ThisWeek Keys 09/27/2012

http://www.thisweeknews.com/content/stories/Key-Bank-Keys-to-Success-stories/2012/09/Commercial-Works

Commercial Works continues to thrive because company officials know moving an office is more then just moving boxes: It’s about thinking and planning several moves ahead.

President and CEO Doug Hollingshead attributes that core philosophy of always planning ahead to company founder Dan Cordray.

“Cordray founded the company in 1973 under the principle of being a service-provider to business office moves only, which was unique at the time,” Hollingshead said. “Cordray didn’t have moving experience prior to opening this up, but as an entrepreneur, he’d worked with business-relocation people and uncovered this niche.”

At that time, according to Hollingshead, businesses had to pay exorbitant fees to avoid work downtime when moving offices because most movers only offered regular, weekday hours.

Before Cordray, most office moves were treated as just picking up boxes and delivering them, he said.

“Cordray started small with just four guys and a truck,” Hollingshead said. “He realized large business like Nationwide needed someone to manage a move without downtime, dealing with the planning and details, and that’s how we got started.”

Today, the Columbus-based company operates in seven markets in the Midwest and East Coast and is in the process of expanding into the Orlando, Fla., market.

“We’ve learned a lot along the way,” he said. “Our business has had to diversify and change due to a changing world, which is how we went from becoming primarily a moving company to a full-service solution-provider.”

When Hollingshead started with Commercial Works in 1985, technology didn’t play as large of a role in office moves and fewer employees worked offsite, he said. Today, he said, the space footprint for an average employee has dropped from 55 square feet down to about 20 square feet.

“That means we don’t move as much furniture, but the disconnection and reconnection of technology and equipment has become a much bigger part of our job and we provide those kinds of services,” Hollingshead said. “We diversified into selling office furniture and fixtures, as well, to smooth the transition and we also saw the clear need for a professional project — or move management — service for these businesses.”

Most companies do not move more than once a decade, Hollingshead said, and they don’t have staffs that are knowledgeable about how to manage all of the components of a major move when it happens.

“There was a study done by the International Facility Management Association that found 40 percent of people put in charge of office moves when that wasn’t their normal job ended up leaving the company within 12 months of the move due to stress,” he said.

“I think our key to success has been that we are able to pay close attention to the needs of our customers, to keep them productive in their business while we manage the move,” he said. “We work with a sense of urgency and as a team with an attitude that keeps our customers coming back.”

Hollingshead added that providing growth opportunities for Commercial Works’ employees is a key as well.
“Our team is our most important asset and we’re completely committed to growth to provide greater opportunities for them,” he said. “We don’t have a secret recipe locked away somewhere to rely on like KFC. Instead, it is our people that make everything happen.”
Staying ahead of the market is important to Hollingshead. An example of this is the move to a professional services style of offerings, including technology and now, with the Orlando expansion, greater involvement in furnishing hotel properties.

“Orlando is a growing market and we’re doing a lot more work in the hospitality business arena. The opportunities there are tremendous,” Hollingshead said. “We like to say we plan, we furnish, we move and we manage – those are the key things we’re focused on, and that is what we’ll keep doing as we expand our business.”

More information is available at commercial-works.com.

ThisWeek Keys 09/27/2012

http://www.thisweeknews.com/content/stories/Key-Bank-Keys-to-Success-stories/2012/09/Ohio-Sleep-Medicine

A good night’s sleep for their patients is the measure of success for doctors at the Ohio Sleep Medicine Institute

The Ohio Sleep Medicine Institute, established in 1989, was one of the first standalone sleep medicine practices in the United States, according to owner Dr. Markus Schmidt. The practice is focused on the diagnosis, treatment and management of all aspects of sleep disorders.

“What you often find in the field of sleep medicine is a lot of particular individual doctors focused only on one aspect of treatment, such as a dentist who might provide dental devices, or a throat, ear and nose doctor who offers surgery. With that direction, you may get a bias toward one option or another, based on the doctor themselves,” Schmidt said. “The problem is that there are so many disorders and treatments, and many people will have multiple disorders.”

One of the institute’s keys to success is looking comprehensively at patients’ concerns and needs instead of applying a one-size-fits-all solution.

“In many cases, a patient may have both sleep apnea as well as restless leg syndrome, so if you treat one but not the other, they may assume the treatment is not working, because it isn’t working for both,” Schmidt said. “To overcome that, we really offer a comprehensive treatment program to discover all the issues that need to be treated.”

This comprehensive nature of treatment is something Schmidt said his father, Helmut, pioneered when he first opened the practice.

“My father was a pioneer in sleep medicine and the first president of the American Board of Sleep Medicine,” Schmidt said. “He helped transform this unique specialty into a well-established medical field, and it was his passion that inspired me to join the practice.

“I would say it is a philosophy brought on by my father, that through all levels of our practice, from staff to the doctors and patients, that we really listen to the patients and spend the time necessary with them to really get that comprehensive understanding of their issues.”

