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Results for:

  • For Subscribers Only
  • By Business Observer Staff |
  • February 24, 2017
A clean business opportunity

A research and development project two years and at least $100,000 in the making at Naples Soap Co. is about to get a major publicity upgrade.

  • News
  • For Subscribers Only
  • By Mark Gordon |
  • April 4, 2014
Power Lunch: Simon's Coffee House

A popular restaurant in a Sarasota strip mall is amid one of its best years ever.

  • Strategies
  • For Subscribers Only
  • By Elizabeth King |
  • June 24, 2024
16 Gulf Coast companies make Inc.’s Best Workplaces of 2024 list

Companies from Tampa to Naples made the business magazine's list of the best employers in the country.

  • Florida
  • For Subscribers Only
  • By Mark Gordon |
  • October 10, 2023
Fast-growing brokerage buys real estate company from controversial builder

Re/Max Alliance Group now has 13 offices in the region.

  • Manatee-Sarasota
  • For Subscribers Only
  • By Mark Gordon |
  • October 22, 2023
Outdoor retailer REI sets mid-November opening date for Sarasota store

The Seattle-based outdoor gear and clothing brand's other store on the west coast of Florida is in Tampa.

  • Manatee-Sarasota
  • For Subscribers Only
  • By Louis Llovio |
  • June 13, 2025
Shaquille O'Neal makes Florida return with opening of Tampa-area restaurant

The NBA Hall of Famer’s chain of chicken restaurants will open a location June 16 in Westchase.

  • Tampa Bay-Lakeland
  • By Elizabeth M. Stamoulis | Williams Parker |
  • September 5, 2024
The Intelligence may be Artificial, but how Real are the Risks?

Before diving into adopting AI–either by using an existing offering or creating a proprietary model, understand the related legal considerations.

  • Williams Parker
Sponsored Content
  • For Subscribers Only
  • By Business Observer Staff |
  • February 23, 2007
Florida's Who's Who vs. THE SHARKS

Carl Icahn, one of America's most relentless shareholder activists, celebrated his 71st birthday Feb. 16. The party: He launched another proxy battle, this time for control of Bonita Springs-based WCI Communities Inc.Icahn in recent months has acquired nearly 15% of the homebuilder's shares. He wants to replace the entire board of WCI with his own slate of directors, including himself and Hugh Culverhouse Jr., owner of Sarasota-based Palmer Ranch and son of the late Tampa Bay Buccaneers' owner, who, in his day, waged his own share of takeover battles.

  • Entrepreneurs
  • For Subscribers Only
  • By Business Observer Staff |
  • December 11, 2008
Coffee Talk

+ Irish companyopens centerGraham Peakin, chief executive officer of 1800Hotels.com, a hotel reservations company, started the company six years ago with no money, faxing Irish businesses a list of hotels from his tiny apartment in Dublin, Ireland each morning, waiting for replies.+ Luxury realty firmmakes its mark quicklyWhen Judy Green took over the Sotheby's luxury realty franchise for the Greater Sarasota market Nov. 1, she said it wouldn't take long for her to make some significant changes.+ Trust servicesare hot again for banksIt wasn't long ago that a bank's trust department was considered the twilight zone at many financial institutions. + Corporate tax debacleaverted by Florida CabinetThousands of businesses across the state will be spared harsh tax penalties next year, courtesy of a special rule passed by the Florida Cabinet Dec 9.+ Online buyingcreates more buzzWhile Christmas sales have been modest so far this year, online shopping is generating a little more interest in 2008, if the experience of a Tampa chief executive is any barometer.+ Newspaper zoning change makes for more office spaceSarasota city commissioners have approved a controversial zoning change for the owners of the Sarasota Herald-Tribune building in downtown Sarasota, in a request Coffee Talk reported on in October.+ Commissioner Judah:More than just the Red SoxRay Judah, chairman of the Lee County Commission, defen

  • News
  • For Subscribers Only
  • By Brian Hartz |
  • March 22, 2019
Course correction: Region looks to finally move forward on traffic solutions

The Tampa Bay, Florida, transportation situation could not get much worse. But a new source of tax-driven funds, between $13 billion and $16 billion, depending on population growth, will help shape a new transportation model for the region for generations

  • Strategies
  • For Subscribers Only
  • By Kevin McQuaid |
  • May 17, 2019
Tampa office development reaches inflection point

Demand for new office space in Tampa has surged because of job growth and a lack of new supply in recent years. Several developers are vying to build new space.

  • Commercial Real Estate
  • For Subscribers Only
  • By Mark Gordon |
  • September 16, 2021
Pair of startup banks in region raise $65 million to attack market

The market for new banks in Florida and nationwide is exceedingly dry. A pair of ambitious bankers hope to make it rain with some new entries.

  • Finance
  • For Subscribers Only
  • By Business Observer Staff |
  • July 28, 2006
Real Estate Briefs

Kite Realty Group buys three retail centersIndianapolis-based real estate investment trustInvestment group buys Metro DistributionNaples yacht club buys marina, plans Naples dockominium Sarasota hotelier acquires Regency InnForest Acquisition Fundbuys Lockwood Ridge apartmentDevelopers spend $15 millionfor Placida landACP buys two Clearwater office propertiesPrimerica buys on U.S. 301,developing retail/office plansClearwater's Gibraltar buy Tampa office building

  • Charlotte–Lee–Collier
  • For Subscribers Only
  • By Adam Hughes |
  • September 9, 2005
Extra Topping

Westshore Pizza franchisees discovered their shops came with some hefty finance charges. A resulting loan sharking probe nabs a mobster, but spares a lawyer and a retired Tampa Bay Buccaneer.

  • Entrepreneurs
  • For Subscribers Only
  • By Adam Hughes |
  • March 28, 2005
Snapshot of a Dream Job

After starting on the other side of the camera, Peter Turo, president of Photo-Tech Inc., turned his job into a 25-year career and a growing $6 million company.

  • Entrepreneurs
  • For Subscribers Only
  • By Adam Hughes |
  • July 1, 2005
Crisis Management 101

Eleven months after Florida's nightmarish hurricane season, roofers are still stressed. Here's how four company leaders managed in the eye of the storms.

  • Entrepreneurs
  • For Subscribers Only
  • By Mark Gordon |
  • October 28, 2016
Pay day

Pending regulations for a multibillion-dollar industry could torpedo a Tampa business with $210 million in annual sales. But Amscot isn't going away quietly.

  • Strategies
  • For Subscribers Only
  • By Elizabeth King |
  • July 4, 2025
Venice manufacturer, boosted by surge in AI-hungry customers, grows rapidly

With a client list that includes corporate behemoths — hello, Amazon and Meta — DMSI has grown in terms of staff and space. But the CEO says this is a temporary "bandage" amid the skyrocketing need for its products.

  • Manatee-Sarasota
  • For Subscribers Only
  • By Mark Gordon |
  • August 6, 2009
Leather Innovation

Entrepreneur Ron Simkins has had his sights on the multi-billion dollar leather industry for nearly a decade. He is finally moving in with what he hopes is a big bang.

  • Entrepreneurs
  • For Subscribers Only
  • By Mark Gordon |
  • August 27, 2009
Nine Lives

The recession is pervasive up and down the Gulf Coast, but a few companies have found ways to grow at skyrocketing rates. Nearly 10 such local businesses made a national best-of list.

  • Strategies
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