Jay Sachetti joined Jeff O’Brien, partner at Husch Blackwell and Dyanne Ross-Hanson, president of Exit Planning Strategies talked about the market for mergers and acquisitions, exit planning opportunities for companies that don’t end up for sale and how companies can maximize their eventual sale price during an early October panel at the first Upsize on Tap event at Summit Brewing Co. in St. Paul.
When the state Legislature passed a law requiring employers to provide paid leave and safe time for employees, Justin Bieganek started hearing differing details from friends, colleagues and peers.
Artist and hair stylist Tammy Ortegon figures she has a captive audience to view her own and other artists’ work at The Color Wheel, her new store in south Minneapolis. That’s because the space has two purposes: an art gallery and hair salon.
“I have regular customers that come in for haircuts and the art work is right in their face,” Ortegon says. “Hopefully it will be fun for them to see this work. It will be a discussion piece for them, too.”
She had been renting a chair in the area for seven years, but the owner closed the salon last year. “I knew there was a need for artists to show their work in the city,” Ortegon says. “There aren’t a lot of places for artists who are just starting out. So this kind of fell in my lap. I found this place. I could afford the rent.”
She had a grand opening in January showing her and her mother’s work. She plans four shows a year, with an opening night party and then display of the show for several weeks. She’ll take 30 percent to 40 percent of sales, compared to the 50 percent typical at many galleries around town, she says. Meanwhile, coffee shops, the last remaining place for newer artists to show their work, are booked with shows for months.
“I wanted to bring the art and hair together,” Ortegon says. She likes having her own place, although she concedes that it’s expensive to buy every little thing down to the wastebaskets. As for losing her chair at the other salon: “I thought this was probably the best thing that ever happened to me,” she says.
Ortegon financed the shop through a credit card with a 4.9 percent interest rate, because that was lower than what she found through other means. She also prepared by taking classes at WomenVenture in St. Paul and writing a business plan.
Tammy Ortegon, The Color Wheel: 612.823.5693