The practice currently includes Schmidt and Dr. Asim Roy, along with 15 employees at two locations, 4975 Bradenton Ave., in Dublin, and 7277 Smith’s Mill Road, in New Albany.

“Because of our strong commitment to patient care, we’ve seen a steady patient increase, many of whom are seeking a sleep physician who can provide long-term management of their sleep disorder,” Schmidt said. “We work in close collaboration with their general practitioners, specialists and, more recently, dentists.”

According to Schmidt, an important aspect of helping patients, as well as other sleep disorder professionals, is education. To that end, the Ohio Sleep Medicine Institute offers information to the public on its website, sleepmedicine.com, and hosts a yearly symposium for health professionals.

Innovative uses of technology, for education, treatment and medical records, gives the Ohio Sleep Medicine Institute an advantage when serving patients, Schmidt said.

“The bottom line for us is that we really take the patient’s best interest in mind. We’re advocates for them and we’re innovating with technology to provide the highest level of care, despite current economic challenges,” Schmidt said. “There’s not a week that goes by that a patient doesn’t say to me, ‘you changed my life.’ That’s a very rewarding feeling.”

ThisWeek Keys 09/27/2012

http://www.thisweeknews.com/content/stories/Key-Bank-Keys-to-Success-stories/2012/09/Via-Vecchia

Via Vecchia winery began life as a social group interested in a creative wine-making process.The mix of these foundational elements continues to provide the owners and customers with rewarding experiences.

Located in an 1880s-era warehouse at 485 S. Front St., Columbus, Via Vecchia started as an opportunity for the owners to produce wine in a traditional way, but quickly became more than just a winery.

“It got started as a very social thing,” co-creator Paolo Rosi said.

Rosi, along with Michael Elmer, began hosting a wine-making club through a former mutual employer.

“I had some wine-making equipment and spoke with some coworkers about getting grapes and people began asking if they could help and learn,” Rosi said. “We made more and more each year until we got to the point of making 200 gallons, which is when the state requires you to be licensed, which is a big deal, so we lost some members at that point.”

In 2006, Via Vecchia became a licensed winery in the state of Ohio and began establishing a retail presence.

“When we moved into this location in 2010, we planned to open up to the public like most wineries, with some meals and tastings and a little entertainment,” Elmer said. “We are far different today then what we planned, but that’s what we mean: This is a creative process; there’s an art to what’s being done and we’re still evolving.”

When the duo moved into the building it was a raw space, still dirty and badly in need of paint – but Rosi and Elmer said they could see the potential in the architecture. Their first event clients did, as well.

“Paolo and I were painting the walls when we had a couple come in off the street,” Elmer said. “They were marveling at the architecture and asked if they could get married there. Well, the place was so dirty we had to wash up immediately after working there for our spouses to let us back into the house, so you couldn’t imagine.”

“But they asked if they could do the decorations and everything and so we said OK,” Rosi said.

That was when they realized that the space filled a niche for creative event-planners who didn’t want to be forced to choose a specific decoration style, caterer or anything else.

“We have people coming in and make this into a big-top tent and such — things other places wouldn’t dare let you do,” Rosi said. “This old warehouse is a very nice canvas on which you can do whatever you like and we are attracting a very creative type of people to transform the place.”

The winery is, however, still about the wine, he added, and all of the events are supplied with Via Vecchia’s handcrafted red wines.

“We have consciously decided not to take on more retail outlets since we want to be certain we have enough for our in-house events,” Rosi said. “We have maintained relationships with several local restaurants and we’re available at Whole Foods.”

Due to the less restrictive California market, which is where all of Via Vecchia’s grapes come from, Rosi and Elmer said they are looking ahead to a future retail push in the West.

“We use a very traditional method that doesn’t include any additives,” Rosi said. “We use the whole grape and mash it down and then we don’t touch it, but the barrel will sit for two years, so it doesn’t take a lot of time to produce but you have a long lead time for your product. We’re now comfortable enough with our supply to campaign in California.”

Ultimately, the two said, letting Via Vecchia clients create their own space in their own way is like how the wine creates itself naturally, without a lot of intervention. And that, they said, has been the business’ key to success.

For more information, visit viavecchiawinery.com.

ThisWeek Keys 08/23/2012

http://www.thisweeknews.com/content/stories/Key-Bank-Keys-to-Success-stories/2012/08/woodwerks

Good tools are right at hand at the ever-expanding Wood Werks Supply.

The company, owned by father-and-son team Ron and Todd Damon, currently operates a 25,000-square- foot facility at 1181 Claycraft Road as well as a smaller satellite store at 9009 Gemini Parkway.

“We started in dad’s garage and then opened the first store in 1990, over on Morrison Road, with about 4,800 square feet that we rented in a larger building,” Todd Damon said. “It seemed like we were knocking down walls to add space every year until we were just bursting at the seams.

“At that point, it was obvious we had to buy our own building, so that marked a major milestone for us.”

