http://www.NRToday.com Serving Douglas County, OR Thu, 23 May 2013 19:06:28 -0600 en 30 http://www.NRToday.com/news/business/6535411-113/branding-brand-score-business Umpqua Dairy Products is celebrating — again. The family-owned Roseburg-based business won three awards at the Quality Chekd Dairies conference late last month in New Orleans. Umpqua Dairy received the 2013 Production Excellence Award as the best single production plant within Quality Chekd’s membership of 31 independent dairy processors, and its small curd cottage cheese and vanilla ice cream were selected by an independent panel of judges as “National Best of Show.” Umpqua Dairy was also a finalist for the Total Quality Excellence Award, Quality Chekd’s most prestigious honor. The Roseburg company last won the production award in 1997 and … ]]> http://www.NRToday.com/news/business/6535256-113/dairy-quality-umpqua-cheese A handful of Douglas County farmers formed a cooperative in 1921 to secure supplies and save money. The original name was the Douglas County Farm Bureau Cooperative Exchange. Today, the business is known as the Douglas County Farmers Co-op, and it’s owned by 6,300 members. There is a five-member board of directors, and Melvin Burke has been the general manager for the past 10 years. “The co-op was formed and built by farmers and ranchers who put their interests together so they could buy their supplies in bulk and save,” Burke said. “It has evolved into more and more products … ]]> http://www.NRToday.com/news/business/6535270-113/county-douglas-farmers-burke Many Oregon schools struggle. Just a few years ago, Elkton’s student population was low and the financial future grim. Today some buildings are still old and small, offices spare and floors linoleum. But a quick walk around reveals an exciting education in action. Change began five years ago when a proven innovator was hired. It was either change or perish. Elkton Charter School was born, led by Mike Hughes who built a team from the entire community. With a successful bond initiative supplemented by 10 to 15 grants a year, technology was upgraded, buildings painted, new labs for science, math, … ]]> http://www.NRToday.com/news/business/6467203-113/elkton-percent-students-charter “You are in business to make a profit.” This sounds like a simple statement, but many times there is a disconnect for small business owners. They are unaware of how to price their products or services. Oftentimes business owners price according to what they perceive as the market and what everyone else is charging. This practice doesn’t recognize the most fundamental aspects of costing, value adding and product or service differentiation, to achieve maximum profits. There are some key considerations when determining pricing of both products and services. The first consideration is to determine your costs. You must work from … ]]> http://www.NRToday.com/news/business/6535407-113/business-price-costs-services Matt Hibbard has brought his 30 years of dog training to central Douglas County. The 56-year-old has opened a business, Matt Hibbard Dog Owner/Handler Consultant, at his Roseburg home. He moved north to the Roseburg area from the San Francisco Bay area late last year to be closer to family. Hibbard has been training dogs since shortly after graduating from Grants Pass High School in 1975. He worked with canines for about 10 years in southwestern Oregon and then for the past 20 years in California. “What I primarily do is work with the general public in problem solving for … ]]> http://www.NRToday.com/news/business/6535355-113/training-hibbard-bar-dogs http://www.NRToday.com/news/business/6535280-113/businesses-county-douglas-business Successful small businesses come in all sizes and specialties, but their leaders all share one essential attribute — positive, can-do attitudes that transcend everything they do. Believing in yourself and your ability to succeed does more than simply sustain you through the challenges of getting your business started. It also spreads through your company and beyond. When you “walk the talk” and follow through on your commitments, your managers and employees perform their jobs with more confidence. Vendors, customers and prospects know that you’ll come through for them as well. Among the ways you can make successful thinking contagious in … ]]> http://www.NRToday.com/news/business/6336728-113/business-successful-score-success Recently, at one of my companies (Carrot, our software company), we ran a promotion and discovered some stuff about our customers that we wouldn’t have predicted. This one insight into customer behavior changed the way we’re now doing some things. This one insight could be a make or break key to your own success as a business owner. I’ll get to what that important insight was in a minute. But first, a story. Several years back, when I really started diving in and learning marketing at a high level, I decided to look to history for my first lessons. Over … ]]> http://www.NRToday.com/news/business/6467229-113/customers-internet-business-companies As the owner of a restaurant who is currently starting a “buy local” website, opening another restaurant and carrying close to 20 hours a week as an adviser