Entrepreneurship

New way to treat diabetes makes Kalamazoo firm a company to watch

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April 22, 2010

Metabolic Solutions Development Company made this year's 50 Companies to Watch list. The distinction comes from Michigan Celebrates Small Business program of the Edward Lowe Foundation. MSDC is developing novel medicines for type 2 diabetes and other metabolic diseases using pharmaceuticals designed to more effectively treat type 2 diabetes without the side effects of current therapies. The award, which will be handed out April 29 at a ceremony in Lansing, recognizes companies deemed to embody the entrepreneurial spirit of Michigan. Winners are companies that have persevered through the initial startup stage and emerged as leaders. The judges are based in Michigan and come from the banking, economic development, entrepreneurship development and venture capital communities. "Our success is a direct result of the extensive experience of our founders, the insight of our investors, the extraordinary talent and hard work of our employees, and the wide-ranging network of outstanding business partners that we have brought together," says Robert Beardsley, CEO of MSDC. "This award is a special honor. Michigan has a great history in developing innovative metabolic disease therapies and we are proud to carry on that tradition here." PNC Bank is the lead underwriter for Michigan Celebrates Small Business, with additional underwriting support from Clark Hill PLC, Michigan Economic Development Corp., Michigan Certified Development Corporation, Accident Fund Insurance Company of America, Comcast Business Class, Comcast Spotlight and Dynamic Edge. Michigan Celebrates Small Business is presented in association with the Michigan Economic Development Corporation, Michigan Small Business & Technology Development Center, Small Business Association of Michigan, the U.S. Small Business Administration -- Michigan, and the Edward Lowe Foundation. Information about the 2010 Michigan 50 Companies to Watch program can be found at its Web site. For more information about Michigan Celebrates Small Business, visit its Web site. Writer: Kim North Shine Source: Nick Wasmiller, Seyferth & Assoc.

Latest in Entrepreneurship

Bank builds second branch in Kalamazoo area

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Development News

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April 15, 2010

First National Bank of Michigan has broken ground on its second branch in the Kalamazoo area.Heavy equipment is at the site at 5313 West Main in Oshtemo Township in preparation excavation needed before laying of the foundation, says John Schreuder, First National Bank of Michigan Chairman and CEO.The bank branch will be a 3,200-square-foot office and will employ up to six people, Schreuder says. Some of the positions will be new and other employees will come from the bank's other locations. Schreuder anticipates the new branch office will open by Labor Day.First National Bank was encouraged to pursue a second branch based in part on its success with its Portage office, Schreuder says."When we expanded into Portage we found a good reception in the south county market. We thought the west side would be another good spot to expand."The decision to build the new branch was clinched when Martha Betke agreed to lead the new office, Schreuder says. "Buildings are nice, but the real indicator of success is people. Especially in banking. People like to bank with people they know and Martha Betke is well-known. People have worked with her for years."Before joining First National Bank, Betke was a senior vice president for National City Bank.First National Bank of Michigan also celebrated its fourth year in business this week."April 13, 2006, we opened our office downtown and we've had a good response from opening day."Schreuder attributes that to the bank's willingness to work closely with local small business owners."We got into this business because individual small business owners wanted to know the people who were making the decisions at the bank. Then if their request is denied they have someone to talk to, someone who can help them understand why the decision was made."Four years later, we're still convinced it's good business to serve the small business owner. We work with individuals in a way that they know we understand their business." Writer: Kathy JenningsSource: John Schreuder, First National Bank of Michigan

Once the butt of jokes, Kalamazoo designer’s pants become serious business

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Entrepreneurship

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April 8, 2010

Colorful, multipattern designs are the trademark of designer Delainie van Almelo, who has been creating them for seven years. They make her totes and wallets unmistakeable, reports the Kalamazoo Gazette.No matter the style, the 27-year-old's items often feature small pieces of different colored cotton fabric and patterns sewn into a whole, the story says.Excerpt:In addition to bags and wallets, she's done snap pouches, magnets and mirrors, hats and legwarmers, "pillow cube" toys and bibs for babies, dresses and tank tops, even camera cases and coasters."Anything colorful," she said, laughing.Her most popular items, however — sold like the rest of her items through her online store hosted through Etsy.com — are her custom "ninja pants," wide-legged pants with a fold-over waist typically crafted from 100 percent cotton fabric or a 50/50 cotton-poly blend."They're like yoga pants, but I didn't want to just call them yoga pants," van Almelo said. "My husband and his best friend used to make fun of these pants all the time, and they'd call me a ninja in them, and that's where (the name) kind of came from."Van Almelo's had the last laugh, however, having sold more than 250 pair of the pants since she began making them three or four years ago. Through her online store alone, she's sold her goods to individuals in 41 states and 10 countries.To find out what else Alemlo makes, read the entire story.Source: Kalamazoo Gazette

