Cover Story

Strength finder

Nyantu Bolo started his person Continue reading →

Letter From the Editor

Unleashed

Passion and principles may be overused words in business, but you feel their power when either is unleashed.
Consider Nyantu Bolo, the owner of Essentials 4 Fitness and this month's cover story. Upsize writer Andrew Tellijohn reports he could practically see Bolo's passion leaping from his chest.

"I love it and I can't give up what I'm doing for anything," Bolo told Upsize, but that was stating the obvious by the time he had given an hour-long interview. Continue reading →

Back Page

Joel Ronning, CEO of Digital River, on how skippering a sailboat is like running a company

When Joel Ronning isn?t at Digital River Inc., the e-commerce company in Eden Prairie he founded and grew to more than 1,100 employees, he likes to skipper a sailboat. That includes the 2007 National A-Scow Championships June 20-23 on Lake Minnetonka, where he also raced against America?s Cup champion Buddy Melges. Ronning mused on the similarities between skippering a sailboat crew and operating a company. Continue reading →

Focus

Triple play

Peace Coffee is a prime exampl Continue reading →

Business Expansion Guide: JOBZ

When TRICO TCWind, a small ele Continue reading →

Business Expansion Guide: Prim

Aleta Mechtel never intended t Continue reading →

Business Builders

How to keep data safe from internal threats

Big company, big risk. Small company, small risk. There is a real danger in thinking these statements are mutually exclusive.

While there may be some truth to the notion that larger businesses have more challenges based on size alone, a small business should never take its intimate environment for granted. Continue reading →

Web tools

Web 1.0 and its one-way information feed - think brochureware of 1999 - is so yesterday.

Today's Web 2.0 applications such as podcasts, videos, social media and rich graphical presentations help level the playing field for the growing enterprise. Continue reading →

How to build buzz with a viral campaign

Why has the allure of viral or buzz marketing gripped so many companies? You can blame it on the chicken. Continue reading →

Sustaining business value

When a company is floundering or succession is an issue, tough decisions are multiplied if there?s more than one owner. Challenges are compounded in family-owned businesses.

There are no ?one size fits all? solutions for overcoming ownership obstacles. Yet there are lessons to be learned from common obstacles that illustrate how equity structures and agreements can benefit or impede the business and its owners. Continue reading →

Finding the right marketing partner

It may have started in small towns. You ask the local bank to sponsor your concert. The chamber of commerce creates a ?shop local? card with discounts from several retailers. A gift shop showcases items from local artisans and manufacturers.

Business owners are open to collaboration. Established through a mutual need for survival, this type of marketing is evolving to global proportions as entrepreneurs seek opportunities for scalability and exposure through the right partners. Continue reading →

Retirement planning

Standing atop Silver Run Mountain in southern Montana, gazing out over the windswept peaks and winding streams, I realized that the journey of a business owner is much like the vigorous hike I had just concluded.

Planning is critical, the climb is strenuous, but the view at the top is spectacularly rewarding. Once you reach the peak, you realize that all the hard work and sacrifices to get there are well worth the accomplishment. Continue reading →