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Entrepreneurs

  • For Subscribers Only
    By
  • Jean Gruss
  • October 15, 2010
Film Quest

Can a group of enterprising young professionals start a nonprofit film festival in the middle of the worst recession in decades? Passion, luck, connections and partnerships with businesses all play starring roles in Naples.

  • Entrepreneurs
  • For Subscribers Only
    By
  • Mark Gordon
  • October 15, 2010
Out of the Rough

Two hospitality industry entrepreneurs think they're on to the next big thing in sports and family entertainment. They think big.

  • Entrepreneurs
  • For Subscribers Only
    By
  • Mark Gordon
  • October 1, 2010
Not Always Right

A Gulf Coast business owner fed up with unruly and delinquent customers finally fights back. He's made a lot of like-minded friends.

  • Entrepreneurs
  • For Subscribers Only
    By
  • Carl Cronan
  • October 1, 2010
Crowd Control

CrowdSavings.com, a Tampa-based website offering discount vouchers from local businesses, has extended its reach to the West Coast. Its owners see more chances for growth through buyouts of similar firms.

  • Entrepreneurs
  • For Subscribers Only
    By
  • Mark Gordon
  • September 24, 2010
To Do The Impossible

DR. ADAM BRIGHT - Age: 44 - Occupation: Orthopedic surgeon

  • Entrepreneurs
  • For Subscribers Only
    By
  • Mark Gordon
  • September 17, 2010
A Model Business

A onetime model planned ahead for the day her flashy career would end. She's now behind an anomaly on the Gulf Coast: A fast-growth business.

  • Entrepreneurs
  • For Subscribers Only
    By
  • Mark Gordon
  • August 27, 2010
Beyond eBay

Gulf Coast entrepreneur Jim Moore finally launched a Web site for his $20 million business after years of resistance. It was a lucrative move.

  • Entrepreneurs
  • For Subscribers Only
    By
  • Jean Gruss
  • August 20, 2010
Chasing the Sun

Two German engineers moved to the Gulf Coast for its sunny lifestyle. But the sun chasers also satisfied their irrepressible urge to create technology and a new company.

  • Entrepreneurs
  • For Subscribers Only
    By
  • Carl Cronan
  • August 13, 2010
Filling a Need

Dan Stewart has made the transition over the last five years from solving sinkholes to helping charities with online fundraising. SendSavings has a first-year goal of $1 million and he has reason to believe it can be done.

  • Entrepreneurs
  • For Subscribers Only
    By
  • Mark Gordon
  • August 6, 2010
Strength in Numbers

Independent restaurateurs in one part of the Gulf Coast have captured some marketing successes by banding together. The concept is now spreading across the region.

  • Entrepreneurs
  • For Subscribers Only
    By
  • Jean Gruss
  • August 6, 2010
Web leads

Randy Mitchelson is a former banker who saw the value of Internet marketing for the finance industry. He's glad he left banking in 2005.

  • Entrepreneurs
  • For Subscribers Only
    By
  • Jean Gruss
  • August 6, 2010
Built on a Hunch

Jay and Susan Weiss made plenty of mistakes when they launched their natural-products business for pets. But the entrepreneurial couple never gave up, even when corporate calamity nearly put them out of business.

  • Entrepreneurs
  • For Subscribers Only
    By
  • Mark Gordon
  • August 6, 2010
Keep the Cool

Not even a highly successful, specialized medical technology company on the Gulf Coast has been spared from some recession woes. A new top executive hopes some transformative moves will pay off.

  • Entrepreneurs
  • For Subscribers Only
    By
  • Mark Gordon
  • July 30, 2010
Contrary Moves

Rob Smithson redefined his personal fight against the recession through a serious of calculated, expensive, risks. Some of the gambles have started to pay off.

  • Entrepreneurs
  • For Subscribers Only
    By
  • Business Observer Staff
  • July 23, 2010
PBYes

Susan Howarth, the new president and CEO of WEDU, wants to open the way for more organizations to put programs on its various channels, including online. More opportunities for corporate support could result.

  • Entrepreneurs
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