July-August 2013

CONNECT BUSINESS MAGAZINE P.O. BOX 452 NICOLLET MN 56074-0452 CHANGE SERVICE REQUESTED

IN THE SPOTLIGHT

The Story of Dr. John Springer Brothers John and Dale Springer were raised in Cannon Falls, the sons of Walter and Ruth. Walter was a service station attendant who learned how to read by saying out loud children’s books and bedtime stories to his two boys. His wife, the 1947 New Prague valedictorian, provided the books.

Mom and Dad stressed education and work. The boys had Star Tribune paper routes—John’s began in third grade—and both John and Dale received high school scholarships from the newspaper. Theirs was a blessed and joyful upbringing in a caring community.

In an interview, brother John, now Dr. John Springer, an Orthopaedic & Fracture Clinic surgeon, said:

John Springer, M.D.

At age 5, my brother Dale developed juvenile onset diabetes mellitus. He was the first new diabetic patient of a young family physician in town, and we became this physician’s poster family for new diabetics in his practice.

Treatment then required regular balanced meals and daily insulin shots—and I always had to look away when Dale self-administered his shots.

In an eighth grade science class, I remember my teacher asking for volunteers to do blood typing. I eagerly volunteered and went up front to have my finger pricked in order to type my blood. The blood didn’t flow out of my finger and onto the slide well and I had to milk my finger repeatedly to get enough blood to complete the test. While walking back to my desk, I fainted and fell into a heap on the floor. To this day, my teacher back then still teases me how that was not such a good start for a potential surgeon.

A Hamline University chemistry degree, a Fulbright scholarship, and a University of Minnesota residency filled out the resume of this orthopedic surgeon one day calling OFC home. His eighth grade science class still can’t believe it.

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Contents

THE MAGAZINE FOR GROWING BUSINESSES IN SOUTHERN MINNESOTA

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COVER STORY

Labor Of Love

STAFF & CONTRIBUTORS Publisher: Jeffry Irish Editor: Daniel J. Vance Art Director/Staff Photographer: Kris Kathmann

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Advertising Manager: Steve Persons

Feelings in Mary Jeanne Jernberg of ardent admiration for her husband bubbled up and out like artesian well water. In our Connect Business Magazine interview, she spoke of her “best friend” and “companion” and how their separate business careers had been set afire by mutual support.

Contributing Photographers: Daniel Dinsmore, Art Sidner Contributing Writers: Carlienne Frisch, Chris Edwards Production: Becky Wagner Josh Swanson Circulation: Becky Wagner

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Mailing: Midwest Mailing, Mankato Cover Photo: Daniel Dinsmore

The year 1994 was the worst and best of times in the life of Jeff Flood, owner of Calendar Specialists of Minnesota and Sportsman’s Specialties, both operating from his rural North Mankato home. As for worst, Flood said to Connect Business Magazine, “I lost (my dad) that year from a heart attack. I’m proud of my dad. He was my boss, my father, my friend, and my hunting companion. At the time, he was everything to me.”

Straight Arrow

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IN EVERY ISSUE

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Press Releases National Opinion 4

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8,800 for July/August 2013 Published bimonthly

CORRESPONDENCE Send press releases and other correspondence: c/o Editor, Connect Business Magazine P.O. Box 452, Nicollet, MN 56074 E-mail: editor@connectbiz.com (please place press releases in email body)

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For Jay McAninch (pronounced MAC-aninch), it’s not about bows and arrows. It’s family and teamwork. McAninch, president/ CEO of the Archery Trade Association for the last 12 years, manages an organization of about 600 manufacturer members, a few thousand retail members, an annual budget of more than $4 million, and an international headquarters in New Ulm.

Editor’s Letter Off-The-Cuff

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ABOUT CONNECT Locally owned Connect Business Magazine has ‘connected’ southern Minnesota businesses since 1994 through features, interviews, news and advertising.

Connect Business Magazine is a publication of Concept & Design Incorporated, a graphic design firm offering print design, web design, illustration and photography. conceptanddesign.com

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EDITOR’S LETTER

Inside Out Business This offbeat issue features four ridiculously successful businesspeople doing a great deal of business outside our nine-county Connect Business Magazine reading area, even nationally and internationally.

Yet they all chose our area for their home—or business home.

Our cover standouts, Dr. Gary and Mary Jeanne Jernberg, have interests diverse as an eyetooth is long.

Gary owns a Mankato periodontics practice and has become a prolific, international, pharmaceuticaland medical-industry inventor. Accomplished wife Mary Jeanne, a cover story in her own right, has a North Mankato headquarters and staff that oversees ten restaurants outside our reading area, including nine Subway locations in Rochester.

Our company profiles include North Mankatoan Jeff Flood, who owns Calendar Specialists of Minnesota and Sportsman’s Specialties, with both companies doing the bulk of their business outside our reading area. Finally, straight arrow CEO Jay McAninch (that’s spelled correctly) and the nonprofit Archery Trade Association cover the nation while representing a full quiver of archery manufacturers, retailers, sales representatives, and distributors—all from ausgezeichnet New Ulm. May you and 8,800 other readers enjoy our latest effort connecting you with interesting businesspeople in our nine-county region, from the Iowa border to Sibley County, and Waseca to Springfield.

Sursum ad summum,

ARCHITECTURE | ENGINEERING |

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PLANNING

Daniel J. Vance Editor

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North Mankato couple researches, tests, and blends a complex concoction of pharmaceutical, medical, and fast food businesses.

Feelings in Mary Jeanne Jernberg of ardent admiration for her husband bubbled up and out like artesian well water. In our Connect Business Magazine interview, she spoke of her “best friend” and “companion” and how their separate business careers had been set afire by mutual support. In kind, husband Gary framed his wife and himself as “absolutely best friends” who were “so much in love with each other.”

They worked each other through college, were tag-team parents raising children, and continue to be co-cheerleaders reaching high. This lasting love affair has carried Dr. Gary and Mary Jeanne Jernberg along through life, and their business successes have been a by-product—and what a by-product it is.

For starters, Mary Jeanne has transformed a 3M medical researcher career and a Minnesota State MBA into her and her son currently co-owning ten restaurants, including nine Subway locations. They make more than mayonnaise and tuna on wheat. They mentor 140 employees. Her home office is in North Mankato.

Gary merged chemical engineering and dental school degrees into Mankato-based Southern Minnesota Periodontics, and on the side became perhaps our region’s most productive inventor. The titles of his many patents may seem bland, such as the vanillasounding “Local delivery of agents for disruption and inhibition of bacterial biofilm for treatment of periodontal disease,” but really they are anything but bland. For example, his patent to treat periodontitis became the outrageously successful Arestin, the flagship product of licensee OraPharma, which is owned by $3.6 billion Valeant Pharmaceuticals International. Boston Scientific has used his intellectual property in its cardiac stents.

Other Jernberg inventions have the potential to pale past successes, including red-hot technology that could eliminate any need for fluoride in toothpaste.

They have grown their businesses with each other, side-by-side, supporting and encouraging, holding hands, Mary Jeanne and Gary. Theirs have been labors of love. continued >

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Labor Of Love

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CONNECT: Where did you two meet?

Mary Jeanne: After returning from a trip out West, my college roommate and I went out with others for the evening to talk about the trip. Gary happened to be at the same place with his friends.

Gary: It was unusual because this nightspot was 15 to 20 miles from each of our homes. Neither of us had been there before.

It was a chance meeting.

CONNECT: So you just walked up to her and said, Want to dance?

Gary: Yes. I had just returned from a business trip helping start a chemical processing plant in Iowa, working long hours, and was home for the weekend. I was tired that night and didn’t want to go out with my friends. But they convinced me. So the place had a nice band, and I just saw her, and thought, Wow! I asked her to dance.

She was kind enough not to turn me down.

CONNECT: What do you like about your wife?

Gary: Everything. She’s optimistic. She has a heart of gold. She’s always thinking of others. She has a delightful sense of humor and likes to tease.

CONNECT: Give an example of her heart of gold?

Gary: She had an employee who was going through a difficult illness, was separated from her husband, and had children. Over Christmas, the employee needed hospitalization. No one was there with her kids. So Mary Jeanne made sure they had a Christmas tree to decorate. She bought Christmas presents for the kids and spent time there.

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CONNECT: What do you admire about her regarding business?

Gary: She’s the brains in our marriage.

(Mary Jeanne laughs.) Some people have a skill set in which they can do certain things well, but she can do just about anything when putting her mind to it. When I met her, she was one of only a few in her University of Minnesota pharmacology group doing basic research on kidney metabolism. The kidneys are major metabolic organs. She tested drugs in animal

Dr. Gary and Mary Jeanne Jernberg

models. Under a microscope, she could do the microsurgery to remove a rat kidney, keep it alive, and profuse drugs through the kidney to see how the drug would metabolize. Her surgical skills were impeccable.

No one else there could do it.

Mary Jeanne: After I left the University of Minnesota, they asked me to come back at night because the PhD graduate students were having difficulty with the surgical and kidney perfusion method. I was working at a new job in drug metabolism with 3M Riker Laboratories.

Gary: She was excellent with pharmaceutical testing and research, and extremely good at these surgical procedures. When we met about 1970, I visited to see what she did at work and to take her out to lunch. She was the one who turned me on to medical research. That’s one reason I switched careers to being a periodontist.

CONNECT: Now Mary Jeanne, it’s your opportunity to embarrass him.

What do you admire most about him?

Mary Jeanne: He’s bright, a quick thinker, and a wonderful father, husband, and role model for our children. He sets a good example for them to follow. He helped them with science projects and spent lots of time with them at the ice rink in Mankato for ice hockey and figure skating. He took an active role as a father. He’s also a great companion and my best friend.

Gary: That goes the other way, too. We are absolutely best friends. We are so much in love and think the world of each other.

CONNECT: You both started out in similar careers, and both went into something completely different. Mary Jeanne, what was there about your original career as a researcher that enhances what you do now with coowning nine Subway restaurants?

Mary Jeanne: Every job I’ve had prepared me for success. As a researcher, I learned time management skills and the ability to work with different types of personalities. At 3M Riker Laboratories, I worked with the people that came up with the formulas for chemicals we used, others doing bench research, and others that wrote the end result. I learned to work as part of a team. As a business

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Labor Of Love

owner, if you can mesh personalities, learn what people are good at, seize what they are good at, and put that all together in one package, you will have a great product. I loved working for the University of Minnesota (medical school, department of pharmacology) and 3M Riker Laboratories. I went to work every day to play. It was never a job and always exciting. When we moved to Mankato in 1980 because of Gary’s career, I suddenly didn’t have the same work opportunities. I could have commuted, but we had small children to raise. I decided to get an MBA at Minnesota State and merge that with my scientific knowledge to create other opportunities. I graduated from MSU in 1989 and started teaching finance in the College of Business.

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CONNECT: And you did merge that with other opportunities. You started Orange Julius and Karmelkorn franchises soon thereafter at River Hills Mall. That was different than being a researcher.

Mary Jeanne: Basically, 3M Riker Laboratories was all about putting things together in a test tube. At Orange Julius, we were putting fruit into blender bowls. The reason I started Orange Julius was to send our children to college because I had witnessed my parents struggling to help make my tuition payments. By then, I had a nice job at MSU and this was an extra side job. The other reason was to teach our children responsibility. It taught them time management skills because they had to balance school, sports, and their jobs.

CONNECT: Children seem your top priority.

Gary: Absolutely, number one.

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Labor Of Love

Mary Jeanne Bio Mary Jeanne Jernberg grew up on a farm in west central Minnesota and graduated from St. Francis High School. She graduated from St. Cloud State with a biology/chemistry degree in 1969. She went on to work in the University of Minnesota Medical School pharmacology department for three years before joining Riker Labs, owned by 3M. Said Mary Jeanne, “I was a senior biochemical pharmacologist and did pharmaceutical research for (3M) nine years until Gary graduated from dental school. We have three children, Michael, who is in business with me; Anne, a dentist; and Timothy, who recently graduated from dental school.”

Dr. Gary and Mary Jeanne Jernberg

CONNECT: I have heard some business owners talk as if they have to sacrifice one for the other, meaning if they spend more time with their children they will have less for their business. Somehow you two have been able to execute a good balance.