Downtown Benton Harbor new home for rags-to-riches Ravitron

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Development News

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April 8, 2010

David Ravitch has come a long way since the days when he was selling two-way radios from his 1969 Pontiac Catalina with the hood tied down by a long orange extension cord. He was fresh out of the military, living in a trailer with no heat and was offered the radio sales job as he attended college. That job was his introduction to the technology businesses. He went on to learn more through a series of jobs, including one laying the fiber to connect RV manufacturers, one at an area airport and one at HEI wireless where he worked three years in a building that he and his wife, Julie, now own.More than 20 years later, Ravitch, his wife and their employees are celebrating the opening of the new company headquarters of Ravitron in downtown Benton Harbor. Headquarters is a 3,800-square-foot, customized facility that's a far cry from the little brick building where Ravitch worked in 1992 just off the garage of his home as he built the business. Ravitron provides telephone systems and computer networks, including those by Vertical and Mitel. It also resells telephone and internet service. It provides telephone and voice data service to more than 100 local businesses, government, schools and non-profit organizations. The ribbon-cutting happens at 11:20 a.m. April 12. It's a celebration not only of a new facility but of the business' growth from one employee, Ravitch, to 10 today, and of $1 million in sales in 2008 and nearly that in 2009. Ravitron moved into its current location at 276 Colfax Ave. in Benton Harbor about 18 months ago. Since then Ravitch and his staff have been getting it ready for the ribbon-cutting and public opening. For the Ravitches, longtime local residents, putting their headquarters in Benton Harbor was an obvious move. The city's resurgence of business and arts in the were qualities that drew them to the downtown.One feature of the headquarters is a conference room designed with a special display that shows the workings of the telephones they sell and install. Prospective customers can see, for example, how a conference call can be set up on the computer in the same simple drop and drag maneuver most computer users are familiar with.Its tech room also is now ready to show off, Ravitch says. Sales are expected to do as well or better this year than last. Ravitch says the company rebills $20,000 a month in telephone service to customers who use telephones the business has installed.Ravitron is currently working on several large projects including, new phones and service for Edgewater Bank and Horizon Bank, both in St. Joseph, as well as the fiber campus, data and voice services for the Pokagon Band of Potawatomi Indians. "Business has been good," he says.Writer: Kathy JenningsSource: David A. Ravitch, Ravitron Equipment, LLC

Triangle Associates named among West Michigan Best and Brightest

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Development News

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April 8, 2010

Triangle Associates is proud of its community involvement, and it's one reason it's been named one of West Michigan's 101 Best & Brightest Companies to Work For. The Michigan Business & Professional Association compiles the list, and this is Triangle's seventh year in a row to receive the recognition. It is "a good test of the culture of a company," says Norm Brady, Triangle Associates Inc. vice president of human resources."Community involvement is one of the areas in which we rated very high," says Brady.Triangle Associates has 11 construction projects in progress across Southwest Michigan totaling $173 million.The company, which has a team of four full-time staff members devoted to the Southwest Michigan region, is involved in many community boards and organizations, including the Kalamazoo DDA, YWCA of Kalamazoo, US Green Building Council-Southwest Michigan Branch and the Kalamazoo Humane Society.At the company's monthly organizational meetings, Brady says, one of the topics of discussion is always community involvement projects. To make the Best and Brightest list, Brady says, companies complete a 20-page nomination application. The application asks for such information as the size of the company, its revenues, the benefits it provides and other facts about the company's business and community involvement practices.After making it through the first-round of scrutiny, an independent research firm contacts employees through an e-mail survey to verify the information provided. Nominees are evaluated in a number of categories including communications, community initiatives, compensation and benefits, diversity and multiculturalism, employee education and development, employee engagement and commitment, recognition and retention, recruitment and selection and work-life balance.The 2010 winners of West Michigan's 101 Best & Brightest Companies to Work For will gather May 6 in Hudsonville to receive their awards and meet other recipients. They all will get involved to a further extent by learning about other winners ways of doing things.Writer: Kathy JenningsSource: Norm Brady, Triangle Associates Inc.

Law firm buys into downtown Battle Creek

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Development News

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April 1, 2010

A commitment to the revitalization of downtown Battle Creek spurred a group of local attorneys to move from tenants to landlords. The firm of Kreis, Enderle, Hudgins & Borsos P.C. has bought 1 W. Michigan Ave. from Bank of America."The move was multi-faceted," says Mark Kreter, of Kreis, Enderle. "We have always felt it's better to own than to lease. The opportunity arose when Bank of Ameria wanted to sell."The law firm, which employs six attorneys in its Battle Creek office, had previously looked at properties south of town before deciding to buy the property and stay in the first floor office space it has occupied since 1998."When we looked at it we saw the opportunity downtown, that it will revitalize and flourish," Kreter says. The community's commitment to and significant effort that has gone into revitalization will bring that about, he adds.There are no plans to change the two-story, 11,000-square-foot building at this time. Kreter points out the building has long been an anchor in the downtown. "There has been a bank building or professional offices here since the early 1900s," Kreter says.Bank of America will continue to occupy the second floor on a long-term lease agreement with the law firm, the building's new owner. Writer: Kathy JenningsSource: Mark Kreter, Kreis, Enderle, Hudgins & Borsos P.C.

