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Results for:

  • For Subscribers Only
  • By Adam Hughes |
  • May 29, 2006
Come Sail Away

Few lenders were willing to fund a new business designed to sell art via a yacht docking in wealthy cities. Support ultimately came when the company known for bulldozers and cranes climbed aboard.

  • Entrepreneurs
  • For Subscribers Only
  • By Business Observer Staff |
  • October 9, 2008
Economic Booster

Rod Casto works to attract startup and veteran companies to an officeand research park at the University of South Florida. It may be the most effective way to boost economic development in a downturn.

  • Entrepreneurs
  • For Subscribers Only
  • By Business Observer Staff |
  • October 23, 2008
Walsh: Review and Comment

The best way to restart the economy: Donothing

  • Opinion
  • For Subscribers Only
  • By Business Observer Staff |
  • September 11, 2003
Head Start

Developer Roland Rogers transforms old hotels into upscale condominiums. The result: A spike in property value and an improved look for the beach.

  • Entrepreneurs
  • For Subscribers Only
  • By Business Observer Staff |
  • December 10, 2004
Tampa to Baghdad

Stanley L. Martin shipped out to Iraq in April. Heis now a sought after criminal defense attorney in the war-torn region.

  • Entrepreneurs
  • For Subscribers Only
  • By Business Observer Staff |
  • August 15, 2008
The Healing Process

Greg Pilant knew he had a blockbuster product to mend hard-to-heal wounds, but costly regulations in the U.S. led him to gain clearance in Europe first. Now, he's got a licensing deal with colossus 3M to distribute his product all over the globe.

  • Entrepreneurs
  • For Subscribers Only
  • By Mark Gordon |
  • October 29, 2010
Ocular Opportunity

One of the Gulf Coast's largest eye-care practices seeks more growth — without relinquishing its obsessively tight grip on its vaunted customer service approach. It's a delicate balance.

  • Strategies
  • For Subscribers Only
  • By Business Observer Staff |
  • June 7, 2013
How the Florida Gators' defense managed to stymie FGCU ... for 25 years

In 1973, Southwest Florida was deemed too small for a university. It would take another 25 years until Florida Gulf Coast University formed to meet demand in the area

  • Opinion
  • For Subscribers Only
  • By Traci McMillan Beach |
  • July 12, 2013
Trash talk

In his search for a recession-proof business, Les Leith found it — in other people's trash. His waste removal firm aims to replicate the model nationwide.

  • Strategies
  • For Subscribers Only
  • By Alex Mahadevan |
  • December 2, 2011
Sweet Success

More than a decade ago, maple was the only syrup Americans knew. Monin's innovative approach to creative concoctions has changed all that.

  • Strategies
  • For Subscribers Only
  • By Matt Walsh |
  • April 29, 2011
More mush from the wimps; they blinked

When Florida Gov. Rick Scott delivered his first State of the State address in March to the full Legislature, he urged lawmakers: “Don't blink.”

  • Opinion
  • For Subscribers Only
  • By Mark Gordon |
  • August 30, 2013
Will to Win

From sawdust to sweaters, Judith Williams has an unbridled energy to sell it. She also has one of a business owners' most potent weapons: She's fearless.

  • Entrepreneurs
  • For Subscribers Only
  • By Amanda Postma |
  • September 30, 2021
Perseverance pays off for 25-year-old company

En-Vision America got its start with a father-son duo who set out to change the way impairments affected taking medicine. As most good stories do, it all started with a card game.

  • Strategies
  • For Subscribers Only
  • By Kevin McQuaid |
  • April 14, 2017
Triple Net Gain

David Sobelman largely pioneered the now-popular triple net lease investment deal. For an encore, he's forming a company around them.

  • Tampa Bay-Lakeland
  • For Subscribers Only
  • By Traci McMillan Beach |
  • May 23, 2014
Flood of Risks

Paresh Patel is a risk-taker, so he wasn't scared of taking on Florida's property insurance market. Now the engineer-turned-CEO focuses on maintaining growth.

  • Strategies
  • For Subscribers Only
  • By Mark Gordon |
  • June 5, 2014
Tax Men

Jerry Ogle longed to start his own business. His choice, a firm now in the middle of a growth spurt, was far from simple.

  • Strategies
  • For Subscribers Only
  • By Kevin McQuaid |
  • May 20, 2016
POWER BROKERS: Tampa/St. Petersburg Winners

For 2015, 20 companies and 40 individuals in Tampa/St. Petersburg were recognized on CoStar's Power Brokers list.

  • Tampa Bay-Lakeland
  • For Subscribers Only
  • By Michael Hinman |
  • June 19, 2015
Extending credit

Achieva's acquisition of Calusa Bank is rare for a credit union. It could help bridge two rival financial industries.

  • Finance
  • For Subscribers Only
  • By Mark Gordon |
  • January 30, 2015
Profit with purpose

Seeking to raise $100 million to convert rundown motels into profitable housing for the homeless sounds a tad bizarre. But longtime entrepreneur Harvey Vengroff might be onto something.

  • Entrepreneurs
  • For Subscribers Only
  • By Mark Gordon |
  • June 3, 2024
Embrace the suck: Lessons on how to rumble with vulnerability

Training mental health care providers to take care of their own mental health needs can be a big hurdle. One leadership coach teaches to start with courage — and to be OK with the hard parts.

  • Manatee-Sarasota
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