Fairfield County Business Journal 122914

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FAIRFIELD COUNTY

BUSINESS JOURNAL YOUR ONLY SOURCE FOR REGIONAL BUSINESS NEWS | westfaironline.com

December 29, 2014 | VOL. 50, No. 52

Close but no cigar, yet

FCBJ this week TOP TIER Turnaround Management Association hosts economic forum for 100 executives … 4

STEPS REMAIN FOR BUSINESSES WANTING TO CASH IN ON CUBA BY LEIF SKODNICK

TOP DRAWER Greenwich Avenue no longer a humble lane with stables … 4

lskodnick@westfairinc.com

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TOP SALES Andi Gray tackles one of the toughest slots to fill … 10 TOP SPIN Five ways to get ahead in PR … 12

MEDIA PARTNER

SITTING PRETTY LOVESAC REINVENTS THE COUCH AND PROSPERS BY BILL FALLON bfallon@westfairinc.com

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he common couch might seem an unlikely candidate for an overhaul. But that is exactly what Stamford-based Lovesac founder Shawn Nelson envisioned as a Utah teenager 20 years ago. Just weeks past high school graduation, Neslon was watching TV in his family’s Salt Lake City home when he had a light-bulb moment. In

Shawn Nelson, founder of Stamford-based Lovesac. Photo by Bill Fallon

his words: “What if the couch went from here” — he drew an imaginary line on the floor — “all the way to the TV.” A trip to the local fabric store set the gears in motion and Nelson produced, in his words, “this thing that I made.” In a similar quest to place a tag on the unique, his business card identifies him as “That Lovesac Guy.” The company is privately held, with sales at “hundreds of units per day,” he said. Today, after a 2006 corporate reorganization that saw the business move to Stamford, Nelson oversees 60 stores, 400 employees and a product line based on four proprietary and “vigorously defended” patents. The company recently relocated within the » LOVESAC, page 9

he United States and Cuba are beginning the process of normalizing diplomatic relations, but you won’t be ordering a mojito made with Cuban-distilled Havana Club rum for a while. The two countries recently took the first step toward ending a U.S.-imposed trade embargo that began in 1960 and was strengthened during the Cuban missile crisis, with each side releasing prisoners and the U.S. government announcing changes in rules that restrict travel to the island nation. But that big first step, while meaningful, is just a step. “I think in the short term, the impact is minimal,” said Jeanne Zaino, a professor of political science at Iona College in New Rochelle, N.Y. “In the long term, there is potential for business in fields such as travel, commerce and agriculture.” Zaino said a full opening of Cuba will take time. “Does Cuba meet the points and guideposts » CUBA, page 11

NORWALK’S

BIG NIGHT u

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Norwalk Chamber of Commerce President and CEO Ed Musante at the chamber’s holiday gathering.


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