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Results for:

  • For Subscribers Only
  • By Business Observer Staff |
  • August 29, 2003
Broker of the Year: Big Box Master

From Clearwater in Pinellas County to Fort Myers in Southwest Florida, commercial broker David Conn works his magic. His specialty: Big box tenants such as Target and Staples.

  • Opinion
  • For Subscribers Only
  • By Mark Gordon |
  • May 14, 2009
Entrepreneur of the Year 2009: A Package Deal

Eric Baird has constantly pushed himself to do better at what is now his $26 million packaging and shipping company.

  • Entrepreneurs
  • For Subscribers Only
  • By Beth Luberecki |
  • November 26, 2022
Opera executive's first performance is an (Ian) comeback story

Hurricane recovery becomes the first item on Laura Burns’s to-do list in her new leadership role at Opera Naples.

  • Strategies
  • For Subscribers Only
  • By Business Observer Staff |
  • January 18, 2008
The Battle Royale

Independent restaurateurs need to figure out the Next New Thing - fast - in order to win the fight with big nationwide chains in 2008.

  • Entrepreneurs
  • For Subscribers Only
  • By Adam Hughes |
  • July 3, 2006
Immigration Quandary

Employers already face severe limits on hiring foreign workers in the United States. And attorneys warn that stronger enforcement of immigration laws is looming.

  • Entrepreneurs
  • For Subscribers Only
  • By Adam Hughes |
  • December 9, 2005
Coffee Talk (Tampa)

Hooting it up: Coffee Talk hears the U.S. Attorney's Office doesn't plan to retry Hooters restaurant co-founder Lynn "L.D." Stewart on tax evasion charges.UT dean steps down: At University of Tampa's recent annual family business awards luncheon, Joseph McCann III, the business school's dean, didn't mention he planned to step down from his post.Trump trumped?: Several days after a blog told about Amon Investments' plan to build twin towers taller than the Trump Tower planned for downtown Tampa, the Daytona Beach developer pulled information on the project from its Web site.Persystent recognition: Persystent Technology Corp., profiled in last week's Review, is out to transform the computer industry with its software that automatically repairs PC malfunctions.Rocky mountains, why?: The Florida Bankers Association is out with a detailed schedule for the group's 2006 convention.A top priority: The Tampa Bay Partnership has come up with a list of five "initiatives" to make the Bay area a more attractive place for business.

  • News
  • For Subscribers Only
  • By Adam Hughes |
  • July 15, 2005
Taming the Trail

Bradenton consultants push a project and development incentives as the best and quickest method to rejuvenate the sagging 14th Street corridor.

  • Entrepreneurs
  • For Subscribers Only
  • By Kevin McQuaid |
  • December 4, 2020
Tying faith between their teeth

Craig Sher and Will Conroy’s Backstreets Capital is a family affair that reflects the pair’s commitment to St. Petersburg.

  • Commercial Real Estate
  • For Subscribers Only
  • By Kevin McQuaid |
  • August 4, 2017
New Kid in Town

Liz Madzula spent two decades with GE Capital, dreaming about ways to relocate to Southwest Florida. Dilweg Cos. obliged.

  • Manatee-Sarasota
  • For Subscribers Only
  • By Louis Llovio |
  • February 14, 2024
Dolphin drives $32 million Clearwater aquarium upgrade

Winter the dolphin changed the fortunes of a once sleepy aquarium near Clearwater Beach.

  • Tampa Bay-Lakeland
  • For Subscribers Only
  • By Anastasia Dawson |
  • October 20, 2025
NYC billionaire behind St. Pete tower talks move to Tampa Bay, with plans to stay

John Catsimatidis is the New York City developer behind St. Petersburg's tallest tower, the Residences at 400 Central. He spoke about investing in the Tampa Bay region and, soon, calling it home.

  • Tampa Bay-Lakeland
  • For Subscribers Only
  • By Louis Llovio |
  • May 21, 2025
Citrus, land firm dishes on the transition to becoming a developer

The CEO of Alico Inc. told luncheon audience that the Fort Myers company began looking at changing its approach to business long before shuttering its citrus operations this year.

  • Charlotte–Lee–Collier
  • For Subscribers Only
  • By Business Observer Staff |
  • November 3, 2006
Battle Royal

Billions of dollars in home sales are at stake - even in the down market - as luxury realty firms duke it out for the tip-top of the well-heeled homebuyers. Two firms have hired 25 agents during the past month.

  • Entrepreneurs
  • For Subscribers Only
  • By Business Observer Staff |
  • September 24, 2004
Cultivating the Ranch

Following the crest of new home sales, Lakewood Ranch's Corporate Park has reached the top of the area's business park market.

  • Entrepreneurs
  • For Subscribers Only
  • By Jim Stinson |
  • August 2, 2023
Pasco County bank expands but also stays local

A chartered bank from Dade City is growing, thanks to cannabis, diversified income and customer service. It also recently promoted more than 20 employees.

  • Tampa Bay-Lakeland
  • For Subscribers Only
  • By None |
  • October 23, 2022
Sarasota moves forward on eliminating (some) affordable housing obstacles

Critics of the amendment changes say public comment is cut out of the process.

  • Commercial Real Estate
  • For Subscribers Only
  • By Mark Gordon |
  • January 11, 2023
Surgeon’s passion is to jump out of planes — with a parachute, of course

Dr. Jennifer Bocker has performed somewhere between 2,000 and 3,000 jumps.

  • Executive Diversions
  • For Subscribers Only
  • By Business Observer Staff |
  • October 5, 2007
'A Second Skin'

A Sarasota firm is first in line to use a building material that protects against a constant Gulf Coast threat: Humidity.

  • Entrepreneurs
  • For Subscribers Only
  • By Business Observer Staff |
  • July 28, 2006
A Lion's Share

Kraft Construction's strategy is easy to say, hard to carry out: Plan ahead. The firm has used long-range planning to grow 40% over the last year, passing $500 million in revenues.

  • Entrepreneurs
  • For Subscribers Only
  • By Adam Hughes |
  • May 18, 2006
Coffee Talk

Slowdown? What slowdown?: Judging from the building-permit data in Lee County, you wouldn't think there's a construction slowdown looming.The optimist: Just when you thought hurricanes, insurance shocks and rising interest rates were starting to choke off the phenomenal growth of Florida's housing market, at least one economist is staying positive.Neogenomics profitable: Neogenomics, a small Fort Myers-based genetic cancer-testing firm recently achieved its first quarterly profit.Remarkable individual:Ali Ebrahimi, president/owner of Houston-based Ersa Grae Corp. and developer of downtown Sarasota's prominent Plaza at Five Points, has a remarkable personal story.Chico's is buying low: The stock of Fort Myers-based Chico's FAS has been hit hard this spring following disappointing sales numbers.

  • News
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