special section - Columbia Business Times

Transcription

Volume 14
Issue 24
June 28, 2008
Mortgage market stormy,
foreclosure rate ‘startling’
By Randy McConnell
Professional
Mortgage
Group
President Shawn Von Talge says his business has expanded since the subprime
lending crisis weeded out local mortgage
providers, but his overall view of the
market, expressed on his blog, is decidedly grim.
“To put it bluntly this has been the
worst two-week period for mortgage
rates that I have seen!” Von Talge said in
a June 16 posting. The rates on 30-year
fixed loans spiked a half-percent and
mortgage applications dropped about 9
percent, prompting this post a few days
earlier:
“All of this, in light of a struggling
national housing slump, increased inventory of homes and much tighter lending
standards. Have you seen the movie ‘The
Perfect Storm’? Well, hopefully we end
up better than the brave men aboard that
vessel.”
Mary Wilkerson, marketing vice president at Boone County National Bank,
said her main concern is not the market
statistics; it’s the lack of confidence in the
economy brought on by factors such as
rising food and gas prices.
"It all comes down to consumer confidence," Wilkerson said. “It's not about
reality. It doesn't make any difference
what the economists tell you.
Reigning
women
Female
business
ownership
on rise
Story begins on
Page 14
(continued on Page 21)
5
8
12
Economic Index
Sales tax receipts
dropping, commercial
construction picking
up.
Business Profile:
ServiceMaster
ServiceMaster
handles aftermath
of fire, flood and
chemicals.
People You Should
Know: Greg Cecil
Greg Cecil raises
funds for MU
engineers, and loves
Jimmy Buffett’s
music.
Wendy Knorr, owner of Knorr Marketing & Communications.
PRST STD
U.S. Postage
SPECIAL SECTION
Permit #353
Columbia, MO
Banking/Financial
Services
PAID
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1
$ 50
photo by jennifer kettler
www.columbiabusinesstimes.com
See Page 20
2
June 28, 2008 Columbia Business Times | ColumbiaBusinessTimes.com
10
11
23
Mike Martin
Let dreamers
dream should be
local economic
development
goal.
City Manager
Bill Watkins
Budget needs
perspective,
practicality,
proactive
measures.
Art Investments
First rule for
investing in local
art: buy what you
love.
Boone County National Bank�� 4
CenturyTel�� 4
Chamber of Commerce�� 4
Commerce Bank�� 4
Corporate Insurance Management�� 12
First National Bank�� 4
Hampton Inn & Suites�� 4
Horizon Research Services�� 6
Knorr Marketing Communications�� 14
Lenoir Woods�� 4
Midwest CompuTech�� 4
My Secret Garden�� 14
Perlow-Stevens Gallery�� 23
Room 38�� 3
Salon Nefisia�� 17
ServiceMaster�� 8, 9
Silverbox Photography�� 17
State Farm Insurance�� 8
Swank Boutique�� 15
The Callaway Bank�� 4
U.S. Small Business Association�� 20
University of Missouri�� 12, 16
University of Missouri�� 4
Wal-Mart�� 8
advertisers index
Ash Park Plaza�� 23
Beckett & Taylor Agency�� 8
Boone County National Bank�� 28
C&S Business Services Inc.�� 3
Central Missouri Postal Council Customers�� 7
Central Trust & Investment Company�� 9
City of Columbia Public Works�� 26
Columbia Regional Airport�� 17
COLT and ADS Logistics�� 18
Commerce Bank�� 4
Commercial Investment Research Center�� 25
First National Bank�� 2
Grill One-5�� 17
Instant Imprints�� 22
Magic Services Inc.�� 17
Mid-America Specialty Markets�� 26
Mid Missouri Land & Lots�� 13
Midwest CompuTech�� 6
Missouri Credit Union�� 20
Naught-Naught Agency�� 24
Penmac�� 6
Riverview Technologies�� 24
Shelter Insurance—Matt Donnelly�� 23
Socket�� 19
State Farm�� 22
Stoney Creek Inn�� 13
The Terrace�� 7
The Tiger Hotel�� 21
Towner Communications Systems�� 21
Triangle Blueprints�� 17
University Center for Innovation &
Entrepreneurship�� 16
editor@
columbiabusinesstimes.
com
market, when it comes to consumer
confidence “it’s not about reality.”
It turns out that the short-lived designation of Columbia as a declining
market had little practical impact
on lending, but its emotional impact
was significant. We tried to chock
this CBT full of facts about the local
economy, because we believe the
majority of readers do care about the
way things really are.
Room 38, a tapas restaurant and bar, is scheduled to open in mid-August. The establishment is located on the corner of Walnut
and 8th Street in the space formerly occupied by Otto’s Bar. The address is 38 N. Eighth Street, the basis for the name. Room
38’s operator, Billy Giordano, the former general manager of Forge and Vine, said he wanted something simple to go with the
contemporary design, “using real clean lines.” “We are definitely doing an upscale restaurant and bar and lounge so we didn’t
want the name to be one or the other but a little bit of both,” he said. “I probably went through 100 different names before I
decided on this simple one.” Tapas (TAH-pahs, not to be confused with TOP-less) are popular throughout Spain in bars and
restaurants. They are, according to the epicurious.com dictionary, appetizers but also can form the basis for an entire meal
and can range from simple items such as olives or cubes of ham and cheese to more elaborate preparations like cold omelets,
snails in a spicy sauce, stuffed peppers and miniature sandwiches.
(573) 499-1830 | (573) 499-1831 fax
[email protected]
Chris Harrison | General Manager | Ext.1010
David Reed | Group Editor | Ext.1013
Cody Moore | Graphic Designer
Alisha Moreland | Graphic Designer
Betsy Bell | Creative Services
Jennifer Kettler | Photo Editor
Cindy Sheridan | Operations Manager
Becky Beul | Marketing Representative
Kelly Murray | Marketing Representative
Joe Schmitter | Marketing Representative
Writers in this issue: Brent Beshore, Jennifer Herseim,
Bryan Jones, Sarah Kohnle, Randy McConnell,
Robert Thomas, David Walle, Virginia Wilson
Columnists in this issue: Cathy Atkins, Bob Black,
Phyliss Chase, Brad Eiken, Al Germond, Mike Martin,
Joanna Schneider, Bill Watkins
The Columbia Business Times is published every other Saturday by
OUR MISSION STATEMENT:
The Business Times Co. 2001 Corporate Place, Suite 100,
The Columbia Business Times strives to be Columbia’s leading
Columbia, Mo 65202. (573) 499-1830.
source for timely and comprehensive news coverage of the local
Copyright The Business Times Co., 2008. All rights reserved.
business community. This publication is dedicated to being the
Reproduction or use of any editorial or graphic content without the
most relevant and useful vehicle for the exchange of information
express written permission of the publisher is prohibited.
and ideas among Columbia’s business professionals.
Third-class postage paid at Columbia, Mo.
The annual subscription rate is $39.95 for 26 issues.
Editor David Reed
After I assign a reporter to do a
market analysis and see the article
pop up in my e-mail inbox, I’m
always anxious to find out whether
the story is balanced. It shouldn’t
be weighted toward the negative or
positive; it should be a portrayal as
close to reality as we can make it.
But I also know that negative perceptions can become self-fulfilling. And
as Mary Wilkerson says in Randy
McConnell’s article on the mortgage
3
editor’s welcome
4
people on the move
Hirings
Waddill
Morse
Freiburghaus
Boone County National Bank has named Sherry Waddill vice president
of consumer banking. Waddill, who has 13 years of financial services
experience, leads sales and service in the bank’s branch network. Her
responsibilities include strategic planning, staffing, compliance, budgeting and business development. Waddill has worked at both First
National Bank and Commerce Bank. She graduated from Columbia
College with a bachelor’s degree in marketing and management. Waddill
is vice chair of the Chamber of Commerce Total Resource Campaign and
this year will become president of the Women’s Network.
Robert Duncan has been appointed vice chancellor for research at the
University of Missouri. He will be responsible for providing leadership
to the Division of Sponsored Programs, nine research centers, the MU
Technology Management and Industry Relations Program and the office
of Animal Research. Duncan received his bachelor’s degree in physics
from MIT in 1982 and his doctorate in physics from the University of
California-Santa Barbara. Previously, he was the chief operating officer
of the New Mexico Consortium. His appointment starts Sept. 1.
Judith Fitzgerald Miller, associate dean for graduate programs and
research at the Marquette University College of Nursing, has been
named dean of the MU Sinclair School of Nursing. Miller received her
bachelor’s degree in nursing from the University of Wisconsin-Madison,
her master’s degree in nursing from Marquette University and her doctorate from the University of Illinois in Chicago. Miller is a member of
several medical organizations and is a fellow in the American Academy
of Nursing. She has also written three editions of her award-winning
book, “Coping with Chronic Illness: Overcoming Powerlessness.” She
will begin her position Aug. 1.
Julie Sizemore has been appointed director of sales of the new
Hampton Inn & Suites in Columbia. The hotel is scheduled to open this
summer at the southeastern end of the University of Missouri campus.
Previously, Sizemore was sales manager for two hotels in Columbia and
in Champaign, Ill.
Erik Morse has joined Midwest CompuTech as a sales manager and
account executive. He will be responsible for establishing new business,
relationship building and providing customer service. Morse earned a
bachelor’s degree in psychology from the University of Missouri. He is
the Columbia Chamber of Commerce EPIC co-chair.
Lenoir Woods senior living community hired Ron Freiburghaus as
development director. Freiburghaus will assist older adults in creating
planned gifts to help loved ones and important ministries. He will also
work with the local community to benefit the residents of the continuing
care retirement community. Freiburghaus graduated from the University
of Missouri with degrees in psychology and law.
The National Biodiesel Board, based in Jefferson City, chose Shelby
Neal as the new director of state governmental affairs. Neal has 10 years
of lobbying experience including working as a policy advisor for Gov.
Matt Blunt. He began his career in Washington, D.C., where he served as
a policy advisor to three members of the U.S. Congress. He returned to
Missouri to work as a state and federal lobbyist for the Missouri Soybean
Association. Neal authored the “Missouri Renewable Fuel Standard,”
which requires most Missouri gasoline to contain 10 percent ethanol. He
is a graduate of the University of Missouri and lives in Columbia.
CenturyTel recently hired five people for the Columbia office: Kevin
Czaicki, area operations manager; Court Chrisman, sales account manager;
Curt Kempf, senior technical manager; Russell Scruggs, senior analyst and
Kelly Vanengelenhoven, senior analyst.
Promotions
Gary Meyerpeter has been named an executive vice president of The
Callaway Bank. Meyerpeter joined The Callaway Bank staff in 2004 and
serves as the president of The Callaway Bank Boone County markets.
Meyerpeter, who lives in Columbia, is responsible for overseeing the
growth and management of Columbia and Boone County. Meyerpeter
earned a degree in business management from Central Missouri State
University.
Appointments
Gov. Matt Blunt appointed Theodore E. Chapman the deputy director
for the Division of Mental Retardation and Developmental Disabilities
at the Department of Mental Health. Chapman received a bachelor’s
degree in psychology from California State University and a doctorate
degree from the University of Kansas.
Columbia City government Risk Manager Sarah Perry assumed the
role as president of the Public Risk Management Association recently.
She previously served as a director on PRIMA’s board. She will be
responsible for leading PRIMA, a risk management association focused
on the practice of risk management in the public sector.
5
economic index
The down arrows continue to dominate
the economic indicators in key categories –
sales tax receipts and home building, sales
and values – while there are up arrows
where they’re unwanted – local and state
unemployment.
One bright spot is commercial building.
