TK Business Magazine - January 2020

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MORE THAN FITNESS

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INNOVATION

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A WORD FROM THE EXPERTS

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THE PROFESSOR

JANUARY 2020

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TK Business Magazine

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January 2020 TK Business Magazine

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CONTENTS TK BUSINESS MAGAZINE | JANUARY 2020

PAGE 8

MORE THAN FITNESS

PAGE 18

INNOVATION

PAGE 42

A WORD FROM THE EXPERTS

PAGE 74

THE PROFESSOR

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Exercise and fitness centers are popping up all over Topeka. Take a closer look at four niche exercise studios that offer specialized services.

Classroom by day, entrepreneur by night.

Several Topeka teachers are living this double life.

MORE THAN FITNESS

ENTREPRENEURIAL TEACHERS

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INNOVATION

Innovation requires finding new revenue opportunities, optimizing existing operations and empowering employees.

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Photo by EMMA HIGHFILL

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ON THE COVER MADE FROM SCRATCH

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THE ART OF THE PITCH

Tips on how to take your business pitch from good to great.

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A WORD FROM THE EXPERTS Topeka business experts give advice and tips on a number of relevant and timely topics.

FINANCIAL EXPERTS Tax Tips—American Tax Service Budgets—Berberich Trahan & Co., P.A. Investing—Kansas Financial Resources HEALTH & WELLNESS Mental Distress—Valeo Behavioral Health Center Energy Ergonomics—Chris Omni Healthy Tips—Cotton O’Neil Weight Management Center REAL ESTATE Location Selection—Moses Realty Buy, Build or Lease—Architect One HUMAN RESOURCES HR Real Scenarios—HR Partners

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TK Business Magazine

Photo by KEITH HORINEK

Treat yourself to a made from scratch breakfast at a locally owned Topeka bakery.

SCENE ABOUT TOWN 78 80

Topeka’s Top 20 Under 40 Banquet B&B Theatres Grand Opening

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CURIOUS ADVENTURES OF A LOCAL SHOPKEEPER Shopkeepers get asked some very interesting questions...

Photo by SAMMIE SCHURIG

Photo by EMMA HIGHFILL

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January 2020 TK Business Magazine

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Photo by EMMA HIGHFILL

FROM THE PUBLISHER

Tara Dimick Tara@TKMagazine.com

For those of you scratching your head and wondering why there is a January issue of TK Business Magazine—well, first of all, thank you for being such a loyal reader to pay attention to these details—and Yes! We took some of our own advice and recognized that we either grow or die; there is no status quo.

As of 2020, we have made the transition from four issues each year to six.

People always ask us how we find enough content in Topeka for a business magazine, but finding content has never been a problem. And with all the expansion and growth that the capital city has had over the last couple years, we found ourselves constantly frustrated about having to pick and choose what stories to leave out of the magazine because we didn’t have space to tell them all in one of the four issues available.

We didn’t want to leave anyone out and, obviously, you wanted more too. With each new issue, readers and partners asked why they had to wait so long for the next one. As the feedback got louder and more frequent, we could not ignore the obvious fact that it was time to make the jump.

So, like the visual below, we created a plan that looked so easy and perfect. Just go from point A to point B and, voila, success.

THE PLAN

However, it may surprise you to learn that it is not all unicorns and rainbows at the TK offices. The reality is that when you make a change, new challenges show up. And our perfect plan looked a little more like this:

THE REALITY

PUBLISHER Tara Dimick EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Lisa Loewen CREATIVE DIRECTOR & DESIGNER Janet Faust MANAGING PARTNER & SALES DIRECTOR Braden Dimick braden@tkmagazine.com 785.438.7773 LEAD PHOTOGRAPHER Emma Highfill COVER PHOTOGRAPHER Emma Highfill CONTRIBUTING PHOTOGRAPHERS Keith Horinek Sammie Schurig CONTRIBUTING WRITERS Miranda Ericsson Kim Gronniger Lisa Loewen Kathy Webber CONTRIBUTING EXPERTS Kristina Dietrick, PHR, SHRM-DP Matt Deutsch, CPA Scott Gales, AIA-LEED AP Amber Groeling Kurt Guth, EA Tom Moses, CCIM Chris Omni, MPH Eric Hunsicker, CLU David Price, PhD Kristin Stock

PUBLISHING COMPANY E2 Communications 7512 SW Falcon St. Topeka, KS 66610 785.438.7773 FOUNDER ǀ Kevin Doel

To put out this January issue, our team has had to adjust travel schedules and work through holidays. Between putting out fires, picking up dropped balls and creating a new rhythm to our process, we repeatedly tell ourselves, “It’s the journey, not the destination. Embrace the journey.”

Thank you for your amazing support of TK and the local business community. It is because of you that we have the opportunity to go on this incredible journey as a small business and invite you along for the ride.

Best of luck in your journey through 2020.

@TKBusinessMag

@TK Business

@tk_business_

@TK...Topeka's Business Magazine

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TK Business Magazine

tkmagazine.com 2020 TK Business Magazine is published by E2 Communications, Inc. Reproduction or use of this publication in any manner without written permission of the publisher is prohibited.

Every effort was made to ensure accuracy of the information in this publication as of press time. The publisher assumes no responsibility of any part for the content of any advertisement in this publication, including any errors and omissions therein. E2 Communications, Inc. makes no endorsement, representation or warranty regarding any goods or services advertised or listed in this publication.

Listings and advertisements are provided by the subject company. E2 Communications, Inc. shall not be responsible or liable for any inaccuracy, omission or infringement of any third party's right therein, or for personal injury or any other damage or injury whatsoever. By placing an order for an advertisement, the advertiser agrees to indemnify the publisher against any claims relating to the advertisement.

January 2020 TK Business Magazine

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MORE THAN FITNESS

By KATHY WEBBER Photos by EMMA HIGHFILL

With fitness and wellness becoming a growing trend nationwide, large franchise exercise facilities have popped up all over Topeka. However, some smaller, niche gyms are offering specialized services to reach a more specific market.

Photo by EMMA HIGHFILL

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TK Business Magazine

Don’t just join a Club

Join a Family

The Topeka CounTry Club

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love where you

play

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I love to be at Topeka Country Club.

It’s where I grew up. That’s one - Gary Woodland course I’d play every day.”

2019 U.S. Open Champion The Topeka CounTry Club www.topekacc.org January 2020 TK Business Magazine

2700 Sw buchanan, Topeka, kansas 66611 | (785) 354-8561

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Pilates Performance & Rehab Pilates is a physical fitness program that uses the method of contrology, the art of controlled movements, to improve flexibility, build strength, improve posture and alignment, and help with breathing, balance and core control. Pilates can be done on the floor or use equipment to help stretch, strengthen and align the body through controlled movement.

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ACCIDENTAL FITNESS Desima Dawdy, director and owner of Pilates Performance & Rehab, started Pilates training after she was in a car accident that made traditional exercise difficult for her to do.

“I had taught physical education, step aerobics, spinning and traditional fitness programs,” Dawdy said. “When I had a series of accidents, it ended up being a blessing in disguise.”

She found she could no longer perform traditional fitness and rehab exercises, so she researched a solution to her fitness needs. She discovered therapeutic-based movement through Polestar Education, where they were bridging traditional rehabilitation and the Pilates methodology together.

This new form of exercise helped Dawdy so much that her friends started to notice the difference it made for her.

find relief from my pain,” Dawdy said.

“When they began to tell me of friends or family members that had similar issues, I realized there was a whole community out there that needed that bridge between inactivity and high intensity workouts, or just simply something that was not too physically demanding.”

Dawdy completed training through Polestar Pilates Education with the University of Miami/Miller School of Medicine where Pilates Rehabilitation is a key component of the curriculum. She opened her facility in Barrington Village, where Dawdy says she is committed to helping clients live their best lives.

“All of our clientele are here for functional fitness and to improve the quality of their life. It is really rewarding to see that they feel, look and move much better than when they started,” Dawdy said.

HEALING THERAPY “People saw my progression and healing, and how I was able to gain a lot of the movement that I had lost and

DIVERSE AND ADAPTIVE Because of the versatility of Pilates, Pilates Performance & Rehab has a diverse clientele of all ages and physical

TK Business Magazine

Photo by EMMA HIGHFILL

Pilates Performance & Rehab has a diverse clientele of all ages and physical abilities.

Photo by EMMA HIGHFILL

Desima Dawdy Director/Owner Pilates Performance & Rehab

Moore’s Martial Arts Academy Master Ronnie Moore Owner Moore’s Martial Arts Academy

Photo by EMMA HIGHFILL

abilities. Trainers work with athletes and dancers seeking improved performance and injury prevention, as well as post and pre-rehabilitation from surgeries.

Several different apparatus assist with movement, helping people who might not otherwise use muscles properly get stronger and begin healing.

“People get super fascinated when they see how diverse and how adaptive the apparatus can be,” Dawdy said. “A lot of times people are in pain and they don’t want to move, but they found that by using the apparatus, they could improve their range of motion.”

Pilates Performance & Rehab offers a variety of private and small group personal training sessions.

“When I started teaching Pilates, I understood how much individualized attention really helps,” Dawdy said.

“It is very customizable, and people pay per visit, so you are not buying anything other than your good health.”

CHILDHOOD START It all started when Ronnie Moore’s mother enrolled him in Karate classes when he was 7 years old. Over the next two and a half decades, Master Moore studied several styles of martial arts and competed in countless tournaments, where he won several grand championships, was repeatedly ranked in the top five of his division and was featured in Sport Karate Magazine for his number one rating in weapons, kata and sparring in the Midwest region. Additionally, Master Moore has served as a professional judge at numerous mixed martial arts events throughout Kansas and Missouri.

This impressive list of accomplishments was only the beginning of Master Moore’s career in martial arts. After teaching

in several recreational and community centers throughout Topeka, Master Moore opened his own school, Midwest Martial Arts, in 1995. Three years ago, Master Moore changed the name to Moore’s Martial Arts Academy and moved his school to Fleming Place Shopping Center.

While Master Moore has studied several styles of martial arts, his favorite is Shorin-ryu Karate.

“This fighting form originated over 1,000 years ago and came from farmers who were forced to use their body and their farming tools as weapons to defend themselves,” Moore said. “For instance, nun chucks, believe it or not, were used to strike the rice stalks that would cause the rice to fall into their baskets.”

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TEACHING RESPECT Master Moore not only builds selfconfidence within his students but he also

Lava Yoga

PHOTO SUBMITTED

Master Moore provides free summer camps for the Boys and Girls Club organization.

helps organizations such as the Boys and Girls Club by providing free summer camps.

“I wanted to provide that encouragement to underprivileged kids, and teach them about martial arts and respect. I’d send them home with an assignment with six things to do around the house, and they would have to get it signed by their parents.

They had to be respectful to their parents and to their camp leaders,”

HOT IN ARIZONA A hot yoga class in Arizona in 2006 spurred two sisters, Leigh Granada and Beth Kuckelman, to open Lava Yoga in Topeka.

“Beth was training for multiple competitions and marathons all the time, really pushing her body to the limit. She kept getting injured over and over,” Granada said. “While she was training in Arizona for an Ironman, her training partners suggested she try hot yoga. She loved her first class and called me and told me to go try it. I loved it too.”

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TK Business Magazine

Master Moore said. “It showed them martial arts is really more than just learning kicking and punching; it’s how you treat others. Those camp leaders were coming back and telling me they saw some positive changes within the kids.”

For over 40 years, Master Moore has impacted the lives of three generations of students, and to this day, continues to shape the youth of Topeka.

Leigh Granada Co-owner Lava Yoga

Photo by EMMA HIGHFILL

BUILDING CHARACTER Moore’s Martial Arts Academy is all about making a difference in people’s lives.

Master Moore’s hope is to help individuals gain a better understanding of self and the world while becoming the best version of themselves. To Master Moore, karate is not only a form of physical self-defense but is also a catalyst to building character.

