Doug Fahrforth
Building Relationships, Exceeding Expectations Floor to ceiling windows let in ample natural light. Gleaming floors run throughout. A ping pong
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Cover Story
Anna Thill
Visit Mankato Truth be told, there was a time young Anna Bjerke didn’t have a stellar impression of Mankato. Growing
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Unique Specialty and Classics
Photo by Jonathan Smith At first glance, one might admire the shiny chrome or the white wall tires or the
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Jennifer Spaude–Consolidated Communications
Photo by Jonathan Smith Wonder Woman Jennifer Spaude talks about balancing family, career and community. “Never too young to lead
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Liv Aveda Salon & Spa and Mankato Brewery
Tim & Tami Tupy (Photo by Jonathan Smith) DOUBLE VISION For a lot of people, the pursuit of a healthy
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Indian Island Winery
Ray and Lisa Winter are owners of Indian Island Winery. (Photo by Jonathan Smith) Winters the Vintners How Ray Winter
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AMPI’s Sheryl Meshke and Donn DeVelder
Co-CEOs Donn DeVelder and Sheryl Meshke in their New Ulm headquarters with an AMPI logo sculpture created and donated by
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Lorin Krueger – Sailor Plastics
When Mankato native Lorin Krueger drives across southwest Minnesota, he sees more than small towns dotting the map. He sees opportunities.“It’s amazing, isn’t it? I have lived here my whole life, but as I’ve gotten out and around more in southwest Minnesota I find there are a lot of really neat businesses. Last month Connect talked about River City Eatery in Windom. That is a neat business. The Worthington area is really starting to pick up.
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Brian Stark
In many ways, starting a business is like creating a piece of art: building a company often involves bringing together different “materials,” then honing and crafting them to meet the vision of what the entrepreneur wants the business to be.
An artist will first sketch a thumbnail of their project, much like an entrepreneur creating a business plan. An artist will then compose the basic elements needed to get the project going, much like a start up securing financing, a location, employees. Then the artist will start creating, one step at a time, adding detail and sometimes going in a different direction than the original sketch, much like a business owner finding the perfect niche for them.
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