The number of permits issued, and the value
of the construction, rose in May, compared
with the same month last year. The number
and value of permits for alterations and additions also increased.
Sales tax receipts are a good indicator of
activity in the local economy. City Finance
Director Lori Fleming’s office did a breakdown of the receipts by category, and the
results show some negative trends.
For the first six months of the current fiscal
year, collections of the 1 percent sales tax in
the construction and home improvement
category are down 10 percent compared with
the previous year.
Columbia’s Economic Indicators
receipts
1% Sales Tax Receipts
March 2008: $1,658,767
March 2007: $1,778,614
Change (#): -$119,847
Change (%): -6.7%
Value of Building Permits
– Residential
May 2008: $7,138,474
May 2007: $8,673,521
Change (#): -$1,535,047
Change (%): -17.7%
1% Sales Tax Receipts
Fiscal Year-to-Date 2008:
$9,894,217
Fiscal Year-to-Date 2007:
$9,858,405
Change (#): $35,812
Change (%): 0.4%
Building Permits – Detached
Single Family Homes
May 2008: 23
May 2007: 41
Change (#): -18
Change (%): -43.9%
labor
Columbia Labor Force
April 2008: 92,902
April 2007: 92,862
Change (#): 40
Change (%): 0.0%
Missouri Labor Force
April 2008: 3,006,492
April 2007: 3,020,721
Change (#):-14,229
Change (%):-0.5%
Columbia Unemployment
April 2008: 3,050
April 2007: 2,738
Change (#): 312
Change (%): 11.4%
Missouri Unemployment
April 2008: 147,764
April 2007: 132,078
Change (#): 15,686
Change (%): 11.9%
– Detached Single Family
Homes
May 2008: $3,790,165
May 2007: $7,367,520
Change (#): -$3,577,355
Change (%): -48.6%
Building Permits – Residential
Additions/Alterations
May 2008: 93
May 2007: 96
Change (#): -3
Change (%): -3.1%
– Residential Additions/
Alterations
May 2008: $858,309
May 2007: $826,001
Change (#): $32,308
Change (%): 3.9%
– Commercial Additions/
Alterations
May 2008: $4,475,815
May 2007: $1,801,050
Change (#): $2,674,765
Change (%): 148.5%
Units Sold in Boone County
– Detached Single-Family
Homes
May 2008: 247
May 2007: 273
Change (#): -26
Change (%): -9.5%
Volume of Sales in Boone
County – Detached SingleFamily Homes
May 2008: $42,813,663
May 2007: $47,325,701
Change (#): -$4,512,038
Change (%): -9.5%
Median Price of Home Sales
in Boone County
May 2008: $150,000
May 2007: $155,000
Change (#): -$5,000
Change (%): -3.2%
utilities
Water Customers
May 2008: 43,907
May 2007: 42,740
Change (#): 1,167
Change (%): 2.7%
Building Permits
– Commercial
May 2008: 30
May 2007: 25
Change (#): 5
Change (%): 20.0%
Electric Customers
May 2008: 44,575
May 2007: 43,179
Change (#): 1,396
Change (%): 3.2%
Missouri Unemployment Rate
April 2008: 4.9%
April 2007: 4.4%
Change (%): 0.5%
– Commercial
May 2008: $12,447,815
May 2007: $3,346,050
Change (#): $9,101,765
Change (%): 272.0%
Sewer Customers
– Residential
May 2008: 39,496
May 2007: 37,973
Change (#): 1,523
Change (%): 4%
construction &
housing sales
Building Permits – Residential
May 2008: 147
May 2007: 139
Change (#): 12
Change (%): 8.6%
Building Permits –
Commercial Additions/
Alterations
May 2008: 21
May 2007: 20
Change (#): 1
Change (%): 5.0%
Sewer Customers
– Commercial
May 2008: 3,513
May 2007: 3,414
Change (#): 99
Change (%): 2.9%
Columbia
Unemployment Rate
April 2008: 3.3%
April 2007: 2.9%
Change (%): 0.4%
Contributors include: Lori Fleming, Linda Rootes, Sarah Talbert and Carol Van Gorp
Compiled by David Walle
Housing market downturn continues, commercial building up
6
economic index
Paula Carter of Horizon Research Services took
Fleming’s raw numbers and developed a series of
charts (above, adjacent page).
While there have been some high-profile restaurant closings this past winter and spring, the sales
tax receipts from restaurants and bars were up
significantly in the first six months of the current
fiscal year compared with the two previous years.
Receipts through March, the latest month with com-
plete figures, were up 10.5 percent compared with
the same period in the previous fiscal year.
Sales tax reports from department, retail and grocery stores seem to be showing evidence of curbed
spending among consumers.
Local tax revenue from those stores is flat, with
a 1.25 percent increase from October through March.
When factoring in the increase in population, the
data indicates a decline in per capita spending,
although many people come from outside the city
to shop.
If Columbia follows national trends, the reduced
spending likely will continue. More than half
of consumers polled in April planned to reduce
spending on home goods, according to a report
from Packaged Facts drawn from Simmons Market
Research Bureau survey data.
One category that raises questions about driving patterns is the
sales tax receipts from petroleum products, primarily gasoline, in
Columbia. The receipts were up 3.7 percent through March, compared with the previous year.
However, the average retail gas price in Missouri, which is usually within a few cents of Columbia price, was about $2.50 a gallon
at the end of March 2007 and the price broke above $3.00 a gallon in
March 2008. That's a 50-cent increase, or 20 percent.
Since the sales tax revenue hasn’t increased as much, it may mean
that people were already driving less this past winter and spring. v
Source: Horizon Research Services
7
economic index
8
business profile | Servicemaster
Servicemaster owner Adam Kinser, right, directs his employees at the cleaning service center outside of Columbia.
When fire is out, floodwaters
recede, chemicals spilled,
ServiceMaster trucks arrive
By Robert E. Thomas
When disaster strikes — and it’s been a big
year for disasters — Adam Kinser and the teams
at ServiceMaster stay busy, quickly responding
to the scene in their bright yellow trucks.
Kinser is in his sixth year operating
ServiceMaster, the Columbia-based restoration
and cleaning franchise. It’s already been a year
notable for response to flooding and a multitude
of local fires along with expanded commercial
contracts.
Employees from the Columbia franchise with
specialized training joined those from the six
ServiceMaster franchises in St. Louis to assist
Iowa flood victims, he said. They hired temporary labor and are sharing equipment to help
restore homes in Cedar Rapids, where floodwaters from the Cedar River forced the evacuation
of more than 24,000 people.
ServiceMaster franchises hold a national
contract with State Farm Insurance and more
recently signed a contract as first responder
to Wal-Mart. For Kinser, Wal-Mart coverage
includes 13 Mid-Missouri counties.
“We are trying to go commercial rather than
just to serving homeowners,” he said.
“There is nothing we can’t do,” he said. “I
stress to our employees that we never turn down
a job.”
That means he’ll solicit work cleaning up
chemical spills, methamphetamine lab fires,
chlorine and fuel spills. In Poplar Bluff, for
example, ServiceMaster pulled from the ground
and replaced a leaking 9,000-gallon tank of diesel
fuel, he said.
Large Columbia-area restoration jobs have
included a fire at the 3M manufacturing plant
and the Harrisburg High School water loss.
“In Harrisburg, two years ago, they had a
five-inch main bust and it ran over all night,
flooding out pretty much the whole school,” he
said.
Kinser recalled how the special key to shut off
the water main couldn’t be located, so water was
still coming out of the pipe when his team was
there. It ruined the brand new gymnasium. “We
moved the bleachers, removed and replaced
the hardwood floor. A professional artist came
to paint and we flew in a man from Wisconsin
whose company had made the original wood.
The only other floor like this in Mid-Missouri is
the one in Mizzou Arena,” he said.
But not all calls are so serious.
“I’ve had calls in the middle of the night
that ‘I hear something in my attic or there’s a
terrible smell coming from there,’” Kinser said.
“I’ve crawled up in attics and dug around in two
feet of insulation to find a frozen up squirrel.
Whatever it takes.”
Fire and water damage make up about 85 percent of the daily business, he said. The firm has
eight full-time employees and a large network of
floor-to-ceiling subcontractors.
Time is essential to prevent secondary damage
from fire and water, Kinser said.
“The whole thing about our business is
showing a sense of urgency,” he said. “Some
people don’t understand that. Our contract
says we must call back customers in four hours.
We call them back within 15 minutes, and our
average response time to the location is an hour
and 15 minutes.”
Kinser’s home is about a hundred yards from
the business site at 10620 N. Highway VV, which
speeds response time, he said. “We have a van
set and go out like the fire department.”
So far this year, ServiceMaster has been called
to more than 25 fires, a number he says is way
out of proportion.
“This is not the time of year for fires, which is
usually around the Fourth of July or early winter
“We will go out and give them an estimate to
see if the damage is enough that they should call
their insurance company,” he said.
“I bet 90 percent of our calls are from women.
I don’t know why,” he said. “Every marketing
study that I have looked at says nothing about
the men. Your focus is on the women.”
ServiceMaster, nationwide, includes about
5,500 locally owned franchises. The parent firm
was acquired in 2007 by the European-based
equity firm of Clayton, Dubilier and Rice Inc. for
a reported $5.5 billion. v
Reggie McBride of Servicemaster Clean scrubs wall stains in
a recently fire-damaged apartment, in the Cherry Hill Village.
Servicemaster Clean Production Manager Reggie McBride
cleans a stool at the service center outside of Columbia.
ServiceMaster of Columbia
10620 N. Highway VV
573-443-8383
www.servicemasterclean.com
Servicemaster Clean Owner Adam Kinser, right, and Operations Manager Tommy Probst shrink wrap a tricycle after cleaning
it in the service center outside of Columbia.
when people are stoking up their fireplaces or
furnaces. This is abnormal, it just doesn’t make
any sense,” he said.
The ServiceMaster warehouse is filled with
the belongings of people whose homes were
damaged by fire or water. Some items are heirlooms and some are as commonplace as mattresses, but all of them are cleaned and then
wrapped in plastic.
The company also is called to clean after
shootings or other types of trauma in a home.
Employees have worked to restore locations following several suicides, Kinser said.
About a third of the calls come directly from
the people involved. Most of them don’t know if
the damage is going to be covered by their insurance policies.
Others who call may have already had two
homeowners’ claims.
“A third claim could put them over the edge
where they get dropped, or their rates are going
to go through the roof,” he said.
9
business profile | servicemaster
10 June 28, 2008 Columbia Business Times | ColumbiaBusinessTimes.com
voices
From the Roundtable
Missourian in transition as 100th anniversary approaches
Al Germond
Al Germond is the
host of the “Columbia
Business Times Sunday
Morning Roundtable”
every Sunday at 8:15
a.m. on kfru. He can
be reached at al@
columbiabusinesstimes.
com.
Times are tough in the newspaper business
these days and Columbia’s rare status as a
city with two competing daily newspapers is
clearly under siege. The Columbia Missourian,
which turns 100 in September, is in trouble
financially. For me, this is one of those difficultto-write “glass house” stories about a media
competitor. I believe the Missourian in future
years will become all-electronic and distributed via the Internet.
As an investor in various media ventures
over the years – including the CBT – I’m
well aware of the market’s competitive situation. This commentary should not be read as
a paean for the Columbia Missourian title to
disappear. Something has to change, however,
especially when it comes to allocating precious tax dollars to an enterprise that’s clearly
“upside down” financially and probably slated
to remain that way forever given the ongoing
bouleversement of the media.