Gary: I would say so. When she started Orange Julius, she was a professor at MSU as well.

Mary Jeanne: I taught finance in the MSU College of Business about three years. I really enjoyed working with young people. They often were afraid of the finance class and many thought they were going to fail, but within the first few days I usually could help them get comfortable. Then I was given the opportunity to move out of teaching and into the graduate school to direct its programs until 1998. That year, our oldest son, who had already graduated from high school and was attending college, really wanted to become an entrepreneur. So we purchased two more Orange Julius/Dairy Queen stores.

CONNECT: Gary, what things in your background and career as a chemical engineer with General Mills and Ecolab influence what you do today?

Gary: I grew up in a working class neighborhood on the east side of St. Paul. It would have been a struggle for me to pay for college. I was the first person to get a four-year scholarship from the Hull Foundation, which gave scholarships to deserving students from

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Labor Of Love

needy families. Now I’m a Hull Foundation trustee. For my education, I chose the Institute of Technology, University of Minnesota, and wanted to be a chemical engineer. I sang in a rock band and during summers worked on the factory line at Whirlpool.

I started off with General Mills before going to Ecolab, where I worked on a project to produce non-phosphate detergents to reduce water pollution. Eutrophication occurs when phosphates, such as fertilizers, go into lake and river water and create algae blooms that can kill fish. The Great Lakes were dying. I was able to successfully design a non-phosphate detergent using microparticles via spray drying.

“Dentistry has traditionally used a mechanical mode of treatment. You do things with your hands. You scale teeth.

You extract teeth. You do restorations on teeth. But there was a pharmacological need.”—Dr. Gary Jernberg.

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That was just after meeting Mary Jeanne.

I then realized I was very interested in what she was doing, and thought of going to medical or dental school, but decided on dental because that allowed me to do things with my hands. I chose periodontics because it was a relatively new field. After graduating in 1980, I decided to work on an invention because I didn’t want to scrap my engineering education entirely.

So that’s when I patented what eventually became the Arestin product for treatment of periodontal disease. OraPharma was formed to develop and market it.

CONNECT: Arestin was your first

Dr. Gary and Mary Jeanne Jernberg

invention. What exactly was there about your background as a chemical engineer that had given you this unique insight into inventing it?

Gary: Dentistry has traditionally used a mechanical mode of treatment. You do things with your hands. You scale teeth.

You extract teeth. You do restorations on teeth. But there was a pharmacological need. The problem was that bacteria form biofilms resistant to antibiotic penetration. They have mechanisms for preventing antibiotics from getting in, so you need super-high concentrations of antibiotics to fight them. I was able to devise a method to get the concentrations very high, and exactly where the antibiotic was needed.

CONNECT: As opposed to marinating the whole body with antibiotics.

Gary: Right. Targeted deliveries like this are in vogue now. I was able to devise microparticles to be flowable and smart in the body, adhere when damped with fluid, and distribute the medication in a high concentration in with time duration.

That’s where the engineering came in. That was my first invention and now it’s the number one selling product of its kind in the world. That was a good starting point to keep inventing. I didn’t want to be a one-trick pony.

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CONNECT: Your invention of Arestin must have opened a lot of doors for you.

Gary: Many companies are aware of my past work when I contact them. I also get occasional contacts from companies interested in having me work with them or help them solve problems. For example, I have a patent licensed by Boston Scientific for use in cardiac stents for drug elution or timed release of a drug to keep stents open.

The process where arteries become blocked is called stenosis. Originally, metal stents were placed in arteries to prop them open, but in about half the cases the vessels would restenose or become blocked again. So various agents were used to keep them open. Eventually, drugs and polymer coatings were used to radically reduce this rate of restenosis. Boston Scientific licensed JULY/AUGUST 2013

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Labor Of Love

my patent, along with other intellectual properties, to provide a proper delivery scheme for these drugs. My mother had had quadruple bypass surgery in the 1990s, so this technology was personally important and satisfying to me.

CONNECT: Other doors?

Another patent I have was licensed to W.L. Gore & Associates, which has a medical division making artificial vascular grafts.

A project I’m working on right now involves bacterial biofilms. The Centers for Disease Control estimates the majority of human infections are bacterial biofilm infections. The bacteria form colonies and extra-cellular matrix components as a survival mechanism to help fend off the body’s self-defense system. I have signed a license agreement with Unilever in London and Amsterdam to couple my patent applications with theirs to deal with inhibition of bacteria in the forming of biofilms.

Bacteria are single-celled organisms.

They can land on a surface, such as a urinary catheter, lung, or a periodontal location. They elicit quorum-sensing molecules, which signal them to form colonies with protective extra-cellular polymer matrix scaffolding for their survival and protection. Then they switch on virulence factors that might lead to infection.

I have coupled my intellectual property with Unilever, which has acquired the intellectual property of an Australian start-up company spun off from the University of New South Wales. Two of their professors were out scuba diving off the coast. One was a marine biologist. There are lots of bacteria in seawater and seaweeds usually get a coating of bacteria. But there was one species of seaweed that was totally clear of bacteria.

The marine biologist snipped some fronds, and later found they contained a group of compounds that antagonize the quorumsensing molecules of bacteria. The bacteria would land on the surface of this seaweed and just leave without colonizing. This was a major breakthrough because the compound didn’t kill the bacteria—it just told them to go away naturally.

So the Australians and I got in touch. I signed a joint agreement with their company.

They then sold the technology to Unilever.

Today, I have the rights in oral applications in dental materials and Unilever has rights for other applications. As for the oral applications, I have conducted and sponsored research at the University of Minnesota.

CONNECT: As I see it, this product could have far more potential than Arestin.

Gary: Possibly. We have put this product

in testing into composite white tooth restorations because they are the most commonly used in the world. We blended in the inhibitory compounds at a 3 percent level and ran in vitro tests with a bacterium called S. mutans, which is the main tooth decay bacteria. We ran plugs of this blended composite material in a biofilm chamber and compared them to control fillings that didn’t have the inhibitor. We had a 99.5 percent reduction in biofilm. We were able to bind the inhibitory compounds to the composite materials so they won’t wash away. They will have long time duration. The goal of this research is to extend the lifetime of dental restorations.

Presently, dental restorations last on average six years—and fail because of secondary tooth decay around the restoration. We could also use these compounds to repel bacteria in orthodontic bracket coatings where patients get white spot lesions, in implant abutments, on denture coatings, and more.

Through an agreement with the State University of New York, I have another project that involves dispersion of bacteria from biofilms. A researcher there discovered the molecule bacteria employ to disperse from biofilms once they have formed. With Unilever, the idea was to inhibit these bacteria from forming biofilms, but with SUNY the compound tells the bacteria to disperse and go away. With this technology, I have the

Dr. Gary and Mary Jeanne Jernberg

“I typically do some of each every day. I like challenges and would be bored otherwise. The more things I have on my plate, the happier I am.”—Mary Jeanne Jernberg. shared rights to oral care applications. There are medical and industrial applications, too.

censing this technology from us and taking it through regulatory pathways worldwide.

CONNECT: These compounds could be put into toothpastes and mouthwashes.

Gary: My rights with Unilever will not be for personal care, but for dentist-applied materials, but with SUNY it is for all of those things including toothpaste. So we are actively pursuing licensees—third parties to license these technologies and take them through regulatory pathways.

CONNECT: Mary Jeanne, let’s talk about you. You started off with one Orange Julius and a Karmelkorn at River Hills Mall.

Mary Jeanne: At one time I had four stores. I still have an Orange Julius/Dairy Queen Treat Center in St. Cloud. I used to have stores at Southdale Center, and in Duluth and Mankato. I sold those stores in 2004 and expanded with Subway. I had started with Subway in 1998—after researching various franchisee opportunities and looking for a health food option. When I started, Subway had 7,000 locations, and now has about 40,000 worldwide. I really enjoy the activity of wearing lots of hats.

CONNECT: Years ago while working for a health and beauty aids brokerage, I sold toothpaste. I knew about recent developments then in toothpaste, such as the emergence of tartar control and whitening products. But what you are talking about is on another planet. This is revolutionary.

Gary: Yes, it possibly is. We are talking with companies to get them interested in li-

CONNECT: Such as?

Mary Jeanne: I oversee the operation, hire management, do financials and lease negotiations, and negotiate new projects with the

bank. I deal with building construction and tenant improvements. I typically do some of each every day. I like challenges and would be bored otherwise. The more things I have on my plate, the happier I am.

Many times, we are the ones giving young people their first job, and then get to watch them blossom. We have some that started at age 16 and are still working after graduating from college. They work up the ranks. Some even have moved on to own their own store.

My son Mike and I have nine Subways in and near Rochester, about 140 employees, and three support staff working out of my office from our North Mankato home.

Gary: Our son is an excellent mentor and role model. These young employees really look up to him.

CONNECT: Gary, when you have all these other revolutionary things going on, doesn’t your work as a periodontist seem a bit pedestrian?

Gary: I really enjoy what I do. Periodontal

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Labor Of Love

disease is the world’s main cause of adults losing teeth. It’s also a risk factor for systemic diseases such as heart attack and stroke. I have a wonderful staff and have been here 32 years. I love working with people. The work I do here gives me immediate gratification, whereas some projects I do as an inventor might take twenty years to develop.

In my periodontal business, the vast majority of referrals I get are from the dental community in an area that includes southern Minnesota and northern Iowa. Last year, we had 150 referring dentists. I enjoy helping people.

CONNECT: Gary, you mentioned in our interview years ago that you best enjoyed “the hunt.” What did you mean?

Gary: It’s one thing to get a patent, but another to develop a prototype, negotiate licenses, do clinical testing, and get FDA approval. You have to find a company that wants to invest the money, time, and personnel to take these products through regulatory trials.

That can take decades. That’s the hunt.

CONNECT: From what I understand, it took a great deal of funding to bring Arestin to market over 20 years.

Gary: We were using an existing drug called minocycline hydrochloride (an antibiotic). It wasn’t a new drug. We were using a new delivery system. The cost would have been considerably higher to get regulatory approval of a new drug.

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Dr. Gary and Mary Jeanne Jernberg

CONNECT: It seems like such a risk. A pharmaceutical company could spend hundreds of millions of dollars over decades and then a competitor could bring in a product to make all that time and effort worthless.

Mary Jeanne: I saw that all the time when I was working with 3M. You might have five products that all looked like they could be fabulous. Then we started testing, and that would wash out four of the five, and then five years later the fifth would be washed out.

Then all of a sudden you have spent a huge sum and have nothing to show for it. People don’t understand what is going on behind the scenes in drug research and development.

Labor Of Love

Getting to know you:

Mary Jeanne Jernberg Education: St. Francis High School (Little Falls), 1965; St. Cloud State, BS in biology/chemistry, 1969; and Minnesota State, MBA, 1989.

Organizational involvement: Phi Beta Kappa, member; Subway marketing, board member.

Getting to know you:

Gary Jernberg Education: Johnson High School (St. Paul), 1965; University of Minnesota, BCE, 1969; University of Minnesota, DDS, 1978; University of Minnesota, MS, periodontology, 1980).

Organizational involvement: Minnesota Dental Association, American Dental Association, Minnesota Association of Periodontists, American Academy of Periodontology, and Hull Foundation (trustee).

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Labor Of Love

I’ve encouraged my children to reach for the sky and do the best they can with their skills. Gary has never put a roadblock in front of me, and I have never put a roadblock in front of him in terms of each of us reaching for the sky. —Mary Jeanne Jernberg CONNECT: Mary Jeanne, explain your decision-making process in getting involved in Subway?

Mary Jeanne: Like I said, I was looking for something healthy that could be profitable, had a good track record, and would be around awhile. Some franchises go by the wayside. Like with pharmaceutical companies, you can have a concept, and spend money, and have nothing to show for it in five years. I wanted something with a proven track record. I interviewed a number of franchisees—not just with Subway. I had a business plan, and had to approach banks

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and get qualified to become a franchisee.

You just don’t walk in and become one. Becoming a Subway franchisee involves being trained at their corporate offices in Connecticut. If after three weeks you don’t pass the training, you can’t become a franchisee.

Gary and I support each other in our decisions. Of course, I wouldn’t have spent money like that without his support because owning so many restaurants was going to take time from the other things we do as a couple. I have always supported his decisions and he has supported mine.

