For nearly 70 years, the Ankeny family business has served the Blue Earth community in the same building, located at 230 Main Street. Started by Clayton Ankeny in 1946, it was passed on to Wayne Ankeny and eventually Bruce Ankeny, who still runs it today.
When Sung Woo “Matt” Hu was growing up in South Korea, he would watch American crime dramas and dream of working in a U.S. law office himself one day. Now, three decades later, he’s made that dream come true.
The Verizon Wireless Center, located in the heart of downtown Mankato, is a thing of multi-faceted beauty. Built in 1995 for $23 million, it has blossomed into one of the very anchors of the city itself, more than repaying its initial costs thanks to the roughly $47 million in economic activity it generates each year.
When Mark Beito decided to open his own funeral supply business—Mark Thomas Co.—in 1990, he had no idea it would spring to life as quickly as it did. In fact, by 1993, he had outgrown his rented quarters in the back of the local bank and needed to expand—fast.
Brian Tohal has a lot on his plate. As coordinator for the New Ulm Economic Development Corporation, he’s in charge of bringing new business to the city while cultivating the businesses that are already there.
When Rob Lawson decided to start his own business, he discovered that one of the trickiest parts was finding affordable office space.
Melissa Orthun and her brother Michael Stenzel know something about houses. Their grandfather, Walter, and his brother, Charlie, were prominent home builders in the Mankato area from the 1960s to 1980s…
Jeff Traxler glanced out of the lodge window and his eyes lit up as he saw two young hunters posing with their grandfather outside of the Club House. “Families frequently pose for pictures,” he said, “several generations, each person holding a pheasant.”
If you heard Tim Schwanke’s life story, you would probably sum up his career in one word: evolution. The Springfield auto shop owner entered the automotive industry 36 years ago straight out of college, offering diesel and transmission services to local customers out of an old Oldsmobile dealer shop he rented for $200 a month.
