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.
by Matt Krumrie 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.
Back then, Wilkins says, the present was the future.
“All I wanted to do was keep busy, find steady work and pay my bills,” says Wilkins.
That was the start of what today is a 70-employee company that has a $2 million payroll, about $7 million in equipment, and a 43,000-square-foot facility on almost five acres six miles north of Alexandria.
Alexandria Pro-Fab is an ISO 90002 certified manufacturing company that specializes in CNC milling, CNC turning, conventional milling, conventional turning, sawing, drilling, tapping, welding, deburring, inspection and assembly.
Wilkins is like many Alexandria small-business owners. They have various reasons for planting their personal or professional roots in the area, but they all seem to have the same reason for staying.
Alexandria is about two hours from the Twin Cities, two hours from Fargo, North Dakota, and just over an hour from St. Cloud. The city has a population of 10,165 and as the Douglas County seat has become the regional hub for economic growth in the Douglas County area.
It is home to some of the best outdoor and recreational areas in the state of Minnesota, yet it has an economy able to support a wide variety of manufacturing and technology companies, big-box retail, as well as the small, independent businesses that many believe are important for keeping the small-town charm while providing big-city goods and services.
That’s what Wilkins liked. He lived in California while in the service, and after getting married and having two children he and his wife decided they didn’t want to raise their family on the West Coast.
“I got tired of the rat race, and I wanted to come back to Minnesota,” says Wilkins. “I guess the rest is history.”
Thinking ahead
One of Alexandria Pro-Fab’s biggest customers is Polaris Industries Inc., which has its headquarters in Medina. Alexandria Pro-Fab makes parts for Polaris four-wheelers and snowmobiles. About five years ago Wilkins spent about $100,000 to become ISO-certified. The hope was to attract bigger customers like Polaris, and so far that has paid off, adding jobs to the company and boosting growth.
That progressive thinking is key to Alexandria’s economic growth, says Tom Wacholz, owner and president of ORB Management Corp., a single-source manager of professional planning, design, construction, and real estate development services. Wacholz has lived in the Alexandria area for about seven years, but has 18 years and more than 3 million square feet of experience in the facilities development industry.
ORB Management has helped numerous local businesses grow into available commercial properties, helping them find and design building sites that fit their needs.
Like Wilkins, Wacholz believes the beauty of the area is a key reason people from the Twin Cities — or other regions of the state and country — come to Alexandria.
“This is a real attractive area to live with the lakes and small communities that surround Alexandria and Douglas County,” says Wacholz. “But at the same time, living on the lakes is not cheap. That’s why a lot of the people that are attracted to the area are experienced professionals who have established themselves and are taking the next step towards semi-retirement.”
The Alexandria area is home to a wide variety of businesses. There are 220 companies listed in the 2004 Douglas County Manufacturers & Support Industries Directory, including one that is making quite a splash locally and nationally. Tastefully Simple Inc. is a national direct-sales company that offers more than 30 upscale, convenience-driven gourmet foods.
Tastefully Simple has been named one of America’s entrepreneurial growth leaders by Inc. magazine in its 2004 Inc. 500 list. The eight-year-old company, started by President and CEO Jill Blashack, was ranked No. 17 on the magazine’s prestigious list of the fastest-growing private companies in America.
The ranking was based on Tastefully Simple’s five-year revenue growth of 5,710 percent from 1998 to 2002. Last year, the company achieved the No. 7 spot on the Inc. 500 list, and in 2002 was No. 40. According to the magazine, Tastefully Simple also achieved the highest ranking of the 13 companies in the “Food & Beverage” category. The company was founded in 1995 with just $16,000 equity and a $20,000 SBA bank-guaranteed loan.
“They’re a huge success story,” says Jill Johnson, marketing director and business development manager for the Alexandria Area Economic Development Commission. “They have quickly become one of the fastest growing companies and biggest employers in the area and are a real important part of the Alexandria small-business climate.”
Health care is key
Another important aspect is the state-of-the art medical facilities in Alexandria, which Alexandria Clinic Administrator Tim Hunt says is a draw for people.
The Alexandria Clinic, Broadway Medical Center, and Douglas County Hospital offer medical options not available in many cities the size of Alexandria, where many residents have to travel to places like St. Cloud or the Twin Cities to get services they need.
In 1990 the Alexandria Clinic had 12 physicians, but in 1997 was expanded to a 55,000-square-foot facility with 36 physicians, with another 15,000-square-foot addition in the works right now.
“As we expand our services, it is also adding to the local economy,” says Hunt. “As we’ve grown, so have the retail opportunities, and as people come from farther and farther away, it means they are more likely to stop at our restaurants, visit our retail shops, and spend time and money in the community.
“Before they would go to St. Cloud for that, but now they do everything they need to here in Alexandria. As we get better services to go along with our already established lakes and recreational areas, people will be more willing to relocate.”