When I was trying to learn more about

Subway, some (franchisees) were happy to talk about sales and profitability up to a point, but I wasn’t in their system and they were more guarded. I could have been a future competitor. It took a while to find people willing to share about their business.

You still can’t learn everything from them.

CONNECT: How do you make your decisions?

Gary: When I was done with dental school in 1980, we were looking at moving to San Diego or Colorado Springs. But a group of dentists from Mankato invited us down,

Dr. Gary and Mary Jeanne Jernberg

including Gary Eichmeyer, John Kanyusik, and Jim Walton. They encouraged us to start a practice in Mankato. A big factor in our decision was that our kids’ grandparents wanted us close to them. We were both 33 and had a young family and wanted to become established. Mankato was a “virgin” area for my field. It didn’t have a periodontist.

As for my interest in invention, I was keeping up on my chemical engineering background, and did a lot of reading and investigating—not only in my field, but in medicine and peripheral fields.

We would go on vacation to the Virgin Islands where Mary Jeanne and the kids and I would have fun. It was really laid back.

Often while there, I would get an idea for an invention. It would just be a spark of innovation that would come from virtually nowhere and I would have to chase the idea down. I have developed most of the ideas for my inventions myself. I have two patent attorney groups in the Twin Cities and lately have had collaborations with other

inventors and companies to add strength to what I’m doing and speed the process.

I’m a trustee, has been a great way to lift up young people. The area where I grew up in St. Paul is pretty rough today. It’s diverse demographically. It’s great seeing how some of these kids at Johnson High and Harding High have been resilient and successful after having gone through adversity.

Mary Jeanne: I’ve encouraged my children to reach for the sky and do the best they can with their skills. Gary has never put a roadblock in front of me, and I have never put a roadblock in front of him in terms of each of us reaching for the sky.

We worked each other through college.

CONNECT: What do you two do outside of work together?

Gary: It’s important as a married couple to stay in touch. We go for long walks and have date nights. We both like golf—and are pretty bad at it—and spending time with friends.

Mary Jeanne: I’m putting in more hours now than Gary. My stores don’t close until 10 p.m. and some open at 6 a.m. I don’t have office staff working after 2:30 p.m. If a call comes in, and there is a disaster, I have to attend to it. As an owner, you can’t quit at 5:00 p.m. One reason I like having my work office at home—I could have my own building—is when getting an important call at 6:00 p.m., for instance, I don’t have to drive to my office for information.

CONNECT: Neither of you would have done this well in life without the other.

Gary: That’s a big part of our success. We are each other’s best advocates.

Editor Daniel J. Vance writes from Vernon Center.

CONNECT: What gives you two the most satisfaction in life?

Gary: The Hull Foundation, of which

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CONNECTING BACK 1 YEAR AGO

JULY/AUGUST 2012 Marcia Bahr gave her curtain call this issue.

Her introduction ended: “Perhaps no one person regionally has more top-tier marketing and public relations experience in more industries. Though generally unaware of Bahr—who remembers Mary Maxwell Gates?—southern Minnesotans certainly recognize the names of businesses she has helped build up. One of her finest accomplishments was her backstage role helping Mankato-based Midwest Wireless take a bow and final curtain call in 2005-06 after selling to Alltel for $1.075 billion.”

Companies featured: L&S Electric (Springfield) and Jarraff Industries (St. Peter).

Memorable quote: “Who did the first two-way text messaging in the United States? AT&T claims it, but that’s not true.”—Marcia Bahr, of working for Midwest Wireless.

5 YEARS AGO

JULY/AUGUST 2008 Arrow Ace Hardware owner Dave Neiman made our cover.

Companies featured: W.W. Smith Inn Bed & Breakfast (Sleepy Eye) and National Recognition Products (Mankato).

Memorable quote: “So now here I was standing shoulder-to-shoulder with the President of the United States. After the meeting ended, I telephoned my wife and told her to watch CNN.”—Dave Neiman, of meeting President George Bush in 1992.

10 YEARS AGO

JULY/AUGUST 2003 Cover story: Louise Dickmeyer (Mankato).

Profiled companies: Rivervine (New Ulm) and Swedish Kontur (St. Peter).

15 YEARS AGO

JULY/AUGUST 1998 Cover Story: Jerry Dotson (Mankato native).

Profiled companies: Thin Film Technology (North Mankato) and Unidoor (Gaylord).

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Read the entire articles at connectbiz.com

BUSINESS TRENDS

GUN CONTROL

Not long ago, the Los Angeles Times reported a major disconnect between what Americans believed about gun crime and official government statistics. Even though incidents of gun crime have fallen the last 20 years, most Americans believe these types of crimes have risen. For example, a recent Pew survey found 56 percent of Americans believing gun crime was up since 1992, with only 12 percent believing the opposite.

Yet according to the Bureau of Justice Statistics, the number of non-fatal gun crimes fell 69 percent from 1993-2011 and fatal gun crimes 39 percent. Perhaps the greatest beneficiaries of this freefall have been small business owners and their

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to 354,000) all fell significantly from 19922011. About 41 percent of all robberies and 21 percent of aggravated assaults involve firearms, and fewer robberies and aggravated assaults mean employees and business owners have less exposure to gun crime.

In sum, gun crime and violent crime both have been dropping the last 20 years, even while the population of America has grown by 56 million. Some explanations for the decrease could include an aging population (older people commit less gun crime), stricter sentencing laws, increasing incarcerations, and improving video surveillance and alarm systems. For the record, the FBI reported Mankato in 2011 had 21 robberies and 49 aggravated assaults, and North Mankato had 3 robberies and no aggravated assaults.

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employees, who sometimes have to face gun crime firsthand.

The Los Angeles Times conjectured: “It’s unclear whether media coverage is driving the misconception that such violence is up. The mass shootings in Newtown, Conn., and Aurora, Colo., were among the news stories most closely watched

by Americans last year, Pew found.

Crime has also been a growing focus for national newscasts and morning network shows in the past five years but has become less common on local television news.”

Adding more good news, current FBI statistics show fewer violent crimes overall.

(Most violent crime does not involve handguns.) For example, from 1992-2011, U.S. incidents of violent crime fell from 1.9 million to 1.2 million, which included a sharp drop in a subset of violent crime: murder and non-negligent manslaughter.

From 2007-11, the number of murders involving handguns fell from 7,398 to 6,220, which rivaled 1960s levels. Liquor and convenience store employees are especially vulnerable to being murdered by handgun.

In other violent crimes often involving handguns and disproportionately affecting small business owners and their employees, the number of aggravated assaults (1.26 million to 750,000) and robberies (672,000

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BUSINESS TRENDS

CHILDCARE

By the slimmest margin, the Minnesota Legislature passed and Governor Dayton signed into law the Family Child Care Providers Representation Act. The result: The vast majority of childcare providers in our reading area are unhappy.

In essence, the law unionizes childcare providers, but does provide one “out” for providers not wanting unionization. The provider can opt out of having to pay union dues and fees, and union representation, by turning away any current or future children enrolled in the state-subsidized Child Care Assistance Program, or CCAP, which subsidizes childcare for low-income families.

Mankatoan Tracy Stengel owns Little Sunshines Child Care, and is a Blue Earth/ Nicollet County board member of the Minnesota Licensed Family Child Care

Association (MLFCCA) and a MLFCCA liaison to the Caring and Sharing Daycare Association, which represents Mankato area childcare providers. Most licensed childcare providers are one- or two-person operations.

In a Connect Business Magazine telephone interview, Stengel said, “There are about 75 daycare providers in the (local association) and out of those we had 40 to 50 at (a recent) meeting. All the providers sitting there said they would no longer be taking CCAP children. This could affect hundreds of kids in Blue Earth and Nicollet Counties. In rural Minnesota, this law will cause even more problems because those families will have fewer places to go, and the parents (in many cases) will end up paying more by having to send their child to a larger childcare center.”

Stengel claimed AFSCME, the union involved, will collect up to $2.8 million in annual dues off Minnesota childcare providers and offer little in return. To cover the added cost of union dues, she said the relatively few childcare providers accepting CCAP children will likely raise rates.

Stengel has nothing against unions, but

had been doing “just fine” running her own one-person small business before the law and felt she didn’t need union representation. The only help the union could offer her anyway would be in lobbying for CCAP reimbursement increases, she said, but any increases would be unlikely—and even if occurring, the state would probably pay for the increases by allowing fewer families into the program. She said, “So I will not be able to accept any CCAP families.”

Another local association childcare provider, who requested anonymity, said the biggest losers from the new law are the lower-income children, who will have to say goodbye to their loving providers and same-age friends, and become adjusted to larger daycare centers that may offer less one-on-one attention. Parents of these children will have fewer choices and probably have to pay more for daycare, too.

Said Stengel, “They have been trying to unionize all in-home childcare the last eight years. I believe (this law) is just about (the union) getting a foot in the door and I see them coming after the rest of the providers eventually.”

“All the providers sitting there said they would no longer be taking CCAP children. This could affect hundreds of kids in Blue Earth and Nicollet Counties.”

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CIGARETTE TAX

Besides having the nation’s fourthhighest income tax rate—behind California, Hawaii, and Oregon— Minnesota soon will have the sixthhighest cigarette tax at $2.83 a pack. Proponents claim the recent tax increase will decrease cigarette use and create revenue for necessary spending projects.

However, what the new tax won’t do is stop Minnesotans from purchasing cigarettes online or at retail outlets in Iowa, which has a $1.36 per pack tax. Minnesotans smoking one pack a day can save $536 annually by purchasing their cigarettes in Iowa, and a two-pack-a-day smoker can save $1,072. Minnesota smokers near North Dakota can save even more: a twopack-a-day smoker there can save $1,744.

At 17 cents per pack, Missouri has the nation’s lowest cigarette tax.

The situation seems ripe for black market sales. About 75 percent of Minnesotans live within a 30-minute or so drive of a neighboring state, which includes all or parts of the Twin Cities, Rochester, Moorhead, Winona, Duluth, Austin, Albert Lea, Marshall, Fergus Falls, Worthington—and Fairmont and Blue Earth.

New York State has the nation’s highest pack tax at $4.35. A January Tax Foundation report estimated that 61 percent of all cigarettes sold in New York were smuggled in from other states. The New York Association of Convenience Stores estimated in late 2012 that cigarette tax evasion was costing the state government $1.7 billion annually and erasing 6,700 jobs.

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By Daniel J. Vance Photo by Kris Kathmann

North Mankato calendar specialist and gun dealer shoots double-barreled career.

The year 1994 was the worst and best of times in the life of Jeff Flood, owner of Calendar Specialists of Minnesota and Sportsman’s Specialties, both operating from his rural North Mankato home.

As for worst, Flood said to Connect Business Magazine, “I lost (my dad) that year from a heart attack. I’m proud of my dad. He was my boss, my father, my friend, and my hunting companion. At the time, he was everything to me.”

In case you haven’t yet heard one of southern Minnesota’s best business success stories, Jeff ’s father Chuck Flood arrived in Mankato in 1961 to head up a start-up telephone book publishing business for Mankato Citizen’s Telephone Company, now HickoryTech.

Back then, Chuck was Advertising Unlimited’s only employee and MCTC his sole customer. Flood eventually built Advertising Unlimited into something special. R.L. Polk bought the company in 1987 and Bic Advertising & Promotional Products now owns it. If not for Flood’s genius and drive, Sleepy Eye today probably would have up to a thousand fewer residents and southern Minnesota dozens fewer spin-off businesses.

As for being the best of years, and in order to help salve their 1994 loss, Jeff and his uncle Bill, Chuck’s only brother, went on what became a life-changing moose hunt in Canada. They and others bagged six bull moose, and a bull elk, mule deer, black bear, timber wolf, and a full-curl Dall sheep. Flood said, “That trip cemented my uncle as my closest friend until he passed away in 2007 on my birthday. Bill and I developed a bond with each other. It was the most incredible hunt of my life.”

Because of his father’s influence, Jeff Flood today operates Calendar Specialists of Minnesota, an advertising and promotional products firm since 1990. Due in part to a love of hunting stoked on the trip noted above, Flood in 1996 started Sportsman’s Specialties, a highly personalized hunting and gun dealer business. Both businesses serve clients nationwide. He operates both alone, from home. continued >

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By 1990, when Flood left his job as vice president of national sales and marketing, the company had grown from being one employee in 1961 and no income to nearly 700 employees with $65 million in revenue.

