Melissa Jones-Hanscom

Figgy's Food Truck

Having had careers in general contracting, management, and food service, Melissa Jones-Hanscom decided it was time to combine her creative and management skills with her passion for excellent food.  In 2011, Melissa launched Figgy's Food Truck.

Melissa and Ruthie Painter, long-time SBDC business advisor and food service expert, crafted an excellent business plan and financial strategy that resulted in securing the financing to start her business.  Now, after 1 1/2 years, Figgy's has grown successfully and sustainably.

You can find Figgy's Food Truck on the corner of Riverside and 8th in Medford, across the street from the SOU SBDC office.  Figgy's shares the space with several other food trucks with the vision of creating a mobile food court with 6-10 vendors with different food and a common eating area (as seen in major cities like Portland).  All of the food is prepared fresh, on-site, and made from local and sustainable ingredients.

Dianna Moore & Donn Knokey

e-Shelf, LLC.

As a new startup company, the SBDC helped us improve every aspect of our business, from creating a business plan, fine tuning our financials, to helping locate the "right" market. 

It is reassuring to know that there are people like Jack [Vitacco] and Russ [Kennedy] giving their expert knowledge and time to help a new business grow.  E-Shelf has changed from a concept to a profitable business with their guidance.

Heather Wells

Middleford Yarn Co.

We came to the SOU Small Business Development Center not knowing how we were going to purchase our store.  If it wasn't for Rob saying plain and simple this is how it's done, we wouldn't have continued the process.  He broke it down to what changes needed to be made and we finally had that duh! moment.  It is so nice to have the SBDC as a local brain trust who we can rely upon whenever a bump comes along and know there are resources out there to help.  We are looking forward to continue to work with the SBDC as we develop our business plan.

Brian Hawkins

Brian J. Hawkins, Architect, PC

Rick Leibowitz brought a wealth of hands-on experience to our Small Business Management class, with great examples of how to apply the ideas and principles taught in class.  The curriculum was loaded with practical tools and exercises, and he provided a tremendous amount of encouragement to me and the other students.  He challenged us to do better.

I really appreciate the advice and guidance Rick provided in our F2F meetings, which he used to tune the class work specifically to the needs of my business.

I look forward to working with Rick and the other staff members at the SOU SBDC in the future.  I am very grateful that the staff recruited me for the Small Business Management Course.  It's been a great investment of my time.  I am sure that there will be other classes offered which have the potential to give my business a boost.

Taffy Shahbozian

Organic Intervention

I would like to thank Jack, Ruthie, and Brigitte for their dedicated service to me and many other small business owners, who without their professional mentoring their businesses would have simply remained a dream.

I especially appreciate the positive attitudes and patience as my plan changed over the course of the year.  Each step of the way my needs and questions were answered.Thank you for finding the scholarships and making it all work.  Honestly, without you I could not have done it.  I plan to continue to gleam from the rich source of information as it is offered.

Debby Hartnell

Debby's Diner

The SOU SBDC has an excellent team of advisors.  Rob Cain helped us develop the business plan needed to finance our new building.  After moving to our new location, we went from 7 to 25 employees!  We continued working with Rob to create an employee manual that helped us organize and manage the new additions to our team.

Nathan Willard

SoundScape: Mobile Hearing Aid Specialists

I knew how to do my job, but lacked the training on how to start a business.  Right off the bat, the SOU SBDC provided me with the tools and guidance to run my business.  Many people think to themselves that they're too busy to attend workshops or meet with an advisor.  But, the reality is these invaluable services are necessary to become better organized and ultimately make it easier to run a business.

Shari and Matthew Botermans

American Leak Detection of Oregon

The SBDC Next Level program did wonders for our business.  The advisors pulled us out of our day-to-day operations and made us look at the big picture of where we wanted our business to go and how to get there.  They showed us how to work "on" our business, not just "in" our business as owners.  The program helped us grow our revenue by 21% so far this year (2012).  It's an awesome program for any small business.

Betsy Lewis

Art Event Productions

Betsy Lewis has always had a passion for art. Although her background is in law and education, she has been drawn to artists her entire life. In 2008 she decided to face the risks and daunting tasks of starting her own business assisting artists with the "business side" of art. Betsy began to build her business intuitively, but eventually decided it would be good to get some outside help as well.

She attended orientation groups and met with Ruthie Painter, Small Business Development Center business adviser.   More

Diane Paulson and David Eliasen

Cascade Peak Spirits

In 2004, Diane Paulson met David Eliasen over vodka martinis and they discovered that they shared a passion for spirits. They also fell in love and got married. In 2006, they decided that they would like to make their own vodka. They visited distilleries and micro-distilleries all over Oregon trying to learn everything they could about how to make spirits. The next step for Diane and David was learning how to create a business. They contacted the Small Business Development Center for assistance.  More

Carlos Delgado Architect LLC

Architect, Carlos Delgado, came to the Rogue Valley in 1997 while working for a commercial architecture firm in San Francisco. He decided to stay in Ashland and start his own company. He applied his passion for saving the environment to looking at potential ways to reduce the carbon footprint of buildings to zero.  Carlos had overlooked the business aspect of architecture in college. A friend recommended that he go to the SBDC to gain a better understanding about the functions, goals and day-to-day operations of running a small business.  More

David L. Kruger

Cuisine De Jour LLC

Customers are continuously wowed by the style of international cuisine Chef David Kruger learned while working at Donald Trump's private estate, The Mar-A-Lago Club.  David returned to the Rogue Valley and, with the help of his parents, started  Cuisine De Jour. General Manager, Don Kruger admits that the level of success they are now enjoying wasn't always there. They had to learn the other side of the business -- not just how to prepare the amazing food.  The Small Business Development Center was able to help.  More

Nikola and William Moore

Roscoes' BBQ

Back in 2006, what would one day become Roscoe's BBQ was a successful stand at the city farmer's market. Nikola started to consider the option of upgrading her farmer's market operation into a full-scale restaurant and bar. With the help of the SOU Small Business Development Center, Nikola learned about the various licenses she would have to procure and the hurdles she would have to jump in order to open her restaurant's doors. Roscoe's is now one of the most popular destinations for quality food and music in southern Oregon, and its popularity only continues to expand.  More

Mike Green

Vizitnow

Mike Green had a vision for software that could allow tourists to navigate detailed 3D models of cities they planned to visit. As a first-time CEO, Mike was learning as he went through the process of setting up his company. Although Mike felt that there is value to learning through experience, he also felt that there are more appropriate times to rely on trial and error than when you are starting a business -- especially for the first time.  More