at the Umpqua Community College’s Small Business Development Center, I can say that being in business for yourself is fun and exciting. It is also extremely stressful and busy. Lori Greiner of “Shark Tank” and “QVC, tweeted, “Entrepreneurs: the only people who work 80 hours a week to avoid working 40-hour weeks.” This is true. Eight years ago I was an Army captain making $72,000 a year with great benefits, but I … ]]> http://www.NRToday.com/news/business/6467255-113/business-center-development-owner CANYONVILLE — Jake Young started working at Fearless Fred’s 76 Union gas station in May 1970 at age 13. His father, Fred Young, leased the station. Forty-three years later, Jake Young, now 56, is still working at the same location on Canyonville’s main street. But the business is Jake’s Auto Center, and he’s the owner. He and his wife, Pam, also own Hometown Insurance in Canyonville, where Pam works. “We’re tied to this community,” he said. “We have a real love for this area.” In addition to being a businessman, Jake Young has served his hometown as Canyonville Chamber of … ]]> http://www.NRToday.com/news/business/6377676-113/jake-station-canyonville-gas In a previous column about preventive law, I mentioned “no-contest” provisions in wills and trusts, which may avoid problems and disputes later. No-contest clauses (officially referred to in the statutes as “in terrorem clauses”) typically provide that if a recipient under a will or trust contests the will or challenges the trust, the individual shall forfeit the amount designated to go to that recipient under the will or trust, and shall instead receive nothing. In terrorem clauses in wills and trusts in Oregon are valid and enforceable. The statutes direct that the court shall enforce the clause against the recipient … ]]> http://www.NRToday.com/news/business/6430891-113/trust-person-terrorem-clause You probably think that anyone with a room temperature IQ could come up with that revelation about positive networks and business growth. It isn’t intelligence or training, though. It’s scheduling. To succeed at most anything, the tank can run low and needs re-filling from time to time. No matter how late you are for a meeting or how much of a rush you are in, if you don’t stop to put gas in the tank you will likely miss your meeting. Your network, or the one you need to develop, serves you best when there is a cumulative base of … ]]> http://www.NRToday.com/news/business/6336772-113/business-networking-center-positive Small businesses are the largest employer in the nation but microenterprise is the real backbone. While the U.S. Census identifies a small business as 500 or fewer employees, it is more like the mom-and-pop shops that we know and love. These microenterprises have five or fewer employees and NeighborWorks Umpqua offers programs tailored to them. NeighborWorks offers a variety of programs to establish or expand a microenterprise. These include our Dream$avers and Umpqua Local Goods programs. Dreams$avers is a matched savings program that offers a 3-to-1 return on your savings. That’s right, 300 percent interest. We can help by matching … ]]> http://www.NRToday.com/news/business/6340048-113/business-microenterprise-umpqua-goods Frank and Jere Bartley faced a decision back in the early 1980s as they contemplated life after retirement from the military. They could take other government jobs and live in the Baltimore/Washington, D.C., area. Or they could join the family jewelry business and move back home to Myrtle Creek. The couple picked the latter option. They went to work for Hanson Jewelers in 1982 and about 12 years later became its owners by purchasing the business from Alf and Dolores Hanson. Dolores is Frank’s older sister. “It was a great fit,” Jere Bartley said. “We had been considering working for … ]]> http://www.NRToday.com/news/business/6336672-113/hanson-business-jewelers-store http://www.NRToday.com/news/business/6336750-113/july-riddle-ages-chamber Editor’s Note: The following is the 16th in a monthly series — Homegrown: Made in Douglas County — that appears on The News-Review Business page. Profiles of companies with roots deep in Douglas County will be featured in this series. To suggest a company, email business reporter Craig Reed at creed@nrtoday.com. COMPANY: Southern Oregon Log Scaling and Grading Bureau LOCATION: 948 Mill St., Roseburg HISTORY: The bureau was founded in 1950 by the timber industry. Previously, timber companies and agencies such as the U.S. Forest Service employed their own log scalers, whose job was to measure the volume and quality … ]]> http://www.NRToday.com/news/business/6368426-113/bureau-log-beck-scaling After years of barbecuing for family gatherings, John Menke decided to give grillin’ his full-time attention. The 42-year-old opened Cowboy’s Chillin & Grillin on March 15, working and cooking in an orange, custom-made trailer parked near Country Girl Coffee and Oregon Gifts just off Central Avenue near Interstate 5 in Sutherlin. Menke is being helped in the business by his son, Justin Menke, and Justin’s fiancee, Myah Jennings. “It’s really their future that I’ve invested in,” John Menke said. “I’m trying to help them build a future.” John Menke’s background is