Dream Focused – Business Minded

Success Stories

Wordsmith Wood Shop

Loveland area couple Gib and Lisa Coalwell made a few wooden boxes decorated with sayings but a large order put a toll on their small laser engraver.

The owners of Wordsmith Wood Shop needed to hire staff, get three more engravers and quickly learn manufacturing on a large scale. The couple blends handcrafted wood and engraved words to create heirloom boxes, bookmarks, recipe cards, coasters, magnets and cutting boards for their wholesale, retail and individual customers.

“At that point, we realized this is getting bigger than us,” Gib said.

The Coalwells received a purchase order in May 2018 that more than doubled their sales. They turned to the Larimer Small Business Development Center for advice after initially meeting with the Loveland Business Development Center in 2008 when the business was still a hobby.

“The one thing about the LBDC and the SBDC, no matter what we need next, they have it,” Lisa said.

The Coalwells originally didn’t plan to own a business but circumstances led them to combine Gib’s hobby with Lisa’s word-based career. Gib worked for 25 years in chemical manufacturing, and Lisa taught for nearly 20 years in Thompson School District, plus worked as an education reporter and freelance writer.

In 2001, Gib’s job ended with a company closure. He got a practical job but also acknowledged his love of woodwork after seeing a local artist at a craft show. He participated in his first craft show in 2001, launching Orion’s Woods named after his and Lisa’s view of the stars.

Gib started with custom-order boxes, selling them at shows, and then in 2011, a repeat customer wanted an engraved wedding gift. He hired out a laser engraver, and at Lisa’s suggestion bought one in 2012. They began engraving boxes for customers, but a year later, Lisa noticed the engraver often sat idle and suggested bookmarks with sayings to create a product supply.

“We always say it’s peanut butter and jelly that go together, Gib and Lisa and words and wood,” Lisa said.

In 2013, the Coalwells started an Etsy Marketplace online store, and with advice from the LBDC, rebranded as Wordsmith Gifts. They later became Wordsmith Wood Shop for an even better fit for their special event and location mementoes, logo branding and clever sayings and designs.

“We mix words and we mix wood. That’s what we’re at today,” Gib said.

In April 2016, the Coalwells went on a trip to Texas and stopped at a major retailer to drop off samples, receiving a large purchase order for 5,000 bookmarks. A year later, they added a second major retailer, plus started making ornaments and recipe cards, and their sales numbers doubled. Adding magnets in 2018 again resulted in another doubling of sales.

By then, the Coalwells realized they needed staff and met with Nikki Larcher, an SBDC consultant, to learn about human resources and now have five employees. They see other consultants, such as Mike O’Connell about business planning, Franklin Taggart about marketing and Amy Alcorn about social media. They also enrolled in the Small Manufacturer’s AdvantEDGE program and in April received a $6,000 scholarship. They meet with Jonathon Jaggers, a manufacturing consultant, for intensive training to develop a business plan and optimize their manufacturing processes, productivity and financial results.

“Their partnership is a blend of creative skills and excellent customer service,” Jaggers said. “They are responsive in filling their customers’ needs and requests.”

Clean Bees

Clean Bees Homekeepers Cleaning Up!

When Katie Straubel moved from Florida to Colorado in 2001, she took a job doing house-cleaning to make ends meet.  Eight years later, she earned a history degree from CSU, while continuing to work in the cleaning industry. Today, she is the proud confident owner of Clean Bees, a Northern Colorado cleaning company with 35 employees and over $1M in annual sales!

Katie says “I worked in the restaurant business, and learned customer service.  Our clients find us, because they want to own their time, not clean.  Our ideal customers are dual-income homeowners in their 40s and 50s.  When pricing jobs, we consider the frequency, size, and scope of the home. In 2020, I want our managers spending more time in the field to better understand our customers.”