Sunrich Food Group, a Stake Technology company that is a global supplier of identity-preserved and organic soy, corn and rice products from ingredients to consumer packaged products, has two plants in Alexandria. Nordic Aseptic Inc. employs 64 people and produces soy milk and co-packages aseptic food products. Northern Food & Dairy Inc. employs 180 workers and is a food ingredient supplier and manufacturer specializing in custom spray-drying, dry blending, liquid separation, clarification and fermentation.
Mark Tagatz, vice president of operations for SunRich Food Group, echoes Wilkins and Wacholz.
“It’s such a unique area, anyone who spends time here I think would want to live here,” says Tagatz. “Most people from the Cities spend Friday driving to their lake home, mowing the grass and doing yard work. They have Saturday to enjoy and then Sunday they pack up and drive home. What fun is that?”
The Aagard Group employs 40 workers at its Alexandria facility. Started in 1997, Aagard provides machinery systems to the packaging industry that create, control and analyze motion intelligently using servomotors.
If there is an example of a small business providing opportunities for local residents, it’s Aagard. Workers come from throughout Alexandria and the small towns and townships near the city, including Carlos, Fergus Falls, Garfield, Glenwood, Long Prairie, Osakis, Parkers Prairie, Verndale and Vining.
“Alexandria is growing rapidly,” says President Thomas Flynn. “It is the major economic center between St. Cloud and Fargo. It seems to have surpassed Fergus Falls in growth and demand. Small businesses appear to be thriving in the area. There are a number of large companies — 3M, Douglas Machine, Alex Extrusion, Donnelly Custom molding — which are creating opportunities for small job-shop-type businesses.”
While many of the manufacturing industries don’t have a direct relation to the local agriculture community, Todd Emmons, general manager of Leader Supply & Buildings and D&W Construction of Alexandria Inc., says these two companies are thriving because of the needs of local farmers.
D&W Construction employs 40 workers at its Alexandria facility, while Leader Supply & Buildings employs 20 workers at its Garfield Township facility.
D&W Construction is a full-service construction company specializing in all types of construction. Founder and owner Dale Wussow grew up in the area on a farm, and attended Alexandria Technical College for carpentry. Growing up on a farm gave him insights into some of the agricultural needs of those in the area, says Emmons.
“The agriculture business plays an important role in our business,” says Emmons. “D&W has a large amount of expertise in this area. We offer dairy and ag facility planning services. We have built many large commercial dairy facilities, of which the most recent were with Leader engineered buildings. Our ag business varies year to year but approximately 20 to 50 percent of our business is ag economy-driven.”
The business community is close-knit, says Kevin Kopischke, president of Alexandria Technical College.
“Whenever there is a major decision to be made or there is a business matter, it seems as if all the major players in town are there to voice their opinion,” says Kopischke. “It’s good to see a community where business owners are involved.”
Proud owner
It all comes back to your roots, says Wilkins. He moved his family here, and now his two sons are both employed and play important roles with Alexandria Pro-Fab. Wilkins, 64, still gets his hands dirty though. He still drives a forklift, sweeps the floor, packs parts and quotes jobs.
“I enjoy making parts, I enjoy the daily challenge of taking a problem and developing a solution,” says Wilkins. “It’s not exciting to some people, but it’s how I’ve made my livelihood.”
He also likes the fact that he is contributing to the local economy.
“We provide jobs, and that money is spent over and over again in the community, and that makes me proud.”
He says he still finds time to get out and hunt and fish and enjoy the area, as most business owners in Alexandria seem to find time to do.
“It’s a good place to live and to work,” he says. “If you want to come in and work hard and make a good living, plenty of people have proved they can do it. For many of us, it’s home and what we know best.”
[contact] Todd Emmons, D&W Construction of Alexandria, Leader Supply and Buildings LLC: 320.834.2275; 320.834.2270; www.dwconstruction.com; www.leaderbuildings.com; le****@***el.com. Thomas Flynn, The Aagard Group: 320.763.6043; TM*****@****rd.com; www.aagard.com. Tim Hunt, Alexandria Clinic: 320.763.2540; th***@********ic.com, www.alexclinic.com. Jill Johnson, Alexandria Area Economic Development Commission: 320.763.4545; www.alexmn.org. Kevin Kopischke, Alexandria Technical College: 320.762.4404; Ke****@********mn.us; www.alextech.edu. Mark Tagatz, SunOpta Aseptic: 320.763.5977; mt*****@*****ch.com; www.sunrich.com. Tom Wacholz, ORB Management, Corp.: 320.762.2077; tw******@***********nt.biz; www.orbmanagement.biz. Don Wilkins, Alexandria Pro-Fab Co. Inc.: 320.852.7918; pr****@*****lp.com; www.alexprofab.com
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