in operating heavy equipment, but he said he has … ]]> http://www.NRToday.com/news/business/6336674-113/menke-john-tasting-grillin http://www.NRToday.com/news/business/6060782-113/energy-dairy-umpqua-efficiency http://www.NRToday.com/news/business/6255826-113/glendale-goat-annual-community Startup Weekend was a great step up for Barbara Worthington. After two long days of developing business plans, Worthington’s venture, Caregiver Cards, was judged to have the most potential. The Startup Weekend, the first such event in Southern Oregon, was held April 19-21 at the Umpqua Business Center in Roseburg. The event had about 40 participants. Worthington admitted that originally she had no intention of attending the event. But after some encouragement from Trevor Mauch, a Roseburg businessman and entrepreneur, she decided to attend, to listen and to learn. After listening to the introduction and a few pitches from others, … ]]> http://www.NRToday.com/news/business/6226533-113/worthington-business-cards-weekend Despite already having three part-time jobs, Greg Henderson figured he could find the time for a fourth. So about a month ago, the 64-year-old became the general manager of the Roseburg Valley Mall, replacing Brittany Cannon. “My responsibilities will be more corporate-level work than what had been done in this position,” Henderson said. “I’ll be involved in recruiting businesses. My primary interest in Douglas County has been economic development and job creation and this work fits in well with that.” Henderson has 35 years of experience in the financial industry, having retired from a vice president’s position at Oregon Pacific … ]]> http://www.NRToday.com/news/business/6226526-113/dairy-business-tax-henderson http://www.NRToday.com/news/business/6255838-113/business-class-center-classes Steve Adair’s livelihood has been full of spots and stains, and helping people get rid of them. Adair has owned the cleaning products business Barco Supply since 1972. “With this many years in the business, solutions to cleaning problems are repetitious for me,” the 72-year-old Adair said last week in his store at 4024 N.E. Douglas Ave. in Roseburg. “I think I’ve heard every cleaning issue out there. Pet stains, coffee stains, stains in general, smoke smells whether in upholstery, rugs and floors. People have come in with all those problems, and we try to help them. We’ve carried some … ]]> http://www.NRToday.com/news/business/6255799-113/business-adair-supply-barco Dream On Ever since I was little, I always wanted a “dream VCR,” something that could record my or someone else’s dream, so it could be viewed on a TV. Whenever a family member would tell me of the hilarious or crazy dream they just had, I wished I could see it for myself. Now my dream might actually be possible, to some degree. Yukiyasu Kamitani and his “dream team” of Kyoto, Japan, neuroscientists have been studying dreams for a long time and just might be onto something. They use fMRI (functional magnetic resonance imaging) to scan a sleeping test … ]]> http://www.NRToday.com/news/business/6178861-113/dream-organ-cells-laser A business line of credit is a loan that is designed to finance short-term working capital needs. Businesses that have a wide range of sales volume from one season to another use lines of credit to even out their operating cash flows from slower sales one month to higher sales in another month. Many times these funds are used to purchase inventory in anticipation of strong sales around seasonal holidays or the higher sales volume months of the tourist season. A line of credit can make your business more efficient by allowing for discounted larger volume purchases, reduced freight costs, … ]]> http://www.NRToday.com/news/business/6176215-113/business-credit-center-loan The members of Oakland Economic Development are looking forward to great spring and summer seasons. Because Oakland is “a little” off Interstate 5 we are always looking for ways to get traffic off the freeway and into our town. Once travelers arrive, their comments indicate the detour is well worth it. We offer a variety of shopping experiences along with our historic buildings. More than 90 historic structures and locations are presented on our Walking Tour Map. Since Oakland is small, it is truly a walking tour. On a pleasant day the walk through Oakland takes one back to slower, … ]]> http://www.NRToday.com/news/business/6176229-113/oakland-antiques-chamber-town Dreaming has become reality for Heidi Underwood. She now owns My Coffee & The Wine Experience at 1700 Garden Valley Blvd., Roseburg. She said the change in her life happened quickly. On a recent weekend, Underwood and her two daughters, Sierra, 19, and Savannah, 18, visited a few cafes and restaurants in downtown Portland. They talked and laughed about how they would operate a coffee shop if they owned one. A few days after returning home to the Roseburg area, Underwood was told by two different people in two different situations on the same day that My Coffee & The … ]]> http://www.NRToday.com/news/business/6127210-113/tax-business-underwood-whiteley SUTHERLIN — Growing plants at Sutherlin High School has blossomed into a full-blown business. The plants had been a