Screen Door Studio – Owner Dorla Mayer 

Dorla Mayer:  We offer screen printing as a service.  We can do custom work on boards or glass or other unique items, but I would say that most of our business is probably t-shirts and sweatshirts.  People will want their logos printed or an event imagery or whatever.  We can do as few as 12 pieces of something to hundreds.  

Rob Maniaci:  Who do you serve, who is your target audience? 

DM:  We do a lot of neighborhood festival type work.  Events, small businesses, schools, restaurants.  95% of our business is within the Madison area.  We do some statewide stuff and a few out of state clients, but I would say a lot of clients are from the East Side of Madison. 

RM:  Was there a change you had always been thinking about making in your business that Covid suddenly made a necessity? 

DM:  Trying to find some new clients because most of our work was events, restaurants, and schools.  They pretty much stopped.  I knew we catered to certain demographics, but that was tough.  We just got PPP loans and cut back on work hours, fixed up the shop and did maintenance work that we delay when we are busy but we took a hit.  We didn’t really have clients that were just waiting for us. 

RM:  Of all the changes you’ve made in response to the pandemic, what are some that will remain part of your business going forward? 

DM:  We have made physical changes in the shop because we can’t work remotely.  We are creating a product that has multiple people needed to create it.  So, we had to rebuild the shop so that we could stay far enough apart from each other.  That was major.  I guess we probably went to a little more team initiative on stuff.  I think before the pandemic, I was making a lot of the decisions.  That was fine, and everything was going well.  But, when we were slow, we had more group brainstorming, and I think it turned out that there were more ideas that came from the whole team rather than just from me and the main printer.  I think that was helpful.  It made it more democratic.  There was more time for more voices to be heard.  That was good.  That was great. 

RM:  It has been said that smart people learn from their mistakes and wise people learn from the mistakes of others.  What mistakes did you make along the way, that other entrepreneurs can learn from? 

DM:  I got into the business because I knew how to do the work, but I didn’t really know how to do the business end of it.  I knew the skills of the printing and the art creation, which is my background, but I really didn’t know much about running the business.  I probably could have gone to a business coach or somebody earlier on to get a better sense of how to run a business.  I knew how to do the work; I just didn’t know how to put it all together. 

RM:  What is most inspiring to you today? 

DM:  I am inspired by youth activism.  It is hard to be optimistic these days and take on big challenges, but I think the youth are doing a good job as far as climate change and social justice.  It is inspiring to me.  I am about ready to retire, so to me, I look back and I think of what I did in the 60s and 70s and now what the new crop of kids are doing, and I am inspired by that. 

Contact Dorla Mayer.  https://screendoorprinting.com/S1.htm 

Offer:  Mention this newsletter for one complimentary set up. 

Burn Pit BBQ – Owner Greg Fischer

Greg Fischer:  We are a barbeque rub and sauce company who also helps new and first-time grillers and barbequers by providing tips, recipes and resources to get better.  We primarily sell online through our website.  We opened in August of 2020, just over a year ago. 

Rob Maniaci:  Who do you serve, who is your target audience? 

GF:  There are two target markets.  Those who just bought their first smoker or grill and are looking at how to use it and good products to help them cook meals for their families.  Then there are those people that might be buying for others that like to grill or barbeque and are looking for a unique, local, all-natural product like our rubs and sauces.  We share new recipes, tutorials and updates on our website, Facebook and Pinterest. 

RM:  Was there a change you had always been thinking about making in your business that Covid suddenly made a necessity? 

GF:  From a personal standpoint, I was working in corporate America, and I felt it was a time for me to try this business out.  One of the reasons was people were not able to go out and eat at restaurants.  Grilling and barbecuing is one of the fastest growing industries right now so more people are looking for resources and spices and recipes to be able to do that.  So, we thought it might be an opportune time for us to enter the market.  

RM:  Of all the changes you’ve made in response to the pandemic, what are some that will remain part of your business going forward? 

GF:  Traditionally you would look to get a storefront and have a lot of overhead as far as a retail space.  That didn’t make sense, so we started online in ecommerce, and we sold primarily through our website.  I think what Covid did was allowed companies to see the flexibility that is out there if you don’t have brick and mortar and are able to be more agile.  It can be built a little bit quicker and not have so much overhead. 