“We use martial arts training as a catalyst to teach the things students should be doing at home with their parents or siblings and teachers at school by showing them respect,” Master Moore said.

According to Master Moore, anybody can learn martial arts. Training can begin at the age of 4 and can continue late into adulthood.

“I like it because all ages can learn it, all statures, it doesn’t matter what your size is. I think it is a style that is very adaptable for anybody to learn if you come in with a positive attitude,” Master Moore said. “I see the smile on their faces when they find themselves passing the belt test or the tip test because they realize I didn’t just give it to them, but they actually worked up to the point where they can execute the technique and feel good about it.”

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At the time, the nearest hot yoga studio was in Wichita, and that was just too far of a drive for Granada and Kuckelman, so they set out to recreate hot yoga in their own homes.

“We would go for a long run in the summertime and then close the windows in the car and would just sweat,” Granada said.

They decided they needed to bring hot yoga to Topeka, so the sisters both became certified in hot yoga training and opened Lava Yoga, located at 4005 SW 29th, in 2013. They opened a second studio in Lawrence in 2017.

HOT AND HOTTER “I think the heat helps to keep me really focused,” Granada said.

“When I started doing hot yoga it was so challenging, both physically and mentally, it really kept me focused and in the room.”

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Photo by EMMA HIGHFILL

Hot yoga has many benefits including how it helps with blood flow and waste removal as well as joint flexibility and mobility.

The temperature of the room during a hot yoga class depends on the type of class: for a hot yoga class, the room is heated to around 102 degrees, and for a warm yoga class, it is heated to around 95 degrees.

Humidity can reach as high as 60 percent during a class.

“The heat and humidity really help the muscles to stretch and burn calories, and your heart rate goes up a little higher than in a regularly heated room,” Granada said.

Granada says hot yoga has many benefits. Hot yoga helps with blood flow and waste removal. It increases flexibility and allows for greater mobility of the joints. Hot yoga also makes muscles more elastic and easier to stretch without causing injury. During a 75-minute class, a student can burn 350 to 500 calories while eliminating built up toxins from sweating.

TK Business Magazine

Hot yoga isn’t for everyone, but according to Granada, anyone can do it.

“It is designed so that anybody can do it. We encourage people to try it out. You will never be shamed for not being able to do something,” Granada said. “We also cool the room down two times during class by opening all the doors to let the humidity out and put a breeze on everybody. It is a nice mental break for everyone.”

Granada says their studio believes in kindness—especially to yourself.

“It is easy to be kind to others, but we are not usually kind to ourselves. We try to encourage people to be kind to yourself and to forgive yourself. I think that is one of the harder parts of living, and we try to teach that,” Granada said.

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Photo by EMMA HIGHFILL

“To make Jesus famous and to change lives” This is not your typical mission statement for a fitness center, but for Colaw Fitness owners Charles and Amber Colaw, fitness and spirituality both play important roles when it comes to achieving one’s full potential.

Photo by EMMA HIGHFILL

Colaw Fitness

Giancario Sironi President of Marketing & Culture Colaw Fitness IMPACTFUL PLATFORM Giancario Sironi, president of marketing and culture for Colaw Fitness, said the Colaws opened the fitness center because they believe that everyone has a platform to impact people, and the gym was their platform.

“Charles and Amber believe it was their calling to get people to the gym and help them change their lives, whether it was to grow physically,

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mentally or spiritually,” Sironi said. “This was their ministry.”

The Colaws first began providing fitness training to individuals from their home in Bartlesville, Oklahoma, in 2004.

As their client base increased, it became obvious to the Colaws they needed an actual fitness center to take care of their clients. With a leap of faith, they opened their first Colaw Fitness Center. Recently they opened two more fitness centers, one in Joplin, Missouri, and the other here in Topeka.

RIGHT PLACE “We saw a great opportunity in Topeka based on population, demographics and competition that was in town,” Sironi said.

“Topeka is definitely our largest location.

It has been a long journey and a lot of hard work. We have been blessed with great members that love what we do and continue to come.”

Colaw Fitness is a 24-hour gym that offers memberships as low as $5 a month that includes free tanning, massages, trainer instruction and nutrition instruction, and all members can bring a friend for free each visit.

“Our members love the $5 reward membership because it keeps them motivated and encouraged to come. They start seeing results from going to the gym more and they get excited,” Sironi said.

TK Business Magazine

Colaw Fitness offers small, more personalized classes for up to five people with a trainer. They give free orientation classes to instruct members on which machines to use and the proper way to use them. They also have a CF-30 program, which is a 30-day diet and workout plan that guarantees people can lose 10 to 30 pounds of body fat in the first 30 days as long as they follow the plan.

DOLLARS FOR CHARITY In addition to helping members achieve their goals, Colaw Fitness donates the first dollar of every membership to two worthy causes: Water4Life Mozambique water well program, and a bullying prevention program, Fight for the Forgotten.

“We are super excited about our partnership with both of them. We like how being a member of Colaw Fitness also helps change people’s lives outside the gym,” Sironi said.

Sironi said the goal of Colaw Fitness is to create an atmosphere that makes the gym both friendly and uplifting.

“We want to have the most positive uplifting environment for our members, all within a Christian atmosphere,” Sironi said. “Members love it because it keeps them motivated and encouraged to come.”

TK

January 2020 TK Business Magazine

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INNOVATION

By KIM GRONNIGER

In order for a business to thrive, it is crucial to continually innovate and improve. Successful business innovation means more than coming up with new product ideas; it requires finding new revenue opportunities, optimizing existing operations and empowering employees to insert their own creative ideas into the decision making process.

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Innovating Creativity Advisors Excel In 2018, Marcus Rangel, executive creative director at Advisors Excel, took the company’s design department on an off-site retreat to The Pennant Creative Execution for burgers “Five five-person teams and pinball before had two hours to create a video, and poster to submit to breaking the group website our judges, which included Cody into teams to create Foster, one of our company’s promotional trailers co-founders,“ said Rangel. “Cody was impressed with the quality on the fly. of work created and thought it

would be cool to extend a similar opportunity to benefit a local nonprofit, so this year that’s what we’ve done.”

Doorstep and Let’s Help were the first recipients to benefit.

On a designated day, about 10 employees, including copy editors, account managers and community engagement staff, meet with the nonprofit to assess needs and execute strategy, creating concepts for marketing collateral, website development, video production and photography.

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PHOTO SUBMITTED

Advisors Excel employees consider nonprofit challenges as an opportunity to practice tips garnered from creative professionals.

With built-in time and budget constraints, the nonprofit challenge sessions offer employees an opportunity to expand the scope of their work and put into practice some of the tips they have gleaned from the influential creative professionals Rangel regularly brings to Topeka for inspiration and skill enhancement.

David Franzke, digital art director, said, “Creativity often comes from limitations, and these small teams know they only have a few hours to produce something meaningful and useful for agencies that don’t have access to the resources we have.

“In addition to helping the agencies, it’s also great for our team members to get to know one another on a personal level, particularly people on the team you may not have worked with closely before.”

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Advisors Excel is an independent marketing organization that provides an extensive Creative Inspiration array of “We’re a much larger team services to help now than when I started with company 12 years ago, and independent the sending a couple of people to financial a conference each year isn’t a professionals model that works for us,” Rangel said. “Instead we ask our team across the country to tell us who they’d love to hear build their from in the design field and then bring those individuals here practices. As the we so everyone can benefit.” company continues The first high-profile presenter Rangel enlisted was to grow, the Aaron Draplin, a renowned design department designer from Portland, Oregon, has also increased whom Franzke likens to Jay-Z in world. exponentially. the design “When we announced at a department lunch that he was coming to Topeka, employees went crazy,” Rangel said. “Now there’s an expectation that you don’t want to miss the summer retreat. We tease up who’s coming to build excitement and anticipation.”

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TK Business Magazine

In 2019 alone, Advisors Excel brought in six speakers accomplished in photography, videography, illustration, and web and stop animation to infuse the team with creative energy and new insights. A videographer showed staff how to layer sound in videos, and an illustrator from Los Angeles, California shared his comic book text style.

“You can’t go to one of these industry speaker sessions here and not be inspired to do better and approach things differently based on what you’ve learned,” said Rangel. “We see teams gravitate toward implementing the new knowledge they’ve gained and start expanding what they’re capable of.”

Franzke said the culture encourages experimentation, something “that doesn’t often happen in companies unless you focus on it.”

Marcus Rangel is attuned to creative nudgings, Creative Purpose whether they “I find inspiration in all sorts of come from the things,” said Rangel. “I like Charlie anecdotes of Hustle shirts and PT’s Roasting Coffee Company, and they helped influence a presenter he some of our ideas for AE swag and the admires or the shirts we’ve designed. David Callanan, of our co-founders, once did a former NextGen one presentation with oranges and that led Chophouse to our popular ‘squeeze the orange’ that was the T-shirts.”

But clever slogans and fun catalyst for the packaging do more than instill promotional trailer company pride and boost camaraderie. employees contributed $2,500 in competition. AE swag purchases in 2019 to take local schoolchildren shopping for shoes and apparel.

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PHOTO SUBMITTED

Sean Kennedy, digital production artist at Advisors Excel, models the “squeeze the orange” t-shirt.

“The company and the community are very intertwined for us,” said Rangel. “Whether we’re working for a paying client or a nonprofit partner, we’re always looking for better ways to engage people, enhance our skills and upgrade our approaches.”

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Arts & Craftsman Workshop David and Deborah Corr opened the Arts Deborah and David Corr, Owners | Arts & Craftsman Workshop & Craftsman Workshop in May 2019 as a makerspace for Vision Building individuals wanting are drawn to the workshop so The workshop, now located they can move their hobbies (or to pursue creative in a former convent at 308 SW their spouse’s hobbies) out of the Van Buren, draws high school projects while socializing house, David said, but aside from and college students and adults, and sharing skills with both employed and retired, who equipment access the primary appeal is the ability to learn from are eager to bring their visions to others. David, former others. fruition. A small, rideable steam equipment technician engine, etched wine glasses for “YouTube videos are great, but sometimes it’s helpful to come and trainer for 712 a wedding, molds for chocolate here and ask questions of other Innovations, purchased making and gadget prototypes people who are skilled at what created with a 3D printer are just a the organization’s sampling of projects underway. you’re trying to accomplish,” he said. “I can get them started, but “People come here with equipment and moved it some of our members are more all kinds of skill sets—artists, to a new, inviting space hobbyists, entrepreneurs,” said advanced in certain applications than I am and can get them to the with overhead doors and David. “Sometimes they know next level.” exactly which equipment they ample parking to make Sewing and embroidery want to work with and sometimes access easier. they want to experiment with machines, leathermaking tools everything we offer.”

Glue and epoxy materials can be messy, and some patrons

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TK Business Magazine

and a safety-conscious Sawstop saw and lathe are among the many options available. A laser cutter/

Photo by EMMA HIGHFILL

Innovating Visions

etcher is one of the most popular pieces of equipment for patrons interested in making art, jewelry, signage and more for personal use or to sell at craft fairs or in small businesses, David said.

“We have a rotary attachment that can spin tumblers and coffee mugs that’s great for small production runs and personalized gifts,” he said.

A former dental machine used to make mouth guards now functions as a mold-making machine, and a high-tech sandbox illustrates concepts for contour mapping.

The 2,500 square-foot shop space has 24/7 access for members, who pay a monthly fee: $50 for students; $75 for

individuals; and $100 for a family household. Regular hours are from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday. Tables are on wheels so they can be moved and reconfigured to accommodate a particular need, and locker rental is available for material storage.

Individuals are responsible for their own consumables, such as sand paper, glue and nails.

With 6,000 square feet in the building, the Corrs are able to offer office space and a conference room often used for local podcasts and video production. One tenant is Create/ Uplift, also known as CULT, a creative agency offering brand development and marketing services.

