The Bottom Line – Gail Miller assumed the reins of her late husband’s Group of Companies after Larry died in 2009. A professional softball player, Larry H Miller’s business empire began in 1979 when he bought his first Toyota dealership in Murray, Utah. He soon acquired more dealerships and even the Utah Jazz basketball franchise. …
The Bottom Line – Bob Wheaton, President of Deer Valley Resort, has worked at the resort since 1981. The resort has long prioritized customer service and hospitality. Between 2007 and 2011, Deer Valley was ranked #1 as the best ski resort in all of North America by Ski Magazine. Wheaton talks about his experience managing…
Startup Spotlight – SaraJoy Pond is Co-Founder of a new startup called Purpose Portfolio. Purpose Portfolio aims to help companies give back to charities and nonprofits working to make the world a fairer, safer, cleaner place. Their software platform works to help firm energize their workforce and easily let employees contribute to vetted charities of…
The Bottom Line – Founded in the summer of 2008, BambooHR provides HR software for small and mid-size companies. In just 7 years, the company has grown to approximately 100 employees, serves clients in over 80 countries and works with an impressive list of clients – including Lyft, FitBit and SoundCloud. Towards the end of…
The Bottom Line – James Lee Sorenson is a serial entrepreneur who has founded and run several large companies in his career, including Sorenson Media. If you have ever watched video on an Apple device or YouTube, you have used his company’s video compression technology. Jim founded Sorenson Media in 1995 after seeing this technology’s…
Startup Spotlight – Sam Stoddard encountered the byzantine U.S. immigration system a few years ago as he prepared to marry his fiance from Korea. Immigration is a $48 billion industry monopolized by lawyers who can charge you up to $2,000 just to file one vital document. It also can be a long and emotionally-charged process.…
The Bottom Line – During the depths of the financial crisis Travis Thorpe and his partner Jared Turner thought the time was right to start a company to help other small companies gain visibility online through Search Engine Optimization, or SEO. It is a process to help companies rank higher in online search results. Show up…
Startup Spotlight – We all perhaps understand the frustration of sitting in an idling car waiting for an uncoordinated traffic light to change at an empty intersection. Aspiring entrepreneur Mark Pittman thinks his business idea – Blyncsy – yields a solution. Blyncsy proposes to make it easier for municipalities to minimize congestion by digitally conducting…
The Bottom Line – Wade Bean is what is known as in the legal field as a “transaction attorney.” He makes deals happen. Bean is a corporate partner at the Kunzler Law Group in Salt Lake City. Whether the matter is for first time startup funding, a major acquisition, or an IPO, companies and investors…
The Bottom Line – Greg Warnock has been an early investor in several of Utah’s most successful high growth companies including Skullcandy, Mediconnect, Fusion-IO and Domo. He is Co-Founder and General Partner of the venture capital firm Mercato Partners. He also co-founded the Utah Community Foundation. Warnock discusses how Mercato Partners stands out among comparable…
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