“We moved here in 1961 due to my father’s business,” said 60-year-old Flood from his living room adorned with deer, moose and bear trophies arranged around a 16-foot wide stone fireplace. “My father had an office on Second Street in the Masonic Temple building next to Mankato Citizen’s Telephone. That office was the foundation for Advertising Unlimited.”

Chuck Flood was an entrepreneur par excellence, who “hung out” at the Elks Club downtown and did much of his business there through a social network. By 1967, the company had 13 employees and was publishing telephone books for 60 customers. Flood’s appetite for growth had resulted in the purchase of several printing companies, including two from Sleepy Eye, Hass Press and Wallace Stationers, calendar and funeral home printers, respectively.

In 1970, MCTC sold AUI’s phone book publishing arm to focus on calendar printing. The trimmed down company

grew rapidly and in 1973 closely held AUI went public to facilitate even more growth.

While Jeff’s dad was off working, mother Jean covered his back at home. The Floods had seven children in seven years, five girls and two boys, and mom wove everyone together tightly. While dad and mom worked—and they worked very hard—Jeff caught the bug, too. All before age 18, he worked at Mankato Envelope Company and Southview Hills Country Club. He was a cook at several restaurants and worked at Advertising Unlimited part-time. But his favorite job was driving a tow truck from ages 16-19 for Art Kost and later, Brad and Holly Reeves of Kost Service (now All-American Towing), where Flood learned valuable “people” experiencing having to handle angry car owners who had their vehicles towed during snow emergencies, for example.

After graduating from Mankato West in 1970, Jeff began a two-year Advertising

Unlimited training stint in which he attended Minnesota State to learn sales and marketing, and spent three months in each company production department to learn printing inside and out. “They did that so I could talk intelligently, put a calendar together in my mind and on paper, and quote it correctly,” said Flood. “I spent time on the road with the vice president of national sales and marketing with the intent of someday having the accounts as mine.

What I did the next 15 or so years following was call on corporate accounts throughout the nation to put together custom calendar or calendar co-op programs.”

His father retired from AUI in 1984 to Scottsdale, Arizona. Three years later, a bidding war between three companies drove Advertising Unlimited stock from $7 a share to $59, when R.L. Polk became the sole owner and Jeff Flood’s boss. By 1990, when Flood left his job as vice president of national sales and marketing, the company

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Sportsman’s Specialties | North Mankato

had grown from being one employee in 1961 and no income to nearly 700 employees with $65 million in revenue. Today, owned

by Bic Advertising & Promotional Products (BIC APP), the company is the nation’s largest calendar manufacturer.

Before leaving the business his father founded, Flood honed a business plan to start his own company. He said, “I was trying to figure out what would happen if I left.

It was scary. I wouldn’t be getting a salary, didn’t have insurance, my retirement was up to me, and I would have to be everything from janitor to CEO. I had to buy office equipment, a computer, fax machine, and get an 800 number. I decided then not to have employees. I wanted to work by myself.”

In a way, Flood never really left the company his father founded. He started off as a distributor for his old company and was

allowed to take with him many of his old accounts. In return, he sent 100 percent of his calendar orders to his former employer.

Flood called his company Calendar Specialists of Minnesota. Although he began selling only calendars for promotional or advertising purposes, customers started requesting other promotional/advertising items, and so he expanded into selling customized coffee mugs, pens, jackets, caps, golf products, and a “million other” items.

He said, “My calendar advertising business now is nationwide. Through calendar co-op programs, for example, I call on many large corporations that have dealers or distributors. I distribute brochures to these dealers to join in on the corporate calendar program. Many times corporate co-op money is available for the dealers or distributors in order to lower their cost.

I have one program where calendars are

In a way, Flood never really left the company his father founded. He started off as a distributor for his old company and was allowed to take with him many of his old accounts. In return, he sent 100 percent of his calendar orders to his former employer.

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Duck Hunting Flood and his father used to frequent a hunting shack on Swan Lake near Nicollet. In 1963, they were duck hunting near there on opening day in exceptionally windy conditions. They heard some yelling from the rushes, and saw decoys and coolers floating on the water. A boat had capsized, and three men were standing in water-filled chest waders up to their necks desperately trying to spit out water after each wave. They were literally drowning in their tracks.

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100 percent reimbursable from the corporation, and 50 percent reimbursable for the advertising specialties that I also sell, such as golf items, jackets, pens, and caps. I have probably shipped to every state in the union over the years.”

He drop ships to his customers in cartons on orders typically ranging in size from 300 to 2,000 items. Due to confidentiality concerns, he wouldn’t reveal his client base except for one account, Ducks Unlimited, which has been his since 1991. He supplies calendars under the Ducks Unlimited logo and license name throughout the U.S. and Canada, and over the last 20 years their agreement has resulted in Ducks Unlimited earning more than $250,000 in royalty payments.

And then came fateful 1994. Flood’s father passed away that year.

To heal the hurt, Flood and his uncle, Bill, went on a hunting trip in Alberta in which Bill replaced father Chuck as Jeff ’s best friend.

Above Jeff ’s fireplace today, under a moose rack, a visitor can read a plaque dedicating the memorable hunt to his father.

But it wasn’t the first time. He and his father had hunted and fished a great deal together. Jeff grew up learning to shoot guns, bow and arrow, and hunt and fish with his father. Their hunting included many trips to South Dakota to hunt with Uncle Bill for pheasant and deer. Jeff went on from there hunting across Canada for moose, caribou, black bear, ducks and geese, and many U.S. states for elk, mule deer, whitetail deer and antelope. Jeff finds the challenge of archery hunting big game one of the most rewarding.

In 1996, Flood saw a business opportunity that had the potential

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Iraqi Scope Said Flood to Connect Business Magazine, “I had a couple call me from Sherburn saying their son was in Iraq and was very disappointed with the scope on his gun. They wanted to know if I could get a particular scope for his AR rifle. I said it was very expensive, but they didn’t care how much the scope cost. They just wanted me to ship it directly to Iraq. It was an $1,800 scope and I shipped it off without thinking anything further of it. It was just as another order.

“Six months later, I got a knock on the door. It was the soldier and his father. They had driven here all the way from Sherburn just to thank me for the scope. He had made it back in one piece and wanted to personally thank me. That was very rewarding.”

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Sportsman’s Specialties | North Mankato

to complement and enhance his promotional and advertising specialties business. He said, “I had been around hunting my whole life, had shot handguns, muzzle loaders, rifle, and pistol. I wanted to create a company through which I could share my knowledge with customers. If you walk into Gander Mountain, Scheels or Cabela’s, you can purchase an item. But if you want to sit down and say, ‘Look, Jeff, I’ve never been elk hunting before. What do I need to hunt elk? How do I call elk? Where should I apply to go elk hunting?’ I can help you with that advice. I help customers buy the correct gear, the right caliber rifle and scope, and maybe will even go to the range and site in the gun so it’s ready for their hunt.”

He said, “I’m only finding maybe 10 percent (from my suppliers) of what my customers are asking for.

Manufacturers can’t keep up and are only doing allocated orders. President Obama has become the best salesperson the gun industry has had. My Internet sales have been on fire.

As a gun dealer through Sportsman’s Specialties, Flood’s sales have been booming. He said President Obama’s gun control proposals have “put the whole U.S. on alert.” As a result, he said, handguns, AR platform rifles, and ammunition are being purchased faster than firearms companies can manufacture.

He said, “I’m only finding maybe 10 percent (from my suppliers) of what my customers are asking for. Manufacturers can’t keep up and are only doing allocated orders. President Obama has become the best salesperson the gun industry has had. My Internet sales have been on fire. Any ammunition I can get, any guns—I don’t have to wait long before they sell.”

The Internet has provided a flood of business for Flood. Through it, he sells guns and ammunition through other firearms dealers to end users in virtually every state of the union.

It wasn’t easy for Flood to become a gun dealer. Initially, in 1996,

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Flood operates both businesses out of his home.

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Cross Fire At times, Flood manages to combine Calendar Specialists of Minnesota and Sportsman’s Specialties—his businesses of 23 and 17 years, respectively—into a unique revenue stream.

As an example, about eight years ago, he came across a raffle calendar used to raise funds for conservation organizations and realized he could tweak the idea into an opportunity that utilized both his businesses.

He said, “For instance, I (through Calendar Specialists of Minnesota) do a calendar program for a Duck’s Unlimited chapter in Harrisburg, South Dakota. Their supporters purchase a calendar for $30. In the back of the calendar there is a listing of guns. The chapter has a drawing every week for a free gun, so 52 guns are given away over the course of a year. The chapter sells 1,500 calendars and pays us for the calendars and the guns. I (through Sportsman’s Specialties) service the guns to the winner, and the Ducks Unlimited chapter takes their profit.”

With similar promotions, Flood has worked with a number of groups besides Ducks Unlimited, including conservation groups in Sherburn, Mankato, Nicollet, and Blue Earth.

He said, “I don’t want to get too many (of these programs going at once) because then I have to service them all. One year, I had four programs and gave away 280 guns. It creates additional business because sometimes winners want to trade their gun for another or maybe their rifle needs outfitting and they need a scope. The winners either come here or I can ship their gun to a dealer near them.”

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Sportsman’s Specialties Founded: 1996 Address: North Mankato, Minnesota Phone: 507-947-3956 Web: sportsmansspecialties.net

he had to undergo tough ATF inspections, regulations, and scrutiny. He runs all local customer purchases directly through an FBI computer that looks for red flags such as felonies, repeated DUI charges, gross misdemeanors, and tax issues, for example.

Over the years, he said, only a half dozen customers have failed the background check.

Handguns are his best-selling items, with the brand names Colt, Kimber, Glock, Ruger, and Sig Arms leading the list. Popular calibers include .38 Special, .9mm, .357, .40, .45 ACP, and .44 Magnum, which runs the range, he said, for personal protection, conceal and carry, and hunting.

He said, “People can come here to discuss their needs. They see what I have, and if they have never owned one can get coached on what to buy. Customers often ask basic questions such as how to load and safely handle their weapon.”

Flood never charges for advice—he’s just glad to help. About 90 percent of the time a customer receiving advice ends up buying a gun.

Flood has turned 60 and doesn’t plan on retiring. He runs his businesses by himself except for occasional light help from his wife since 1974, Jayne.

He said, “I have freedom doing this—I can hunt and fish, and choose my hours. And with the Internet I can do business about anywhere, which is what I do when I’m away on hunting or fishing trips. My customers have no idea I could be talking to them from a walleye boat. Also, I don’t have someone breathing down my back and telling me what to do and when or how to do it. I’ve made plenty of mistakes, but overall, it’s been an extremely positive venture for me.”

Editor Daniel J. Vance writes from Vernon Center.

Comment on this story at connectbiz.com JULY/AUGUST 2013

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Riverfront Park Upcoming Events July 3

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Sept 14 Buddy Guy

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More exciting news from Verizon Wireless Center!

By the time this issue of Connect Business Magazine hits the press, the Verizon Wireless Center team will be well into an incredible 2013 season at Riverfront Park. The programming this summer is especially strong and diverse. Agents and artists have embraced this unique outdoor venue and we continue to be barraged with requests by performers to play at Riverfront Park. We expect this trend to continue.

This year, we are rotating outside vendors into park events to determine which food choices are most attractive to the patrons and can better the bottom line. In the next couple of years, there will be more permanent choices of outside vendors.

In large measure, our decisions will be based on product display and appearance, patron demands, and smooth operational working relationships with the Verizon Wireless Center team.

We also are aggressively exploring the concept of a more permanent structure for vending concessions, which would improve product delivery, make better sense logistically for concession purveyors, and provide an enhanced patron experience.

And perhaps the best news of all: by the end of September, the lawn at Riverfront Park will be graded in an upward fashion.

This will expand the capacity for concerts from roughly 2,900 patrons to closer to 5,000, and attract popular acts with larger followings.

Burt Lyman Director

Sincerely, Burt Lyman

Verizon Wireless Center Mankato, Minnesota

Attraction Travel and Tourism Award The Planning Committee for the Minnesota Air Spectacular was awarded the Attraction Travel and Tourism Award for bringing the very popular event to Mankato on June 9-10, 2012.

