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Success Stories
Mueller
Construction Services | Great American
Sod
Farm
Kiss n' Make-Up | Brigi, LLC | Dos Foo Foos
Joe
Mueller has been in the
construction business for over 20 years with experience ranging from
building
single-family residential homes to rehabilitating multi-million dollar
dams for
the Federal Government. While he was an operations manager for local
residential and commercial builder in Glenwood Springs four years ago,
his
dream of business ownership began to take shape.
Eventually,
in July of 2003,
Joe founded Mueller
Construction Services, Inc. (MCS) a construction
company
based on the values of honesty and following through on promises. Joe’s
fifteen
years of experience in the heavy and civil realm, coupled with his five
years
locally in the commercial and residential markets, have given him the
knowledge
and expertise to successfully build nearly any project he is able to
procure.
Yet, Joe felt a need to shore up his business skills. He wanted to
establish a
company that was well equipped to manage construction projects from
inception
to final completion by organizing all pieces of the construction
process to
deliver a completed project. So, he enrolled in the Glenwood Springs
business planning workshop. It was the first such workshop that was
conducted
in the area during the previous several years. In this workshop that
began in
January of 2005, Joe worked tirelessly on his business plan. He soaked
in the
information provided by the workshop’s guest presenters from a wide
range of
professional disciplines that support small businesses.
Since
graduating from the
workshop, Joe has made great strides in growing his company and
reaching the
goals he established in his business plan. For example, he hired an
additional
project manager and part-time administrative worker. He also achieved
larger
goals of moving his operation into its own office space and purchasing
an
additional company vehicle. He prepared for anticipated significant
growth by
acquiring a large line of credit and by refinancing his operating line
of
credit. As a result of this renewed energy, MCS has
secured a number of
major
construction projects totaling several million dollars.
Joe’s
primary goal for the
future is to establish the reputation of Mueller Construction Services
as the
premier commercial general contracting company in the region. He
credits the
Leading Edge Workshop with giving him the confidence and determination
to reach
this goal. “It made me focus on many of the aspects of establishing and
growing
the business. It created an awareness of important, but not necessarily
urgent,
items such as marketing and establishing business goals that I needed
to
address. The weekly sessions helped keep me in focus and offered
support and
encouragement. It also exposed me to the proper way to create a
business plan,”
he says.
He
happily admits that the
course motivated him and helped clarify the path ahead by working on
the
business plan. “It forced me to work on
the business, not in the business.”
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In 2004,
Debby Puckett created
the idea of developing a
sod farm on over 450 acres of land on the banks of the Colorado River
west of
Glenwood Springs, in the town of New Castle. At the time, she knew
virtually
nothing about sod farming but her research into the industry quickly
developed
into a dream that she shared with her two partners, John and Kristin
King.
In
an effort to make this dream a viable reality, Debby enrolled in the
business planning workshop.
It was the first such workshop that was being conducted there in the
previous
several years. In this workshop that began in January of 2005, Debby
proved to
be a quick study and worked diligently on creating one of the best
business
plans of that class.
Her
business plan reflected an optimistic, yet reasonable set of goals for
the
first harvest season of the business. Her original plan was
to start selling three varieties of sod by June 2005. However;
irrigation problems that resulted from equipment failure destroyed much
of
their first crop and delayed harvesting until September 2005. However,
as a
result of shear determination and having a solid business plan to begin
with, A
Great American Sod Farm made the necessary adjustments to their
planting and
growing schedule, so that, by August of 2005, they had a crop ready for
harvest. Says Debby, “The business plan helps us keep the focus of the
business
especially when obstacles are thrown at the business.”
The
growing success of the Great American Sod
Farm
provides a significant benefit to the local economy. Since starting
operations,
the company has been able to provide two full-time and five part-time
jobs. It
also provides an unexpected additional benefit to the community by
allowing its
unused land to be used as a site for receiving excavated earth from
local
construction sites. By allowing construction companies to deposit soil
on its
excess land, it helps to save time and fuel that was being used to
transport
this material to sites much farther away. This additional soil will be
used to
grade the land slope for future seeding of currently unused land that
the company
owns.
Of her
learning
experience in the business planning workshop, Debby says, “It was the
best decision I have made for our
company!"
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For
as long as she can
remember, Kelly Jerles-Blackwelder had a dream. That dream was to
expose the
beauty in others by creating a make-up line and opening a boutique to
sell
cosmetics, fragrances and jewelry. As time passed, that dream became a
passion
until Kelly came to a realization that she was in the right place at
the right
time to take action. She decided to found Kiss n' Make Up.
Yet
Kelly had the
foresight to
realize that a passion without a well-executed plan was, at best, a
wish and at
worst, foolhardy. So she decided to find out what help she could get
to make
this plan a reality. Under the expert guidance of
Kaye
Jacobson and with the guidance of counselor, Tom Fleming, she was able
to
refine her concept, acquire funding from several sources and open her
doors in
October, 2005 with an initial investment of less than $100K.
