air travelers had mostly Columbia market for benefit from a 59 given up on the idea of every penny it could get. percent increase reliable air service in and Eventually, city officials in available seats out of Columbia. When had to hire a consultant from their local a new airline expressed with the hope of starting a airport.” an interest in taking dialogue with Delta. That advantage of the $2.2 attempt also failed.

– Fred Parry million Essential Air Nearly two years ago, Service subsidy from the Mayor Bob McDavid U.S. Department of Transportation, city and City Manager Mike Matthes took officials jumped at the chance to welcome matters into their own hands and Northwest Airlines to Columbia. began courting other airlines to take a Four months later, the honeymoon look at the Columbia market. Delta’s was over. Northwest had been swallowed unresponsiveness would eventually catch up by Delta Air Lines and the rules up to it. McDavid and Matthes hit pay dirt of engagement suddenly changed when they met with American Airlines despite appearances that things in Dallas. Buoyed by a $3.3 million seemed to be going well for the new revenue guarantee fund provided by local airline. Flights were filling up, and air companies and governments, American travelers expressed an increased level of agreed to give Columbia a chance. Finally, satisfaction. Two years into the marriage, city officials had the attention of Delta Air Delta gave up its claim to the Essential Lines officials. As suspected, they cried Air Service subsidy that originally lured “foul,” took their toys and went home. it to Columbia. It seemed as if Delta Good riddance, I say.

Beginning Feb. 14, Columbia-based air travelers will have daily access to the major hubs in Dallas and Chicago. Even with Delta’s departure, Columbians will benefit from a 59 percent increase in available seats from their local airport. With a larger number of stakeholders invested in the revenue guarantee, American Airlines stands to see more travelers willing to give air service out of Columbia a try. The future looks bright indeed.

In addition to the good news that comes with American Airlines, Frontier Airlines is also finding early success with its twice-weekly service to Orlando.

City officials are hopeful that Frontier will take notice of the increased activity at Columbia Regional and eventually consider offering daily flight service to its hub in Denver.

City officials now face the challenge of getting airport infrastructure up to speed with the anticipated increase in usage. The airport needs more space for baggage claim, passenger waiting areas and parking lots. While city officials and community leaders study funding scenarios, temporary structures are being installed to deal with the most immediate space problems. A debate is beginning to take shape over whether an increased lodging tax is an appropriate strategy for raising the funds needed to remodel the airport. Legislation is also being considered to establish an airport authority at Columbia Regional that would allow alternative funding options.

Maintaining a small airport in today’s economic environment is no easy task.

Small airports around the country are losing commercial air service at an alarming rate. Columbia is fortunate to get a second chance with carriers, given the incredible odds against us.

Our success will inevitably rest on the shoulders of local businesses and institutions whose employees travel in and out of Columbia. I believe Columbia is up to the challenge. winter 2013

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CLOSING QUOTES

What Columbia’s Business People And Community Leaders Are Saying “The reason I ended up in the apparel business is because — let’s be honest — people are always going to be wearing clothing.

At least, I hope so.”

— New Orleans Saints quarterback and 10Star Apparel CEO Chase Daniel

“It takes a lot of work to convert a tire kicker into a real prospect.”

— Regional Economic Development Inc. President Mike Brooks on the effort to attract new businesses to Columbia

“I don’t necessarily look for people with a lot of experience because people with experience have done things a certain way and it’s hard to get them to come along and do them my way.”

— Pickleman’s founder Doug Stritzel at the CEO Roundtable

“There are some modest people at this table. We’re kind of a modest town. There’s a lot of amazing things that happen here that we’re all really proud of but we may not shove it in other people’s faces.

We’re very good at what we do; it’s a great place to live, and I think if we could shine a light on some of these great things a bit more often we might retain some of the younger professionals who think that somewhere else is better.”

— SoccerPro.com founder Tony Marrero at the CEO Roundtable

“An idea doesn’t happen in a vacuum. An entrepreneur has to have a team — we have idea people and action people, and we teach them how to work together. That’s how products emerge.”

— Joan Gabel, dean of the University of Missouri Trulaske College of Business 58

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