horticulture class project, but last fall a new class — agriculture business, leadership and economics — took over management of the school’s greenhouse. Now the aspects of running a business have been partnered with growing a product. “We’re now focusing on business leadership, sales, marketing instead of plant sciences,” said Wes Crawford, Sutherlin High’s agricultural sciences teacher. “Students are running the greenhouse as a business.” Last fall, the class of 19 students went through the process of applying and interviewing for … ]]> http://www.NRToday.com/news/business/6148062-113/business-sutherlin-class-greenhouse TRI CITY — “This is like a girl’s amusement park,” said a young girl. “Is this where Santa lives?” asked a little boy. Belinda Legg beams when she hears such comments. Her store, Treasures of the Heart, is full and colorful, featuring gifts and home décor items. There are shelves of scented candles, funny and inspirational signs, jewelry, paintings and soaps. Legg, 56, has owned the store at 119 S. Old Pacific Highway for 14 years. The inventory includes items from about 25 Douglas County crafters sold on consignment. While others have voiced their descriptions of the small business, the … ]]> http://www.NRToday.com/news/business/6148068-113/legg-store-business-treasures http://www.NRToday.com/news/business/6072503-113/business-insurance-coverage-score http://www.NRToday.com/news/business/5813807-113/business-startup-roseburg-weekend As someone who has successfully failed to buy five restaurants, I know what I’m talking about. Two months after I started my own pizzeria, I took this great class in my master’s of business administration program called “How to Buy a Small Business.” That was my introduction to the upside of getting into a business that is already profitable. Below are three helpful answers to questions that I have come across while trying to buy my own business. 1. How do I find a business to buy? There are several ways. Sometimes people list them with real estate agents or … ]]> http://www.NRToday.com/news/business/6070225-113/business-owner-value-worth Greetings from the Canyonville Area Chamber of Commerce. Since our last letter the chamber has been gearing up for “Movies in the Park.” This event happens in the evenings and shows PG- and G-rated family movies. Weather permitting, the movies are free to the communities and are done in partnership with the Canyonville South Umpqua Fire Department, the Canyonville Lions Club and the Pioneer Days Committee. Snacks are available for purchase. Dates will be posted soon. Next is the Lions Club taco feed and auction fundraiser for Pioneer Days. The taco feed will be held at the Canyonville Masonic Lodge … ]]> http://www.NRToday.com/news/business/6070260-113/chamber-canyonville-community-events OAKLAND — Josh Witten remembers waiting at the corral on his grandparents’ place for the mobile slaughter truck. He said he was intrigued by the process of turning a beef animal into a carcass and then later enjoying a steak or hamburger on his dinner plate. “It was not gruesome to me,” said Witten, who hunted and fished at a young age in the Oakland area and processed the deer and fish he tagged. Several years later, Witten decided he would make a living out of wielding the knives and saws used in the meat-cutting business. Now 39 and the … ]]> http://www.NRToday.com/news/business/5840328-113/witten-oakland-lockers-business With one semester left to earn a civil engineering degree, Scott Lander received a phone call that redirected his future. Lander was a senior at Brigham Young University in Utah back in 1976 when his father, Dale Lander, called to inform him Young’s Garden & Pets was going up for sale. Dale Lander did the books for the store and knew it was successful. He asked his son if he was interested in purchasing the Roseburg business, adding that he needed to decide in two or three days, because there were already a couple of potential buyers. Scott Lander’s wife, … ]]> http://www.NRToday.com/news/business/5851836-113/chamber-bay-reedsport-winchester At our Entrepreneur Meetups (www.UmpquaEntrepreneurs.com) new entrepreneurs often ask, “Where do I get the money to start my business?” I asked the same question when I got started. I’ll answer it by telling a story on how I “bootstrapped” several companies with very little money. I’ll show you how I’ve started all of my companies without banks, with sometimes less than $200 of my own money, and without investors or loans. My first money mind-set shift came when I was 21 and in college. I came up with an idea to buy an apartment building. I had about $600 in … ]]> http://www.NRToday.com/news/business/5818900-113/money-business-product-company http://www.NRToday.com/news/business/5919555-113/customers-customer-score-business Yogi Berra said, “If you don’t know where you’re going, you might not get there.” Someone else said, “Failure to plan is planning to fail.” That, too, sounds like a reason to plan your business. The bottom line is that a plan is important. So, what is a business plan? A business plan is a guide, a road map. It is a checklist to help the business execute an idea that improves the chances of success. It shows you where the track to success is and helps keep you there. There are three basic types of business plans. 