“People come here with all kinds of skill sets—artists, hobbyists, entrepreneurs.”

David Corr Owner Arts & Craftsman Workshop

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Workspace, equipment, lockers and socializing help make the Arts & Craftsman Workshop ideal for individuals wanting to pursue creative projects.

Art students from Washburn University often use the workshop for class projects.

A math professor Vision Sharing collaborated A second-generation tinkerer, with workshop David’s background is in drafting, members to design and architectural metals. He became intrigued about making prototype a dice first things while watching his dad create game and built a unique projects for a specialty puzzle for students company in Jacksonville, Florida, that built a variety of projects from to solve using animatronics like those used at math. Business Chuck E. Cheese’s to remote control professors use submarines.

“I’d hang out there and marvel the makerspace at these guys creating things you to showcase couldn’t buy off the shelf,” said David. entrepreneurial His own tinkering efforts have included putting a Subaru motor opportunities for into a 1984 Volkswagen van and students too. making modular music synthesizers that are popular with students.

Deborah, an architect with the U.S. Department of Agriculture, spends her days reviewing project

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TK Business Magazine

Photo by EMMA HIGHFILL

designs for hospitals, fire stations and housing developments in rural communities. At the shop, she uses the laser machine to etch plates for prints, a passion ignited when she won a national art competition as an eighth grader in Rochester, Michigan, for her first silk screen print.

“I peaked early,” she joked.

While some patrons followed the Corrs to the new space, others have only recently discovered its potential and applicability for their avocations.

“We had a shared vision to have a big, creative space with a community of people willing to collaborate on projects while also working toward their own artistic and entrepreneurial aspirations,” said David. “Coming here every day doesn’t feel like work.”

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Innovating Technology Chocolatey Software Inc. A sweet technology for managing software delivery for Microsoft Rob Reynolds, Owner | Chocolatey Software Inc. Windows began in Topeka and is Technology Automating now being used A corporate software developer, all over the world by Rob Reynolds was curious about how hundreds of organizations to better automate Microsoft Windows operating systems and expedite computer and thousands of configurations and deployment on a global IT professionals. scale. As a side project from his day job, he the necessary expertise to create Chocolatey automates the developed the Chocolatey software code in 2011 that management of third party later became the basis for a company he and internal software on launched in 2016.

The company’s name play is derived Windows computers and from NuGet, the packaging framework used servers and is installed on for Windows development.

“We joked that if it also managed machines at a rate of 70 software and system-level tools, then those installations per minute. packages would not be vanilla NuGet packages, they would be chocolatey,” he said.

Reynolds made the technology available through open source networks and continues to support an open source edition.

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Photo by EMMA HIGHFILL

After a successful kickstarter campaign in 2014, Rob Reynolds released Chocolatey for Business (C4B) Technology Bootstrapping in mid-2016, then ensuring a valuation looks great “Bootstrapping is converted all assets definitely harder but at the for VC firms.”

The community software end of the day, we only and operations into repository, a free offering have to serve one master Chocolatey Software and that’s our customers,” Chocolatey Software manages, Inc. in January 2017. said Reynolds. “Going the contains more than 7,000 software automation packages, traditional route allows us to The software company receives nearly 60 million daily concentrate on solving our decided to grow customers’ needs rather than requests (twice as many as last year), and transfers between five organically rather than also trying to make sure we to 10 terabytes of data each day. have marketable releases or seek funding from venture capitalists.

}

The Package Manager for Windows Modern Software Automation

There are a lot of different installer formats & multiple approaches to deploying Windows software.

Deploying software without package management on Windows can be complicated and time-consuming.

Chocolatey simplifies this through a repeatable and automated approach, using a universal packaging format for managing all Windows software.

It doesn't matter if you are using native installers, zips, scripts, binaries or in-house developed applications, and tools – Chocolatey treats them as all 1st class citizens.

Learn more about Chocolatey for Business at:

https://chocolatey.org/business January 2020 TK Business Magazine

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Rob Reynolds earned a business management degree with an emphasis in management information systems and Technology Efficiencies a minor in Reynolds, who always had leadership studies from entrepreneurial aspirations, said, “I Kansas State University. created Chocolatey because I was He began his career at solving a problem for myself and making my own work life easier, but the the Kansas Department solution I came up with resonated with of Transportation where a wider community of IT professionals it allows for quicker installation he discovered he had an because and more modern, automated testing aptitude and affinity for approaches to be applied to the software development. infrastructure.”

The software, designed to improve In subsequent positions reliability, productivity and security, has with other companies, also provided users with unexpected beyond making their daily work he faced the same perks more efficient and operationally sound. issues at each employer “IT professionals were doing a lot of manual work that the Chocolatey and began wondering software automated to make them more about the applicability proficient,” said Reynolds. “People of a global solution that approach us at conferences or send thank you notes saying that they could be used across us got raises and better jobs because industries. Chocolatey allowed them to go home earlier and spend time with their loved ones doing things they enjoy instead of managing deployments manually or fighting systems that were not designed for current modern automation needs.”

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“We decided to pursue physical office space in 2018 when we realized we were going to expand, and not everyone wants to or is well suited to work from home,” said Reynolds, who plans to bring the entire team to the capital city once or twice a year for week-long strategy, team building, and compliance training sessions.

“We see each other on screens every day, but it doesn’t quite meet the same level of interaction as being able to chat face to face over a cup of coffee,” he said.

Chocolatey is a team of 12 individuals, including Reynolds and co-founder Mukesh Sharma, chief operating officer, Technology Team based in Kent, England, whom he met while both were Being located in Topeka and in the center of the country employed by Puppet. also offers advantages for the Three employees work company. at the Topeka office, and “Not spending hours each day stuck in traffic gives us a five more are spread out competitive edge,” Reynolds said, noting that he’s eager to see across North America. how Google Fiber’s expansion Sharma and three others will draw new talent to the area. are based in the United Reynolds said his team Kingdom. Reynolds continually focuses on the user experience, gleaning input from anticipates employing 20 users and prospects about what they like and what they want for or more people in 2020 as future iterations through five the company continues to to 10 product demonstration grow, although he intends meetings each week. to keep total staff count under 50.

Cultivating strong relationships and Technology Enhancement gleaning feedback One of those serendipitous “Watching the growth curve is an integral part of relationships involved a community over the past nine years has been amazing, and it’s humbling and Chocolatey’s business user working for Netflix who had contributed code two years ago exciting to hear about places where model, especially to set up Chocolatey in a Linux it’s used,” said Reynolds. since the bulk of the Docker image. Although it wasn’t Growing up in Neodesha, an application in mainstream use, Kansas, Reynolds said, “I always company’s users are Reynolds entertained the option and wanted to be famous or make a accessing the open accepted the contribution. In August difference in the world. While I didn’t get fame, at least we’ve built source edition. 2019, the user and a coworker wrote an article, “Applying Netflix DevOps Patterns to Windows,” highlighting Chocolatey’s attributes.

Chocolatey has many household-name customers worldwide, including Hulu and Yelp.

something that’s changing folks’ lives for the better. It’s a really exciting time and we are just on the cusp of where we plan to take the industry in terms of what is possible.”

TK

January 2020 TK Business Magazine

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l a i r u e n e r p e r t En s r e h c a Te

By SAMMIE SCHURIG

Remember Clark Kent, who was a reporter by day, but after a quick duck into a convenient phone booth would reappear as Superman?

Topeka has several people who are living this type of double life. Teachers and school counselors by day, when these seemingly ordinary people put their red grading pens down once school is over, they turn into entrepreneurs.

Little do most of us know, that the same teachers we see in classrooms today are also power-washing a truck, hosting a stand at the First Friday Art Walk, coaching classes at a gym they own, or filling orders for delicious baked treats after a long day at school. Meet some of Topeka’s teachers by day and entrepreneurs by night.

}

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“We’ve always considered Bartlett & West a leader in their profession, but they’re also a leader in our community. As we went through the redevelopment process with the City and private sector,

Bartlett & West was there hand-in-hand with us the entire time.”

Vince Frye, President & CEO

Driving community and industry forward, together.

www.bartlettwest.com

Downtown Topeka, Inc.

Thank you KAW VALLEY BANK for trusting Kendall Construction to complete your renovation.

2551 NW Button Rd, Topeka, KS 66618 • (785) 246-2295 • www.TRUSTKENDALL.com January 2020 TK Business Magazine

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Grades to Grapes

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GLACIERS EDGE WINERY

Mike and Lisa Steinert, owners of Glaciers Edge Winery, turned a challenge from his father into a thriving business.

Mike Steinert

Washburn Rural High School Biology Teacher Glaciers Edge Winery Co-owner

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Mike Steinert looks to his left and stares at the golden vines of his 107 acres at Glaciers Edge Winery, located just outside of Topeka.

“I knew that this was a calling,” Mike said, “something that I just had to do. I was called to this profession. It is a part of who I am.”

But it’s not the winery he is referring to. It is teaching.

Mike, along with his wife, Lisa, opened Glaciers Edge Winery in 2014.

Mike says the idea to open a vineyard came about several years ago because of a challenge from his father, Jim Steinert. Jim had planted several grape vines in Lyons, Kansas. But after the freezer filled up with too many grapes, Mike’s mom demanded that they go.

“She [Mike’s mother] said ‘Either you’re going to make wine or I’m going to make jelly, but one way or another, these grapes are going to

be gone before the weekend,’” Mike said as he recalled her reaction to the lack of freezer space.

He couldn’t waste the grapes, so Mike’s dad tried something new.

He began making wine from the grapes he grew and was quite proud of his work.

“I had to tell him otherwise,” Mike said with a laugh.

His father told him if he thought he could do better, he should. Mike took the challenge to heart and the idea of Glaciers Edge was born.

That next spring Mike planted 125 vines and hundreds more the following few years.

Whether it was in honor of his late father, a driving passion for his new found hobby, or both, in 2012 the Steinerts decided to buy a winery.

They quickly realized that if the business was going to make any

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money, they needed a bigger space for seating, tasting, touring and entertainment.

The Steinerts added onto the existing winery space, building a new common area with enough space for seating, watching television and listening to live performances.

With both of them working full time in other careers, they soon found that trying to juggle 40-hour work weeks with building a new business was a bit overwhelming.

“I knew it was going to be a very long row to hoe for me to be able to do both things and do them well,” Mike said.

The demands of being an educator of AP, IB and Honors Biology at Washburn

Rural High School, along with running his own business, were weighing on him, and he knew he had to choose. In 2016 Mike made the difficult decision to step away from his classroom so that he could have more time to focus on his winery business.

Even though Mike knew he needed to focus on the winery, he also knew he was going to miss his students and his classroom.

“I knew the second I left that I needed to find my way back somehow,” Mike said.

August came around and school began again.

But not for Mike. And with that reality came a deep sadness at the thought that teaching again might not be a possibility for him.

But when you feel like you have been called to do something, often times, it continues to call you back.

When Principal Ed Raines asked Mike what it would take to get him back into the classroom again, Mike didn’t hesitate. All he asked was to be able to accommodate a shortened schedule that would allow him to be back in the vineyard in the afternoons.

At the beginning of the 2019 school year, three years after leaving his teaching position, Mike walked back into the classroom that he had left behind, and a part of him came alive again.

Teaching is the “icing on the cake,” Mike said.

Though his love for teaching has him back in a

formal classroom setting now, that doesn’t stop Mike from teaching people about wine— especially in a state that is not considered ‘wine country.’

Much like teaching biology to high school students, he aims to teach wine in an approachable manner so as not to be intimidating.

Though he doesn’t consider himself an artist, Steinert loves the artistic style of wine making including the taste, smell, and pairing with the palette. Having a third of his coursework in botany is also helpful when it comes to cultivating his land.

“I have learned so much.

It is humbling and gratifying that someone would want to spend their hard-earned money on something I made,” Mike said.

