You might say there are three elements that undergird the launch of any successful small business – profit motive, an unfilled (or insufficiently met) need, and personal passion for the company’s goals. Where those rank in importance depends on the entrepreneur and the start up, but it’s hard to imagine any new business lasting long without those three fundamentals in place. In SpeechTails’ case, you could add one more: heartbreak.
The excesses that preceded the 2008 financial crisis and the Great Recession led not only to finger-pointing but also plenty of soul-searching among both financial institutions and their customers. In retrospect, the outsized gains in the housing sector and the rampant wishful thinking that were prevalent in the 2000s were a fractured fairytale in the making, and the era clearly could have used a lot fewer cheerleaders and a few more level heads.
For all the well-documented headaches our animal friends might cause us – from late-night potty breaks to the Furmaggedon that overtakes crannies and couches in what can seem like an instant – almost any pet owner will tell you that all the fuss is worth it. And that’s not just cloying sentimentality. No, the joys of pet ownership are now backed by real, hard science.
Lisa Johnson still gets excited when she talks about the startup companies she was involved in before joining the Wisconsin Economic Development Corp. as vice president of entrepreneurship and innovation last September. Johnson, who had a role in launching Novagen in 1989 and Semba Biosciences in 2009, waxes nostalgic about the early days of those companies the way athletes might reflect on their glory days.
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2013 Family Business of the Year Award program has a Badgerland feelGreater Madison was well represented at the recent Wisconsin Family Business of the Year Award presentation, with five of the nine companies honored hailing from the area. Von Rutenberg Ventures of Waunakee received the Grand Award for medium-sized companies, while Cleary Building Corp. of Verona and Dave Jones, Inc., J&K Security Solutions, and Morgan Murphy Media of Madison each received special awards. |
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Banking on Uptown: Fitchburg’s smart growthJust minutes from the Beltline, ghosts of rodeos long gone by linger in the rolling hills of Fitchburg. Locals might remember the popular events, hosted by the George Holmes (tire) family, which were held between 1950 and 1989. The rodeo, which got its start in Madison’s Penn Park as a means to raise charitable dollars, later found a home on the Holmes’ family farm, near the intersection of what is now Syene Road and East Cheryl Drive. The property, which became known as No Oaks Ranch, will soon disappear as Fitchburg transitions for future growth with a new development named Uptown. |
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Community leaders striking at the roots of Dane County’s heroin and opiate crisisBill Reay thinks he has a handle on the origins of Dane County’s current heroin crisis – and it has a lot to do with his own profession. Reay, the former chief pharmacy officer and senior director for Physicians Plus Insurance Corp., is convinced that the startling rise in heroin use both here and across the country stems from a marked increase in opioid use in general since the 1990s. |
Get to know some of the professionals selected for In Business magazine's 2013 class of 40 Under 40. You'll learn a bit about their professional lives as well as some of their hidden talents and guilty pleasures. In this episode, we feature Cari Anne Renlund (DeWitt Ross & Stevens, S.C.), Chris Tierney (Merrill Lynch), Ruth Rohlich (city of Madison), and Thomas Lyons (Settlers Bank).
Willy Street Co-op considers adding third storePosted on Thu, 23 May 2013 at 08:22 am |
Food Fight planning new eateryPosted on Thu, 23 May 2013 at 08:23 am |
St. Vincent de Paul opens low-cost pharmacyPosted on Thu, 23 May 2013 at 08:24 am |
Unemployment drops in 67 of 72 countiesPosted on Thu, 23 May 2013 at 08:20 am |
Madison Fire Department won't train at MATCPosted on Thu, 23 May 2013 at 08:15 am |
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Recent Comments
Blaska may be mistaken, but Soglin is evil
About those state jobs numbers …
Is Paul Soglin that stupid?