MANKATO MADE Christine Lantinen
At age 31, Christine (Cooney) Lantinen ’98 took a leap of faith. The Le Center, Minn., native had just been laid off from her job as sales and marketing director at Minnetonkabased food gift company, Bay Island. “On a Friday, the owner brought me in and said he couldn’t afford my salary and let me go,” she says.
What could have been a devastating blow turned out to be the start of a sweet success story. Throughout her time at Bay Island, and previously working for Target Corporation, Lantinen had developed a strong network and a solid understanding of what it takes to run a business. She saw an opportunity in the food gifting space for high-end food gifts from a recognizable brand. She knew the owners of St. Paul candy company Maud Borup through her work at Bay Island and decided to make them an offer. “We met for coffee that Saturday morning and they were in the process of closing the stores. I said, ‘I would love to buy this great brand.’” And that’s exactly what Lantinen did. Just days after losing her job, she struck up an arrangement with the previous owners where they would come in as 30 percent partners to start. That was in 2005. Within two years Lantinen bought them out and has been the sole owner of Maud Borup ever since. Lantinen transitioned Maud Borup from its retail candy roots to a 100 percent wholesale operation, now based out of Le Center. She sells products directly to retailers like Target, Whole Foods and CVS. Since Lantinen took the helm, Maud Borup has seen 20 percent organic growth each year and is on track to do $30 million in sales in 2021. “I feel like in life you always have these crossroads,” says Lantinen. “Me being let go from Bay Island was the best thing that could’ve ever happened to me. That was a kick in the butt [I needed] to do my own thing.”
6 / C OLLEGE OF BUSIN ES S I N R E V I E W
Lantinen is a farmer’s daughter from Le Center. During high school, she took some post-secondary education option classes at Minnesota State Mankato. She joined the army and attended basic training the summer before high school graduation to help defer the cost of her education.
Throughout her college career, Lantinen worked up to 44 hours per week at various stores in the River Hills Mall. Her early experience in retail management gave her opportunities to practice what she was learning in real time.
Lantinen didn’t arrive at Minnesota State Mankato with her eyes on a business degree. She had completed a military training program as a medic the summer after high school graduation, so nursing felt like a good fit. “I wasn’t doing well in the nursing program, so I did [the] testing on campus that tells you what areas you are strongest in.” She got high marks in marketing and switched to a double major in Marketing and Mass Communication. She ended up graduating with honors.
Lantinen is the sole owner of Maud Borup, but the company’s Le Center plant is truly a family operation. In the first year, Lantinen’s family friend pledged a piece of farmland against her $700,000 loan to get production up and running. And Lantinen’s mom, who lives in Le Center, opened the plant and got it up to food safety standards.