The rough, incomplete history of journalism in Columbia includes two newspapers
founded during the 19th century – the Herald
and the Statesman – later merged to become
the Herald-Statesman. When two titles merge,
it means one or perhaps both, were on shaky
ground financially.
Citizen Journalist
The Columbia Daily Tribune appeared
in 1901 and with the establishment of the
University of Missouri’s School of Journalism
in 1908 came the University Missourian,
later renamed the Columbia Missourian. The
world’s first journalism school had a unique
cachet from the start: a daily general circulation newspaper as the laboratory of instruction
and practical experience.
The journalism school’s “Missouri Plan”
that includes the Missourian has been hailed
for training tens of thousands of journalists
over the past century. Now the business of
publishing a “laboratory” daily newspaper is
sputtering. Galloping operating costs are only
modestly offset by advertising revenue and the
current subsidy from MU – a $250,000 “laboratory fee.” University officials say the cost has
grown hard to justify.
If the Missourian wasn’t subsidized,
Columbia’s morning newspaper would have
gone out of business long ago. A recent article
in the Columbia Daily Tribune described
the Missourian’s increasing operating losses
accompanied by a breakdown of 2007 fiscal
year operating expenses.
Perhaps it isn’t known, but the Tribune’s
one-dimensional story doesn’t tell us anything about the Missourian’s revenue – that
is, how much advertising the newspaper sells
measured in dollars. We can’t compare the
Missourian with the Tribune itself in terms of
revenue, operating expense and profitability
because those numbers by the owner’s right
as a private, closely-held family enterprise are
absolutely confidential.
The past century has seen the development of both university-related and directly
owned and operated media enterprises that
compete with private business. This includes
KOMU-TV and two FM radio stations. Since
1953, Channel Eight has been an innovative
extension of the “Missouri Plan” into television and broadcast journalism. It was carefully
crafted to minimize opposition both in the state
General Assembly and in the milieu of private
commercial broadcasting.
When the FCC allocated TV channels to
Columbia in 1952, both the Missouri Farmers
Association (MFA) and a joint Tribune-KFRU
consortium announced their intention to file
applications. Then the university trumped
them both by proposing a hybrid video operation that included educational instruction
during the daytime followed by local and
network commercial programming in the late
afternoon and evening.
A plan for boosting local economic development
Mike Martin
Columbia resident
and science journalist
Mike Martin earned
a master’s degree in
business administration
from the University
of Washington, with
a concentration in
entrepreneurship and
innovation. He can
be reached at mike.
[email protected].
A recent comment from statehouse candidate Chris Kelly reminded me how I started
writing for publication 15 years ago.
To staunch the flow of illegal immigrants,
Kelly asserted, we must crack down on the
businesses that hire them.
But as I noted six years after starting an
environmental engineering firm in the Seattle
area, by clouding the American dream with
a fog of disincentives, government shares
as much if not more blame for problems like
illegal immigration and the lack of American
competitiveness that inspires businesses to
hire undocumented workers.
American dreamer
“So you want to start your own business,
create prosperity, hire good employees and
create taxpayers,” I wrote, from my own experience, in a 1993 article for the Puget Sound
Business Journal. “So you want to live the
American dream.”
You, Mr. or Mrs. Honest Entrepreneur I
presumed, want to make sure your vendors
get paid. You want to make payroll, on time,
every time, because you’re responsible for
the livelihoods of your new hires, with their
young children and pregnant wives and disabled husbands.
You’ve just signed a three-year lease on
your new office space and you want to pay
your rent. You want to render unto Caesar –
pay your taxes, too. Ultimately, you want to
grow, “maybe a little, maybe a lot.”
“I’m convinced that most people who
go into business are honest, hard-working
American dreamers,” I wrote. “Just the kind
of people America needs.”
But then, as now, we discourage the dream
of hard work, suitably rewarded with a
gauntlet of greed – not the corporate variety,
but the government kind.
Take our new business owner, “Sam.” From
the day Sam opens her doors, she’ll become a
tax collector for the State of Missouri and Uncle
Sam, rendering everything from sales taxes to
employee taxes and a cartload of other tribute
besides.
Once Sam incorporates, she’ll pay a “franchise tax” just for doing business in Missouri –
even if she hasn’t earned a dime. If she makes
money, she’ll pay a corporate income tax, too.
When Sam decides to hire even one legal
employee – call him “Joe” – the first thing
she’ll have to do is apply for an IRS EIN –
Employer Identification Number. In with
Joe – a legal U.S. citizen – will march Caesar's
army: federal withholding tax; Social Security
withholding tax; Social Security employer tax;
Medicare tax; federal unemployment tax; state
unemployment tax; and state disability taxes,
all demanding that Sam collect and remit them
at least four times a year for as long as she
stays in business.
The paperwork alone will become a logistical nightmare.
Ditching the disincentives
On Joe’s first day, a battalion of employeerelated regulations will storm Sam’s business,
too. Many regulations – like child labor laws
and worker safety standards – are critical. But
just as many others are the cudgels of a conspiracy that pads the pockets of lawyers and
bureaucrats.
So atrocious and unethical has this conspiracy become that it finally blew up in some
unsuspecting faces. Trial attorneys like Richard
Scruggs, Bill Lerach and Melvyn Weiss – notorious for a competitiveness-killing creature of
the U.S. legal system called the "baseless corporate class action lawsuit" – are now headed
to jail for corruption and bribery.
Awaiting their eventual comeuppance
alongside the tort kings is another industry
of shakedown artists who partner with the
government to besiege honest businesses with
dubious discrimination charges. Take the May
2008 case of six women – legal immigrants
from Somalia – who filed a religious discrimination complaint with the Equal Employment
Opportunity Commission against a Minnesota
tortilla manufacturer bound by food safety regulations to require pants-and-shirts uniforms.
Now represented by the Council on
American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), the
women insisted on wearing traditional Islamic
clothing of loose-fitting skirts and scarves.
CAIR refused to make the women available
for interviews last week, effectively silencing
their voices about the merits of their own
complaint. The lawyers and bureaucrats are
readying their cases, already fighting in the
court of public opinion.
Mission Foods, the tortilla maker who dared
say “no way,” meanwhile says it has “positions
that need to be filled.”
“I would suggest that the company hire
someone else,” wrote a blogger commenting
on the story. “If necessary, hire some illegal
immigrants, perhaps from Mexico. They are
a lot more likely to acclimate themselves to
American culture.”
The message here: “ditch the disincentives — hire illegals!” Mission Foods may
be listening. Chris Kelly should be listening.
Problem is, the U.S. government, the legal
community, and organizations like CAIR aren’t
listening and don’t want to.
As for Sam our American dreamer, she may
be listening, too. But not until she finishes
filling out Forms 940, 941, 944, 1120, W-2, W-3
and responding to Joe's discrimination complaint. He just joined a church, you know,
where everybody wears green hair.
Sam? Samantha! It's getting late – don't fall
asleep in there. You know what can happen
when you dream!
Education Matters
Are you as smart as a Columbia public school student?
Phyllis A. Chase
Phyllis A. Chase is
the superintendent
of Columbia Public
Schools. She can be
reached at pchase@
columbia.k12.mo.us
A popular television game show pits adult
contestants against a group of fifth-grade students to quiz their knowledge on such subjects
as geography, history and math. More often
than not, to the delight of the viewing audience, the students win. While entertaining,
I think this show demonstrates that today’s
students are expected to demonstrate knowledge at higher levels than ever before in this
country.
Twenty-five years ago a report was delivered to the public by the National Commission
on Excellence in Education entitled, “A Nation
at Risk.” The commission determined that
poor academic performance was evident at
nearly every level of schooling and warned
that our education system was “being eroded
by a rising tide of mediocrity.” The report
highlighted a number of disturbing facts about
student performance, including the following:
• Only one-third of 17-year-olds could solve
a math problem requiring several steps.
• Only one-fifth could write a persuasive
essay.
• Millions of adults were illiterate.
• Scholastic Achievement Test scores were
dropping.
The report generated heated debate about
public schools and fueled a number of educational reforms culminating with mandates
reflected in the No Child Left Behind Act of
2002. This act requires schools to improve students’ skills or face ever-tougher sanctions.
However, the recommendation that had
the most effect in Missouri and other states
was the adoption of rigorous and measurable
state standards and expectations. Prior to this,
what was taught and how it was measured
was basically a district decision. Without state
standards, there was no way to compare and
contrast achievement among and between
districts.
Missouri and other states began the arduous
task of developing state standards that identify
what students are expected to know and do at
each grade level and in specific content areas.
In Missouri, these standards are known as
the Show-Me Standards, 73 rigorous academic
standards developed by Missouri teachers and
adopted by the State Board of Education. In
order to measure student progress toward
these standards, the Missouri Assessment
Program (MAP) was developed. The MAP is a
performance-based assessment system used to
determine if schools and districts are making
“Adequate Yearly Progress,” a requirement of
NCLB. What distinguishes these assessments
from those of yesteryear is their requirement
for students to show their work in the form
of “performance events” and “constructed
responses.”
Today, a student cannot expect to guess his
or her way to high scores. The MAP requires
that students not only have knowledge of
facts, but that they also are able to demonstrate
higher order thinking skills, such as being able
to apply knowledge, analyze it, and/or synthesize it into a product.
Today’s students are being challenged to
perform at standards that are world class. They
must be able to demonstrate they know and
are able to apply their knowledge.
City View
City budget requires perspective, practical decisions, proactive measures
Bill Watkins
Bill Watkins is
Columbia’s city
manager.
More than 125 years ago, Ralph Waldo
Emerson asked, “Can anybody remember
when the times were not hard and money
not scarce?” Concerns about money and the
economy are nothing new. Market forces and
the rules of sound budgeting remain the same,
but the players have definitely changed.
Columbia now competes nationally and
internationally for jobs and economic development opportunities, and worldwide economic
pressures have a direct impact on our pocketbooks. Skyrocketing energy costs, mounting
fuel prices, escalating health care costs, rising
insurance premiums and overall price increases
for basic goods and services are just a few of
the pressures on our bottom line.
The City’s financial position will continue to
be sound in the coming year. However, as we
plan our fiscal year 2009 budget, we must be
cognizant that costs will continue to rise as revenues remain flat, leaving the City with very
few discretionary dollars. As I recently told
the Council and staff, this is not the year for
new initiatives or major increases in existing
programs.
In my recent State of the City address, I suggested the City expand partnerships, develop
new alliances and do its business more intelligently. Through collaboration and coordination, we can achieve more with fewer resources,
particularly in the areas of economic development, health, social services and police.
Understanding the current financial situation requires a basic understanding of the
City’s operating budget. An in-depth overview
is available in the FY 2008 annual budget, which
is online at www.GoColumbiaMo.com. For the
sake of space, I will try to provide a simplified
primer on the four general categories of the
City’s operating budget.
The general fund
This fund accounts for a large portion of the
City’s operating expenditures and day-to-day
services such as police, fire, health and planning. Primary revenue sources include general
sales tax, gross receipts tax and PILOT payments from City enterprise funds. (More on
PILOT, later)
Since the general fund is the source of most
of the City’s discretionary dollars, here are a
few important facts to consider:
• 28 percent of the general revenue fund is
generated by a 1-percent general sales tax.
• Sales tax revenues have been growing at
less than 3 percent the last few years.
• Sales taxes are expected to grow about 1
percent in the coming year.
• 66.7 percent of the general fund pays for
personnel services. Of that, 61 percent is spent
on public safety, which includes police, fire,
joint communications, emergency management and Municipal Court.
• 14.3 percent of general revenue funds are
budgeted for things such as utilities and services, which primarily fund street, sidewalk
and park projects. • 95 percent of park expenditures are paid
through designated funding sources.
