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Strategies

    By
  • Business Observer Staff
  • November 6, 2008
Road Show

Entrepreneur Joe Hassani sought a less expensive way to help retailers advertise. The answer: Training people to entertain motorists while spinning a client's sign.

  • Entrepreneurs
    By
  • Business Observer Staff
  • November 6, 2008
Top billing

Operating a surgery center is as hard as operatingon a patient, doctors are realizing. That's whenthey call on Caryl Serbin and Judith English.

  • Entrepreneurs
    By
  • Business Observer Staff
  • November 6, 2008
Corporate Report

Gerdau Ameristeel of Tampabuys Ontario recycling firmWalter Industries board toissue new quarterly dividendFifth Third picks Call to headS. Florida bank operationsTECO Energy of Tampaissuing 20-cent dividendMidwest NeuroSurgery & Spinechooses Intergy EHR by SageAdvanced Ultrasound appointsRelations PR & MarketingDiamondhead Casino receives$1 million credit lineGold Standard unveils updated toxicology Web siteSpindlyville products available on the InternetJabil makeslocation devices for California firm

  • Industries
    By
  • Business Observer Staff
  • October 30, 2008
Gulf Coast Week

Alaka'i expandsAlaka'i Consulting & Engineering Inc., a Largo-based defense contractor that makes bomb-detection devices, has moved from a Pinellas County business incubator to a new facility in Largo that will allow it to expand.Gymboree closesA Tampa Bay area franchisee of Gymboree Play & Music centers, who sought protection from creditors in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in March, has closed some of its Bay area locations.Another Indigo HotelA joint-venture partnership of Seaboard Hotel Associates LLC, Tampa-based BayStar Hotel Group and St. Petersburg-based Ballast Point Group plans to begin construction later this year on a 168-room Hotel Indigo in downtown Tampa's Channelside District.Bed tax for BoSoxLee County is considering diverting 20% of the taxes it collects on tourist accommodations to pay for a new stadium and training facility for the Boston Red Sox baseball team.Visitor count dropsThe number of visitors to Collier County in September declined 12.9% to 57,700 compared with one year ago, according to consulting firm Research Data Services.Airport traffic dropsThe number of passengers who traveled through Southwest Florida International Airport in Fort Myers in September dropped 15% to 328,000 compared with the same month a year ago.Airport traffic decreasesTotal passenger traffic through Sarasota-Bradenton International Airport dipped almost 7% in September, but the drop wasn't as steep as officials thought

  • Finance
    By
  • Business Observer Staff
  • October 30, 2008
Choppy Waters

Strong headwinds from multiple fronts assail commercial real estate, but glimmers of hope peer over the horizon.

  • Entrepreneurs
    By
  • Business Observer Staff
  • October 30, 2008
Family Focus

Growing an organic clothing business organically takes the rightcombination of industry buzz and business savvy, two sisters are learning.

  • Entrepreneurs
    By
  • Business Observer Staff
  • October 30, 2008
Learning Curve

Joe Sterensis helped his own high-school-age children do better on test scores, then started a business to help others.

  • Entrepreneurs
    By
  • Business Observer Staff
  • October 30, 2008
Recession Chopper

Fixing old helicopter engines is close to being recession proof. AirTechnology Group expects 10% growth next year as governments and companies cut back on purchases of new helicopters and increase maintenance of older ones.

  • Entrepreneurs
    By
  • Business Observer Staff
  • October 30, 2008
Corporate Report

Former Wild Oats CEO Maysto lead Source Interlink Cos.CPC of America picks BC Techto make new medical devicesOrthopedic Development Corp.files suit against ex-distributorMIVA reaches content dealwith AccuWeather.comBrown & Brown Inc.increases dividendConcession club rated ninthin Golfweek's top 100 listSarasota CVB picks Rocca forGerman, Scandinavian outreachWalter Industries board toissue new quarterly dividendFifth Third picks Call to headS. Florida bank operationsIllum Productions to provide animation for "9 to 5" showL-3 to provide flight recording systems for AirbusBritish gas grill maker movesU.S. division to Sarasota

  • Industries
    By
  • Business Observer Staff
  • October 30, 2008
Warning Signs

Collier County told Jon McLeod he couldn't operate his mobile-sign trucks, but the entrepreneur fought back and won. It's anotherexample of the anti-business attitude that prevails in Collier.

  • Entrepreneurs
    By
  • Business Observer Staff
  • October 30, 2008
Puppet Profits

A pair of Brits on the Gulf Coast turned a T-shirt into a kid's toy - without giving up the T-shirt. Now they are trying to turn a profit.

  • Entrepreneurs
    By
  • Business Observer Staff
  • October 30, 2008
Financial Statements

View Financial Statements from Source Interlink Cos. Inc. and Jabil Circuit Inc.

  • Finance
    By
  • Business Observer Staff
  • October 30, 2008
Silo Subtraction

A onetime military attorney is tackling the Gulf Coast commercial real estate industry by refining a teamwork-first approach. But the market dip is proving to be a big foe.

  • Entrepreneurs
    By
  • Business Observer Staff
  • October 30, 2008
Winning Time

The timing has never been better for Jeffrey Neil Fox and his family, who run a retail business that caters to fans of the Rays, Bucs, Bulls and Lightning.

  • Entrepreneurs
    By
  • Business Observer Staff
  • October 30, 2008
Warehouse glut

Warehouses and distribution buildings in Lee County have seen vacancies surge as the housing bust and declining consumer spending force companies to retrench. Lee County government aggravated the situation by raising taxes on new construction.

  • Entrepreneurs
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