Cover Story
Family matters
Though she was only 15 at the time, Lana Siewert-Olson remembers well when her father, Howard Siewert, left a lucrative job at a big printing company in 1979.
?He always said he felt like a small fish in a big pond,? she says. ?He?d bring in a job that was $200,000, but it would get bumped for something bigger. He got really frustrated working for a large company. He wanted to make a difference. He was 40 at the time, and he started rebelling a little.? Continue reading →
Letter From the Editor
Boldly go
If you think your business is tough, consider the state of the printing industry.
Ideal Printers Inc. in St. Paul, whose president is Lana Siewert-Olson and the subject of this month?s cover story, experienced the same economic slump as everyone else in the past few years. But it also felt specific pain:
? Average profits are 1.7 percent of sales, and profit leaders make 1.9 percent. ?It?s a pennies game,? says one industry observer.
? Technology changes, especially the Internet, mean abundant alternatives to printed materials. One day a printer can have a $20,000-a-month customer; the next day that customer can switch to the Web. Continue reading →
Back Page
Debbie Fors on recovering from disaster — a fire at her Dairy Queen outlet in Minneapolis
As Debbie Fors drove down 50th Street in Minneapolis, she thought it was going to be a normal day. But then she pulled into the parking lot of the Dairy Queen she and her husband manage and started to shake. Continue reading →
Focus
Intellectual property: Beyond gizmos
The whir of an assembly line can be hypnotizing.
With Medtronic inventing its latest catheter, 3M introducing its newest line of air-cleaning filters, and a host of other local technology manufacturers constantly pushing their gadgets and gizmos into the marketplace, one could be led to believe all Twin Cities-originated intellectual property is handheld and comes in a box. Continue reading →
Intellectual property: Before market
Everyone has had that ?million-dollar idea.? At least, most people have felt like they have. But many small-business owners don?t realize the value of their intellectual property. Upsize talked to local patent attorney Mark Litman, of Mark A. Litman & Associates in Edina, to cover the basics. Continue reading →
Expansion and relocation: On radar
Jason Hoerter needed more space. His waste-disposal company, though just over a year old, had outgrown its cramped rental office in Austin, Minnesota.
Hoerter approached the city with plans to buy a site for a new building, assuming officials would catch his enthusiasm. After all, Triple J Disposal Inc. was highly regarded within the community, having recently won the Austin Chamber of Commerce New Business of the Year award. Continue reading →
Alexandria: Back to their roots
Don Wilkins remembers it like it was yesterday.
It was 1976 when he started Alexandria Pro-Fab Co. Inc. He was the sole employee and his lone assets were his $2,000 welding machine and willingness to work long hours. He worked 363 days that year, never really thinking much about the future, but plenty about how he could gain more work. Continue reading →
Alexandria: Out in front
Jason Murray and Jill Johnson are only a two-person team, but what a team they make.
Murray is the executive director of the Alexandra Area Economic Development Commission (AAEDC). Johnson is the marketing manager and business development director.
The AAEDC is a non-profit corporation. Its role is to ?serve as the lead economic development entity that responds to start-up and relocation inquiries, and to assist existing businesses with long-term goals of expansion,? says Murray. Continue reading →
Business Builders
Accounting
"How much is my business worth?" This is a question that is asked regularly by business owners.
While it may seem like a simple question, the answer can be quite difficult to determine. Continue reading →
Law
You have a successful business. It is relatively unusual. It seems that every month someone asks you if they can buy a franchise. Are you ready to take that plunge? Continue reading →
Patents
So, you have technology that you think is going to set the market on fire. Your first thought: Take your idea to a trade show and gauge the reaction of potential customers. The trade show also would provide you with the opportunity to wow your competitors and show them that you are on the cutting edge. Continue reading →