• 100 percent of street activities have designated funding.
Special revenue fund
This fund represents money restricted by
federal guidelines, state law or City ordinance.
Examples include voter-approved park, transportation and capital improvement sales taxes,
convention and tourism hotel tax and the federal Community Development Block Grant
fund. Special revenue funds must be spent for
their designated purpose and come with obligations the City must meet.
Enterprise fund
This fund stems from business operations
that serve the public, including electric, water,
railroad, sewer, storm water, solid waste and
parking. City enterprises make Payment-in-
Lieu-of-Taxes (PILOT) disbursements to the
general revenue fund that are equal to what
privately owned utilities would pay in gross
receipts tax. Three enterprise funds receive
substantial City subsidies – airport, transit and
recreation services.
Internal Service funds
Each City department supports internal
service operations such as fleet, information
technologies, public communications, utility
customer services, custodial/building maintenance, self-insurance and employee benefits
and health insurance.
So, if our income streams are limited,
expenses are growing more rapidly than our
revenues and our financial obligations leave
very few discretionary dollars, what do we
do?
First, we plan conservatively, budget prudently and maintain the appropriate reserves,
as required by ordinance. We take a hard look
at what works and what doesn’t, seek ways to
“work smarter” and use existing resources more
wisely. Then, we take a visionary approach to
the future.
I plan to further discuss these ideas in
future issues and appreciate the opportunity
the Columbia Business Times has given me to
do so.
As we enter the FY ’09 budget process, there
will be several opportunities for public input.
I encourage you to get involved by going to
public hearings, attending Council meetings
and reviewing the financial information on the
City’s Web site, www.GoColumbiaMo.com.
Budget decisions are never easy, but
together, we can weather the current economic
downturn, plan for the future and continue
to enjoy the benefits of living, working and
playing in a full-service city.
voices
people you should know
Greg Cecil
Director of Development and Corporate Relations
University of Missouri College of Engineering
AGE: 54
JOB DESCRIPTION: Fund-raiser and corporate relationship manager
YEARS LIVED IN COLUMBIA: 23
ORIGINAL HOMETOWN: Sedalia
EDUCATION: University of Central Missouri, bachelor’s degree in geography; University of Missouri, master’s
degree in public administration
COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT: Columbia Regional Airport Advisory Board, chair; Columbia Chamber
of Commerce, past board member, past chairs of economic development, business showcase
(co-founded), governmental affairs, agri-business, small business, and education committee,
ambassador. City, past board member of economic development, risk management, Convention
and Visitors Bureau. Missouri United Methodist Church, candidate for City Council 5th Ward
(1987).
PROFESSIONAL BACKGROUND: Assistant
director of economic development,
City of Sedalia; executive vice president
of Abilene, KS, and Sedalia chambers
of commerce; account manager Wausau
Insurance Company, CEO of Corporate
Insurance Management of Columbia;
assistant section supervisor, Missouri Department
of Insurance; senior executive director of development,
Columbia College; development officer, MU College of Business;
and director of development, MU College of Education
A COLUMBIA BUSINESSPERSON I ADMIRE AND WHY: Sabrina McDonnell, because she has moved up
through the ranks at First National Bank from a teller to president. That is quite remarkable.
Sabrina’s experience over the years with the bank has enabled her to understand and appreciate
the culture of the bank and she can use her knowledge to provide a great work environment that
achieves the bank’s goals.
WHY I’M PASSIONATE ABOUT MY JOB: There is a huge need for engineers and for young people to
consider becoming engineers. My job allows me to meet many people from all across the country and
learn about their lives and their university experiences. I talk to alumni about their experiences at MU
and growing up in their hometowns in Missouri. I get to ask them to financially support the great
University of Missouri and really make a difference in a student’s life or provide support to renowned
faculty member to keep them at the university. Gifts to the university can have a transforming effect
and can accomplish results that cannot be done with funding from the state or other resources. Our
donors get to see what a difference that they make.
IF I WEREN’T DOING THIS FOR ALIVING, I WOULD… be governor.
BIGGEST CAREER OBSTACLE I’VE OVERCOME AND HOW: Starting Corporate Insurance Management
from “scratch” was fun and challenging. I secured partners and agreements with major insurance
companies and was able to compete with the largest commercial insurance brokers in the country.
Making calls and being knowledgeable about coverage enabled me to gain trust with customers and
prospects. This practice serves me well in fund raising. It is important to gain the trust of anyone I am
working with.
A FAVORITE RECENT PROJECT: I have two projects that stand out: working with the nephew of an
alumnus of the College of Business to establish the first endowed professorship in civil engineering,
and working with Mr. and Mrs. Hook to establish the Hook Center for School and District Renewal
and the Joanne Hunt Hook Dean’s Chair in Educational Renewal at the College of Education, which
was the first such chair established at the university.
WHAT PEOPLE SHOULD KNOW ABOUT THIS PROFESSION: It is a relationship-based job and it is necessary
to have as much contact with alumni and corporate representatives as possible. There is a great deal
of travel involved and scheduling can be difficult at times. One needs to pay close attention because
opportunities for involvement with alumni and corporations can present themselves and you have to be
ready to “ask for the order.”
WHAT I DO FOR FUN: I enjoy traveling to destinations in Maine, Colorado, Wyoming, California, Oregon,
Florida and western Canada. Around Columbia I like to run, especially with my trainer Jamie Mondello,
bicycle, cook and play guitar.
FAMILY: My spouse is Michelle Cecil, the William H. Pittman Professor of Law and Curator’s Distinguished
Teaching Professor at the University of Missouri School of Law. Michelle is the best law professor at the
law school.
FAVORITE PLACE IN COLUMBIA: My back yard and kitchen.
ACCOMPLISHMENT I’M MOST PROUD OF: Saving Boy Scout Troop 5 from losing its charter and at the same
time watching the troop produce two Eagle Scouts. Establishing the Michelle Arnopol Cecil Award in Tax
and the Michelle Arnopol Cecil Scholarship at the University of Missouri School of Law that honors
my wife and her success as a law professor.
MOST PEOPLE DON’T KNOW THAT I… am into artisan cooking. I also am a big Jimmy Buffett fan
and can play many of his songs on guitar.v
To assess or not to assess? Important considerations for
behavioral testing
True employee development cannot be forced or
mandated. For a company to become company, individuals must be committed to “looking in the mirror”
and being willing to make a sincere effort to change.
The journey to becoming a better company,
employee, leader or person always begins with the
desire to improve. Behind every great breakthrough
is a strong sense of passion, a steel-toed conviction in
what can be. In the heart of growth lies an element of
intellectual humility, knowledge that a person can do
it…but not alone.
Transforming a team or company happens when
individuals can scrutinize themselves, recognize their
unique contributions to the whole and make changes.
A popular and convenient way to identify growth
opportunities is the use of behavioral style assessments.
They are typically affordable and easy to administer.
Assessment tools offer an objective look into inherent
strengths and weaknesses of an individual’s behavior
and personality.
In a world where the success or failure of an
employee is most often associated with temperament
rather than technical skills, this perspective cannot
be underestimated. Management roles are changing
as well, requiring not just a supervisor, but a coach,
trainer and mentor also. To do this successfully, a
manager must know specifically how that individual
perceives the world around him or her and how he or
she operates within that world.
This need exists with current employees, but should
begin as early as the hiring process. No longer is it
enough to simply have the requisite technical knowledge and skills to do the job successfully. Instead,
other questions and issues become preeminent:
• Will the person give the organization an honest
day’s work?
• Will the individual get along with team
members?
• Will the person continue to grow, develop and
stay current?
• Will the person be flexible and adjust to rapid
changes in work processes and procedures?
• Will the person provide quality service to both
internal and external customers?
Most organizational leaders today are trying to
find answers to these questions. Personality tests
assess this important component of job behavior and
performance.
If your organization chooses to use behavioral
assessment tools for its employees, it is important to
select a methodology with a track record of success.
In selecting an assessment process, there are a few
important considerations.
• First, make sure the tool has demonstrable statistical validity and reliability.
• Second, the results should be easy to understand
and the diagnostic model should be easy to apply. If
leaders have to invest too much time in simply understanding the tool, they won’t use it.
• Lastly, it is important to ensure that the tool is
designed to identify a person’s natural styles, and
not their adjusted styles. Many adjusted style instru-
ments allow the respondent to influence the results
and, hence, to avoid addressing the true areas of
development that can have a significant impact on
performance.
Once an employee’s assessment results are complete, the next step is to work with a certified assessment coach to help guide establishing individualized
benchmarks. Use “feedforward” instead of feedback.
You can change the future, not the past. It can be more
productive to help people be “right,” than to prove
they were “wrong.” Develop an action plan, with the
input of the individual. This dialogue creates a process in which both parties are focused on improving
the relationship, not on judging each other. Ongoing
reinforced training and feedback are the keys to incremental growth and change.
A Chinese proverb states: “He who knows others
is learned. He who knows himself is wise.” To help
employees achieve their best, one must first understand their uniqueness. What used to be guided by
hunches and gut instinct is now available through
the marriage of psychology and technology. One of
my coaching clients, after working over time with his
assessment results, said, “It didn’t just make me better
in business, it made me a better person.”
Now that’s a win-win.
© 2008 SandlerTraining, Inc. Sales and management
training/consulting since 1967. For personal or team assessment information, call Awareness Management Systems
at 573-445-7694 or email atkins@awarenessmanagement.
com.
Smart Thinking » Cathy Atkins
Women-owned busines
In 2004, when Wendy Knorr started her marketing firm
and Sara El-Toumi opened her salon and spa in Columbia,
women had reached the point where they owned a 50percent or greater stake in 48 percent of privately held
U.S. companies.
The Center for Women’s Business Research study said
that was a 6-percent increase from 1997.
In 2006, when Erin Keltner opened a boutique on
Broadway, there were close to 210,000 female-owned
businesses in Missouri, which employed 298,000 people
and produced $42 billion in revenue. Missouri ranked 18th
nationally in the number of female-owned businesses,
which was 42 percent of the total.
Today, women are even stronger in the business
market. Women start 424 new
as many as their male counte
The trend is likely to c
who hold 45 percent of a
from four percent in 1965,
education in higher numbe
have demonstrated that o
Stephanie LaHue
Wendy Knorr
As a little girl in 1989, Stephanie LaHue remembers seeing her mother struggle to get My Secret
Garden off the ground, watching as Ruth was rejected by bank after bank for loans. Finally one
bank provided a “high risk” loan, and her husband, Steve, co-signed the note.
(Until 1988, it was legal for banks to refuse a loan to a woman without a man to co-sign.
Congress’ Women’s Business Ownership Act made this sort of discrimination illegal. In 1992 after
the National Association of Women Business Owners announced that women-owned businesses
employed more workers than the Fortune 500, banks stopped labeling women seeking business
loans as “high risk.” )
As young teen-agers, Stephanie and her sister Jessica helped their mother attach garland to the
huge Christmas wreath on the front of First National Bank on Broadway. And she remembers her
mother excused her from classes at Stephens College not because she was sick but because it was
Valentine’s Day and she needed extra hands to complete floral orders.
Stephanie, who now runs the store with her mother and sister, also remembers her mother saying often that they could do anything they set their mind to doing, and never discouraged them.
But she also said she still feels the sting of female stereotypes in running the business.
“Many times, people don’t think I know what I’m doing until they actually see me do it,” she
said. “I still fight the female stereotypes and people don’t realize I will stay up late, get dirty and
get it done.”
Stephanie graduated from Stephens in 2001 and puts her fashion merchandising and management major to good use in her work for the store. She travels to markets in larger cities and brings
back the most unique and beautiful things she can find. Stephanie said it is important to be creative, think freely and ask for what she wants.
