Posted December 02, 2020in Business Feature
For business leaders, each year presents its own set of challenges. However, none have been quite like the challenges of 2020, which included the COVID-19 pandemic. But, as with most challenges, area leaders demonstrated innovation and perseverance, and successes are to be found. Each and every day — even in
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Posted November 04, 2020in Business Feature
The days of walking into a real estate open house unannounced or shaking hands with the salesperson from whom you purchase a car are seemingly gone. From the moment COVID-19 first came onto the scene in March, business sectors have taken action to change their business, offer contact-less interaction and
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Posted September 30, 2020in Business Feature
Iowa is a political hotbed during most presidential election cycles with its first-in-the-nation status of the Iowa Caucuses. Because of that — and the fact that it is a General Election year — there’s bound to be workplace discussions about candidates, issues or politics, in general. Public and private employers
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Posted September 02, 2020in Business Feature
Scott Smoldt was golfing with someone from his club when they started talking about their professions. The man, a business broker, asked Smoldt whether he’d ever considered selling his business, Smoldt Moving & Storage. Smoldt, who purchased the family-owned business in 2002 when his dad retired, told the man he
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Posted August 05, 2020in Business Feature
Sales of ammunition and guns have increased after the coronavirus spread to central Iowa. The owners of RR Gun Sales in Mitchellville began experiencing an uptick in sales in mid-March, both via phone and in person. At the time, owners were on hold on the phone with wholesalers inquiring about
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Posted July 01, 2020in Business Feature
Greg Stoll learned in January from several sources, as well as his own research, that a new virus was about to break out in China. Stoll, who taught international strategic planning for the U.S. Army, regularly reads news from New Zealand and Australia because he believes it to be more
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Posted April 01, 2020in Business Feature
Des Moines City officials say the first six months of state payments from a voter-approved sales tax have helped clean up more blighted properties, fix roads, staff fire departments and reduce property taxes. The Iowa Department of Revenue has projected it will pay the City about $37 million during the
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Posted March 04, 2020in Business Feature
Walk into most any coffee shop in downtown Des Moines, and you’ll see laptops open, phones out and patrons typing away. Some will be using their own mobile hotspots, while others will have logged into the business’ public wireless network. Head to the service station, the car wash or even
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Posted February 05, 2020in Business Feature
Here is what every business owner should know about licensing. Businesses and music have been intertwined for years. As part of an overall marketing effort, businesses create ambiance and atmosphere through the use of music to influence customers’ moods and buying habits. The National Restaurant Association says music choice can
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Posted January 01, 2020in Business Feature
EDITOR’S NOTE: After this story went to press, President Donald Trump signed a bill that raises the federal legal age for purchasing tobacco from 18 to 21. Beginning in the summer of 2020, it will be a violation of federal law to sell tobacco products to anyone under the age
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