August 18, 2014
Street Talk: GRPS bandwagon is going to pass you
Despite the negative comments you’ve heard in the recent past, it’s turning the corner and you’d better hop on before it’s too late. Grand Rapids Public Schools Superintendent Teresa Weatherall Neal is touting the district’s gains on the state’s annual Top-to-Bottom List — and with good reason. Four of the district’s schools are ranked in […]
Collaborative divorce offers less adversarial approach to calling it quits
Divorce is the worst. Even in the most amicable scenario, it can be a stressful, emotional, costly and time-consuming affair. This is especially true for couples who own businesses. “Couples go through a decision-making process that is structured by the court’s requirements, and the adversarial nature of the court process pushes people into a more […]
Religious affiliation can act as a buffer for companies
Consumers are likely to cut some slack for companies with a religious affiliation, according to a study led by a West Michigan professor. Grand Valley State University in Allendale announced that a study led by one of its professors was published in the Journal of Services Marketing. The study examined the relationship of a company’s […]
Davenport’s Master of Urban Education includes clinical model
To address the concerns of the effectiveness of urban school educators, a Grand Rapids university is launching a graduate program this fall incorporating a practical application to change the model of how future teachers are prepared. Davenport University, a private academic institution at 6191 Kraft Ave. SE, announced recently that it had received approval from […]
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Change Ups: Aquinas history professor elected to higher-ed board
Dr. John C. Pinheiro, professor of history and director of Catholic studies at Aquinas College, has been elected to a four-year term on the National Network Board of the Lilly Fellows Program in Humanities and the Arts. The program strengthens the quality and shapes the character of church-related higher education. Aquinas joined the LFP network […]
Slow growth is better than no growth for West Michigan
Much as it has been for the past five years, slow growth continues to be the trend in the West Michigan economy. According to data collected during the last two weeks of July, New Orders, our index of business improvement, eased to +18, slightly slower than the +23 last month. In a similar move, the […]
Public Record
MORTGAGES Selected mortgages filed with Kent County Register of Deeds EKKENS, Jonathan J. et al, Eastbrook Homes, Inc, Cascade Twp., 35-6-10, $256,268 CAIRO, Joseph et al, Flagstar Bank, Condo-Clements Mill, $244,000 SIST, Jason et al, Bank Of America, Condo-Serenity Shores, $234,000 FULLER, Jason et al, AmeriFirst Financial Corp., Bella Vista Shores No. 12, Lot 485, […]
Easiest way to make a sale? Start at the top!
If you’ve never been to the Guggenheim Museum in New York City, you’re missing an exceptional experience and an incredible lesson in sales. When you enter this building designed by Frank Lloyd Wright, you’ll immediately be amazed by the rotunda exposing the entire museum. Art is everywhere and a giant ramp wraps around six floors […]
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Money for everything from farms to factories — and libraries
The U.S. Department of Agriculture is an important source of capital and assistance in finding capital for many rural Michiganders, ranging from local government officials to farmers, factory owners and others in small business. The library in Lake Odessa, a small Ionia County village, is a case in point. Ground was broken recently for the […]
Listen for hidden meanings in business communications
Listen closely to what someone is saying to you. It can be costly if you are not paying attention. One word can change the meaning of a communication, whether it’s a contract, analysis, speech or advice, and in the process that one word can distort the communication’s intent. When I first moved to Grand Rapids […]
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Expensive beef, less boozing, beautiful barns
Catering professional Tom Doyle, a former long-time partner in the Brann restaurant chain and the new owner of Distinctive Catering by Brann’s, deals with a lot of change and challenges in what people want for their wedding receptions. Doyle said wedding receptions are about 60 percent of his business, which operates throughout West Michigan from […]
Company culture viewed as integral to success of small businesses
Eighty-nine percentof entrepreneurs consider culture to be an important or very important contributor to the success of their business, according to a survey of 515 small businesses released by Turnstone, a Steelcase brand. The survey, Small Business Culture at Work, sought to determine how small and emerging businesses with 100 employees or less view company […]
Another young man of color is dead
The events in Ferguson, Mo., have been on my mind and heart and I am deeply saddened. The thing that stands out in my mind is the community of Ferguson is primarily people of color, yet the police force is mostly white. A question we should be asking ourselves is, “Do my employees reflect the […]
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Swift Printing expands, invests in new technology
Swift Printing & Communications, based on Bridge Street NW in Grand Rapids since 1954, acquired a smaller Wyoming company in July and put online in August a new state-of-the-art digital press. Exact Graphics was acquired by Swift for an undisclosed amount, bringing several new employees to the Grand Rapids printer started by Walter Gutowski Sr. […]
Uber ridesharing service off to great start in GR
(As seen on WZZM TV 13) Uber, the mobile-app-based personal driving service that rolled out in Grand Rapids three weeks ago, is off to a great start in the city. “We’ve had a really strong response in Grand Rapids that has actually exceeded our expectations,” said Mike White, Uber’s general manager of Michigan. White said […]
‘Grand bargain’ will be a bargain for the whole state
Detroit is showing the world what it can do. Recently, Consumers Energy and some of Michigan’s other largest companies showed what we can do for Detroit. I was privileged to share the stage July 16 with Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan and the leaders of companies like Meijer, DTE Energy, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan […]
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‘The works’ can include the dog, too
When Leo Schlesinger stresses that his Thunder Mountain Full Service Car & Dog Wash locations in West Michigan are “full service,” he really means it. In addition to full-service exterior and interior auto cleaning, three of his 12 car wash locations also feature a self-serve dog wash bay. “The beauty of it is, for basically […]
Legislators have crowned themselves as king
The Michigan Senate last week approved legislation along party lines which, if passed by the House, will supersede a Nov. 4 state ballot question posed for voters. It marks at least the second time Michigan legislators have determined they are the only worthy deliberators on an issue and shut out Michigan voters. The issue here […]
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Hops production on the rise
Pam Bouma Miller is very proud of the fact that her new business is a food processor, and she’s got the license to prove it. First and foremost, she’s a farmer, but the license from the Food and Dairy Division of the Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development means Hopyards of Kent is a […]
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Inside Track: Millennial entrepreneur rides the wave of GR’s renaissance
Even though Andrew Montpetit loved to draw as a kid, he was always told that “the starving artist” path was too financially risky. But Montpetit, a Detroit native, ended up choosing a potentially even riskier path to become a successful entrepreneur and business owner instead. It’s an ironic detail of his story, said Montpetit, the […]