RM:  It has been said that smart people learn from their mistakes and wise people learn from the mistakes of others.  What mistakes did you make along the way, that other entrepreneurs can learn from? 

GF:  I think anytime you are shipping a physical product, do the research and understand how to get it from point A to point B.  When we first launched our sauces at the beginning of 2021, they were glass bottles.  As you can imagine, shipping glass bottles across the US, sometimes they can break.  So we fixed those issues.  Along with that is learning how to work a deal with shipping prices and shipping companies, including the Post Office, UPS, and FedEx.  With everybody else going online and ecommerce blowing up, the supply chain has been strained.  Businesses and consumers should really start preparing for the holiday rush right now.  If you wait until December as far as putting in your orders for Christmas, you might be missing out again like we saw last year. 

RM:  What is most inspiring to you today? 

GF:  We are a veteran-owned business, and I served in the Marine Corps.  What is inspiring to me as we came up on the anniversary of 9/11, is to see our first responders and military continue to serve our country, especially what has happened in Afghanistan.   Making sure that we are being grateful for what we have and not forgetting those things and people, so they haven’t died in vain.  We continue on with our mission here to continue to build and grow knowing how grateful we are. 

Contact Greg Fischer.  https://burnpitbbq.com/ 

Offer:  Use the code BURNPIT for 20% off an order from the website. 

Pine Hills Golf Course (Part of North Star Mohican Casino Resort) – Senior Director of Hospitality Hicham Jaddoud 

Hicham Jaddoud:  I oversee the entire hospitality department of the Casino which includes hotels, restaurants, catering and all the components of the casino except the casino floor and Pine Hill.  Pine Hill is one of the greatest courses in the area. We have an 18-hole golf course, a restaurant with a bar and meeting space in addition to a pro shop. 

Rob Maniaci:  Who do you serve, who is your target audience? 

HJ:  We have 3 markets for Pine Hills.  The first market is the small towns around here.  Our second market is Green Bay and Wausau which is about 45 minutes each way, north and south.  Our third market is Milwaukee and Chicago when people come to stay and play. 

RM:  Was there a change you had always been thinking about making in your business that Covid suddenly made a necessity? 

HJ:  This industry was on track to modify to consumer interaction before the pandemic.   The pandemic has accelerated the whole process.  We were in the process of creating a contactless interaction with the consumer for different reasons one of which is because that is what the consumer wanted.  We’ve seen a huge change in consumer preferences lately besides the pandemic.  For example, guests can book a tee time on our app, pay for it through the app and the only element of that interaction is that they have to pick up the key for the golf cart.  We have a GPS on every golf cart.  You can order food, and we will have it ready when you drive by.  That has helped us create contactless interaction with the guest, and it definitely helped with the pandemic as well. 

RM:  Of all the changes you’ve made in response to the pandemic, what are some that will remain part of your business going forward? 

HJ:  We are going to keep all of them because we put lots of effort and money on this digital component.  Guests at the hotel can check in and out online, choose their room and get a digital key on their phone.  For the restaurant, we have seen an increase in online ordering and payment where guests can drive by and pick it up or stop by and pick it up.  They can leave a comment online, leave a review or even send us an email.  These are the elements that we have implemented during the pandemic, and we will keep them because that is what the consumer is going toward.  It is also creating a safe environment for our employees and guests. 

RM:  It has been said that smart people learn from their mistakes and wise people learn from the mistakes of others.  What mistakes did you make along the way, that other entrepreneurs can learn from? 

HJ:  We do experience lots of staffing challenges here.  Either a lack of staffing or just availability of our hospitality staffing.  Something I probably would have done differently is work closely with local colleges to create a partnership.  If I had started that before Covid, maybe by this time we would have enough people on hand.  If I had worked closely with local colleges and created an internship program or different partnership programs where we benefit from their grad students or what have you.  That is our biggest challenge. 

RM:  What is most inspiring to you today? 

HJ:  How the hospitality industry in general is recovering and coming back stronger and more resilient.  It is a very sensitive industry, vulnerable to changes in the economy, social, political and also the pandemic.  But the way we have come back as an industry, it is very inspiring.  That is anything from creating your new policies, new guidelines, training our team members and also creating a new normal for our guests.  All that gives you an idea that the industry is really strong, and it will come back.  It is resilient.  We are projecting that we will be back stronger than 2019 which was already a great year.  That is something that is inspiring to me.  You don’t see a lot of industries doing that.  We have seen the industry coming back stronger after each crisis; after 911, the industry came back stronger than before.  After the 2018 economic crisis, the industry came back stronger.  We expect the same thing after the pandemic.  That is what inspires me more than anything else.  

