Chez Alia Outlet
While growing up in Amman, Jordan, Alia Bostaji (Bose-tah-gee) enjoyed watching her aunt manage a home-based artwork business. It seemed intriguing. But Alia’s father had other ideas.
Snell Powersports & Equipment
“Snell Powersports & Equipment (Snell PSE) really began the day I was trying to get my (home) lawnmower fixed,” said 48-year-old Todd Snell in a telephone interview.
Brad Radichel
Each workday, Brad Radichel is continually reminded of the family business his great-grandfather D.W. Radichel started in 1888 as North Star Concrete. It jabs like a sharp elbow to the ribs. That’s because down the hall from his office, a boardroom brimming with nearly 125 years of company memorabilia was preserved as a reminder to him and other family members.
Express Diagnostics International
From Minnesota and Iowa to New Jersey to Minnesota and Iowa to California—and back again to Minnesota. CEO Paul Johnson of Express Diagnostics Int’l (EDI) took the long way home after graduating from Mayer Lutheran (Minn.) High School in 1988. And the business he has co-owned with four others since 2004 took the long way home, too.
Schell’s Brewing Company
Perched on a New Ulm hillside overlooking the Cottonwood River, Schell’s Brewing Company produced 115,000 barrels of beer last year. Each barrel filled 14 cases. That’s a lot of suds.
Foty Lock & Safe
Many people reading this now have let more than their fair share of incredible career opportunities slip right through their fingers. Mike Foty of Fairmont-based Foty Lock & Safe would openly admit being part of that crowd. Yet rather than resign himself to an existence of continual, lifelong regret—as perhaps most people would if having lived his lot—feisty Foty flailed away and eventually late in life carved out a successful business niche.
Images by Drea
When Drea Budahn was age six, her grandfather occasionally took her and her sister to their parent’s apple orchard to be photographed. “And I thought it was the greatest thing ever.”
Pediatric Therapy Services
The three-year-old boy recovering from surgery watched Nancy Dobson demonstrate a sequence of activities for him—walking on a balance beam, stepping on and off a stool and crawling through a barrel. Then he said, “You got through there with your big butt, didn’t you, Nance?”
Editor's Letter, Insights, Publisher Perspective
Complex Choices
As editor, I’m often asked how we choose feature stories. It’s complex. In part, we consider how many Connect Business Magazine copies businesses in a particular city or county receive and divvy up features and cover stories proportionately.