Pictured left to right: Burt Lyman, Co-Producer; Fred Lutz, Co-Chair; Anna Thill, President, Visit Mankato; Dave Pfeffer, President, Airport Commission; Mark Knoff, Co-Producer

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Historically, summer has been a slow season for Mankato retailers. Thousands of college students have gone home and many permanent residents are out vacationing. The rest of our reading area doesn’t see such a decline. As for this column, I discuss a new way cities in our region could market themselves to help overcome these slower summer months. Buckle your seat belts and away we go.

As for marketing, I don’t mean the process of selling industrial park lots, but marketing a city to America, as in increasing tourism.

I had an idea a couple months ago that still sticks to my brain like an overdue invoice to a small claims court docket. Tell me what you think.

Most people become familiar with a city—any city—through its businesses.

For example, I was raised in Cincinnati and during summer months still listen to Reds games after sundown when the signal here from 50,000-watt 700 WLW becomes clear. Over WLW this very night perhaps, while out driving, you can learn a great deal about the Queen City, including its unique business mix and culture. WLW—and the Cincinnati Reds, for that matter—are highly successful businesses.

You may remember Cincinnati from the old 1970s television show, WKRP in Cincinnati, a fictional media business

owned by a real-life business. Other places you may have seen the name “Cincinnati” include Crest toothpaste tubes, Jif peanut butter jars and US Playing Card decks, or your business may have coverage through Cincinnati Insurance.

Then I moved to Baltimore. Before moving to southern Minnesota and Vernon Center in 1995, I often brought up with Baltimoreans, a.k.a. Balti-morons, the reasons behind our proposed relocation and was surprised how many had heard of southern Minnesota or Mankato through its businesses.

For instance, I played third base then for a softball team sponsored by the owner of three Baltimore-area Subway restaurants.

The owner played second base. When I mentioned our move to Mankato to him, he immediately replied that a Subway restaurant in Mankato had been best in the U.S. in terms of store sales—the Riverfront Drive location. He had heard of Mankato through a business.

Later, when I mentioned Mankato to our pitcher, his wife l i s t e n i ng n e ar by brought up another connection. For several years, she had Daniel J. Vance been a printing store Editor employee and had mailed many wedding invitation orders to a company called Carlson Craft. Several others had heard of Mankato on television through Little House on the Prairie—a media-related business. A business colleague knew southern Minnesota was home to Hormel.

Now the marketing opportunity. Imagine the economic growth possible if virtually every business in your city locked arms to actively promote your city. Take New Ulm, for example. Imagine J&R Schugel and D&A Trucking and their 1,000 or so trucks as traveling national billboards with “Come See What’s Brewing at NewUlm. com” painted onto every trailer. Imagine every business card, email signature,

Bill LeDuc Broker/Owner Mankato, MN (507) 995-9311

www.agri-realty.com invoice, website, product label, company car exterior, Youtube video, company logo, voicemail, stationery, and advertisement tag line of every New Ulm business touting the same reinforcing slogan—“Come See What’s Brewing at NewUlm.com.”

What would happen? People all over the country would hear a consistent message about New Ulm through hundreds and hundreds of businesses reaching into every American nook and cranny.

The city likely would break free of all the advertising clutter to become the next Wall Drug in terms of heightened public awareness, being a destination spot, and number of visitors. And why has Wall Drug succeeded? For decades, its army of billboards has dominated South Dakota’s highway media clutter. As for New Ulm, just the initial media coverage over businesses uniting behind a common goal could create incremental tourist growth.

The same could happen for Sleepy Eye, Fairmont, Waseca, Mankato, St. Peter or Blue Earth—you name it. It’s there for the taking. But some awfully persuasive and persistent souls would have to sell hard, business by business, over many years.

On a side note, Connect Business Magazine over the last eight months has sought out a sustainable business model to keep this publication going for years to come. The solution to our situation was Wasecan Steve Persons, our new sales manager.

He is an ethical and likeable sales veteran working part-time, who can be reached at sales@connectbiz.com. I had been the interim sales manager. No longer chained to sales, I can joyfully continue as editor of the magazine I joined 17 years ago and now have much more time to practice as a licensed professional counselor and freelance writer.

Thanks again for reading southern Minnesota’s first and only locally owned business magazine, the one reaching 8,800 business decision makers in nine southern Minnesota counties.

[Editor Daniel J. Vance self-syndicates the newspaper column “Disabilities.” Email press releases and letters to editor@ connectbiz.com by August 1 for the September/October issue.]

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BULLETIN BOARD

Any chamber of commerce, convention and visitors bureau, or economic development organization in our reading area—large or small, from Amboy to Winnebago—can post on our free bulletin board. For details, email editor@connectbiz.com.

Blue Earth Cindy Lyon, Blue Earth Chamber

Madelia Karla Grev, Madelia Chamber of Commerce

Blue Earth Chamber & CVB invites you to a “Giant” summer of food, fun, and festivities. T&C Players perform “Shrek, the Musical” July 11-14. Faribault County Fair goes from July 23-27.

Art in the Park August 8. Wood Carver’s and Quilt Expo August 16-18. Don’t forget Giant Days on July 12-14, which includes parade, street dance, food vendors, car show, ice cream social, garden tours, and firemen’s breakfast. Call the Chamber for Highway 169 updates.

Madelia Park Days from July 11-14 begins Thursday with picnic, family games and a movie. Friday parade at 7 p.m. followed by Jim Lawrence Orchestra, SuFuDu, and Goose Man’s Dirty Dozen Puddle Jumpers. Fireworks at dusk. Saturday has sporting tournaments and a Kansas City Barbeque Society sanctioned BBQ contest. Live blues music Saturday noon with City Mouse, Boom Boom Steve V and the Knockouts, Billy and the Bangers, and The Lisa Wenger Band. See Visitmadelia.com.

Fairmont Bob Wallace, Fairmont Area Chamber

Mankato Shelly Megaw, Greater Mankato Growth

Parents getting their children ready for school often have a financial burden. Each year, individuals, businesses, and service organizations in Martin County sponsor the “Stuff for School” program, which helps insure that all public and parochial kindergarteners have the school supplies they need. Supplies are purchased with donated dollars, and assembled and delivered by volunteers. If you would like to donate, make your check payable to Youth First, PO Box 826, Fairmont, MN 56031.

The Greater Mankato Campus & Community Fair is scheduled for September 4 at Minnesota State University. The annual event gives college students a chance to learn about opportunities available to them on campus and in the community. Businesses and non-profit organizations have found the fair an effective means for letting students know about the products and services they provide, as well as recruiting volunteers and employees. For booth and sponsorship options, visit greatermankato.com/campus-community-fair.

Local Chamber & Economic Development News

Mankato Christine Nessler, Visit Mankato

Visit Mankato, formerly Greater Mankato Convention and Visitors Bureau, relocated to Mankato Place Mall at 12 Civic Center Plaza.

In the heart of Mankato’s City Center, the new location provides more visibility and an accessible Visitors Center for guests needing help planning stays. The Visitor Center reflects Visit Mankato’s new brand. It focuses on our strength of being a destination that offers wellness events and stimulating cultural activities. Contact Anna Thill at 385-6664 or athill@visitmankatomn.com.

Mankato Julie Nelson, Small Business Development Center

You need to put your best foot forward when presenting your business plan to a banker or investor. Now SBDC clients can get LivePlan business plan software for six months for only $50.

Because your business plan is online, you, your partners and your SBDC professional business consultant can work on your plan from anywhere. QuickBooks users can import data to make tracking and managing your business a breeze. To get started, go to liveplan.com/ specials/sbdc-mankato.

Mankato Laura Dhuyvetter, RCEF

Regional Center for Entrepreneurial Facilitation (RCEF) is a nonprofit entrepreneur and business development organization providing free and confidential, one-on-one business consulting,

training, and mentoring for small business owners. Whether you have an idea, a business start-up or an established business with more than 50 employees, we can help you solve your business problems and achieve your goals. We strive to listen to your concerns and problems and help you find a path towards a solution.

North Mankato Lynette Peterson, North Mankato CVB

The 48th Annual North Mankato Fun Days celebration is July 10-14 in Wheeler Park. Throughout the weekend there will be carnival rides, bingo, a car and motorcycle show, petting zoo, kids pedal tractor pull, and live bandstand entertainment. Kiddie parade happens Friday night and Grand Parade is Saturday at 11 a.m. Visit northmankato.com for a complete North Mankato Fun Days schedule. Also, Belgrade Blues Festival will be held Saturday July 27 on Belgrade Avenue.

New Ulm Terry Sveine, New Ulm CVB

For the eighth consecutive year, the city of New Ulm hosts a “Bavarian Blast” festival, this time from July 19-21. Don’t forget the popular pre-fest show on Thursday, which features popular country musicians, the Chris Brooks Band. The festival schedule has many other popular bands, including Alex Meixner, Molly B., Alpensterne, Paloma, Copper Box, Wendinger Band, and much more. Crazy contests, children’s entertainment and crafts round out the fun for all. See bavarianblast.com for details.

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BULLETIN BOARD

Nicollet Alesia Slater, Nicollet Chamber of Commerce

The Nicollet Chamber of Commerce invites you to the Nicollet American Legion on Friday July 19 at 8 p.m. for the Dueling Pianos Show.

Advance tickets are available at Nicollet Mart, Rapid Rick’s Bar & Grill, ProGrowth Bank and Alesia’s Hair Salon. Nicollet’s 4th Annual National Night Out event will be held at the Green Space Park in Nicollet on Tuesday August 6 beginning at 5:30 p.m. Check nicollet.org for more information about these and other Chamber sponsored events.

Saint James Jennie Firchau, St. James Area Chamber

Our summer “Concerts in the Park” series at the band shell begins July 4 afternoon/evening with Gerry Buse and Friends. July 18 at 7:00 p.m. concert has Barton’s Hollow (bluegrass). Our August 1 concert at 7:00 p.m. features rock music from a Fairmont band. August 15 at 7:00 p.m. brings Bill & Kate Isles (country/bluegrass). Our July 28 2:00 p.m. concert will be at Pleasant View Good Samaritan Society featuring Curtis & Lois (folk music).

Sleepy Eye Trista Barka, Sleepy Eye Chamber

The Chamber and Sleepy Eye Police host the 5th Annual Party in the Park on July 25 from 5-8 p.m. at Allison Park on Sleepy Eye Lake.

The 52nd Annual Buttered Corn Days happens August 16-17, with our FREE buttered sweet corn feed Friday 11-7. Lots of food, music, and fun. Grand Parade begins Saturday 5 p.m. and features bands,

businesses, organizations, and candy. If interested in participating in Buttered Corn Days, contact the Chamber.

Springfield Marlys Vanderwerf, Springfield Chamber/CVB

The annual Crazy Dayz celebration going from July 19-20 includes retail sidewalk sales, good food, fun, and more. The Crazy Dayz 5K Run/Walk on July 19 involves crazily dressed runners and cash/door prizes, with registration at 6 p.m. before race start at 7 p.m. See Facebook “Springfield Crazy Dayz 5K” for registration information. From August 22 to Homecoming is the “I’m a Springfield Shopper” event. Register with participating businesses to win $1,000 in Springfield Bucks.

Waseca Colleen Carlson, Waseca Tourism & Visitors Bureau

The rustic beauty of native prairie and wildflowers greets you at Farmamerica’s Fall Fair September 7-8. Horse and tractor pulls, and all the activities of the Peddlers Grove, which features trappers, settlers, and Native America events, arts, and crafts, are just a few of the weekend events. Take a spooky walk through the Corn Maize and Haunted Mill October 11-12 and 18-19. It’s happening at Farmamerica, off Highway 14 between Waseca and Janesville.

See Farmamerica.org.

Waseca Jennifer Dvorak, City of Waseca EDA

The City of Waseca EDA is actively partnering with the City of

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Local Chamber & Economic Development News

Waseca to bring business loop/route signage to Waseca to potentially grab freeway travelers who might otherwise bypass the city. The implementation of a business route would encourage out-of-area visitors to feel comfortable getting off the freeway, see local sights, and be on their way again. Community leaders are looking for innovative—and inexpensive—ways to attract visitors and their valuable sales tax dollars.