Contact Hicham Jaddoud.  https://www.pinehillsgolf.net/  

Offer:  Mention this newsletter for $35 off one round of golf with cart or 20% off a membership. 

Geneva Supply – Founder/CEO Jeff Peterson 

Jeff Peterson:  We are a 360-degree solution for manufacturers that are looking to strengthen their ecommerce presence on Amazon and other ecommerce marketplaces.  We handle everything from third party logistics to brand management, content optimization and digital marketing.  We’ve been in business since 2009. 

Rob Maniaci:  Who do you serve, who is your target audience? 

JP:  We are looking for manufacturers that realize that ecommerce needs to be part of their strategy and have pain points that Geneva Supply is going to be able to fit into their process and go from there.  The best part about who we are is we can serve as an a la carte company that a manufacture can grow into as they progress through their process.  We work with startups all the way to100 million-dollar customers.  We are a perfect company as you are developing a product that you want sold on ecommerce, as a consultant and as a partner on your team to build out what that business plan looks like. 

RM:  Was there a change you had always been thinking about making in your business that Covid suddenly made a necessity? 

JP:  There really wasn’t anything that we had to do different as a long-standing business change for Covid.  Where the change came for us was putting ourselves out there so that manufactures look at us as a direct-to-consumer solution when their logistics channel and their ecommerce platform has to change their way of accepting orders, placing orders or not placing orders at all during a pandemic situation.  We realized that is a solution every manufacturer needs to have as a plan B and making sure that people understand what we do in those scenarios. 

RM:  Of all the changes you’ve made in response to the pandemic, what are some that will remain part of your business going forward? 

JP:  The things that we had to change were making sure there was proper social distancing and safety for our employees and understanding everybody’s personal space and taking that into consideration.  That will remain because I think what we have all gone through is going to be in our head for a while like it or not.  We would be fools not to realize that when you have 200 employees, we have to be considerate and understanding and concern ourselves with trying to make everybody feel and understand that we are taking all of the precautions so that we are keeping everybody as healthy and safe as possible. 

RM:  It has been said that smart people learn from their mistakes and wise people learn from the mistakes of others.  What mistakes did you make along the way, that other entrepreneurs can learn from? 

JP:  I make mistakes on the reg.  When it comes to a mistake I might have made that others can learn from, I don’t really focus on thinking my mistake is going to translate over to somebody else’s specific business.  I focus more on having people understand that their mistakes are going to happen, and they have to understand that doesn’t mean failure.  It means you need to understand and self assess on a regular basis.  You have to keep your head on a swivel on a regular basis, and when things are going good, that is not the time to go celebrate it.  It is still the time to pay attention to why are things going well so that when the things that pop up on you that take you down and you make a mistake or something goes wrong in the process, that you are prepared to react to it quickly.  It is more about understanding the importance of the reaction time and keeping your head on a swivel and not allowing that to take you down. 

RM:  What is most inspiring to you today? 

JP:  I think what is most inspiring to me is realizing that with so many businesses going to remote workplaces, the understanding of collaboration and building your work environment and seeing that happen here at Geneva Supply and focusing on people first is what keeps me going and inspires me every day.  I think you realize you are doing something right when you are surrounded by people that are in it not just for a paycheck and are giving opinions and feeling open to do so and wanting to come into work and not wanting to just work remote.  That is inspiring to me because we are a fast-paced company in a lot of different categories. 

Contact Jeff Peterson.  https://genevasupply.com/ 

Offer:  I started a nonprofit program called BizTank which is all aobut career exploration.  http://biztanknonprofit.org/.  Please reach out to me because if there is one thing I think that we as a business society don't do enough of that is sharing our experiences, good and bad and what that journey looks like. 

Multitool Creative – Owner Josh Buege 

Josh Buege:  80% of the week, I work as a freelance marketing director for a handful of different manufacturers, some local, some on the East Coast.  20% is what I call the Multitool Marketing Network.  I serve as as a broker for various different marketing agencies that have certain specialties or areas of expertise or maybe industries that they specialize in.  