“As a woman, it is so important to think outside of the box,” she explains. “No one is going to
cut you a break.”
Stephanie is in her second term on the board of the Central Columbia Association, and she said
that when the merchants have general membership meetings now, the vast majority are women.
After spending 15 years in the corporate world
decided the timing was right to start her own mark
her position as director of corporate communicatio
assumed that she was starting her business as a sid
seriously as a successful business venture. “I comb
and letting time and my business prove itself,” Kno
It was important for her to establish measurabl
before starting up their own businesses. Knorr spe
why she was starting her own business and what wo
made sure she was doing something she loved. “If
while you are working hard.”
Knorr said she strives to become a part of her c
sion, mission and culture. She works proactively to
their team. Wendy adds that her ability to commu
strongest attributes and something that has garner
My Secret Garden, 11 S. 10th St.
Knorr Marketing Communications, 912 E. Broa
sses blossoming
w businesses each day, twice
erparts.
continue because women,
all professional degrees, up
now are enrolled in higher
ers than men. And studies
once these woman-owned
By Joanna Schneider
Photos by Jennifer Kettler
businesses are off the ground, they grow, on average,
faster than those owned by men.
Women are more likely to seek council from experts
in their field and they are better at communicating and
building relationships. Like the “Good Ol’ Boys Club” that
has helped men advance for so many years, women are
building networks and helping each other, too. Studies
adway
and raising three young children, Wendy Knorr
keting communications business. When she left
ons for a local insurance company, many people
de project or hobby and didn’t take the business
bated these challenges by just pushing through
orr said.
le goals, something she suggests all women do
ent a great deal of time reflecting and analyzing
ould make her feel successful. Most of all, Knorr
f you are doing what you love, you’re having fun
clients’ businesses and truly understand their vio make sure her clients feel that she is a part of
unicate and listen to other’s needs is one of her
red success for her business.
also show that women are more conscientious budgeters
and are more frugal than men, but also are more likely
than men to take greater financial risks when starting
and growing their businesses.
A stroll through Columbia’s thriving downtown
provides some examples of how women are gaining
footholds in the business market.
Erin Keltner
Swank Boutique, 921 E. Broadway
Bored with the monotony of accounting school, Erin Keltner decided to take a leap of faith and
start her own business doing exactly what she loves: bringing the latest trends and fashions to local women.
Almost three years since Keltner opened Swank, customers can still find her bustling around
her downtown boutique on a daily basis. She reviews every detail of the store from merchandise to
music and there is no aspect of the Swank experience that does not pass her approval first.
The success of Swank was not something that came easily for Keltner, especially as a woman of
21 with no college degree and little experience.
“I think there is a prejudice against women owning their own businesses and that made me
work harder,” she said. “I spent weeks working on a business plan and I was determined not to fail
despite what anyone said.”
Keltner originally moved to Columbia from Springfield when her husband was offered a job at
a local insurance company. Uncertain of what she would do once in Columbia, Keltner got creative
and got to work. Keltner advises other women looking to start businesses of their own to know
what they are getting into and encourages other women to remember that if you want it, you can
make it happen.
“You’ll get out of your business what you put into it,” Keltner says. “You have to go into your
business wanting it and go with your gut.”
Keltner credits her patience and attention to detail for the success of her store.
“Things like the music we play and our shopping bags and the mirrors in our dressing rooms —
men don’t understand these things,” she said. “When I first opened the store, the men in my life
would scoff and tease me about some of the choices I made it, and it has been fun to see those
things be the most popular.”
MU researcher finds
gender stereotypes
impact career choice
Join us for the first session in the
2008–2009 Small Business
Leadership Series
I Know They’re Out There Somewhere:
Market Research Made Easy!
Wednesday, July 16, 2008, 7:30 a.m.
Columbia Country Club
Wendy Harrington, director of the Business Research and Information Development Group
for the MU Business Development Programs,
will share the secrets of market research and
some techniques you can use to determine
the depth and breadth of your target market.
You’ll hear about online resources you can
access, as well as market research services that
can be provided by your local Small Business
and Technology Development Center.
By Bryan E. Jones
In the highly competitive business world, only the aggressive,
risk-taking alpha male can expect to succeed as an entrepreneur.
That statement may sound sexist, but it represents a commonly
held gender stereotype. A team led by a University of Missouri
researcher found that these stereotypes influence whether or not
men and women decide to pursue entrepreneurship as a viable
career option.
“Perception may limit both men and women in the decision to
become entrepreneurs,” said Daniel Turban, professor and chair of
the Department of Management in the Robert J. Trulaske College
of Business.
“One sex is not inherently more qualified than the other; unfortunately, the underlying societal stereotypes associating entrepreneurship with masculine characteristics may influence people’s
intentions to pursue entrepreneurial careers,” Turban said. “An
interesting result of our study is that both men and women reported similar intentions when entrepreneurship was presented as
gender neutral. This suggests that common gender stereotypes can
be nullified.”
Mark you calendars for the upcoming
sessions in the Small Business
Leadership Series:
Thursday, Oct. 16, 2008
Secrets of Employee Engagement: Helping Everyone
Perform Like an Owner
Wednesday, Jan. 21, 2009
The Employer’s HR Toolkit: Don’t be Caught Unprepared!
Thursday, April 23, 2009
Communicating the Sweet Spot: Help from the Panel of
Marketing Professionals
Please plan to join us for these 7:30 a.m. breakfast
sessions to hear from experts on a variety of topics of
importance to small business. All sessions will be held
at the Columbia Country Club. There is no charge, but
you must register by calling 573-882-7096.
Daniel Turban
Photo courtesy of university of Missouri college of business
Although entrepreneurship is a masculine-stereotyped domain,
Turban said many of the characteristics believed to be important to
entrepreneurial success also are traditionally feminine. For example, caring and nurturing, building relationships with others and
humility are typically attributed to females, but also characterize
good entrepreneurship.
Turban, along with Vishal Gupta, of Binghamton University
and Nachiket Bhawe, of the University of Minnesota, asked undergraduate business students to read mock news articles about entrepreneurship, answer a comprehensive question and complete a
scale about entrepreneurial intentions.
In the control article, there was no mention of gender or gender differences in entrepreneurship. In other articles, the masculine and feminine stereotypes were subtly presented or directly
emphasized.
“When the masculine stereotype of entrepreneurship was subtly presented, men had higher entrepreneurial intentions than
women, and both men and women were similar to the control
group. Those results suggest that entrepreneurship is typically stereotyped as a masculine career option,” Turban said. “However,
when masculine characteristics were strongly linked with entrepreneurship, a condition people might expect to favor men, we
found that women had higher entrepreneurial intention scores
while men had lower.”
Turban said one reason for the persistence of gender differences
in male-type careers, like entrepreneurship, may be that common
masculine stereotypes associated with this role are not openly discussed in society. Men and women are subconsciously influenced
by widely held stereotypes. Turban said that if the goal is to attract
more women to entrepreneurship, it may be more desirable to describe entrepreneurship as gender neutral.
Turban’s study, “The Effect of Gender Stereotype Activation
on Entrepreneurial Intentions,” will be published in the Journal of
Applied Psychology. v
Sara El-Toumi,
Salon Nefisia, 825 E. Walnut St.
In Arabic, the name “Nefisa” means “elegant” or “precious.” It was also the name of salon
owner, Sara El-Toumi’s Egyptian grandmother. With Salon Nefisa, she combined a respect for her
heritage with a love for the salon and spa industry
El-Toumi describes the start of her business as a “whirlwind,” filled with excitement but also
a great deal of uncertainty. When a space became available at the corner of 9th and Walnut, she
jumped at the opportunity.
“When I first met with my leaseholder and negotiated those terms, I was very intimidated and
nervous,” she said. “He asked some pointed questions about my experience and gave me some
straight talk about how hard it can be to run a business. I think he wanted to make sure I could
pay the rent.”
As a woman, El-Toumi felt she continually needed to prove herself not just in saying she wanted to start her business but also in having the courage to actually do it and show people that she
could be a success.
How did she combat the expectations of others and the need to prove herself? Simple, she
says: “Just do the work, make the decisions that need to made and don’t worry about being
judged. And have fun doing it! Don’t let fear get in the way or moving forward is hard.”
Photo by: Anastasia Pottinger photography
Kim Wade & Amy Enderle,
Silverbox Photography, 810 West Boulevard
Kim Wade has loved photography since she got her first Minolta camera from her grandfather
when she was 12. Thirty years later, Wade, in partnership with friend Amy Enderle, owns her own
photography business. Both women own their own limited liability companies, and Silverbox
Photography is a joint venture they began for marketing, professional development and strategic
business advancement.
While each woman maintains responsibility for the finances of her own business, the Wade
and Enderle partnership under Silverbox Photography allows them to maximize their time and
resources.
Both women dedicate themselves to capturing moments through photographs and inspire
one another to become better photographers.
Both agree that being a female photographer and owning their own business has its definite
advantages.
“I think being women has helped us to be better wedding photographers,” Wade said. “Amy
and I are able to connect with our brides in ways that a male photographer may not. We understand what it’s like for our brides to plan and experience their weddings.”
Mixing friendship and business can often be hard, but apparently not for Wade and Enderle.
“I think women can be strong team players and can work hard to connect with their clients,” Wade
said. “Two heads are definitely better than one. We generate more ideas, more energy and more wordof-mouth by working together.”
Most importantly, both Wade and Enderle urge other women to that it is possible to make a
living by pursuing their passions.
Women In Business ... continued from Page 15
ABOVE: A work station at First National Bank’s accounting office.
inSights » Brad Eiken
Ergonomic work stations
can improve productivity
Proactive solutions to problems with office interiors will save business operators many headaches
and lots of money. Nowhere is this truer, in my experience, than where ergonomics are concerned.
The best part is that productivity can be maximized and discomfort avoided by making just a few
smart investments on behalf of employees.
Using the accounting offices at First National Bank as my “exhibit A” for an ergonomic workstation, I have narrowed down the five features to focus on when updating an office.
Durable chairs
The biggest ergonomic problem can be fixed by investing in a good chair. It doesn’t have to cost
four figures but it will cost more than $100. If you spend a little money, you will get a quality piece
of furniture that each employee can adjust to his or her individual body specifications. As FNB’s Tom
Richards said, “When you add up salaries and benefits, the cost of a chair is relatively low, and our
employees are most important.” I urge my clients to choose a chair that can withstand several years
of use and adjust to suit various heights and builds. Teknion Contessa makes this chair, and not only
is it ergonomically “correct,” but it looks great too.
Adjustable monitor arms
An adjustable monitor arm for your computer will save desk space that would otherwise be
wasted. In the photo, you can see the employee used that space to position his stereo – a very creative way to maximize that corner. By placing your monitor and keyboard in the corner, you create
a “main line” of access that makes every reach less of a stretch, from the filing cabinet on one end to
your coffee cup on the other.
Task lamps
Richards opted for task lamps at each workstation, a must for employees who move back and
forth from reading papers to a computer screen. It gives each employee the opportunity to adjust
glare and brightness according to his or her need, which will increase energy efficiency and save
money for you in the long run. This lamp is designed by Humanscale.
Paper trays
To avoid getting buried under an avalanche of stuff, install adjustable paper trays on cubicle
walls. “A lot of our employees were coming from larger offices, so we needed to be as efficient with
storage space as possible,” Richards said. Easy-to-reach, movable trays make temporary storage
much easier to reach (and harder to put on the back burner).