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January 2020 TK Business Magazine

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Research to Roads

JAG TRUCKING Jason and Amy Gilliland, owners of JAG Trucking, find a work balance that plays to their individual strengths in the family owned business.

At the end of each day, school librarian Amy Gilliland drives off from Jardine Middle School and makes her way 35 minutes south to Osage County.

She pulls into her driveway overlooking the land she and her husband, Jason, now own. To the right, sit large trucks with ‘JAG Trucking’ printed on the sides.

In 2006, Jason and Amy acquired the trucking company from Jason’s former boss and named it JAG Trucking (Jason and Amy Gilliland Trucking).

The couple now lives across the street from where Jason grew up — a 10-year plan in the making.

JAG Trucking serves the townships of Osage County by hauling loads of gravel and dirt and being on hand for construction projects. JAG also handles independent projects for homes and smaller scale projects in other areas, including Shawnee County.

Amy is no stranger to hard work.

The same year she and Jason acquired the business, she was finishing her master’s degree in Library Science and working full time as an elementary school teacher in Osage.

Her days consist of teaching full time at Jardine Middle School, coaching volleyball for the Jaguars, and then coming home to a variety of tasks for the trucking business. Since trucking is

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Amy Gilliland

Jardine Middle School Librarian and Volleyball Coach JAG Trucking Co-owner unpredictable, Jason and Amy need to be prepared for anything. Owning large, expensive equipment always comes with unexpected costs, like a blown tire, as well as the expected cleaning and upkeep. Though she doesn’t drive the trucks, Amy is involved with the business in numerous other ways.

“I do most of the paperwork, organizing, sweeping the shop and power-washing the trucks,” Amy said, as Jason jokes that she’ll get behind the wheel one day. “I’ll be the driver evaluator, but I won’t drive it.”

Between owning a business and running a library, Amy says emphatically that organization and communication are her life. Although, she says leaving the library after a long day is much easier than leaving JAG business behind.

“I’m doing paperwork every Sunday morning and crunching numbers. I can walk away from my library, but a business is a 24-hour thing,” she said.

Although Amy and Jason dream of going full time with the business, they

TK Business Magazine

are pretty satisfied with life the way it is now.

“I have the best job in the school,” Amy brags.

She says teaching higher level skills like research, working with the entire school, and coaching volleyball are among her favorite parts of what she does.

Amy says the trucking business and her school career are related in many ways. She wants her students to be happy and successful. Similarly, Amy works to provide the best customer service to their trucking customers because she understands that most of their marketing comes from word of mouth.

In addition to providing excellent service, being able to serve their community is the most rewarding thing for Amy and Jason.

“Knowing that we’re driving on roads that we maintain is a sense of pride—to know that you’re contributing to the community,” Amy said.

}

PHOTO SUBMITTED PHOTO SUBMITTED

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Classroom to Weight Room

SUNFLOWER

STRENGTH AND CONDITIONING

Amanda Rush, Becky Svaty and Roger Laubengayer, three of the gym owners spend their days teaching.

Photo by SAMMIE SCHURIG

It can be difficult for some people to explain their reason for choosing the job they have. For some, it landed in their lap, while others feel it was what they were born to do.

For Becky Svaty, her husband Roger Laubengayer, and Amanda Rush, teaching is just what they were born to do. Becky teaches math at Topeka West, Roger is a secondary ESL coach for USD 501, and Amanda is one of the counselors at Seaman Middle School.

“For me, it’s who I am,” Roger said of teaching, as the trio sit outside Sunflower Strength and Conditioning (SSC), the gym they also co-own outside of their fulltime teaching jobs.

While teaching is their vocation, owning a gym and exercise is their “life insurance.”

“This is us maintaining a lifestyle that we like,” Roger said.

Their gym journeys began back in 2009 when Roger opened CrossFit Topeka, and Becky helped him run it. Amanda joined the gym as an athlete and soon became a coach as well.

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Even after they sold the gym in 2014, the three continued to train together in one another’s homes. It wasn’t long before two other couples approached Becky and Roger about opening another gym. They included Amanda in the venture, and Sunflower Strength and Conditioning was born, under the ownership of eight people.

You heard that right. The fitness center has eight business owners, consisting of the three teachers, three active military, and two others who own businesses elsewhere in Topeka.

“We are pretty proud of ourselves that we can take eight different people and put a gym together, and stay together for five years,” Becky said.

“They’re our strength,” she shares, referring to her friends that have quickly become family through the ownership of the gym that included a year-long deployment of one of their fellow co-owners.

While they admit that the gym may have its challenges, all three teachers agree that it is

TK Business Magazine

Amanda Rush

Seaman Middle School Counselor Sunflower Strength and Conditioning Co-owner

Becky Svaty

Topeka West High School Math Teacher Sunflower Strength and Conditioning Co-owner

Robert Laubengayer UDS 501 Secondary ESL Coach Sunflower Strength and Conditioning Co-owner

also their time of therapy, self-care and most importantly, community.

“It’s our time to take care of ourselves and really let it all out,” Becky said.

So, what is it like being a teacher by day and a gym owner by night?

On one hand, they agree that coaching and teaching are one in the same. Although, the teachers agree with laughter that adults often don’t listen as well as the kids at school.

On the other hand, they acknowledge that time is tension. The transition from being a teacher to teaching and owning/ operating a gym came with a learning curve.

“For me, it was the time management,” Amanda said. “Juggling owning the

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business, getting my workouts in, along with coaching and my responsibilities.”

With two kids of her own, Amanda had to learn the balance of managing school life, gym life and home life.

Although coaching others and improving their own fitness brings them an abundance of joy, Amanda, Becky and Roger agree that they never saw Sunflower as a way out of teaching.

“For me it’s the students,” Becky said. “Every day is different.”

“Becky and I have been teaching for over 30 years,” Roger adds.

They have no plans to work in the gym full time. It would be too hard to step away from teaching.

} Envista’s College Roadmap is for students and parents in every stage of the college journey. We meet you where you are.

We make it easy.

envistacollegeroadmap.com January 2020 TK Business Magazine

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Books to Baking

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BONDBONS

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While teaching comes with many rewards, a huge Washburn Rural High School English Teacher salary is not one BondBons Owner of them. Courtney Bond and her husband, Randall, found that although their combined teaching incomes created a comfortable lifestyle for them, lingering student debt still hung over their heads. Seeking a creative way to tackle their debt that “wasn’t going anywhere,” Courtney found her saving grace: cake balls. Courtney decided to turn her baking hobby into a business.

She introduced her new business, BondBons, in a Facebook post right before Valentine’s Day in 2014, marketing her homemade cake balls for the holiday. She began taking orders from close friends and family that responded to the post.

Even though holiday orders were good, Courtney says she had her doubts about whether she could keep up the momentum.

“I told my husband, ‘I don’t think anyone is going to order from me again,’” she said, worried that the holiday rush had

Courtney Bond

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passed, and maybe the business along with it.

But an order for a wedding shower came through, and another, and another.

BondBons took off, and now, six years later, Courtney is busier making cake balls than she ever dreamed she would be. As the business increased, the debt decreased, and the couple celebrated being debt-free 38 months later.

If you would have told her when she first got married that she would one day be a baker, Courtney says she probably would have laughed it off.

“I had no culinary experience. I didn’t even know how to cook when we got married. This is all self-taught,” she said.

As a lover of art, Courtney may never have considered herself a baker before, but it is something she is proud of today. Her favorite part of what she does with BondBons—except maybe taste testing new recipes—is the success she has achieved through something unexpected.

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“This is something I’m very proud of,” Courtney said. “We had a need as a family, and I had this idea that has become successful.

That is super special to me.”

As an English teacher at Washburn Rural High School, Courtney spends much of her time after school grading papers and reading the books she assigns to her students, as well as coaching cheer for the Cair Paravel Lions. When 9 p.m. hits, and her two kids, Katelyn and Jackson are in bed, she works until midnight baking, rolling, dipping and packaging her baked goods to fill customers’ orders.

Courtney is taking her business to the next level by offering private cake pop classes out of her home, and she has recently finished writing her first novel and hopes to have it published soon.

Even though BondBons is thriving and growing, Courtney says she doesn’t have plans to quit her day job of teaching to bake full time.

“I just love teaching too much,” Courtney said. “I could never give that up.”

TK

Make your new year resolution to grow your business in 2020 by applying for the First Opportunity Loan!

For more information, visit GOTopeka.com/Incentives/FOF or contact Glenda at 785.246.62050 or by email at Glenda.Washington@TopekaPartnership.com.

Glenda.Washington@TopekaPartnership.com

January 2020 TK Business Magazine

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2020 | Financial | Health & Wellness | Real Estate | HR

FROM THE

EXPERTS 44

TAX TIPS

46

BUDGETS

48

INVESTMENTS

50

MENTAL DISTRESS

52

ENERGY ERGONOMICS

54

HEALTHY TIPS

56

LOCATION LOCATION LOCATION

58

BUY, BUILD OR LEASE

64

HR REAL SCENARIOS

PG.

PG.

PG.

PG.

PG.

PG.

PG.

PG.

PG.

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}

AFTER DARK

FEBRUARY 22, 2020 DILLON HOUSE 404 SW 9TH ST. | 6 - 8 P.M. Purchase tickets online at VisitTopeka.com/Chocolate-After-Dark

ENJOY A VIP EXPERIENCE!

• Tickets cost $45 per person • Chocolate sampling • Chocolate, wine and bourbon pairings (and dark beers, too) • Acoustic music by Stratton and Spring • VIP gift bag

FEATURING CHOCOLATE & DESSERTS BY:

WINERIES, BEER & BOURBON

January 2020 TK Business Magazine

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2020 | Financial | Health & Wellness | Real Estate | HR

TAX

TIPS

Should I go for a bigger refund or maximize take-home pay?

People always ask whether or not they should get a bigger refund or withhold less to maximize take-home pay from work. This is heavily fact-dependent on whether or not the person asking is more or less responsible when it comes to their finances. I’ve changed my advice over time from the motto of “taxes are like fine wine, don’t open that bottle until it’s time,” meaning minimize your refund or even pay in at tax time. Now it’s “everybody gets refunds!” With recent tax law changes, it is better that people withhold enough over the course of the year to get refunds, even if they are bigger, than have to pay in.

Another reason to be more conservative and possibly get a bigger refund is that the way that the IRS is recommending withholding is about to change. Your W4 form will look different. With those changes, people are bound to be confused, so taking the more cautious route is advisable at least for 2020.

KURT GUTH, EA, CISA CORPORATE OFFICER AMERICAN TAX SERVICE, INC. PHOTO SUBMITTED

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Business Owners Frequently Ask:

Is my gym membership a deductible business expense?

Your gym membership is not generally deductible unless it meets the “ordinary and necessary” definition of a business expense, meaning they are common and accepted in your industry and helpful to your business. Gym memberships are very difficult to justify.

Networking reasons are usually not sufficient to meet the ordinary and necessary standard.

Can my business pay for my personal car?

You can pay your personal car loan from your business, but you would classify that as an owner draw or distribution, not a business expense you can write off.

The appropriate method for deducting vehicle expenses should be discussed with your tax professional.

What documentation should I keep for my business expenses?

You should always keep receipts for business expenses along with accounting records that show the reason for the expense and the cleared method of payment, such as a statement. If one of those is missing, the IRS could disallow the expense—so may your accountant, but we generally can take your word for it that all three exist.

Are meals a deductible business expense?

You can still deduct business meals for local business discussions with clients and/or colleagues. Under the new tax laws effective in 2018, you must conduct business with the potential client or colleague at the time of the meal. The old law allowed the meal to be deductible if it was associated with the conduct of business, even if it was before or after the meeting. The deduction remains at 50% of the cost. There are quite a few scenarios so be sure to talk with your tax professional to get more clarification.

Can I deduct gifts?

You can deduct business gifts up to $25 per person, per year. Anything above that amount is non-deductible. Keep in mind that if you use promotional items that cost less than $4.00 and have your company name or logo engraved on them, those are ignored as gifts. I don’t know anyone who engraves items that cost less than $4.00, but that’s the IRS for you!