Rob Maniaci:  Who do you serve, who is your target audience? 

JB:  Small to mid-size companies.  Either they are small enough where they don’t necessarily have inhouse marketing support or a marketing director and they need a part time solution or large enough where they actually have a budget set aside to accommodate project work whether it is on a project-by-project basis or an ongoing retainer or an ongoing monthly service model. 

RM:  Was there a change you had always been thinking about making in your business that Covid suddenly made a necessity? 

JB:  If it wasn’t for Covid, I doubt I would be in the position I am today.  Prior to starting this business, I worked for a marketing agency.  I was fortunate that the agency that I was working in was just going crazy.  But, at the same time, the market conditions for the types of clients I typically work with were primed for onboarding a few new accounts.  They were all accounts that my agency wasn’t necessarily involved with.  We primarily worked locally with manufacturers in Southeast Wisconsin, and these leads are all across the country.  So, I basically reached out to a few of them.  They said that they were looking for support.  I said alright, I am going to hang my own shingle.  It has been a wild ride, but I have been enjoying every minute of it. 

RM:  Of all the changes you’ve made in response to the pandemic, what are some that will remain part of your business going forward? 

JB:  I came to the realization that I could do what I was doing, and I didn’t really need to be in one fixed position.  I could work from home, or I could work from the road with a second monitor that I attached to my laptop and the internet, and I can pretty much work anywhere.  That really opened doors to a lot more flexibility as far as travel arrangements go or settings.  Honestly, I am at a point where if I keep going the trajectory that I am going, I could basically live the snowbird lifestyle.  In the winter, maybe I’ll be in south Texas or Florida, and in the summer, I work up here.  The silver lining to this big cloud that has been Covid.  

RM:  It has been said that smart people learn from their mistakes and wise people learn from the mistakes of others.  What mistakes did you make along the way, that other entrepreneurs can learn from? 

JB:  I had a previous contract engineering firm that I had recently sold, and when I got started in it, the outlook I had was that time was an infinite commodity, and I could do everything at once.  Very quickly, I realized that that is not the case.  Basically, I had to take a step back, look at the core competencies and what the most profitable products were that I was dealing in and shift the model of the business to accurately accommodate that.  It got to the point where I was filling orders and answering customer emails at 2 in the morning, and I thought, “What am I doing this for?”  I think I was just naive as far as my own personal limits. 

RM:  What is most inspiring to you today? 

JB:  Just seeing the resilience and the adaptation that people have had in the market conditions and dealing with the supply chain issues over the past 18 months.  The unique solutions that are in place and how everybody has been shifting strategies to accommodate things that might be in a surplus or in short supply, pricing changes, just the level of flexibility that so many institutions have seen and the ability of people to persevere when the cards are down and things aren’t looking good. 

Contact Josh Buege.  https://multitoolcreative.com/  

Offer:  Contact Josh for a complimentary consult on your business and potential solutions for you. 

Ultra Painting – Owner Kenzie Sanoy 

Kenzie Sanoy:  I am a full-service painting contractor.  We paint everything from residential interior and exterior repaints to new construction.  We have also done interior commercial projects.  I started my business a year ago after being a painter for 3 years. 

Rob Maniaci:  Who do you serve, who is your target audience? 

KS:  My ideal customers are people who know the importance of maintaining their home but want some help getting it done.  During our free estimates, we completely customize the paint job to the customer’s specific needs.  We help them determine their long-term goals with their project, and from there we help them select the paint quality, determine the correct amount of prep work needed for their project and then send out the right people to do the job. 

RM:  Was there a change you had always been thinking about making in your business that Covid suddenly made a necessity? 

KS:  When I started painting, I was working for my brother in Minneapolis.  During the lockdown, I just wanted more freedom on my own and to set my own schedule, so I moved back to Madison and started out on my own. 

RM:  Of all the changes you’ve made in response to the pandemic, what are some that will remain part of your business going forward? 

KS:  Last winter when we started out, we did a lot of virtual estimates for interior projects.  The customers sent me photos and dimensions of the rooms they wanted painted.  We would then go over the photos over the phone, and I would write up a quote for them.  It helped minimize the amount of people in their homes and helped set us apart from our competition.  These virtual estimates will definitely be in our playbook moving forward.  It saves us time and saves the customer time.  It is kind of a win-win situation.  