New micro brewery comes to Paw Paw, moves into old Coffee Co. space

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Development News

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April 1, 2010

Southwest Michigan will soon have a new brew to sip.Renovations on Southwest Michigan's latest micro brewery, the Paw Paw Brewing Company, LLC, at 929 E. Michigan Ave. in Paw Paw, began April 1.The business is owned by brothers-in-law Ryan Sylvester and Ben Fleckenstein, and the building is owned by Sylvester. It was formerly was occupied by Red Arrow Coffee Co, which moved to downtown Paw Paw. The two plan to remodel the 1,500-square-feet space at an initial cost of $5,000 to $6,000. The total remodeling price has yet to be determined, but work is expected to take six months. The business recently got a green light from the Paw Paw Village Council, which recommended the Michigan Liquor Control Commission approve its micro brew liquor license. Once renovations are complete, Paw Paw Brewing Company will feature a tasting room expected to seat up to 20 people and a retail area where its bottled and kegged beer and beer-related goods will be sold. Sylvester said the business will start out small and build over time. It will start out offering three beers: a pale ale, a red ale (amber), and a summer wheat with citrus overtones meant to please all palates, Sylvester says. The brothers-in-law plan to share primary responsibilities for running the business during different times of the year. When Sylvester's job with Great Lakes Landscaping keeps him busy during summer months, Fleckenstein will step up. And when Fleckenstein's job as a flight instructor at Western Michigan University keeps him busy during most of the school year, Sylvester will step in.The men have been experimenting with home brewing for nearly three years and decided, after encouragement from beer-drinking friends, decided to take it to the next level. "That's how everybody starts," Sylvester says. "You have to have a passion for cooking and beer." Writer: Kathy JenningsSource: Ryan Sylvester, Paw Paw Brewing Co.

Portage man expands business from garage to commercial space

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Entrepreneurship

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March 25, 2010

Two years ago, Steve Scott started a small-engine repair shop in the garage of his Portage home. Business has been so successful, he's ready to move out into the world, reports the Kalamazoo Gazette. His Something for all Seasons has moved into commercial space at 8139 Portage Road, just south of Centre Avenue, in Portage. Scott, who the story says repairs snowmobiles, lawnmowers, automobiles, tractors, combines, tillers, cultivators, boats, all-terrain vehicles and virtually anything else with a motor, said he is excited to be getting into his new, much larger work space. Excerpt: "This is heaven," he said of the 2,800-square-foot shop. He now has room to display the equipment he sells. The story goes on to say Scott was born with congenital glaucoma, and underwent 23 surgical procedures before his eyes were replaced with prosthetics when he was 17. Read the rest of the story to find out how his wife helps with the business.

Bell’s Eccentric Cafe grows in Kalamazoo to fit in more music fans

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Entrepreneurship

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March 25, 2010

A big fish in the local music scene is about to get bigger, reports the Kalamazoo Gazette.Renovation work has begun at Bell's Eccentric Cafe, 355 E. Kalamazoo Ave. The $2.5 million project is projected to make the cafe, a downtown venue for the live music scene, a more major player by turning a vacant space behind the cafe bar into a performance area with room for more than 300 people, Bell's Brewery Inc. president Larry Bell, says in the story. Bell's is well-known for its widely popular beers. In addition, bathrooms will be upgraded, a new atrium entryway will be added and a new parking lot for about 55 cars will open on Ransom Street.Bell says in the story construction is expected to continue through summer — a popular time for the cafe. He asks patrons to be patient — the wait will be worth it.Excerpt:The back room, which is believed to have been built in the 1880s, is the oldest part of the cafe and requires "tender-loving care." Once it's complete, Bell said it will have a stage, sound equipment, lighting, bathrooms, a bar and a green room for performers. There will also be some reconfiguring of the outdoor beer garden and patio."This is something I've been wanting to do for a long time," Bell said. Bell said he expects to be able to book more big-name bands and, by combining the new music room with the garden, host concerts for "perhaps 1,000 people."Read the rest of the story to find out more of Bell's plans.

More snowmobilers, more business

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Development News

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March 18, 2010

South Haven's downtown businesses are feeling warmed by a snowmobile-driven boost.