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Results for:

  • By Business Observer Staff |
  • April 27, 2007
A Seller's Market

The private equity market continues to set records, raising $44 billion in the first quarter, up 67% from last year. Growth is expected to continue well into 2008.

  • Entrepreneurs
  • By Adam Hughes |
  • August 12, 2005
How Growth Brought Chaos

Craig Pisaris-Henderson, CEO of Miva, learned the consequences of making four acquisitions and doubling his company's size in a year.

  • Entrepreneurs
  • By Business Observer Staff |
  • October 30, 2008
Coffee Talk

+ How lowcan Chico's go?The stock of Chico's FAS, the Fort Myers-based women's apparel retailer, hasn't sunk this low since December 2000.+ Economic fallout:additional lawsuitsSo much for a decline in lawsuits filed against businesses. + Simple advicefor selling propertyReal estate has taken a big hit in today's economy, but there is still buying, selling and construction on the Gulf Coast.+ Brazilians buyRiverside BankA group of Brazilian investors plans to buy Cape Coral-based Riverside Bank of the Gulf Coast with promises to put $23 million in new capital into the struggling bank, according to an application filed with the Florida Office of Financial Regulation.+ Technology company scores with new advisersA little known Bradenton-based solar energy company has hit the big time with its roster of senior advisers by successfully recruiting a pair of former high-level federal officials from the Bush Administration. + Commercial real estatesales move alongWhile not yet reaching trend status, the news squeaking out of some commercial real estate pockets of the Gulf Coast is surprisingly good.+ Urban Studio Architectsheads to the MidwestMickey Jacob's Tampa firm, Urban Studio Architects, has done work outside of Florida before. + CorrectionIn the Review's Oct. 17-23, 2008 issue a real estate brief listed a wrong acreage. GULF COAST UNEMPLOYMENTWhat the data shows: Local area une

  • News
  • By Business Observer Staff |
  • May 2, 2008
Coffee Talk

Tampa entrepreneur sees houses move: The slowdown in the housing market has been reported nationally, but one Tampa company has found a niche in that industry and is seeing signs of a potential turnaround.Eastern Europeans look to Florida: When various marketing and branding gurus on the Gulf Coast coined a version of the 'Time to Buy' slogan for the struggling real estate market last year, they were mostly targeting Floridians.Lee foreclosures hit 1-in-33 households: RealtyTrac, the firm that tracks foreclosures nationwide, recently issued a report ranking metro areas with the steepest rates of foreclosures in the first quarter.Ms. Baugh goes to Washington: Vanessa Baugh, a Lakewood Ranch jewelry store owner who sometimes serves as the unofficial spokeswoman for small businesses in Sarasota and Manatee counties, is used to getting phone calls for help, sometimes even desperate ones.Bradenton bank losses one executive, gains another: Gerry Anthony, one of the grandfathers of community banking in Manatee County, is retiring from his position as chief executive of Bradenton-based Freedom Bank.Software back-ups can cost a little and save a lot: Through last year, former IT professional Dave Miller was running Westcoasthost.com, a successful St. Petersburg-based Web hosting business.Recruiter narrows the executive job search: The growing numbers of unemployed managers, supervisors and executives on the Gulf Coast and Florida could b

  • News
  • By Business Observer Staff |
  • April 4, 2008
Coffee Talk

Cabinetmaker struggles to be busy: In a market full of ominous signs, here's one that screams out as especially gloomyRue Education pursues nursing solutions: There is a problem getting enough registered nurses on the Gulf Coast and throughout the country.The Vineyards: Naples no-drop zone: You'll have to forgive prospective homebuyers for feeling shy about signing a contract to buy a new house in Naples these daysThousands of homes, still an optimist: When more than 50 employees of Lakewood Ranch-based homebuilder Neal Communities gathered recently to celebrate the company's 7,000th home, they got more than a party.Cape Coral spotlight: Harmful or helpful?: Does an article in The Wall Street Journal generate home sales, even if the tone is negative?A glimpse inside Wal-Mart purchasing: It is rare that a small business owner, a vendor or supplier, can gain access to officials from the world's largest retailer, Wal-Mart. Centex bucks trend, selling new houses: Despite the slowdown in the residential market, Centex Homes sold 77 new houses in 75 days during its recent winter-clearance promotion in four Hillsborough County communities.Women unitein commercial real estate: Women long ago smashed the glass ceiling in residential real estate, but men still dominate Southwest Florida's commercial real estate industry.Entrepreneur mom sells cloth diapers: Amy Carr's daughter Emily couldn't wear disposable diapers beca