Katie worked on two critical areas, recruiting/training/retaining staff and learning how to pay herself.   She comments on her employee “secret sauce” –   “I respect the trade, and genuinely invite them in like they’re family.  We’re not so big that we can’t have connection.  We hug them, and hold them tight.” Katie built a management team, including a general manager, office manager, sales manager, and trainers.

“My accountant Paul Matonis (also an SBDC instructor) said I needed some financial help, and I relied on the SBDC”.  SBDC consultant Andrea Grant met with Katie for one-on-one sessions, to better understand her accounting information.  Katie says “I’m super-grateful for Andrea. She’s caring, sincere, a wealth of information, and really trying to help out people.”

Three years ago, Katie joined the LoCo Think Tank, a growing peer-to-peer advisory group, that’s also been supportive.

When asked about her 2020 hot list, Katie says, “I’m looking at some org-chart tweaks, but my worry level is nothing compared to what it used to be. I have a sense of peace that I didn’t have for so long. With my stress level down, I think more clearly.”

Outside of Clean Bees, Katie gardens, raises chickens, and hosts dinners with her partner and ten-year old son.

Colorado Coffee Company

Creating Community Through Coffee 

Expanding a business during the difficulties that 2020 brought may seem impossible, but Colorado Coffee Company has managed to do that and more. The business has been a Northern Colorado staple for about 30 years, originally starting in the Foothills Mall in Fort Collins, but current owner Stacy Kliner has built a community around the established brand in the last five years as they’ve refocused in Loveland. 

It was poised to be a great year for the business, with an established location at Centerrastandout coffee roaster, award winning cinnamon rolls and a new location opening in downtown Loveland’s Foundry plaza. Throughout owning her first business, Coffee Klatch, the process of purchasing Colorado Coffee Company in 2015, and opening their two Loveland locations, Stacy has worked with the SBDC  and LBDC for about eight yearsI have always utilized the SBDC and the LBDC. Whenever I get stuck in a rut, I always realize that there’s this amazing tool that’s available to us and we take advantage of it… to get a jumpstart or new ideas. It’s been a gamechanger for me and all of our business ideas. As with most business owners, the year turned out to be quite different than planned. 

One thing Stacy knew before opening their new location at the Foundry was they wanted to create a community around the coffee shop, a mission which has shined through despite the challenges of the pandemic. In early 2020, Stacy gave birth to a new baby, shortly before the new location was slated to open in conjunction with the Loveland Sweetheart Festival. Come March, shutdowns started affecting local businesses and their brand-new location shut down in compliance with local health guidelines, compounded by their Centerra location being closed due to road construction. While at home with her family and two closed businesses, Stacy knew she wanted to support others. She put a call out on her social media, wanting to donate coffee and cinnamon rolls to new moms who were likely alone in the hospital, giving birth during a pandemic. The response was overwhelming and she was able to donate to new moms in Loveland, Fort Collins, and Greeley hospitals, eventually running out of mothers to donate to but the outpouring of support continuedThis quickly grew into supporting the COVID affected ICU nursing staff, hospital support staff like janitors, essential grocery workers, and even local law enforcement. “People locally were looking for ways to help and our place has been a vessel for people to give.” 

On top of providing thousands of cups of coffee and breakfasts to the people who kept our community running during the pandemic, the year was not even half over. Fires hit the Rocky Mountains hard in the summer of 2020, forcing many to evacuate their homes and bringing fire fighting support from all over the country to Loveland as a staging ground. We were driving by the hotel near our shop one morning and realized everyone coming in and out was affected by the fire. There were 120 people that were stranded at our doorstep and basically they didn’t know if they were going to lose everything, so we opened our doors and said we’ll provide you a free meal every day you’re here.” Over the summer they provided hundreds of meals to affected individuals and the community rallied around the business, with customers often giving money above and beyond the cost of the cup of coffee to help. 