Waseca Kim Foels, Waseca Area Chamber

Waseca Area Chamber of Commerce invites you to 4th of July Lakefest family events at Clear Lake Park. The day starts with a five-mile run/walk Freedom Fun Run, with registration beginning 7:30 a.m. Live, free music entertainment in the band shell from 4:30 p.m. to dusk. Food vendors, face painting, and boat parade at 4 p.m. Bring a lawn chair and watch a spectacular fireworks display over Clear Lake. For other summer events, see discoverwaseca.com/visitors.

Region Nine Katie Elms, Region Nine Dev. Commission

Region Nine Development Commission proudly presents its newly designed website, rndc.org. Visit to learn more how we can serve you. By following Region Nine on Twitter @RegionNineDC and liking us on Facebook at RegionNine you can stay better connected. To help support the region, we are always

looking for pictures and events to promote on rndc.org. Send photos or event details to publicrelations@rndc.org to showcase your community.

Winnebago Chris Ziegler, City of Winnebago

We have a busy summer on tap!

Our Winnebago Area Museum has extended hours this summer to accommodate visitors and features an amazing collection of Native American artifacts, items used by other early settlers, and veteran’s and fire department displays. The 34th annual MotoFest runs through town August 2-3 and includes the 5k Fun Run, antique tractor pull, St. Peter Rodeo, grand parade, softball tournament, kiddie parade, mutton bustin’ and Classic Car Show. See cityofwinnebago.com.

JULY/AUGUST 2013

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By Carlienne A. Frisch Photos submitted

Nonprofit archery association with $4 million budget has New Ulm headquarters and national reach.

For Jay McAninch, it’s not about bows and arrows. It’s family and teamwork.

McAninch (pronounced MAC-an-inch), president/CEO of the Archery Trade Association for the last 12 years, manages an organization of about 600 manufacturer members, a few thousand retail members, an annual budget of more than $4 million, and an international headquarters in New Ulm. Six of ATA’s 16 employees work in the New Ulm office, including a personal assistant with the improbable name of Kelly Kelly, who has kept McAninch organized more than 20 years, predating his ATA involvement.

All other ATA employees work from a virtual home office, allowing them to adapt their work schedule to family needs and allowing McAninch to hire the best people for each job, wherever they live. McAninch himself lives with his wife Janet in Virginia, which offers the couple easy access to Washington, DC’s corridors of power.

“I created this work environment because if you value the time you have to spend with your family, you don’t spend it commuting,” McAninch said. “I’ve learned to warn people who work for me that I’m an acquired taste. I don’t believe I’m a comforting person, but I am concerned about their families, their jobs and their futures. Janet and I have more than a passing relationship with our staff, having dinner with them, meeting their kids, having them stay in our home. We’re soft touches for buying Girl Scout cookies.”

He continued, “We try to find the best people we can for each job and focus on results, not where they sit. Our director of government relations and outreach (a retired U.S. Interior Department leader) lives in Montana, and his staff members are in Minnesota and Maryland. Our web developer is in Oregon. I hired all of our employees and created strong teams. Teamwork is the glue that holds the staff together.” continued > JULY/AUGUST 2013

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McAninch’s first five years (2000-05) with the organization were dedicated to taking ATA out of debt and rebuilding the annual trade show. With the ATA at a low point, the board agreed to start with a clean slate. Because several large member companies were located in Salt Lake City, headquarters were established there. As ATA operations segued to having staff throughout the country, the headquarters was moved to New Ulm, Minnesota, where the trade show coordinator now resides. She leads a team that includes staff in South Carolina, Maryland and Pennsylvania.

“We never underestimate the human side of the trade show, which is the networking that goes on between buyers and sellers. The show is how the industry produces funding for our activities.”

“I built a trade show management team and established processes that continue the show’s success,” McAninch said. “We never underestimate the human side of the trade show, which is the networking that goes on between buyers and sellers. The show is how the industry produces funding for our activities. The other half of the team is tasked with growing (the sports of) archery and bow hunting. I’ve been really lucky to have found people who are highly effective at what they do, very committed, and motivated.”

He continued, “Technology makes it possible for everybody in this small industry to know our staff. They know they can talk to Maria Lewis about a problem with their trade show booth. They know Becky Lux will help them with their registration or membership, that Amy Hatfield can teach them something about social media, that others can help them connect with their state agency to discuss bow hunting regulations or to find out about archery programs or about excise tax.”

McAninch’s belief in making connections is why his email address is available to all ATA members, along with contact information for all staff. There also are member visits—a highlight of McAninch’s responsibilities.

“Member visits are the part of my job I absolutely love,” McAninch said. “I travel a lot, and I go to a lot of trade shows, buying group shows, and archery tournaments. I spend a lot of time at shows walking around and talking to members, asking them ‘How is this show? How are things going? What’s going on in your neck of the woods?’ Seeing members in their own workspaces and getting to know their day-to-day experiences is important to understanding how our industry functions.”

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Archery Trade Association | New Ulm

Listening to McAninch, it’s obvious he’s enthralled with his work.

But why archery? And why New Ulm as headquarters?

He said, “Why archery? Simply because when I was 14, my best friend and I got a catalog and were enamored with the idea of buying bows and arrows. We went deer hunting, but there weren’t many deer around where I grew up in Red Oak, Iowa, so I was 16 when I shot my first one.”

The answer for his choice of New Ulm is simple. He lived there from 1989-1998, when he was a wildlife research biologist for the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources. His love of outdoors is reflected in his education and employment resume. He has a BS degree in fisheries and wildlife biology from Iowa State, and an MS degree in zoology and wildlife management (with a minor in statistics) from The Ohio State University. He has pursued postgraduate studies in natural resource policy and is a Certified Wildlife Biologist by the Wildlife Society.

Growing up in a rural area, McAninch spent much of his childhood outdoors. He mowed lawns, cleaned hedgerows, cut brush, weeded soybeans, detasseled corn and baled hay. His first indoor job taught him management skills.

“My first regular paycheck was from a small department store, where I did cleaning and stocked inventory,” he said. “After a few months, I began managing the sporting goods section, doing all but the ordering, into which I had input. I managed the part-time

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ATA History 1953: The Archery Manufacturers and Dealers Association is formed to establish product standards and to promote bow hunting and target archery.

1965: It becomes the Archery Manufacturers Organization.

1990: AMO hires staff and opens an office in Gainesville, Fla. 1992: More than 70 manufacturers and distributors commit a percentage of their sales to fund promotional and informational efforts and to protect bow hunting.

1997: The first Archery Trade Show is held in Louisville, Ky. 2000: Jay McAninch is hired as president/CEO. 2002: The AMO renames itself ATA. JULY/AUGUST 2013

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The Perfect Event.

The Perfect Experience.

employees who were occasionally assigned to me. I learned a lot about how much time and attention is needed, the dynamics of dealing with age and gender, an appreciation of cost of goods and labor, and how to have margins to be profitable—to pay the bills. I came away with a respect for small business owners, their responsibilities and challenges. While I worked at the store, I still did farm work, such as cleaning hog houses at night.”

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On Target Childhood: Second child of four (oldest boy) in a small Iowa town.

Favorite school subjects: Math, history, political science from an historical perspective.

Least favorite: Art and music. “I did play piano for 9 or 10 years; I played technically, but did not feel the piece. I can hum the Star Spangled Banner and Jesus Love Me, but that’s all.”

Family: Wife Janet, whom he met in eighth grade and married when they were 20; son, Ben, an attorney in Mankato; daughter, Becky, a Kraft senior marketing director in Chicago, and three grandchildren.

Activities: “I love to read history and biographies and am a voracious reader of news and current events, but what I enjoy most is digging, planting and landscaping.”

Accomplishment of which most proud: a) Our two kids and the fact they have established great careers, found good spouses and are contributing to their communities, b) The people I’ve hired and work with because they care about their work and their families. The people we leave behind are more important than our accomplishments.”

Prized possessions: “Some of the books I have, and my grandmother’s lilac, bridal wreathe and mock orange.”

Most valued intangible: “The life I’ve been able to lead, the security of having the same partner most of my life, having work in environments true to myself, and being able to make contributions to improve the world.”

Archery Trade Association | New Ulm

After completing his master’s degree in 1976, McAninch was hired as a wildlife ecologist at the Institute for Ecosystem Studies in New York, where he remained 12 years. He then took the DNR job that landed him in New Ulm, where he and Janet raised their family. He coached youth sports teams and served on the New Ulm school board and on church boards.

McAninch left New Ulm in 1998 to spend two years as president of the Congressional Sportsmen’s Foundation in Washington, D.C. He said, “I wanted to impact public policy. I worked non-partisan with 60-plus senators and 380 members of the House of Representatives,

and I met U.S. presidents. As part of that, I worked with the ATA, so when they came calling, I took the job. They approached me because I understood outdoor organizations and had experience on Capitol Hill.” He also has fund-raising credentials, having raised money to build an amphitheater as a Lions Club member in New York.

“Along with my background in outdoor issues, natural resources and agriculture, I have a really good handle on small business,” said McAninch. “I ask of every company in our industry: tell us what you’re thinking. Tell us what’s valuable and what’s not. Constructive criticism is what we live off of. The only thing that matters, as a trade association and as an industry, is how we respond.”

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Presidential Perspectives Jay McAninch has fond, yet incisive, memories of his meetings with four U.S. presidents. His first presidential handshake, with President George H.W. Bush, took place at an outdoor show. McAninch recalled the president as being “a consummate gentleman, quiet, with a gentle nature, very strong in making a connection.” In addition to being inquisitive about archery, the president connected with the person with whom he was shaking hands, locking eyes and covering the right hands with his left one.

McAninch met President Bill Clinton in the White House, which had a more casual atmosphere than it had had under other presidents. “Each president sets the tone,” McAninch said, “and President Clinton had an informal, casual, working White House atmosphere. He’s smooth, charming, a quick study, someone who quickly assesses the room and knows who the leaders are. He connected with the group’s purpose (rather than with the representative).”

McAninch spent the most time with President George W. Bush, having attended several White House meetings and a Christmas party. One of McAninch’s presidential keepsakes is a photo of President and Mrs. Bush with McAninch and his wife, Janet. Another is a stack of napkins that President Bush gave him, saying, “I’d give you some of the glasses, too, but the staff gets upset when I do that.”

“George W. Bush is much like his father,” McAninch said. “He’s very personable and made me feel that my time was as important as his time.

Yet he was very formal. He felt the White House was the people’s house. He had a strong sense the Bushes were there to do the people’s work. I believe he’s a conscientious man who felt a burden.”

Having met President Barack Obama at a small group gathering, McAninch concluded, “President Obama is a consummate speaker, with a great command of language and the capacity to move people with his voice. However, he has not had as much experience as many previous presidents had when they took office.”

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Archery Trade Association | New Ulm

McAninch usually works 60-70 hours a week. An early riser, he peruses news websites on his laptop before tackling the most challenging work on his plate. To accommodate employees, he schedules phone calls later in the morning. He spends a few hours with Janet, playing tennis or walking up to seven miles a day. Evenings often involve attending events. And he’s on call 24-7.

“I must be responsible when people have problems, such as a fire or when the IRS arrives. You can’t time when those things happen. Communication is a big part of my job.”

Janet (a retired registered oncology nurse) plays an unofficial but active part in McAninch’s mission. He said, “Janet has been with me every step of the way since I’ve been at ATA. She was instrumental in designing the healthcare plan we offer employees. She travels with me on this job, and we always factor in days to meet with our members. It’s funny how during each visit, we not only establish a relationship, but also find things we can help them with—providing information, connecting them with people who can help with product development, suggesting solutions to problems. Most importantly, we learn more about what they do. The more I learn about what people do and how they do it, the more I’m able to develop better ideas for

the future. I spend a lot of my time looking three to five years down the road.”

McAninch also has established strong relationships with state agencies and archery organizations, leading to enormous strides in the development of effective, wellfunded archery programs.

“The state agencies all know who we are,” he said. “USA Archery, the National Field Archery Association and many other organizations have worked with us so they have sustainability to keep programs going. Since the ‘70s, the archery industry has been paying the archery excise tax.

