Cover Story
Just invent it
Scott Augustine is back in the lab.
The founder of Augustine Medical Inc., now Arizant Healthcare Inc., left his company in 2003 and sat out two years waiting for his noncompete clause to expire. While he acknowledges that he didn't leave Arizant on the best of terms, he also says leaving was the best thing that could have happened to him. Continue reading →
Letter From the Editor
Sooty
Any business owners still doing what they hate to do, rather than what they love, what they?re really good at, and delegating the rest, please consider this cautionary tale about Eric.
I hired Eric?s company to repair my chimney in December. He arrived early one cold morning, and I greeted him cheerfully: ?How are you doing?? ?Well, I was doing fine until I saw your house,? he said. ?The chimney?s so high, and the roof?s so steep.?
I was puzzled. Aren?t most chimneys high, and attached to steep roofs? But I smiled politely. Continue reading →
Back Page
College to Career’s launch offers more proof that job market’s weak
Kate Knutson and Steve Barghusen are veterinarians and co-owners of Pet Crossing in Bloomington, the $2-million animal hospital they planned to be a third larger than they need right now. Before taking such a bold step, they had to learn how to reconcile two different world views. Continue reading →
Focus
Fresh attempt
By now the fairy-tale story that is Lisa's Salsa Co. is well known in these parts.
A backyard garden with 12 tomato plants led to hundreds of red-ripe tomatoes overflowing in the home of Lisa Nicholson in the early 1990s. Despite every effort to can and preserve these tomatoes, she still couldn't get rid of them fast enough. So she started experimenting and making her own salsa.
Her homemade product was a hit at family gatherings and social events. After some luck (another vendor didn't show up) she got into the Minneapolis Farmer's Market - and sold out all 120 jars of her salsa in three hours. Suddenly, this hobby turned into a small-business idea for the aspiring law student. Continue reading →
Education Q&A: Michael Sullivan
Family-owned businesses have plenty of advantages if their owners learn how to them, says Michael Sullivan Sr. He has worked with companies large and small as an attorney with Gray Plant Mooty in Minneapolis, as CEO of International Dairy Queen, and as a director at Valspar, Opus and others. Continue reading →
Education Primer: Hitting the books
David Burley and his business partners, Stephanie and Luke Shimp, were running the Highland Grill about five years ago, thinking about opening more restaurants.
When they opened the first diner, they wrote a business plan, but it didn't contain as detailed and specific financial information as they needed for any expansion plans. Continue reading →
Business Builders
Real estate
Most everyone enjoys talking about real estate. Whether it's a discussion with the next-door neighbor about the value of a house, the price of land up north or the free rent a CEO received on a lease, we all have an opinion about real estate. Continue reading →
Sales
Imagine if you could find your prospects and customers eager to listen to your presentations. Imagine that these presentations are short, focused 'radio' shows that can be enhanced with music, sound effects and even video to create a more compelling message. Continue reading →
Accounting
A controller was once quoted as saying that an audit can be almost enjoyable with the right audit team. Then she repeated "almost."
Audits of financial statements usually fall somewhere between car repairs and dental work on the 'necessary-but-burdensome' meter for managers of private companies. Continue reading →