  • News
  • By Business Observer Staff |
  • April 11, 2008
Coffee Talk

Unemployment rose despite tourism: Unemployment rates in Southwest Florida typically decline during the January-April months as the tourism industry hires more people.If you don't like them, join them: A philosophical battle of opinions over the concept of whether setting up auctions to sell homes is a good thing has been brewing on the Gulf Coast for the past yearUT business students win competition: Chalk one up for business students at the University of Tampa.Land sales slow, opportunities continue: Coffee Talk conducted an informal poll of land brokers in the Tampa Bay area and found sales are off substantially during the past yearAt least we're not in Flint, Mich.: There's plenty of dark humor going around these days at real estate gatherings as industry folks try to keep each other's spirits up.The guts to survive the downturn: Another sign of the rough economic times on the Gulf Coast: There has been a proliferation of seminars devoted to surviving an economic downturn.Take the Lee County pop quiz on taxes: Pop Quiz: How many separate taxing authorities does Lee County have?Forty Carrots center donation deadline looms: The Forty Carrots Family Center, a well-known Sarasota-based nonprofit group dedicated to early childhood and parenting education, is closing in on a deadline for raising money for its end of a unique commercial real estate deal.

  • News
  • By Business Observer Staff |
  • July 23, 2004
Marquee's Maker

As construction starts on the Marquee en Ville, Sam Hamad turns his attention to Sarasota's Main Street and a new 15-story condominium building.

  • Entrepreneurs
  • By Business Observer Staff |
  • October 24, 2003
Dearth of Dirt

Competition between local and national homebuilders has created a new land rush throughout Florida's Gulf Coast.

  • Entrepreneurs
  • By Mark Gordon |
  • March 29, 2024
Exit interview: Key moments in 30-year transformation of University of Tampa

Ron Vaughn’s turnaround strategy at the University of Tampa nearly 30 years ago was straightforward: Stop overspending. Find the big problems and solve them fast. And prioritize constant improvement.

  • Tampa Bay-Lakeland
  • By Elizabeth King |
  • February 28, 2025
Upscale Sarasota vacation rental company expands to Clearwater

The frenzied hurricane season didn't dent the enthusiasm — or wallet — that high-end vacation rental development firm Vunique Vacations has for the region.

  • Manatee-Sarasota
  • By Mark Gordon |
  • September 27, 2024
Six months later: The drama behind the $3.1B PGT Innovations sale

The blockbuster acquisition for window and door maker PGT Innovations took years to come together. It also took hundreds of phone calls, dozens of meetings and determined and competitive executives.

  • Manatee-Sarasota
  • By Mark Gordon |
  • August 19, 2022
Recession conundrum reaches deep into the region, with multiplying impact

Between an onslaught of data, inflation, job numbers and more, a solid grasp of what’s known as the dismal science has rarely been more essential to running a business better.

  • Strategies
  • By Adam Hughes |
  • June 9, 2006
Real Estate Briefs

Chartwell Senior Housing buys Venice Bella Vita centerHeartland purchases Venice Hampton InnThe Plumbing Place plans retail buildingMichigan firm proposes mixed-use projectLakewood Ranch to create 'urban hub'Investment group buys Burnt Store landDivosta Homes buys Verona Walk propertyBonita Springs Lodge buys AmericInnBethany Group buys Cooper's Pond apartmentsWoolbright Developmentbuys Murdock CarouselPulte Homes acquires land for Lakeside communityHearthstone buysTampa's Citrus Falls

  • Manatee-Sarasota
  • By Business Observer Staff |
  • May 15, 2008
Commercial Real Estate Briefs

Yacht dealer acquires site for showroomPort Charlotte group pays $55 a foot for Paulson flexFormer owners reassume Lehigh industrial park landThomas Ranch developer trades with countyLongboat Key resident buys former Starfish MotelRainmaker Trading Co. buys two Venice storesTwo office buildings sell for $19.25 millionGrocery chain Aldi buys land for Plant City storeTwo investment groups buy B-of-A buildings

  • Charlotte–Lee–Collier
  • By Business Observer Staff |
  • February 13, 2004
Unaffordable Housing

Why there's a shortage of affordable housing and how to end it.

  • Entrepreneurs
  • By Janelle Makowski |
  • January 2, 2004
'We're Having Fun'

Sarasota's SunCoast Bank learned the disadvantages of being nationally chartered. In 2004, it expects to make up lost ground.

  • Entrepreneurs
  • By Business Observer Staff |
  • October 3, 2003
American Made

Who produces anything here anymore? Tampa's Bison Investments Inc. does.Ignoring the offshore outsourcing juggernaut, CEO Birge Sigety is on the lookoutfor manufacturers that can make it in the good ol' US of A.

  • Entrepreneurs
  • By Business Observer Staff |
  • October 22, 2009
Battle Royale

Gulf Coast business owners hear the chatter about the supposed end of the recession. While many cling to optimism on that front, the reality is that 2010 could be another Toughest Year Ever for many businesses.

  • Strategies
  • By Jay Brady |
  • April 30, 2010
Banking on a Business Plan

Florida CFO Alex Sink's campaign for governor includes a new business plan to revitalize the modern Florida economy. But she has not forgotten her tobacco farming upbringing.

  • Florida
  • By Beth Luberecki |
  • June 16, 2017
Young Guns

Five top bankers in the region share their stories — and secrets behind their success.

  • Finance
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