Adjustable keyboard trays
I can’t think of a quicker way to hurt your back, neck, and eyes than hunching over a laptop keyboard that doesn’t move. FNB’s employees use adjustable keyboard trays by Teknion that move in,
out, up, down and tilt for maximum customization.
All these tools combined will maximize efficiency and workplace comfort. Not one piece will
work by itself; they all work in unison. Don’t shortchange yourself or your employees – invest in
the ergonomic tools of today to prevent problems tomorrow. v
Brad Eiken is the co-owner of inside the LINES, a Columbia-based commercial interiors company.
www.insidethelines.net
Increases in reading and math scores at the state and national
level indicate progress is being made. Columbia Public Schools are
no exception. Our district has earned the Missouri Department of
Elementary and Secondary Education’s Distinction in Performance
Award for the fourth year in a row based on student performance.
Only 7 percent of districts statewide have earned this honor.
We have the lowest dropout rate in 20 years and our graduation rate is at an all-time high. Student MAP scores in language
arts and math are consistently above state averages, including
several schools that rank in the top 10 for scores in the state. More
than 85 percent of our students go on to college or post-secondary
education compared to 69 percent statewide.
Fourth-graders today are better equipped and are being challenged
to meet higher expectations than fourth-graders 25 years ago.
My recommendation is that the next time you have a tough
question, ask a Columbia student for help. I bet they know the
answer. v
Germond ... continued from Page 10
The television station has enjoyed a long run of profitability
while the larger of the two FM stations, KBIA, is largely amortized by advertising revenue bolstered by swells of listener contributions and the university’s Concert Series.
This leaves us with the conundrum of sustaining the Columbia
Missourian as a printed daily morning newspaper in this, its 100th
anniversary year.
Short of winding up its affairs and going out of business, options for the Missourian range from remaining independent but
modifying its formula and perhaps frequency of operation to entering into a type of joint operating agreement with the Columbia
Daily Tribune. The afternoon daily would take over the non-editorial functions of the Missourian, including printing, with the
proviso – according to one story – that distribution of the morning
newspaper would be restricted to the University of Missouri campus and its immediate environs.
Persons of a higher calling familiar with the anti-trust laws and
the 1970 Newspaper Preservation Act could end up calling me on
this, but something looks very fishy here. For the Missourian to
enter into a JOA that would restrict its circulation to a specific area
doesn’t look very cricket to me.
The discussion and debate on what’s ahead for the newspapers we have come to know and love is just beginning, but the
ability to think out of the box has to be foremost. Since 1968 when
the Missourian stopped competing with the Tribune in the afternoon, Columbia is almost by itself in this country with separately
owned morning and afternoon daily newspapers.
The need to innovate and adapt is in the air. Here’s a precedent
as reported in Variety, February 18, 1948:
“KXOK-KFRU to Transmit Facsimile Newspaper to Mo.
Journalism School… Through a deal cooked up by …the St. Louis
Star-Times, a p.m. rag and execs of the University of Missouri at
Columbia, equipment will be supplied to transmit a daily facsimile newspaper to students at the university’s school of journalism….The scanner transmitter will be set up in Walter Williams
Hall and five receivers will be placed in strategic locations on the
campus and in the town… Frank L. Mott, dean of the school of
journalism said that facsimile will be made a course of study at
the school…”
It will be difficult for many of us to accept this, but maybe
the Missourian is at the crossroads where its proprietors should
consider abandoning the traditional printed product and step
ahead of the crowd to offer a continuous all-electronic product.
The foundation is the Missourian’s already active Web site. Where
the newspaper goes from there could be one of the most exciting
rides for the next 100 years at the Missourian and the world’s first
school of journalism. v
Chase ... continued from Page 11
SPECIAL SECTION | Banking & financial services
SBA expands lending programs,
explains stimulus package benefits
By Virginia Wilson
The challenges of these somewhat tenuous economic times are not lost on the U.S. Small Business
Administration, the federal agency charged with assisting the nation’s entrepreneurs with information, services and access to capital. The following initiatives demonstrate SBA’s efforts to respond to
the needs of prospective and existing small business owners.
Help for rural communities
The agency has recently launched a program to enhance economic development in the nation’s
rural areas by making it easier for smaller community banks and credit unions to use SBA loan products to finance small businesses.
The Small/Rural Lender Advantage is part of the agency’s 7(a) loan program and encourages
smaller and/or rural lenders (lenders making 20 or fewer SBA loans a year) to offer SBA loans by
streamlining the SBA’s loan application and approval processes.
“It’s the smaller community banks that really hold many rural areas together by assisting locally
owned businesses,” said Jay Edwards, SBA senior area manager based at the University Center for
Innovation and Entrepreneurship. “This initiative is the agency’s response to the need for more relationship support for rural small businesses at the same time it assists lenders in providing badly
needed capital to their region’s entrepreneurs.”
The key features of Small/Rural Lender Advantage include:
• A shorter, simplified application for loans of $350,000 or less
• An expedited SBA loan processing time of three to five days
• Only limited, key financial documentation is required
• An SBA guaranty of 85 percent is available for loans of $150,000 or less; 75 percent if
the loan is larger
• A simplified loan eligibility questionnaire is provided to help small or occasional SBA
lenders understand SBA’s eligibility criteria
• SBA provides specialized assistance to small/rural lenders on complex eligibility issues
“Small businesses are critically important to rural areas,” Edwards said. “They account for twothirds of all rural jobs and total more than 90 percent of all rural businesses.”
The agency reports, however, that the number of banks taking advantage of SBA loan programs
has declined in recent years. SBA hopes to enhance its relationship with small, rural banks by streamlining the loan process.
Patriot Express Loan program helps veteran entrepreneurs
Less than one year ago, the SBA launched the Patriot Express Loan initiative for veterans seeking
to use SBA-guaranteed loans to start or expand their own businesses. And in less than one year, the
agency has guaranteed more than $150 million in loans to nearly 15,000 individuals.
Edwards said the Patriot Express is a streamlined loan product based on the agency’s highly successful SBA Express Program, but with enhanced guaranty and interest rate characteristics.
“This product features the fastest turnaround time of any of SBA’s loan approvals,” Edwards said.
“Loans are available up to $500,000 and qualify for SBA’s maximum guaranty of up to 85 percent for
loans of $150,000 or less and up to 75 percent for loans over $150,000 up to $500,000. For loans above
$350,000, lenders are required to take all available collateral.”
The Patriot Express loan can be used for most business purposes, including start-up, expansion,
equipment purchases, working capital, inventory or business-occupied real-estate purchases. And
Patriot Express loans feature SBA’s lowest interest rates for business loans, generally 2.25 percent to
4.75 percent over prime depending upon the size and maturity of the loan.
Patriot Express is available to military community members including veterans, service-disabled
veterans, active-duty service members participating in the military’s Transition Assistance Program,
reservists and National Guard members, current spouses of any of the above, and the widowed
spouse of a service member or veteran who died during service, or of a service-connected disability.
And on another note…
Edwards said the 2008 Economic Stimulus Package contains some provisions that will greatly
reduce the taxes many small businesses will owe when Dec. 31, 2008, closes out the tax year.
In an effort to get the economy revitalized as soon as possible, SBA has established a Web site that
helps explain what the package can – and cannot – do at http://www.sba.gov/stimulus/.
In addition, a factsheet is available at http://www.sba.gov/idc/groups/public/documents/sba_homepage/
sba_eco_stimulus_package.doc
Another link on this Web page is a depreciation calculator that allows users to determine how
much depreciation can be taken during calendar year 2008 under the package. In addition, the Web
site includes a free nine-minute (plus or minus) online seminar viewable from any computer.
There is also a link at http://www.irs.gov/newsroom/article/0,,id=179227,00.html) to an Internal
Revenue Service Web page that provides information on the provisions of the 2008 Economic
Stimulus Package. Between the IRS and SBA, the government hopes to eliminate any confusion
about the provisions of the law.
Unlike the economic stimulus payments that millions of individuals have already received, the
tax benefits for businesses are not automatic; businesses must act to take advantage of the new provisions by purchasing qualifying property. v
Virginia Wilson is a counselor with the Missouri Small Business and Technology Development Centers at
the University Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship at MU.
Mortgage market story ... continued from Cover
“People have to feel confident about the economy”
before they will take out a long-term mortgage for a
home purchase. “People don’t really have it.”
A few hours after Wilkerson made her comments,
the news broke that the U.S. consumer confidence index in June dropped to a 16-year low. But Congress
also was close to passing legislation designed to boost
the housing market and help homeowners avoid foreclosure, and local brokers say the market is primed to
give great deals to first-time homebuyers.
Locally, the record rate of foreclosures in Boone
County is causing dismay, even though it is still well
below the national average.
The annual number of foreclosures locally rose
above 100 only five times in the past 20 years. But the
number climbed to 143 in 2006 and jumped to 231 last
year, and the rate is escalating this year. Through the
end of May, 128 foreclosure deeds had been filed, making the year likely to break the 300-mark for the first
time.
“It is startling,” said Wilkerson, whose bank is by far
the county’s largest residential lender after Countrywide
Financial. “It’s not so much the sheer numbers as the departure from the norm that is stunning.”
The foreclosure average for the entire United States
has reached 87 for every 10,000 homes. Boone County
has 53,000 homes, so even with 300 foreclosures this year,
the local rate would lag well behind the national rate.
Although there has been no formal study of the
foreclosure deeds, industry observers believe the subprime market – which at one time snagged 16 to 20
percent of local mortgage activity – accounted for the
bulk of the foreclosures.
The Fed’s fight to boost housing hits a snag
The five rate cuts by the Federal Reserve since last
summer have had little impact on the mortgage rates
that homeowners can secure, even though the central
bank ballyhooed the rate cuts as a solution for the beleaguered housing market.
Mortgage market story ... continued from Page 21
When the Federal Reserve announced Aug. 17 that it began the rate cuts, the average national
home mortgage rate was 6.4 percent. The five rate cuts reduced the Fed’s short-term benchmark rate
for banks to 2 percent – enough to support a prime business rate of 5 percent.
But the mortgage rate has generally been above 6 percent for all of 2008. In June, comments by
Federal Reserve officials about the dangers of inflation – and open hints about rate increases later
this year – caused mortgage rates to spike up between 6.3 percent and 6.5 percent.
Many analysts consider mortgage rates more reflective of 10-year Treasury bonds, although that
connection has loosened this year. Analysts like Von Talge now look for a closer relationship between
prevailing mortgage rates and the yields of mortgage-backed securities. The value of those assets
plummeted after the subprime fallout, but the lower volume has caused the rate of return to climb.
For many buyers, the current range of mortgage rates has been off-putting in light of the bargainbasement rates during the Fed-fueled housing boom, while veterans of the housing market remember much worse times in the 1980s when rates soared into double-digit territory.
Wilkerson acknowledged that the Fed’s action last August had kicked off unfulfilled expectation
of lower interest rates for housing. “The Fed has been attempting to stimulate the short term,” not
the longer-term rates for housing, Wilkerson said. “They think it will stimulate investment,” particularly by commercial clients in construction and other activity, “but it doesn’t affect the you-and-me
kind of borrowing.”
The housing market in Columbia declined rapidly during the last half of 2007 and continues its
slide in 2008.
The number of single-family homes sold dropped from 404 in the first quarter of last year to 323
for the same period this year, or by 20 percent. The trends continued in April and May when the
number of units sold and their value slumped by 10 percent or more.
The housing market in Columbia declined rapidly during the last half
of 2007 and continues its slide in 2008.
Although area data does not track individual properties, aggregate information does suggest that
values on existing homes have slumped after years of record activity. In both April and May, median
sales prices dropped 3 percent. However, brokers point out that homes in some prices ranges, particularly below $200,000, are selling well and appreciating in value.