Of
the help that she
received, Kelly says, “I feel I always have somewhere to go for
counseling
when I run into road blocks or experience a situation in business that
I do not
understand.” One of the salient benefits she received from her
counseling is
her decision to establish her business as a limited liability company
rather
than as a sole proprietorship.
Since
opening her
doors, she
has hired four employees who, together, work less than part time. And
although
her business is still in its infancy, she plans to hire an associate in
the
near future and expand her presence throughout the resort areas of
western
Colorado, starting with a second store opening within one year. This
goal
appears to be within her reach already because her business plan has
been
praised for its high quality. Of
her experience with
the staff,
Kelly is very grateful and enthusiastically states, “I am creating
something
special because of their advice and validations. On the insecure days,
I feel
better knowing the services arethere. Many people who start businesses
come
from
other careers, as I did. I was a teacher, not an entrepreneur. I advise
anyone
to run, not walk to these guys when considering opening a business.
There
is so
much more involved than the fantasy of having a successful business. I
kicked
and screamed all the way through my business plan and projections and
now I
realize how invaluable the process is. It needs to be honored and
nurtured. I
couldn’t have opened without them.”
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Local
Designer Conquers NYC
Aspen,
CO, 24 August 2006 – Bridget MacTavish, owner of BRIGI, LLC
and
designer of
luxury pajamas for women, made a splash at the prestigious
Lingerie-Americas
trade and fashion show from 31 July through 1 August in New York City.
This
Lingerie trade show is one of the largest of its kind in the United
States and
is the counterpart of the largest lingerie show in the world, the
Lingerie-Francaise in Paris. Even
with an exhibitor roster of over 250, this show, which heralds the
start of
Market Week in New York City, is considered one of the most selective
in
admitting designers and Bridget, an Aspen resident, considers herself
very
fortunate to have been selected as her pajama line continues to receive
a
growing recognition from retailers of high-end luxury wear and from the
leaders
in the fashion industry.
Of
her participation in the show, where she had a booth that won the
praise and
admiration of many and where she featured garments in the three-day
fashion
shows Bridget says, “This is a big honor for me to be selected for this
show
and it gave me the opportunity to talk to all of the buyers where I
wanted to
place my PJs.”
Jean-Luc
Teinturier, one of the show’s principals, said he was very impressed
with
Bridget’s participation and described her as a very hard-working
designer. This
review assures her continued participation in the show with some of the
biggest
names in the lingerie industry.
Another
honor that Bridget received in conjunction with this show is a
centerfold
feature of her company in the August issue of Body, the
“magazine of
record for the body fashion industry.” Unable to
enjoy her recent honors, Bridget
immediately began preparing her line for the Boutique Lingerie show
that starts
on 11 August in Los Angeles. Bridget’s line is carried locally in Amen
Wardy’s
of Aspen. For more information, you may contact Bridget at Bridget@brigipj.com or view her
line at www.brigipj.com.
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The godDess Is
alive and magic is afoot!
The “Foo” girls, Charmaine
Boudreaux (Uno Foo) and M.J. Lerch (Foo2) have known each other for
over ten
years and have been business partners since 2004. Dos Foo Foos creates robes that are meant to be seen.
Their first product
line is the Goddess Gowns Collection, a lightweight, kimono-style
dressing gown
designed with lively colors and sensuous materials–a very fun robe.
Each gown
is complemented with individual, matching travel bags for ease of
carrying from
one exotic location to another. MJ designed the prototype gown based on
a
Japanese robe her father received almost fifty years ago. MJ loved the
way the
robe lasted–its quality–and they designed this durability in their
Goddess
Gowns while keeping the gowns soft, comfortable, and luxurious. Their
goal is
for their clients to enjoy the same sensual feeling of the original
while
adding a colorful twist.
MJ also had the clever idea of
attending a business plan class that Jerry Pradier was instructing and
seeking
additional counseling from Tom Fleming. With a solid business plan in
hand and
additional knowledge of the financial aspects of growing and running a
business, they were able to secure a small business loan. In addition,
the Dos
Foo Foos business plan won the Governor’s award for the best plan in
the State
of Colorado in 2006! Today, Dos Foo Foos
is
selling Goddess Gowns at several high-end retailers throughout Colorado
and has
recently expanded its market to include resorts in Ft. Lauderdale,
Florida.
The
owners of Dos Foo Foos claim they would not
have journeyed this far, so fast, without the training and guidance
they
received from resources within the Institute for Civic Achievement. You
can own
your very own Goddess Gown by ordering online at www.dosfoofoos.com or email
Charmaine and
MJ at dosfoofoos@bresnan.net
and
they will be happy to help you select that “just right” Goddess Gown.
Wholesale
inquires are welcome. “The Goddess is alive and magic is afoot!”
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