Today that’s around $44 million. Those dollars are dedicated to state agencies and are intended to support archery and bow hunting. Successful state archery programs hinge on manpower and money. We can offer incentive grants for someone to be appointed to head a state archery program.

Today, 47 states have an archery program coordinator, with 20 being full-time.”

McAninch considers Rcherz.com, an online platform, to be one of the ATA’s most important developments. He explained, “The ATA owns Rcherz, and we’re collaborating with outdoor-centric Web developers, writers, and designers to build a versatile tool for members to reach out to consumers and to gain visibility for their brands. It’s a year-round way for our industry to com-

THE ESSENTIALS

Archery Trade Association Founded: 1996 Address: P.O. Box 70 New Ulm, Minnesota Phone: 866-266-2776 Web: archerytrade.org

municate with ourselves, with consumers, with state agencies, and with organizations that have archery and bow hunting interests.

There’s a large archery contingent around the world. Archery is very big in Europe (with seven million target archers in France alone) and in Korea, Japan and China.

Said McAninch, “The ATA establishes relationships with agencies and organizations, building infrastructure so that there are budgets and people in place to grow our sports. The staff works to ensure that the companies that make up this industry can make a profit today and can know that the archery industry will continue to thrive for years to come.”

Carlienne A. Frisch writes from Mankato.

Comment on this story at connectbiz.com

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HOT STARTZ!

Very New or Re-formed Businesses or Professionals New To Our Reading Area

Prairie Wind B&B and Retreat Center Becky Krause and husband Dave have a new bed & breakfast and retreat center northeast of Winnebago near Bass Lake.

Much of Becky’s training to operate the facility came from being a pastor’s kid.

“Growing up, we always had guests and visitors,” said 55-year-old Krause in a telephone interview. “While on trips, we often didn’t have to stay in motels because there was always another pastor that would put us up. (After church) we would often get treated to lunch. We learned to appreciate people by going into their homes and spending time with them.”

After graduating from Minnesota State in 1980, and later earning a master’s from St. Cloud State, she began a special education teaching career that continues to this day. On the side, years ago, she became a Creative Memories consultant and sold scrapbooking supplies at home. Ten years ago, the Krauses had a custom home built near Bass Lake with the intention of one day holding scrapbooking workshops inside.

That “intention” became Prairie Wind B&B and Retreat Center, which was licensed this January.

“For scrapbooking, quilting or crafting groups, we can handle up to eight people,” she said. “There’s sleeping for three

in each of two bedrooms, and for two in the other. Our focus is to host a small group of people that want a weekend event.”

The home’s 2,400 sq. ft. bottom floor has maple floors, a workroom and workspaces with equipment, a kitchen, and two large-screen TVs (for workshop videos). The home has geothermal, radiant floor heat, and abuts an 80-acre natural prairie.

Rates are $100 per person for two weekend nights. Breakfast provided. The facility is open for traditional B&B guests in the summer. Given the proximity to Bass Lake, the facility would be ideal for groups of couples in which the men might prefer fishing and the women scrapbooking, for example.

PRAIRIE WIND B&B AND RETREAT CENTER Telephone: 507-893-4740 Web: retreatatprairiewind.com

ART SIDNER

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• Agricultural • Banking • Commercial • Construction • Corporate & Business • Employment • Environmental

• Estate Planning & Probate • Family • Insurance Litigation • Personal Injury & Wrongful Death • Real Estate • Workers Compensation

Comment on Hot Startz at connectbiz.com

WASECA

Origami Owl Custom Jewelry

ART SIDNER

“Business has always been a passion of mine,” said 28-yearold Kristi Corchran. “For one, Kiesler’s Campground (of Waseca) is our family business. I started working behind the counter as a sales associate when I was 12, answering telephones and taking reservations. That instilled in me the passion and work ethic for truly going above and beyond in satisfying customers.”

In high school, Corchran became active in Business Professionals of America (BPA), an organization that helps groom teens for business careers. She placed fourth and sixth in two national competitions in her event, and was the organization’s statewide vice president as a high school senior. Her specialty was “application interview,” in which a CEO interviewed BPA students to rank them for potential hiring desirability versus other competitors.

Corchran continued on working at the campground full-time, but always wanted a business of her own. She said, “So I started looking into direct sales companies. Origami Owl Custom Jewelry and Bella’s (the 14-year-old founder’s) story inspired me. She started her company in 2010 by going out to her friends and family and creating jewelry. She started it as an in-home business.”

The company’s appeal further broadened for Corchran after she married last October and became pregnant. Origami Owl has given her the opportunity to own a small business with flexible hours.

Origami Owl sells ‘living lockets,’ which are custom neck-

laces with charms that symbolize special events in a person’s life. Said Corchran, “The lockets are popular with people of all ages and style preferences. I have sold necklaces to a parent as a gift to her 4-year-old child and to grandparents. We encourage (buyers) to create their life story with jewelry.”

Customers become introduced to living lockets through low-pressure “jewelry bar” events at people’s homes, and at the events literally create their own lockets. Lockets come in gold, silver, rose gold, black or chocolate, ranging in price from $20$40, plus $5 for each charm. She said, “I do at least one jewelry bar now a week. Before Christmas last year, I did 30 in 41 days.”

ORIGAMI OWL CUSTOM JEWELRY Telephone: 507-521-1972 Web: minnesotakristi.origamiowl.com

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HOT STARTZ!

Very New or Re-formed Businesses or Professionals New To Our Reading Area

Starfire Event Center The Starfire Event Center opened in January 2013 as a natural extension of Gene and Bonnie Miller’s other businesses.

They own the historic Armstrong Building in downtown Waseca, which includes a bevy of hotspots, including Club 57, Jonnie Beans, the 4-bed Miller Bed & Breakfast, and Starfire Restaurant.

The Armstrong Building also houses the headquarters for ELM Homes, which has been serving people with developmental disabilities in southern Minnesota more than 30 years.

The Starfire Event Center is directly across the street from the Armstrong Building, in the former EF Johnson headquarters site.

“Part of our motivation for (creating Starfire Event Center) was to create jobs,” said 67-year co-owner Gene Miller in a telephone interview. “With it and Starfire Restaurant (across the street), we employ 50 people (with developmental disabilities) doing everything from landscaping to helping with food preparation.”

Miller believed Waseca needed a larger event center. The conference room in the Armstrong Building holds 95, but Miller was receiving requests from wedding parties seeking seating up to 200. The Starfire Restaurant was capable of catering to that number, but didn’t have the space. Now the restaurant caters for Starfire Event Center.

Said Miller, “Since opening in January, we have scheduled 32 weddings over the next 12 months, plus a number of com-

munity events. The word got out. I knew there was a need because of all the requests.”

The event center has unique historical features. For example, the dance floor was created from using the wood of a ten-lane bowling alley being demolished. Dance floor lights came from the old Waseca college gymnasium. A ten-foot mirror came from an old barbershop. The center also has two golf simulators available for local golfers in winter months.

Miller said, “The food catered can be almost anything you want, from prime rib to seafood. We have an event planner to help with options and pricing. The whole facility complete with bar goes for $800 per day.”

STARFIRE EVENT CENTER Contact: Daryn Spies Telephone: 507-461-1387 Web: wasecamac.com

To be considered for one of three spots in the September Hot Startz!, email the editor at editor@connectbiz.com.

Businesses considered must have started—or changed greatly in form—within one year of our publishing date.

Professionals chosen must be new to our reading area.

Next time there is severe weather listen to these radio stations:

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ART SIDNER

WASECA

PRESS RELEASES

To submit a press release for publication:

Email: editor@connectbiz.com Fax: 507-232-3373

Blue Earth

ceived start-up guidance through Regional Center for Entrepreneurial Facilitation.

From EDI: IntraMed Diagnostics, subsidiary of Express Diagnostics Int’l, hired Dean Kingston as director of engineering and manufacturing and Dr. Barry VantHull as senior software engineer; EDI and Royal Medical Supplies (Australia) announced a sponsorship agreement with the Erebus Motorsport V8 Supercar Team; and the company acquired an option to purchase and develop the point-of-care clinical diagnostic testing assets of Eveia Medical.

Lake Crystal

Fairmont From the Chamber: new members include Ivy Blu Boutique and White Orchid; Martin County Pork Producers and the Chamber host the 21st Annual Minnesota State Pork Masters Golf Outing July 22 at Rose Lake Golf Club; Eunoia Family Resource Center celebrated five years in business with an open house at its new 1420 N. State facility; Sweet Financial Services Investment Advisor Representative Oliver Kollofski received the “Outstanding Branch Professional of the Year” award at the Raymond James Financial Services annual conference; Mayo Clinic Health System-Fairmont and Mayo Clinic Rochester specialists now use telestroke, which allows for 2-way communication between Rochester doctors and Fairmont patients; Center for Primary Care hired Siri Heille, certified adult nurse practitioner; The AgriBusiness Committee of the Chamber and Agriculture Future of America awarded $4,200 scholarships to Emily Wegener and Jacob Portz.

From Mayo Clinic Health System-Fairmont: patients now have access to personal medical information through an online patient portal, Patient Online Services.

White Orchid opened at 208 Downtown Plaza under owner Brooke White and re-

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Truck Bodies & Equipment International achieved ISO 9001:2008 certification.

With a scheduled completion date of August 2014, Crystal Valley board of directors approved construction of a 3.8 million bushel grain shuttle terminal project in Hope, Minnesota.

Madelia From the Chamber: House of Print named Scott Geyer as general manager; Kelli Anderson became leasing and marketing coordinator of AmberField Place; May/June Chamber Businesses of the Month are Noble RV of Madelia and La Plaza F!esta; new Chamber members include Feder Mechanical, Noble RV of Madelia, Watonwan County Historical Society, and Edward Jones—Brittany Bergemann; and Prairie Lake Regional Arts Council approved a grant to fund music for Park Days.

Madelia Community Hospital Foundation awarded college scholarships to Autumn Johnson (LCWM) and Adam Cooling (Madelia High).

Mankato Courtyard by Marriott Hotel & Event Center hired Jill Reed as corporate sales manager.

Bill LeDuc of Agri-Realty joined the 2,000-member American Society of Farm Managers and Rural Appraisers as an associate member.

Randy Appel (Mankato) and Dr. Steven Dudley (Worthington) joined United Prairie Bank board of directors.

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Marco Marco received the 2013 Perfect Image Award for Outstanding IT Services Provider from imageSource Magazine.

The Mankato Clinic Foundation awarded a $2,000 grant to the Greater Mankato Diversity Council 2013/2014 SURGE Youth Leadership Program.

As part of National Travel and Tourism Week, Visit Mankato recognized: David Peters of Courtyard by Marriott (Hotel Travel and Tourism Award) for building Minnesota’s first LEED Certified Hotel; the Planning Committee for the Minnesota Air Spectacular (Attraction Travel and Tourism Award); J. Longs (Retail Travel and Tourism Award); and Tom Frederick (Restaurant Travel and Tourism Award) for his involvement in the Front Street Initiative and the City Center Partnership.

Mankato Marathon Charities will support three groups in 2013: Girls on the Run, BackPack Food Program, and Project for Teens.

From Greater Mankato Growth: new members include South Central Glass, Overhead Door Company of Mankato, Pietsch Construction, Rehnelt Excavating, Spring Touch, Devin Krienke Agency/ American Family Insurance, Midwest Dental, PRO TRAIN Aviation, Taj Mahal Indian Cuisine, Painting Plus of Minnesota, Russ Nelson Electric, Redline Signworks, The Azure Dream, Flexion, La Terraza Mexican Grill and Bar, The Picker-Uppers, Shoreland Country Club, Fountain Centers, POET Biorefining (Lake Crystal), and Performance Excellence Network.

Marco purchased Hyde Telecom Partners.

Heintz Toyota hired Financial Services

Manager Steven Turvold.

The CityArt Walking Sculpture Tour introduced 34 new sculptures to Mankato and North Mankato; and The 2012 CityArt People’s Choice Award Winner, “Guidance”, was purchased by the City Center Partnership for permanent installation at the 400 Block of Belgrade Ave. Walmart’s Fighting Hunger Together initiative chose The BackPack Food Program as one of 60 hunger relief agencies to receive a $20,000 grant.

From Kenneth Klooster of Edward Jones: The company made the Fortune 500 at No. 491.