Although the area’s designation as a “declining market” in late winter attracted much attention
before it was revoked, it had little practical impact because secondary lenders were already requiring
larger down payments that the designation entailed.
The Columbia Board of Realtors has gained high marks for its stimulation of continuing education and communication that have eased the functioning of the local real estate market. But the factors that have wreaked havoc in local expectations – the subprime mess, an oversupply of housing
inventory and higher interest rates than found during the housing boom – have combined to douse
activity.
Real estate returns to old-time values
Overall, the mortgage clock generally has turned back to around 2002, before the industry loosened its standards and subprime lenders moved into the market. At that time, economics advisers
looked to real estate to save the country’s economy from the 9/11 attacks and the dot-com busts. The
Federal Reserve churned up liquidity that fueled the worst excesses.
Reversing themselves, changing requirements from secondary lenders – the federally chartered
Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and Ginnie Mae – have helped restore the old days when buyers had to
have existing home equity or substantial savings to afford a home or hope to buy a larger, more
expensive one.
Unless buyers qualify for federal programs like rural development loans – available only in
Ashland or Centralia, not Columbia – they must have at least 3 percent down payments, ranging
up to 20 percent. Private mortgage insurers and the secondary lenders may have more stringent
requirements, and Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac generally do have higher interest rates that they
assess mortgage borrowers with credit scores less than 680.
Wilkerson and other lenders emphasize that banks have their own portfolios that may allow
them to make loans that otherwise would not meet these standards. But if a bank cannot sell a loan
in the secondary market, the borrower faces the risk of higher quotes on the interest rates.
The market generally has been cleared locally – for almost two years – of subprime lenders and
others who allowed marginal buyers to move into homes, often without adequate income and little
proof of their assets.
The subprime lenders primarily existed off mortgages and rarely expanded on their business
after the final mortgage papers were signed. They were known as “transaction brokers” rather than
the “relationship brokers” that typically would include community banks.
Von Talge said his company has been able to expand in the past two years to fill the void left by
many of these transaction brokers that literally vanished.
Industry personnel also noted that the lenders most likely to make the riskiest loans included
dot-com Internet operations that borrowers never met.
First rule for investing in local art: buy what you love
By Jennifer Herseim
In the art world there is no paint-by-numbers solution to guarantee a return on investments.
While an art aficionado can determine what’s up
and down, sometimes literally,
in the contemporary art world,
someone more familiar with the
stock market or real estate may
struggle with the swirling concepts behind art investments.
The term “investment” is
something of a misnomer. It is
rare that a piece of contemporary art will yield a large windfall in the future for a novice
investor, said Rosie Gerding, a
certified public accountant with
Gerding, Korte & Chitwood in
Columbia.
“We consider investments to
be things that you put money
into, like a mutual fund, with
the expectation that it will grow
in value and that you’ll later
sell it at a profit,” Gerding said.
Instead, Gerding compared
buying art to buying a diamond
ring. It is a purchase that people
rarely make based on the future
resale value.
The art investments that are
hailed in the news for rich returns are from high-power auc-
tion houses Christie’s and Sotheby’s, which deal with
fine art pieces. Keeping in mind beginning investors
seldom stumble upon these gold mines, there are several things they can do to increase the chance of smaller gains.
What’s most important is finding a piece you will
enjoy since the reward of your work will likely be hanging on a wall in your home, buyers and sellers say.
“Art is one of those things, when you fall in love
with a particular piece, for me that should be the
primary focus,” said Jennifer
Perlow, co-owner of the PerlowStevens Gallery. Perlow personally owns a piece by local artist
Joel Sager that has appreciated
an estimated $600 since she purchased it, but she has no plans
to sell it.
It is difficult to separate the
aesthetic side of art from the investment side. Naturally, they
intertwine in the same way that
the public’s taste for art may
change the value of a piece. If
you can place aesthetics aside,
art is just another investment
in that background research is
key. Before purchasing, Perlow
suggests first, “doing your
homework.”
That homework includes
determining the artist’s background in the field, how much
the artist’s previous works have
sold for and, if he or she was
formally taught, where they
went to school.
Rely on the basics of supply
and demand, Perlow advised. If
Rosie Gerding and her husband, Bob, redecorated rooms to go with their artwork. The painting, pictured above, is by Columbian
Paul Jackson and the glass is by national artist Dale Chihuly.
Mortgage market story ... continued from Page 22
Art investments ... continued from Page 23
Ralph Gates, founder of Mid-America Mortgage Services and a 40-year industry veteran, still
marvels that “people would turn to folks they had never seen for the biggest purchase of their lives”
when they sought out lenders over the Internet.
Of considerable debate now, however, is the likely future of Countrywide, which expanded rapidly and by 2005 became the county’s largest residential lender. Much of its book of business included subprime borrowers.
By mid-winter, Countrywide was plagued by rumors of impending bankruptcy and eventually
arranged its purchase by the Bank of America, although negotiations continue over the terms, which
are set to be final this summer.
Bank of America could vault into the ranks of Boone County’s leading mortgage lenders if the
sale goes through.
an artist is well known or established, buy before a retirement or
a change in career. If an artist is emerging in the art world, buy
before the value of their work rises.
“If you invest in a young, emerging artist much like a young
company, you can hope that they continue to grow and produce
so the opportunity for a quick rise is greater, and you pay less,”
Perlow said.
Gerding owns several local artists’ pieces but has no qualms
about whether or not investing in art on a small scale is wise,
financially.
“There have certainly been instances where art does very well,
but it is not a common thing at all,” Gerding said.
There is a tax benefit that many collectors don’t realize when
they donate to a charity. Gerding explained that a tax deduction
for donated artwork is limited to the amount that was originally
paid to purchase the piece, and it is not based upon the art’s value
as of the date of donation. An exception is when artwork is donated to a charity that plans to keep and use it, such as a museum.
In that case, the donor can generally deduct the current appraised
value.
But not all art is the kind framed by wood and hung on a wall.
Perlow said women who have been collecting jewelry can see how
the art market is influenced by other factors.
“There are women who collect jewelry and the steep rise in gold
and silver have caused previously purchased work to increase in
value simply because of the price of metal,” Perlow said.
For Nikki Krawitz, vice president of the University of Missouri’s
Finance and Administration office, investing in art is investing in
something for more than financial gain.
“My husband and I buy art because we love living with art,”
Krawitz said. “We have never bought art thinking of it as an investment that will someday generate a return.” v
The winners? The new guys
In a market still flinching from the worst of the housing boom, who can benefit? Industry observers tend to agree on the answer – the first-time homebuyer.
Both Gates and Wilkerson said conditions favor that buyer, assuming he or she has earned the
credit score and has access to the down payments that have become a passport to homeownership.
Gates added that such buyers could take advantage of a market that already was featuring entrylevel homes at a discount because existing homes have borne the brunt of the downturn. “Prices are
down,” particularly in relationship to potential resale value, Wilkerson said.
The oversupply in the local housing market has diminished, which bolsters price levels. Builders
have erected fewer houses because price increases for materials were boosting their costs dramatically, and they could not afford to build and sell at a loss.
New homes sold in the first quarter dropped from 97 last year to a mere 58 this year. They are
holding out against any cost-cutting, however. Both the average and median prices for new homes
in the county increased by more than $20,000 or 10 percent. v
Ruth Stone
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Columbia bank rankings
1
B oon e C ou nty National B an k
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
YEAR
2007
2006
2002
1997
Offices
15
15
13
9
Deposits*
$811,791
$836,991
$666,405
$489,405
Market Share**
33.4%
35.7%
36.9%
32.7%
F ir s t National B ank & T r u st Co.
YEAR
2007
2006
2002
1997
Offices
9
8
9
7
Offices
10
5
5
6
1-yr % Change in deposits 11.3
5-yr % Change 42.8
10-yr. % Change 75
Market Share**
11.3%
8.1%
8.7%
7.5%
5-yr % Change 75.3
10-yr % Change 144
Market Share**
7.5%
7.6%
7.8%
NA
5-yr % Change 29.3
10-yr % Change NA
Market Share**
5.6%
3.7%
1.2%
NA
5-yr % Change 532.1
10-yr % Change NA
Deposits*
$76,261
$61,958
$25,610
NA
Market Share**
3.1%
2.6%
1.4%
NA
5-yr % Change 197.8
10-yr % Change NA
Deposits*
$76,070
$80,751
$96,490
NA
Market Share**
3.1%
3.4%
5.4%
NA
1-yr % Change in deposits -5.8
5-yr % Change -21.2
10-yr % Change NA
Market Share**
2.9%
2.7%
NA
NA
5-yr % Change NA
10-yr % Change NA
Market Share**
2.3%
2.9%
1.3%
0.3%
5-yr % Change 145.9
10-yr % Change 1,115
Deposits*
$273,816
$189,623
$156,189
$112,444
bank of am er ica
YEAR
2007
2006
2002
1997
Offices
4
4
4
NA
Deposits*
$181,884
$179,038
$140,716
NA
prem i er ba nk
YEAR
2007
2006
2002
1997
Offices
2
2
1
NA
Deposits*
$135,292
$86,681
$21,402
NA
ca l l away bank
YEAR
2007
2006
2002
1997
Offices
2
2
1
NA
u s ban k
YEAR
2007
2006
2002
1997
Offices
4
4
4
NA
reg i o n s ba nk
YEAR
2007
2006
2002
1997
Offices
4
4
NA
NA
Deposits*
$70,838
$62,893
NA
NA
Offices
2
3
3
3
If not
not,
should.
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UM B B a n k
YEAR
2007
2006
2002
1997
know this
person?