}

atstopeka.com

January 2020 TK Business Magazine

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2020 | Financial | Health & Wellness | Real Estate | HR

BUDGETS While more than

55% of new year’s

resolutions are fitness related (I think it has something to do with the 13 pounds of fudge we all just ate),

80% of those resolutions are long forgotten

by February. I say don’t waste your time on that.

Instead, join the

28% of Americans who plan

on making financial resolutions for 2020. Not only is the new year a classic season for self-reflection and goal-making, you can use many year-end resources to review the past year and make a smart plan for your business for the new year. One of the best

financial performance is a budget.

MATT DEUTSCH, CPA DIRECTOR BERBERICH TRAHAN & CO., P.A. PHOTO SUBMITTED

JANUARY 2020

There is great value in the final formal plan that is developed, but in my experience, the true value comes from going through the process of creating your budget.

Let’s walk through some business budgeting basics to see why.

tools for improving

46

Budgeting is the process of planning future business activities by establishing performance goals and putting them into a formal plan.

TK Business Magazine

Examine prior year’s performance.

The first step in the budgeting process is examining the past year’s financial performance. And when I say examine, I don’t mean just hopping on the scale and looking in the mirror. I’m talking blood tests, x-rays—a thorough and complete exam. This can be done by exporting a general ledger report from your accounting system and reviewing transactions for the previous year.

During this review, we are looking for transactions that are coded to incorrect accounts and need to be reclassified, expenses that are no longer necessary, and trends and seasonal variations in revenues and expenses.

Search for trends.

Once we’ve examined the detail and scrubbed our data, we can zoom out to the financial statement level. At this higher level, we can analyze 2-3 years of activity in search of trends and cause-and-effect relationships in our business’s financials.

BUILDING FOR THE FUTURE OF TOPEKA

Allocate resources in an annual budget based on input and goals.

Now that we have a good handle on our history (the good and the bad), we can start developing our budget/plan for the upcoming year. It is important to include all key personnel who will be responsible for executing the plan and adhering to the budget in the decision-making process.

Key revenue decisions to be made in the budgeting process include what products or services are the focus for the upcoming year, which markets and/or customer segments represent the greatest opportunity for growth and success, and when is the best time to pursue these growth areas. Budgeting expenses is simply the process of allocating resources in the most efficient manner to achieve the revenue goals.

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Track and evaluate performance.

The budget doesn’t stop with just setting performance goals. Management must evaluate and compare the actual performance with the expected performance periodically (typically monthly) to see how close the company is to achieving its goals. If certain areas aren’t on track, it is important to adjust and adapt so the company can achieve its goals.

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2020 | Financial | Health & Wellness | Real Estate | HR

INVESTING At the beginning of each new year, people should develop a plan to revamp their

investment

strategy to make sure they are receiving the biggest return on investment. That sounds like a great idea, but in reality, many consumers fail to create a plan and gain a better understanding of

financial risks and how these may have long-term effects on retirement savings.

ERIC HUNSICKER, CLU AGENT KANSAS FINANCIAL RESOURCES PHOTO SUBMITTED

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Regardless of your financial goals, you should always have a plan in place on how you are going to get there.

All too often we do what we think we should be doing without doing the research or developing a plan. Therefore, in 2020, your resolution should be to have the following goals when it comes to your finance and investments:

Set a goal and establish a plan.

Identify an accountability partner (spouse / parent / financial advisor) who will help you execute and stay on track to hit your goals.

Follow through.

Securities offered through Securities America, Inc., member FINRA/SIPC. Advisory Services offered through Securities America Advisors, Inc. Kansas Financial Resources, Inc. and Securities America are separate companies.

Early Saver Ages 20-40

These are the years to create good habits.

Based on different stages of life, here are some things you should consider in 2020:

Make your savings a priority rather than spending first and saving second.

Understand the power of compound interest.

Determine what type of investment account is best for you.

Develop an asset mix that is appropriate for your age and risk tolerance.

Remain committed to your plan.

Working Years

Retirement

These are the highest income earning years of your career, and the most vulnerable to make meaningful financial decisions good or bad.

During this time, you need to make smart investment decisions to minimize risk and maximize return.

Ages 40-60

Set goals and establish a plan to achieve them.

Continue saving first, spending second.

Understand being a tax efficient saver.

Maximize retirement savings.

Work with a financial advisor to ensure your asset mix and risk tolerance is appropriate for your timeframe and goal.

Don’t become an emotional investor.

Ages 60+

Work with an advisor to build a retirement strategy that is right for you well before your retirement date.

Prioritize what is most important and what you plan to do in retirement.

Re-evaluate your investment strategy and risk tolerance.

Stress test your portfolio for major life events such as pre-mature death, long term care and extensive travel.

Understand inflation and how you plan to keep up throughout retirement.

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2020 | Financial | Health & Wellness | Real Estate | HR

MENTAL

DISTRESS

With the end of the holiday season, the remainder of the

cold winter months can

seem to stretch on forever. It is not uncommon to feel a little blue coming down from the euphoria of celebrations and being surrounded by loved ones. For most people this postholiday

haze will clear away in a week

or two. While this is a fairly mild response to the end of the holiday season, others may face a harder struggle during this time such as the

absence of a loved one. These months following the holidays are also common

Most people will work through feelings associated with postholiday situations with little or no assistance.

Others may need more support.

It is important to watch for signs that indicate a person could be experiencing a mental health crisis.

Some things to look for:

Significant changes in personality

Changes in sleep patterns and/or appetite

Vague statements that suggest the person is experiencing despair or hopelessness

Inability to perform everyday activities

Withdrawing/isolating from others

Excessive anxiety, anger or crying

Substance abuse

for break-ups, seasonal depression and financial stress due to overspending.

KRISTIN STOCK PROGRAM MANAGER, CESP, MHFA TRAINER VALEO BEHAVIORAL HEALTH CARE PHOTO SUBMITTED

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For more information about Mental Health First Aid please visit Valeotopeka.org

Finding the appropriate time and place to approach the person and engage them in conversation is a good first step.

Knowing when and how to help someone can be difficult.

It is easy to turn away and shrug it off as a bad day for fear of over-reacting. Trainings such as Mental Health First Aid at Valeo are available to the general public and teach people how to support someone who might be experiencing a mental health crisis.

Express your concern and what you have noticed without judgment. Sometimes just listening can give great relief and support to a person. We often forget how helpful empathy and hope can be to someone who feels alone in their struggle.

Encourage the person to seek past supports or offer to help them research new ones.

Support groups, mental health services and substance recovery programs are good places to start. Employee assistance programs (EAP’s) are another great resource and are completely confidential. Keeping in mind, not everyone wants or needs professional help but seeing a primary care doctor can be a good first step to rule out any physical causation.

Lastly any attempt to reach out to someone is worth the effort.

Even if the person does not want support at this time, let them know you are there if a future need arises.

}

Home • Auto • Business • Contractors Worker’s Compensation • Life Disability • Surety & Notary Bonding

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2020 | Financial | Health & Wellness | Real Estate | HR

ENERGY

ERGONOMICS

science

of refining the design of products to optimize them for human use. It is an improvement process to help minimize and remove risk factors that lead to

musculoskeletal injuries and allow for improved human performance and productivity. I have seen first hand how an improperly positioned chair can lead to hip and back problems, a desk that is too low or too high can lead to neck and spine injuries, and how an ill-placed keyboard can lead to carpal tunnel.

CHRIS OMNI, MPH “THE HEALTH HIPPIE�

Photo By EMMA HIGHFILL

Ergonomic improvements can be implemented in energy healing to balance the life forces and alleviate stress, ailments and disease.

By incorporating breathwork and energy healing into my daily life, I have unintentionally created a new discipline called Energy Ergonomics, an individual improvement process to balance energy systems that lead to an increase in efficiency in various working environments.

Energy Ergonomics can be performed while seated, standing against a wall, or, if your work environment allows it, stretched out on the floor. Once you find your perfect posture position and all of your distractions are silenced or removed, try this simple exercise:

Draw an imaginary line from the crown of your head down the center of your body to the top of your pelvic bone.

The ultimate goal is to feel your breath, not just breathe.

1

SACRUM

Place your pointer and middle fingers at the base of your sacrum.

Inhale and exhale. Do not rush your breathing. Shallow breaths do not help with energy balance and mental clarity.

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Photo By EMMA HIGHFILL

Ergonomics is the

2

3

SACRAL

4

The Energy Ergonomics Practice.

SOLAR PLEXUS

5

Once you are comfortable with your Energy Ergonomics practice, adding mantras to your breathing pattern will enhance your experience and assist in your mental clarity.

Pay attention to your breath pattern.

HEART

6

THROAT

7

Once you discern how breath feels: Continue this practice up the imaginary line you drew from your crown to the pelvic bone (the prana tube).

If you feel like it is time for a true, internal change in 2020 and you are open to new ways to achieve balance, peace, calm and mental clarity, try Energy Ergonomics. And have a happy New Decade.

THIRD EYE

CROWN

Photos By EMMA HIGHFILL

Is it shallow? Deep? Circular? Choppy?

Is there a vibrational feeling radiating outward?

Be well. Be light.

}

■ Independent

Living ■ Assisted Living ■ Home Plus ■ Skilled Nursing ■ Memory Care ■ Short-Term Care ■ Rehabilitation

aldersgatevillage.org 7220 SW Asbury Drive | Topeka, KS 66614 | (785) 478-9440 January 2020 TK Business Magazine

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2020 | Financial | Health & Wellness | Real Estate | HR

HEALTHY

TIPS

New Year’s resolutions are a time-honored tradition all around the world. Every year, people list out wishes and goals for the upcoming year in hopes of achieving

success.

Unfortunately, according to a study conducted by the University of Scranton, only

8% of

people actually achieve their resolution goals.

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It may come as no surprise but the top three New Year’s Resolutions from 2019 were focused on losing weight and being healthier.

In an effort to increase the resolution-success rate, here are a few tips to help stay on track with your weight loss goals.

Losing Weight

Dieting and Eating Healthier Fad diets come and go. While some may result in healthier eating and possible weight loss, they are often difficult to maintain. Their rules and guidelines may be too difficult to follow and cheat meals can quickly turn into cheat days, then cheat weeks and so on.

When it comes to dieting and eating healthier, getting back to the basics is best. Choose lean proteins, eat plenty of fresh fruits and vegetables, and avoid foods with high saturated fat and sugar content. Small, healthy changes over time will be easier to follow and you’ll be more likely to stick with your diet plan.

Exercising More Diet and exercise go together like all-natural peanut butter and low-sugar jelly on whole grain bread. But before you jump right into exercising, it’s vital that you schedule a physical exam with your primary care provider. A physical exam will help you and your doctor assess your overall health and ensure your heart and body are healthy enough to perform strenuous exercise routines.

In addition to a physical exam, you should also schedule yearly appointments with your primary care provider. This will help your doctor identify possible diseases or issues that may become medical concerns in the future.

Your diet is on point and you are hitting the gym regularly, but you still cannot seem to lose weight. This is a problem we see often at the Cotton O’Neil Weight Management Center. The American Medical Association recognizes obesity as a disease.

Once obesity is established, there are factors that make it very difficult for people to lose weight and keep it off.

Sometimes dieting and exercising are not enough. If you’ve tried everything to lose weight and

still aren’t seeing the results you want, you may want to schedule an appointment with a registered dietitian, who can help guide you along your weight-loss journey.

It is easy to become disheartened when the number on the scale refuses to budge. However, there are other means by which to measure success. Tracking your Body Mass Index (BMI), taking progress photos and recording your measurements are all great ways to help motivate you along your journey.

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2020 | Financial | Health & Wellness | Real Estate | HR

LOCATION LOCATION LOCATION

A long-standing phrase used by many property experts is that the three most important factors in determining the desirability of a property are

location, location,

location.