Father and son were previously hobbyist woodworkers; Ron had just retired from the insurance business while Todd was finishing college when they decided to open Wood Werks.

“It was a struggle to find quality lumber and hardware, as well as tools here in Columbus to support our hobbies,” Todd said. “When we realized other hobbyists were having that trouble, too, we realized there was a void we could fill. So we saw an opportunity and to our surprise, 22 years later, we’re at the helm of one of the largest woodworking stores in the nation.”

According to Todd, it is their passion for the craft, which is evident to their customers, that has helped build their success.

“Customers realize this isn’t just a job for us,” he said. “Our shops offer customers a very unique experience; it’s very hands-on and interactive. Oftentimes, we’re able to let them operate the products themselves to help them make a decision.

“We built a store the way we, as woodworkers ourselves, want a woodworking store to be.”

This concept extends to their employees.

“We’re completely staffed by woodworkers. When we all leave for the night, we go home and work on our own projects, and that shows in our level of knowledge we offer the customers,” Todd said.

Many of the staff’s personal woodworking projects are rotated in and out of displays at the store.

“Whether it’s a boat I’ve built or a piece of furniture one of the other guys made, the customers see that and know they can engage us and create a relationship that is about more than just selling tools,” Todd said. “That’s important because we’d like to be all things to all woodworkers, and within reason, we have anything a woodworker would need, from the smallest items to $250,000 CNC machines.”

One rapidly growing segment of Wood Werks’ business model is its online store.

“We’ve tried to create an online experience the accurately replicates a trip to our store,” Todd said. “There’s challenges to doing that, but we believe we’ve tried our best to express that we’re real woodworkers, not just an online merchant.

“Our business is growing again after a couple of tough years with the economy, but anyone who says the market isn’t getting better is looking in the wrong place.”

Wood Werks hosts an annual expo providing seminars and demonstrations; it is scheduled this year on Oct. 18-20.

“We’ll get 4,000 customers here in a weekend for the expo. We could never have done that in a smaller space,” Todd said. “There’s nothing more rewarding than doing what you have a passion for and building something with your own hands.”

More information about Wood Werks is available online at www.woodwerks.com.

ThisWeek Keys 08/23/2012

http://www.thisweeknews.com/content/stories/Key-Bank-Keys-to-Success-stories/2012/08/harvest-moon

The Garden Herb Shop of Canal Winchester sowed the seeds of success for its sister business, the Harvest Moon Café.

Husband and wife owners, Kelley and Nathan Doerfler, first opened the Garden Herb Shop four years ago.

Two years ago, the time came to expand, which led to their purchase of what was then called the Harvest Moon Coffee Shop.

“We started out down the street with the herb shop,” Nathan Doerfler said. “We’d been customers of the coffee shop for 10 years or more. When we realized we needed to expand, we talked to the previous owners about renting some of the space. However, they didn’t want to rent it; they wanted to sell the whole business to us.”

Their decision to buy led the couple to growing two unique but intertwined businesses.

“Our main intent was to grow the herb shop more than getting into the food business,” he said. “That began after I’d suffered some side effects from regular medicine and we started looking a little further into alternatives. Soon we found we weren’t alone in our alternative health care needs, so we decided to provide that for people.”

An interest in providing “well-researched, natural and organic health products,” guided the revamped Harvest Moon Café business as well, he said.

“We didn’t want to keep it as just the coffee house, so we changed the name to café and went item by item to see how we could change the menu to use ingredients without preservatives, that are all natural, or local and organic,” Nathan said. “We felt we could fill that demand in the community, so one of our keys to success has been listening to our customers  —  even though it meant becoming a niche business.”

Recently, the interior of the building at 7 N. High St. in Canal Winchester underwent a makeover, using several local craftsmen to create a new bar area in the café and to revamp the herb shop shelving to allow for more inventory. A new outdoor patio is currently being constructed.

“Customers have always been able to purchase wine through the herb shop and asked to have an option for drinking it here in the café,” Nathan said. “We were lucky that a liquor license became available to us, so we wanted to make sure and do it right, with as healthy and creative cocktails as we could provide.

“Cris Dehlavi created our drink menu using our own simple syrups and no pre-mixers or other artificially made ingredients. Almost all of our beers are local to Ohio.”

Nathan said the cocktails, like the food, may take slightly longer to prepare, but the quality is there and customers appreciate that.

He said creativity and flair are things that are only really available at a local business, and supporting the local community is important.

“We think it’s very important to put money back into the community and we support a local approach,” he said. “The more money put back into a community, the more it can thrive. We pay Jarrod, our social media guy, to also take pictures of the other stores in downtown and support them.  Showing all the neat options you have here means ultimately, more people will come downtown.

“So we believe, let’s just bring more people to our community and promote us all. That brings more people through the door. That type of cross-promotion has been very successful for us.”

More information about the Garden Herb Shop and Harvest Moon Café is available online at www.hm-cafe.com.