Phil Castle, The Business Times Ginny Sullivan learned some lessons about the restaurant business during her appearance on a television makeover show. For one thing, Sullivan now realizes she doesn’t have to keep her Fruita restaurant open for such long hours to bring in customers. Good food and service will take care of that. “They […]
There’s something about a new year that inspires renewed determination to succeed — whether it’s quitting smoking, losing weight or, for that matter, increasing profits. In reality, there’s not a whole lot of difference between Dec. 31 and Jan. 1. But for the same reason we watch intently as an odometer rolls past the […]
Phil Castle, The Business Times: Based on the statistics and trends she observed in 2011, Annette Miller expects the Mesa County real estate market to stabilize in 2012. As the inventory of foreclosed properties shrinks and accounts for a smaller proportion of overall sales, what’s been a decline in prices should stop. Historically low interest […]
Phil Castle, The Business Times: Doug Van Etten believes low prices and even lower interest rates offer an attractive real estate market in the Grand Valley not only for buyers, but also investors. Investors need help, though, in tracking trends, identifying potential properties to purchase and dealing with legal and tax issues. That’s why Van […]
Phil Castle, The Business Times: Colorado members of a small business advocacy group oppose efforts to impose taxes on services or privatize roads and bridges. Members of the National Federation of Independent Business in the state also oppose any efforts to make it illegal for employers to discriminate against job applicants who’re unemployed. At the […]
Phyllis Norris knows full well the importance of customer service. Norris worked for City Market for 40 years, the last 10 as president overseeing the operations of 38 grocery stores. Although she’s now retired, Norris continues to stress customer service in a leadership role of a different sort as chairwoman of the Grand Junction Area […]
Phil Castle, The Business Times: The Mesa County unemployment rate remains unchanged at 8.5 percent for a third straight month, a flat line on a graph that’s seen as an encouraging indicator of more stability in the local labor market. “We could be seeing some trends that the whole economic picture is improving …. or […]
Phil Castle, The Business Times: Dave Booher believes that for every food there is a seasoning. A time to marinade meats, a time to spice up soups and a time to really put the pop into popcorn. And Booher has literally made it his business to supply the unique salts to do the job. “It […]
Phil Castle, The Business Times: A measure of refinancing activity and home sales in Mesa County surged during the third quarter compared to the same span last year. But even with the increase, the number of deeds of trust released in the county remain far below levels of two and three years ago. “It’s an […]
Phil Castle, The Business Times A company plans exploratory drilling in the summer as part of efforts that could lead to the opening of a large underground coal mine that extends production in the North Fork Valley of Western Colorado. A nearby mining company has similar plans to modify federal leases and explore for additional reserves […]