The broad spectrum of

commercial real estate (CRE) investing encompasses many complex strategies and components to be effective, productive and financially

successful. Some of these components include market timing and demand, financial capability, access to capital, the team make up, experience, knowledge of the desired market, whether to buy, lease or build new—just to mention a few. This is true for all the CRE categories, be it office, retail, industrial, multi-family and others.

TOM MOSES, CCIM BROKER, OWNER MOSES REALTY COMMERCIAL REAL ESTATE SERVICES

One of the most important and complex considerations is the “location” within the chosen market area.

Many real estate professionals deem it to be the number one rule in real estate, yet it is often the most overlooked. You can buy or build the best facility, with a proven business model and product, but, without the appropriate location, it can often mean less than desired results, and even lead to possible bust.

Each category of CRE has its own unique set of complex location requirements, with some overlap.

In most cases, commercial real estate investment is a medium to long-term occupancy/hold, often entailing significant costs, so location can have a direct effect on current and future financial considerations.

In advance, the business owner/investor should clearly identify, outline and itemize all of the locational strategic elements needed for their intended business use. In order to determine the best location for an intended use, the business owner/investor should thoroughly investigate, study and evaluate all unique aspects of the required location characteristics, some of which are briefly stated to the right. If more input is needed, it would be beneficial to engage the services of qualified service providers most knowledgeable and experienced in such matters.

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Office Business office location criteria can be more varied. It is widely known that office locations can be proximate to governmental entities, central business districts, suburban areas and existing commercial districts.

Retail Retail CRE usually requires the most reliance on location choice parameters. Most national retailers have very stringent location template guidelines. So much in fact, they will not locate in a city or market area until those location guidelines are met exactly.

High traffic counts, high visibility from the street, proximity to other retail, demographics that fit their product(s) and supply chain are some of the key parameters.

Industrial Industrial CRE requires a much different set of location choice parameters. Industrial requires reliance on the availability of infrastructure (streets, sewer, water, power, gas, etc.), shovelready land availability, required zoning and access to relevant key forms of transportation.

}

don’t stand alone.

It’s easy to go unheard when you’re just a single voice.

You deserve to be listened to in the statehouse when it’s your business, your employees’ livelihoods and all of your dreams at stake.

Partner with the Kansas Chamber.

Strengthen your voice.

Don’t stand alone. join the kansas chamber. let us fight alongside you.

January 2020 TK Business Magazine 57 www.kansaschamber.org - president@kansaschamber.org - 785-357-6321

2020 | Financial | Health & Wellness | Real Estate | HR

BUY, BUILD OR LEASE COMMERCIAL REAL ESTATE

Depending on where a business is in its growth

decisions must be made on where to build or stage, critically important

relocate and whether to lease space, buy existing property (and maybe renovate or remodel), or buy land and build from the ground up. Working with an

experienced architect,

builder and real-estate professional to assist with analyzing the options can help you make the right decisions.

SCOTT E. GALES, AIA-LEED AP ARCHITECT & PRESIDENT ARCHITECT ONE PHOTO SUBMITTED

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During the initial discovery and pre-design phase, a road map is developed to best understand spaceprogramming needs and priorities and provide insight on contextual aspects of a preferred site location.

Discovery phase: In an expanding economy, company CEOs and small business owners often find themselves asking if they should lease, buy or build to keep pace with the company’s facility needs.

The first step to finding the right solution is to explore the advantages and disadvantages of each option: Lease vs.

Buy vs. Build. Some of the questions during this phase include:

Is the pulse or status of the local commercial real estate market conducive for leasing, owning or buying?

Is the location more important than other factors? If so, this may determine if you can only lease, buy or build in order to be in a certain location.

Does your company’s growth show it will outgrow its current or proposed space?

Are you capable of dealing with the challenges of maintaining a property?

Are your company’s liquid assets or capital such that you can tie some or all of them in commercial real estate?

Will your growth projections benefit more from a lease and its flexibility? Or will a mortgage be more beneficial due to stability?

Depreciation benefits for taxes Investment tax credit (historical, and other tax credit options) Sheltering income Appreciation of value for future equity needs or resale considerations Tax abatement zones

Choosing aspects of your project to be built by your general contractor, in lieu of independently purchased items such as furniture, fixture or equipment, can dramatically impact your opportunities to benefit from various tax advantages.

For example, the owner of a historical property could benefit from Historical Tax Credits. If utilizing State and Federal tax credits on a structure that falls within this qualified basis, the benefits can add up to considerably more than 20 percent of the value of your project in some cases.

Working with your design professional to better understand these opportunities is advantageous when looking for additional equity in the property once the work is completed. This affords you the ability to profitably sell, trade or refinance the building in the future. If you can buy a building that is already configured the way you want it to be, you are fortunate, but often this isn’t the case as all businesses have unique and individualized needs.

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Examples of financial benefits that come with owning real estate may include:

BEFORE

NEW EXTERIOR

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Once you’ve established your space programming needs and building priorities, you can better determine the best course of action for your organization. If you choose to buy an existing building, work with your architect to weigh the pros and cons of this property. Remodel or renovation work can vary in scope and cost, ranging from an inexpensive upgrade to a comprehensive remodel, which can sometimes come with a price tag that would be as costly, if not more so, than that of a new building. Having clarity in budget expectations is important. Your architect can help you keep focus on key items that need to be part of any project and determine secondary (or less important) options available for consideration when the budget will afford it.

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Buying an existing property for commercial or industrial use

The owners of 100 S Kansas Ave chose to purchase this location because they wanted a downtown location with the charm of an old warehouse and adequate square footage. This new urban location, with room to grow their businesses, would also afford them opportunities to utilize various economic development benefits to offset the costs of a major renovation. The Architect One team designed a contemporary solution inside and out to celebrate the creative culture of their marketing, videography and business coaching agencies that occupy the second floor.

NEW INTERIOR

If you need renovations in a building that you purchase, you may very well encounter challenges.

It’s advisable to have the building thoroughly inspected before you buy to uncover any real issues—such as asbestos or foundation problems.

Your design team will help you understand these types of potential concerns. Regardless of the inspection, you never know what is truly inside the building until you begin demolition and can take a deeper look at the building’s structure. Having a contingency in your budget to address potential issues will give you piece of mind if problems were to arise.

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2020 | Financial | Health & Wellness | Real Estate | HR

Leasing an existing property for commercial or industrial use

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The owner of Dialogue Coffee House chose to lease the existing shopping center location at 29th and Gage for her new café business. The right-sized square footage of the existing vacant space, competitive lease rate, excellent visibility from 29th Street and adequate parking were all important factors in her decision.

If you are starting a new business or need to be in a building right away, leasing may be the best option. Leasing is both practical and affordable, and it is a good way to get up and running with minimal cost. You can often negotiate with the landlord for a short- or long-term lease, and the owner of the building is typically responsible for its maintenance and upkeep. In some situations, the landlord may offer a build-to-suit option where the tenant can renovate interior space to his/her required specifications.

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Leasing has disadvantages too.

Finding the right space in the right location can be a long and daunting task. You may want to pay a commercial broker to do the legwork on your behalf. There’s also the risk of having a difficult landlord who doesn’t have your best interests at heart.

Depending on your lease agreement, the landlord may have the power to raise the rent and/or the final say in what you do with the space.

If your lease is for a commercial use that requires a kitchen, such as a restaurant, café or bar, your out of pocket tenantimprovement costs can be substantial because of power, plumbing, ventilation and air requirements.

Options to consider if you are not prepared to pay for such improvements out-of-pocket include amortizing them into the lease or a loan via a commercial banking entity with experience in financing requirement for projects such as this. A typical 5-year lease may not be enough time to recoup this investment and prenegotiation extensions to the lease that can be exercised as the first lease nears a close may help you avoid expensive increases in the base rate of the lease.

}

Architecture.

Planning.

Interiors.

COMING SOON!

Berberich Trahan & Co., P.A. | Topeka, KS

CELEBRATING A BRIGHT FUTURE The former medical office building located at 4301 SW Huntoon in Topeka, Kansas, is now home to one of the largest, independent, certified public accounting firms in Northeast Kansas!

When Berberich Trahan & Co. acquired and merged with CBIZ National Services, they commissioned Architect One to help repurpose this 60-year-old building, allowing employees and clients easy and convenient access, under one roof.

The comprehensive renovation developed by the Architect One team included upgraded heating, cooling, plumbing and lighting systems throughout the two levels, as well as interior upgrades to provide an efficient, well-lit and contemporary work environment. The exterior upgrades included new entries, windows, roofing and other exterior finishes. The result is a state-of-the-art facility that represents the brand and service associated with BT & Co’s excellent reputation!

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2020 | Financial | Health & Wellness | Real Estate | HR

The owners of the Deutscher Rottinghaus & Oxandale Optometry clinic were very methodical in finding the right location at 1140 SW Fairlawn Rd to build their new clinic. The team at Architect One helped them refine their floor plan and space programming early in the process, giving the owners confidence in their decision to purchase this location, a smaller and more visible site on a major road close to their previous location. In choosing to build new, the design focus centered on technology, efficiency and high design.

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If you have the capital, the time and the patience, new construction can be the most practical and profitable over the long-term. This approach has the unique benefit of affording you exactly what you are wanting and the ability to make every decision regarding the design of the building from the ground up. Utilizing your architect and the professional design team and choosing a trusted general contractor to lead your build team can give you peace of mind regarding the quality of your new building and the warranties in place for aspects of its construction and the systems throughout. This is beneficial for establishing reliable business plans where you can anticipate your utility expenses and your deferred maintenance costs for the foreseeable future. Choosing energy-efficient features, durable finishes and quality materials allows you to think long-term in your approach as you consider the return on your investment.

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Build from the ground up

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Building a standalone structure with efficient modern building systems affords the owner or tenant with a flexible, open floor plan.

Regardless of the space plan requirement, this is an attractive option for many business owners—especially retailers, medical practices, dentists and other service-type businesses.

Their business model may change over time. The ability to inexpensively make modifications to accommodate space plan needs is critical to success.

Depending on your project’s location, and if this is an opportunity to grow and expand your existing business with new construction, explore the opportunity to use new-market tax credits, and/or opportunity zone benefits.

Your accountant can help you with how to factor depreciation on your new building investment as well as different depreciation schedules for equipment and furnishings you acquire to outfit your new facility.

As with leasing or buying an existing space, new building construction is not without its drawbacks.

New construction can take time, and you must be ready to make decisions at critical phases during the design and construction process. Your site may not have some of the necessary utilities serving it and require considerable investment to meet your needs. New construction can also be impacted by the seasons and unexpected weather. Before the building shell is completed and the interiors can be improved without hindrance from the weather, it is susceptible to rain, snow and heat, which can slow or delay progress on a job site.

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Final thoughts Building and expanding a business is an exciting time for any entrepreneur, and it doesn’t come without its challenges. Difficult decisions must be made along the way, and at times, in areas that are unknown to the owner. In circumstances that offer multiple solutions with varying pros and cons for each, relying on your design and real estate experts to guide you through the process can positively impact the overall success of your company.

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2020 | Financial | Health & Wellness | Real Estate | HR

HR

REAL SCENARIOS

Employers will face many battles in 2020, a number of which will be human resources related. Many of these issues are complex challenges; however, some of the most

difficult problems for HR managers to handle are those more

common ones

that seem to keep cropping up.

Here are some tips on how you can be proactive about solving three HR-related challenges.

KRISTINA DIETRICK, PHR, SHRM-CP PRESIDENT & OWNER HR PARTNERS PHOTO SUBMITTED

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You have been informed that two employees got into a verbal disagreement in the middle of shift change. Profanity was used, and a third person decided to enter into the disagreement and displayed a weapon (knife). What do you do?

Because of the seriousness of the allegations, all three employees should be suspended with or without pay pending an investigation.