you
Market Share**
15.6%
14.5%
14.7%
14.5%
Deposits*
$379,294
$340,918
$265,555
$216,749
C o m m erce B anK
YEAR
2007
2006
2002
1997
5-yr % Change 21.8
10-yr % Change 66
Do you
Deposits*
$56,748
$67,121
$23,079
$4,670
bank of m issou ri
YEAR
Offices
Deposits*
Market Share**
2007
1
$42,173
1.7%
2006
1
$22,494
1.0%
2002
NA
NA
NA
1997
NA
NA
NA
Source: Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation
*In millions **In Columbia Metropolitan Statistical Area
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1-yr % Change in deposits NA
5-yr % Change NA
10-yr % Change NA
PUBLIC RECORD
Deeds of trust more than $250,000
$7,180,000
BROADFIELD PROPERTIES LLC
HAWTHORN BANK
LT 2B BROADWAY FARMS PLAT 15
$2,910,000
COUNTRY CLUB OF MISSOURI THE
PROVIDENCE BANK
LT 1 WOODRAIL SUB PLAT 1
$2,082,908
GRD PROPERTIES LLC
BOONE COUNTY NATIONAL BANK
LT 74 PT ALAMO PLACE
$1,750,000
FALLING LEAF LLC
PROVIDENCE BANK
LT 1 BLUFF RIDGE PLAT 1-F
$1,500,000
RETINA PROPERTIES LLC
COMMERCE BANK
LT 1C CENTERSTATE PLAT 11A
$1,478,652
GRASSLAND RENTALS LLC
LT 17 BL 8 GRASSLANDS SUB PLAT 6
$1,375,000
BEACON STREET PROPERTIES LLC
BANK OF MISSOURI THE
LT 501 AUBURN HILLS PLAT 5
$1,250,000
TRIPLE L MINISTORAGE LLC
PREMIER BANK
LT 202 BOCOMO INDUSTRIAL PARK
PLAT 1
$775,000
TIMBERLAKE, MARK AND LOTTA
HAWTHORN BANK
LT 5 FF RICE & QUARLES SUBDIVISION
$717,000
WISE CHOICE CONSTRUCTION INC
PREMIER BANK
STR 24-50-12 /S/SE SUR BK/PG:
2777/165 AC 39.08
$700,000
BRB REVOCABLE TRUST AND
BROCK BUKOWSKY
COMMERCE BANK
STR 19-47-12 //S
$659,439
KAPLAN, MICHAEL LIVING TRUST
THE
MERCHANTS & FARMERS BANK
(COLUMBIA)
STR 2-50-13 /E/SW AC 30.000 FF
WITH EASEMENT
$623,500
DAMPIER, WILLIAM AND KIMBERLY
FIRST NATIONAL BANK & TRUST
CO
LT 5 HERITAGE WOODS PLAT NO 1
$605,800
GILPIN, LEONARD AND SUSAN
COMMERCE BANK
LT 300 OLD HAWTHORNE PLAT
NO 3
$540,000
GROSSNICKLE, GARY AND JOYCE
LT 2 BACKUS SUB PLAT 1
$535,000
JMLK LLC
UMB BANK
LT 5D-1 COLUMBIA INDUSTRIAL
DEV CORP PLAT 2 LT 5D
$502,501
DEXTER, STEVEN AND ANN;
CHARLES AND SHERYL MCGRUDER
COMMERCE BANK
LT 1 PL 1 MEXICO GRAVEL SUB
$498,100
SAIF, ADEL N ABU AND HODA
CO
LT 28 WEST LAWN SUBDIVISION
PLAT NO 1
$450,000
HARPER, DENNIS AND SARA
LT 155 PT COLUMBIA
$428,523
SAPP, SHAWN AND JANIS
COMMERCE BANK
STR 20-49-13 /NE/SE FF W/ EXCEPTION
$403,750
HAPPYTIME EXCHANGE LLC
CO
LT 154 PT COLUMBIA
$400,000
PETERS, WALTER AND STACY
CO
LT 7 BLUFF CREEK ESTATES PLAT 1
$400,000
SIVARAMAN, MANJAMALAI AND
SUJATHA
HAWTHORN BANK
LT 161 HERITAGE ESTATES PLAT
NO 1
$400,000
MILAM CONTRACTING LLC
HAWTHORN BANK
LT 304 EWING INDUSTRIAL PARK
PLAT 3
$385,000
WILSON, JAY AND TAMMY
HAWTHORN BANK
LT 128 BELLWOOD PLAT NO 1
$384,625
LIGHTHOUSE COMMUNITY
CHURCH
CALLAWAY BANK THE
STR 16-48-12 //S SUR BK/PG: 836/831
$375,000
PETERS, WALTER RUSSELL JR AND
STACY
CO
LT 401B VILLAS AT OLD HAWTHORNE PLAT 4
$368,000
MCCLAREN, WILLIAM AND
DONNA
CARNEGIE MORTGAGE LLC
LT 21A HIGHLANDS PLAT 3
$336,000
SCOTT, MYRON AND MICHELE
FLAGSTAR BANK
LT 401 FF THORNBROOK PLAT 12
$335,000
ROELANDS, JENNIFER
BANK OF AMERICA
LT 113 AVALON PLAT 1-A
$335,000
GILBERT, ERIC J
BANK OF AMERICA
LT 113 AVALON PLAT 1-A
$331,987
JAMES, DAREN AND JULI
COMMUNITY FIRST BANK
LT 15 THORNBROOK PLAT NO 1
$315,000
MILBURN I LIMITED PARTNERSHIP
THE MERCHANTS & FARMERS
BANK (COLUMBIA)
LT A PT FARLEYS SECOND ADD
$310,000
OVERTON, KEITH AND JENNIFER
PREMIER BANK
STR 29-49-14 /NW/SW
$307,800
SHAY, ROBERT AND ELIZABETH
LT 18 CIMARRON ESTATES
$304,000
COEN, WILLIAM AND JOETTA
FIRST NATIONAL BANK OF AUDRAIN COUNTY
LT 202 BLUFF CREEK ESTATES PLAT
2-A
$304,000
LEFEVRE, MICHAEL AND JUDITH
LT 50 COUNTRY CLUB FAIRWAYS
PLAT 2
$300,820
RICKS, CHRISTOPHER AND ELIZABETH
SHELTER FINANCIAL BANK
LT 47 HERITAGE MEADOWS PLAT 3
$300,000
FIVE RIVERS LLC
COMMERCE BANK
LT 1 BL C CLARK & HINMANS
$280,000
EDDY, JOE AND KELLY
EDWARD JONES MORTGAGE LLC
STR 4-48-14 /E/SE SUR BK/PG:
642/963 AC 17.750
$275,850
BORNING, ROBERT AND KARIN
PHH MORTGAGE CORP
LT 25 STRATFORD CHASE
$273,750
HEIMANN, ROBERT AND NANCY
COUNTRYWIDE BANK
STR 31-51-11 //NW SUR BK/PG:
1099/959 FF TRACTS 4,
$270,000
LT 21A COUNTRY CLUB VILLAS
REPLAT LOT 21
$261,000
HUGHES, THOMAS AND CAREY
MID AMERICA MORTGAGE SERVICES INC
LT 303 CASCADES PLAT NO 3 THE
$261,000
LT 21A COUNTRY CLUB VILLAS
REPLAT LOT 21
$255,000
MARDOYAN, JEFF AND JEANIE
MISSOURI CREDIT UNION
LT 26 PT MIDWAY WEST SUB PLAT 2
$252,901
THARP, DANNY AND DARLA
ALLIED MORTGAGE GROUP INC
LT 86 MILL CREEK MANOR PLAT
NO 1
$252,811
WOLF, ADAM P
PALMYRA STATE BANK
STR 29-48-13 //SW
$250,000
OVERTON, FRED AND CHERYL
OVERTON, BETTY J TRUST
STR 29-49-14 //S
$250,000
TWENTER, BYRON AND SUSAN
COMMERCIAL TRUST CO
STR 11-50-13 //SE SUR BK/PG:
1502/526 FF TRACT 1
Previews and reviews of mid-Missouri events
By Brent Beshore, owner and CEO of Event Solutions
cbt calendar of events
Latest in Event Trends
Keeping the Kids Entertained: While classic children’s activities such as face painting and
magic can be fun, they can also be outdated and mundane. Some new kid-friendly activities
are arising on the scene, and they might even make you wish you were a kid again:
Mini Yogis, founded by Shana Meyerson, leads children ages 2 to 16 in yoga exercises specifically designed for children. The sessions incorporate music, toys, books and much more.
This is a great option for hyperactive youngsters you would like to calm down.
Another fun idea to keep the kids entertained and give them a creative party favor that won’t
end up in the trash can is hiring a mobile silk screening press, like the one offered by Hit and
Run. The children get to help design their own shirt and watch it being made.
Non-Alcoholics Anonymous: Creative cocktails for non-drinkers can ensure that none of
your guests feel left out. There are several options that can make a splash such as non-alcoholic wines and beers and signature “mocktails.” Ideally, the “mocktail” provides a discreet
non-alcoholic option that still packs plenty of flavor, with none of the punch.
Faster food for meetings: Corporate events, conferences and meetings often have serious
time constraints. One way to save time and still provide for participants is to cut out the time
to eat. But this does not mean you have to starve your attendants or resort to the dreaded
“brown-bag special.” GoPicnic is a company that has taken the idea of a boxed lunch to a
whole new level with their above-average ready-to-eat fare. Items such as prosciutto pasta
salad, granola and smoothies are just a few of the interesting offerings in a GoGourmet boxed
meal. Another option would be to buy local items and have someone in the office pack them.
This still saves the time and expense of a sit-down meal, but creates a local and interesting
option at the same time.
Wine lovers of the University Club
enjoy drinks during a wines of the
world tasting on June 12.
JUNE 2008
29
23rd Annual Missouri Business Week
June 29-July 3, all day at the University of Missouri campus
More than 160 students from over 100 Missouri high schools will
attend the five-day event designed to teach high school students
about the world of business. Students will be divided into “companies” and work together through workshops, realistic marketing/management simulation, team building and goal setting. The
students are able to attend the event based on $500 scholarships donated by Missouri Realtors. For more information call
800-403-0101, ext. 126, or visit missouribusinessweek.com.
30
There’s No Place Like Home…Community Celebration of
Home Ownership
9:00 a.m. at the Alumni-Faculty Lounge, S304 Memorial Union,
University of Missouri
Join community partners in honoring Home Ownership Month
with a morning of community presentations including a general
reception and mayoral proclamation from Mayor Darwin Hindman
followed by several home ownership presentations, the Money
Smart graduation ceremony and closing remarks at 10:30 a.m.
JULY 2008
9
Food for Thought Breakfast Series
7:30 a.m. at William Woods University, 3100 Falling Leaf Court
Presented by Shelter Insurance Companies, this informal
breakfast seminar features a speech by Dr. Taylor Woods, acting
Missouri State Veterinarian. The topics will include the USDA’s
voluntary animal registration and the impact it has on Boone
County. $15 per person or $12 by registering online at columbiamochamber.com.
1. “Cabaret” — July 2 through July 20 at the Jesse Auditorium
2. Stephens Summer Dance Showcase — 7:30 p.m. June 27 and 28 at the Macklanburg
Exploring Entrepreneurship Start-Up Class
5:30 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. at W1004 Lafferre Hall, Stewart Road and
Sixth Street
This is a start-up training session for those interested in starting a business and wanting information about general business
issues. Register online at www.missouribusiness.net or contact
the University Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship at
573-882-7096. $20.
3. “Classivibe at the Missouri Theater” — 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, July 16 at the Missouri
11
Hit List:
Playhouse
Theatre Center for the Arts
4. Boone County Fair — July 21 through July 27 at the Boone County Fairgrounds
5. The Blufftop Bridal Showcase — 5 p.m. Aug. 10 at Les Bourgeois Winery
Is your favorite charity holding a fund-raiser? Is your company hosting an event? Are you and
your friends throwing a party? Tell me about it at [email protected].
PREVIEWS
Dillard’s Wedding Showcase
Where: Columbia Mall
When: July 26, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Why: Make wedding resources available for brides and couples in the area.
Cost: Free
Details: For couples looking to tie the knot, this event will be a wonderful way to find out about
wedding resources available in the area. Guests will see fashion shows and demonstrations of all
kinds during a highly interactive afternoon. Experts in every aspect of the wedding industry will
be on hand, making this a great time to get those burning questions answered and help couples do
the research they need to discover exactly what they want, and don’t want, on their wedding day.
Guests will be entered into a drawing for several attractive door-prizes. Overall, it should be a fun and
informative event.
For more information, contact Ellen Schusteff, wedding registry consultant, 573-876-8600, ext. 5739.
REDI Board Meeting
11:30 a.m. in the Board Room of the new Columbia Orthopedic
Group facility, 1 South Keene Street
To attend the Columbia Regional Economic Development Inc.
regular meeting contact Michele Holmes at 573-442-8303.
16
Small Business Leadership Series
7:30 a.m. to 9:30 a.m at Columbia Country Club, 2201 S. Country
Club Dr.
This is the first in a series of free sessions offering a variety of
experts to help entrepreneurs. The July 16 session is “I Know
They are Out There Somewhere: Market Research Made Easy.”
Follow-up sessions are slated for Oct. 16, 2008; Jan. 21, 2009;
and April 23, 2009. All sessions include breakfast. Registration
is required either online at www.missouribusiness.net or through
the University Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship at
573-882-7096. Free.
Time Well Spent

special section - Columbia Business Times

Transcription

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