1. Business … ]]> http://www.NRToday.com/news/business/5850348-113/business-plan-plans-biz Mark Anderson didn’t have to go far to find buyers when he decided it was time to retire as the longtime owner of Roseburg Refrigeration Mechanical Contractors. Anderson approached two of the company’s employees, Jim Bergeron and Bev Kokos, and the three worked out a sale. Anderson had owned and operated the business at 2940 N.E. Diamond Lake Blvd. since 1981. Partners Bergeron and Kokos took possession a week ago. Bergeron has been with the business for 22 years and Kokos for 10 years. “It didn’t take as much thought as it did paperwork,” Kokos said of Anderson’s offer. “He … ]]> http://www.NRToday.com/news/business/5813800-113/eugene-airlines-kokos-roseburg From two mothers in Garden Valley mixing oats, nuts and dried fruit at a kitchen table, Umpqua Oats has expanded into an international business. Sheri Price, 41, and Mandy Holborow, 34, have seen their company grow in its first four years from making snacks for their soccer-playing kids to supplying coffee shops at every U.S. major airport. Subsequently, the two women and co-owners Norm Price, Sheri’s husband, and Chris Holborow, Mandy’s ex-husband, were forced late last year to deal with the company’s growth and future. For better production, travel and food service options, the owners decided to move the company. … ]]> http://www.NRToday.com/news/business/5558191-113/oats-umpqua-company-business “An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.” In today’s litigious environment, this nugget of wisdom is more meaningful than ever before. The media stereotype depicts the lawyer engaging in dramatic courtroom battles, in which the client’s bacon is saved at the last minute by brilliant cross-examination and closing argument. On the other hand, some of the most respected and revered attorneys in this town (I am thinking of Don Dole) have been those lawyers who assisted their clients to order their affairs and make their arrangements so as to avoid the courtroom in the first place. In … ]]> http://www.NRToday.com/news/business/5828544-113/law-courtroom-preventive-bruce http://www.NRToday.com/news/business/5919184-113/april-admission-business-cost Bill Bayliss takes pride in the property improvements he sees around Douglas County. As owner and salesman at Monteith Equipment in Roseburg, Bayliss has sold hundreds of tractors to landowners. “Our equipment helps keep the county looking better,” said the 59-year-old Bayliss. “Otherwise, there’d be a lot more blackberries and poison oak.” Bayliss said the company’s customer base has expanded from bigger equipment for livestock and hay producers in its early years to midsized tractors for the county’s growing vineyard, blueberry and hazelnut industries. Monteith also supplies smaller tractors and riding lawn mowers for use on one- or two-acre parcels. … ]]> http://www.NRToday.com/news/business/5756582-113/business-bayliss-monteith-equipment A family often compiles a list of important contacts. You know the one. It includes phone numbers for police, fire department, doctor, baby sitter and neighbors. These are intended to meet specific needs for emergencies, respite and support. My personal list would include house cleaner, cook, gardener and chauffer. Why? Because these are things I either don’t do, don’t do well or don’t have an interest in doing. I would rather focus on the things I enjoy and do well. So too, the small business needs to gather the resources that fill gaps that we, as business owners, often leave. … ]]> http://www.NRToday.com/news/business/5728297-113/business-needs-owner-bookkeeping http://www.NRToday.com/news/business/5728275-113/business-franchise-franchising-score When Dawn Manning was considering what next to do in her working life, her mother asked her what she most liked to do. Manning’s answer was styling hair, something she had done for her daughter and friends for close to 20 years. She was encouraged to pursue the occupation, and she did, graduating from the Roseburg Beauty College in 2011. After working at the Ranch Beauty Nook at Rice Hill for two years, Manning opened her own shop, Dawn’s Beauty Nook, at 214 Main St., in Yoncalla one month ago. “It’s the best career change I’ve ever made in my … ]]> http://www.NRToday.com/news/business/5728264-113/building-manning-tasting-center COMPANY: Southern Oregon Diesel LOCATION: 7151 Old Highway 99 North, Roseburg COMPANY HISTORY: Logging was in its heyday in the 1950s, and Boyd Gregory knew it was crucial that diesel machines used in timber falling and hauling remain in good running order. Gregory was a diesel mechanic for Howard Cooper, a construction equipment business in Roseburg. With support and help from his wife, Emma, Gregory opened Southern Oregon Diesel and Electric in 1954 in a shop along Diamond Lake Boulevard. Their first employee was Ken Jacobs, a Roseburg High School student. Gregory worked in the shop and trained the help. … ]]> http://www.NRToday.com/news/business/5728287-113/diesel-business-gregory-oregon http://www.NRToday.com/news/business/5615240-113/energy-score-business-businesses