In this case, after the investigations were conducted, these decisions were made. First, the employee who displayed the weapon was terminated based on a violation of the “weapons free policy.” Second, the two other employees were terminated as well, based on “average” to “below average” performances in their respective jobs and attendance. Another reason they were terminated was because this incident happened over “shift change” and more than 100 employees observed their poor behavior, which did involve some pushing and shoving, as well as prolific profanity.

So, if the employer had chosen not to terminate these employment relationships, what would this inaction have conveyed to the employee population? That you, too, can behave extremely poorly and still keep your job.

You have an employee who has many performance issues and cannot get along with the team or the customers.

The supervisor wanted to terminate the employee, but when the supervisor finally sat down with the employee, the employee announced she is pregnant. Can you terminate this person?

Yes, you can terminate a currently pregnant woman based on performance issues, but not based on her pregnancy. Before termination, the employer and employee should discuss the nature of the performance issues. If these issues are related to the employee’s pregnancy, an accommodation may be necessary. In this case, many “verbal” warnings had been given, but nothing was placed in writing. By the time concerns were documented, the information was not current. Nevertheless, the employer made the business decision to terminate, because they were losing customers and employees due to her behavior.

Did she sue? Yes, the Pregnancy Discrimination Act (“PDA”) amended Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 to “prohibit sex discrimination on the basis of pregnancy.” The PDA covers discrimination “on the basis of pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions.” Did she win? No, it was settled.

Like most employment cases, it did not go to trial because of cost.

The HR Manager has told you that an upper management staff member became intoxicated at a company-sponsored function and acted inappropriately with their subordinates. To make matters more interesting, the behavior occurred in front of a lot of staff who took pictures and recorded the incident on their cell phones.

Since no one is “complaining,” should you discipline this person?

Alcohol. I see problems with it at conferences, out of town company events, and company celebration parties (i.e., holidays, a good year, etc.). So, you need to have some expectations with these events as to what is appropriate when it comes to alcohol consumption.

In this case, you should do something about it. Even though no one has complained, the liability is on the employer because they have been informed of the situation. The employer needs to investigate, and then make a business decision on next steps. Here, the employer terminated the executive who acted inappropriately with their subordinate employees. The employer made this decision because of the executive’s leadership status and its desire to send a message to all employees that this type of behavior would not be tolerated.

TK

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MADE FROM SCRATCH

By MIRANDA ERICSSON Photos by EMMA HIGHFILL

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Treat yourself to a made from scratch breakfast at a locally owned Topeka bakery.

Topeka residents can choose from a fantastic selection of small-batch bakeries that all offer handmade baked goods.

Each offers something unique and fresh.

Whether you want to sit down and enjoy a cup of coffee with a scone, grab a box of caramel pecan rolls to enjoy at home with family, or treat your colleagues to a bagel breakfast, you’ll find truly exceptional breads and hot breakfasts at Pizagels, Josey Baking Co. and Baking Traditions.

Photo by EMMA HIGHFILL

PIZAGELS PIZZA & BAKERY

}

Photo by EMMA HIGHFILL

On a recent Friday morning, Pizagels hummed with quiet activity. Two people worked on laptops, and several small groups chatted over coffee. Steady traffic pulled through the drive-thru window, where smiling staff handed over bagels, smoothies, and to-go cups. In the back, customers could see owner Jim Burgardt through a window into the kitchen as he shaped fresh dough into pizza crusts for lunch.

Breakfast at Pizagels means quality, variety and convenience. You’ll find around a dozen flavors of bagels and cream cheese, both savory and sweet, including seasonal favorites. Get there early to be

Jim Burgardt, owner of Pizagels Pizza & Bakery, has operated for 25 years at the corner of 29th and Fairlawn.

THANK YOU, TOPEKA j ƶ 4 A i ƶ p A ^

(785) 235-1700 | RowHouseRestaurant.net

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sure of finding your favorites because these bagels are in high demand. Or, for a heartier breakfast, go for the biscuits and gravy, or a sausage, egg and cheese croissant—all made from scratch every day.

Top it off with fresh brewed coffee or an espresso drink.

Looking for something even more special? If you plan ahead, you can pick up an unforgettable breakfast pizza with your choice of toppings. These are not on the menu, but if you place your order the day before, you can get a pizza with eggs, bacon, sausage or whatever else sounds good.

Pizagels’ drive-thru has a steady flow of cars.

“Customers love the convenience of the drive-thru,” Burgardt said. “To-go orders from the drive-thru make up about 60% of our sales.”

For diners who prefer to eat inside and enjoy the ambiance, Pizagels has plenty of cozy seats and a relaxing atmosphere.

Burgardt notes that many customers express surprise at the spacious dining area when they visit for the first time.

“The majority of the time, we’ll start seeing someone on a more regular basis once they’ve tried us out once,” Burgardt said. “It’s just getting them to notice us and stop in that first time.”

Burgardt’s restaurant, originally named Bagel Express, has weathered 25 years of ups and downs at its 29th and Fairlawn location. It has survived big construction projects, economic downturns, and a fire.

Through it all, Burgardt was determined to keep going, and he credits his loyal customers for supporting the restaurant, even during the worst times.

“I almost gave it up after the fire,” Burgardt said, “that was a really tough time. People reached out to offer support and encouragement, and that really made a difference.”

Burgardt’s commitment to succeed drove him to innovate and find new ways to draw in customers. Originally,

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the restaurant was only open from 6 a.m. to 2 p.m., with a focus on breakfast. In order to stay viable, Burgardt looked for a way to expand into evening hours. For about a year, he offered gelato in a wide range of flavors, but folks just weren’t buying.

When he decided to add pizza and beer to the menu, he found the right combination. In 2011, he changed the restaurant’s name to Pizagels Pizza and Bakery, to show off the new addition to the menu. Pizagels also does catering for local businesses and families.

Most recently, Pizagels fans may have worried that a new development across the street, including a pizza restaurant, might impact Burgardt’s bottom line.

“It didn’t hurt us! It’s actually been good for us,” Burgardt said with a laugh. “I’m glad to say that we’ve actually seen a little more traffic on the weekends, and of course our regulars come in like they always do.”

Burgardt estimates that about 80% of their customers are regulars, and many have been coming to the restaurant for years.

“We’re kind of like that show Cheers,” Burgardt said, “we want to know your name. We care about people. That means offering quality food and a good experience, but even more it means that we always offer our best customer service. We treat people right.”

} Photo by EMMA HIGHFILL

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January 2020 TK Business Magazine

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Photos by EMMA HIGHFILL

JOSEY BAKING CO.

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Joe and Lyndsey Vawter were stunned at the instant success of Josey Baking Co. which is located in the Westboro Mart.

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TK Business Magazine

Josey Baking Co. is not just a restaurant, it’s a destination. As part of the Westboro Mart, the storefront is unique and beautiful. The smells of fresh breads, bacon and coffee greet customers as they open the door, and a welcoming atmosphere makes customers feel at ease.

Josey Baking Co. offers a wide menu that changes daily, with everything prepared fresh in small batches.

Kolaches are one of their signature dishes, made with a soft, slightly sweet potato bread, filled with sweet or savory flavors.

The cinnamon rolls are created from scratch in a three-day process, and the sea salt chocolate chip cookies sell out every day.

The restaurant also serves delicious coffee from Blue Jazz, roasted right here in Topeka.

Lyndsey and Joe Vawter opened Josey Baking Co. in the fall of 2016, and they were honestly stunned by how quickly the business became a success.

Originally, Joe planned to continue with his full time job while Lyndsey worked full time with the bakery, but the volume of business was so great that the couple found themselves working long into the night and returning very early in the morning to fulfill the demand. Josey Baking Co. was an absolute hit, and word of mouth brought in more customers every day.

Lyndsey brings the passion for baking and the training and experience to produce amazing baked goods. She began baking at a young age with her mother and pursued an education in the culinary arts followed by hands-on jobs in baking, including work as a pastry cook.

Lyndsey focuses most of her work in the shop on specialty and off menu items, such as croissants and special orders.

“Customers will say that they spent years in France, and Lyndsey’s croissants bring them back there,” Joe said.

Joe has what he calls “a gift for gab,” a description that makes Lyndsey laugh.

“He’s really good at connecting with people and building relationships,” Lyndsey said.

“I can say hi with a first name to more than half of our customers,” Joe said. “I want to know people on a first name basis, that’s important to me.”

Lyndsey also gives credit to friends and family for helping them get the shop ready for business and working to spread the word before they opened. Cleaning, building cabinets and decorating was done with the help of their support network. The couple said that this made the design and decorating personal and customized.

“They know what we like and what we’re comfortable with,” Joe said, “so our personalities are all over Josey.”

The two also noted that they had what they call “dumb luck” in hiring an incredible staff who work hard and care about treating people right.

“We struck gold,” Lyndsey said. “Our staff are customer service gurus who demonstrate maniacal work ethic.”

Of course, every business has its challenges. For Josey Baking Co., the biggest challenge has been knowing when to say no to more orders.

“It’s hard,” Lyndsey said. “We want to make people happy, but if we take on too much, we won’t put out the product that people deserve. We simply want to do our best and make honest good food, fresh, and from scratch every day.”

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Photo by EMMA HIGHFILL

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BAKING TRADITIONS

Photos by EMMA HIGHFILL

Nancy Clasemann, owner of Baking Traditions, opened her store front at Huntoon and Gage in 2018 after three years of fulfilling special orders from her own kitchen.

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On any given day in Baking Traditions, the aroma of freshly baked bread fills the air of the roomy, sunlit shop. In the display case up front, customers will find a variety of baked goods such as cookies, scones, pecan rolls, muffins and more.

In addition to the breakfast breads and pastries, Baking Traditions offers at least two hot breakfast options daily, such as breakfast pizza and hot breakfast sandwiches. On Saturdays, the menu includes quiche and biscuits and gravy. For the lunch crowd, Baking Traditions serves stuffed baguettes, chili, soup, grab and go salads, sandwiches made with fresh bread and more.

The name Baking Traditions speaks for itself. The bakery focuses on handcrafted, European style breads, many of which are made from recipes passed down in owner Nancy Clasemann’s own family. She notes that the focus on tradition is not just her family’s tradition, though.

“Tradition also means the custom of how the recipe itself was traditionally made,” Clasemann explained. “Not all of these recipes are the way my family would have made them, but they are made with traditional ingredients, in the traditional way.”

An example are the scones, which Clasemann proudly says have passed the taste test of a former colleague from England, as well as visitors from Ireland and Australia, all of whom praised the texture and taste.

Clasemann has been baking since she was a little girl. She

was raised in a big family, so her mom baked a dozen loaves of bread a week to keep everyone fed. Nancy remembers “helping” from the time she was very small with tasks like patting the dough after it was shaped. As she got older, she really became a help, and learned a lot from her mother. As an adult, baking was a creative outlet, a fun and satisfying hobby that slowly grew into a side business of special orders and farmer’s market sales.

When Nancy, like many others in the Topeka area, lost her full time job at Payless, she decided to seize the opportunity to make baking her full time business. In October of 2018, after three years of filling special orders and baking for farmers markets in her home kitchen, Baking Traditions opened its doors. After a great first year, the bakery is becoming established as a go-to for fresh breads and baked goods, as well as memorable breakfasts and lunches.

Despite the welcoming loveliness of the shop near Huntoon and Gage, Clasemann notes that Baking Traditions sells much more food to-go than for dine-in. If you’re in a hurry, the staff is definitely accustomed to helping people get in and out quickly.

“The majority of our business is take-away,” Clasemann said. “Folks will get a box of breakfast rolls, quiche or biscuits and gravy to take home to their families.”

Baking Traditions also has an amazing catering menu, so a good part of the business is still in special orders. They offer a fantastic variety of pastries, breads, pies, hors d’oeuvres, box lunches, and more.