RM:  It has been said that smart people learn from their mistakes and wise people learn from the mistakes of others.  What mistakes did you make along the way, that other entrepreneurs can learn from? 

KS:  My biggest mistake starting out was not networking with other painting companies.  When I first started, I was sort of navigating stuff on my own and learning from my own mistakes but once I made an effort to talk with other painting contractors across the country and joined some painting Facebook groups, I was able to pick people’s brains and also learn from what they were doing which grew my knowledge exponentially.  I have accomplished way more since I made those connections. 

RM:  What is most inspiring to you today? 

KS:  I am most inspired by other entrepreneurs and other painting companies that I have networked with.  It is just kind of fun when we can grow together.  I am also inspired by ultramarathon athletes.  That is why I started Ultra Painting.  I did a couple ultramarathons, and it opens your eyes to human potential and what people are capable of. 

Contact Kenzie Sanoy.   http://ultrapaintingwi.com/  

Offer:  Complimentary estimates and 15% off if you book during the slow season of November through February. 

First Nations Business Solutions – Owner Randy Soulier 

Randy Soulier: First Nation is a consulting agency specializing in health services for Indian Country.  Health care solutions that are meant to complement or supplement what a tribal community or an enterprise may want to offer to their employee but doesn’t quite have the money to pay for major medical.  I can provide teletherapy like urgent care and behavior health all the way to helping tribes with their administrative operations, back of the house policies, standing operating procedures, also community outreach, communications and policy governance.  

Rob Maniaci:  Who do you serve, who is your target audience? 

RS:  Primarily, my target market is Indian Tribes, tribal enterprises and economic development corps that they operate across the US. 

RM:  Was there a change you had always been thinking about making in your business that Covid suddenly made a necessity? 

RS:  I approached it as more of a benefit than an obstacle because the Zoom meetings and telehealth and all the similar types of virtual situations were more of a novelty in late 2019.  Now, it has become more of an expectation.  I approached that basically as everybody was forced into learning how to interact over Zoom and booked Zoom meetings and checked emails a little quicker.  I approached it to help me versus not.  There is a different type of communication standard when you are doing it virtually versus in person because there is no nonverbal communication at all. 

RM:  Of all the changes you’ve made in response to the pandemic, what are some that will remain part of your business going forward? 

RS:  I have learned to be more patient.  It was much easier to pop into an office or to meet somebody in passing or at a mixer in the past and to be able to network and interact and hear elevator speeches of businesses.  Now, I have learned that you have to keep the amount of outbound marketing high regardless of if you are on a good lead or not.  I have learned that introducing myself a little bit more in meetings is now much more evident than it was before.  People do business with people they can relate positively with.  Now, I try to introduce myself as a person, my values and perhaps some guiding conduct that I follow which is always good to share, but it is more so now up front versus emphasizing on the business.  I think it replaces that interaction where people can really see your passion.  Now, they have to hear the feeling a little bit more. 

RM:  It has been said that smart people learn from their mistakes and wise people learn from the mistakes of others.  What mistakes did you make along the way, that other entrepreneurs can learn from? 

RS:  A mistake I have made before is giving up my motivation after something didn’t work out.  The sun is always shining above the clouds.  I have learned to use what might be considered failure as a pivot point to keep working harder.  You have to continue putting your passion out there.  You have to continue outreach.  You have to maintain a positive attitude everyday regardless.  You are in charge of your day as an entrepreneur.  If you have a staff, you are in charge of setting the tone for that day.  Good or bad, there has to be a consistency factor.  Just do the next right thing is what I have learned out of those mistakes.  Just continue making the next right decision and don’t give up. 

RM:  What is most inspiring to you today? 

RS:  Resilience.  I live in an area where there are a lot of hospitality positions, a lot of small business.  Everybody is in a small business where I am in northern Wisconsin.  What inspires me is the small business owners that are scraping to keep their doors open, incredibly low staffed.  What they do is they still put their best service foot forward for the person that is in front of them at the moment.  That inspires me.  It shows me resilience.  It shows me that some other business folks might be having a worse day than I am.  That keeps me moving.  It lets me know that small business overall is bigger than me, and that I might have might slice of action but to watch folks continue to show up every day and continue to open their doors and smile and do what they can, that inspires me.  I see that and it keeps me moving. 

Contact Randy Soulier.  https://firstnationsbusinesssolutions.com/