Habitat for Humanity ReStore of Mankato received a “Best Practices” award from Habitat for Humanity of Minnesota for outstanding sales growth.

Blethen, Gage & Krause added Anna Fisher as an associate attorney.

Feeding Our Communities Partners received a $1,000 Restaurant Community Grant from the Darden Foundation, the charitable arm of Darden Restaurants, affiliated with Mankato Red Lobster.

MANKATO

Educare Foundation Educare Foundation distributed $63,146 through grants to help Mankato Area Public Schools offer enhanced educational opportunities to students.

From HickoryTech: the company was named an “Honor Roll” company in the 2012 Minnesota Census of Women in Corporate Leadership compiled by the School of Business and Leadership at St. Catherine University; and the company presented at the Sidoti Micro-Cap Conference in New York City.

Attorney Jeremy Nauman joined Jones and Magnus Attorneys at Law. Southern Minnesota Initiative Foundation awarded more than 10,000 books to early childhood screening and summer reading programs in cities and school districts in the Connect Business Magazine

reading area.

MRCI WorkSource hired Jeff Call as chief financial officer.

Dr. Steven Anderson joined Ophthalmology Associates of Mankato.

Midwest Family Mutual Insurance Company named Kato Insurance Agency to its President’s Club for the sixth consecutive year.

From US Bank: Vice President Bryan Sowers and Southwest District Manager Frank Steichen received the U.S. Bank Pinnacle Award.

From Eide Bailly: Yousef Sarameh passed the Certified Public Accounting exam; and Linda Albrecht (Mankato) was accepted into the company partnership.

Lime Valley Advertising promoted Marissa Geerdes to director of administrative services.

I&S Group celebrated 40 years in business.

River Hills Mall awarded 21 area schools cash through its My School’s Cool program, including: Maple River ($10,000), Mt. Olive Lutheran ($5,000), Cleveland Public ($2,500), Monroe Elementary ($1,500), and Immanuel Lutheran in Courtland ($1,000).

The Tapestry Project, which is a collaborative effort of Minnesota Council of Churches, City of Mankato, and Lloyd Management, offers classes that provide housing, parenting, safety, and health education to refugees.

Mankato Rotary Club announced a major financial gift to and a five-year service club partnership with the Children’s Museum of Southern Minnesota.

From Maschka, Riedy & Ries: Jim Fleming was named “Attorney of the Year 2012” by Minnesota Lawyer; the firm received a Tier 1 ranking for “Plaintiffs Personal Injury Litigation” in the 2013 Edition of U.S. News—Best Lawyers “Best Law Firms”; Jerry Maschka was selected by his peers for inclusion in The Best Lawyers in America 2013 for personal injury litigation; and Renee Rubish was named managing partner.

Zonta Club of Mankato, Business & Professional Women, and Women Executives in Business announced Yellow Rose recipients; Judy Ringler Mountain (New York Life), Kate Loging (Eide Bailly), and Wendy Greiner.

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Oak Hills Living Center US News and World Report gave a 5-Star rating to Oak Hills Living Center.

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New Ulm August Schell Brewing Company won gold and silver medals from the Beverage Tasting Institute; and the company launched a Grain Belt marketing campaign around the slogan, “We are the American in American Lager.”

From the Chamber: Dr. Roger Lindholm of New Ulm Medical Center received the “2013 Teacher of the Year Award” from the Minnesota Academy of Family Physicians; Frandsen Bank and Trust promoted Lois Aufderheide to underwriter, and Allison Burmeister to assistant vice president; MRCI honored Kraft New Ulm, Beacon Promotions, and HyVee with an “Employer Appreciation Award”; President Bill Otis of NU-Telecom participated in the Legislative and Policy Conference hosted by NTCA—The Rural Broadband Association; the new store manager of Herbergers is Dave Bauer; New Ulm Furniture began an enhanced partnership with La-Z-Boy Furniture; Grand Center for Arts & Culture named a new executive director, Lisa Rieke-Knaak; New Ulm Actors Community Theater moved to 211 N. Minnesota;

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PRESS RELEASES

and Sewing Seeds Quilt Company had a ribbon-cutting.

From the Chamber: Retzlaff’s Ace Hardware celebrated being a Midwest Hardware Association 100-year member; three Morgan Creek Vineyards wines were served at the 2013 Minnesota Governor’s fishing opener; Route 1 Interiors earned StarMark Cabinetry’s 4-Star dealer level; Century 21 Koeckeritz Realty received the Quality Service Pinnacle and Productivity Person Awards, and individual Realtors earned the following—Joyce Krenz and Diane Debban (Masters Diamond and Quality Service Pinnacle), and Brenda Nosbush and Lisa Larson (Masters Ruby and Quality Service).

North Mankato Daniel Lowis qualified for Waddell & Reed’s annual Circle of Champions conference.

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St. James David Krause of Pioneer Bank announced the following hires and promotions: Clay Thompson (chief lending officer), Duane Olenius (Greater Mankato market president), Galen Reding (Mapleton, Elmore and Delavan market president) and Matt Chmielewski and Marvin Kimm (senior vice presidents).

The Chamber hired new director Jennie Firchau.

Great River Insurance and Great West Casualty Safety Department presented G&M Runge with a “Platinum Award” as part of the National Safety Awards Program.

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ST. JAMES

Mayo Clinic Health System—St. James Mayo Clinic Health SystemSt. James leads MCHS overall in patient satisfaction at 96.74 percent for “Environmental Services-Inpatient.”

The National Registry of Emergency Medical Technicians recognized Doreen Weckwerth for 30 years as an EMT. Michael “Buzz” Purdy was named outstanding St. James Rotarian, and Joy Sing St. James Sertoman Of The Year.

New Chamber directors include Deb Siem, Linda Blackstad, Jeremiah Bertschinger, Pam Wacholz, and Misty Wolle.

St. Peter From the Chamber: new members include Lone Star BBQ & Grill, Woods Grill & Bar at Shoreland Country Club, Bud’s Nuisance Wildlife Removal, Kwikn-Klean, Habitat for Humanity, and Lake Prairie Machine.

Financial Consultant Brian Jones of Thrivent Financial for Lutherans qualified for the company’s Summit Circle conference.

Mayo Clinic Health System received the 2013 President’s Community Partnership Award from Gustavus Adolphus College for its interim career exploration

and volunteer program in the emergency department in Mankato geared toward pre-health students.

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Sherburn From Regional Center for Entrepreneurial Facilitation: Seth and Elizabeth Lintelman were chosen as new owners of the Cup N’ Saucer restaurant.

Sleepy Eye From the Chamber: The annual Business of the Year Luncheon honored First Security Agency; new Chamber members include American Family Insurance—Craig Larsen Agency, Bud’s Nuisance Wildlife Removal, and Pat Lowther Law.

Waseca Greener World Solutions moved to 33908 128th Street (former Fitzsimmons Trucking location).

From the Chamber: new members include Delta Waseca, Brickhouse Fitness, The Good News Waseca, Huey’s Farm Seed & Precision Planting, Woodridge Interiors, Dave’s Body Shop, Taco Johns, and Ditch Creek Landscape & Design; the Chamber Ambassadors recognized Janesville businesses Wiste’s Meat Market, Akorn Photography, and Airwave Solutions; in Waseca, the Ambassadors recognized Elegant Creations for an indoor warehouse expansion, Starfire Event Center for a new banquet and convention facility, Greener World Solutions for their relocation, and Kwik Trip for an interior remodel.

Waseca Floral celebrated 40 years in business.

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Winnebago From the City: new owners of Winnebago Chiropractic are Amy and Chasten Fenger; Calvin and Jennifer Howard own Winnebago Grill; and new businesses include Backwoods Designs and owners Scott and Marissa Lehman.

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Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood recently said, “America is one big pothole.”

President Obama, members of Congress, and pundits often claim our infrastructure is “crumbling.” The Senate Budget Committee’s new spending plan, for example, uses that word no fewer than ten times in calling for a $100 billion infrastructure package. And in a report released late March, the American Society of Civil Engineers gives the nation a grade of D+ on its infrastructure.

But is America’s infrastructure really crumbling? For highways and bridges, the government’s own data show the answer is generally no.

Let’s look at the data on bridges. The Federal Highway Administration reports there were 5,345 “structurally deficient” bridges in the National Highway System in 2011.

That was just 4.6 percent of all 116,929 NHS bridges. And here’s the surprising fact: That percentage has been falling steadily from the 8.7 percent reported by the FHWA in 1992.

In his State of the Union address this year, Obama implied that our infrastructure was “deteriorating,” and he pointed to “nearly 70,000 structurally deficient bridges.” The president was talking about not only NHS bridges—which the federal government is partly responsible for funding—but also all bridges in the country, which totaled 605,086 in 2011.

So the full story is there were 67,526 structurally deficient bridges in 2011, representing 11.2 percent of the total, and this was down dramatically from their 20.7 percent share in 1992. The ASCE report complains “one in nine” bridges is structurally deficient, but ignores the fact the ratio has fallen from one in five.

Another group of problematic bridges

are “functionally obsolete.” The share of bridges in this group has also fallen in the last two decades, according to the FWHA. And note neither “functionally obsolete” nor “structurally deficient” bridges are necessarily unsafe; instead, they may just have older design standards and need more maintenance.

Data on the nation’s highways reveal similar trends. Rather than becoming more potholed, as LaHood claimed, our highways are getting smoother. Since 1989, the FHWA has reported the International Roughness Index for U.S. highways; the index ranges from 0 for the smoothest highways to 300 for the roughest. Here are the calculations Chris Edwards of average IRI scores for different types of highways in 1989 and 2009: urban interstates, 115 and 92; other urban freeways, 124 and 101; rural interstates, 101 and 77; and other rural arteries, 104 and 87. For each type of highway, the scores show surface qualities have improved substantially over time.

The IRI data were examined in a 2009 study by Jeffrey Campbell and Thomas Hubbard for the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago. They found that “since the mid1990s, our nation’s interstate highways have become indisputably smoother and less deteriorated.” And they concluded the interstate system is “in good shape relative to its past condition.” However, that’s not how the ASCE sees it: The lobbying group ignores the IRI data and gives America’s roads an even lower grade—a D—than the D+ it gives our infrastructure as a whole.

To sum up, official data for bridges and highways undermine the notion our infrastructure is “crumbling.” Indeed, our highways and bridges have been steadily improving in quality for at least two decades.

It is true America’s roads and highways are getting more congested, and we need to find ways to finance new capacity. But policymakers should cast a more critical eye on the claims made by advocates for higher infrastructure spending.

Consider another recent claim by LaHood in a National Public Radio interview: “At one time…we were the leader in infrastructure…But we’re falling way behind other countries, because we have not made the investments.” That is misleading. The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development reports on government infrastructure spending for its members, which are all among the higher-income countries in the world. It turns out government infrastructure spending in the United States is slightly higher than the average for OECD countries, when measured as a share of gross domestic product. In 2010, the United States spent 3.5 percent of GDP on infrastructure, while the OECD average was 3.3 percent. U.S. spending has been similar to the OECD average since at least 1980.

In short, there is no widespread crisis of crumbling infrastructure, but we do face challenges in reducing congestion on highways and other facilities. Yet the way forward cannot be to jack up federal spending, since the federal government is essentially broke.

Instead, we should encourage greater innovation at the state level to get more bang for our infrastructure buck. Privatization and new electronic tolling systems on highways and bridges, for example, can help the states finance new investment. In turn, that would leave more of the existing transportation funds to patch the potholes and fix the bridges that do need repairs.

Individual and/or family counseling for family and marital relationships, grief and loss, career and life adjustments, work relationships, anxiety, depression, and posttraumatic stress.

Daniel Vance is also seeing clients in North Mankato through Footnotes Family Counseling Services.

Call for an appointment Daniel J. Vance MS, LPC, NCC Licensed Professional Counselor, National Certified Counselor

Vernon Center

Counseling Services

201 S. EAST ST., VERNON CENTER • 507-549-3637 • DANIELJVANCE@GMAIL.COM

Chris Edwards is director of tax policy studies at the Cato Institute and editor of DownsizingGovernment.org. This article first appeared on National Review (Online).

JULY/AUGUST 2013

CONNECT Business Magazine

59

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