Baking Traditions is also committed to buying and baking with local ingredients as much as possible. They buy their produce from a local farmer, and their flour is from a Kansas mill. They serve coffee roasted by Caffiend in Topeka, and sell bags of coffee beans.

“It’s important to support each other,” Clasemann said, “and fortunately for us, supporting local vendors also means we’re getting the best product possible. I know exactly where my lettuce is coming from, and that makes me feel good about what I’m serving.”

TK

Photo by EMMA HIGHFILL

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THE Shifting from ART Good OF to THE PITCH GREAT

By DR. DAVID PRICE

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F

OR SOME OF US, the easiest part of creating a new business is the idea, the harder part is selling that idea to strangers who can help you.

Bankers, angel investors, partners, suppliers, even your spouse will require convincing that your idea has merit, value and is worth the risk. Enter the business pitch or a shorter version sometimes called an elevator pitch.

It is important to note that there are several types of pitches

that entrepreneurs should develop, and it depends on the context and audience as to which you should use. For example, the classic elevator pitch is based on the idea of telling someone about your new venture in the time it would take to ride in an elevator, typically 30 seconds to two minutes.

It is designed to provide BEST PRACTICE SUMMARY a glimpse of the new venture with the goal Keep it short, be focused of generating interest and stay on task. and another detailed conversation with the Explain clearly listener at a later date. what your product or service is.

However, if this short conversation does grab What is unique their interest, and you about your product/service? are invited to provide a more detailed pitch Who is the target market? presentation, the pitch How will you acquire them? will change considerably.

This article will focus How will you make money? on the extended version Revenue model? of the business pitch, where an entrepreneur What is the potential will incorporate a visual for growth, scale? presentation with the verbal pitch.

Be enthusiastic, There are many show passion. articles, books and Internet information Dress well, on “how to pitch,” look professional. and gleaning from the many sources of Anticipate questions information available, a and have answers. “best practice” summary on pitching would Practice, practice, include any or all of the practice your pitch. following in the box on the right.

HOW TO PITCH

AN EVOLVING PROCESS However, the art of pitching has been evolving. To make your pitch more impressive, the following five areas can help entrepreneurs improve their chances of a successful pitch: Include a story behind the numbers Hard data is critical to convince potential investors. You must show quality research of the industry and potential markets to help investors understand the scale of your proposed business venture and that you know what you are talking about. But often numbers themselves need more explanation. For example, including a problem faced by a single member of your target market (with a name), and the pain points felt by this individual, and how your product or service can/has helped them, can lead to a relatable journey for the investor.

This makes the argument for numbers stronger if the investor has a clear emotional story to relate to.

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Sales projections that are bottom-up The idea of targeting a smaller percentage of a larger market is simply hard to believe and lacks substance. Rather, show how you will build sales from the micro level, for example the number of sales you can generate through different channels and at what price point. Perhaps through various market segments you are targeting, or the range of customer choices in your product mix. Are there other areas of potential revenue, such as consulting or licensing, that are all based on your unique set of

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circumstances? Instead of looking at the broad total market and choosing an arbitrary slice, focus on your realistic, actual sales potential and build towards a macro view.

Validation of your product/service Early sales is the best validation of your product or service. If customers are already spending money, your projections are much easier to believe and it shows that you are moving on from the conceptual stage to proof of concept.

For example, have you acquired any purchase orders or perhaps a signed letter that a future customer will buy from you?

Have you had a Kickstarter campaign where people will invest based on future products being sent to them? At the very least, are there customers using the product/service currently, even if you have given it to them for testing? Include their testimonials if you have them.

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Pitch presentations are more visual and use less text The familiar (boring) bullet point presentations on black and white slides are thankfully becoming less common. Business thought leaders such as Guy Kawasaki, Seth Rodin and others have long argued against the tired, standard PowerPoint presentations so often used in business, suggesting instead the power of highly graphic, pictorial and concise slide presentations. Often called

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Dr. David Price is an Associate Professor of Marketing at Washburn University School of Business.

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a “slide deck,� these visual presentations are expected in investor pitches and are so much a part of the pitch they are shared with investors along with a business plan (or in some cases instead of one). It should be somewhere between 10-20 pages. Kawasaki has emphasized the 10/20/30 rule: no more than 10 pages, take no longer than 20 minutes for the entire presentation, and no font less than 30 point.

Have two pitch decks: one for the live pitch and another to deliver to investors If the slide deck is left for investors to review, you will need information on them as they will not recall your entire pitch. The problem is when you are presenting you don’t want to crowd the slide with too much information. So the answer is to create two slide decks, the first used in the oral presentation is more graphical, has more pictures and illustrations with less text, and a second slide deck that is left behind as a standalone document or file to be viewed later. Both can be given to the investors, and they should both match in their flow and messaging, but each is different in the amount of information provided.

By incorporating some or all of these suggestions you can move your next pitch presentation experience from good to great.

TK

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SCENE ABOUT TOWN

PHOTO 1 Erin Aldridge, Jayhawk Area Council Boy Scouts; Enedina Patch, Stormont Vail

PHOTO 2

Topeka’s Top 20 Under 40 Banquet RAMADA HOTEL & CONVENTION CENTER NOVEMBER 14, 2019

Alicia VanWallaghen, Leaping Llamas Artisan Shop; Shanna Simpson, Topeka Zoo; Bo Turney, Irigonegaray, Turney & Revenaugh, LLP; Tiffany Noller, University of Kansas Health System St. Francis Campus; Damon Parker, Auburn-Washburn USD 437

PHOTO 3 Sergeant Cody Burger, Topeka Police Department; La Manda Broyles, Shaner Early Learning Academy; Officer Timothy Bell, Topeka Police Department; Craig Barnes, Shawnee County Health Department; Josh Barr, Graystone Painting and Refinishing

Photos by KEITH HORINEK

PHOTO 4 Eric Maydew, Kansas Big Brothers Big Sisters; Tyler Levier, Prairie Band; Melinda Neuman, Advisors Excel; Aaron Freeman, Topeka Fire Department; Shanaé Holman, Topeka JUMP

PHOTO 5

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Tracy Duran, Stormont Vail and Synergy Athletics; Lindsey Dreiling, Aviation Strategy; Christy Classi, Classi Management Services; Aubrey Coufal, Topeka Housing Authority; Whitney Casement, Goodell, Stratton, Edmonds & Palmer, LLP

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January 2020 TK Business Magazine

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SCENE ABOUT TOWN

B&B Theatres Grand Opening

PHOTO 1 Grant Sourk, Kirk & Cobb and Jennifer Sourk, Midwest Health

29TH AND FAIRLAWN RD NOVEMBER 6, 2019

PHOTO 2 Dana and Vince Frye, Greater Topeka Partnership

PHOTO 3

PHOTOS SUBMITTED

Wendy and Matt Pivarnik, Greater Topeka Partnership

PHOTO 4 Wayne Pancoast, Jayhawk Area Council Boy Scouts of America and Kerry Pancoast

PHOTO 5

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Brent Trout, City of Topeka and Kelly Trout

PHOTO 6 Veronica Padilla and City Council Member Mike Padilla

PHOTO 7 Aaron Classi, UMB Bank and Christy Classi, Classi Management Services

PHOTO 8 Joleen and Jim Klausman, Midwest Health

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PHOTO 9 Jesse Baker and Brittanie Bagby Baker; Bobbie Bagby; Bridget and Bob Bagby, Jennifer and Brock Bagby, B & B Theatres

PHOTO 10 Dr. Shekhar and Jayashree Challa, Kansas Medical Clinic

PHOTO 11 Susan and Jerry Farley, Washburn University

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Here to Help You Rebuild Your Life®

Divorce and Joint Tax Returns

When going through a divorce, the deadline for filing a tax return can come. When parties are married, most ordinarily file a joint tax return unless they are living separate and apart.

However, once has a divorce is taking place, filing a joint tax return can be tricky. With a joint tax return, both parties are signing that all the information contained in the tax return is correct.

It is true that filing jointly can come with various tax benefits. To find out the pros and cons, it is essential to talk to a certified professional accountant.

But when a party signs a joint tax return, both parties are agreeing to their income — in a joint and individual sense. These income figures are then largely used to calculate child support and spousal support. It is hard, if not impossible, for a party to come into court and later dispute these figures if they signed the joint tax return.

In some cases, one party might have a concern that the other spouse is overstating or understating their income. They also might be concerned

about various other components of the tax return itself in terms of its truthfulness and accuracy.

When one or both of the parties are operating a family business, or have other non-traditional assets, tax returns can be even more complicated.

There can also be more risks involved in terms of the various schedules that are attached.

In these circumstances, while there might be a tax benefit associated with filing jointly, this could be a reason a party opts instead to file a separate tax return where they note that they are married, but living separate and apart. Otherwise, a party could theoretically end up being audited or, worse yet, get in trouble with the Internal Revenue Service.

For parties going through a divorce, it is vital not just blindly to sign a joint tax return.

Instead, many need to seek out the advice of a certified public accountant before they make their decision along with discussing the matter with their divorce lawyer. Stange Law Firm, PC limits their practice to family law matters including divorce,

Greater Topeka

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The choice of a lawyer is an important decision that should not be based solely upon advertisements. Kirk Stange is responsible for the content. Principle place of business 120 South Central Ave, Suite 450, Clayton, MO 63105.

Neither the Supreme Court of Missouri/Illinois/Kansas nor The Missouri/ Illinois/Kansas Bar reviews or approves certifying organizations or specialist designations. Court rules do not permit us to advertise that we specialize in a particular field or area of law. The areas of law mentioned in this article are our areas of interest and generally are the types of cases which we are involved. It is not intended to suggest specialization in any areas of law which are mentioned The information you obtain in this advertisement is not, nor is it intended to be, legal advice. You should consult an attorney for advice regarding your individual situation. We invite you to contact us and welcome your calls, letters and electronic mail. Contacting us does not create an attorney-client relationship. Past results afford no guarantee of future results and every case is different and must be judged on its merits.

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January 2020 TK Business Magazine

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As a local shopkeeper, I am always getting asked weird questions. Here are some of my favorites from 2019.

“Shall we open a joint checking account? I would want you to feel safe if we did, so I would use one of my alias’s… which is perfectly legal. How do you think celebrities open checking accounts?!”

—I politely declined.

“Do your grandchildren go to Jay Shideler?”

—I am in my early to mid 30’s. I do not have grade school aged grandkids.

I did research face cream later that evening.

“I know the owner here personally. She is one of my very best friends.”

—I had, in fact, never met this person.

I did not feel the need to introduce myself.

“Can I work here? What would the pay be?”

—A very motivated 6 year old.

“I feel if you changed your business name by one letter, you could become a multimillion dollar business!”

—Said to me in person with three follow up phone calls. This person did not have a business background, just a vested interest in unique spellings of words.

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“I am having a rough day. Do you by chance have a shot of booze I could have?”

—We felt for him, but offered hot tea instead, as he was returning to work.

Out for a post work drink, someone hands me their resume. “You look like someone who would be in charge here, I want to give you my resume.”

—I take a sip of my adult beverage, and say “I am not, but way to go on your can do attitude!”

“I am buying this because my husband will hate it, and I think it’s funny.”

—The best kind of decorating!

“You have great skin, can I take your picture?”

—No, and reinforcements were called over.

Husband comes over points to an item.

“Can you hold that for me? I want to get it for my wife’s Christmas present.”

Wife comes over 10 minutes later. Points to the same item. “Can you make sure my husband does not get this for me?”

—Shopkeeper in a very awkward position.

“This is my favorite dance move.”

—8 year old busts a move for about 45 seconds, and it was awesome!

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Empowering Your

Journey.

There is no one-size-fits-all approach to weight loss. At the Cotton O’Neil Weight Management Center, we provide our patients highly individualized programs to empower them on their weight loss journey. From diet and exercise plans to counseling for bariatric surgery, we will work with you to develop a plan that fits your goals and lifestyle. Visit the Weight Management Center page on stormontvail.org today for more information.

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