Colorado Coffee Company is much more than just your local coffee shop. They continue to listen to the community and provide people the opportunity to give back. Throughout winter 2020 they’ve supported House of Neighborly Service with a toy drive and tree auction, are collecting socks and crossword puzzles for a local nursing home, and are happy to be a spot for coffee, caring and community, even through another round of shutdowns. Their example has even been an inspiration to their business neighbors, many of whom stepped up to give back as well. “It was awesome how it grew and people just hopped on board. A lot of people have been positively impacted this year.  

Mulnix Veterinary

When Dr. Michelle Thomas moved to Fort Collins in 1996, as a newly-minted veterinarian from Washington State University, she landed a job as an associate with Mulnix Animal Clinic. Little did she know she would one day own and operate that business.

Dr. Thomas and a couple of partners bought Mulnix Animal Clinic from the retiring founder in April of 2015. Mulnix had about 7-8 employees. She says “I found myself with a business. There was so much I didn’t know. I researched the SBDC’s website, and signed up for the business consulting”.

The Larimer SBDC had the perfect resource for her. Consultant Dr. Robert Coffey is also a veterinarian with strong financial skills, and the previous co-owner of a vet practice.  Dr. Thomas had this to say about his consistent support and help –  “Dr. Coffey has been an invaluable resource! I am sure he shuddered when we first met, at my inexperience. He helped me understand how to read financials and financial ratios.  He helped me use that data to improve the business, and make sure it was profitable. We would meet monthly to make decisions.  He helped with various human resource and pricing issues.  I am so thankful for his experience, mentorship, and friendship.”

In 2017, Dr. Thomas bought out her partners, and became the sole owner of Mulnix. She also received human resources consulting from Tina Todd with SimplyHR, and marketing consulting from Lee Porter.  In 2020, her business surpassed $1M in annual revenue.

In November 2020, Dr. Thomas elected to sell her business to Carevet LLC, who operates about 60 veterinary practices nationally.  She says “my staff, now at 13, is very excited about the change, and so am I.  It’s nice to have a larger team behind me, so I can focus on veterinary medicine. We’re also expanding into a 5500 sq ft facility, from our current 1800 sq ft.”

Dr. Michelle Thomas lives in Fort Collins with her husband and two almost-grown children.

Her advice to local entrepreneurs?   “Visit the SBDC!”

Blue Pine Construction

Blue Pine Construction is based in Wellington, and run by the husband and wife team of Mike and Lorilyn Bockelman. Their company does home  construction/remodeling, and a variety of outdoor “decking” projects, throughout Northern Colorado. Mike’s construction background, combined with Lorilyn’s retail management experience, makes for a productive combination. They have grown the business significantly over the last few years.

Blue Pine Construction now has 10 full time employees, including a new production manager. Mike is a Air National Guard serviceman, and tries to hire veterans when possible.  A project coordinator helps with client communication. Mike says “We spend a lot of time communicating status to our clients. Communication is our secret sauce.”

In 2020, Blue Pine Construction participated in a specialized SBDC program called ScaleUp Smart, which was significantly funded by the Wellington Town and Chamber of Commerce. The program produced customized marketing evaluations and recommendations. Lorilyn said “We didn’t have any active marketing. This program helped us clean up our website, and gave us the knowledge to tailor our marketing, and we work on select tasks every month now.  It also helped us focus on more appropriate projects. Right after completing the ScaleUp Smart program we hired a marketing company to help with our social media and
implement what we learned as well.”

Lorilyn adds “We got started with the Larimer SBDC through a HR class, done by Tina Todd of Simply HR. It was very thorough.”

Mike and Lorilyn also met with SBDC construction consultant Andy Meade. Mike commented “We discussed job costing, and also talked a lot about corporate structure; it was really helpful.” SBDC Director Mike OConnell also assisted with proactively using financial ratios to help meet profitability goals.

Today, Mike and Lorilyn report that Blue Pine Construction “is on track to meet all of our goals”, despite the current challenges of material cost increases and shortages.

“We got a great combination of SBDC assistance, across several aspects of our business, it wasn’t any one big thing.”, Mike remarked.

We at the Larimer SBDC look forward to continuing to work with this great local business!

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