Growing Destinations

Craft cocktails are all the rage. Andy Ferguson and Josh Krall are the owners of Bitter and Pour, a popular cocktail lounge in Rochester, Minnesota. Along with two other partners, they opened the downtown Rochester hot spot in 2018. They discuss the history of craft cocktails, a specialty of theirs, and why they've become so popular. They also talk about the importance of fresh ingredients and consistency. With 40 craft cocktails on their menu, Andy and Josh want to be innovators, not trend followers.

Bitter and Pour
Experience Rochester, MN

Food Trucks are not new concepts, but they are growing in popularity and variety. Two culinary professionals share their entrepreneurial journey in the food industry, which has evolved into Food Trucks. Joseph Phillips is owner and operator of Jersey Jo’s, serving authentic cheese steak sandwiches in Rochester, MN and Chandu Valluri is a partner with Pine Island, MN based Infuzn Foods, delivering the fresh taste of Indian inspired cuisine to your doorstep. They have become collaborators and good friends and discuss the rewarding experience of adding Food Trucks to their businesses.

Jersey Jo's
Infuzn Foods
Experience Rochester, MN

Luke Hendrickson is a musician from Rochester, Minnesota. The four-time Midwest Country Music Awards nominee shares his story as a self-taught musician. He writes his own music, and since 2020 has released two full-length albums. With the pandemic hopefully behind him, Luke says it's full speed ahead with his musical career.

Luke Hendrickson
Experience Rochester, MN

Tiffany Alexandria loves travel and experiencing authentic places. She grew up in Taiwan and moved to Rochester, Minnesota in 2017 with her husband, a Rochester native.  As a lover of food, Tiffany started a foodie website, focusing on recipes from Taiwan, which also showcases her amazing photography skills. She's a big supporter of farmers markets, sourcing local ingredients and BIPOC start-up businesses. In 2021, Tiffany created a new event for the community, called Night Markets, bringing a taste of the Asian culture to Rochester and Minnesota. In 2022, the Night Markets are back by popular demand.

Choochoo-Ca-Chew
The Night Market
The Knotty Woodpecker

The summer travel season is heating up and revenues at hospitality businesses are the strongest they’ve been in more than two years. Two MN tourism professionals offer unique perspectives on growing the tourism economy: 

Linda Jurek is Executive Director of Visit Cook County in Northeastern Minnesota. Kris VonBerge is Executive Director of Visit Little Falls in Central Minnesota. Both tourism regions are rich with amenities for the traveler. And more opportunities are emerging to drive visitation through events and community collaboration.

Visit Cook County
Visit Little Falls
Experience Rochester, MN
Minnesota Association of Convention and Visitors Bureaus (MACVB)

Doug DeGrood has been a fixture in the Minneapolis advertising community for over 30 years. His award-winning work has touched many well-known brands. After he and his business partner sold their ad agency at the height of his career, Doug was diagnosed with cancer. This life-changing news brought a whole new perspective and a new appreciation for life. An avid golfer, Doug published a book titled The Right Side of the Fairway: 18 Golf Inspired Lessons for Healing, Preventing and Living with Cancer. Doug has a business consultancy and teaches advertising to college students. Ever the promoter, his newest venture is a canned cocktail: Doogie McShank's Refreshing Swing Oil, coming to a golf course near you.

Doug DeGrood
Experience Rochester, MN

The COVID-19 pandemic has certainly impacted campus life for college students over the past two years. MyLe Luong, a student at University of Minnesota Rochester and Alex Strelow, a student at Winona State University, both located in Southeast Minnesota, share their experiences of virtual learning, lessons learned during the pandemic, and the importance of being together.

University of Minnesota Rochester
Winona State University
Experience Rochester
Blog: A Semester at the Mayo Civic Center - Experience Rochester and Mayo Civic Center's Interns Share their Favorite Memories

In 2019, a new travel site emerged called Shrpa.com. It's an exploration platform connecting content creators with communities with an end goal of making it easier for people to get out and explore.

Chris Lukenbill is the co-founder of Shrpa.com. He's a serial entrepreneur from Rochester, Minnesota who found funding success for this new venture at pitch competitions. In 2021, Shrpa got the endorsement of the state tourism office, Explore Minnesota, which has provided underwriting support for communities, now 50 of them, to leverage this platform and highlight the best of their communities for residents and visitors. Shrpa has an aggressive growth strategy, which includes branching out in other states.

Shrpa
Growing Destinations Podcast
Experience Rochester, MN

In 2014, Ann and Steve Teget left their highly successful jobs in corporate America. Inspired by new adventures, the empty nest Midwesterners began publishing the Postcard Jar travel blog highlighting their many travel adventures. Ann and Steve will admit starting the blog wasn't easy, but they've learned a lot along the way, including how to live healthier, thanks in part to the Mayo Clinic Healthy Living Program. Over the course of two years, they've lost a combined 200 pounds and have adopted an attitude of experimentation, which has made their lives more complete and travel more exciting. They hope their storytelling influences others. As natural learners, they say locals always give the best advice.

Postcard Jar blog
Experience Rochester, MN

Events are important to communities. From 5K runs to farmers markets and festivals, events provide many benefits. The shock of the COVID-19 pandemic has greatly impacted the industry. In this episode, two leaders in the events industry share their perspectives:

Mary Anderson is President of Anderson Race Management. Her 25-year-old business, based in the Twin Cities, is involved in 200 running events a year throughout the country.

Holly Masek is Executive Director of the Rochester Downtown Alliance in Rochester, MN. Among her many duties is to program and activate the downtown for the benefit of the businesses, residents and visitors.

Both Mary and Holly shifted to virtual events in the early days of the pandemic, and they both agree that nothing beats live, in-person events.

Growing Destinations Podcast
Experience Rochester, MN
Anderson Race Management
Rochester Downtown Alliance