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Historically, summer has been a slow season for Mankato retailers. Thousands of college students have gone home and many permanent residents are out vacationing. The rest of our reading area doesn’t see such a decline.
The year 1994 was the worst and best of times in the life of Jeff Flood, owner of Calendar Specialists of Minnesota and Sportsman’s Specialties, both operating from his rural North Mankato home.
This offbeat issue features four ridiculously successful businesspeople doing a great deal of business outside our nine-county Connect Business Magazine reading area, even nationally and internationally. Yet they all chose our area for their home—or business home.
Spring in Minnesota usually translates to higher taxes in some form or another because of politicians of both parties doing their part to nurture and grow state government anew. It’s an annual rite. Our legislator/gardeners really do seem to enjoy watering and fertilizing and planting.
The businesspeople featured this issue each have more than four decades of solid experience in their respective industries.
After retiring later this year as CEO of 185-employee, St. Peter-headquartered River’s Edge Hospital & Clinic, 62-year-old Colleen Spike most probably will reside in St. Peter and become more active in community life as a volunteer. In part, she will drive elderly residents to physician appointments. Hers will be a humble grand finale to an eventful 16-year work career here.
Amber Pietan’s Eagle Lake family used to take annual driving trips out West. She said in a Connect Business Magazine telephone interview, “We’d stay at KOA campgrounds and dad would make coffee and toast around the campfire. I have really good memories of traveling.”
As a child growing up in Fairmont, Amanda Dyslin was creative and always searching for fun things to do. However, she didn’t have a career focus until attending Minnesota State and taking English and journalism classes.
As for farm size, Singlestad Farms isn’t the region’s biggest. Scott Singlestad farms 700 acres of corn and soybeans, a spread that won’t get many people excited in terms of size. However, the 54-year-old Wasecan does have a great deal of influence in our region and beyond.
